JAN 06
What’s your favourite colour ? Sorry, wrong answer.
Professor Bejan, from the Pratt School of Engineering ( Duke University ) has been in the news recently for his theory of ' Constructal Law of Organization in Nature ' *
As part of the project, he’s also re-published a useful graph ( from 2000 ) which plots the weight of various flying objects ( bees, birds, jumbo jets etc ) against their flight velocity.
Enthusiasts of the Monty Python films ( specifically , Monty
Python and the Holy Grail ) may be disappointed, however, in the lack of data regarding
the (South) African
Swallow ( Hirundo spilodera ).
It doesn’t feature on the graph, but Really Magazine guesses that it may fit in somewhere between the Magnolia Warbler and the House Sparrow.
Readers who are generally interested in swallow’s flying abilities ( laden and unladen ) could check this highly informative webpage ‘ Estimating the Airspeed Velocity of an Unladen Swallow ’ provided by Style.org
It should be pointed out though that there are still numerous questions to be answered – and even alternative theories – details of which can also be found on the same site.
Going back to the graph though, is it just us, or are there perhaps some anomalous entries ?
The Peregrine Falcon, the worlds fastest bird (?), is shown as being slower than a partridge ? Surely some mistake ?
Up at the top end of the graph, there seem to be more problemettes.
The MIG23 which cruises at a stonking 694 m/s, is plotted at around 100 m/s, and so is the F16 ( its true speed is around 604 m/s ). They're both shown as being slower that the Boeing 747 ( 270 m/s ) and the Airbus 310 ( 243 m/s )
oooops.
If we’re right, it’s a shame, because the nice straight line would get messed up quite a bit . . .
Really Magazine e-mailed the prof. here's his comment:
Regarding the question about the speeds of fighter jets, which came from the same sources as the birds and insects ( "Shape and Structure from Engineering to Nature", Cambridge University Press, 2000.): a vehicle has a maximum speed and an optimal (most economical) speed. I believe that the plotted speed is the optimal speed, i.e., the way to cover a distance by using least fuel.
Please take another look at the pure ideas in the paper,
from the unification of all animal movement under one tent of a physics theory
(the constructal law) to the discovery of the counterintuitive: gravity matters
to the fish, animal movement on the globe is no different than water movement
(river drainage basins), air movement (atmospheric circulation, earth climate)
and turbulent flow. And, all these flow structures and rhythms are predicted
by the constructal law.
Perhaps we can leave it to Dr. Graham Chapman (1941-1989) to sum up . . .
* * *
* Definition of the Constructal Law of Organization in Nature :
“ For a flow system to persist in time it much evolve in such a way that it provides easier access to its currents “
For the full monty (.pdf) click here.
( soundclips courtesy wavcentral.com )
( airspeed specs from Aerospaceweb.org )
06 JAN 06
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Caution: may cause angry reactions in some patients.
' Sicko ' is the working title for the new Michael Moore movie – currently in production.
Needless to say, at this stage, Big Pharma is not happy. Distinctly
under the weather in fact.
The Chicago Tribune recently ran a story hinting that America's largest pharmaceutical firms have already issued warnings to staff to be on the lookout for Moore stings.
The article also asserts that Moore has been “ offering $50,000 to doctors' offices to place hidden cameras or $5,000 to sales representatives willing to be filmed “.
Yep, that might work.
Though “ Moore's spokesman would not comment “ , and as yet, there seem to be no details ( other than press coverage ) on Moore’s website.
If Moore’s previous successes are anything to go by, it’s likely that the big cheeses at Big Pharma ( and their PR companies ) may currently be in need of some tranquillisers – at the very least they will have their work cut out to counteract the likely damage.
That’s bearing mind, even before the film is released -
“ according to the latest Reputation Quotient
study, only tobacco ranks lower in the public's estimation. “ (
Business
Week in an article at the end of last year. )
Prepare to get wound up. ( March 2006
? ).
05 JAN 06
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Me or not-me ?
