Videos
Podcasts
Blogs
Quizzes
GamesPosts Tagged: ‘airplanes’
This video offers a great introduction to gyrocopters: The video points out that most gyrocopters come from kits, and some “can be built in just 50 hours”. Flying a gyrocopter is fairly easy, and this video (while not the greatest quality) will take you through the steps: Part 2 Some gyrocopters come with a system [...]
The Flynano airplane we discussed earlier this week brings up a great question – what is an ultralight aircraft? An ultralight aircraft in the United States is defined by the FAA through this regulation: FAR 103 If you read through that page you will find the following points: The 155-pound weight limitation has been retained [...]
The Flynano airplane has been getting incredible publicity over the last couple of days because it is such a revolutionary airplane. It is small, extremely light (70 kg/154 pounds), relatively inexpensive (less than $40K) and, in theory, anyone can fly it without a license. Here is some of the coverage: – http://dvice.com/archives/2011/04/carbon-fiber-fl.php Constructed out of [...]
Last week the world was treated to an unexpected spectacle – the sight of an airplane cabin with a big hole in it open to the sky. We can imagine that this spectacle was even more unexpected to people who were on the flight. If you saw photos or video of the hole, you may [...]
In the following article, a really interesting question is explored. The question is: Is there a better, more efficient way to launch airplanes? Electric Aviation is the Future of Transport If you think about how airplanes take off now, you can see the potential problem. The pilot positions the plane at the end of the [...]
I’m bound for PAX East this weekend. Last week, I woke up one day feeling unreasonably anxious about this week’s trip. So I decided to confront it to the extent that I could by enrolling in the frequent flyer programs of the two airlines I’d either flown or booked tickets with at that point. Then I thought, “See, that was about airplanes, and it wasn’t so bad.”
Our modern world would not be possible without aluminum. It is a metal that is both lightweight and strong. Aluminum is the primary metal used in all modern passenger jets in the air today. The same is true of the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station – they would not be possible without aluminum. [...]
Blast from the past – How the B-17 “Flying Fortress” Worked
by Marshall Brain | March 1, 2011
The B-17 “Flying Fortress”. It is a classic bomber from the World War II era. It was able to carry 4,500 to 8,000 pounds of bombs depending on the distance to the target. Here is a nice introduction: Top Ten Bombers- B-17 Flying Fortress Each B-17 flew with 10 crewmen who worked together as a [...]
Imagine that you would like to take satellite photos like those seen in Google Earth. The traditional way to do it, obviously, is to launch a satellite. But there are at least five problems with this approach: Satellites themselves are expensive to build Satellites are even more expensive to launch (some estimates put the cost [...]
As this article points out: NASA shows off the aircraft of 2025 Late last year, NASA awarded contracts to three teams — Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Boeing — to develop advanced designs for the year 2025. While all final designs have to meet rigid criteria for noise, exhaust and fuel consumption, the three concepts [...]
Recent Postings by Category
BrainStuff
- Thank You and Best Wishes to Marshall Brain
- Contest – Design a $300 house and win $25,000
- How the Philtrum works – the place under your nose where your face comes together
The Coolest Stuff on the Planet
- Sailing, Takes Me Away…To The Seychelles
- Cute Animal Tuesday: Black Vulture
- Traveling on the Orient Express
Keep Asking
- Why can a 5 foot 8 inch man dunk a basketball on a 10 foot rim while some people of taller stature can’t?
- What happens to our sun once it runs out of fuel?
- How do we know the age of the universe?
Stuff Mom Never Told You
- Who invented the Christmas card?
- How the Kinsey Report Fueled Whiskey Sales
- How to Get Your Wedding Announcement into The New York Times
Stuff to Blow Your Mind
- The Seven Deadlies: Pride Cometh Before the Brain
- Warhammer 40K: 25 Years of Orks in Space
- A Visit to the Tellus Science Museum
Stuff You Should Know
- The Southern Death Cult, the Maya and Georgia
- Deformed Baby Spider Brains
- Amazing Medical Conditions: Maple Syrup Urine Disorder
The Stuff of Genius
CarStuff
- Was Chrysler’s “It’s Halftime in America” Super Bowl commercial a little too political?
- Why is NASA studying car safety?
- Tips for in-car Navigation Systems
How-to Stuff
- How to Make the Most of a Gallery Crawl (When You’re on a Shoestring Budget)
- How to Swim with Dolphins (When Deep Water Terrifies You)
- How to Cure a Homemade Cookie Craving Without Turning on the Oven
PopStuff
- PopStuff Show Notes: Episode 43: Drag Queens: You Better Work!
- PopStuff Show Notes: Episode 42: Road Trip!
- PopStuff Show Notes: Episode 41: Celebrity Couples
Stuff They Don't Want You To Know
Stuff to Change the World
- Who will own the Arctic?
- Obesity: The New Global Crisis
- Bill Gates Makes For A Pretty Decent Cartoon
Stuff You Missed in History Class
- Butch Cassidy: Should we read between the lines?
- Are we rooting for D.B. Cooper?
- Party Time: A Look at Unconventional Politics
