The first- ever GR Corolla. 300 HP. GR FOUR AWD. Manual only. Get behind the wheel of this wild child.
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T h ey ’re p r ac t i c a ll y in d e s t r u c t ib l e, r i di cul o u s l y s t ro n g , a n d of fer sur p r isingly go o d insulat io n
By Tat yana Wo odall and Jennifer
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a rd w a re ’s f in e s t p 10
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C a n ’ t Sto p T h i n k i n g A b o u t
H ow s ma ll cha n ge s to J u p i te r ’s o r b i t co u l d inf lu en ce Ea r t h ’s climate p 19 / S py in g o n t h e u n i ve r s e ’s yo u n ge s t g a la x i e s p 2 0 / B at te r i e s mad e fro m cr a b sh ells co ul d p ower t h e f u tu re p 22 / I d ent i f y in g a n d sil en cin g t h e my s ter io u s r at t l e insi d e yo u r c a r p 24 / T h e a s t ro n o m i c a l au c t io n p r i ce of a n A p o llo 11 a r t i f ac t p 26 / N o b el Pr ize w in n in g q ua ntu m ent a n g l em ent re s ea rch disp rove s Eins tein p 28 / What w ill happ en w h en G re en la n d ’s zo m b i e i ce m el t s? p 2 9 / T h e wo r l d ’s f ir s t hy p er s o n i c cr uis e m is sil e u sh er s in a n ew a ge of w a r f a re p 3 0 / Re s ea rch e r s t r a i n e d b r a i n cells to p lay a cla s si c a rc ad e g a m e p 32 / Co ul d a n in d u s t r ia l ci v iliz at io n have co lo n ize d Ea r t h b efo re h u ma ns? p 32 / T h e s u r p r is i n g rea s o n s o m e b ow lin g ba lls c a n f loat in w ater p 3 4 / Pull o u t yo u r g lo b e a n d s o l ve t his ge o g r a p hy relate d p ro b a b i l i t y p ro b l e m p 3 6
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Cr y pto cu r ren c y a im s to revo l u t i o n ize f ina n ce, b u t i t s m i n e s c a n d e s t roy co m m u n i t i e s acro s s A m er i c a By Wudan Yan
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2 6 millio n yea r s a go, o u r a n ce s to r s create d t h e f ir s t to o ls a n d cha n ge d t h e co u r s e of h u ma n evo lu t io n By t he edito r s of Popular M echanic s
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T h e Te s t → We te s te d t h re e ver s at il e t r ack s aw s to get t h e s t r a i g hte s t cu t Plu s , ma ke a D I Y ver sio n u sin g a circula r s aw a n d p l y wo o d p 72
B i g I m p o r t a n t Pr o d u c t → T h is p o r t a b l e g a m in g d ev i ce u s e s a n a ll in o n e p ro ce s sin g chip w i t h t h e p er fo r ma n ce p ower of a de sk to p p 76
P 66
Cr af t a coz y, at h o m e cin emat i c ex p er i en ce t hat wo ul d ma ke Steven Spielb erg jealous
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E d s ’ C h o i ce → Yo u ’ll fo rget yo u ’re wea r in g t h e s e ul t r a co mf y, fo g re sis t a nt s afet y g la s s e s fro m Sto g g l e s p 8 0
M a d e R i g h t → D is s to n ’s 14 4 yea r o l d D 8 ha n ds aw c a n cu t a 2 x 8 like i t ’s b u t ter p 8 4 9
ve d Pop u la r M e cha n i c s is a re g is te re d t r ad e ma r k of H ea r s t Co m m u n i c at i o n s , I n c Cu s to m e r S e r v i ce: Fo r cha n ge s of ad d re s s , a n d su b s cr ipt i o n o rd e r s , v isi t s e r v i ce p o p u la r m e cha n i c s co m o r w r i te to Cu s to m e r S e r v i ce, Pop u la r M e cha n i c s , P O B ox 60 0 0, H a r la n , I A 51593 Pop u la r M e cha n i c s (PM) c a n n ot b e re s p o n s ib l e fo r u n s o li ci te d mate r ia l M a ilin g lis t s : Fro m t im e to t im e we ma ke o u r su b s cr ib e r lis t av a ila b le to co m pa n i e s t hat s ell go o ds a n d s e r v i ce s by ma il t hat we b eli eve wo u l d inte re s t o u r read e r s I f yo u wo u l d r at h e r n ot re cei ve su ch of fe r s v ia p os t a l ma il p lea s e s e n d yo u r cu r re nt ma ilin g la b el o r exac t copy to M a il Prefe re n ce S e r v i ce P O B ox 60 0 0 H a r la n IA 51593 Yo u c a n a ls o v isi t p refe re n ce s h ea r s t ma g s com to ma na ge your p referen ces a n d opt ou t of receiving ma rket ing of fer s by mail Per io dic als p os t a ge pai d at N Y N Y a n d at ad dit ional mailing of f ices C a nada Pos t I nter nat ional Pub lic at ions ma il p ro d u c t (C a nadia n dis t r ib u t i o n) s a le s a g re e m e nt n o 4 0 012499 C AN ADA B N N B R 10231 09 43
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o n p os t a l a n d m ili t a r y f acili t i e s : s e n d ad d re s s co r re c t i o n s to Pop u la r M e cha n i c s P O B ox 60 0 0 H a r la n IA 51593 A s a s e r v i ce to read e r s PM p u b lish e s n ew s wo r t hy p ro d u c t s te ch n i q u e s a n d s ci e nt if i c a n d te ch n o lo g i c a l d evelop m e nt s D u e to p os sib le v a r ia n ce in t h e q ua li t y co n di t i o n of mate r ia ls wo r k ma n sh ip PM c a n n ot a s su m e re sp o n sib ili t y fo r p rop e r a p p li c at i o n of te ch n i q u e s o r p rop e r a n d s afe fu n c t i o n in g of ma n u f ac tu re d p ro d u c t s o r read e r b u il t p roj e c t s re su l t in g fro m info r mat i o n p u b lish e d in t h is ma g a zin e
e D M M 707 4 12 5);
Humanit y ’s greatest def iciency is it s ba sic nutrition. I ’m the founder of The Root Stock Foundation, which ha s worked with a local high school to develop Aquaponics and Spirulina greenhouses to impress on student s the impor tance of nutrition Knowing the dif ference bet ween healthy and unhealthy diet s can help improve social inequities and facilitate learning
My early conceptual ar t sought to inspire ac tion to preser ve Ear th’s nature in the face of industrial exploitation One of my f irst projec t s involved weaving ma ssive planar forms in warehouses . They were like f ishing net s , but with large spaces bet ween the f ilament s . Once the woven element s were built, I collapsed and folded them to carefully move the pieces to park sites for installation Dimensionally, the sculptures were enormous!
I’m so proud of my t wo nieces, Gabriela Quezada and Nina Bloomgarden, who are both in their own television series Nina starred in The Resort, streaming on Peacock; Gaby is currently co starring in a new series on The CW called Walker Independence These beautiful young ladies are the sweetest.
I C a n ’ t W o r k W i t h o u t … Sketchup, a 3D modeling program, which helps me generate renderings for my company ’ s contracting projects I a lso use the measuring tool Moasure to give me an accurate context for lots w ith topographica l feat ures, so that infrastr uct ure and founda tion work can be rea listica lly rendered
In the 1970s, I upg raded the sound and light systems at the Inga lls Audito rium in Los A ngeles. Not long after, I wa s a sked to help inte g rate technolog y into Elv is’s traveling show a s a stage technician roadie My year on the road w ith Elv is wa s an experience outside any expectation I’d ever enter tained Work ing on The Elv is Show became a kind of ca ll ing card, opening doors to Holly wood celeb rities large and sma ll who’d heard I had the priv ilege of rig g ing the stages w ith sound and light systems for “The King ”
Ph oto D ire c to r ;
Co l i n M c S h e r r y S e n i o r A r t D i re c to r ;
Alyse M a rkel A r t D ire c to r ; E l e n i A rp i n o Senior D e sig n er ;
B ri d get Cl eg g S e n i o r D i g i t a l A r t
D ire c to r ; To m M ess i na , H u nte r Yo u n g D i g i t a l D e s i g n er s ; J o h n H a m i lto n Ph oto Edi to r ; Richa rd M oo dy A s s o ciate Ph oto Edi to r ; Trevo r Ra a b Senior Ph otogr apher ; Th o m a s H e n g ge Ph oto g r a p h er ; D u s t i n Fe n s te r m a ch e r Co m m erce Ph oto Edi to r
FE ATU R ES
Lea h Fl i cki n ge r E xe cu t i ve Feature s D ire c to r ; Lo u i s M a zza nte Senior Feature s D ire c to r ; M at t Al lyn Feature s D ire c to r ; Sava n na h Jaco b so n , J e n n i fe r Le m a n Senior Edi to r s
M EM B ERS H I P
A n d rew Da n i e l s D ire c to r of M emb er ship Co ntent ; Pavl í na Če rná N ew sl e t te r s Edi to r ; Th eo Ka h l e r M emb er ship Edi to r
O PE R ATI O N S
J e n n i fe r S h e rr y D ire c to r of Edi to r ia l O p e r at i o n s ; B re e Pu lve r Co n tent Pro d u c t i o n Edi to r ; B ri d get H u gh es Adminis t r at i ve A s sis t a nt
S ERVI CE & N E WS
B ri a n Da l e k D ire c to r of Co ntent Creat io n; Co u r t n ey Li n d e r D ep u t y Edi to r ; J e ss i c a Co u l o n , M a n a se e Wa gh S er v ice a n d N ew s Edi to r s
S PECIAL PROJ EC TS & SO CIAL M ED IA
A l y E l l i s D ep u t y Edi to r, Sp e cia l Proje c t s & S o cia l M edia ; Rosae l To rres Davis S p e cial Proje c t s Edi to r ; J u l i a D ’A p o l i to A s s o ciate S o cia l M e dia Edi to r
G E AR W i l l Ege n s te i n e r D ep u t y Edi to r, Te s t in g ; Co l i n Ayl e s wo r t h D ep u t y Edi to r E xp e r t Rev i ew s ; Roy B e re n d s o h n Te s t Edi to r ; Kevi n Co r tez , Da n ny Pe rez Co m m erce Edi to r s ; M at t Cri sa ra Au to s Edi to r ; H u n te r Fe n o l l o l H o m e Te ch Edi to r ; B rad Fo rd Te s t Edi to r ; A m b e r J ogl a r D ig i t a l Co ntent Pro du cer ; Rach e l K l e i n Senior Co mmerce Edi to r ; B a r r y K n o b l a ch Pro du cer ; Ja m i e So rch e r S en i o r Edi to r, E xp er t Rev iew s ; Lea n na Y i p Co py Edi to r VI D EO J os h Wo l f f D irec to r of V i d e o; J i m my C av a l i e r i Pro d u c t i o n Mana ger ; Pat H e i n e H o l m b e rg , Ke n Kawad a Davi d M o n k Tayl o r
I want to learn how dark matter relates to dark energy in our universe and in a potential multiverse I’ve also developed a strong sense that human intel lect is not unique and is at work in countless settings and universes beyond our sight.F O O D F O R T H O U G H T
VICE
William
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Ian Sinclair New England Sales Director ian sinclair@hearst com; Alexandra Morris Eastern Sales Director, alexandra morris@ hearst com; Stacey Lakind Southern California & Midwest Sales Director, stacey lakind@hearst com; Andrew Kramer, Northwest Sales Director andrew@kramermedia biz; Anne Rethmeyer West Coast Automotive Director anne rethmeyer@hearst com; Sam Shanahan Midwest Automotive Director, sam shanahan@ hearst com; Patty Rudolph Southwest Sales Director; patty@ PR40media com; Celia Mollica Hearst Direct Media Sales Manager celia mollica@hearst com
MARKETING
Sarah Hemstock Director of Marketing; Dana Marecheau Marketing Coordinator
HEARST MEDIA SOLUTIONS
L E A R N I N G T O B U I L DI grew up in my dad’s woodshop building boat models and learn ing general woodworking When I was a teenager, my dad bought me a boat design and building plans book that really opened the door to that world For some rea son, I’ve always been specifically fascinated with old wood boat s
With wooden boat building, so much is still done by ha nd, so investing in high qua lit y ha nd tools is wor th ever y penny. My favor ite bra nds a re Ver ita s a nd Lie Nielsen. A nd the ha ndheld CNC technolog y of Shaper by Or ig in is a ga me cha nger for wooden boat building a nd desig ning.
Powerboat and airplane racing from the 1920s and ’30s, which we ’ ve historically taken for granted This era of dare devils and engineering paved the way for mod ern day transportation. I find it amazing that back then, they could design and fabricate incredible things when the word “computer” wasn’t part of our daily lives.
I enjoy being out in nature, whether I ’m riding my bike, hiking, or just walking through the neighborhood with my dog, Hank, a mini dachshund and beagle mix who loves to play catch My wife and I are also big into antiques and vintage items we love going to various antique stores .
