“We’re going to ignore the laws of physics, here.”
DM after i cast thunderwave underwater while in combat against 3 lizardfolk. Rest of party are in boats, waiting for me to come back up.
My level-one fighter with heavy armor and no ranged attacks was one of the ones waiting in the boat.
But at least I wasn’t the one who prepared to hit the first creature to surface with an oar, and the proceeded to hit our own party member when he surfaced.
The 2016 (and 10th annual) Project for Awesome livestream is in full swing! Due to funds from generous matching donors, including YouTube and nerdfighter community donors, every dollar you donate right now is worth $4.
Watch the livestream now (John is hosting with special guests, then Hank!)
Donate and get great perks! (Including an audio recording of a THING John is working on.)
Watch videos and vote for charities to increase their chances of receiving funds raised in the second portion of the Project for Awesome!
What’s the Project for Awesome?
Parachutes are a key part of the landing system for many of our spacecraft, but before we send them into orbit — or beyond — we have to make sure that they’re going to work as designed. One important component of testing is a video that captures every millisecond as the chute opens, to see if it’s working and if not, what went wrong.
Integrated Design Tools built a camera for us that could do just that: rugged and compact, it can film up to 1,000 frames per second and back up all that data almost as fast. Now that same technology is being used to record crash tests, helping ensure that we’re all safer on the roads.
We often use laser-imaging technology, or lidar, on missions in outer space. Thanks to lidar, snow was discovered on Mars, and the technology will soon help us collect a sample from an asteroid to bring home to Earth.
To do all that, we’ve helped make smaller, more rugged, and more powerful lidar devices, which have proven useful here on Earth in a lot of ways, including for archaeologists. Lidar scans can strip away the trees and bushes to show the bare earth—offering clues to help find bones, fossils, and human artifacts hidden beneath the surface.
A screw is a screw, right? Or is it?
When we were building the Space Shuttle, we needed a screw that wouldn’t loosen during the intense vibrations of launch. An advanced screw threading called Spiralock, invented by the Holmes Tool Company and extensively tested at Goddard Space Flight Center, was the answer.
Now it’s being used in golf clubs, too. Cobra Puma Golf built a new driver with a spaceport door (designed to model the International Space Station observatory) that allows the final weight to be precisely calibrated by inserting a tungsten weight before the door is screwed on.
And to ensure that spaceport door doesn’t pop off, Cobra Puma Golf turned to the high-tech threading that had served the Space Shuttle so well.
Neurosurgery tools need to be as precise as possible.
One important tool, bipolar forceps, uses electricity to cut and cauterize tissue. But electricity produces waste heat, and to avoid singeing healthy brain tissue, Thermacore Inc. used a technology we’ve been relying on since the early days of spaceflight: heat pipes. The company, which built its expertise in part through work it has done for us over more than 30 years, created a mini heat pipe for bipolar forceps.
The result means surgery is done more quickly, precisely — and most importantly, more safely.
The Ares 1 rocket, originally designed to launch crewed missions to the moon and ultimately Mars, had a dangerous vibration problem, and the usual solutions were way too bulky to work on a launch vehicle.
Our engineers came up with a brand new technology that used the liquid fuel already in the rocket to get rid of the vibrations. And, it turns out, it works just as well with any liquid—and not just on rockets.
An adapted version is already installed on a building in Brooklyn and could soon be keeping skyscrapers and bridges from being destroyed during earthquakes.
When excess fertilizer washes away into ground water it’s called nutrient runoff, and it’s a big problem for the environment. It’s also a problem for farmers, who are paying for fertilizer the plant never uses.
Ed Rosenthal, founder of a fertilizer company called Florikan, had an idea to fix both problems at once: coating the fertilizer in special polymers to control how quickly the nutrient dissolves in water, so the plant gets just the right amount at just the right time.
Our researchers helped him perfect the formula, and the award-winning fertilizer is now used around the world — and in space.
The sensor that records your selfies was originally designed for something very different: space photography.
Eric Fossum, an engineer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, invented it in the 1990s, using technology called complementary metal-oxide semiconductors, or CMOS. The technology had been used for decades in computers, but Fossum was the first person to successfully adapt it for taking pictures.
