The last poster wins

[slayerpaul]

http://i.imgur.com/i6r56sz.jpg

[Vindekarr]

Mmm, mornings... I hate them. :smile:

 

Monday mornings are the worst, although it was nice waking up today knowing I won't have to work for a month or so. Still, in Australia, your chances of sleeping in even on the days when you can, are dependant on the weather. Not too long ago I woke up at 9 AM to find it was already 36 degrees celcius in the shade.

[billyro]

Heh, luckily for us northern dwellers, the weather is fairly constant. I haven't woken up before 11am in months...

[Vindekarr]

Yes. I grew up in Queensland and still vaguely remember the concept of distinct seasons. I know I've mentioned it a lot, but Melbourne weather is f***ing crazy: you'll have a string of 35-40 celcius days, then a "temperature crash" will occur and all of a sudden it's 10-12 degrees. In the middle of freakin' summer. Someone I work with who has difficulty with heat, actually keeps a pair of shorts in their car. Whenever it gets hot enough, they skip off and change. And it can get hot here: last year saw a few 40+ Celsius days, and they're never good.

 

As a bit of trivia, one of the biggest issues that faces a racing car driver during a race is heat in the cockpit. This was the reason most racing cars were, until recently, convertibles: an air conditioner couldn't be fitted because they weigh too much-weight is detrimental to performance. Drivers in the 1960s and 70s used to literally refuse to race closed-top cars as the heat started to become a major health risk in the long, gruelling races common in that era. The temperatures in question ranged from 35-50 degrees Celsius, which is within the range of statistical probability for a Melbourne summer day. It gets that hot here. And then in winter you get sleet and frost. It's like the Shivering Isles down here!

 

And if you're wondering why a racing car gets so hot, it's the exhaust pipes running directly under the cockpit. Because there's no insulation or carpet(it adds weight, weight is bad) and metal transfers heat, the heat from the exhaust pipes often bleeds straight through the floor of the car. Furthermore, the more powerful a car engine is, the more heat it produces. Given the immense power of some racing engines, the heat they produce is equally staggering. The picture below is a BMW Formula One engine from the 1980s, which produced around 1,400 horsepower-or about fifteen times what a regular road car does. At maximum RPM(around 11,000) the engine literally glows so brightly with waste heat that parts could turn transparent: if the energy being lost as heat could somehow be retained, this engine would produce more than three thousand horsepower-and yet the engine itself is light enough that a person can carry it. Technology like this is why I love my freakin' job.

 

http://i640.photobucket.com/albums/uu121/patcush27/bmw_F1.jpg

Edited December 16, 2013 by Vindekarr

[Werne]

Huh, that thing would make for a good night lamp, or romantic lighting, if it were to be quieter that is. :smile:

[Vindekarr]

Huh, that thing would make for a good night lamp, or romantic lighting, if it were to be quieter that is. :smile:

 

I agree, I'd love to have something like that on my desk, especially an engine of that age. It's a sad fact, but the car industry reached it's technological zenith twice: first in the 1980s and then in the late 1990s-both times in Formula One. After the second peak, lawmakers stepped in and unfortunately the race cars of today are pale shadows of what we used to be able to make. In 1985 a 1.6 litre V-6 Formula One engine produced around 1,400 horsepower. In 2013, the same engine size and spec gives only 550 horsepower. Technology has advanced, but we've lost our ambition. That's why engines like that one are special: with political correctness now being the order of the day we may never reach that level of performance again before internal combustion is finally phased out.

Edited December 16, 2013 by Vindekarr

[Thor.]

Scary news, google acquires atlas, that up right walking robot.

 

http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/172859-google-acquires-boston-dynamics-and-seven-other-robotics-companies-next-stop-judgment-day

 

Boston Dynamics which is also Darpa, noted in many relations with the military and so on.

 

Although hoping google will use this tech for the greater good of the people instead of military use, since its a third party.

Edited December 16, 2013 by Thor.

[Werne]

@Vindekarr Not just racing cars or car engines, the car industry itself went to hell.

 

For example, look at Citroen DS 19 - it's a car from the 50s that has durable, simple and inexpensive hydraulic suspension system, excellent aerodynamics even compared to today's modern mainstream cars, directional headlights, bloody marvelous door lock system and door hinges (I have yet to see such hinge angle precision and door lock mechanism in a modern car), aluminum hood, pretty good sound dampening insulation, and it's more comfortable than today's 500,000€ Mercedes.