The big gest challenge with owning your own business (and being the only employee) is that you have to do ever y thing it makes for some long days It ’s def initely ea sier to have a ssistance with cer tain business operations , but I don’t have enough day to day business transac tions to justif y having someone help out. I might eventually need some help with the building and restoration side of things , but that will be a bridge I ’ll have to cross at a later point
Jack Essig SVP Publishing Director; Todd Haskell SVP, Chief Marketing Officer; Jeff Hamill EVP, Chief Media Officer; Erick Neher VP Marketing; Morgan Sheff VP, Marketing; Christine Hall VP, Hearst Direct Media; Chris Tosti Group Finance Director
William Carter Executive Director
Consumer Marketing; Peter Davis Research Manager; David Brickey Production Manager david brickey@ pw xsolutions com; Stacie Premdas Associate Manager, Ad Ser vices
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Steven R Swartz President and Chief Executive Of ficer; William R Hearst III Chairman; Frank A Bennack, Jr Executive Vice Chairman; Mark E Aldam Chief Operating Of ficer
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Publishing Consultant s
’ re anything like my dad, you give your family everything
name, your time, your values the people in your life know they can depend on you for practically anything. In exchange for imparting all of this energy and experience, you expect nothing in return.
do so much for the people you care about. Now it’s time to focus on you for just a few minutes That’s where the Men’s Due Volta Watch comes in. This astonishing innovation provides a digital readout that’s powered by a precise quartz engine, combining both analog and digital timekeeping. Outfitted with a stopwatch, alarm, a.m./ p.m. settings, and day, date and month complications, this timepiece stands out from the crowd. With its large face and handsome, masculine design, this watch is perfect for the back nine and the happy hour afterwards. Water resistant up to 3 ATM, this timepiece won ’ t wimp out if you have a run in with a water hazard Other hybrid watches can sell for thousands of dollars, but because we ’ ve built more than 1 million watches, we know how to create real value That’s why we can completely satisfied with this watch, return it for a full refund
→ P r y op en a ny Po pMe c h e d it or ’ s b r a i n a n d y o u ’ l l f i n d a n o v e r s t u f fe d a s s o r t m e n t o f f u n f a c t s , p r a c t i c a l t i p s , i n t e r e s t i n g b i t s o f h i s t o r y, a n d o t h e r i n s i g h t f u l d i scover ies. But b e c a u se t here a re o n l y s o m a n y p a g e s i n t h i s m a g a z i n e , s t a f fe r s d on’t a l w a y s h a v e t h e s p a c e t o s h a r e t h e i r fa v or i t e , m o s t u n d e r r e p o r t e d n u g g e t s o f k nowle dg e. Unt i l now.
A s PopMech’ s autos editor, I w ish more p e o ple w e r e a w a r e of t he i mp a c t t h a t ra cing ha s ha d on roa d veh icles. Su re, it’s ea sy to dismiss the spor t as just rich playboys hav ing f un behind the wheel, but it’s so much more t ha n t hat . Aut o mobi le s a r e much sa fer t o d ay, t h a n k s to brea k throughs that were bor n at the ra cet ra ck.
T h i n k o f d i s c b r a k e s N e a r l y a l l m o d e r n c a r s h a v e t h e m a t a l l f o u r c o r n e r s , a n d n o w e v e n t h e b i g g e s t , heav iest SU Vs ca n st op on a dime But things used to be different when dr um b r a k e s w e r e t h e n o r m T h e s e w e r e f a r i n fe r i or t o d i s c br a k e s a n d l e d t o e x t ende d s t oppi n g d i s t a nc e s . It ’ s not r o cke t s cience t h at you’d w a nt t o s t op a s quick ly a s possible in a n emergenc y sit u a t ion; c ol l i sion s a t h i g her s p e e d s r e s u l t i n m u c h m o r e e n e r g y a n d t herefore da ma ge to a vehicle a nd it s pa ssengers. It’s just ba sic physics.
Ta k e t h e C h e v r o l e t C or v e t t e Th e fol k s a t C he v y k ne w a b o u t t he i n h e r e nt s a fe t y a n d p e r for m a n c e b e n e f it s of d i s c br a k e s a s e a rl y a s 195 0, a f t e r Ja g u a r h a d d e f e a t e d t h e m a t t h e 2 4 Hours of L e Mans w ith its largely supe rior disc bra ke equipped C Ty pe and D Ty pe ra ce ca rs. But it wa sn’t until 1965 that disc bra kes were a standard option on the Cor vet te. Believe it or not , a fa ir few buyers st i l l weren’t conv inced a nd were elig ible for a $64.50 credit if they wa nted dr um bra kes f it ted instea d.
Matt Crisara , Gear EditorHave you ever dreamed of holding a $100,000 bill in your hand? How about a group of bills that includes $100,000, $10,000, $1,000 and $100 bills? Now you can, with these gold currency reproductions from the Officially Licensed Smithsonian® Series 1934 100 mg 24 Karat Gold C er tificates, which includes all four of the above Notes!
The actual Series 1934 Gold Certificates were legal tender, but were not intended for circulation in fact private ownership was banned. Rather, these Notes were intended for transferring funds between Federal Reserve banks. The Certificates legally represented their worth in gold, and didn’t require a forklift to move!
By 1960, the Notes had served their purpose, and most were destroyed Only a small number still exist, including those held by the Smithsonian
These replica Series 1934 Currency Notes were reproduced from originals housed at the Smithsonian and include the official Smithsonian sunburst Best of all, using state of the art technology, 100 milligrams of 24K gold are transformed into currency sized works
of art! Each will arrive graded in Uncirculated Perfect 70 condition by Paper Money Guaranty (PMG).
For this first ever release, only 5,000 of these Series 1934 Gold Certificate Currency Notes were produced. These are the very first of their kind, created with 100 mg of 99.9% pure gold. Get the complete Set or get them individually. They’re going fast, and our limited supply will not last, so secure yours now!
1934 Smithsonian 24k Gold Certificates $100 $49.95 SAVE $10, Only $39.95 each! + s/h $1,000 $49.95 SAVE $10, Only $39.95 each! + s/h $10,000 $49.95 SAVE $10, Only $39.95 each! + s/h $100,000 $49.95 SAVE $10, Only $39.95 each! + s/h
To s s i n g h u n d r e d s o r t h o u s a n d s o f e m p t y water bot tles into your recycling bin each year doesn’t ma ke up for the fa ct that you ’ re using u p t h a t a mo u nt of pl a s t ic for a f r e e , r en e w a ble r e s ou r ce i n t he f i r s t pl a ce A M ay 2022 r e p or t f r om t h e n onp r o f i t T h e L a s t B e a c h Cleanup and the advocacy group Beyond Plas tics found just 5 to 6 percent of pla stics in the U. S . a r e r e c y c le d . “Fa c t or i n g i n a dd it ion a l lo s s e s t h at a r en’t me a s u r e d , s uch a s pl a s t ic w a s t e col le c t e d u nder t he pr e t en s e of ‘ r e c y cling’ that a re bur ned instea d, the U.S.’s t r ue pla st ic rec ycling rate may be even lower,” the repor t states “For example, pla stic wa ste col le c t e d for ‘ re c ycl i ng ’ i s s ent t o cement k i l n s a n d b u r n e d i n B oi s e , Id a h o, a n d S a lt L a k e Cit y, Ut a h ”
Th i s i s n o t t o d i s c o u r a g e y o u f r om r e c y cling It’s our dut y to do the right thing, or else z er o p er cent of ou r empt y pl a s t ic w at er b ot t les wou ld get a second cha nce at life. A huge comp onent of t h i s i s s ue i s t he b ot t le d w at er i ndu s t r y, wh ich h a s l it t le t o no i ncent ive t o use rec ycled pla st ics in its pa ck a g ing.
“ G r e e n w a s h i n g ” p u b l i c r e l a t i o n s a n d m a rk e t i n g s t u nt s f u r t h e r c ompl ic a t e m a t t e r s , b e c a u s e t h e y p e r s u a d e c o n s u m e r s t o feel bet ter about their choices, believ ing that t hei r pl a s t ic w at er b ot t le s a r e env i r on men t a l ly f r iend ly I n Au g u s t 2021, for e x a mple, t h e n o n p r o f i t E a r t h I s l a n d I n s t i t u t e s u e d BlueTr it on , one of t he l a r g e s t b ot t le d w at er c o m p a n i e s i n t h e w o r l d , o v e r i t s m i s l e a d i n g s u s t a i n a b i l i t y c l a i m s , s t a t i n g t h a t t h e compa ny represented “decept ive t ra de pra c tices.” BlueTr iton’s law yers moved to dismiss the case: “BlueTriton’s representation of itself a s ‘ a g uardian of sustainable resources ’ and ‘ a company who, at its core, cares about water’ is va g ue a nd hy perbolic,” they sa id.
Co urtney Linder, Dep uty EditorE v e r g o t o W i k i p e d i a t o q u i c k l y l o o k s o m e t h i ng up a b out , I don’t k now, photos y nthesis, a nd then hours later, you emerge a s a lead i n g e x p e r t o n H o o t i e a n d t h e Blo w f i s h? No? Ju s t m e? W h i le t h e G r e a t W i k i p e d i a R a b b i t Hole is a g lor iou s w a st e of t ime, it o cc a sion a l ly y ield s s ome r e a l b r e a k t h r o u g h s t h o s e k n o w l e d g e b o m b s t h a t c a n s o m e d a y help you w in a pub t r iv ia night
L i k e t h i s one: I n t he 196 0 s , the CI A a llegedly spent $20 mil l i o n t o i m p l a n t m i c r o p h o n e s i n c a t s ’ e a r c a n a l s s o t h e a n i
I f you ’ ve e ver s e en a m a ke sh i f t d i r t p a t h c on ne c t i n g t w o s ide wa lks, that’s a “desire path,” a lso k now n a s a de si r e l i ne or g a me t r a i l The s e hu m a n or a n i m a l m a d e t r a i l s o f t e n p r o v i d e t h e shor t e s t pat h f rom one pla ce t o a not her Urb a n i s t s s t ud y t hem t o i m p r o v e p e d e s t r i a n i n f r a st r uct ure. For exa mple, colleges like Indiana and Michigan State i nt e nt ion a l l y le a v e n e w l y b u i lt qua ds unpaved for a few months to see which paths st udents ta ke before creating forma l paths.
M a ny r u n ner s pr efer t o r u n on u np a v e d s u r fa c e s t o r e du c e
m a l s c o u l d i n c o n s p i c u o u s l y e a v e s d r o p o n t h e S o v i e t s T h e disastrous first mission, in which a c a t w o u l d m o s e y a r o u n d t h e Sov iet emba ss y in Wa sh ing t on, D.C ., do ome d t he i l l c onc eive d e f f o r t c o d e n a m e d “A c o u s t ic K it t y ” from t he st a r t: “The cat wa s relea sed nea rby, but wa s hit a nd a l leged ly k i l led by a t a x i a lmost immediately.”
A c ou s t ic K it t y w a s c a ncele d in 1967, but it’s my job to sprea d its fa i lure fa r a nd w ide
the impact on their legs, so some t i m e s y o u ’ l l s e e a n a r r o w d i r t path on the shoulder of a trail. A s a r u n ner, t he s e a r e my favor it e desire paths. Keep a n eye out for them it’s like a scavenger hunt!
ago, Persians, Tibetans a n d M a y a n s c o n s i d e r e d turquoise a gemstone of the heavens, believing the striking blue stones were sacred pieces of sky. Today, the rarest and most valuable turquoise is found in the American Southwest but the future of the blue beauty is unclear.
On a recent trip to Tucson, we spoke with fourth generation turquoise traders who explained that less than five percent of turquoise mined worldwide can be set into jewelry and only about twenty mines in the Southwest supply gem quality turquoise Once a thriving industry, many Southwest mines have run dry and are now closed
We found a limited supply of t u r q u o i s e f r o m A r i z o n a a n d p u r c h a s e d i t f o r o u r S e d o n a Turquoise Collection Inspired by the work of those ancient craftsmen a n d d e s i g n e d t o s h o w c a s e t h e exceptional blue stone, each stabilized vibrant cabochon features a unique, one of a kind matrix surrounded in Bali metalwork. You could drop over $1,200 on a turquoise pendant, or you could secure 26 carats of genuine Arizona turquoise for just $99.
Your satisfaction is 100% guaranteed. If you aren ’ t completely happy with your purchase, send it back within 30 days for a complete refund of the item price. The supply of Arizona turquoise is limited, don’t miss your chance to own the Southwest’s brilliant blue treasure. Call today!
O
nit ure feat uring pseudo repurposed materials for gobs of money
If you ’ ve ever wondered How hard could it be to make that? or How m u ch w o ul d it really c ost to m ak e th at? we ’ ve got a n s wers: not a ll that hard, and not a ll that much A nd we can point you in the r ight direct ion to build a n indust r ia l st yle coffee table that w ill cost bet ween $50 and $200 depending on your choice of mate r ia ls or what you might a lrea dy have on ha nd
The most specia lized tool you’ll need is a welder. If you don’t have one, you ca n get a 110 volt welder that w ill do the tr ick for a round $100. Weld ing ta kes a lit tle practice, so get some scrap meta l to warm up on before you star t the project. The good news is that we ’ re just ma king a coffee table, so you only have to get t wo pieces of meta l to stick together well enough to sup port a coffee cup and magazines. And don’t worr y about how your welds look; you’ll be able to clean them up w ith an angle g rinder.
