Archive for the ‘Science’ Category

Pirates’ Booty


28 Oct

The Queen Anne’s Revenge Project- let’s just start with saying how cool is that for a name? Someone asks what you are doing, Oh, I’m working on the Queen Anne’s Revenge Project. Instant cool.

And not only is the name cool, what they are doing is cool. They are recovering artifacts from one of Blackbeard’s ships, run aground off the coast ofNorth Carolina.

And if you have ever played Sid Meier’s Pirates, you’ll love this tidbit- historians believe that Blackbeard purposely scuttled the ship because he could not afford to fleet of four ships and over 400 pirate followers.

MythBuster (ep 175)


27 Oct

Modern explosives are stable- especially ones carried by the military- you know where they have to possibly carry them through a warzone in a pack on a soldier’s back? Yeah, the military is not using anything that blows up on impact. I don’t know that I’d want to cook with it, though, even if you can.

LOVED the throwing guillotines, though I really thought Grant might end up losing a finger. I was glad Tory’s simple design was the one that worked best because it actually seemed like something that could have existed in the era the myth was from.

MythBusters (ep 174)


20 Oct

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a MythBusters where everything was plausible or confirmed. Even with that, here are the lessons I took away from the episode:

Guys who operate excavators are crazy. Actually, I’ve met a number of heavy machine operators, and I think crazy might be a good adjective for all of them. They say don’t try this at home, but they only got these “myths” because the excavator guys already had.

I would rather take a ride in the duct tape sailboat than in the duct tape plane. I can swim, but I can’t fly.

Kraken!


16 Oct

Or, as I prefer to think of it- giant, ancient Cuttlefish! The actual Cthulu monster!

 

So I realize that there’s a lot of speculation in this. But I am in love with the idea that an ancient Coleoidea was killing ichthyosaurs and dragging them to its lair. It just brings out the fan girl in me.

And there is good science involved. The evidence at this time is mostly circumstantial, but since soft bodied creatures do not leave fossils, we are pretty much forced to speculate about their past existence. I hope to hear more evidence of the kraken soon.

MythBusters (ep 173)


13 Oct

People naturally walk in circles, who knew? Apparently lots of people since that was the actual myth Adam and Jamie were testing. I did wonder why they used the earphones, blocking out additional sensory information. This wasn’t a myth about people who couldn’t see and hear walking in circles, just about people who couldn’t see. I think it would’ve been a truer test without blocking hearing.

Watching a truck go flying at 300mph toward a parked car in slow motion is cool. But no explosion. Apparently, there’s a reason special effects people choose to work with this stuff- it’s safe.

Geek Girl Con: Women Running Geeky Businesses


11 Oct

I attended 2 panels at Geek Girl Con.

I was disappointed in Women Running Geeky Businesses- not because of the panelists, who were great, but because it didn’t focus on the challenges of being a woman running a business, running a geeky business, or being a woman running a geeky business. It was mostly about how to run a business. That’s not bad, but also not what I’m looking for in a panel specifically about being a WOMAN running a GEEKY business.

There are gender issues in geek culture. That’s why this con exists. I wanted to hear those addressed.

Geek Girl Con is a Success


10 Oct

Geek Girl Con sold out on both Saturday and Sunday. In fact, I got there late enough on Saturday to check in with my pre-bought ticket that they did not actually have any 2 Day passes left- the girl had to take a guest pass, cross out the “guest” and write 2 Day on it. They were also out of lanyards and the generic con swag bags.

I am thrilled that the con did so well in its first year. There is definite room for improvement, but the first ever Geek Girl Con definitely has to be considered a success.

Interstellar Travel


08 Oct

This might be the only time in my life I have wished I lived in Orlando. In fact, I’m not certain I wish I lived in Orlando, I simply wish that I had been in Orlandofor the 100 Year Starship Public Symposium.

We all know I am fascinated by space. NASA is my favorite government agency. The idea of interstellar travel is one I find fascinating. And while I may not have been able to contribute to either the hard science or the science fiction addressed at the conference, I would have loved to been there to experience it.

MythBusters (ep 172)


06 Oct

I want a Newton’s Cradle- the one with the 2.5” ball bearings or even the 6” ball bearings. Something that could double as a coffee or dining room table would be fine. However, we weren’t surprised by the largest scale results. Energy may have been directly transferred in to the steel plates, but it doesn’t travel in a straight line, it disperses in three dimensions, meaning the concrete absorbed a lot of it.

For the tipping point of the car, we thought they should have started with tethering and overbalancing the car then pulling it back to the balance point.

Digging Up Fossils


05 Oct

So we all know that I’m a big fan of paleontology, and that I think amateur paleontological finds are pretty cool. But there is a definite difference between finding a fossil while walking along your local stream, digging in your yard, or even volunteering for a local dig, and going to the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument and chiseling out a fossil.

You aren’t finding or discovering anything. In fact, you are defacing a national monument. And in thePacific Northwest, that ends in a fine and a year long ban from all national parks.  Don’t do it, folks.

100 Words On

topics explored in exactly 100 words