Gedanken Experiment

Etcétera

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00:48 GMT

QDB

If you have ever spent some time on IRC then you will appreciate the Quote Database, qdb.us The site can at times be a bit slow and does toss out the odd php or database error but nothing can bring back your memories of IRC better. QDB is a repository of funny IRC conversation snippets submitted by users and gives viewers the option of rating each one as good or bad. Many of them are a bit off-color (too much so for here!) but here is one example:



(myst) so what about you? anything interesting?
(Joshua) i'm writting a book and i just left a naked lady in her bed seconds before her roommates came home.
(Joshua) it was like *pulls on pants* *roommates walk in*
(myst) what's your book about?
(Joshua) lol!
(Joshua) yup, you're a chick
(myst) lol
(myst) rofl

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23:41 GMT

Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics

Just found quite the treasure trove of physics/astronomy related podcasts. The Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics at U. California Santa Barbara has a very nice site up including podcasts of many of their conferences, public lectures and colloquia. If the handful of podcasts we have opened so far are any indication, there are a limited number of still photos of blackboards and the like embedded with the audio. Good stuff!

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00:44 GMT

3D Ski Maps

Here is an interesting site for the snowboard and ski crowd: 3dskimaps.com It is surprising nobody has managed to do something like this before now (maybe they have and we just don't know). 3dskimaps shows the mountain map(s) not just with the trails but in 3d perspective with color coding to indicate trail steepness. This is a great thing to print out and bring with you on your trip and tuck in your jacket pocket to answer the inevitable 'how steep do you think that really is?' Only a limited number of mountains so far but hopefully more soon.

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02:58 GMT

Phet Simulations

Phet Simulations stands for PHysics Education Technology Simulations and is a series of free java and flash based 'experiments' to help the student (or just curious) understand a number of basic physics concepts from topical areas such as statics to thermodynamics and nuclear physics. Most are well done and fun to play around with.

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17:17 GMT

United Nuclear

This site, store actually, is in the same genre of Edmund Scientific. Its kind of cool just checking out some of the stuff they have. DHS has been giving them quite a bit of grief over their chemistry kits which can be used for model rocketry as noted in a recent Wired story. And it is quite sad to note society has stooped so low that it is illegal in Texas to buy certain flasks or beakers without registering with the Department of Public Safety to declare that they will not be used to make drugs. I'm sure the government next will be espousing 'virtual' chemistry sets for kids.

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05:12 GMT

Glue Advice

Without a doubt one day you will need this link. This to That is a website which tells you which brands of glue work to glue two things together, ie plastic to metal, along with some tips on surface perparation. Nothing fancy here, just some handy info.

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17:39 GMT

PubSub

PubSub is a nice site for keeping track of new content as it appears on the net. From the description:

Today, PubSub reads over 23 million weblogs, more than 50,000 internet newsgroups and all SEC (EDGAR) filings. In the coming months, we'll be adding many more streams of data, so stay tuned!

So at this time it is more 'blog' focused but depending what you are interested in that is ok. I have found it is best to use a very narrow query to avoid spurious results.

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23:00 GMT

Degree Confluence Project

Degree Confluence refers to the points on the globe where latitude and longitude lines cross, such as 47°N 9°E (at 9,561 ft in the Glamer Alps). People have taken it on themself to document these locations as a hobby or just for fun while on a vacation or camping trip. This site contains photos of each location visited and a small write up describing the area. A neat way to see the world at lunchtime. The Degree Confluence Project

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19:40 GMT

Motorcycles

If any of you are in need of parts for your ride, check out Cycle-Parts.com They aren't a giant operation but they have some decent prices and a good selection. Can't speak for their overseas delivery, but US is good. Worth a look next time you need something.

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05:37 GMT

Katrina After Photos

This site from NOAA has some of the best 'after' photos of the Katrina devastation. The map lets you select just the areas you want. Photos are from reconnaissance planes.

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20:36 GMT

DPRK News Mirror

Hackaday.com was not the site I would expect to find a useful database of political news, but kudos to them. NK News is an English language searchable archive of statements issued by the DPRK via their KCNA (Korean Central News Agency). Nice as a reference source and also has an RSS feed to alert you to the latest from the Dear Leader. While we are on it, another userful NK site is North Korea zone.

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16:26 GMT

Iraq Photos

Found an interesting site last night, basically a photoblog, of the Iraq war. Undermars is composed of hundreds of photos submitted by troops and contractors. Through the first third of it there were only a handful of gory photos - most of them are soldiers in the field or during their time off. The captions to each are whatever the submitter put on them - clearly some are inside jokes. Definitely worth a lunchtime look.

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16:43 GMT

The Need for Body Armor

I sure hope that all our ground forces have good body armor by now. Thankfully this 3rd ID Pfc must have had some. This video shows a terrorist sniper hitting Pfc. Tschiderer while his associates filmed the attack. They were all subsequently taken down and captured. Note I do not use 'insurgent' as they appear to be jihadists from the repeated chants of 'Allah Akhbar' after the shooting. In a twist of fate, Pfc. Tschiderer, a medic, rendered medical aid after his attacker was taken down by other members of the squad. [Ref. ArmyTimes.com 7/15]

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05:33 GMT

Are you a hacker?

Do you like to take things apart? Find other uses for old parts or stray items? Take a look at Hackaday.com. Don't waste your time with /. who seems to only copy Hackaday stories a week (or more) later. Even if you don't tinker, there is usually something interesting to read while eating lunch.

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17:37 GMT

Foreign TV

For those of you looking around for some overseas TV broadcasts (including some in English), check out Media Hopper. A lot of Google ads and ugly color background, but it does deliver on links to internet webcasts from about 100 countries.