As a bonus, he was able to integrate all the other electronics a camera needs onto the same computer chip, resulting in an ultra-compact, energy-efficient, and very reliable imager. Perfect for sending to Mars or, you know, snapping a pic of your meal.
To learn about NASA spinoffs, visit: https://spinoff.nasa.gov/index.html
On November 1, I set out to complete NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). The challenge is to write 50,000 words toward a rough draft of a novel during November. To complete the challenge, a person must write, on average, at least 1,667 words per day.
Earlier this evening, I officially reached 50,277 words. This is only the second time I have completed NaNoWriMo (although I have tried several times in the past). The first time I was successful was in 2013, when I wrote a fanfiction crossover. This time, I wrote a completely original story.
Dalek: What is happening?
The Doctor: Same ol’, same ol’, just the Doctor and Rose Tyler in the TARDIS!
- Doctor Who episode “The Witch’s Familiar”, paraphrased slightly
I posted about my Doctor outfit yesterday (quick summary, I combined 10 of the 13 Doctors into my outfit). Today my wife joins me as Rose Tyler.
And thanks to the Greenfield, Indiana branch of the Hancock County Public Library for letting us take pictures in front of their TARDIS.
“It’s a party, and all of me is invited.” - The Doctor (Doctor Who episode “The Magician’s Apprentice”)
I dressed as The Doctor from the TV series Doctor Who, but rather than pick one of the 13 regenerations, I managed to work 10 different regenerations of the Doctor into my outfit.
The First Doctor - Large blue ring (not easily seen in this picture)
The Second Doctor - A recorder (seen peeking out of my jacket)
The Fourth Doctor - Scarf (hand-crocheted by my wife)
The Fifth Doctor - Celery (well, I went to three different stores, but nobody had celery with the leaves still on them, so I went with chard instead… I tried)
The Sixth Doctor - Cat pin (not easily seen in this picture, peeking out a bit between the celery/chard and the scarf)
The Seventh Doctor - Panama hat (ok, it isn’t really a panama hat, but it was the best I could find without spending $40)
The Ninth Doctor - Black leather jacket
The Tenth Doctor - Trainers (not seen in this picture… I also tried to grow out my side burns in the tenth Doctor’s style, but I didn’t give it enough time)
The Eleventh Doctor - Bow tie (Bow ties are cool!) and sonic screwdriver
The Twelfth Doctor - Sonic sunglasses
Late last year, I ran across a list of reading challenges for 2015. The list had 50 different items intended to expand a person’s reading list. I thought it would be fun to complete those challenges.
I just finished the last of the 50 challenges, and in honor of that occasion, I thought I’d post a FAQ on questions I have gotten about my reading habits.
You’ve read 50 books already this year?
One the challenges involved reading a trilogy, so I actually had to read 52 books to complete the reading challenges. But not every book I’ve read this year allowed me to tick off a new completed challenge. I’ve actually read 140 books so far this year. My original goal was to read 100 books this year, but I actually reached that milestone in June, so I bumped my goal up to 150 books for the year. Even though I’m definitely going to reach 150, I’m not going to bump my goal up again, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to stop reading.
Of course, not all books are created equal. The longest book I’ve read so far this year was nearly 700 pages, but the shortest was a mere 20 pages. Right now, my average book length for the year is about 210 pages.
Are you a speed reader?
No, but I am a fairly fast reader. From what I’ve researched, “normal” reading speeds are 250-450 words per minute. It isn’t considered speed reading until you get to and above 1,000 words per minute. I seem to be around 600-700 words per minute, which is faster than “normal”, but no where near “speed reading” speeds.
When do you find time to read?
I find it hard to fall asleep at night without reading for at least a half hour, although an hour is more typical. That, of course, is assuming I can actually put the book down after an hour and am not up to 3 a.m. reading (not that that has ever happened to me, and especially not this past Tuesday night/Wednesday morning). Also, during the week, I tend to read while eating lunch. So that equates to roughly an hour and a half a day at 650 words per minute. I consider it a slow reading day if I don’t get through at least 100 pages.
