Is it time for Random Thoughts - Part 4?

[RonL]

uh oh.
I have 9 alerts.
This is a new record, for me.
After 3 days of trans-thanksgiving debauchery, I'm afraid to view them.

What did I do now...

That's the price to pay for spreading so much wisdom over so many threads:D

 

[OmCheeto]

That's the price to pay for spreading so much wisdom over so many threads:D

Phew! You're right. I'm apparently simply subscribed to too many threads.

I'll have to start a new one.

I came to grips with Carnot's heat engine equation a while back, and decided, in the last half hour, that it is applicable to disassembling a Thanksgiving turkey, also.

Science!

:)

As Schroeder puts it "So don't bother installing a Carnot engine in your car; while it would increase your gas mileage, you would be passed on the highway by pedestrians."

As Om now puts it "Don't bother picking all the meat off of the carcass; while it might be satisfying to be so frugal, you will eventually starve to death".

:)

 

[collinsmark]

I came to grips with Carnot's heat engine equation a while back,

That's one of my favorites. I like it because, as it's defined it seems so application specific and almost trivial. And yet it, and it's underlying principles, are actually of the most profound in all of physics.

 

[Medicol]

Thank you a lot.

 

[nuuskur]

*sings* Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me, happy birthday, dear me-ee, happy birthday to me!

 

[AnOldStudent]

:D I read your profile and see your joined datetime is Sept 6 2014.

 

[nuuskur]

I joined mother Earth 24 years ago today.

 

[Danger]

I joined mother Earth 24 years ago today.

Couldn't afford any place better?

 

[Borg]

I hate dealing with government bureaucracies who won't do their job.

 

[Danger]

I hate dealing with government bureaucracies who won't do their job.

There's another kind?

 

[Borg]

There's another kind?

It would seem not.

 

[AnOldStudent]

I believe all things marked as good memories in the past can be brought back as realities to the present in life. But the Good Memories as defined biologically as a network of conscious or neurons' activities really confuse me.
If I have a long log cake of 1 meter long and am going to pick 40cm of it right in middle. That means I still have 30cm piece on the left and 30cm one on the right. I can create a new cake of 40cm long and insert it into the missing part to recreate the original cake of 1 meter long. Why isn't it possible ?

 

[Nikitin]

I believe all things marked as good memories in the past can be brought back as realities to the present in life. But the Good Memories as defined biologically as a network of conscious or neurons' activities really confuse me.
If I have a long log cake of 1 meter long and am going to pick 40cm of it right in middle. That means I still have 30cm piece on the left and 30cm one on the right. I can create a new cake of 40cm long and insert it into the missing part to recreate the original cake of 1 meter long. Why isn't it possible ?

Hmm you bots are getting better and better.

 

[Medicol]

Nikita Nikitin is a known hockey player.
Russian people have names that sound like Japanese

 

[Nikitin]

Nikita Nikitin is a known hockey player.
Russian people have names that sound like Japanese

And this guy above is also a bot. After updating the forum the security went down, didn't it? But I got to admit, the programmers making them are getting clever.

 

[Medicol]

,,,. After updating the forum the security went down, didn't it? But I got to admit, the programmers making them are getting clever.

What ? PF just got updated? I didn't know about that.

 

[Psinter]

So I nearly got crushed by a truck yesterday in the highway. It looks like he didn't see me and tried to change lanes while me being in parallel with him. I accelerated and avoided being crushed against the wall by a single hair.

That was scary as hell. No... more scary than hell. Just recalling it makes my heart pound faster. But it's okay, scares like that serve as training.

Have any of you had a dangerous experience on the streets too?

 

[Danger]

Have any of you had a dangerous experience on the streets too?

More than I can count, or even remember.

 

[lisab]

More than I can count, or even remember.

Me too. I like having a bit of power, if only to get out of bad situations quickly.

 

[Danger]

Roger that. I loved having that 440 on tap when I was about to be broadsided by a truck. Braking wouldn't have worked, but speeding up sure did.

 

[AnOldStudent]

How dangerous that sounds!

 

[Danger]

dangerous

You forgot to capitalize that...

 

[Psinter]

More than I can count, or even remember.

