The Information Ditch

fort worth 35W 820 183 121 construction

2011-12-02T02:32:00.001-06:00

north tarrant express project tracker
north tarrant express master plan
loop 820 master plan

paulstretch

2011-11-12T00:52:00.000-06:00

extreme stretching of audio

steam. engine.

2010-11-21T00:21:00.002-06:00

building charles babbage's analytical engine - links:

jgc.org
plan28.org
oreilly.com

SR71 instruction manual

2010-05-11T15:40:00.001-05:00

SR71 instruction manual

cool tool

2010-03-23T15:24:00.001-05:00

"golden mean calipers" - a misnomer, because they're silver and nice ;)

huge Su27 model

2010-01-21T21:11:00.002-06:00

Descriptions of the build process of this impressive model originally written in German, with reasonable English translations.

21st century yak training

2010-01-12T19:46:00.001-06:00

the airplane, not the animal

marbles

2009-11-05T21:59:00.001-06:00

the opposite of losing them...

lego project

2009-09-02T17:10:00.002-05:00

a full size house

the only thing that would make this cooler is if it were built by a crew of the little yellow-head construction worker toys...

arches

2009-07-01T15:42:00.000-05:00

timbrel vaults - lighter than roman arches

ingenuity + style

2009-06-29T14:56:00.000-05:00

= etched brass modular synth

wow!

ingenuity + poverty

2009-06-29T14:52:00.001-05:00

= there, i fixed it

fun furniture

2009-06-16T17:27:00.001-05:00

Jake Cress Furniture

everybody sing

2009-06-13T00:08:00.000-05:00

my name is potato!

tank chair

2009-06-09T17:40:00.000-05:00

beats hoveround

poets ranked by beard weight

2009-05-06T19:30:00.002-05:00

not only does this list rank various poets by the weight (in both size and seriousness) of their beards, it includes the long-lost words "pogonomancy" and "chaetognaths".

judging from the examples given, i'd guess i'm a 38...

Saturn .V

2009-04-28T22:18:00.001-05:00

World's largest amateur rocket launched: a 1/10 scale model of the Saturn V

cool tools

2009-02-18T16:00:00.001-06:00

aviary - visual tools
hobnox - audio tool

young earth vs. old universe

2009-02-05T01:09:00.000-06:00

young universe is much more believable than old earth

warranty

2009-01-27T01:19:00.000-06:00

fine print + relativity = fun!

neat rc hovering model

2009-01-20T16:09:00.000-06:00

http://www.snelflight.co.uk/jumpjet.htm

sci-fi

2008-12-08T12:50:00.000-06:00

tron meets boba fett in 1936

diy spin art machine

2008-12-05T16:20:00.001-06:00

i may try to make one of these someday...

the name says it all

2008-12-05T02:17:00.001-06:00

unusual architecture

wildlife photo gallery

2008-12-04T20:46:00.000-06:00

wildlife photo gallery

gear sculpture

2008-10-31T22:17:00.002-05:00

heart

cube

wow

DIY

2008-10-10T18:17:00.001-05:00

Hack N Mod

maybe the world really did end...

2008-09-28T23:24:00.001-05:00

proof? "the large hadron collider rap"

pie charts

2008-09-20T01:49:00.004-05:00

(i tracked back a few links but can't find the original source to give credit.)

creativity at home

2008-09-11T19:45:00.002-05:00

some links:

ikea hacker

apartment therapy

re-nest

the bell is cracked

2008-08-31T13:19:00.003-05:00

...and may never ring again:

After six Nobel Prizes, the invention of the transistor, laser and countless contributions to computer science and technology, it is the end of the road for Bell Labs' fundamental physics research lab.

Alcatel-Lucent, the parent company of Bell Labs, is pulling out of basic science, material physics and semiconductor research and will instead be focusing on more immediately marketable areas such as networking, high-speed electronics, wireless, nanotechnology and software.

The idea is to align the research work in the Lab closer to areas that the parent company is focusing on, says Peter Benedict, spokesperson for Bell Labs and Alcatel-Lucent Ventures.

"In the new innovation model, research needs to keep addressing the need of the mother company," he says.

That view is shortsighted and may drastically curtail the Labs' ability to come up with truly innovative discoveries, respond critics.

and anyone who can see the world past a spreadsheet.

