Today I Learned

[Melbourne Guy]

I also learned about Skype's new account creation captcha which looks like a joke.

TIL that Skype is still a thing

 

[Astronuc]

It's recently come to my attention that some people use milk instead of water in the cooking of porridge oats; now I wonder whether this is a popular practice and whether it actually tastes nicer than using water?

I'm one of those some. I use standard oats and add steel cut oats; the latter takes a little longer. The oats will absorb water or milk, so I add enough to keep soft. My parents would use water, then add milk for eating the porridge. I skip the water and add milk.

With the oats, I'll mix granola, berries (often blueberries, especially from May to August when our bushes produce), walnuts and/or pecans, honey or maple syrup. If I feel really hedonistic, I'll add eggnog after the oatmeal is cooked.

 

[pinball1970]

BASE in BASE jumping is an acronym, I thought it meant jumping from a BASE rather than plane but no so.

B = Buildings

A= Antennae

S = Spans (bridges)

E = Earth (cliffs)I was interested to find our what kind of speeds they achieve and also how they maintain height for the ones who wear wing suits.
Some of them seem to able to maintain a certain height from the ground like they are actually flying like a bird.

Anyway I learned that over xmas, TIL that Swimming is the number 2 most dangerous sport after Base jumping.

 

[Borg]

This probably isn't the safest of skydiving activities either.

 

[Keith_McClary]

 

[pinball1970]

This probably isn't the safest of skydiving activities either.

That is nuts.

Volcano, sky dive, wing-suiting.

Because normal skydive, wing-suiting over mountains is just not dangerous enough.

 

[Keith_McClary]

Volcano, sky dive, wing-suiting.

Because normal skydive, wing-suiting over mountains is just not dangerous enough.

But, it has a built-in thermal updraft!

 

[Rive]

But, it has a built-in thermal updraft!

And in case an accident nobody has to bother with the burial either.

 

[Frabjous]

TIL that converting a word document to pdf does not necessarily elimate all the metadata.

 

[KingGambit]

Today I learned that the Earth was (ever) tidally locked to one of our (Indonesian) satellite?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garuda_1

Leave it to Lockheed Martin to construct such a powerful satellite. Too bad they don't build F22 anymore after so many were destroyed by Godzilla and Ironman.

 

[DaveC426913]

Today I learned that the Earth was (ever) tidally locked to one of our (Indonesian) satellite?

You jest.

 

[mfb]

What's special about that random GEO satellite? There are ~500 satellites in geostationary orbit. Some have a mass of about 7 tonnes.

 

[berkeman]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garuda_1

TIL from this previous TIL link about an old geostationary satellite that one goal for satellites at the end of their operational life is to either de-orbit them (which I knew about), or move them to "Graveyard Orbits":

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

Overview

A graveyard orbit is used when the change in velocity required to perform a de-orbit maneuver is too large. De-orbiting a geostationary satellite requires a delta-v of about 1,500 metres per second (4,900 ft/s), whereas re-orbiting it to a graveyard orbit only requires about 11 metres per second (36 ft/s).[1]

For satellites in geostationary orbit and geosynchronous orbits, the graveyard orbit is a few hundred kilometers beyond the operational orbit. The transfer to a graveyard orbit beyond geostationary orbit requires the same amount of fuel as a satellite needs for about three months of stationkeeping. It also requires a reliable attitude control during the transfer maneuver. While most satellite operators plan to perform such a maneuver at the end of their satellites' operational lives, through 2005 only about one-third succeeded.[2] As of 2011, most[clarification needed] recently decommissioned geosynchronous spacecraft were said to have been moved to a graveyard orbit.[3]

 

[Borg]

TIL about Acapella Science.

 

[BillTre]

TIL about high and low temperature hot spots in the US over the last 20 years (from NY Times):

 

[rsk]

TIL that Skype is still a thing

I also learned this recently. It's a very long time since I used my Skype account and I can't remember the password.

Sadly, I also learned that some time back when I updated the email address in my Skype account because the old one was expiring, it didn't actually update the recovery address. Yes, I learned that Microsoft will allow you to change your email address, but will continue sending password recovery information to the old address.

I also learned that Microsoft Support is pretty much useless in such cases because they just keep suggesting things I could only do once logged in.

 

[mfb]

I had similar experiences with Google. Had an old Youtube account that I didn't use for a while. Tried to log in again - I knew the password, but Google decided that it doesn't recognize my device and needs extra verification it's me. I didn't give Youtube (back when the accounts were separate) my phone number or any RL information Google would have accepted, so the account is dead.

 

[Ibix]

I didn't give Youtube (back when the accounts were separate) my phone number or any RL information Google would have accepted, so the account is dead.

Indeed. And to add insult to injury, every time I try to log in it sends me an email telling me someone tried to log into my account and asking me to click on a link to confirm that I'm me - at which point it asks for my password and round we go again.

 

[rsk]

It's SO frustrating.

 

[BillTre]

TIL that airlines want 5G technology delayed near airports, as they are afraid that it will interfere with some of their technology.

The representatives of 10 carriers asked the administration in a letter obtained by CNN to further delay the rollout near airports where Federal Aviation Administration flight restrictions take effect once the technology kicks in. The aviation world is concerned 5G signals will interfere with aviation technology including the radar altimeter onboard planes.

"The ripple effects across both passenger and cargo operations, our workforce and the broader economy are simply incalculable," the executives wrote. "To be blunt, the nation's commerce will grind to a halt."