Of course, I will read other times, but that’s my typical reading schedule.
Do you prefer printed books, ebooks, or audiobooks?
I actually never got into audiobooks. I guess I’d rather keep my eyes busy rather than my ears. But that is a personal preference. I have gotten to the point where I definitely prefer ebooks over printed books. I like the convenience of carrying my whole library around with me, I find my tablet (or, in a pinch, my phone) is easier to handle than a printed book, and I like that I don’t have to have an external light source to read (although if I read an ebook without some form of light in the room, I do tend to get an eye-strain headache before long). That doesn’t mean I don’t like printed books, and, between my wife and I, we certainly have a large collection of them that we aren’t going to get rid of any time soon. And I’m still buying and reading some printed books. Printed books are easier to read in the sunlight, and they are easier to lend to others. But for the past few years, I’ve obtained and read significantly more ebooks. My ebook collection is fast approaching 1,000.
Where do you get your ebooks from?
Multiple sources. I get legally free books from Project Gutenberg and ManyBooks. StoryBundle is a great source for pay-what-you-want for bundles of books (sometimes it feels like I am addicted to those bundles, I’ve purchased over 40 of them over the last few years), which results in a lot of books for a little money. My local library has a good collection of ebooks that I can borrow. Otherwise, I buy them from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Google Play Store, Kobo and Smashwords. I also subscribe to numerous email newsletters that keep me informed on the latest ebook deals (Book Barbarian, BookBub, Bookperk, BookSends, eBooks Habit, EReader News Today, ManyBooks, Reading Deals and Robin Reads).
How do you organize all of those books?
I use a program called Calibre to organize my ebook files. It organizes books a lot like iTunes organizes music (at least, I think it does… I don’t actually use iTunes). I also use a website called Goodreads to keep lists of both my ebooks and my printed books. The reading app that I use on my tablet and phone is FBReader.
Can one reading app work with all of those ebook sources?
Calibre and FBReader work great with books from Project Gutenberg, ManyBooks, StoryBundle, Smashwords and some Kobo books because they don’t have DRM built in restricting their use. As for the rest… {Glances at the Digital Millennium Copyright Act sitting in the corner} Uh, next question, please.
Why don’t you use iTunes?
Long story short, several years ago, iTunes convinced me that it was, in fact, a computer virus. I’ve avoided it ever since. However, that’s a topic for a different day. Let’s get back to books.
What’s your favorite book? (Alternatively, who is your favorite author and/or what is your favorite genre?)
I just KNEW you were going to ask that. Honestly, I read way too much to pick a favorite. It is like trying to pick your favorite TV episode ever.
What genres do you like to read?
I like to read a bit of everything, including (but not limited to) historical non-fiction, historical fiction, sci-fi, fantasy, action/adventure, mystery, young-adult, paranormal, and probably many others that I am forgetting off hand. Of course, that’s what I like to read. I have read pretty much every genre you can think of.
Who are some of your favorite authors?
In alphabetical order, I will list Douglas Adams, Ben Bova, Lindsay Buroker, Clive Cussler, Peter David, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Joseph J. Ellis, John Green, Joseph R. Lallo, Susan Kaye Quinn, J.K. Rowling and Anthea Sharp, but this list is by no means inclusive.
How do you decide on what books you want to read?
Some I find out about through word-of-mouth. I keep an eye out for authors that I have read and enjoyed in the past. StoryBundle certainly keeps me supplied with books I probably never would have known about, or even looked at, otherwise. And I keep an eye on sales for anything that looks interesting to me.
Once I get the books, I pretty much keep them in a list on Goodreads and largely read them in “first in, first out” order, although some I particularly want to read will jump to the front of the list. Of course, for this year’s reading challenge, some books had to jump up to the front of the list or I wouldn’t have gotten to them in time.
Also, every year during my local library’s summer reading program, I sort my to-read list by length and start reading the shortest books first. That allows me to get a large number of books in a really short time. This year, I got 66 books in during the 64 days of the program, which is nearly half my total for the year, although those 66 books only averaged 125 pages in length.
