The Blog of M.W. Chase
How to Make a Tesla Gun
Posted: 11 May 2012Ever wanted to make a lightning bolt gun and run around, laughing maniacally, as you zap everything in sight? Well, this guy did, and he has instructions on how you can too.
That is one wicked looking Tesla gun.
Equality For All
Posted: 9 May 2012As a matter of preference, I tend to avoid topics of a political nature. But this week, the second week of May, 2012, has been a rather momentous week in terms of equal rights. North Carolina just passed their Amendment One law, officially banning same-sex marriages and all forms of domestic partnerships–a clear affirmation of the state’s desire to remain firmly entrenched in the 17th century.
On a more enlightened note, President Obama affirmed his support for same-sex marriage on ABC’s The View.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Yes, equality for all means equality for all.
For the United States to be an equal and free nation, all citizens must be granted same and equal rights without discrimination to race, gender, religion, or any other factors. Any law that discriminates on any of these factors is an unconstitutional law, and thus, laws that prohibit same-sex marriage are unconstitutional since they discriminate against couples of the same gender.
From the end of slavery and racial segregation to women’s right to vote, history has proven that the injustices of bigotry, ignorance, and discrimination cannot prevail. All it takes is a voice and courage.
TedTalk on Babbage’s Analytical Engine
Posted: 30 Apr 2012Here’s a great TedTalk on Babbage’s Analytical Engine. Although the video does not always pan over to the slides, the talk is nevertheless very informative on the general design and operation of the analytical engine. Fascinating stuff!
Click here to view the embedded video.
Planetary Resources: A New Space Venture
Posted: 24 Apr 2012A new private space company, Planetary Resources, has announced its intention to begin a long term venture aimed at prospecting and mining asteroids within the next 10 to 20 years. Ordinarily, such a venture would be scoffed at by most experts, but Planetary Resources has been operating in secret for the past 3 years (and perhaps longer) and has some astonishingly big name multi-billionaire backers, including Google founders Eric Schmidt and Larry Page, as well as Ross Perot, Jr., and an advisory board that includes movie director James Cameron, astrophysicist Dr. Sara Seager, former Chief of Staff General Michael Moseley, and astronaut Thomas D. Jones.
Click here to view the embedded video.
This is big news. And by that I mean really big news. If they pull this off, this will be the game-changing event for humanity’s future in space. Rather than having to boost hundreds of tons of fuel and material into orbit (and it costs roughly $20,000 to get just 1 liter of water into orbit), Space Resources will mine small near-Earth asteroids for water and other basic materials, creating depots in orbit, around the Moon, or perhaps the Lagrange points (though they didn’t say that specifically), and will presumably sell water, fuel, and material to NASA and other private space companies. Later, they would also begin to mine asteroids for precious metals such as platinum, which is rare and expensive on Earth but extremely abundant in space (and by the way, platinum is actually far more important for use in electronics and various chemical processes that it is for jewellery, which is the real reason for mining it in such massive quantities).
Here’s the full presentation of their April 24th, 2012, announcement:
Click here to view the embedded video.
For more information, Phil Plait has a nice long post on Planetary Resources.
Space.com also has an extensive article on Planetary Resource’s vision and plan.
And if you’re still sceptical of this, just remember: space has near-infinite resources, and near-infinite resources equals the potential for near-infinite profits. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out the economics (∞ = ∞), but will take a genius to pull it off. It’s a good thing Planetary Resources already has a few geniuses on-board.
Avengers: I Hope It’s Good
Posted: 17 Apr 2012Well, the new Avengers movie looks better and better with every trailer and clip I see. I sure hope it really is as good as it looks. Check out this latest clip:
If the embeded video doesn’t play (or you want to see higher def version), you can find it at Apple Trailers.
The History of English
Posted: 4 Apr 2012Here’s a great post on the “History of the English, in 10 minutes,” voiced by Clive Anderson. Funny and educational.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Solomon Kane: the Movie You Never Heard About
Posted: 23 Mar 2012I’m sorry to say I never heard about the Solomon Kane movie, based on the adventures of the archetypal anti-hero created by Robert E. Howard, which was apparently release in Europe and the UK in 2010. Why did I never see it or even hear about it? Because it was never released in the US… not in theaters, not direct to DVD, not to streaming services. Nothing. Nah-dah. Nil. Zero. Zippo. Zilch. I’m guessing US distributors boycott it because an awesome fantasy/action European film just makes Hollywood look dumb.
Be sure to check out the official site, and keep a look out for a US release — or even a DVD release. This looks to be a pretty good film, and far superior to most of Hollywood’s usual drivel.
Rob Reid on Copyright Math
Posted: 19 Mar 2012This is a nice little 5 minute chat from Rob Reid, the founder of the company that created Rhapsody, which he recently gave at TED on “Copyright Math”. Very funny!
And Now Some Words from Neil deGrasse Tyson
Posted: 8 Mar 2012Have you ever wondered what the most interesting fact in the universe is? Well, here’s how Neil deGrasse Tyson answers that question.
Click here to view the embedded video.
And if you have more time on your hands (1 hour and 18 minutes of time), here’s Stephen Colbert’s interview with Neil deGrasse Tyson. Very funny, and very enlightening.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Doctor Who: Curse of Fatal Death
Posted: 4 Mar 2012I just stumbled upon this “official” Doctor Who parody, which was done for a BBC charity telethon back in 1999. It has some pretty big names including Rowan Atkinson, Richard Grant, and Hugh Grant, and is pretty funny. Plus it has the classic Master (far better than the new Master, in my opinion). Also keep in mind this pre-dates the “New Who”, which is why the 9th Doctor is played by Rowan Atkinson. That’s right. Rowan Atkinson. As the Doctor. Yep.
Click here to view the embedded video.