@PTR_K@dice.camp
@PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

PTR_K

@PTR_K@dice.camp

"The vodka is strong but the meat is rotten."

INTERESTS: TTRPGs, art, fantasy, sci-fi, science, ancient history, weird phenomena, humor, music, nature, etc.

LOCATION: Boston MA, USA

PRONOUNS: He/Him (or singular They if you find more convenient)

FOLLOWERS NOTE: I haven't had to outright reject many followers yet. But if neither your profile nor your posted content indicates areas of interest I share, then I'm less likely to follow you back.

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

PTR_K, to Starwars
@PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

Probably most tacticool, junkyard-couture zipgun I've ever seen. I love it!
Would fit perfectly in Star Wars or Gamma World.

PTR_K, to random
@PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

@futurebird
Found this one while walking home in Cambridge MA tonight. iNaturalist thinks it is an Eastern Black Carpenter Ant. No others nearby in evidence.

From the wings, you think a queen?
I don't know enough to distinguish from a drone.
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/206330859

pauldrye, to random
@pauldrye@spacey.space avatar

Kyle Sudrow was an actor, not hugely famous but most associated with the soap opera The Guiding Light.

He also did some work for the SF radio programs X Minus One and Dimension X. So, rather appropriately, he tried to launch a little bit of the future in the early 60s with the Helipod, a one-person VTOL craft.

#RetroFuturism #atompunk

DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS (Single Place Version): == = GrossiWeighti At 700 Ibs. Maximum Speed: 65 mph Service Ceiling: 10,000 feet Maximum Climb 900 fpm Maximum Range 300 miles Maximum Wing RPM 800 RPM Emergency Descent (Power Of) 12-14 fps The propulsion system is 40 HP, 4-cylinder, 2-stroke gasoline engine, and is mounted just below the rotating wings. Honeycomb fiberglas is used extensively in the construction materials. For example, the pod skin is a semi-flexible fiberglas epoxy laminate. The pod shield and wing skins are of similar construction. This configuration can be built in versions seating from one to five persons. Control of the Helipod wing environment is augmented by enclosing the rotating wing in a circular wind shield. The shield (or shroud) also provides the safety feature of protecting ground personnel while the Helipod is being operated on the ground. For further information, write to: The Whitehall Building, 17 Battery Place New York City 10004 Phone: (212) Dlgby 4-0500
A prototype of the same craft shown in the illustration on image 1.

PTR_K,
@PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

@pauldrye
Based on the general shape, I'd be surprised if detractors at the time didn't refer to it as "Heaven's Punching Bag" or "The Flying Speed Bag".

FredKiesche, to random
@FredKiesche@dice.camp avatar

And there it is…the first novel-length installment appearance of the BOMB-PUMPED X-RAY LASER!

image/jpeg
image/jpeg
image/png

PTR_K,
@PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

@nyrath @sudnadja @hendric @KarlSchroeder @isaackuo @cstross @FredKiesche
Longscan sounds kind of like an idea I had (but never used) for playing turn-based space battle games:

In 2D simulation, each ship has a circular (elipse?) destination footprint, dictated by their drive power and turning rate. The ship must end its turn somewhere within the footprint. But the faster the ship is going, the further ahead of it the footprint is.

FlockOfCats, (edited ) to science
@FlockOfCats@famichiki.jp avatar

Random science thought:

My suspicion is that most non-science people don’t realize that just coming up with a definition “this is a kilogram” and then being able to make a measurement in a lab where you can say with confidence “this is a kilogram” has involved an unimaginably huge amount of work and gazillions of dollars

( toots coming in hot!!)

PTR_K,
@PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

@futurebird @FlockOfCats

kyonshi, to Starwars
@kyonshi@dice.camp avatar

my wife is writing a fanfic and needs a bunch of metal/rock-equivalent band names two characters could be bonding over (during the Clone Wars). I was thinking

Nerf Herder
Droideka
Revan
The Wookies (a band made up of one wookie and 3 bearded humans)
Forestworld Cannibals
Rain on Taris
Tatooine Sandbags
The Spice Girls
Captain Kirk and his Vorlons

PTR_K,
@PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

@kyonshi
These weren't all conceived as metal/rock type bands. But she should use them as she sees fit:

Lexi's Kessel Runners
Cloud City Social Club
Blaster Fire
Starrr Destroyer
Forged in Beskar
The All Droid Ice World Fun Band
Baggano & the Deathstick Syndicate
Jinn & Jizz (a jizz wailer band)
Wampa!
Rage Against Restraining Bolts
Forest Moon
Alderaan Elegy
The Spaceport Crowd
Level 27 [i.e. "The Coruscant Level 27 Chamber Music Ensemble"]
Wretched Hive
Mynock Hunter