The Spring Festival is drawing near in China ( January 14 to February 22 ) , and vast numbers of ‘migrant workers’ will be returning home for a family visit.
Some though, are more than a touch suspicious . . .
If last year is anything to go by, the number of paternity tests will be shooting up again. Four to five times as many as during the rest of the year.
As Cui Yugui, head of the paternity test centre affiliated to Jiangsu Provincial People's Hospital puts it “They ( the migrant workers ) are separated from their spouses for a large part of the year. They don't earn much, but they choose to spend a lot on the test. It is such a pity,"
80% of the tests have a happy outcome – even so, they can’t be very helpful for family trust-building.
Full story on
Xinhuanet here :
04 JAN 06
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Not quite a tram.
Self steering buses – which use a camera and computer system to follow guidelines on the road – will soon start tests in Cambridge UK according to an article in today’s Times.
The designers ( Siemens ) have had the foresight to allow the driver ( there is a driver - but he/she does not normally need to be concerned with steering ) to override the system should it lose tracking.
Which it surely will. The ‘tracks’ which it follows are simply painted on the road surface.
“ the system’s only shortcoming was its inability to follow the lines when they were covered by snow or spillages. “ said a potential customer.
Errrrr . . . mmmmm . . . yes.
Wouldn’t it have been better to design a system to follow, say, for example, buried micro-cables ? Magnetic stud markers ? Kerb reflectors ? Etc.
Siemens evidently think not.
The Cambridge trials will no doubt provide the answer.
Really Magazine doesn’t like to imagine what might happen in Cambridge around the University’s rag week.
Think: students / paintbrushes.
Editor’s note : Trams are hugely successful in cities such as Amsterdam, Hong Kong etc etc. They work so well not because the driver doesn’t have to steer, but because no-one ever dares to park their car on a tram line. . .
03 JAN 06 (late)
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Self’s ‘Dave’ resurfaces.
Will
Self’s upcoming new novel is promising to have an scienvironmental
/ socio-psychological theme which appeals greatly to Really Magazine.
' The Book of Dave ' – is scheduled for publishing early 2006 – ( although Amazon are sure it was released in Sept. 2005 ) and deals with a post-apocalyptic London.
Really Magazine hasn’t been able to see an advance copy as yet – but we’ve heard unconfirmed rumours that this is roughly how the plot will unfold . . .
London has been flooded ( presumably due to global warming ) to an alarming depth – so that only Hampstead and Highgate remain inhabitable. In the resulting confusion and social disorientation, a new religion spontaneously emerges, entirely based around a single book ( found in the debris ? )
The book happens to be the memoirs of a taxi driver ( that’ll be the Dave in question ? ).
* * *
You’re ‘avin’ a bubble bath ain’t ya guv'na ? Ed.
03 JAN 06
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Utility of the day :
Might as well start the year on the right foot.
We know from our postbag that some readers have difficulty with the tricky concept of ‘ Irony ‘ . . .
So, click here for 26 different definitions.
02 JAN 06 (late)
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EC farmer cuts.
Really Magazine would like to remind farmers in Europe that as of yesterday, it’s now illegal to use Flavophospholipol, Avilamycin, Salinomycin sodium, and Monensin sodium in the feedstuffs of rabbits, laying hens, turkeys, chickens for fattening, piglets, pigs, calves and cattle for fattening.
How will the bottom lines of Big Farmer ( and Big Pharma ) recede without the use of these ‘growth promoters’ ?
( Industry does not normally consider the chemicals harmful to human health of course – the EC has banned their use simply as a precautionary measure; just in case they possibly maybe perhaps at a remote chance could be slightly noxious. )
It goes without saying that now the hunt is well and truly underway for new non-steroidal, non-antibiotic, non-hormonal ‘growth promoters’.
( * Note : ‘ Food ’ is not considered a viable alternative.
)
02 JAN 06
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2006
Wishing a happy new year to all three of our readers.
Reader Jergen T , from Denmark, e-mailed to correct us. Our estimate was at least 33% on the low side.
01 JAN 06
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