My Biplane Propeller

Recently listened to a lecture on regenerative electric flight. Electric motor and propeller airplanes are actually flying these days in 2011. Electric motor glider can take off using electric motor and propeller, and fly into an area of lift there to circle and gain altitude in the regular way as a glider flies. During glide to landing, the propeller could function as a windmill and the motor could function as a generator, recharging the batteries during descent.
More after the cut. 

My Favorite Magazine

Some of you have been uable to solve the previous two brain teasers.  Perhaps this one will be a little bit easier. 

Slightly mangled spoilers appear after the cut!

My Yarn Indicator

The F__d Explorer SUV ventilation system has two states, hot and cold. There must be a way to see which state it has, since it is old and cantankerous. Now that yours truly has replaced the heater control valve (which leaked), the radiator (which leaked), the SUV has provided lots of heat through the winter of 2010-2011. In fact the heat is all that was available because the heater control valve had been disconnected from vacuum. No vacuum brings heat mode as far as the heater control valve is concerned. The heater control valve had been disconnected by yours truly after replacing such item.

MAY 2015 UPDATE http://sumdangdik.blogspot.com/2015/05/my-yarn-indicator-ii.html

The heater control valve turns on when vacuum is on, to "recirculate mode" which means no heat. Since the weather is becoming hot nowadays, yours truly wants to have air conditioning. Which means connecting vacuum, then this brings no heat on those cold mornings. After re-connecting the heater control valve to the existing SUV control system, and also after removing the glovebox, here is seen another vacuum operated device on the same vacuum circuit.

This vacuum motor shaft moves up and down using commands from the heater control panel. The heater control valve uses the same vacuum signal. If we could see the state of this vacuum motor, then we would know the state of the heater control valve. When the heater control panel in the cooling mode position, it is necessary to jiggle the handle in the MAX A/C position, less than one millimeter right or left until the vacuum motor moves down. There is a pneumatic hiss.

Then again, sometimes the heater is necessary. Move the handle to the PANEL position. Again, it is necessary to jiggle the handle in the PANEL position, less than one mm right or left until the vacuum motor moves up. There is a pneumatic hiss. An important point is, how will we know if the vacuum system is in heat mode or cool mode, after replacing the glovebox we can't see the vacuum motor.

The answer is yarn. We will use a piece of attractive yarn as an indicator. First use a dab of our favorite rubber cement on the actuator strut as shown above.

Next, make a loop of yarn and then tie the yarn onto the strut, in such a way that the yarn is also surrounding the rubber cement. Trim away the excess. Then add an appropriate lightweight sash weight. Consult with your favorite sea floppet for good advice.

The position of this sash weight will indicate the cooling system state, lower is cooler.

My Spam Bot

Working theory regarding source of e-mail spam. Sumdangdik can log in to twitter, view or send, then log off and the Spam Bbot remains asleep. Sumdangdik can log in to twitter, view or send, then for some reason a "problem with twitter" message shows up and then the Spam Bot sends out one e-mail spam. It's only a theory.
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My Periodic Table

Flying Saucer Elements

Fairly certain that the element below Radium should be gray alkaline earth metal.  Some debate as to whether the element below At Astatine should be yellow or green.  fin

My April Fool

This post is supposed to happen on April 1, 2011 if the scheduler thingie is functional.

April 2 update: Found another black mosquito. Did not squish this one as badly, here is a photo.  PHOTO OF BUG BEHIND THE CUT