PTR_K, (edited )
@PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

@kyonshi
Probably not of use to you, but I feel obliged to point out that a band called WookieFoot has existed for quite awhile:
https://youtu.be/0H0Vj-P_LQk?si=mdzSPHPAByI6Z9S-

Also, coincidentally(?), a separate band called Toolshed has a song called Wookie Boots. The lyrics may be a little NSFW:
https://youtu.be/HeZNlfvEGao?si=f-03M5isDgOq6Z-B

PTR_K, to random
@PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

Stay golden, futurists or yore.

manisha, to india
@manisha@neuromatch.social avatar

Today is National Science Day in India. I learnt form a woman scientist colleague of mine who was invited to speak at an event celebrating this day that she was very unceremoniously cut-off at the 6 min mark of her 10 min speech by the master of ceremonies, while a male scientist who spoke before her was allowed to speak for the full duration AND was asked questions by the MC! So disrespectful! 😡​

PTR_K,
@PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

@manisha
Maybe you're already aware of it, but apparently there's been a book out in the last year ("Lab Hopping" by Aashima Dogra and Nandita Jayaraj) about issues faced by women in the sciences in India. I'd not read it myself, but heard a Science Magazine interview with the authors:
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adl1585

LeviKornelsen, to random
@LeviKornelsen@dice.camp avatar

deleted_by_author

    •
    PTR_K,
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    @LeviKornelsen
    Early on I loved the many options and setting books of GURPS.
    There are a couple quibbles I have with the mechanics. But leaving those aside, the thing that eventually drove me away from it was many years back while preparing to run a custom setting. I was confounded trying to reference many the specific allowed/disallowed options in a format that was accessible to myself and players, without a ton of flipping back and forth through books. Ultimately I gave up on the project.
    1/2

    Da_Gut, to nature
    @Da_Gut@dice.camp avatar

    How many folks ever stepped barefoot in a fresh cow pattie growing up?

    I can't be the only one!

    PTR_K,
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    @Da_Gut I stepped barefoot in a lot of things growing up, but somehow that wasn't one of them.

    But I've stepped barefoot in cat vomit within the last few months in case that counts?

    PTR_K,
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    @Da_Gut Just trying to imagine the opposite happening:

    DA GUT: "Huh. A freshly smushed toad. Wonder what that would feel like all squished between the old toesies."

    DA GUT: [steps on toad carcass]

    DA GUT: "Well, there you go I guess. Another successful experience encountered in this journey of life."

    PTR_K, to Humor
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    This seems like it really should be a concern in more roleplaying games.

    futurebird, to random
    @futurebird@sauropods.win avatar

    Why do they make us do all that extra multiplying for (a+b)^2? FOIL? it's just a bunch of extra work. "show your work" ? I can do it in my head! (a+b)^2 is a^2 + b^2 And that's how it will be with me in charge.

    FOIL is a deep state plot to add extra steps to homework!

    (This is what Trump sounds like to me when he talks about countries paying us. And climate change... and everything. )

    PTR_K,
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    @futurebird
    This is something I've come to think of as the modern crisis of epistemology:

    If you aren't expert enough to know a thing, and aren't exposed enough to specialized knowledge on a regular basis to even get a vague sense of what is likely/unlikely, then you will have to trust experts (or text created by) to inform you.
    But how do you learn to judge who the real experts are, when you lack expertise yourself?
    And when you lack expertise on how to evaluate claims objectively?

    mz4250, to DnD
    @mz4250@dice.camp avatar

    Today I tapped into my Patreon's request board and made some very random minis lol

    • Winged Kobold Ranger
    • Goliath Bard with bagpipes
    • Polar Bear mount
    • Horse with mini slot

    Free stls: https://www.patreon.com/posts/97571968

    I love these random requests haha

    image/jpeg
    image/jpeg
    image/jpeg

    PTR_K,
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    @mz4250
    Ah, the famous Disc Horse I've heard so much about!
    💿🐴

    LeviKornelsen, to random
    @LeviKornelsen@dice.camp avatar

    I'm not a booster of anyone that rides around in a private jet, but damn if watching the right wing get huffy about Taylor Swift and her football dude isn't hilarious as fuck.

    PTR_K,
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    @LeviKornelsen
    Well, in the words of a famous bard:

    " ...the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate."

    PTR_K, to Anime
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    Maboroshi (2023)

    Partly a slice of life anime depicting the lives of folks, especially the 14 year old children, in an industrial town which has become supernaturally cut off from the rest of the world.

