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Fun Fact Thread! (previously fun fact for the day, not limited to 1 per day anymore.)


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1 hour ago, DDE said:

If SpaceX were an independent country, the US would be sixth in the 2023 launch total, trailing behind India's seven launches with six successes and two failures. However, SpaceX's 96 successful launches still don't constitute half of 212 globally.

Hm.  Commercialization seems to be working. 

Next step - deciding whether it's the launch that counts towards the nation's numbers or the payload purchaser?  

If the US isn't buying SX capacity and they fill the schedule with payloads for UAE, Argentina, South Africa, etc? 

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Perhaps not 'fun' for some - but Dragonflies hunt Hummingbirds. 

I'm surprised. 

I knew spiders (Australian) would eat birds caught up in webs and mantises could opportunistically kill, then eat hummingbirds.  This is different - there's evidence that (if provoked) dragonflies will chase down, kill and eat hummingbirds.  Active predation. 

That's crazy. 

 

Edited by JoeSchmuckatelli
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46 minutes ago, JoeSchmuckatelli said:

Perhaps not 'fun' for some - but Dragonflies hunt Hummingbirds. 

I'm surprised. 

I knew spiders (Australian) would eat birds caught up in webs and mantises could opportunistically kill, then eat hummingbirds.  This is different - there's evidence that (if provoked) dragonflies will chase down, kill and eat hummingbirds.  Active predation. 

That's crazy. 

 

Have you seen hummingbird moths?  The resemblance is uncanny.  I wonder if the dragonflies originally just mistook them for the moths, then found them tasty enough

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On 12/31/2023 at 1:15 PM, DDE said:

If SpaceX were an independent country, the US would be sixth in the 2023 launch total, trailing behind India's seven launches with six successes and two failures. However, SpaceX's 96 successful launches still don't constitute half of 212 globally.

Granted if SpaceX did not exist ULA and others would got more contracts. 

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9 hours ago, JoeSchmuckatelli said:

Using what rocket engines?

This question of whether launch demand comes from availability of vehicles, or if availability of vehicles comes from launch demand is so interesting. I'm writing an alternate history where commercial spaceflight takes off in the 1990s, and don't know whether it would be possible for there to be more satellites built in the 90s or not.

Thoughts? (from anyone?)

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19 hours ago, JoeSchmuckatelli said:

Dragonflies hunt Hummingbirds. 

Don't google the "mantis hunt hummingbird" videos. 

Actually, any "mantis hunt X" videos.

Because they eat everyone. Including mice.

Edited by kerbiloid
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On 10/28/2023 at 7:41 AM, kerbiloid said:
On 10/27/2023 at 9:55 AM, DDE said:

I advocated compulsory KSP in schools instead.

Children must know, that the planets are running around the Sun because it's written in the Configuration Files, and that the world is created by Harvester.


Just realised this morning.

When @Harvester had created KSP, everyone in the world was in rush to create lunar ships, original space rockets, space tourism, non-trivial orbital stations, etc.

When he had left the KSP topic, and created th Balsa Model Flight Sim (about the simple, lightweight, remotely operated drones), the current events have started, and quickly became a worldwide competition between the simple (carbon body, Coca-Cola bottle as fuel tank, photocam as a spycam, and Germany&China collab. MD-550 as motor), lightweight, remotely operated drones.


As @Harvester's intentions are looking pacifist, his games don't affect the world history, but they look like a kind of prophecy, given to us via the @Harvester's games.

Maybe, somebody is aware of his further creative plans?.. Just to get prepared in advance...

Edited by kerbiloid
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Back in 2016, I heard about a Finnish scientist generating protein from single-celled hydrogen-oxidising bacteria via water, carbon dioxide, electricity and mineral supplements. If it worked, it could reduce the use of arable land to almost nothing.

Well, it's here. Ice-cream containing this is now on sale in Singapore, and has been since June: https://plantbasednews.org/lifestyle/food/solein-ice-cream-singapore/

It's not just ice-cream, this is a multi-purpose ingredient that can boost the protein of any vegetarian food: pasta, sauces, meat substitutes and so on. The promo event had an entire menu based on it.

Further, the company, Solar Foods, is building a plant to grow about 120 tonnes per year of the powder in Finland, where renewable energy is cheap and available... and it's ready to come online in 2024.

