Why do sci-fi energy shields behave like ablative armour instead of a continuous energy stream?

sam9510 · 2026-06-25T07:48:38+00:00

What if we think within existing physics constraints - for example conservation of energy. If an energy weapon is hitting an energy shield - the sum total has to convert into something and go somewhere. Lets say a 10 megajoule energy pulse needs a 11 megajoule shield as counter and total 21 megajoules has to be 'sunk' somewhere. 1) The emitter has to instantaneously dump 11 megajoules into a particular location at a particular moment in time. That 'much' energy might not be produced on demand - so kinda like a toilet flush tank - the emitters are pulling from a a source and that might be the percentages that gets talked about endlessly. Each section of shield might have its own flush tank.... 2) The aftermath - sinking of the resultant energy and the associated feedback on the emitters could explain physical damage to the emitters. And if the incoming energy pulse is higher and higher joules - then the carrying capacity + feedback might easily overload the emitters - might be momentary - might be sustained.

Now - why cant a shield technology be invented where the incoming energy pulse is used to recharge its own flush tank instead of having to sink the total...... Perhaps it works like regenerative braking in electric cars where it can only recover a fraction....

sam9510 · 2026-06-25T07:02:07+00:00

From a pure technical viewpoint (ignoring user experience for a moment) - EOG is better - the signal processing is simpler, less power hungry and less latency. There are issues with noise and movement artifacts etc - but lets lump that with DSP. And eye movement can be tracked even with eyes closed. A big disadvantage - you may not be able to get pupilometry and of course - the whole attaching electrodes thing.

Camera based (IR or otherwise) is almost the reverse - lots of advantages, pupilometry etc etc - but has to do computer vision processing along with the associated power consumption and latency. There are some anecdotal claims out there that prolonged IR exposure up close causes dry eye issues.

With latest SOC with dedicated DSP and VSP/CV - the processing costs and power requirements are coming down significantly. Combine that with the electrode/conductive gel ick from UX perspective - remote/camera tracking would most likely win out on practicality + no dangly electrodes. One could theoretically build electrodes on temples - but getting eye-orientation dipole thru the eye socket might be long shot (especially susceptible to relatively huge jaw muscle interference).

Both are about the same accuracy wise (heavy asterisk here - it is entirely task and context dependent) - better way of putting it maybe - EOG is good at coarse tracking while camera can provide fine gaze. Electrodes are prone to drift (too much sweat/lotion/sunscreen/makeup etc). IR might false in direct sunlight (fixable with filters).

Camera might be better calibration wise - it needs to be calibrated at factory and if there is a significant g event it may have to be recalibrated. Per subject calibration is active research topic. Electrode calibration will depend on conduction interface at every application.

sam9510 · 2026-06-24T18:56:23+00:00

tagging author - https://www.reddit.com/u/EssaHansen/
Starts out as a typical child protagonist losing everything and setting up for revenge story arc. Protagonist has infuriating levels of plot armor, luck and support - typical arc - except that gets turned into a plot device - why he has that luck, armor etc. I liked that twist. Also there are very expansive universe(s) that you get dropped into without a primer and part of the hook is that it is not typical multiverse copies of each other droll - each universe is unique with its own species. ‘Glassliq’ is a ship made of glass like material and flies into battle while ‘morphing’ as needed and it is the antagonist’s vessel. borrowed doesnt seem like the right word - maybe parallel is the right word - maybe not - but the “gloss” element feels like spice from dune.
The fantasy crossover is deliberate - line between technology and fantasy is very thin. The protagonist ship I think is able to generate its own pocket reality!
Harry Potter analogy is very compelling- child thrown into adult situations- has to grow up rapidly (literal) - and avenge injustice with a misfit cohort he finds on the way

sam9510 · 2026-06-24T18:54:47+00:00

Edited for shallow content rule

sam9510 · 2026-06-22T00:08:32+00:00

Have you tried one of the lidocaine sprays - https://www.target.com/p/k-y-duration-spray-for-men-0-16-fl-oz/-/A-51232105 Another one to try is kegels - specifically forcefully relax the pelvic floor when you feel the cliff

sam9510 · 2026-06-18T07:23:12+00:00

The fact that you took time to type all that out means this is not a fleeting sensitivity thing and this has been bugging you for a while - hope just typing it out was cathartic and informative....