You can use any size of square tubing you like. I chose t ubi ng t h at w a s 1½ i nche s s q u a r e b e c a u s e I l i ke d the propor tions for the size of this table. Of course, you can a lso ma ke a larger or sma ller table, and the steps w ill still be the same. You can cut steel t ubing w ith a ha ck saw, a handheld band saw, a reciprocat ing saw, or an abra sive chop saw just be sure to use an appropriate blade for the t ubing you ’ re cut ting
• M e a s u r e a n d c u t t h e f o u r p i e c e s o f s q u a r e t ubi ng for t he cof fe e t a ble t op [1] You’l l ne e d t wo leng ths at 40 inches long and t wo at 22 inches long
• Ma rk a nd c ut b ot h end s of a l l fou r pie ces at a 45 deg ree angle so they’ll f it together like a pict ure fra me.
• Use an angle g rinder to bevel both ends of each piece [2]. When the pieces a re but ted together, this w i l l a l low t he b ea d of weld t o get goo d p enet rat ion in both pieces of met a l.
• Fit the pieces together and make sure the joints d on’t h a v e a n y bi g g a p s I f t h e y d o, u s e a n a n g le g rinder to remove high spots and close the gaps
• Ma ke sure the t ubing joints a re squa re
• M a rk a nd c u t fo u r pie c e s of t u bi n g , e a c h 15 inches long, for the coffee t able legs
• Then u se a n a ng le g r inder t o creat e a b evel on b ot h end s of ea ch leg
To weld the steel t ubing, you ca n use 110 volt MIG, a f lu x core w i re fe e d, or a s t ick welder. M IG weld ing w i l l requ ire t he lea st clea nup, but you ca n weld j u s t a s w e l l w i t h t h e o t h e r t w o t y p e s y o u’l l j u s t need t o k no ck a l l t he sla g of f t he weld. When t a ck i ng, you shou ld ju mp d i a gon a l ly a cro s s you r work
2 0 l evelin g fe e t (x4)
A b o u t 12 ' of b oa rd s fo r t h e t a b l e to p (d e p e n d i n g o n t h e w i d t h)
Yo u r ch o i ce of sp r ay pa in t
¼ " 2 0 s crew o r b o l t (x4)
¼ " 2 0 T n u t s (x4)
M i s ce l l a n e o u s s c re w s
i te r s aw
M e t a l c u t t i n g s aw ( h a c k s aw, h a n d h e l d b a n d s aw, e tc )
We l d e r
We l d i n g m a g n e t s
n g l e g r i n d e r
M e t a l f i l e s
r i l l
r i l l b i t s
S a n d p a p e r
S q u a re
S c re w d r i ve r s
t o pr e v e nt p u t t i n g t o o mu c h h e a t i nt o one pl a c e , wh ich c a n c a u se t he pa r t s t o w a r p out of sq u a re.
• Squ a re up t he t ubing for t he t ablet op [3]. You can use welding magnets to hold ever y thing in place.
• Ta ck weld the outside cor ners f irst .
• Ta ck weld t he t op of t he i n side cor ner s, t hen f lip t he f ra me over a nd t a ck t he i n side cor ners on the other side
• Now you can f u lly weld the outside corners Do one cor ner a nd move t o t he nex t d ia gon a l ly opp o site, then do the other t wo
• Weld t he t op of e a ch joi nt [4] D o one c or ner a nd move t o t he nex t dia gona l ly opp osit e, t hen do the other t wo
• St a nd the fra me up to weld the inside cor ners. Remove the ma g nets a nd use them to help hold the fra me upr ig ht . Do one cor ner a nd move to the nex t dia gona l ly opposite, then do the other t wo.
• Us e a n a ng le g r i nder t o cle a n up t he weld s u n less you ma de b eaut if u l welds you wa nt t o show of f. (S ome one onc e t old me, “I f you ’ r e not a g o o d welder, you bet ter be a good g r inder ”) Don’t wor r y about ma k ing things per fect pa r t of the cha r m of furnit ure like this is the worn, distressed f inish [5]
• Gr i nd of f a s l it t le m at er i a l a s you c a n s o you don’t leave depressions in the met a l
• Use the welding mag nets and a straightedge to line up the legs a nd hold them in pla ce
• M a ke s u r e you h ave e a ch le g a l ig ne d t o b ot h s i d e s of t h e t a b le t o p. Ta c k w e l d t h e o u t s i d e c or ner f irst , fol lowed by the inside cor ner, then do the r ight a nd lef t . Repeat for the other three legs.
• O nce t he leg i s t a cke d i n pl a ce, weld one side at a t ime, doing opposing sides f irst. Repeat for the other three legs.
• Use the angle grinder to clean up the welds, fol lowed by a f ile to smooth out the edges a nd cor ners
O n c e y o u r f r a m e i s b u i l t , y o u ’ l l n e e d t o a d d a bra cket on ea ch end t o at t a ch t he t a blet op Gra b a scrap of the top materia l to use a s a spacer to get the bra cket in the r ight pla ce.
• Clamp a random piece of wood or meta l a cross the top of the fra me on one end this w i l l keep the coffee t able top from st ick ing up above the fra me.
• Lay the top mater ia l scrap on the wood/meta l.
• C l a m p a n 18 i n c h p i e c e o f f l a t s t e e l s t o c k on t op of you r wo o d /met a l scr ap so t h at it ’ s f lu sh a ga inst the end of the fra me [6]
• Weld f ive 1 inch bea ds to at t a ch the f lat stock to the frame. Repeat the process on the other end of the coffee t able fra me.
• Flip t he cof fee t a ble over. Ma rk a nd dr i l l fou r ¼ inch holes, even ly spa ced, in ea ch bra cket .
• C u t fo u r 1¼ x 1¼ i n c h s q u a r e s of f l a t s t e e l stock a nd dr i l l a ¼ inch hole in the center of ea ch
• Threa d ¼ inch 20 screws or bolts through the squa res a nd into the T nuts to hold them in pla ce
• Ta ck w eld t he T nu t s t o t he s q u a r e le g c a p s , then remove the screws holding them together
• Center t he caps on t he legs w it h t he T nut s on t h e i n s id e . Ta c k w e ld t h e c a p s t o t h e le g s , d oi n g opposing cor ners f irst [7].
• We ld t h e c a p s , on e s ide a t a t i m e , doi n g t h e opposing sides f irst .
• Clea n up t he welds w it h a n a ng le g r inder, fol lowed by a f i le for the f iner bits [8].
Ju st ab out a ny t hing ca n work for you r cof fee t able t o p I h a d 10 0 plu s y e a r old t on g u e a nd g r o o v e f lo or i ng f r om a n old fa r m bu i ld i ng t h at I w a nt e d to use You cou ld go to a lumber yard and get ¾ inch oa k, maple, or pine if you wa nt You cou ld even use a scrap of g ra nit e cou nt er t op ju st ma ke su re you a c c o u nt for t he t h ic k ne s s w h e n y o u w e ld t he t op bra ckets to the coffee table fra me.
→ Before you star t cut ting your wood for the top, me a s u r e t he i n side of you r f r a me. A f t er I welde d m i n e t o g e t h e r, i t m e a s u r e d 187⁄8 b y 3 67⁄8 i n c h e s .
S u b t r a c t 1⁄8 i n c h f r o m t h e w i d t h a n d l e n g t h s o t h at t he t op w i l l f it i n w it h a sl ig ht g ap a l l t he w ay a rou nd. The top for ou rs needed to b e 18¾ by 36¾ i n c h e s . S o t h a t m e a nt I c u t t h e s e b o a r d s t o 3 6¾ inches long.
• Since my boards are 9 inches wide, I wanted one whole board centered, with narrower boards of equal w idth on each side I cut the outside boards dow n to 47⁄8 inches w ide, not including the tong ue, since that slips into the groove on the next board You’ll need to lay out your top according to the material you choose to use Round the outside corners slightly so the top drops ea sily into the frame [9]
• Fit your top pieces into t he fra me a nd f lip t he coffee table over. Cut t wo st r ips of wood ea ch about 2½ i nche s w ide t o s pa n a cr o s s t he b ot t om of you r t a ble t op. C ut t he end s at a 45 de g r e e a ng le t h i s w i l l en s u r e t he y w on’t b e s e en f r om t he s ide a nd det ra ct from the look.
• S c r e w t h e b o a r d s a c r o s s t h e b o t t om of y o u r t abletop, about 9 inches from ea ch end [10].
• Flip the coffee t able ba ck over to check the f it . Now you ca n f inish the t abletop a ny way you li ke. I lig ht ly sa nded t he sa lva ged b oa rds, u sed a sim i la r color st a in on the fresh cuts on the edges, a nd then applied one coat of semi gloss poly uretha ne.
• Before you scre w t he t op on from t he b ot t om, wedge a sm a l l piece of c a rdb oa rd b et ween t he t op and frame on each side [11] This w ill center the top w ith a n even gap a l l the way a round
• Screw your coffee t able top on to secure the fit before mov ing to the fina l stage
A s w ith the tabletop, you ca n f inish the fra me how e ver you l i ke. You c a n le ave it n at u r a l s t e el a nd it w i l l ox id i z e over t i me, you c a n pa i nt or clea r coat it , or you cou ld apply a specia l pat ina f inish. I used pa i nt t o creat e a u sed, d i s t res sed lo ok . B efore you apply a ny f inish to the fra me, use some sa ndpaper (220 g rit or higher) to clean up any oxidation (r ust) t h a t m ig ht b e on t he me t a l . Then w ip e t he f r a me d o w n w it h d e n a t u r e d a lc oh ol t o r e m o v e a n y oi l s t h at c ou ld pr e vent t he p a i nt or f i n i sh f r om s t ick ing to the met a l
• To f i n i sh t he c of fe e t a ble f r a me, r emove t he top Apply f inish to the bot tom f irst you won’t see it , so it do esn’t need t o b e p er fec t I sprayed a ver y light coat of f lat cha lkboard paint f irst, followed by a light coat of f lat bla ck
• Flip the table frame over and apply your f inish more ca ref u l ly. I ended up spray ing t wo light coats here a s wel l [12].
• A f t er t he pa i nt d r ie d, I u s e d 60 0 g r it t o we t sand a lot of the paint off leav ing some in the lower a r e a s t h e s a n dp a p e r d id n’t r e a c h [1 3] . W ip e t h e s u r fa c e d r y a s you work s o t h at it do e sn’t s t a r t t o
r ust Once you ’ ve a chieved the look you wa nt , w ipe e ver y t h i ng dow n w it h a clea n r a g a nd w at er, t hen dr y ever y thing wel l
• O n c e t h e f r a m e i s d r y, a p p l y a c l e a r c o a t of sat in or mat t e pa int on a l l s u r fa ces. Th is w i l l g ive it a unifor m luster, but a lso protect it from r ust .
• To f inish you r cof fee t able, screw t he leveling feet in t he b ot toms of t he legs a nd put t he t abletop ba ck on. A nd there you have it .
It ’ s easy to lose track of all the perks that come with your PopMech Pro membership, like exclusive features, detailed plans for DI Y projec ts, and a weekly members only new slet ter. Here are some of the best recent Pro stories you might have missed. (Not a member ? Head to popularmechanics.com/join.)
We jus t named the Speed Square one of our “22 Greates t Tools ” (pa ge 55) In fac t , gear editor Br ad Ford uses it on pr ac tically ever y woodworking projec t In a popular how to guide, Ford show s you ever y thing you need to know to use the t riangular c arpenter ’s tool including marking right angles , squaring up joint s , and using it a s a s aw guide St ar t mea suring at popula rmecha nic s .com/speed squa re.
Members loved this fun physics riddle that f irst appeared in the Sunday newsletter Can you solve it? See the answer: popularmechanics.com/ bicycle riddle
You have a bic ycle, an d your frien d is holding it up so t hat it will not fall over, b u t t hey are not applying any p ressure to it in any direc t ion . You rot ate the cr ank so that one of the cr ank arms is facing s t r aight dow n , an d t hen you t ie a leng th of s t ring around that cr ank arm The setup will look something like this:
There’s a brand new, exclusive digital issue of PopMech available NOW, and it ’s packed with original, in depth feature stories you can’t f ind any where else, exploring the most compelling corners of the universe and beyond (Think: America’s legendar y M1 Abrams tank , how to turn a cla ssic car into an uber ef f icient EV, and the f inal minutes of the Concorde disa ster.) To immediately unlock the issue, head here: popu la rmecha nic s com / digita l issues
Have you ever hallucinated that you got out of bed, only to find out later that you were still asleep? In a member exclusive video, Stanford neuroscientist (and TikTok star) Ben Rein explains the frightening reason why: Usually, when your brain is in REM sleep, your body is paralyzed so you don’t act out your dreams But occa sionally, something happens called hypnopompic halluci nations, which is a rapid shift from REM to wakefulness.
