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cowboy82

Technology

A Submersible Aircraft, Powered By Ideas

By John Brandon Posted on 10.9.2008 10 Comments
It sounds like a Hollywood concept, but DARPA wants to make the submersible aircraft a reality -- and they need your help. This week, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency put out a request for designs: they want a vehicle with a 2,000-pound capacity that can cover an area of about 1,000 nautical miles, fly that distance in just eight hours, and -- by the way -- fly both above and below water.

6.17.2009 at 12:47pm - Comment by cowboy82

HEY....who you callin' "goofy"? A flyin' sub? Easy. An honest politician, now THAT'S HARD!
Science

Army Mechanic's Garage Tinkering Yields 18-Foot Mecha Exoskeleton

By Posted on 6.8.2009 59 Comments
Carlos Owens had handled all kinds of machines as an army mechanic, but he always dreamed of using those skills for one project: his own "mecha,” a giant metal robot that could mirror the movements of its human pilot.

6.17.2009 at 12:39pm - Comment by cowboy82

Yo..Dahmer..says you. Too many legs to control at the same time without computers. If you didn't notice, this was fabricated "Old school" style. Me likey likey!
Science

The State of the Art of Nuclear Fusion: It's Not Easy

By Stuart Fox Posted on 5.29.2009 15 Comments
Of all the futuristic technologies scientists have sworn would change our lives forever, none is more promising, and more elusive, than fusion power. After decades of tangential research, false starts and downright hoaxes, the two most advanced fusion projects at present are America's National Ignition Facility (NIF) and the multinationally funded International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER).

6.12.2009 at 12:21pm - Comment by cowboy82

rickinphx, The short form answer to your Q. is that fission "splits" the atom, or breaks it apart, and fusion adds material to the atom ( in the form of sub-atomic particles ) "fuseing" them together to create a larger atom (in this case Helium). This is a similar process to what occurs naturally inside the Sun. The BIGGEST problems in both cases are a) controlling the reacton process, and b) by products of the reaction [i.e.: radioactive waste {spent fuel rods} in the case of fission]. I think a significant unasked question here is: How does all this relate to the article on the Canadian company making their attempt at "cold" fusion, and do any of these other teams consider their process viable, or even take them seriously? Thoughts? Anyone?
Science

Army Mechanic's Garage Tinkering Yields 18-Foot Mecha Exoskeleton

By Posted on 6.8.2009 59 Comments
Carlos Owens had handled all kinds of machines as an army mechanic, but he always dreamed of using those skills for one project: his own "mecha,” a giant metal robot that could mirror the movements of its human pilot.

6.12.2009 at 11:43am - Comment by cowboy82

VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...
Science

Army Mechanic's Garage Tinkering Yields 18-Foot Mecha Exoskeleton

By Posted on 6.8.2009 59 Comments
Carlos Owens had handled all kinds of machines as an army mechanic, but he always dreamed of using those skills for one project: his own "mecha,” a giant metal robot that could mirror the movements of its human pilot.

6.12.2009 at 11:37am - Comment by cowboy82

To: bdhoro87 Re: whaaaat?! To: aaronbaird1 Re: He's not "black", he's more of a light earthy tone, and that's not actually funny. To: animemaster Re: O.K., now, in the rrrreeeaaalll world, just what EXACTLY is "gundanium"? To: cyrusT Re: and just what, precisely, does that have to do with the article? Are you suggesting a new type of black op's gov't conspiracy, perhaps? To: wmacaluso Re: Because, quite simply, not everyone can. It actually takes a unique combination of; ability, time, imagination, possesion of the proper equipment and knowledge/skill in their use, and pure, simple, good ol' American gumption! [not to mention enough space to work on it relatively undisturbed by friends, neighbors, and John Law {should someone from one of the previous categories complain}] To: All of you "Transformer" fans Re: A more appropriate referance would be "Robot Jox" or perhaps "Robotech", but YEAH, WAY COOL! To: rburr Re: EENOUGH ALREADY WITH THE BAD JOKES!!! To: Mr.l Re: It was meant as a joke, okay a bad joke, but get over it and stop being so sensitive. And, BTW, yeah, I agree with you, TOTALLY AWSOME!!! VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH...VI-DE-OH!!! To: WhiteZomfie7689 Re: Interesting quote on the A.E. I THINK the cables actually pull on the control levers of the valve body(ies) using a series of pullies in a modified "block & tackle" set-up, thus relieving the strain on him and giving him a greater range of motion. What do you think?
DIY