    It has a largely introspective feel and deals with issues like the nature of reality, meaning in life under unusual circumstances, the possibility of growth in a situation where stasis is imposed, and what qualities love entails.
    1/x

    PTR_K, to lotr
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    So, Margrethe II, that Danish queen who's retiring this month?

    Unbeknownst to my sheltered self, apparently she's got an artistic streak and has been a big Tolkien fan. Back in the 1970s, she corresponded with him under the pen name "Ingahild Grathmer" and ended up illustrating a Danish edition of the Lord of the Rings.
    https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/66764/time-queen-denmark-illustrated-lord-rings

    https://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Margrethe_II_of_Denmark

    chaoticneutral, to DnD
    @chaoticneutral@dice.camp avatar

    Adding to our discussion of pole arms, if it had a French name in AD&D 1e, it was likely a pretty deadly (and aesthetically pleasing) meat-cleaver-on-a-stick.

    Here are a few family snaps from the greatest of all orange spines, 1st edition Unearthed Arcana.

    image/jpeg
    image/jpeg

    PTR_K,
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    @bedirthan @chaoticneutral
    I'm sure they're not necessarily the most effective polearms, but I always found things in the Partisan, Glaive/Fauchard, and Bardiche styles to be most aesthetically interesting.

    Also, always loved this polearms family tree diagram someone posted on Wikipedia years back.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polearm

    PTR_K, to scifi
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    Love & Monsters (2020)

    My wife & I enjoyed this a lot.
    Had Gamma World/Fallout vibes.

    Twists weren't really surprising, and the sci-fi premise was vaguely ridiculous.

    But the action was good. And the effects were plentiful, decent, and well placed.

    The acting was solid, if not award winning. And, rather than sarcastic or disappointing jerks, characters felt more grounded than I expected, displaying a modicum of empathy, maturity, or understanding.

    LeviKornelsen, to random
    @LeviKornelsen@dice.camp avatar

    deleted_by_author

    •
    PTR_K,
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    @malin @LeviKornelsen
    Thanks for the info on this.
    I'm sometimes curious about options to go cleaner with regard to open and prosocial tech. But every time I look into it, most of the options just seem a bit less useful or beyond my tech savvyness to cope with.

    PTR_K,
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    @malin @LeviKornelsen
    Don't know about Next Office, might have to try that. Used Open Office. Later Libre Office. But it kept screwing up layout when a document got too many pictures. Finally switched to MS Office when it came with cloud storage rental.

    I do use GIMP, cause Photoshop is WAY too expensive, and Adobe can suck a lemon. Same reason I'm trying to get better at FreeCAD, despite loving SolidWorks. Both open programs work fairly well for my needs.

    PTR_K,
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    @malin @LeviKornelsen
    I tried installing Ubuntu maybe a decade ago, but it seemed to require some mastery or troubleshooting to get much use out of, which i didn't have. And random programs I occasionally want to run tend to require a Windows environment. I could try WINE, but if there are any problems with it, I wouldn't know how to fix.

    PTR_K,
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    @LeviKornelsen @malin
    I had dual booted a system when I was trying Ubuntu long ago, but I went the opposite and barely used Linux.

    Aside from Linux seeming tricky at the time, I was constantly worried I would screw up something major by messing with registries or other deeper OS functions I wasn't familiar with. And I couldn't afford a second computer as a backup.

    Just wanted something familiar I knew would mostly work the way I wanted without tinkering.

    Maybe things have changed since then.

    kyonshi, to books
    @kyonshi@dice.camp avatar

    That looks like a place I'd want to browse in. Or a good spot to enter L-space from.
    (Bookstore in Chongqing)

    PTR_K,
    @PTR_K@dice.camp avatar

    @kyonshi The design of this place looks like it had to be inspired by Indian step wells. Which are, quite frankly, beautiful pieces of functional architecture:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stepwell

    Image from the interior of a step well. The structure is vaguely like a large depression in the ground in the shape of a hollow, concave, inverted pyramid. The walls of the pit are made of cascading sets of steps. One of the four walls of the pit, does not appear constructed of cascading stairs like the other walls. Instead this wall appears to be like the facade of a temple or other ornate building.

  • All
  • Subscribed
  • Moderated
  • Favorites
  • •
  • provamag3
  • kavyap
  • DreamBathrooms
  • everett
  • magazineikmin
  • InstantRegret
  • ngwrru68w68
  • Youngstown
  • mdbf
  • slotface
  • vwfavf
  • tacticalgear
  • thenastyranch
  • rosin
  • megavids
  • osvaldo12
  • ethstaker
  • GTA5RPClips
  • khanakhh
  • Durango
  • tester
  • normalnudes
  • cisconetworking
  • modclub
  • cubers
  • anitta
  • Leos
  • JUstTest
  • All magazines
    •