With your friend holding the bike up, you p ull back on t he s t ring Will t he bike move for w ard , move back w ard , or s t ay in t he s ame sp ot?
H i nt : The bike’s rear wheel will not skid
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A N E W P O P M E C H I S S U E J U S T F O R M E M B E R S
T h e p l i e r s a re ve r y we l l e n g i n e e re d T h ey h ave a h i n ge to a d j u s t t h e j aw s ize , w h i c h w a s h a n d y fo r t i g h te n i n g a v a r i e t y of f a s te n e r s a n d p rov i d i n g a go o d g r i p fo r b e n d i n g a n d m a n i p u l a t i n g m e t a l . H oweve r, t h e re ’s n o p o i n te d t i p o r go o d p l a ce to s t r i p w i re , s o I wo u l d n ’ t u s e t h e m i n p l a ce of a go o d w i re s t r i p p e r o r n e e d l e n o s e p l i e r s S e t h B , El D o ra d o , A R
Hundreds of PopMech Pro members have signed up to field test products drills, wrenches, work gloves, and more for Popular Mechanics Recently, we sent testers a Gerber Dual Force to obsessively scru tinize Between its accessible outside frame and the biggest pair of pliers we’ve seen on a mul titool, members said the Dual Force ($110) will save you from extra trips back to the shop.
→ Join PopMech Pro for the chance to tr y cool new tools and see your feedback appear on this pa ge We’re looking for testers from all back grounds and skill levels Apply now at popularmechanics .com/become- a-f ield -tester.
T h e D u a l Fo rce i s a co n s t a n t cu p h o l d e r co m p a n i o n i n my t r u c k o r b o a t i t ’s e s s e n t i a l l y a m i n i to o l b ox T h e a cce s s i b i l i t y, l o c k i n g m e c h a n i c s , a n d co m fo r t we re a l l to p n otc h . I t w a s f i n e to c a r r y o n my b e l t , b u t i t ’s a b i t h eav y to s to re i n my p o c ke t D o u g A , Fr i d l ey, M N
I w a s ac tu a ll y q u i te su r p r i s e d h ow we ll t h e ch i s e l wo r ke d I u s e d i t to ex p o s e t h e h ea d of a na il , w h i ch I ha d to ch i s e l p re t t y d e e p to ex p o s e f u l l y T h e to o l w a s s h a r p , a n d I w a s a b l e to ch i s e l of f co n s i s te n t laye r s of wo o d to wo r k my w ay d ow n a n d p u l l of f l o n g s t r i p s at a t i m e, w h i ch ma d e t h e j o b q u i c ke r Fred er ick L ,
B E C O M E A P R O D U C T T E S T E R !
O H , J U P I T E R I F O N L Y
t h e g a s g i a n t s h i f t e d i t s o r b i t s l i g h t l y , b e c o m i n g m or e e c c ent r ic (me a n i n g o v a l sh ap e d), it cou ld t r a n sfor m t he shape of Ea r th’s orbit , too, caus i n g p a r t s o f t h e b l u e p l a n e t t o m o v e c l o s e r t o t h e s u n . T h a t , i n t u r n , wou ld me a n le s s u n l iv a b l e i c e c o v e r e d r e g i o n s a n d t he potent ia l for more habit able zones.
That wa s the focus of a recent s t u d y p u b l i s h e d i n T h e A s t r o n o m i c a l J o u r n a l M o d e l i n g data from our solar system a s we u nderst a nd it t o day, Un iversit y of C a l i for n i a , R i ver side (UC R) s c ient i s t s c r e a t e d a t he or e t ic a l system that slightly a ltered Jupi ter’s orbit
“ M a n y a r e c o n v i n c e d t h a t E a r t h i s t he e pit ome of a h a bit able pla net a nd t hat a ny cha nge in Jupiter’s orbit, being the ma s sive planet it is, could only be bad for Ear th,” Pam Ver voor t, a UCR E a r t h a n d p l a n e t a r y s c i e n t i s t
Estimating planet mass and tilt could let scientists be pickier in studying exoplanets
and lea d author of the st udy, said in a news relea se “We show that both a ssumptions are w rong ”
A slight change in Jupiter’s orbit could a lso have t he p ot ent ia l t o t u r n p or t ion s of ou r pla net i nt o a s ubf reezi ng hel lsc ap e. If Jupit er p osit ioned it self clo s er t o t he s u n i n it s ne w or bit , it wou ld c r e a t e ex t reme t i lt i ng of Ea r t h, c au si ng some reg ion s t o see fewer solar rays.
Seeing how sma ll cha nges to Jupiter’s posit ion ing and orbit lead to dramatic changes on Ear th, the researchers are planning to develop methods to help them estimate factors beyond an orbit like measur ing a planet’s ma ss and determining tilt to f ig ure out the volume of rays cer tain area s w ill receive “It ’ s i mp or t a nt t o u nder s t a nd t he i mpa c t t h at Jupit er h a s h a d on Ea r t h’s cl i m at e t h r oug h t i me, h o w i t s e f fe c t on o u r or bit h a s c h a n g e d u s i n t he pa st , a nd how it might cha nge us once a ga in in the f ut u re, ” St ephen K a ne, a UCR a s t rophy sici s t a nd st udy coauthor, says in the relea se. Tim Newcomb
As a planet orbits, it receives waves from its star, which can create seasonal shifts or dramatic swings
V
mi l lion tons of crab, shr imp, a nd lobster shel l wa ste globa lly, w ith most of it dumped straight ba ck into the ocea n or into la ndf i l ls
The issue isn’t the colossal amount of scraps, but t he lo s t opp or t u n it y : The h a r dy e xo skel etons of crabs a nd t heir ma r ine i l k a re r ich in usef u l, versatile chemica ls like chitin, the second most a b u nd a nt n a t u r a l p ol y mer fo u nd on E a r t h . B e c a u s e it a nd it s sister p oly mer, chitosa n, a re considered eco f r i e n d l y a n d n o n t o x i c , s c i e n t i s t s a r e i n t e r e s t e d i n incorporating these chemical compounds into batteries.
In a pap er published in t he jou r na l Mat te r, a g roup of eng ineers at the Universit y of Mar yland did just that, cra f t ing a chit in zinc bat ter y t hat’s bio deg ra dable but still holds considerable juice As the world moves toward a more su st a inable f ut u re, t he hop e is t hat a recha rge able, crab der ived bat ter y cou ld be a v iable a lter nat ive to (or a replacement for) lithium ion bat teries
Chitin to the Rescue → For years, scientists have been toy ing around w ith chitin, which is str uct ura lly similar t o cel lu lose i n pla nt s. In 2016, resea rchers at t he Un i ver sit y of Br it i sh C olu mbi a d i s cover e d t h at when you cook up chitin w ith nitrogen at temperat ures a s high a s 1,652°F, it transforms the shells into a carbon nitrogen
mater ia l suit able for elect rodes
B u t s c i e n t i s t s a t t h e Un i v e r s i t y o f M a r y l a n d t o ok a dif ferent approa ch, fo c u sing on zinc ba sed bat ter ies, which a re a common disp osable, nonre ch a r g e a ble b a t t er y. B e c a u s e z i nc i s mor e r e a d i ly available than lithium and less toxic, scientists envi sion the minera l as our silver y white energ y knight.
Swapping out lithium for zinc isn’t smooth sa il ing, though. A s a n elect rode, zinc ha s a n a nnoy ing tendency to form irreg ularities on its surface. When ele c t r on s p a s s t h r ou g h , l it t le bu mp s app e a r t h at snowba ll into larger ones, ca lled “dendrites,” which disr upt the bat ter y ’ s electrica l current
Since chitosan, a chemically treated derivative of chitin, interacts well w ith water and is able to hold it dow n from f loating around w illy nilly, the research t e a m b el ie ve d t he y cou ld u s e it t o m a ke a b at t er y separator a semipermeable membrane that keeps the opposite cha rged electrodes apa r t that’s a lso biodeg radable.
A s s e m b l i n g t h e C ra b by B a t te r y → S o how d id they do it? First they bathed a coin size f ilm of chi tosan in a solution f illed w ith zinc to get the mineral t o st ick t o t he f i lm. Nex t , t he scient ist s w r u ng out t he ch it o s a n z i nc f i l m a nd s q ue e z e d it t i g ht l y t o den s ely p a ck it Un l i ke pr ior at t empt s t o den si f y ch it o s a n f i l m s , t h i s t e ch n iq ue c r e at e d c omp a r a tively large pores (up to f ive micrometers), a llow ing f r e e movement of ion s , s ay s Jo d ie Lut ken h a u s , a profe s s or i n chem ic a l eng i ne er i ng at Tex a s A & M Universit y, who wa s not involved in this st udy
“ T h i s i s k e y b e c a u s e w h e n y o u t h i n k a b o u t a cr u s t a cea n shel l, you t h i n k of it b ei ng rea l ly h a rd a n d d e n s e , a n d t h a t ’ s n o t g o o d f o r c o n d u c t i n g ions,” says Lut ken hau s, who ha s done resea rch on orga nic der ived bat ter ies in the pa st .
To c omple t e t he bu i ld , t he t e a m pl a c e d a z i nc a node atop the chitosa n zinc sepa rator a long w ith a c a t h o d e m a d e of a n or g a n i c c omp o u n d c a l l e d poly( benzoquinonyl su lphide), or PBQS When the team ran their crab shell batter y in the lab, they saw none of that dendrite formation on the zinc anode It generated an electrica l current of 50 milliamperes p e r s q u a r e c e n t i m e t e r f o r 4 0 0 h o u r s (o r 1 ,0 0 0 cha rg ing c ycles), which is close to what sma l l lit h ium bat teries are capable of
Wh i le you ’ re not going t o see cra b shel l bat t er ies on st ore shelves a ny t ime soon, t he resea rchers hope these may become commonplace in electronic dev ices li ke your cel lphone or in dedicated stora ge fa cilities that relea se renewable energ y to the com mercia l g rid. Miriam Fauzia
i s h it t i n g a bi g b u mp i n t he r o a d t h a t t r i g g er s a ne w rat t le in you r veh icle. Wit h in a n hou r, it ca n s ou nd l i ke you r c a r i s a b out t o fa l l ap a r t . B efor e d i s a s s e m b l i n g y o u r i n t e r i o r a n d m a k i n g t h e problem wor se, t r y some of t hese f i xes f i r s t .
L o c a t i o n , L o c a t i o n , L o c a t i o n // St a r t by sit t i ng i n t he front seat and pushing dow n on some of the nearby panels Tr y to get them to squea k a s they bend and deform You can a lso give your dashboard a couple of light taps w ith your f ist to tr y to f ind any loose area s If they let out any noise at a ll, that’s probably a spot for a professiona l to ta ke a look at However, t he b est t hing you ca n do is g rab a buddy a nd let t hem dr ive whi le you sea rch for sou rces of noise. St a r t in the passenger seat and work your way around the vehicle. Once you f ind the rat tle, you ca n na r row dow n what needs to be worked on.
Tackle Si m p le Th i n gs // Spea k ing of loose ca rgo, a g reat
Life really does fly by Before I knew it, my 60s had arrived, and with them came some new gifts from dear ol’ Mother Na ture frequent knee pain, stress, low energy and sleeplessness Now, I’m a realist about these things, I knew I wasn’t going to be young and springy forever. But still, with “golden years ” nearly on my doorstep, I couldn’t help but feel a little cheated That is until I found my own secret weapon Another gift from Mother Nature
It began a few months back when I was complaining about my aches and pains to my marathon running granddaughter, Jen. She casually mentione d how she uses CBD rub to help with her joint pain She said that CBD gave her more focus and clarity throughout the day and that her lingering muscle and joint discomfort no longer bothere d her She even felt comfortable signing up for back to back marathons two we ekends in a row this year That made even this self proclaime d skeptic take notice
But I still had some concerns. According to one study in the Jour nal of the American Me dical Association, 70% of CBD products didn’t contain the amount of CBD state d on their labels And, as a consumer, that’s terrifying!
If I was going to tr y CBD, I needed to trust the source through and through My two fold research process naturally led me to Zebra CBD
First, I starte d calling my family and friends Call me old fashione d but I wante d to know if there were pe ople whom I truste d (more than anonymous testimonials) who’ve had success using CBD besides my granddaughter
Se condly, I wante d cold hard facts Diving de ep into the world of CBD research and clinical studies, I came across Emily Gray M.D., a physician at the University of California at San Diego (UCSD) Me d ical School and me dical advisor to Zebra CBD who is researching the effe cts of CBD Dr Gray wrote “early results with CBD have be en promising and we have a lot of research under way now I’ve had sev eral patients using CBD with good success It’s important that you
know your source of CBD and how to use it properly ”
After hearing it from the doctor’s mouth, I returne d to my research, asking more pe ople and was ama ze d by the number of close friends and family who were already on the CBD train Apparently, I was the only one without a clue! And funny enough, a couple of friends who commente d were using the same brand as my granddaughter Ze bra CBD There was no consensus as to why they were using CBD, but the top reasons given were for muscle & joint discomfort, mood support, sle ep support, stress and headaches, as well as supporting overall health & wellness.