Do you re-read books?
I do like to re-read my favorites, but right now, I have such a long list of books that I want to read for the first time that I feel like I don’t have time to re-read. As of this writing, I have 361 books on my to-read list. And the more I read, the more books I find I want to add, so my list is growing faster than I can read them.
Can you remember what you’ve read?
Given the title and author, I could give you a brief synopsis of most of the books I’ve read in the last few years. A few might require me looking at the cover, and a few more might need a bit more information to jog my memory. Unless we are talking about series. Often, I have a hard time remembering what happened in which book within a series, although I could talk about the series as a whole. But I don’t have 100% retention of the books I read, although I certainly remember more recent books better than books I’ve read years ago.
On very rare occasions I will pick up a new-to-me book and start reading only to realize I’ve read the book before, but that doesn’t happen to me often. And usually, it only happens if it has been several years since I first read it.
A bigger issue I have is looking at a book and thinking that it looks interesting and that I should pick it up, only to discover I already have a copy of it that I haven’t gotten around to reading yet. But I guess that is one of the hazards of having 361 books on my to-read list.
—
I can’t think of any other book-related questions I commonly get, but if you have another question, feel free to ask me.
Hoosiers! Time to make your state a stop on the ‘Get Lost Get Found’ tour! Favorite and reblog to vote for Indiana! One note = one vote!
My wife and I got our Project for Awesome art perks. I got the “The Fault in Our Stars” poster (by Lissy Marlin) and she got the Hanklerfish (by Ami Amie).
As we near the end of the first quarter, I figured it was time to give an update on my reading challenges.
I set two for 2015. The first was to read 100 books for the year. I have now completed 25 books, which puts me just about exactly where I need to be for the year.
My second goal was to complete a reading challenge I found online back in December. It gave 50 different items to cover. I’m probably only supposed to check off one item per book, but considering my goal for the year is to read twice as many books as the number of challenges given, I decided to check off as many items as a book covered. So a single book may check off as many as 7 items (for example, “Royal” by Anthea Sharp fulfilled being a book that I own but have not read, a book from a female author, a book from an author I love but have not read, a book with non-human characters, a book with magic, a book set in the future, a book set in high school, and a book with a one-word title). But I’ve also kept track of how many books checked off each particular item.
A book you own but have never read (11)
A book from an author you love that you haven’t read yet (11)
A book with nonhuman characters (8)
A book by a female author (7)
A book with magic (7)
A book of short stories (6)
A book by an author that you’ve never read before (6)
A book set in the future (5)
A book with a one-word title (4)
A book with more than 500 pages (4)
A book set in a different country (4)
A mystery or thriller (4)
A book at the bottom of your to-read list (3)
A book you can finish in a day (3)
A book that made you cry (2)
A book that became a movie (2)
A book a friend recommended (2)
A nonfiction book (2)
A memoir (2)
A trilogy (2)
A book that scares you (2)
A funny book (2)
A book written by someone under 30 (1)
A book based entirely on its cover (1)
A book published this year (1)
A book with a number in the title (1)
A book you started but never finished (1)
A book set during Christmas (1)
A Classic romance (1)
A popular author’s first book (1)
A book based on or turned into a TV show (1)
A book set in high school (1)
A book with a love triangle (1)
A graphic novel (1)
A book set somewhere you’ve always wanted to visit (1)
That just leaves:
A Pulitzer Prize-winning book
A book based on a true story
A book your mom loves
A book more than 100 years old
A book you were supposed to read in school but didn’t
A book with antonyms in the title
A book that came out the year you were born
A book with bad reviews
A book from your childhood
A book with a color in the title
A book that takes place in your hometown
A book that originally was written in a different language
A book written by an author with your same initials
A play
A banned book
yourplayersaidwhat
[We are playing Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus]
Demon [at seeing a paladin in our party]: How did a paladin get into hell? How did you get past the gatekeeper?
Wizard: We talked to Vinz.
Demon: Vinz?
Wizard: Vinz Clortho, the keymaster. He let us in.
