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Scotius

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Everything posted by Scotius

  1. Scotius
    Or one that's partially melted... Really though... get a dog. Preferably small, fluffy and energetic. Then take him for a long stroll through a forest. It's spring - best time to experience Nature
  2. Scotius
    Dark Tower series, of course. And no, i haven't read it. But i've read many Stephen King's novels and stories - guess his writing style is so distinctive my brain can recognise it anyway
  3. Scotius
    Because no one is perfect. Because we all make mistakes. Also, this: “Only Evil and Greater Evil exist and beyond them, in the shadows, lurks True Evil. True Evil, Geralt, is something you can barely imagine, even if you believe nothing can still surprise you. And sometimes True Evil seizes you by the throat and demands that you choose between it and another, slightly lesser, Evil.” ― Andrzej Sapkowski, The Last Wish Wernher von Braun did many bad things during WWII. But he also did a lot of good things to redeem himself.
  4. Scotius
    Seriously... why should i panic? When (if) we'll finally create AI, it will not be a supernatural god-like being able to warp reality, defy the laws of physics and kill me through my TV set with the power of pure hatred towards humanity.
  5. Scotius
    I'd think he stole the truck from the lady, and the cougar bailed immediately and ran for the hills Doped up (and dumb as a rock) criminal in an uber-powerful car? Baaad combination. Luckily no one was hurt.
  6. Scotius
    Excuse me. Do you want me to post a link to YT video of a police chase in USA, in which escaping suspect (high as a kite) took his (stolen) Ford truck offroad? That beautiful, monstrous car tore through the scenery like a beast, and took in stride abuse that would leave a lesser car wheels up and leaking fluids from every pipe. The chase ended only when that idiot drove into a pond and got the car hopelessly stuck in the mud. I think i fell in love that day Too bad i'm several thousands of dollars short of being able to buy such truck.
  7. Scotius
    Did you remember to factor in changes in atmospheric content, temperature and other environmental variables? In Carbonaceous oxygen level in atmosphere were at all times high - i have no doubts it would skew metabolism rates towards "much more active". On the other hand, in Permian-Triassic period there was much less oxygen in atmosphere than normal. Which means that by necessity animals were more sluggish and needed to relocate more energy towards breathing.
  8. Scotius
    Or first step to colonise Mars... with convicts! Mars = Australia 2.0 in SPAAACCCEEEEE!!!
  9. Scotius
    I clicked it. Yup, just as i expected. Hello Rick Darkness. My old friend...
  10. Scotius
    11 years long Sun activity cycle *shrugs*. When Sun is active, more energy is pumped into Earth's atmosphere, swelling it a bit. Satellites in low orbits suffer from increased drag. Early "Echo" satellites (which were essentially baloons in space) deorbited much earlier than they should because of that, leading to the discovery of the phenomenon.
  11. Scotius
    I wonder if Stirling engine wouldn't be a good choice for the power source. Temperature differentials between two ends of the probe are quite big.
  12. Scotius
    Book was much better than the movie, but that opening scene kicked all kinds of behinds
  13. Scotius
    If it falls down somewhere in China, a lot of jaws will hit the floor
  14. Scotius
    Ariane 5, definitely. There is just something... elegant in the White Lady. Both on the launchpad and in flight. And she's one of two most reliable launchers in the world.
  15. Scotius
    OK, i have to give props to this guy. He might be a loon, but he is persistent and apparently fearless. I know i would be too scared to come anywhere close to this rocket while it was under steam.
  16. Scotius
    There you go: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colloid_thruster
  17. Scotius
    But this is exactly what BFR (and especially tanker variant) is about. Only SpaceX is working on a freighter, while United Launch Alliance is offering a tug. Granted - both are useful, both have their own niches. But in the end, you want biggest bang for your bucks. A tug will not cut it when you have an industry crying for supplies in bulk, cheap.
  18. Scotius
    ULA's own plan reeks of monopolism. They offer other companies ride to the Moon, like they will be only ones capable of doing so in foreseeable future. But what will happen if there will be two competing companies on the market - offering the same ride, and probably cheaper? Will one third of the cake be enough to feed this ambitious plan? Notice that besides ACES ULA's plan doesn't mention anything groundbreaking and innovative technology-wise. It reminds me of shipyards and maritime companies still building and holding on to sailships, while steamers were becoming technologically and logistically viable for transoceanic transport. A bit less hubris wouldn't hurt anyone...
  19. Scotius
    Interesting. Wonder how much will survive of this plan when certain two companies will put their high - capacity, reuseable heavy lifters on the market.
  20. Scotius
    It looks like a giant bullet. And "Stealth Space Company"? It smells bad. Like a gunpowder. I don't think we will like this new company. Let's hope i'm wrong on this
  21. Scotius
    Nice. I think i've seen worse photos taken with cell camera Radar imaging really did come a long way from simple spots on analog display.
  22. Scotius
    But there is no market for them today. So who would produce them? Only vacuum engines created today are meant for second stages, deep space probes and as maneuvering\stationkeeping propulsion for satellites.
  23. Scotius
    Judging by your list, you are very picky Most of the species in it are predators, of the large and imposing kind to boot. This is not how you build a hypothetical ecosystem. First you decide how much sunlight, water, nutrients and space you have at your disposal. And then you sow grass. For every lion, you need to have dozens of antelopes roaming over the grassland area of several square kilometers. And they will need access to a sufficient source of water, or else they'll starve or migrate out of the area - in both cases starving the lions. So, in my opinion you have two choices: Populate your hypothetical planet with big, impressive predators, then throw in a bunch of herbivores and call it a day. Really dig in into the field of environmental ecology. Learn step-by-step how ecosystems work. Write a doctorate
  24. Scotius
    Yes, genetic pressure is not everything. Across the history overwhelming majority of of societies had strong social taboos preventing incestuous relationships (marriages, basically). Families, clan systems, religious prohibitions etc. There must have been many instances, when individuals of both sexes were left with no other choice, than to look for a mate outside their clan or tribe. Given low population density in Ice Age, i wouldn't be surprised if for many of them, the only option in the range of several days of travel was members of that strange tribe of muscular hunters with weird language and customs. Or that strange tribe of thin, dark skinned clam eaters living near the sea shore. Voila! Numerous cases of intermarrying (voluntary... or not) of scandalous (but less scandalous than a brother marrying his sister) nature. And inevitable mixed race children. Rest was the population dynamics, which favored faster breeding generalists of the Homo sapiens sapiens species (race) in a dynamically changing environment of the ending Ice Age.
  25. Scotius
    ^Pretty much this. I doubt there is enough data in existence to semi-accurately model the ecosystems your animals lived in. Not enough organisms get preserved as fossils to reconstruct food chains. Take Dunkleosteus for example. It was a big predator - apex predator in it's environment most likely. But did it take one big prey every couple of days? Several smaller preys pretty much every day? Was it a sedentary, territorial fish, or was it a migratory, roving predator similiar to a Great White shark? We do not know, because 90% of said prey species weren't preserved (or discovered yet) - which means we do not know how much food The Dunk had available to him any given day. Like Green Baron, i'm afraid you will have to take many assumptions, and then handwave the rest
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