Eventually, even the most skeptical of the bunch can be won over With a truste d CBD source in mind, I de cide d to give it a go
When I viewe d Zebra CBD’s sele ction online, I was impresse d by its array of products, including CBD oils calle d tinctures, topicals, chewable tablets, mints and gummies After reading on their website that all their products are made with organically grown hemp, I or dere d... and it arrive d within 2 days!
The first product I trie d was the Rub Now this stuff was strong Imme diately after rubbing it on my kne e, the soothing effe cts kicke d in It had that familiar menthol cooling effe ct, which I personally find ver y relieving . And the best part is, after two we eks of using it, my kne e pain no longer affe cte d my daily mobility
The Zebra Sle ep Gummies, on the other hand, had a different but e qually positive effe ct on my body. To take it, the instructions sug gest chewing thoroughly This was simple enough, and the taste was, well, lemony After about 15 minutes, a sense of calm came over my body It's hard to describe exactly; it's definitely not a "high" fe eling It's more like an overall sense of relaxation and then I fast asle ep. Ne e dless to say, I slept great and woke up refreshe d I haven’t slept like that in a long time
While it hasn’t be en a catch all fix to ever y one of my health issues, it has ease d the level and fre quency of my aches And it sure doesn’t se em like a coincidence how rejuvenate d I fe el
All in all, CBD is one of those things that you have to tr y for your self. Although I was skeptical at first, I can safely say that I’m now a Zebra CBD fan and that I highly re commend their products
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Everyone feels the hurt as you age, but CBD can help you deal with it
pla ce to st a r t is w it h you r keys If t hey’re at t a ched t o a big, a n noy i ng me t a l c a r a bi ner, t he y ’l l ja ng le a round like a set of w ind chimes when you hit even the slightest bump.
Tr y out r ubb er ke y cover s t h at mut e met a l on m e t a l c ont a c t . Th e y m a y b e a b s olu t e l y h i d e o u s , but they’re cheap a nd they work. A key orga nizer is a much b et ter a nd more a est het ica l ly plea sing s olut ion t h at ’ s s t i l l r el a t i vely a f for d a ble. Ke y b a r ma kes a n excel lent version, whi le Orbitkey ma kes a more economica l a lternative
Junk in the Trunk // A re the ja ck, lug w rench, and s p a r e t i r e pr op erly s e c u r e d? Th i s pr oblem c a n b e e s p e ci a l ly not icea ble i f you d r ive a n SU V, v a n, or hatchba ck, where the t r un k occupies the sa me a ir spa ce a s the cabin
It c a n t a ke a wh i le t o f ig u r e out wh at t h at d i a g ra m inside t he ja ck compa r t ment cover is t r y ing t o t el l you t o do, but it ’ s wor t h lo ok i ng at t o m a ke sure ever y thing is in its pla ce.
C l e a n l i n e s s I s S i l e n c e // A u t om a k e r s a l l h av e Noi s e, V ibr at ion , a nd H a r sh ne s s (N V H) de p a r t m e n t s o f v a r y i n g s i z e s t h a t s p e n d m i l l i o n s t o engineer whisper quiet interiors Today, automakers can actually predict sources of noise using computer simulations, but they don’t anticipate a whole bunch of loose crap knocking around in your car
Ta ke out a ll of your nonessentia l items and you’ll be a ma zed at how much quieter the inter ior of your car becomes We’ve found rat tles that t urned out to b e a so cket set i n a s t eel b ox , ot her a s sor t ed t o ol s, a lo o se f i re ex t i ng u i sher, lo o se ch a ng e, p en s, a nd even water bot tles.
S e c u re E ve r y t h i n g W i t h Ve l c ro // A l on g w i t h b e i n g d a n g e r o u s i n t h e e v e n t o f a c r a s h , l o o s e c a r g o s l i d i n g a r o u n d i n t h e b a c k of y o u r v e h i c l e t e n d s t o r a t t l e a n d c l a n g a g a i n s t o t h e r i t e m s i n the t r un k The solut ion? Hook a nd loop fa steners
For e x a mp l e , m y M i c h a e l P r o C l i c k T h r o u g h t or q ue w r ench h a s a sl ipp er y b ot t om , me a n i ng it wou ld ba sh int o t he sides of t he t r u n k e ver y t ime I m a de a t u r n Not g r e at Howe ver, a l l it t o ok w a s a couple st r ips of Velcro to keep it secured to the ca r p et e d f lo or. For b onu s p oi nt s, I a l so i n s u lat e d t he p o cket s i n side of t he c a se where a l l of t he i nd iv id u a l pa r t s reside.
The s of t er “lo op ” side of t he Velcr o i s a l s o u s e f u l for i n s u l a t i n g r a t t le s . I u s e d t w o s m a l l s t r ip s of it t o i n s u lat e t he s u ng la s ses holder i n my GT I.
I f A l l E l s e F a i l s … // U n f o r t u n a t e l y, i f n o n e of t he s e s t e p s s olve you r i s s u e, it ’ s t i me t o s che d u le a n app oi nt ment w it h you r lo c a l de a ler sh ip or mecha nic A ny bu siness wor t h going to w i l l g la d ly work on mu f f l i ng t he i nt er ior Mat th e w C r i s a ra
Ulf Da nielsson, a professor of t heoret ica l phys ics at Uppsa la Universit y in S weden a nd secret a r y of t he Nob el C om m it t e e for Phy sic s, r efer s t o t he fa c t t hat t his phenomenon of a n inst a nt qu a nt u m connection bet ween par ticles across va st distances isn’t accounted for in cla ssica l physics of the ever y day world.
In other words, they proved Einstein w rong.
A Threat to Special Relativity → Entanglement, a s it wa s f irst sug gest ed in t he 1930s, encroa ched on t he idea of “lo ca l rea lism,” which ca n b e b oi led dow n into t wo statements First, rea lism states that a ll par ticles have def inite proper ties for a ll possible mea surements Second, loca lit y says that commu nication bet ween par ticles can’t happen faster than the speed of light.
The instantaneous action of entanglement cha l lenged at least one of these premises, maybe both. To Einstein, v ia its cha llenge to loca lit y, this instanta neous nat ure represented a threat to one of his key principles of special relativ it y: the fact that nothing can travel fa ster than light.
Einstein thought that rather than v iolating loca l r e a l i sm , ent a ng lement a nd it s “ s p o ok y a c t ion at a d i s t a nc e ” i nd ic a t e d t h at q u a nt u m phy sic s w a s incomplete; he b elieved t hat element s connect ing the variables of one par ticle to another wou ld even t u a l l y b e fo u n d Th e e le m e nt s t h a t h e a n d o t h e r physicists believed to be missing came to be know n a s “loca l hidden variables ”
The work of Clauser, A spect , a nd Zeilinger is so groundbrea king because it conclusively proved that hidden variables don’t exist.
N C E D E S C R
B
D A S “
O N a t a d i s t a n c e ” b y t h e w o r l d ’ s m o s t f a m o u s p h y s i c i s t , A l b e r t E i n s t e i n , e n t a n g l e m e n t t h e i d e a t h a t t w o p a r t icle s s epa r at e d by v a s t d i s t a nce s cou ld i n s t a nt l y i n f lu e n c e e a c h ot he r l ie s a t t he v e r y h e a r t of w h a t m a k e s q u a nt u m physics so st ra nge a nd counter int uit ive.
In O c t ob er, t he Roya l S wedish Aca demy of S ci ences aw a rded t he 2022 Nob el P r i z e i n Phy sics t o t h ree qu a nt u m physicist s A la in A sp ec t , Joh n F. C l a u s e r, a n d A nt on Z e i l i n g e r w h o s e w ork c on f irmed this troubling phenomenon.
Co n f i r m i n g Q u a n t u m Phys i c s I s Co m p l e te → I n 19 6 4, Nor t h e r n I r i s h p h y s ic i s t Joh n S t e w a r t Bel l dev ised his ep ony mou s Bel l’s t heorem, which s ug ges t e d t h at lo c a l it y w a s a t es t a ble hy p ot hesi s. Brea k ing loca l rea lism wa s refer red to a s “the v io lation of Bell inequa lities ”
A m e r i c a n t h e o r e t i c a l a n d e x p e r i m e n t a l physicist Clauser a long w it h t hen U C Berkeley g r a du a t e s t u de nt S t u a r t F r e e d m a n , w h o p a s s e d aw ay i n 2012 de v i s e d t he f i r s t pr a c t ic a l e x p er i ment t o hu nt for such a v iolat ion in 1972 The duo built an ex periment to send t wo entangled photons i n opp o sit e d i r e c t ion s t o w a r d f i xe d p ol a r i z a t ion f i lt er s. Thei r r e s u lt s def ie d t he r u le s of cl a s sic a l mech a n ics a nd t he ex i s t ence of h idden v a r ia bles, a nd a g r e e d w it h q u a nt u m t he or y. S o, t he e x p er i ment v iolated Bel l’s inequa lit ies.
A s p e c t , a phy sici s t f r om t he Un i ver sit é Pa r i s S a c l a y a n d É c o l e P o l y t e c h n i q u e , F r a n c e , w o u l d c om e u p w i t h i mpr o v e d v e r s i on s of C l a u s e r a n d Freedman’s experiment in 1982. Built into Aspect’s test s wa s t he abi lit y to reg ister photons blocked at the f ilter. Once again, a scientist demonstrated the v iolation of Bell’s inequa lities.
In 1997, at the Universit y of Vienna in Aust r ia , Z ei l i ng er now a s en ior s c ient i s t at t he I n s t it ut e for Q u a nt u m O p t ic s a n d Q u a nt u m I n for m a t ion of t he A u s t r i a n A c a demy of S c ienc e s went e ven fur ther He demonstrated the transference of quan t um infor mat ion from a n ent a ngled pa ir to a third par ticle In 1998, he followed up this work by entan g l i n g t w o phot on s t h at don’t d i r e c t ly i nt er a c t b y using ent a ngled pa r t ner pa r t icles
“Un l i k e E i n s t e i n h o p e d , t h e r e i s n o w a y t h a t
you c a n t u r n q u a nt u m t he or y i nt o a phy sic a l t he or y t h at b eh aves lo c a l ly A nd t he work of Clau ser, Aspect, and Zeilinger was the first really convincing demonstration of this fundamenta l a spect of quan t um mechanics,” says Nicolas Br unner, an associate professor at the Universit y of Geneva, where his area of research is the foundation of quant um theor y and quant um information processing.
S o w h a t d o e s t h i s pr i z e m e a n for t h e f ie ld s of q u a n t u m p h y s i c s a n d q u a n t u m i n f o r m a t i o n ? “I’ve b een work i ng w it h qu a nt u m non lo c a lit y for 20 ye a r s, si nc e t he b e g i n n i ng of my Ph D,” Br u n ner says “To see it recog nized li ke this by the most i m p o r t a n t p h y s i c s p r i z e s i s r e a l l y q u i t e s o m e t h i n g It ’ s r e a l ly a r e c o g n it ion of t he i mp or t a nc e of s ubjec t s in t he f ield of qu a nt u m in for m at ion in g ener a l ” Ro b e r t L e a
10.6 i n
▶ The calculated minimum amount of sea level rise within this centur y from melting “zom bie ice” in Greenland alone. Zombie ice is doomed to melt away and raise the sea level because the ice is no longer accumulating fresh snow, despite being par t of the parent ice sheet. M .W.
N E W M I S S I L E S E T T O E N T E R S E R V I C E
i n 2027 i s r a d ic a l ly d i f fer ent f r om a ny thing else in the Pent a gon ’ s a rsena l. The ne w Hy p er s on ic A t t a c k C r u i s e M i s si le (H AC M ) w i l l f l y u p t o 20 t i m e s fa s t e r, g i v i n g a d ver s a r ie s l it t le t i me t o e s c ap e it s w r at h H ACM w i l l b e t he f i r s t m a s s pr o d u c e d w e a p on t o u s e a i r br e a t h i n g s c r a mj e t engines, which scoop up ox ygen from the surround ing at mosphere to use a s f uel
In S ept emb er, t he U S D epa r t ment of D efen se awa rded R ay theon a nd Nor throp Gr umma n a con tract wor th $985 million to develop this hy personic cr uise missile the world’s f irst. It builds upon the pr ior S out her n Cr o s s I nt e g r at e d Fl ig ht Re s e a r ch E x per iment (SCIFi R E) b et ween t he U. S. a nd Au s tralia, meant to develop an air breathing hy personic weapon system designed for both countries’ aircraft.
