Hodgepodge


Contents


Constant Velocity Subluminal Warp Drive

Many of us want to see interstellar travel. Some of us want to explore the wonders of the universe. Some of us just want off the planet.

The good news is that the dream of interstellar travel is closer to becoming reality. Unlike the Alcubierre drive, which speculates unknown factors as essential to its function, a new model is in the works on paper. It is an engineering concept consistent with known physics, and is already being refined in its infancy to answer challenges regarding its viability.

The bad news is that it is not a means of faster-than-light (FTL) travel. However, if we achieve such a kind of propulsion, it will have significant advantages over current spacefaring technology. The need for current fuel conservation techniques and slingshot maneuvers will be replaced. We will be able to just travel a straight and narrow path. If successful, this will better prepare us for exploration and civilization within the solar system. Such a breakthrough can also serve as a first step towards interstellar travel.

Constant Velocity Physical Warp Drive Solution (HTML) (Cornell University arxiv) ⇗
University of Alabama in Huntsville
Advanced Propulsion Laboratory at Applied Physics
Technion - Israel Institute of Technology
UCLA Department of Physics & Astronomy

WarpFactory (Nerds with Attitudes on GitHub) ⇗
An open source program for analyzing warp drive spacetimes
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The Evolution of Twisty Puzzles

Invented in 1974, the Rubik's cube puzzle has always been considered a "toy," but by comparison, it is a great exercise for the brain, ameliorating muscle memory, hand-eye coordination, and problem solving. It has a fan base of competitive enthusiasts which like to collect all of the different types, and see how fast they can solve them. This subtle, broader path of IQ enhancement is explored by fans because they find themselves with a metaphysical desire to understand mechanical patterns in a heightened sense of nature.

Since its inception, hundreds of variations of twisty puzzles have been invented, with newer features and mechanisms as time goes on, and even with images as the faces which make them more challenging. Most commonly, designs are centered around the platonic solids (Wolfram Alpha) ⇗ due to their perfect symmetry, but different experimental models are always in the works. There are even virtual twisty puzzles in higher dimensions as featured in 4D Lyceum. When going down the rabbit hole, one either becomes lost... or addicted. For those willing to take the leap, the world of twisty puzzles offers endless fascination and discovery.

Seeing a Rubik's cube as a non-believer can spawn the cliché thought, "Only geniuses can solve that." It's actually pretty simple. By memorizing only one necessary set of turns for each of a handful of steps, it's solved. It takes a while to get a feel for it, but it can be solved on the first try with instructions. Most people almost certainly need the help to ever solve it. Be sure to check out the links below for all kinds of cool stuff, various solving methods, tricks, and pure excitement.

Brand Links
Rubik's ⇗
V-Cube ⇗
Marusenko ⇗
GANCUBE ⇗
MoYu ⇗
Meffert's ⇗
Dian Sheng ⇗
QiYi ⇗

Online Purchasing Links
Speed Cube Shop ⇗
Master Cube Store ⇗
Speedcubes ⇗
The Cubicle ⇗

Sites of Interest
Ruwix ⇗
Cubing Time ⇗
Reddit Cubers ⇗
World Cube Association ⇗
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Battle of Seattle, 1999

In the twentieth century, people were far less afraid to make their voices heard, because they had far less to lose and were pushed to more severe circumstances. The battle of Seattle was a unique riot, because most riots that take place in the U.S. are results of racial injustice (The Long Hot Summer at Britannica) ⇗, the most notable one from my generation being a result of the police brutality of Rodney King (Britannica) ⇗ going unanswered.

The Seattle riots in 1999 weren't racially motivated, but instead motivated by the World Trade Organization meeting scheduled to take place there, and peoples' concerns over tightening international laws in favor of capitalism. For about a day, there was a peaceful demonstration with overwhelming numbers, but that soon turned into rioting after both police exacerbated the situation with force, and anarchists showed up and started breaking everything. What resulted was 40,000 people trying to burn the city down.
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Living Family Heritage and Me Ancestry

In knowing since their inceptions that services like Ancestry are not a reliable sources for tracing family lineage, imagine the frustration of some when others still use them and foolishly say they found out they are X, Y, and Z. Even despite several investigative news reports coming to the surface, Ancestry and services like it continue to grow in popularity and rewrite peoples' history. To address this, they always fall back on their "limited scientific capabilities," but it should be noted that most of them only analyze a fraction of each DNA sample and don't share their data with anyone, which makes it by definition unscientific.

Twins - 5 DNA ancestry kits, all different results (CBC) ⇗

Pulling Back the Curtain on DNA Ancestry Tests (Tufts University) ⇗
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