torpfactory

11 ms·

91.
by torpfactory 7y ago
Well it really depends on what you want to do with your satellite. Are you trying to view earth? If so, then inclination and altitude matter, as they will determine what parts of earth’s surface you can see at all. Do you want to take pictu
92.
by torpfactory 7y ago
It kind-of depends on what sort of issue you're finding in your test. Complex systems like spacecraft often have unexpected interaction effects which only testing can reveal. I would call these the 'good' kind of test learnin
93.
by torpfactory 7y ago
If you get on a SpaceX ride share, you don't get to choose your own orbit. You'll have to make-do with an orbit that may (or may not) be close to your desired one. Unless you want your satellite to have propulsion, which might eat
94.
by torpfactory 7y ago
150 tons for the whole thing. Blades are like 5 tons each according to the source I looked at. Mind you this isn’t a terribly large turbine by today’s standards.
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by torpfactory 7y ago
If anyone is interested, here is a back-of-the-envelope mass calculation: Energy content of natural gas: 53.6MJ/kg=14.8kWh/kg Efficiency of combined cycle plant: ~50% Energy/Mass Ratio = 7.445kWh/kg Mass of wind turbine:
96.
by torpfactory 7y ago
Either Tesla: (1) Call it a 'driver assist system' and carry that definition beyond all reasonable bounds. I've read the regulation, I don't think that defense would stand up in court. (2) Does physical testing somewhere
97.
by torpfactory 7y ago
Nvidia is in an interesting spot - trying to create chips and toolkits for self driving without anyone actually having created the full self driving solution yet. How do you know that if you buy the new AGX chip from them you'll actual
98.
by torpfactory 7y ago
That one is great! Moving into an oncoming traffic lane to get around stopped trucks. One of those things I would consider difficult for machines - when is it OK to break the normal rules of the road.
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by torpfactory 7y ago
It's a fascinating video. Does anyone know of a similar video by Waymo, Cruise, Uber, etc? Love them or hate them its pretty cool Tesla put this video out at all. Certainly gives us all a lot to talk about.
100.
by torpfactory 7y ago
Sorta looks like its avoiding a big puddle in the road to the left of the vehicle. Notice the 'wed road' number goes up fast when it's going through that section.
101.
by torpfactory 7y ago
Depends on the definition of highway speeds a bit. At 60mph I hit the rated range pretty much dead on (500km/310mi). At 75mph it’s probably between 350 and 400km. Generally agree about the charging infrastructure. Personally I have fun
102.
by torpfactory 7y ago
Personally I’m rooting for Tesla’s vertical integration approach. Tesla doesn’t need to be the best, just good enough to make a component of adequate quality for less than what the supplier would charge for it. I do think they’ve figured ou
103.
by torpfactory 7y ago
Tesla have shown a rather large appetite for vertical integration. For example, they make their own seats. Why? I guess they think they can eek out some advantage. They could certainly get commodity seats from a traditional auto supplier, b
104.
by torpfactory 7y ago
Sure, but batteries are far more 'core' to Tesla's businesses than trucking or car carriers. TBH, I never understood that comment by him. I imagine he got interviewed right after some Tesla operations meeting where they were
105.
by torpfactory 7y ago
I think he intends for Tesla to be the end use for all the cells. Unless their products start tanking, in which case he'll pivot.
106.
by torpfactory 7y ago
Based on the companies they have been acquiring, it certainly looks like they want to start their own manufacturing. https://electrek.co/2019/10/05/tesla-quietly-acquires-batter... In addition Musk seems to b
107.
by torpfactory 7y ago
It’s an economic disincentive for Fiat to continue producing them. Sure Fiat could continue to sell those cars, but being on the hook for shoveling Tesla $2bn every few years isn’t a winning long term strategy. Hurts Fiat, helps a company t
108.
by torpfactory 7y ago
I really liked “Problem Solving With Algorithms and Data Structures Using Python”. https://runestone.academy/runestone/books/published/pythonds...
109.
by torpfactory 7y ago
I think the issue with bus charging is that if you want to plug in all those busses at their various depots and charge overnight, the electrical infrastructure can’t support the new load (multiple megawatts per depot). Bus depots were never
110.
by torpfactory 7y ago
Isn’t gas also more expensive? Most of Europe is like the equivalent of $6-8 a gallon IIRC.
111.
by torpfactory 7y ago
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chlorophyll_a#/media/File:Chlo... Best be making green absorbing panels. The plants ain't using that part of the spectrum.
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by torpfactory 7y ago
Similar story here: drove up I5 from Portland to Seattle to Leavenworth and back to Portland. Traveling Fri through Sun. No lines.
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by torpfactory 7y ago
Sure, but the price at which the shares are available decreases with fewer available buyers. Let’s not give oil companies the money or collateral to finance their expansion.
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by torpfactory 7y ago
"I hope that humanity will be able to free itself from its addiction of fossil fuels (arguably it is the primary reason for violent conflict in the last 30 years and the driving force behind climate change), but my bet is that things w
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by torpfactory 7y ago
Shouldn’t PGE forgo payouts to shareholders in order to keep infrastructure to a better standard? Surely the long term value of PGE is diminished (and thus their ability to pay dividends) if they are found liable for fires or effect rolling
116.
by torpfactory 7y ago
What is the limit? I’ve heard a ton of different opinions on what it might be.
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by torpfactory 7y ago
Geoengineering is really the only realistic option if this is the case. Sulfate aerosol injection is by far the most promising. And cheap - maybe 5-8b per year [1]. I'm not claiming this is a good idea in any way. As they say: desperat
118.
by torpfactory 7y ago
I think you would be firmly in “creating completely new markets” territory at that point. It would be like trying to imagine what one would need 1000x as many transistors for, at the dawn of semiconductors. The world certainly wasn’t buying
119.
by torpfactory 7y ago
Delivery trucks run during the day mostly. Cities may prohibit deliveries at night for noise reasons. Deliveries at night might be more likely to be stolen, etc. Could be able to fix the first issue with the quietness of EVs perhaps.
120.
by torpfactory 7y ago
There’s so much modeling that couldn’t even be done 80 years ago. Electronic computers were in their infancy, climate science was just beginning, weather satellites (hell any artificial satellite) had not yet been launched. The inputs, the

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