For me, the title link does not seem to lead directly to a readable article.

If the same effect happens for others too, here is another link:

https://diabetesjournals.org/care/article/49/6/901/164764/Misguided-Brushes-of-a-Pen-Continue-to-Dismantle

Guessing a bit for additional perspective: even when one pigeon knows better how to get there, it may decide to stay within eyesight of the other “clueless” pigeon, even if the other pigeon is heading in a somewhat wrong direction.

This avoids the scenario of being the only pigeon in the area. If there are two pigeons and a hawk, safety is considerably improved for any individual pigeon. If there are a zillion pigeons and a hawk, safety is humongously improved for any individual pigeon. And I guess that’s why it makes sense to flock a bit, even if the other flock member is clueless.

Interesting.

I’m tempted to propose an alternative explanation: vibrating water might enter the tissues of the rice seeds faster. I tried to see if they had a control group with other sounds, but it seems they did not. And indeed, this kind of a control group would be hard to create, as one would have to know pretty damn “well what kind of sound will cause statoliths in cells to move?”

Plant… vision?

I read the PDF and the test plants clearly had distinct populations of leaves. If one can remove all other confounding factors and expose a rock-solid correlation to the shape of an artificial host plant… then wow. If one can find a biomechanism which mediates this, then more wows. :)

I hope this turns out to be true, because vision without a nervous sysytem (or plants with neuron-like structures) would be something worth reading about. :)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boquila

I have no idea of the base reason, but I think it could be something like:

• aircraft headlights are white (and kept on at low altitudes)
• white reflects best (short of reflectors)
• white blades may reduce collision risk at night

…but since every decent wind turbine has signal lights too, I think it’s mostly bureaucratic inertia that prevents making exceptions. One could always file a permanent NOTAM above an experimental wind generator, telling pilots “here is a wind generator of non-standard colors” and I think it would be OK.

The only “haunted” place I have had the chance to repeatedly observe, the second floor warehouse of a car parts company, matches this hypothesis quite nicely. The floor is plywood on metal beams, and picks up street vibrations occasionally. This has never bothered me, but one person who works there says the place is haunted. :)

I kindly remind that in this community, a text-based source is encouraged instead of plain video (fortunately YouTube can show transcripts), and focus should be on experiments or discoveries.

I believe the cross-post to “technology” was more appropriate, as it got a lot more discussion there. :)

That was extremely fast for an infection. All I can say: if there are symptoms of an infection, treat it. If it spreads, find emergency treatment.

There’s an article circulating about a new way of long-term energy storage which just about might be practical enough to gain traction. :)

An isomer of pyrimidone is charged with 300 nanometer UVB light, and energy is released in a water solution by changing the pH of the solution.

For anyone with an interest in chemistry, I recommend the scientific paper.

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aec6413

Trying to think of critiques:

• the wavelength of light necessary to “charge up” pyrimidone is fairly short (300 nm, UVB ultraviolet light)

• the quantity of UVB light on Earth’s surface is limited (it is mostly absorbed by the ozone layer)

• however, one can artificially produce ultraviolet light from solar electrical power, or figure out molecules that charge with UVA or even blue light, which would be perfect

Positive aspects:

• pyrimidone looks simple, synthesis probably is not hard
• it is solid at room temperature
• it lasts long when charged
• it is compatible with a water environment when energy needs releasing

Addition of hydrochloric acid (HCl) to Dewar pyrimidone (107 mg in 0.46 ml of water) increased the solution temperature to 100°C and induced boiling within 1 s, demonstrating rapid macroscopic heat transfer to an environmentally benign medium under ambient conditions.

Not well, but it drives.

Battery capacity is small. It’s a city car all the way.

Heating is abysmal. I don’t touch it, it drains the battery. I only heat the seats (from the car 12 V system) and windscreen (with a large drone battery and two Chinese 400 W heat blowers).

Different sizes of tyres of front and back wheels are impractical. Changing headlight bulbs is a nightmare (manual says to take off the front bumper, but I deviate from the procedure and leave some screws missing, so I can take out the headlights).

The gear shifter has 2 needless pull cables (not electrical cables) which freeze in winter and cannot be bypassed easily. The motor controller borked itself (high voltage comparator error) and I had to take it apart to fix (fortunately a fix was documented).