→ H ACM is a n a ir launched hy per s o n i c c r u i s e m i s s i l e d e s i g n e d t o q u i c k l y s t r i k e t a r g e t s on t h e g r o u n d . Th e U. S . A i r For c e c o u l d u s e t he t a c t ic a l w e a p on on D ay 1 of a l a r g e s c a le c on v e nt i on a l c on f l i c t “H AC M w i l l pr o v i d e o u r c om m a n d e r s w i t h t a c t i c a l f l e x i bi l i t y t o e mp l o y f ig ht ers t o hold hig h va lue, t ime sensit ive t a r get s at risk while maintaining bombers for other strate gic targets,” A ir Force Chief of Staff G en CQ Brow n sa id in a n A ir Force st atement
Breaking the Sound Barrier → Traditiona l cr uise missi les a re ba sica l ly pi lotless a ircra f t. Li ke ma ny a i rcr a f t , t u rb ofa n eng i ne s p ower cr u i se m i s si le s, pr op el l i n g t hem a t s u b s on ic s p e e d s . Cr u i s e m i s si les f ly low t o avoid ra da r det ec t ion, a nd a slower s p e e d h e lp s t h e m f l y l o w e r a n d hu g t h e g r o u n d . Tom a h awk cr u i s e m i s si le s, for e x a mple, f ly at a n a lt it u de of b e t w e en 98 a nd 16 4 fe e t at a s p e e d of 550 mi les per hour
H ACM is a hy p ersonic weap on, which mea ns it w i l l f ly at M a ch 5 or fa s t er t h a t ’ s f i ve t i me s t he s p e e d o f s o u n d b u t w e d on’t k n o w e x a c t l y h o w much fa s t er it w i l l f ly Mo s t m i s si le s t h at r em a i n i n t h e a t m o s p h e r e , l i k e a i r t o a i r m i s s i l e s , t o p o u t a t a r o u n d M a c h 3 + S C I F i R E , m e a n w h i l e , descends from the ea rlier HIFiR E prog ra m, which t e s t e d a s c r a mje t e n g i n e a t s p e e d s u p t o M a c h 8. A ccor d i ng t o NA S A , s cr a mje t eng i ne s, l i ke t ho s e s e t t o b e u s e d i n H ACM , shou ld work at s p e e d s of up t o at le a s t M a ch 15. Th at t r a n sl at e s t o 11,509 m i le s p e r h o u r, or fa s t e n o u g h t o c i r c le E a r t h i n a b out t wo hou r s. Kyl e Mi z o k a m i
The number of brain cells (both human and rodent) that an Australian team successfully networked in a dish to play the tennis like arcade classic Pong
O
for at lea st 400 million yea rs Yet a s a species, we on l y c r e a t e d a n i ndu s t r i a l c i v i l i z a t ion a r o u nd 30 0 ye a r s a g o. B ut wh at i f a n e a rl ier i ndu s t r i a l c i v i l i z a t ion e x i s t e d on E a r t h m i l l ion s of y e a r s b efore u s? Cou ld we prove it? Th is is t he cr u x of t he Si lu r i a n hy p ot he si s , a fa s c i n at i n g t hou g ht ex per iment that appea red in a st udy published in 2018 in the Inter n atio n al Jo ur n al of Astrob iology.
The possibi lit y of life elsewhere in t he u niverse ha s long pu zzled Ada m Fra n k, a professor of a stro phy sic s at t he Un iver sit y of Ro che s t er, Ne w York , a nd one of the t wo st udy authors. “Is it common for a ny civ ilization that rea ches our level of energ y use to t r ig ger their ow n version of climate cha nge?” he wonders.
D i d A l i e n s T r i g ge r A n c i e n t C l i m a te C h a n ge?
→ G o i n g b a c k h u n d r e d s o f m i l l i o n s o f y e a r s t o f i nd t r a c e s of a p ot ent i a l pr e Ho m o S a p i e n s c i v i l i z at ion i s not si mple “A f t er a fe w m i l l ion yea r s, Ea r t h is pret t y much resu r fa ced You’re not going t o h ave a ny s t a t ue s , bu i ld i n g s , or a ny t h i n g lef t , ” Frank says Fossil records w ill be v ir t ua lly nonexis tent, a s ever y thing w ill have cr umbled to dust The on ly ev idence wou ld come in t he for m of chemica l impr int s. “You’d have to look at ea ch layer of rock , and then tr y and detect trends look for changes in things like the carbon or ox ygen isotopes, which are tracers of things like carbon dioxide. A n industria l civ ilization wou ld dump lots of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, just like we do,” he explains. Plastic or na nopar ticles found in rock layers wou ld a lso be good indicators of a prev ious industrial civ ilization.
F r a n k a n d h i s c o a u t h o r w e r e i n t r i g u e d b y t h e p e r i o d o f g e o l o g i c a l h i s t o r y k n o w n a s t h e Pa le o c ene E o c ene Ther m a l M a x i mu m (PE T M) That’s because something tr u ly pecu liar happened to our planet during that time, 56 million years ago: Ea r t h’s avera ge t emp erat u re soa red t o 15°F ab ove t o d ay ’ s aver a g e, a nd t he world b e c a me a t emp er ate a nd iceless pla ce. They invest igated the ca rbon a n d o x y g e n i s o t o p e r a t i o s f r o m t h e P E T M a n d indeed saw spikes, but they a lso saw declines, a ll of t hese over a few hu ndred t hou sa nd yea rs, which is nowhere near the speed at which carbon is currently suffocating the atmosphere. Frank says the PETM’s chemical differences pointed to a long term climate change.
G re ate r S u s t a i n a b i l i t y L e a d s to Fewe r S i g n s → Ther e i s a n ox y mor on i n t he Si lu r i a n hy p ot he sis: The more susta inable a societ y is in generat ing e n e r g y a nd m a nu fa c t u r i n g , t he s m a l ler i t s fo o t p r i n t w i l l b e Ye t t h i s s m a l l e r f o o t p r i n t w o u l d t r a n sl at e t o a fe w m a rker s on t he g e olo g ic r e c or d for t h at p er io d. For e x a mple, t he mor e pl a s t ic we pr o du c e , t h e h i g h e r t h e c h a n c e s f u t u r e c i v i l i z a t ion s w i l l f i nd t r a ce s of u s. (O u r so ciet y pro duce s 30 0 m i l lion t on s of pla s t ic ea ch yea r worldw ide a lmost the weight of the entire human popu lation.) Even if we w ipe ourselves off the fa ce of Ea r th w ith
a nuclear cata strophe, long lived ra dioa ctive par ti cles w i l l endure in the soi l eons later
“W it h t he Si lu r i a n hy p ot he si s, we a r t ic u l at e d t h e k i n d s o f s i g n a l s t h a t o u r c i v i l i z a t i o n w o u l d le ave i f we d i s app e a r a nd s omeb o dy lo ok s for ou r c i v i l i z a t i o n 10 o r 2 0 m i l l i o n y e a r s f r o m n o w, ” Fra n k says.
It a l s o demon s t r at e d c er t a i n shor t c om i ng s i n our current scientif ic apparat us. “In ca se an earlier species’ indust r ia l a ct iv it y wa s pa r t icu la rly shor t l i ve d , w e w ou ld not b e a ble t o de t e c t it i n a nc ient s e d i m e n t s w i t h t h e t o o l s a n d m e t h o d s w e h a v e now, ” Fra n k says “If you wa nt to look for ev idence of a pre v iou s civ i l i z at ion, you’d h ave t o do s t ud ies that nobody’s done and develop novel methods for example, you’d have to f ig ure out ways to look at the rock record on a much f iner t imesca le ”
Thou g h Fr a n k do e sn’t r e a l ly b el ie ve a n i ndu s t r ia l civ i li zat ion ex ist ed b efore ou r ow n, t he ma in ta keaway of the Silurian hy pothesis, he says, is that i f you ’ re not ex pl icit ly lo ok i ng for somet h i ng, you might not even see it . Stav D imitropo ulos
T h e w e i g h t a t w h i c h a b o w l i n g b a l l c a n f l o a t i n w a te r Yo u c a n t h a n k d e n s i t y f o r t h i s s t r a n g e p h e n o m e n o n D e s p i t e t h e f a c t t h a t a l l s t a n d a r d b o w l i n g b a l l s a r e t h e s a m e s i z e s p h e r e , t h e f i l l e r i n s i d e e a c h b a l l i s m a d e u p o f d i f f e r e n t co m p o n e n t s t h a t a f f e c t i t s o v e r a l l d e n s i t y. Ca r o l i n e D e l b e r t
Men across America are raving about a newly enhanced potency supplement that helps achieve healthy blood flow on demand
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When the first pill Pri mal Max Black was first released, it quickly became a top selling men’s perfor mance helper, promoting in timacy across America
It worked by supporting healthy testosterone levels. However, Dr Sears soon re alized that this isn’t the only challenge men face with per formance. That’s when he turned his attention to blood flow
And this became Primal Max Red.
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The former formula had ex cellent results However, new research showed that for even faster, anytime, anywhere re sults, increasing the dose of a key compound was needed
A new discover y tha t increases nitric oxide a vailability resulting in even quicker, stronger, and longer lasting performance.
power and stamina were overjoyed to be back to their old selves and to get and maintain a healthy bloodflow when they needed it.
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This critical action is how men across the country are enjoying full and satisfying performance at any age No need to bother with testoster one boosting shots, blue pills, or shady capsules that have no effect
Red, men can perform better than ever, and enjoy intimacy at any age ”
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To secure free bottles of Pri mal Max Black and get the hot, new Primal Max Red formula, buyers should con tact the Sears Health Hotline at 1 800 377 1202 TODAY
“It’s not available in retail stores yet,” says Dr. Sears.
Truth is, once blood flow slows down for men, no mat ter how exciting it is, it won’t be enough without the neces sary amount…
So enjoying intimacy with out healthy blood flow be comes difficult for most men
So, one of the three nitric oxide boosters in the new Primal Max Red, L Citrul line, was clinically boosted to 9000 mg, and the results were astounding. Which is no sur prise considering that 5000 mg is considered a “normal amount” giving the new version nearly doubled the blood flow boosting power.
Men who had previous ly been unsure about their
Primal Max Red can effec tively promote healthy blood flow that most men can use for maximum intimacy This is leading to more greater ca pacity and satisfaction, cou pled with long lasting perfor mance
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“The Hotline allows us to ship directly to the custom er ” Dr Sears feels so strongly about Primal Max, all orders are backed by a 100% mon ey back guarantee “Just send me back the bottle and any unused product within 90 days from purchase date, and I’ll send you all your money back.”
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T h e r e a r e t w o a n s w e r s t o t h i s q u e s t i o n , d e p e n d i n g o n w h e t h e r y o u t h i n k a b o u t t h e word “hemisphere” w ith a capit a l H
I f y o u s p l i t E a r t h i n t o i t s N o r t h e r n a n d S o u t h e r n H e m i s p h e r e s , t h e n w e ’ r e t a l k i n g a b o u t s i mple pr o b a bi l i t ie s Th e r e i s a 1 i n 2 (or 50 percent) cha nce that a ra ndom ly chosen locat ion w i l l be in one of the t wo hemispheres G i v e n t h r e e r a n d o m p o i n t s , t h a t ’ s a s i m p l e 1 i n 8 (or 12.5 p er cent) ch a nce. It ’ s t he s a me w h e n y o u c omp a r e t he E a s t e r n a nd We s t e r n Hemispheres.
But what if one of those points is right on the Equat or? Mat hemat ica l ly, t he Equat or is sim ply one of inf initely many Grand Circles, which we g e t a ny t i me we sl ic e a s pher e p er fe c t l y i n h a l f The cent er of a Gr a nd Ci r cle i s t he sa me point a s the center of its sphere In theor y, if we sl ice d Ea r t h i n h a l f at t he E q u at or, t hen b ot h of t h e h a l v e s w o u ld c ont a i n t h e E q u a t or S o, we m ig ht a s wel l say t h at p oi nt s on t he E q u a tor count a s being in both hemispheres at once This fol lows for a ny possible Gra nd Circle
That idea is the cr u x of the second answer to this quest ion, which is 100 percent .
I m a g i n e t h a t t w o of t h e p oi nt s y o u c h o s e w er e on t he e x t r eme opp o sit e side s of E a r t h . Create a Gra nd Circle t hat connect s t hose t wo p oi nt s a nd s pl it t he E a r t h p er fe c t ly i n h a l f t o c r e a t e t w o hem i s pher e s. L e t ’ s c a l l t hem L ef t a nd R ig ht . The t wo p oi nt s you cho s e cou nt a s b eing on b ot h hemispheres The t hird p oint is on either the L ef t or R ight, which mea ns one of those t wo cont a ins a l l three points
P i c k t h r e e p o i n t s a t r a n d o m a ny wher e on t he g lob e. W h a t is the probabilit y that a ll three of the points will be in the same hemisphere?
D o n’t k n o w w h e r e t o s t a r t ?
G r a b y o u r s m a r t p h o n e o r comput er a nd pl ay a r ou nd on
G o o g le Ea r t h a bit t o come up w ith a hy pothesis.
What if the third point is a lso on that Grand Ci r cle? Then s udden ly a l l t h r e e p oi nt s a r e on both hemispheres St i l l 100 percent!
To gener a l i z e, pick a ny t h ree p oi nt s on t he g lob e. Cho ose t he t wo p oint s t hat a re fa r t hest apar t and draw a Grand Circle around the globe t h a t p a s s e s t h r o u g h t h o s e t w o p o i n t s . T h i s i s a l w ay s p o s sible . The t h i r d p oi nt w i l l n a t u ra lly be on one of the t wo created hemispheres.