120 tonnes doesn't sound like much, but they say this will be sent round the world for product development, in preparation for the next factory.

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1 hour ago, AckSed said:

Back in 2016, I heard about a Finnish scientist generating protein from single-celled hydrogen-oxidising bacteria via water, carbon dioxide, electricity and mineral supplements. If it worked, it could reduce the use of arable land to almost nothing.

Well, it's here. Ice-cream containing this is now on sale in Singapore, and has been since June: https://plantbasednews.org/lifestyle/food/solein-ice-cream-singapore/

It's not just ice-cream, this is a multi-purpose ingredient that can boost the protein of any vegetarian food: pasta, sauces, meat substitutes and so on. The promo event had an entire menu based on it.

Further, the company, Solar Foods, is building a plant to grow about 120 tonnes per year of the powder in Finland, where renewable energy is cheap and available... and it's ready to come online in 2024.

120 tonnes doesn't sound like much, but they say this will be sent round the world for product development, in preparation for the next factory.

I was wondering when all the talk about precision fermentation would go mainstream…

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10 hours ago, kerbiloid said:

Maybe, somebody is aware of his further creative plans?.. Just to get prepared in advance...

Let's hope it's a game about being nice to each other. A game in the vein of Stardew Valley, perhaps, about moving to a new town and being nice to everybody else?

I'd call it "Harvester Moon".

Edited by Codraroll
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4 hours ago, Codraroll said:

Let's hope it's a game about being nice to each other. A game in the vein of Stardew Valley, perhaps, about moving to a new town and being nice to everybody else?

A postapocalyptic community survival? Makes sense.

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On 1/5/2024 at 5:52 PM, kerbiloid said:

M$oft is adding the "Brain Off" key.

"Hey Bing, Windows is telling me to press any key, but I don't see an 'Any' key on my keyboard!?"

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17 hours ago, JoeSchmuckatelli said:

Okay - I'm going to have to report you for crimes against humanity. 

My Win95 PTSD is real. 

[snip]
Why would I want to hide extensions for know file types for any imaginable reason. an docx file an a pdf is both documents but not the same. 

Edited by Vanamonde
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9 hours ago, magnemoe said:

Why would I want to hide extensions for know file types for any imaginable reason

Because you're a virus writer and secrets.txt.exe with a custom icon that matches notepad is just asking to be clicked on.

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Okay time for a fun fact.

Treadmills are called treadmills because originally, they were devices to turn the work of walking up a slope into a mill to grind grains, like how a windmill does with wind.

They were actually used as punishment for prisoners, allowing their labor to be somewhat useful.

330px-Treadmill.JPG

Now people pay Peloton hundreds of dollars a year for the privilege.

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10 minutes ago, Superfluous J said:

Okay time for a fun fact.

Treadmills are called treadmills because originally, they were devices to turn the work of walking up a slope into a mill to grind grains, like how a windmill does with wind.

They were actually used as punishment for prisoners, allowing their labor to be somewhat useful.

330px-Treadmill.JPG

Now people pay Peloton hundreds of dollars a year for the privilege.

And at the same time, the biggest factor in bad health and poor longevity is a sedentary lifestyle.  Maybe not the biggest factor.  Maybe a tie with diet.  So many ppl seek jobs where they get to sit all day to make enough money to fund a more sedentary lifestyle of convenience and low activity.  And they see this as an upgrade from a job that keeps one active with less paid-for convenience at home and more money in the bank for healthier food.  My worst days are the ones I can't work out.  Feel like crap all day

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On 1/9/2024 at 4:27 AM, Superfluous J said:

Now people pay Peloton

Fun fact: "peloton" in finnish means "fearless"

Another fun fact: the Donald Duck character Gyro Gearloose is called Pelle Peloton in Finland, literally meaning "Clown Fearless"

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On 1/9/2024 at 1:06 AM, kerbiloid said:

They should make a chairmill.

Sitting on the chair and jumping up and down, to power the computer with a generator under the chair.

OLPC had a handle for that, like a street organ,

How about a football field sized keyboard with running paths between the keys?  And merely stepping on a key isn't enough, one has to jump on it hard.   It would likely  encourage trimming the wild verbiage into a well manicured, and more concise, post

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