One of the steel brake pipes rusted and leaked, and the repair shop refused to lower the battery (I have done it myself) because they didn’t feel comfortable. I had to bypass the steel pipe with a copper pipe, fortunately technical inspection did not notice.

Rear ABS sensors go faulty and start lying, producing error messages. An “original” spare part costs 200 euros, fortunately there’s a trick (installing another car’s sensor in reverse) and it costs 17 euros.

But what I can I ask, it’s a 15 year old car.

I’m in Europe, so we have 230 volts here (two times less amps needed for identical power), but… I charge my i-MIEV with 5.5 amps at night (the whole night) and it’s charged by the morning. Knowing that, I optimized my grid connection down to 3 x 6 amps (three phases, each up to 6 amps).

Of course, if I charge during daytime, I can draw power from the house inverter, so then I charge at 10…13 amps.

These guys sell those chargers for 15 euros. Not sure if the chargers work, but the plugs look compatible and they have positive reviews.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005008383594311.html

To manage without an inverter, I would consider a adjustable DC/DC converter.

1. Small step-down converter with current limit:

Input voltage range: 6-40.00V
Output voltage range: 0V-32.00V
Output current: 0-5.1A
Output power range: 0-160W

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005006294300036.html

2. Big step-down converter with current limit:

Input voltage: DC12-80V (can not be used for 72V battery)
Output voltage: 2.5V-50V adjustable (only buck) (maximum output voltage = input voltage * 0.8)
Output current: 20A (MAX) 25A overcurrent
Maximum power: 600W
Conversion efficiency: ≥ 93%

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005007391865816.html

3. With serious and silent cooling, dual displays (voltage and current), adaptive current limiting that considers temperature, input up to 120 V DC (be careful, this voltage level is deadly):

Input: DC 25-120V
Output: DC 1.2-75V adjustable
Current: 20A (MAX)
Power: 600W (Reduce current based on heat dissipation when voltage difference is high)

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005010659062631.html

Note: dial in less than your full battery voltage. Your upmost level of voltage ripple + measurement error must be a bit below the full battery voltage. Of course, you must have a balancer and BMS (to stop everything in an emergency) on your battery.

If you don’t mind divulging, how does that stack against timber for cost at least for the time?

It’s too expensive but practically indestructible, except in salt water. Unlike wood, it does not offer any favourable thermal properties, so you can only do unheated sheds with it. I came across a pile of it on a bankruptsy auction, which made it possible to afford its use.

I recommend to find some assistance. Even one other person can help immensely at certain points.

I have built a 2-storey shed on a metal frame alone, and it involved highly inconvenient and more than moderately dangerous stages. I would not do it again.

I managed only because I relied heavily on industrial aluminum profiles for machine building (engineer’s Lego beams).

Apparently yes, and they’re a bit late, as the Ecoflow & clones train has already left the station.

If you ask a random Ukrainian drone pilot “how can I support you”, one of the more likely answers would be “help our unit get another EcoFlow, or a good clone from the short list”.

In their bunkers and base stations, they need lots of portable power without a thermal signature. Best if silent too, but most imporantly, it has to be cool. Generators are kept far at the back in really safe places, because they shine quite brightly in thermal vision. They also need oxygen and output poisonous exhaust, so you can’t take them to the same bunker as people.

All I can say is that I read the stories, enjoyed them, and gave them away in a freeshop for others to read. :)

Heyva Sor is real and if you can, I am sure they welcome any help. :)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurdish_Red_Crescent

If you don’t mind buying from Guangdong and being hit with import and customs fees, then on Linux, this gadget presents a standard V4L (Video4Linux) USB camera.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005007938478574.html

The cable is delicate, you’d have to find a way to secure it against damage (e.g. tape). For the 256 x 192 pixel sensor, focal length 4 mm will get you an ordinary field of view (e.g. 45 degrees), while 9 mm will get you a very narrow field of view (e.g. 20 degrees). Grayscale image, very fast frame rates, automatic calibration against a shutter (occasional sub-second stops in video).

Note: never ever point at the Sun. It has poor solar protection, I almost ruined it when my code erred and scanned across the Sun, leaving a massive black track which took several hours to fade. The shutter closes when it sees the Sun, but not fast enough.