 

At the time, a DS 19 that weighted 1.2 tonnes and was powered by a factory 120HP engine, had an acceleration equivalent to a 50s 250HP professional purpose-built racing car.

 

That model set the standards for most of today's mainstream cars, a lot of them are directly expanding on Citroen DS 19 design (Peugeot and Renault lines are the most well known since Peugeot acquired both Citroen and Renault). Best thing is, DS 19 was relatively cheap back when it was produced so even common folks could buy it (the 60HP engine model). All that was achieved even though that car was way ahead of it's time and had incredibly innovative changes that took 6 years of time to design, not to mention how much money and knowledge went into it.

 

What happened to that kind of innovation? Where the hell did it go? Why aren't today's cars as comfortable? Why don't they have doors made that good that close without any force after 60 years of active use? Why does the cheapest car with hydraulic suspension cost like a freakin' fighter jet? It's not all about engine power, it's sometimes about the little things as well.

 

 

 

So to put it simply - the card industry sucks in it's whole. Back in the day it was all about innovation and a low price since without those two, you'd be out of business in a blink. It took Citroen years to recover from expenses that went into building the DS 19, but they came back like a boss. Now it's all about the brand, repeating the same cheap design, and making as much money as possible, as soon as possible, by selling same, cheap cars for a ton of money. Just like Call Of Duty.

 

By the way, this made me chuckle...

In 1985 a 1.6 litre V-6 Formula One engine produced around 1,400 horsepower. In 2013, the same engine size and spec gives only 550 horsepower.

http://d24w6bsrhbeh9d.cloudfront.net/photo/aAYyBEE_700b.jpg

 

Dat horse power...

[Iv000]

I just finished my statement letter.

 

Sending it tomorrow to 5 Unis, wish me luck guys!

[Thor.]

@Vindekarr Not just racing cars or car engines, the car industry itself went to hell.

 

For example, look at Citroen DS 19 - it's a car from the 50s that has durable, simple and inexpensive hydraulic suspension system, excellent aerodynamics even compared to today's modern mainstream cars, directional headlights, bloody marvelous door lock system and door hinges (I have yet to see such hinge angle precision and door lock mechanism in a modern car), aluminum hood, pretty good sound dampening insulation, and it's more comfortable than today's 500,000€ Mercedes.

 

At the time, a DS 19 that weighted 1.2 tonnes and was powered by a factory 120HP engine, had an acceleration equivalent to a 50s 250HP professional purpose-built racing car.

 

That model set the standards for most of today's mainstream cars, a lot of them are directly expanding on Citroen DS 19 design (Peugeot and Renault lines are the most well known since Peugeot acquired both Citroen and Renault). Best thing is, DS 19 was relatively cheap back when it was produced so even common folks could buy it (the 60HP engine model). All that was achieved even though that car was way ahead of it's time and had incredibly innovative changes that took 6 years of time to design, not to mention how much money and knowledge went into it.

 

What happened to that kind of innovation? Where the hell did it go? Why aren't today's cars as comfortable? Why don't they have doors made that good that close without any force after 60 years of active use? Why does the cheapest car with hydraulic suspension cost like a freakin' fighter jet? It's not all about engine power, it's sometimes about the little things as well.

 

 

 

So to put it simply - the card industry sucks in it's whole. Back in the day it was all about innovation and a low price since without those two, you'd be out of business in a blink. It took Citroen years to recover from expenses that went into building the DS 19, but they came back like a boss. Now it's all about the brand, repeating the same cheap design, and making as much money as possible, as soon as possible, by selling same, cheap cars for a ton of money. Just like Call Of Duty.

 

By the way, this made me chuckle...

In 1985 a 1.6 litre V-6 Formula One engine produced around 1,400 horsepower. In 2013, the same engine size and spec gives only 550 horsepower.

http://d24w6bsrhbeh9d.cloudfront.net/photo/aAYyBEE_700b.jpg

 

Dat horse power...

What do you have against the card industry, i know its Christmas and everyone, no need for hating that.

Edited December 16, 2013 by Thor.