Ri c h a rd Ma l e n a
I L L U S T R A T I O N B Y A N D R E R U C K E R
Guinness World Records dubbed May’s str uct ure the largest “life sized house made from interlocking bricks.” May’s house w a sn’t a lone a s a l i fe si z e d L e g o bu i ld. I n 2016, L a nd Rover built a 5.8 million brick model of London’s Tower Bridge sturdy enoug h t o d r ive it s SU Vs a cross. A nd in 2018, a n Au st ra lia n tea m bui lt a f u l l size L ego ca mping t ra i ler. Such a ccomplish ments beg the question: If we can build a L ego house or bridge or camper, why isn’t more of our world made of Lego blocks?
L E G O B R I C K S A R E M A D E O U T O F A H A R D P L A S T I C C A L L E D a cr ylonit r i le but a diene st y rene (A BS) w it h a ma nu fa ct u r ing tolera nce of roug h ly 0 01mm “Lego br ick s a re ver y precisely m a de,” say s Ba r n a by G u n n i ng, t he L ondon ba s e d a r ch it e c t who desig ned May’s house. This precision ma kes them a reli able a nd eff icient const r uct ion mater ia l.
Th e A B S i s s e m i pl i a ble , a l lo w i n g br ic k s t o f i t t o g e t h e r u sing a f r ic t ion dep endent con nec t ion c a l led a sn ap f it . The
fr ic t ion b et ween t he t op st ud of one br ick a nd t he i nt er ior t ub e s of t he br ick at op it hold t he pie ce s t o g et her, but not s o much that they’re impossible to pu ll apa r t
Now, to look at Lego bricks a s a building m a t er i a l , pic t u r e a L e g o sk y s c r ap er a nd mea s u r e t he br ick’s s t r eng t h a g a i n s t t he forces that architects and engineers design buildings, bridges, and other str uct ures to w i t h s t a n d . Th e s e for c e s c ompr e s s ion , s h e a r i n g , a n d t e n s i o n a r e c a u s e d b y different loa ds to which a str uct ure is sub jected. These loa ds ca n include the weight of t he bu i ld i ng ’ s m at er i a l s, ro of t op snow accumulation, gale force w inds, or the sud den shudder of an ear thqua ke.
L ego blo ck s ca n w it h st a nd impressive compression (compacting) forces In 2012, researchers at England’s The Open Univer sit y tested the streng th of a 2x2 st ud L ego brick using a hydraulic press The brick held up a stag gering 950 pounds of force before failing That streng th, in theor y, could sup por t about 375,000 other bricks, or a tower just over t wo miles high. They’re a lso adept at resisting shear (sliding) forces; the st ud a nd t ub e desig n lo ck s t he pie ces i n pla ce to keep them from sliding side to side. But tensional (pulling) force is the block’s struc t ura l wea kness: Under tension, they beg in to separate, and the str uct ure collapses.
Th a t ’ s u n for t u n a t e n e w s for o u r s k y scraper of block s f used solely by st ud t ube f r ic t ion “ The f r ic t ion i s ju s t not enou g h t o w i t h s t a n d , s a y, a n e a r t h q u a k e o r a n extreme windstorm,” says Stephen Ressler, PhD, a mechanica l eng ineer and professor emer it us from the U S Mi lit a r y Aca demy at West Point
D u r i ng a hu r r ic a ne, w i nd m ig ht pu sh against the wa ll of a house and beg in to lift the roof up. As the roof lifts off the structure, it creates a suction force that bends the wall a nd loosens the joints nea r the g round. In a house of L ego br ick s, t hese forces wou ld tear the A BS block s apar t. Similarly, in an ea r t hqua ke, g rou nd sha k ing mig ht cau se ou r hig h r ise to s way from side to side A s the tower bends, the blocks separate and lose the frictional force that holds them in place
A n d a s t h e h e i g h t o f o u r s k y s c r a p e r i n c r e a s e s , i t s s t a t u r e a c t s l i k e a le v e r t o a mpl i f y t en sion a l for c e s The h ig her t he t ower, t he mor e t en sion a l s t r e s s t he b ot tom joint s ex per ience when latera l loa d is applied to its top.
From prefabricated mil it ar y d welling s b uilt in ancient Rome to Sears , Roeb uck & Co ’s k it hom es , modular cons t r uc tion ha s ser ved a s a quick an d sim p le w ay to b uild t he world around us H ere are three innov at ive examples of Lego like architec ture at a wide r ange of scales
→ I n 2 01 2 , re s ea rc h e r s a t H a r v a r d ’s W y s s I n s t i t u te d eve l o p e d a revo l u t i o n a r y w ay to j o i n m i n u s cu l e p i e ce s of ge n e t i c m a te r i a l T h e s e s e l f a s s e m b l i n g , n a n o s co p i c D N A “ b r i c k s ” c a n b e p ro g r a m m e d to b u i l d d i f fe re n t s h a p e s b a s e d o n t h e i r f u n c t i o n U s i n g t h i s te c h , s c i e n t i s t s co u l d o n e d ay d eve l o p n a n o m e te r s ize m e d i c a l d ev i ce s to re l ea s e d r u g s w i t h p re c i s i o n
→ Ga b l o k ’s i n te r l o ck i n g , Le go like b r i ck s , w h i ch a re ma d e fro m B e l g ia n s o u rce d t i m b e r a n d g r a p h i te p o l y s t y re n e i n su lat i o n , co m e i n t h re e s ize s : 3 0, 6 0, a n d 9 0 ce n t i m e te r s S o f a r, Ga b l o k ha s e re c te d f lat p a ck h o u s e s m o s t b u i l t w i t h i n a s i n g l e we e k i n B e l g i u m , w h e re t h e co m p a ny i s b a s e d
→ Ja p a n e s e a rch i te c t K i sh o
Ku ro k aw a u nve i l e d To k yo’s 14 s to r y N a k a g i n C a p s u
m
A bridge made from Lego bricks wou ld face a similar issue Whi le the connect ive joints a long the top of the br idge’s spa n experience compression as they take on a load, the joints on the bottom of the bridge experience tension, open up, and fail Gun ning’s team faced this struggle when building May’s Lego home To ensure the second stor y wou ld be strong enough to hold the weight of May and his film crew, the team tested different beam designs to see which one could best resist these tensional forces. (At one point , the f i lm crew, un happy w ith the slow nat ure of one b ea m ’ s defor m at ion, a sked Gu n n i ng ’ s t ea m t o t oss ba g s of g ravel onto the beam.) The st urdiest desig n, a ver tica l stack of brick s laid horizonta lly w ithin a beam, w ithstood t w ice the amount of weight a s their prev ious desig ns.
W h i l e L e g o b l o c k s c a n b e p u l l e d a p a r t a n d s n a p p e d t o g e t her i n end le s s con f ig u r at ion s, G u n n i ng say s t h at le vel of f le x ibi l it y i s d i f f ic u lt t o r e pl ic at e at t he c it y s c a le M a ny st r uct ures like Pa r is’s Cent re Pompidou or K isho Kurok awa ’ s Na k a g i n C a p s u le To wer i n Tok y o, i n it i a l l y l a ude d for t hei r f lex ible, mo du la r desig n, a re a ssembled a nd t hen rem a i n i n t h a t c on f i g u r a t ion for m a n y y e a r s b e c a u s e t h e lo g i s t ic s of deconst r uct ing t hem is simply too dif f icu lt Ther e a r e a nu mb er of pr a c t ic a l c onc er n s i n l a r g e s c a le L ego br ick use, too. A ma sonr y br ick cost s ab out 65 cent s. To creat e a L ego e qu iv a lent , Gu n n i ng a nd h i s t ea m u sed 272 of t he s t a nd a r d 2 x4 pie c e s. The y e s t i m at e d t he s t r e e t v a lue of
e a c h 2 x4 pie c e t o b e 10 c ent s , s o it w o u ld c o s t a b o u t $ 27 t o r e p l a c e o n e c o n c r e t e br ic k W h i le m a ny br ic k s w er e don a t e d , a n e s t i m a t e p u t s t h e i n v e s t m e n t i n t h e 3 5 m i l l i o n p l u s b r i c k h o u s e a t a r o u n d $ 3 5 0 , 0 0 0 T h o u g h i f t h e c o n s t r u c t i o n process is eff icient enough, the contra ctor m ig ht b e a ble t o of fset t he co s t of m at er i a ls by sav ing money on time and labor, says Fred Meyer, PhD, a str uct ura l eng ineering professor at G eor g ia Inst it ut e of Technol og y in Atla nt a .
B e y on d t h e c o s t of t h e br i c k s , a L e g o bu i lding st i l l needs t o f it wat er a nd dra in pip es, H VAC , heat ing, a nd elec t r ica l int o t h e b l o c k s w i t h o u t c o m p r o m i s i n g t h e i r i nt e g r it y “A nd i f s omet h i ng g o e s w r ong, how do you a ccess them?” a dds Meyer
S o , c o u l d s w a p p i n g o u t p l a s t i c f o r another materia l ma ke a tower of friction bonded blocks stable? The concrete blocks c om mon l y u s e d t o b u i ld r e t a i n i n g w a l l s a nd ot her sm a l ler m a s on r y pr oje c t s , for i n s t a nc e , m ay s e em l i ke a n ob v iou s s u b s t i t u t e f o r p l a s t i c b e c a u s e t h e b l o c k s ’
S MALL / LEG O NAN OSTRU C TU R E S L ARG E / NAK AG I N CAPS U LE l e Towe r i n 1972 T h e b u il d i n g ’s 14 0 re c t a n g u la r o d u l e s we re d e s i g n e d to b e p l u g ge d i n a n d o u t of a ce n t r a l co re L a s t yea r, Ku ro k aw a’s f i r m d i s ma n t l e d t h e i co n i c b u i l d i n g . I t s b l o ck l i ke d we l l i n g s we re s e n t to m u s e u m s a ro u n d t h e wo r l d ME v e n i f m a nu fa c t u r e r s c o u ld de v e lop
tensiona l streng th of the steel ”
D E S P I T E I T S I M P R A C T I C A L I T Y A S A bui lding mater ia l here on Ea r th, the L ego
↖ BBC presenter James May’s Lego home featured 3 5 million bricks
” They have this beautiful system, that if you accidentally destroy a Lego [brick], the utility of the rest of the system is still there.
I
N P U R S U I T O F F L E X I B I L I T Y : P R E F A B A N D M O D U L A R A R C H I T
↑ A . D. 10 0 – 4 0 0 / Ancient Roman armies build pre fab ric ated for t s t hat could b e cons t r uc ted an d decon s t r u c te d w i t h ea s e a n d ef f icienc y
19 0 8 /
S ea r s , Ro e b u c k a n d Co s e l l s i t s f i r s t p re f a b r i
32
r
↑ 1933 / Rob er t W M cL aughlin deb u t s t he f ir s t fully mo dular hom e, t he Winslow Ames H ouse, in N ew Lon don , Conn ec t icu t
↑ 192 0 S / S c i e n t i s t a n d i nve n to r B u c k m i n s te r Fu l l e r i n t ro d u ce s h i s D y m a x i o n H o u s e , w h i c h co m e s w i t h a p re f a b r i c a te d b a t h ro o m m o d u l e
19 4 2 / I n a c l a n d e s t i n e p r o j e c t , t h e U S gove r n m e n t co m m i s s i o n s f i r m S k i d m o r e , O w i n g s & M e r r i l l to e r e c t a to w n o f p r e f a b r i c a te d s t r u c t u r e s i n O a k R i d ge , Te n n e s s e e , t h e s i te o f t h e i n f a m o u s M a n h a t t a n P r o j e c t , n e a r l y ove r n i g h t
19 67 / A rc h i te c t M o s h e S a fd i e d e b u t s h i s b ox y H a b i t a t 67 co m p l e x a t M o n t rea l ’s 19 67 E x p o .
↑ 19 9 0 S / Interloop introduces it s Lego like Klip House, which had computer rendered mod ules that could be locked in place, allowing resident s to expand their home to meet their growing needs
“O ne of t he wonder f u l le s s on s i n L eg o i s t h e m e a s u r a b l e p r e c i s i o n , ” C h e u n g s ay s . “I f y o u a c c id e nt a l l y d e s t r o y a L e g o [ br ic k], t h e u t i l i t y of t h e r e s t of t h e s y s t e m i s s t i l l t h e r e ” W h e n o n e p i e c e i s l o s t o r d e s t r o y e d , t h e t e a m c a n s a l v a g e t he pr oje c t b y s w a p pi n g i n a r e a d y t o g o repla cement Cheung’s goa l is to t ra nslate t h a t k i n d o f a d a p t a b i l i t y t o t h e A R M A DA S pr oj e c t for b u i ld i n g t h i n g s l i k e t h e mo on orbit i n g G a t e w ay s p a c e s t at ion or i n f r a s t r uc t u r e on t he lu n a r s u r fa ce. A nd just like Lego builds, once a str uct ure is no longer needed, it ca n b e broken dow n a nd rebui lt into the nex t conf ig urat ion.
Cr yptocurrency aims to revolutionize f inance, but it s mines are destroying communities across America .