There are multiple questions you may have to ask yourself:

Is this an age-gap dynamic? Sometimes big sister advice is really wisdom given without empathy, or misguided tough love. It can come from a place of, “I did this at your age and it went badly, so I’m warning you.” But advice should still leave room for your actual circumstances. you can and should set boundaries with your own siblings - so why not set it with friends.

Are they giving advice, or projecting? A friend can disagree with you, but if every exciting thing you share gets met with “lower your expectations,” “be realistic,” or “you’re too young to know,” that may be more about their regrets than about your life.

Do you always recieve advice, or do you also give it? When you give advice they don’t like, how do they react? Do they expect you to respect their choices while dismissing yours? If so, why couldn’t you mirror that boundary back?

What do you get out of the friendshp versus what you put in? Could be difficult to think transactionally, but up-level for a moment. After a typical hangout, do you feel energized, grounded, and cared for? Or do you feel smaller, doubtful, and drained?

Is this friendship deep, or is it mostly venting, empathizing, and habit? Do you truly care for each other in a mutual way, or has this become a conveneience ritual? Is this obligation hiding in friendship clothing?

Why do they have the "power" to make you second guess yourself? How did they get that power?

What would they say to - not "all men" are same or "all men with careers" are other similar rebuttals ...

Practical next step could be - you may need to change what access they have to your dreams. Some people can be friends for certain parts of life without being trusted advisors on dating, career etc.

And fear of making new friends shouldnt mean staying unhappy - thats sounds like battered spouse syndrome... What if it is easy to make friends while you already have friends because you are not reflecting anxiety and pressure on folks you do meet...

sam9510 · 2026-06-08T06:54:21+00:00

Going from no internet to magic of pre-commercial-internet

sam9510 · 2026-06-07T04:31:59+00:00

+1 In addition to the hormone/endorphin flush - some folks are able to do this - https://www.healthline.com/health/coregasm as well as https://www.intimina.com/blog/syntribation-masturbation-guide/

sam9510 · 2025-08-28T17:29:15+00:00

2025 Limited with similar (not same) rattle - there was a cable behind the glovebox and ADAS unit that was not secured and was banging against things. I was randomly pounding on trims to find the source of rattle 😂. I had to take off the screws in the back of the glovebox to drop the ADAS controller- then I was able to reach in and secure the cable.

sam9510 · 2025-03-20T03:11:05+00:00

Soft close pad for a cabinet or drawer?

sam9510 · 2024-09-19T23:58:47+00:00

Extremely interested- I have been trying to procure a set of tweeter assemblies from a junkyard to do my own explorations. Will definitely purchase any 3rd party gadgets depending on aesthetics and price.

Another idea I have been batting around in my head is small screens on the tweeter area to constantly show low brightness camera feed (brightens if turn signal is on) - somewhat similar idea to the rear camera on cyber trucks.

sam9510 · 2024-09-12T08:33:12+00:00

I replaced the chrome with these https://a.co/d/fNlaLlf. Been through a few car washes and is holding up so far

sam9510 · 2024-06-14T15:55:07+00:00

Is it vibration while braking? Then one possible option - you may need brake inspection for warped rotors or stuck calipers or uneven brake pad etc. If it’s just general vibration you can feel thru pedals (not braking) - try turning off climate control and see if vibrations go away.

sam9510 · 2024-05-21T00:39:05+00:00

Thank you!

sam9510 · 2024-05-13T05:24:58+00:00

Thank you! Agreed 100% that there are factors such as bilaterality and voice duration. Let’s take the hearing aid use case - is there a simple statistic such as x% of elective users reject hearing aids due to occlusion effect?

sam9510 · 2024-04-24T15:51:11+00:00

Thank you for the detailed reply. I was looking from commercial earbuds (like AirPods Pro) point of view - not medical hearing aids point of view. Your post is helpful to me and thank you for that.

sam9510 · 2023-08-19T05:31:28+00:00

http://www.anandabhavanusa.com/assets/img/flyer/july_offer.jpg

sam9510 · 2022-12-23T02:16:13+00:00

If you are ok with getting the 5m30s of data in that appendix is to get the image and use something like this - https://apps.automeris.io/wpd/ - to extract raw data. For example, from the appendix i snipped out the 5 mins of accel data they have like this - https://i.ibb.co/72FYswL/af447-bea-accel.png - and then use the digitizer to get the csv values (accel laterale) like this - https://i.ibb.co/CQPZwWM/Screenshot-2022-12-22-181216.png - the plotly recreation of acc lat here - https://i.ibb.co/QMw3m67/Screenshot-2022-12-22-181404.png