Article

2010-09-07 Science & Technology

Archived material is restricted to Rantburg regulars and members. If you need access email fred.pruitt=at=gmail.com with your nick to be added to the members list. There is no charge to join Rantburg as a member.

Posted by Water Modem 2010-09-07 00:16|| || Front Page|| [1 views ] Top

#1 Uh, uh, well duh-h-h, UNLESS I [+ Piper Peralbo of "Covert Affairs" TV Show] HAD MISSED SOMETHING WE HUMANS DON'T FLY BY OURSELVES!

Or can we???

Posted by JosephMendiola 2010-09-07 02:29|| 2010-09-07 02:29|| Front Page Top

#2 ION NEWS KERALA > [XPert Laurence Smith]GLOBAL WARMING TO VEST NORTHERN [NorLatitude = NorRim Countries aka "NORCS"] COUNTRIES WID GREAT ECONOMIC POWER, e.g. CANADA + SCANDINAVIA whose World-vital natural resources remain either wholly or partially undeveloped or untapped. Such "NORC" Nations are likely to also become TARGETS/FOCII FOR MASS MIGRATIONS = DIASPORAS FROM OTHER GW-TROUBLED COUNTRIES SUFFERING HEAVILY FROM GW-INDUCED NATIONAL SHORTAGES.

SMITH is known for arguing that:
* CHINA will supplant the US as the World's greatest econ power by Year 2050, wid INDIA to rank in third-place.

* BEST-CASE GW SCENARIO by Year 2100 = average World rise of 4.5 Degrees; WORST-CASE GW SCENARIO by Year 2100 = average World rise of 8.0 Degrees or higher.

* Wildlife to suffer one of the greatest periods of extinction in World History since the demise of the Dinosaurs 65 Milyuhn years ago.

Posted by JosephMendiola 2010-09-07 02:48|| 2010-09-07 02:48|| Front Page Top

#3 Heh.

Posted by Nimble Spemble 2010-09-07 05:38|| 2010-09-07 05:38|| Front Page Top

#4 Computers have long been able to out fly humans, as long as everything was doing what it was supposed to. The problem has been that only humans had the sharp senses to detect and respond to serious problems before they became critical.

Looking at this as part of an efficiency equation, it becomes simple. A high value aircraft needs a pilot to get it home if damaged. A lower value aircraft can be a UAV, because it is far more expendable.

But a lower value aircraft does not have to be terribly high performance, if its low cost translates into a higher total number of aircraft.

For example, an aircraft that is as cheap as a small car, that is little more than an engine, fuel tank, simple computer guiding literal fly by wire, GPS and a weapon, could outnumber a top of the line aircraft by hundreds to one. (At $100k each, you could mass produce 1,500 for the price of a single $150m F-22 Raptor).

As an armada, it is extremely hard to defend against, needing another armada to stop it. Likely its weaponry could be a 1,000lb bomb (V-1 buzz bomb was 1,850lb), or an anti-aircraft machine gun. For area targets it could carry a propane bomb.

Posted by Anonymoose 2010-09-07 10:34|| 2010-09-07 10:34|| Front Page Top

#5 10g+ maneuvers, anyone?

Posted by mojo 2010-09-07 12:06|| 2010-09-07 12:06|| Front Page Top

#6 > (At $100k each, you could mass produce 1,500 for the price of a single $150m F-22 Raptor)

Thing is you could mass produce them for < 1000 dollars.

Posted by Bright Pebbles 2010-09-07 13:02|| 2010-09-07 13:02|| Front Page Top

#7 Bright P, there's a 100 x mark-up for government projects.

Posted by Glenmore 2010-09-07 13:28|| 2010-09-07 13:28|| Front Page Top

23:56 Iblis
23:55 CrazyFool
23:48 lex
23:41 Jeatle tse Tung3356
23:24 Secret Asian Man
22:59 Barbara Skolaut
22:51 Halliburton - Mysterious Conspiracy Division
22:45 USN, Ret.
22:33 Nimble Spemble
22:25 Procopius2k
22:12 Frank G
21:59 Besoeker
21:54 Entertaining Prose
21:51 Pstanley
21:46 bigjim-CA
21:38 Swamp Blondie
21:34 Silentbrick
21:30 Mike Ramsey
21:30 Dale
21:28 Besoeker
21:25 DJ Curtis C
21:23 Barbara Skolaut
21:19 Blackbeard Ebbineng5295
21:17 Muggsy Glink