You Built What?!-A Tiny Helicopter

By Posted on 1.22.2008 1 Comments
Helicopters are tricky beasts to keep aloft and stable. Full-size birds do it with skilled pilots, while most unmanned craft rely on gyroscopes and autopilot. But the 3.3-gram Picoflyer is too small for any such luxuries. Instead, Petter Muren, a Norwegian engineer who builds mini copters to fly indoors during long Scandinavian winters, reinvented the stability system.
To stay pointed in one direction, the Picoflyer, like many real whirlybirds, uses two sets of counter-rotating rotors, which offset the opposing forces that occur when an engine drives a propeller in flight.

6.1.2009 at 02:40pm - Comment by cowboy82

Not bad, not bad at all.
Entertainment & Gaming

Tony Stark's Iron Man Dream Lab

By Posted on 5.8.2008 12 Comments
Yes, there are some great robot fight scenes, nefarious villains, a few human interest plotlines, even characters that seem like genuine people, but the new movie Iron Man is really about the lab, and its ridiculously cool toys.

6.1.2009 at 02:36pm - Comment by cowboy82

COOOOOOOOOOOOLLLL! Hey, briligg.......get a lyfe.(ooopsie, typo)
Cars

Who Drives Better: Drunks or Stoners?

By Posted on 5.27.2009 29 Comments
When I slipped behind the wheel of the traffic simulator at Israel's Ben Gurion University recently, it was less than two minutes before I was bumping into the virtual cars and swerving around pedestrians. Maneuvering through the tree-lined urban roads projected in dayglo colors on giant screens was tricky--and I wasn't even one of their hard-drinking or toking research subjects.

6.1.2009 at 02:10pm - Comment by cowboy82

You cannot possibly be serious. Any...scratch that: EVERY time you get behind the controls of any vehicle/craft/vessel/equipment, or WHATEVER, after having consumed drugs [whether legal or not] and/or alcohol you WILL INEVITABLY alter your perceptions, reflexes, and reactions/reaction-time. Spending government/university time and finances to determine whether you drive worse stoned or drunk?! Are you kidding?! Like it could ever matter! If a member of my family were injured/maimed/killed by anyone under the influence of anything stonger than coffee, I would think that people would be more interested/concerned about what I would do to that person than arguing the ramifications of if they had "ONLY" been stoned instead of drinking!!! This study, and this article are a waste of the paper required to actually print them up! GET OFF THE PHONE LAY OFF THE GAS PUT DOWN THE BOTTLE/JOINT AND GET OFF MY @$$ Stop discussing the finer points of pot v. alcohol, and start paying attention to the task at hand, DRIVING!!!
Science

Invention Awards: Robo-Legs

By Posted on 6.1.2009 4 Comments
Today's featured Invention Award winner: ReWalk, the lightweight, affordable, powered smart exoskeleton. After breaking his neck in a 1997 fall, Israeli engineer Amit Goffer learned that he would be confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life. He soon concluded that this mode of transportation was outdated and began work on the ReWalk, the only wearable exoskeleton that allows paraplegics to stand, amble, and even climb stairs.

5.28.2009 at 01:01pm - Comment by cowboy82

What a travesty. Someone comes up with a viable, realistic alternative to the wheelchair, and NOBODY wants to give him his props. Terrible. Well, sir, speaking as someone who has been touched by this phenomenon {friends and family in chairs}, well done, sir, well done.
The Environment

Invention Awards: A Generator That Runs on Kitchen Grease

By Gregory Mone Posted on 5.28.2009 7 Comments
Today's featured Invention Award winner kills two birds with one stone: providing a simple and cheap alternative energy source while widening the market for delicious fried foods. Everybody wins! The nondescript six-foot-tall box behind Finz restaurant in Dedham, Massachusetts, looks like a tool shed, but actually it's a self-contained grease refinery and five-kilowatt generator. Engineer James Peret's Vegawatt is the first all-in-one device that processes grease to continuously provide a building with electricity and hot water, heralding a significant change in alternative-fuel applications. "It's a brilliant idea," says Josh Tickell, author of Biodiesel America. "A waste stream to an energy source, with no intermediary."

5.28.2009 at 12:56pm - Comment by cowboy82

I say this with all respect for the author of the article, and Mr. Peret, to wit: Duuuuuuuuuuuhh. Once again, it takes a working stiff to point out the amazingly obvious. Good work, Jim. No, sincerely, good work.