"Fundamental physics is absolutely crucial to computing," says Mike Lubell, director of public affairs for the American Physical Society. "Say in the case of integrated circuits, there were many, many small steps that occurred along the way resulting from decades worth of work in matters of physics."

Bell Labs was one of the last bastions of basic research within the corporate world, which over the past several decades has largely focused its R&D efforts on applied research -- areas of study with more immediate prospects of paying off.

the phrase "penny-wise, pound-foolish" leaps to mind, just as "eating your seed corn" did to another commentor.

stealth airplane

2008-08-30T02:02:00.001-05:00

i can almost guarantee that this one won't show up on radar.

TR2N

2008-08-26T11:05:00.002-05:00

i remember seeing the original tron movie in the theater in amarillo. looks like there will be a sequel - tr2n - in the next couple of years. (i hope they won't wait until the 30th anniversary in 2012, but it might make marketing sense.)

birth of the smiley

2008-08-25T11:06:00.001-05:00

this article almost takes the fun out of it.

step aside chuck norris

2008-08-19T15:47:00.000-05:00

or should i say swim aside... michael phelps facts

hardware upgrades

2008-08-12T11:39:00.000-05:00

a pictorial history of computer data storage

pray

2008-08-09T02:44:00.001-05:00

without ceasing

Daniel Amos

2008-08-08T21:27:00.001-05:00

Shadowcatcher

Tip for the DCCCD

2008-08-05T20:53:00.003-05:00

Perhaps your institution would seem more reputable if your TV spokesperson would pronounce your name correctly, instead of sounding like "dayis kamoodi kaalja".

animated escher

2008-07-31T01:34:00.000-05:00

in at least 4 or 5 dimensions

elementary

2008-07-30T10:17:00.002-05:00

you think humans are carbon-based? i don't think sO!

;)

family photos

2008-07-30T10:00:00.003-05:00

most people collect photos of their own family & friends. square america has a collection of other people's photos.

steampunk links

2008-07-29T23:02:00.001-05:00

http://steampunkworkshop.com/
http://etheremporium.pbwiki.com/
http://www.datamancer.net/
http://www.abneypark.com/
http://www.brassgoggles.co.uk/brassgoggles/

d.i.y. toys

2008-07-26T20:02:00.001-05:00

these look like fun things for kids to make

shape notes

2008-07-23T00:55:00.001-05:00

those old hymnals might have been onto something...

jeepers creepers

2008-07-15T04:36:00.001-05:00

where'd you get those peepers?

chinese homebuilts

2008-07-12T21:59:00.002-05:00

apparently there are a lot of rusty propellers and chainsaw engines laying around china...

homebuilt plane

homebuilt helicopter

the man-machine

2008-07-05T17:55:00.001-05:00

illustrations of anthropomorphized machines

rebuilding

2008-06-13T17:27:00.002-05:00

new fw-190s
new deloreans

industrial music

2008-06-11T01:04:00.001-05:00

not what you're thinking - it's radiohead played on a sinclair zx, a printer, a scanner, and some old hard drives.

E=E?

2008-06-06T02:03:00.000-05:00

maybe there's no such thing as mass?!?

columns new and old

2008-05-31T17:11:00.002-05:00

first, take a look at these pictures...

then look at this one...

then, try not to sing "stonehenge"... :)

noisy neighbors

2008-05-29T22:58:00.000-05:00

someone has a barking dog problem.

procrastination

2008-05-24T15:40:00.002-05:00

i don't think this guy is a real procrastinator - he gets waaaaaay too much done.

chess king

2008-05-23T19:57:00.002-05:00

i have two minor quibbles with this article about chess king:

1) our local chess king went through a different "demographic shift" than the author recalls. ours, in non-pc terms, could be described as white-black-brown-yellow.

2) no mention of parachute pants...

automata

2008-05-06T18:08:00.002-05:00

dug north

great pics & info, but translation is marginal

paper models blog of the flying pig creator

artoo, where are you?

2008-05-06T01:48:00.001-05:00

ah there you are, projecting videos and playing xbox while there's an empire to defeat? how rude!

pipe organ pic

2008-04-30T16:58:00.001-05:00

this is impressive.

the controls on the right almost look like color samples at a paint store...

i feel the need...

