Resculpted the lower loop *again.* The middle loop was angled up a few degrees. Now the model has all the major chunks; now come the innumerable little fiddly detaily bits.
Nov 192017
Nov 182017
A recent acquisition from ebay was a pretty good B&W glossy showing a Martin Company illustration of the Titan IIIC launch vehicle, circa August, 1964. One of the better Titan IIIC illustrations I’ve seen, showing the innards to good effect.
I have uploaded the full 600-dpi scan to the 2017-11 APR Extras Dropbox available to all $4 and up APR Patreon patrons. It’s in two formats… the raw scan, and a cleaned-up version that looks better. Also included is the press release printed on the back of the glossy. If you are interested, take a look at the APR Patreon and consider signing up.
Nov 182017
Nov 172017
It’s just this easy:
Nov 172017
Hmmm…
Men may not be clear on what sexual harassment is
2 in 3 don’t think repeated unwanted invitations to drinks, dinner, or dates is sexual harassment
OK, so the lesson here apparently is… if you ask someone out and they say no, NEVER ASK THEM OUT EVER AGAIN.
You gotta wonder what the end result of the acceptance of this sort of rule would be. Since first invitations often fail, it seems that the only people who would persist, and thus stand a chance of success, would be the rule-breaking kind. The rule-following kind would thus be preferentially locked out of dating success. *Unless* they took a different approach, and instead of repeatedly asking out the one person they actually like, they just ask out a whole bunch of largely random people. So, this sort of rule would seem to tend towards driving dating success for the “alpha” types and the “hookup culture” types.
Yeah, I’m sure that’ll work out great.
Nov 162017
From the Planetary Habitability Laboratory at the University of Puerto Rico at Arecibo:
HEC: Periodic Table of Exoplanets
You know how many exoplanets were known when I was in college? None. Zero. Zip. Nada. Now? 3,700+.
Nov 162017
There are certain actors, actresses, actrons and acting units who you know aren’t *really* *good,* as such, but they’re just damned entertaining to watch nonetheless. Dwayne Johnson, aka “The Rock,” is one such… largely because you can tell that he’s generally having a blast doing whatever goofy thing he’s doing.
The forthcoming “Jumanji” movie looks like it’ll be one such entertaining flick. But perhaps even more so, the movie “Rampage,” due out in April and based on the old arcade game and directed by the director of Johnson’s disaster extravaganza “San Andreas,” looks like a hoot and a half. The addition of Neegan to the cast sure can’t hurt either.
Nov 162017
The top and middle engine loops are basically done and detailed. The bottom engine loop has been resculpted, but needs detailing. Once that’s done I’ll head back to the hull to start working on more details. The shuttlebay will almost certainly be modeled closed as at 1/1400 scale it’s really, really small. However, I’ll probably still work out the basics of it… because I want to get a 1/350 version milled out.
Nov 162017
Hmmmm…
Fisker has filed patents for solid-state batteries
So what makes this newsworthy? The claims:
- 2.5 times the energy density of current batteries
- A car would have a 500-mile range
- It would take only one minute to charge that car
- Cheaper than lithium ion batteries
- Lower risk of fire
The target is electric cars. But 2.5 times the energy density means laptop batteries that last far long, cell phones that last for days, electric aircraft from drones to airliners, man-portable lasers and railguns/coilguns capable of meaningful performance.
Nov 162017
Senator Al Franken Kissed and Groped Me Without My Consent, And There’s Nothing Funny About It
Hmmm.
While this accusation seems about on the same level of banal scumbaggery that has torpedoed a number of Hollywood careers, I do wonder if this one will be the one where The Important People will decide that accusations aren’t enough, that before there are career implications that there needs to be an actual investigation, that “it’s not that bad.” Because this time the implications of the guy losing his job would have “unfortunate” political implications.
Personally, I think he should be treated just like Kevin Spacey. Cancel his current employment and go back and erase him and his votes from the Senate. It would be only fair.