 

[fresh_42]

TIL that airlines want 5G technology delayed near airports, as they are afraid that it will interfere with some of their technology.

https://www.physicsforums.com/threa...-delay-in-u-s-5g-wireless-deployment.1010462/

See especially @berkeman's answer in post #3.

 

[Ibix]

Today I learned that trisection of an arbitrary angle using only a ruler and unmarked straightedge was proved impossible in 1837. In 1980, it was shown to be possible using origami (essentially because folding pieces of paper allows you to add marks to your straightedge). Off the back of that I discovered the Miura map fold, a fold of a piece of paper that allows you to collapse it into a small square and expand it again just by pushing or pulling on opposite corners. It's been used in space programs to store solar panels in a compact form that's mechanically simple to open.

 

[rsk]

TIL that airlines want 5G technology delayed near airports, as they are afraid that it will interfere with some of their technology.

I was a bit alarmed when I heard this as I have to fly long haul next week and this, together with the dust on the fan blades episode, made me a bit nervous. Fortunately I'm not going through US airspace.

 

[Klystron]

TIL not for the first time that I can visualize a problem and possible solutions but have difficulty expressing the answers in English, due to age and injuries.
https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/lock-in-amplifier-with-pulsed-sinewave.1011450/

Specifically, I know or knew methods to measure the requested signal lock but 1) my equipment knowledge is years out of date and 2) exact details are sketchy such as coupler attenuation. I would try using the reference pulse to synchronize the PRF (pulse repetition frequency) and/or alter the carrier pulse width to optimize lock but doubt these generalities would help a working engineer.

 

[DaveE]

TIL not for the first time that I can visualize a problem and possible solutions but have difficulty expressing the answers in English, due to age and injuries.
https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/lock-in-amplifier-with-pulsed-sinewave.1011450/

Specifically, I know or knew methods to measure the requested signal lock but 1) my equipment knowledge is years out of date and 2) exact details are sketchy such as coupler attenuation. I would try using the reference pulse to synchronize the PRF (pulse repetition frequency) and/or alter the carrier pulse width to optimize lock but doubt these generalities would help a working engineer.

Yes, me too. I was sooo much smarter 30 years ago. I knew a bunch of stuff I never used much, or ever, which has now drifted away.

But, a couple of related points.

1) This is the sort of problem that can have several solutions from simple (buy the right instrument) to complex (PLLs to filter, demodulate and sample etc.). Which are really based on how much you care, how hard is the problem, and how much time and money you have. This causes a bit of confusion to people that understand the options but not the all of the constraints.

Which leads us to:

2) Working engineers are working. They will spend much more time and effort thinking about their specific problems than we will. When I was actually paid for this sort of thing I probably would have spent at least a day thinking about the solution, sometimes much more. OTOH, we won't. We toss out ideas based on our previous experience, learned by actually solving these things. If you cared more because this was your problem, not someone else's, you would sort all of that out.

 

[Klystron]

Yes, me too. I was sooo much smarter 30 years ago. I knew a bunch of stuff I never used much, or ever, which has now drifted away.

But, a couple of related points.

1) This is the sort of problem that can have several solutions from simple (buy the right instrument) to complex (PLLs to filter, demodulate and sample etc.). Which are really based on how much you care, how hard is the problem, and how much time and money you have. This causes a bit of confusion to people that understand the options but not the all of the constraints.

Which leads us to:

2) Working engineers are working. They will spend much more time and effort thinking about their specific problems than we will. When I was actually paid for this sort of thing I probably would have spent at least a day thinking about the solution, sometimes much more. OTOH, we won't. We toss out ideas based on our previous experience, learned by actually solving these things. If you cared more because this was your problem, not someone else's, you would sort all of that out.

Thanks for the corroboration. Forty to fifty years since my hands-on RF lab work. Your second point contains the corollary that inputs from another engineer not invested in the outcome can help clarify one's thinking; true for many professions such as medical diagnostics.

Good point about cost as an aspect of problem solving. Scale also limits solution sets. For example, I would design a full-scale data center with an ATS (automatic transfer switch) between municipal power and emergency generators, while a DIY homeowner might rely on manual switching.

 

[Borg]

TIL an interesting bit of information. I was reading an article from this month's Scientific American about When Animals Started Making Noise. Near the end, the discussion went into how humans were unique in the animal kingdom for their ability to teach each other language. The sign language statement from the chimp at the end of the paragraph left me floored.

It is not just the possession of language that is so powerful: humans are unique in their abilities to teach, learn and record language. Although researchers have successfully taught some other primates to use sign language, none of these educated apes has ever taught this language to others of its species, even when given the opportunity. In one case, a chimpanzee at the Duke University primate facility who had been taught sign language was reunited with his troupe. He tried to use his new skill set to communicate with his fellow chimps. After a week of attempts, his keepers found him in a corner of the paddock, where he had isolated himself. When they asked him in sign language why he was not with the other chimps, he signed back, “Because they are insects.”

 

[Hornbein]

TIL an interesting bit of information. I was reading an article from this month's Scientific American about When Animals Started Making Noise. Near the end, the discussion went into how humans were unique in the animal kingdom for their ability to teach each other language. The sign language statement from the chimp at the end of the paragraph left me floored.

Aha. I bet if you taught a group of apes to sign, they would be able to teach others who wish to join the group.

 

[Borg]

Aha. I bet if you taught a group of apes to sign, they would be able to teach others who wish to join the group.

I don't know. Using a tool isn't the same thing as creating it.

 

[berkeman]

Aha. I bet if you taught a group of apes to sign, they would be able to teach others who wish to join the group.

Ool? Bobo!

https://haphazardstuff.com/caveman-1981-movie-review/