good2go

iTrader: (2)

Do you have any doubts about there already being FULLY autonomous versions?

EO2K

iTrader: (37)

...that can fly?!

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

Honestly, I'm not concerned about a Skynet / ED-209 situation.

I am concerned that this product will function reliably, exactly as intended.

Because hardware designed for the military seems to have a way of trickling down into domestic police departments in the US, both the Federal and local levels.

deezums

iTrader: (3)

I think I found the solution for all the walgreens being closed due to shoplifting in Cali!

EO2K

iTrader: (37)

Do you seriously need a Stoffer's Microwave Lasagna, Plan B, and a handle of New Amsterdam at 2am with enough frequency that this has impacted your lifestyle?

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

New Zealand council ends contract with wizard after two decades of service

The official Wizard of New Zealand, perhaps the only state-appointed wizard in the world, has been cast from the public payroll, spelling the end to a 23-year legacy.

The Wizard, whose real name is Ian Brackenbury Channell, 88, had been contracted to Christchurch city council for the past two decades to promote the city through “acts of wizardry and other wizard-like services”, at a cost of $16,000 a year. He has been paid a total of $368,000.

The Wizard, who was born in England, began performing acts of wizardry and entertainment in public spaces shortly after arriving in New Zealand in 1976. When the council originally tried to stop him, the public protested. In 1982, the New Zealand Art Gallery Directors Association said he had become a living work of art, and then, in 1990, the prime minister at the time, Mike Moore, asked that he consider becoming the Wizard of New Zealand.

“I am concerned that your wizardry is not at the disposal of the entire nation,” Moore wrote on his official letterhead.


The Wizard of New Zealand watches with other members of the crowd as Britain’s Prince William and his wife Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, play cricket in Christchurch in 2014. Photograph: REUTERS/Alamy


“I suggest therefore that you should urgently consider my suggestion that you become the Wizard of New Zealand, Antarctica and relevant offshore areas … no doubt there will be implications in the area of spells, blessings, curses, and other supernatural matters that are beyond the competence of mere Prime Ministers.”

Since then he has performed in Christchurch, rain-danced in New Zealand and Australia during droughts, and was awarded the Queen’s Service Medal in the 2009 Queen’s Birthday Honours. But he has also encountered controversy with off-colour comments about women.

In an April screening of channel Three’s comedy current affairs show New Zealand Today, hosted by Guy Williams, the Wizard said he liked to tease women by telling them they were devious, and said “they use cunning to get men who are thick”.

“I love women, I forgive them all the time, I’ve never struck one yet. Never strike a woman because they bruise too easily is the first thing, and they’ll tell the neighbours and their friends … and then you’re in big trouble.”

The council said it had sent the Wizard a letter thanking him for his services to Christchurch over the past decades and informing him they were closing the book on his contract, a council spokesperson, Lynn McClelland, said.



The Wizard of New Zealand, real name Ian Brackenbury Channell, was contracted to provide ‘acts of wizardry’ by the city of Christchurch. Photograph: agefotostock/Alamy

McClelland added that it was a difficult decision, but the Wizard would “forever be a part of [Christchurch’s] history”.

The city is embarking on new tourism and promotional direction that will reflect its diverse communities and “showcase a vibrant, diverse, modern city that is attractive to residents, domestic and international visitors, new businesses, and skilled migrant workers”, she said.

The Wizard said the council had decided to stop paying him because he did not fit “the vibes” of the city. He said he was a provocateur.

“It implies that I am boring and old, but there is nobody else anything like me in Christchurch.”

“It’s just they don’t like me because they are boring old bureaucrats and everyone likes me and no one likes them,’’ he said.

The Wizard is a well-known face to Christchurch residents, but in recent years, his presence has diminished, and sightings have become rare. He says that is because the council has made him invisible and would not respond to his suggestions to improve tourism.
The Wizard IS Christchurch. I'm glad he will still be around, but gosh how out of touch are the CCC if they think he doesn't fit into ChC's image. He always has and always will.https://t.co/txJ2U9K9Ma
— Bex (@awrighternz) “But when they cancelled this honorarium, everyone got furious, they have awakened a hornet’s nest here, it’s hilarious. The next few months are going to be real fun.”

The Wizard said he would keep up his regular appearances at Christchurch’s Arts Centre, chatting to tourists and locals. The centre is hosting an exhibition of his life this month, which is supported by the council.

When asked if he would curse the council over its decision, he said he preferred to give blessings.

“I give children happy dreams, general good health, and I want to make bureaucrats become more human.”

https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...des-of-service

rleete

iTrader: (21)

I drove through the beginnings of a tornado Friday night. Kind of scary.

Back in November of 2019 my sister died (liver cancer), and with the whole covid mess we were never able to hold a memorial service. Well, we finally got permission to use an outdoor venue at the Pleasant Valley Wildlife Sanctuary in Lenox, Ma. So we drove up Friday night, and just off the NYS thruway, the rain and wind got crazy. Just then all of our phones started going off with what I assumed was an Amber Alert. It was a tornado warning, with instructions to seek shelter immediately. Then, for a few minutes it got eerily calm before the rain and wind started up again. But at that point, the road turned south, and the storm kept moving northeast. Not sure if that particular cell actually became a tornado, but there were several that touched down further east of us in Mass. There were also warnings as we left Saturday night, but they were northeast of us, and all we hit was steady rain.