2008-04-23T12:51:00.001-05:00

the need for 1/4 scale speed!

car logos

2008-04-09T21:07:00.001-05:00

a rather comprehesive collection of car logos over the years

Good riddance

2008-04-06T21:45:00.002-05:00

To preface (in reference to comments at the linked article):

I have an architecture degree.
I am a design professional.
I am under fifty years of age.
I am not fond of the architecture of Las Vegas.
I do not like the McMansion phenomenon.
I can distinguish between the scale and the style of the new architecture in Dubai.

That being said, the Nakagin Capsule Towers are (and soon to be 'were') indeed "a depressing pile of washing machines."

bluetooth burka

2008-04-05T15:05:00.000-05:00

how many different flavors of wrong is this bluetooth burka?

before & after

2008-04-05T14:38:00.001-05:00

the douglas b-23, a bomber based on the body of a dc-2 and the wings of a dc-3.

a qualified rant

2008-03-31T15:52:00.002-05:00

UPDATE: I will now retract some of the vehemence of this statement. After four cutoffs this week, I did in fact witness a patrolman pull over a dangerous driver, for which I am truly grateful.

---

first, the disclaimers:

i have had a driver's license for over a quarter of a century.
i have driven hundreds of thousands of miles.
i have never been the cause of an accident.
i was raised to respect authority in general, including the police and highway patrol.
all of the policemen or patrolmen i have encountered have deserved that respect (with one very minor exception).
all of the policemen or patrolmen are very helpful in the aftermath of accidents.

however...

in all of those years, i have never ever witnessed a policeman or patrolman make any effort at all to prevent those accidents and apprehend the ignorant and/or dangerous drivers which afflict our roadways.

not once have i seen anyone be stopped after cutting me or someone else off.
not once have i seen anyone be stopped after ignoring yield or stop signs.
not once have i seen anyone be stopped for merging slowly onto a highway without yielding, causing accidents or near-accidents.
not once have i seen anyone be stopped for tailgating at highway speeds.
not once have i seen anyone be stopped for loitering in the passing lane well below the speed limit.
not once have i seen anyone be stopped for driving the wrong way into oncoming traffic.
only twice in twenty-five years have i seen anyone be stopped for anything except exceeding the (often pointless) speed limit.

yesterday alone i was cut off five times:

once by a drunk man who turned left on red in front of me,
once by a woman who could barely see over the dashboard,
once by a repairman probably in a hurry to a call,
and twice by cellphone users.

those numbers are not unusual. it is a rare day in which i am not cut off, tailgated, or turned in front of at least once on my daily commute of about ten miles each way -- in non-rush-hour non-highway traffic.

please do your part. first, pay attention and drive safely to the existing road conditions, not by mere letter-but-not-spirit-of-the-law, and certainly not in passive-aggressive hypocritical vigilantism. second, fight the money-grubbing bureaucrats who have corrupted honorable law officers to inflict governmentally-sanctioned highway robbery.

oops

2008-03-27T22:49:00.000-05:00

somebody accidentally made a jet (?) engine instead of a bunsen burner.

lo-fi

2008-03-25T20:04:00.000-05:00

kit to make recordings the edison way

animated paper models

2008-03-25T19:59:00.003-05:00

at the flying pig site, there's something i never thought i'd see: boolean paper goats.

bent objects

2008-03-05T12:54:00.001-06:00

most of these are cute, but a few of them are s.o.s.a.d.

moving up the charts

2008-03-04T15:20:00.002-06:00

i understand all but one of these, but there's lots of these i don't get.

robots

2008-03-02T20:26:00.001-06:00

dancing robots

more than 99

2008-03-02T01:51:00.000-06:00

luftballoons, that is

left vs right,

2008-02-26T20:01:00.001-06:00

red state blue state, etc.

oh, did you think i was talking about politics?

conspiracy?

2008-02-18T12:46:00.001-06:00

Now remember, the absence of smoke is proof that They are covering up a fire.

(just kidding, i hope)

make stuff at home

2008-02-15T20:24:00.002-06:00

first i found techshop and emachineshop, now there's fab@home

"Fab@Home is a project dedicated to making and using fabbers - machines that can make almost anything, right on your desktop. This website provides everything you need to know to build or buy your own simple fabber, and to use it to print three dimensional objects. The hardware designs and software on this website are free and open-source. Once you have your own fabber, you can also download and print various items, try out new materials, or upload and share your own projects. Advanced users can modify and improve the fabber itself.