Really?! You should be careful. This was my first time and I hope I don't face anymore dangerous encounters. Not with a truck nor anything else.

Roger that. I loved having that 440 on tap when I was about to be broadsided by a truck. Braking wouldn't have worked, but speeding up sure did.

That does actually sound very dangerous.

 

[Danger]

That does actually sound very dangerous.

You have no idea... And all of this was long before airbags or antilock brakes or side-impact beams or any of that other new-fangled safety stuff.

 

[OmCheeto]

Really?! You should be careful. This was my first time and I hope I don't face anymore dangerous encounters. Not with a truck nor anything else.

That does actually sound very dangerous.

How long have you been driving?

 

[Danger]

How long have you been driving?

From what he's saying, I'd guess about 6 months...

 

[zoobyshoe]

today's haiku:

Wet people eyeball me with envy
because I have an umbrella.

 

[Psinter]

How long have you been driving?

From what he's saying, I'd guess about 6 months...

No.

You are underestimating me. I'm very mature, I've been driving for 5 years. Although I only drive like 20 times per year.

 

[AnOldStudent]

You forgot to capitalize that...

:D So many things to consider ...
Xmas and New Year is coming. :) Drive safe ! I was hit by bikes sometimes.
Each moment I spend my live through always leaves me something memorable, e.g it'll be sad if i.e 15 or 20 years later I may not be able to see you or Evo around any more...I am learning to be better in the future.

 

[OmCheeto]

From what he's saying, I'd guess about 6 months...

Sounds about right.

The following happened to me one day. You only need to watch the first 20 seconds.



Not much you can do about it. I actually saw the semi in my rear view mirror, and could tell he wasn't paying attention. I had 4 lanes of completely dead stopped traffic in front of me with a semi barreling down on me at about 60 mph. So I backed up about half a car length, and waited. There was a shoulder both to the left and to the right. And had he not decided at the last moment to shift to the left shoulder, I could have floored it and exited to the right shoulder. It was pretty intense having a semi traveling at that speed only a few feet from you. He was miraculously able to come to a stop before he hit anyone.

Here's a picture of where it happened.
I was in the right lane, about at the end of the yellow line.
I can see now why he chose the left lane. It appears to be an emergency vehicle lane.
About 100 ft down the road, another two lanes of freeway merged with the two lanes on my side.
The emergency vehicle lane, of course, didn't extend past where the lanes merged.

I guess there were a lot of lucky people that day.

And I absolutely agree with you, 440's are invaluable in such situations.

 

[OmCheeto]

No.

You are underestimating me. I'm very mature, I've been driving for 5 years. Although I only drive like 20 times per year.

I've been driving for 40 years now. I've only been in one accident*. I broadsided someone at full speed. I was driving down the wrong side of the road. Never did that again.

Live and learn. :)

ps. That's good that you've learned not to pace trucks. The next time you see one parked, go up and see if you can see one of these signs affixed somewhere:

I stay the hell away from trucks.

*While I was the driver, that is. Lots of other drivers have attempted to kill me. The last time I was a passenger, the driver hit a bicyclist. I no longer ride with him.

 

[AnOldStudent]

Is driving a car difficult ? I've wanted to learn how to drive one but given up soon then because I can't afford a car. For almost half of my life span I've used bicycles.
I only hear news people died in car accidents and the photos of wrecks look terrifying.

 

[Danger]

I'm very mature, I've been driving for 5 years.

Those are mutually exclusive statements. That's about how long I think someone should have a learner's permit before being allowed a full license.

The following happened to me one day.

Is driving a car difficult ?

No. Driving one well and safely takes a very intensive learning curve followed by constant practise. I can't speak for other jurisdictions, but I can honestly say that at least 90% of North American drivers are not good or safe.

edit: In reference to the sign that Om showed—the rule when following a truck is that if you can't see the driver in his mirror, he can't see you either.

 

[Astronuc]

Aston Carter earned a bachelor's degrees in medieval history and physics from Yale University before receiving his doctorate in theoretical physics from Oxford University.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-30302722

 

[Borek]

I'm very mature, I've been driving for 5 years.

You do understand that for those of us with 30+ years of driving that sounds just funny?