BTW, the wildlife sanctuary is a beautiful place, with lots of hiking trails up Lenox Mountain. It's run by the Mass. Audubon Society. The views are spectacular, and I highly recommend it if you are ever in the area.

rleete

iTrader: (21)

I have a new game at work. I call it reverse spam. Otherwise known as wasting the spammer's time.
You know the calls; extended warranty, car insurance, free money. They annoy everyone. Well, I am less than busy most of the time, so I figure it's a public service to take up as much of their time as possible, simply so they can't bug others.

Hang up or don't answer? Hell no, they just go on to the next one. Well, they will anyway, but a few minutes here and there mean a couple fewer people getting calls. I answer in my "old lady" voice, and press 1 to speak with the dipshit caller. Make up stuff, and listen while they type it all in. Why, yes, I'd love an extended warranty! My car is a 1938 Buggatti. My address is 111 elm street. Oh, you can't cover that one? How about my 1960 Lamborghini Miura? It's yellow. My grandson bought it for me. He's a realtor, donchaknow. He sells houses. Do you want to buy a house?

The best part is when they hang up on you because you've droned on for 5 minutes, saying nothing.

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

^ I used to sob a bit, and tell them, from the point of view of my brother, that "I" had keen killed last night. Hit by a drunk driver. Never had a chance, but at least my organs went to good use. The wife and kids are inconsolable, and I (my brother) and barely holding it together.

Then I just stopped caring.



Serious question:


Envision a two-cycle engine. But not the kind you're thinking of.

Let's arbitrarily say that it's a three cylinder, with evenly-spaced crankpins at 120°. It has a normal pressurized oil system, and there's no connection (from the point of view of air) between the crankcase and the combustion area. Well, maybe a pump-assisted PCV system. But the crankcase is not responsible for pushing air into the cylinders.

Instead, there's a positive-displacement supercharger. So that the engine can, you know... start and run. Obviously it has a continuously-variable bypass valve under ECU control. No need for a throttle plate.

And direct injection.

Why isn't this a thing? Why have I not heard of any automaker even experimenting with such a concept?

deezums

iTrader: (3)

Isn't that pretty much all supercharged 2 stroke diesels?

DNMakinson

iTrader: (3)

Close as I could find:

Not 120*, though.

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

No. All supercharged 2 stroke diesel engines run on diesel.

This one runs on pump gas. Or ethanol.


But, yeah, I get what you're saying. Which is why I am confounded that it does not presently exist in production autos.

deezums

iTrader: (3)

Fair enough!

If I had to guess, getting control over the fuel is probably really hard. Since exhaust and intake are at some point both open and you're using a supercharger to clear it would an o2 sensor and typical catalytic converter even work?

I guess they used to rock air pumps, so anything is possible. The real reason I'd guess is if it were developed, it'd have a lifecycle measured in decades if even that. Why bother?

I've got a little rotax 717 I'd love to stick an AMR500 on, went down that rabbit hole a while ago. There are some cool 2 stroke threads out there on the net.

There's also this...


4psi, whoopie!

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

No.

Landing on the moon, and then coming back, using 1960s technology, was hard.

Smart people can calculate how much air (by mass) remains in the cylinder after the piston crosses upwards above the inlet port, for a given temperature, barometric pressure, RPM and bypass-valve position.

That's honestly MS1-level stuff.



Wideband O2 sensors are mainstream nowadays in the OEM world. And software is a thing which exists.


1: Because a couple of decades is far more than enough to provide a good ROI on an engine design which fundamentally changes things.

2: Because securities exchanges, as a whole, are short-sighted and react positively to innovations with the promise of near-term awesomeness.

deezums

iTrader: (3)

Cali is banning new combustion engine vehicle sales in 2035. A lot of other countries have similar legislation in the works. There's no "couple decades" left. Assuming they had one out tomorrow, it would have the same lifetime as the NA/NB chassis.

Most engines I know of are refinements of tech that's already decades old, too. No clean drawing board. The miata is a good example, a truck block then stretched and slightly changed as time and tech went on. Pretty sure all the manufacturers do it, adding VVT, cylinder deactivation, direct injection heads on the same bottom end.

And securities exchanges only go nuts over trendy useless ****, usually attached to a subscription, which sucky blowy things aren't any longer.

codrus

Speculation:

I would guess that while you can probably get the mixture right with sensors and software, that's not going to stop you blowing unburned fuel out the exhaust. Compared to 4-stroke engines that's higher emissions and poorer fuel economy, neither of which is going to help a business case.

--Ian

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

Thus the point of direct injection.

By not adding fuel into the mixture before the piston has risen above the ports on, that problem is eliminated.

This is one of those situations in which I hesitate to write anything, on the basis of "why haven't people with far more expertise than I tried this? Surely they must have."

Maybe they have, but I absolutely cannot find any evidence of them having published their results.

DNMakinson

iTrader: (3)

I'm fairly certain that outboard motors all went 4-stroke due to pollution issues, but now have gone back to 2-stroke (way better power to weight ratio) now that technology has allowed it.

DNMakinson

iTrader: (3)

“Curiosity about life in all of its aspects, I think, is still the secret of great creative people.”

LEO BURNET

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

I know very little of outboard motors.

A quick bit of searching landed me on the homepage of Mercury Marine, where I looked at their 3.0l 2 stroke diesel. It features spark ignition.

Huh?