Fabbers (a.k.a 3D Printers or rapid prototyping machines) are a relatively new form of manufacturing that builds 3D objects by carefuly depositing materials drop by drop, layer by layer. With the right set of materials and a geometric blueprint, you can fabricate complex objects that would normally take special resources, tools and skills if produced using conventional manufacturing techniques. A fabber can allow you to explore new designs, email physical objects to other fabber owners, and most importantly - set your ideas free. Just as MP3s, iPods and the Internet have freed musical talent, we hope that blueprints and fabbers will democratize innovation."

computer humor

2008-02-12T11:52:00.000-06:00

who would have thought there would be computer humor on the internet?

:)

furbeowulf
windoze accelerator (not compatible with vista)
windoze decelerator (definitely vista compatible)
the programmer song
megaflop drive

see also the household quantum experiment

a bit about windoze

2008-02-09T23:25:00.000-06:00

found online: "Microsoft Windows: A thirty-two bit extension and graphical shell to a sixteen-bit patch to an eight-bit operating system originally coded for a four-bit microprocessor which was written by a two-bit company that can't stand one bit of competition."

he got one right anyway

2008-02-05T19:56:00.001-06:00

found at ben heck

LOL-Catwalk

2008-02-03T14:58:00.000-06:00

Hear what the fashion models are thinking :D

who's in charge here?

2008-02-01T00:38:00.001-06:00

you vote

three wheelers

2008-01-28T18:33:00.000-06:00

from comes these links to cool three-wheeled vehicles:

http://www.t-rexusa.com/home.html
http://aerobourne.com/
http://artbyshep.homestead.com/SCORPION.html
http://www.motoring.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=1836&fArticleId=2954997
http://diseno-art.com/encyclopedia/strange_vehicles/Mercedes_F_300_Life-Jet.html
http://www.indycycle.net/media_files/images.html
http://www.fuelvaporcar.com/
http://www.vortexplans.com/
http://www.briery.com/vortex/index.html
http://www.carver-worldwide.com/SubItem/SubItem.asp?S_ID=23&nc=1
http://www.3wheelers.com/phantom.html

more or less
http://www.acabion.com/
http://www.roadraceengineering.com/suitcasecar.htm
http://www.autocycles.org/

paper v12

2008-01-25T00:15:00.000-06:00

cool model. was it drawn with unleaded pencils? :)

when bad physics happen to bad movies

2008-01-24T23:39:00.001-06:00

the intuitor is on the case

how to build a fiberglass auto body

2008-01-24T20:40:00.000-06:00

here's a straightforward tutorial

weird bikes +

2008-01-24T19:42:00.000-06:00

on this page, note especially the lawnmower, the foot-wheeled, and the wooden bike.

...then there's a link on that page to the world's strangest vehicles (check all 3 pages)

...then there's a link to a weird motor

everybody likes a song parody

2008-01-12T22:56:00.000-06:00

...am i right?

do blondes have more finn?

2008-01-12T11:12:00.000-06:00

actually, the question should be why do finns have more blondes...?

album cover meme

2008-01-08T18:31:00.000-06:00

found at dustbury:

The idea: create a fake band and their first album. Here's how it works:

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
The first article title on the page is the name of your band.

2. http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3
The last four words of the very last quote is the title of your album.

3. http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days/
The third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.

...and voila! (except i had to cheat and use only the last 3 words for step 2)

here's some more examples

update: it's scary how well this works

enviro-strong!

2008-01-07T00:24:00.000-06:00

made from 100% post-al-gore hot air!

slusho?!?

2008-01-03T23:25:00.000-06:00

guessing from this truly frightening commercial, the ingredients of slusho are probably saccharin, rancid molson, vinyl, aspartame, peyote, lacquer, grenadine, and lsd. warning: just clicking on the link may cause diabetes, nightmares and/or hallucinations. =8^O

dave barry's year in review 2007

2007-12-31T17:28:00.000-06:00

always entertaining

tigers, oh my

2007-12-31T13:08:00.000-06:00

looks like a 12' trench isn't enough at the san francisco zoo - or anywhere else.

make stuff

2007-12-30T21:42:00.000-06:00

if you happen to live in the sf bay area and want to make something but don't have the tools, try techshop.

update (2): techshop is adding locations. maybe they'll put one near you soon.

need some parts cut out? try ponoko.

update (1): need a whole machine shop? try emachineshop.com. they even provide the design software!

lots of these links were found at make magazine blog.