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Thread: XKCD Strikes Back!

  1. #1
    mixedgas's Avatar
    mixedgas is offline Creaky Old Award Winning Bastard Technologist
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    Default XKCD Strikes Back!

    Enjoy:

    http://xkcd.com/1133/

    Steve

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    "The kind of air that once burned a big sky bag and people died and someone said 'Oh the humans!' (used for burning)"
    That has to be one of the most tourtured definitions of Hydrogen I've ever read.

    Adam

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    it's hillarious in the connection of 'Oh the humans!' close to (used for burning)

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    Buahahahaha! - "if it starts pointing toward space you are having a bad problem and you will not go to space today" - *that* is getting adopted for the Official DSLI-Tech Ion Operation Training Manual:
    "if it starts spraying water from the inside of the glass-bell thing all over the supercharged passbank-thinggy, you are having a bad problem and you will not have a lasershow today"

    Lol, thanks, Steve...
    j
    ....and armed only with his trusty 21 Zorgawatt KTiOPO4...

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    According to Bob Paynter,"I don't know what genius decided to put the pressure gage over the exciter, but when the hose blew the most beautiful blue flames apeared."

    I'm guessing that would be something to reserve for your very last encore...ever

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    Btw the first sign of "spraying water from the inside of that glass bell thingy" is water leaking out of every seam near the base of the projector. The second sign was me yelling, "Craig shut off the water!!!"

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    The third sign was said "blue flames" from the previous post, right?

    Adam

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    Quote Originally Posted by buffo View Post
    The third sign was said "blue flames" from the previous post, right?

    Adam
    Actually no. It was a Spectra Physics 171 and the internal water flow switch shut the system down as designed. The "blue flame" incident involved a small diameter hose to a pressure gage that parted right above the exciter for a Spectra Physics 164 Krypton. (It would have saved some excitement if the guys had noticed the gage was pegged at 40psi...) The guys also didn't bother to ask themselves (until too late!) what was making that that hissing sound - that would be the overpressure bypass valve - but at 90 PSI the internal flow switch just didn't care that half of the water was being diverted into the common drain line... The blue flame description may have involved the antifreeze that was in the water (at that point I just closed my eyes - I didn't feel like I needed any more information to draw the correct conclusions...), or the "beautiful blue flames" may have been a story telling device inserted in a forlorn attempt to mitigate the repercussions.

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