As he fumbled his keys, the motion sensing light on their front doorstep f licked on. His eye caught a glint of gold: a .22 bullet on his doormat. It seemed odd as he and Lynell own a different caliber firearm. Neverthe less, he brought it inside and set it on their kitchen table.
A fe w d ay s l at er, he r ememb er e d t o a sk Ly nel l a b out it . Im me d i ately, she yelped, “Polit ics!”
N e i t h e r Ly n e l l n or M i c h a e l i s r u n n i n g for of f i c e . B u t o v e r t h e la st few mont hs, Ly nel l ha d b ecome enmeshed in loca l p olit ics a f ter a cr y pt o c u r r enc y m i ne s e t up shop i n t hei r t ow n of Mu r phy, Nor t h Ca rolina , in Sept emb er 2021 “Mine” is a misnomer, a s t hese fa ci li ties are clusters of computing units, solv ing complex problems to help t ra nsa ct a nd generate v ir t ua l cur renc y, w ith la rge a nd nois y fa ns to cool them
Sit t i ng i n t he fo ot h i l ls of t he Appa la ch ia n a nd Blue R idge Mou n ta ins, Mur phy is a lush oa sis promising a n uninterr upted soundtra ck of nat ure, a nd at t ra ct ing those who va lue that quiet Within week s of when t he mine b ega n r u nning, a ng r y resident s st a r ted compla ining a b out t he i nce s sa nt noi s e on Fa ceb o ok a nd Ne x t do or. The y l i kene d t h i s ne w, p er v a sive s ou nd t o a h ig hw ay, a je t eng i ne on t he r u nw ay, or a s em i id l i n g i n t he i r d r i v e w a y, a nd s a id i t w a s d i s r u p t i n g t he i r sle ep a nd ero d i ng t hei r sen se of p ea ce.
The Mor r ises a re luck y. They on ly hea r t he mine from t heir home
when there’s no other noise outside But Ly nell wa s f r u s t r a t e d b y h e r n e i g h b o r s ’ s t o r i e s a n d b e g a n sp ea k i ng out on t hei r b eh a l f at bi mont h ly cou nt y com m i ssioner meet i ng s. “I t a ke up for t he u nder do g s , ” s h e s ay s . Ly n e l l h a s a l w ay s b e e n a le a de r. Before mov ing to Mur phy t hree yea rs a go w ith t he intent to retire there, she ra n a sma ll business w ith her husband. A nd, as she puts it: “I was blessed w ith a mouth.”
Ly nel l ra n her mout h on Apr i l 18, at t he Chero k e e C o u nt y (Mu r p h y i s t he c o u nt y s e a t) b o a r d of c om m i s s i on e r s m e e t i n g Mor e t h a n s i x m ont h s h a d p a s s e d s i n c e t h e m i n e b e g a n c a u s i n g a d i s t u r b a n c e , a n d s h e w a s f e d u p w i t h t h e l a c k o f t r a n s pa r enc y f r om her ele c t e d of f ici a l s, who h a d yet t o a c t up on t he concer n s of t heir cit i z en s Res i d e n t s h a v e t h r e e m i n u t e s t o m a k e a s t a t e m e n t du r i ng t he publ ic com ment p er io d at t he s e me e t i n g s . Ly nel l t o ok t he p o d iu m a nd s p oke for mor e t h a n 20 m i nut e s, pr e s si ng t he com m i s sioner s on w h y t h e y ’ r e b a c k i n g t h e m i n e a n d w h a t t h e y ’ r e pla n n i ng t o do t o m it ig at e t he noi se.
Af ter the bu llet appea red on her doorstep, she wondered if she ha d s a id t o o muc h . “I’m a S o u t h e r n g i rl . I d on’t s c a r e e a s i l y, ” s h e s ay s . “It wa s a t hreat , never t heless.”
Fol low H ig hw ay 6 4 or a s t he r e sident s c a l l it , t he fou r l a ne e a s t f r om t ow n for a b out t h r e e m i le s. Tu r n r ig ht on H a r sh aw Pl a c e a nd left on Harshaw Road at the stop sign Drive para llel to the highway for about ha lf a mile, and you’ll see it on your lef t: large white boxes hous ing blue containers in a cornf ield, par tia lly surrounded by a g ray wa ll It looks out of place in western Nor th Carolina , something so modern
A s you approa ch t he mine, which is ow ned by t he Sa n Fra ncisco ba s e d f i r m P r i meBlo ck , you b eg i n t o hea r t he roa r D u r i ng t he d ay, its low frequency hum which, directly outside, may go up to 95 deci bels ca n ma ke it seem li ke you ’ re nex t to a r unning motorc ycle
F r om t he m i n e , r o a d s w e a v e l i k e a s pide r ’ s w e b. H a r s h aw R o a d c ont i nu e s e a s t . B a c k a t t he s t o p s i g n , Mu l k e y Pl a c e g o e s s t r a i g ht . The t wo a re bisected by Club House Roa d, which then t ur ns into Poor House Mountain Trail. A ll the streets w ind w ith hair pin t urns up into t he lu sh h i l l s, spl it t i ng i nt o side s t re et s. Ma ny hou ses of f Ha r sh aw, Mu l k e y, a n d P o or Ho u s e Mo u nt a i n s u r r o u n d w h a t u s e d t o b e t h e
18 h o l e C h e r o k e e H i l l s G o l f a n d C o u n t r y C l u b , which closed at the end of 2016 .
S ou nd t r avel s i n w ave s a nd t end s t o t r avel fa r t h e s t i n o p e n l a n d s c a p e s A n d l o w f r e q u e n c y s o u n d s , l i k e t h e r u m b l e f r o m t h e c r y p t o m i n e , t ravel fa r ther tha n hig h frequenc y sounds (thin k: a s c r e a m , or n a i l s on a c h a l k b o a r d) b e c a u s e t h e long er w ave s of a low f r e q uenc y noi s e cover mor e g round before losing energ y In Mur phy, resident s who ca n hea r t he indelible hu m most prominent ly live near an unobstr ucted path from it. During w in t er, t he noise get s worse w it hout leaves on t rees t o help a b s orb t he s ou nd. B ut ye a r r ou nd, r e sident s liv ing up to a mi le away from the mine ca n hea r it .
In December, Ly nell a nd fellow resident C y ndie Roberson star ted a private Fa cebook g roup for peo ple to sha re their ex per iences a nd g r ieva nces. In a tow n of about 1,855 people, up to 800 fa mi lies live w ithin a mile of the mine
M a n y r e s i d e n t s h a v e i n s t a l l e d a p p s o n t h e i r phone to track the sound levels It’s so loud that Gene Johnson, whose ears were damaged during his stint i n t he m i l it a r y a nd who now we a r s he a r i ng a id s , c a n s t i l l he a r t he low r u mble when t he a id s come out . He l ive s on B eaver R idg e Tr a i l, wh ich br ea k s of f Ha rshaw immediately a f ter you pa ss the mine. It’s so loud that Mi ke a nd Jennifer Lug iew icz, who lived t wo houses dow n from the mine, cou ld watch but not hea r their neig hbor mow their law n. (They have since moved to be far ther from the mine.) The din can hide the sound of cars, so now Shannon Cole ma n helps her mom, who lives a ha lf mi le pa st t he m i ne on H a r sh aw, r e t r ie ve t he m a i l f r om her b ox across the street on a blind t urn Her mother, who is legally blind, can’t discern the sound of an oncoming car from the sound of the mine, and fears getting hit
The noise, residents say, is especia lly ter r ible at night and early in the morning, when it wa kes them up Some say it’s caused them to become depressed a nd a n x iou s. The y ’ ve b e en show i ng up, a s Ly nel l has, to count y commissioners meetings bedraggled, f r u s t r at e d , a nd a ng r y t h at t hei r ele c t e d of f ic i a l s have done ver y lit tle to protect their hea lth.
P a t r ic i a C a l l a h a n l i v e s i n t h e t o w n h o u s e s on C l u b H o u s e R o a d . H e r u n i t i s t h e c l o s e s t t o t h e mine, about a qua r ter mi le away a s the crow f lies.
C a l l a h a n m o v e d t o Mu r p h y t h r e e y e a r s a g o , af ter completing a work st udy prog ram at the John Ca mpbel l Folk School, a n a r t isa n school for a du lts ju s t out side Mu r phy, i n Br a s s t ow n Her you ng e s t h a d j u s t le f t for c ol le g e , a n d C a l l a h a n w a s lo ok ing for a spot where she cou ld ret ire She wa s t a ken by Mu r phy ’ s a r t scene, but more i mp or t a nt ly, t he t r a nq u i l it y, a nd de c ide d t o bu y i n Mu r phy A f t er h e r r e a l e s t a t e a g e nt s h o w e d h e r t he t o w n h o u s e , Ca lla han sat outside at its picnic table and thought, “I have found my pea ce a nd quiet . ”
Those qua lit ies were cr ucia l for Ca l la ha n. A ca r
a ccident 15 yea r s a g o lef t her w it h a br a i n i nju r y, p ost t rau mat ic st ress disorder, a nd depression “I a r r a ng e d my l i fe t o ke e p my s t r e s s low,” she sa id “My whole b o dy w i l l go int o a hy p er v ig i la nt f ig ht or f light mode when I’m a round too much noise ”
W h e n t h e m i n e c a m e o n l i n e l a s t f a l l , C a l l a ha n ’ s way of life wa s upended She used to open the w indows at nig ht t o cool her b edro om (she prefers not t o u s e a i r c ond it ion i ng b e c a u s e she l i ve s on a st r ict budget), but she must close her w indows now t o lower t he noi s e. E ven t h at , a long w it h we a r i ng noi s e c a nc el i n g he a dphone s , i s not enou g h . The on ly t ime she’s been able to get a good night’s sleep is when she’s in a hotel or ca mping.
The noise is a constant, Ca lla han says. “It’s more t h a n j u s t m y h e a r i n g . It a f fe c t s m y w h o l e b o d y, t r ig ger ing P TSD s y mptoms,” she says Ma ny older re sident s w it h u nderly i ng hea lt h i s s ue s who h ave retired in Mur phy express a similar sentiment: The noi se a nd sle ep i nt er r upt ion s c a u se d by t he m i ne a re ma k ing their condit ions worse
C a l l a h a n s ay s she c a n’t s el l her hou s e t o move somewhere quieter “Nothing is w ithin my budget,” she says “I’m t rapped here ”
Cr y pt o c u r renc y i s a d ig it a l for m of c u r renc y t h at c a n b e u s e d l i ke c a sh or a c r e d it c a r d . Un l i ke t he U.S. dollar, there is no centra l authorit y that prints m or e c oi n s , o r m a i n t a i n s t h e v a l u e o f a c r y p t o c u r renc y Th i s l a ck of over sig ht a nd reg u l at ion i s app e a l i ng t o m a ny who w i sh t o g r ow t hei r we a lt h w ithout t ra dit iona l ba n k ing inst it ut ions
Bitcoin b eca me t he f irst v iable cr y ptocur renc y in 2009, and over the last 13 years, demand for cr y p tocu r rencies ha s on ly sk y rocketed Now, t here a re more than 10,000 cr y ptocurrencies va lued around $1 t r illion in tota l, a nd a 2021 Pew Resea rch st udy found that one in six Americans use them. “There is a general movement of making f inance more for the people,” Matteo Benneton, PhD, an assistant profes sor of f inance at Universit y of Ca lifornia , Berkeley, says of cr y ptocurrency’s appea l.
Cr y p t o c u r r enc y m i n i n g i s c ompu t er s s ol v i n g complex a lgor ithms to record cr y pto t ra nsa ct ions t hat prevent p eople from sp ending t heir cu r renc y more t ha n once A f t er a cer t a in a mou nt of work , a mine is paid in newly created cr y ptocurrency This c omp u t i n g r e l ie s on a n a s t r on om ic a l a m o u nt of power The Mur phy mine, according to Scot t Wade, t he hea d of op erat ion s at E x p onent ia l Dig it a l, t he compa ny that operates the mine a nd wa s a cquired by Pr imeBlock la st Ja nua r y, uses a ny where from 5 t o 15 me g aw at t s a n nu a l ly, enou g h t o p ower up t o 13,50 0 homes. (A g a m i ng lapt op, by compa r i son, wou ld use 0.02 megawat ts r unning yea r round.)
Up unt i l 2021, most of the world’s cr y pto mines
v ie w e d s t ud ie s t h at s p e c i f ic a l ly l i n k it t o how it s m i nes a f fec t hu m a n hea lt h a nd t he env i ron ment Tw e nt y t w o s t a t e le g i s l a t or s h a v e w r i t t e n t o t h e E PA t o m o n i t o r t h e e n v i r o n m e n t a l i m p a c t o f m i n i ng cr y pt o c u r r enc y But noi s e i s t he pr i m a r y compl a i nt i n Mu r phy, a nd plent y i s k now n a b out h o w l o u d , p e r s i s t e nt , l o w f r e q u e n c y s o u n d s c a n lea d t o a ho s t of problem s
In the 1970s, the U S Env ironmenta l Protection A g enc y ’ s O f f ic e of Noi s e A b at ement a nd C ont r ol r e c o g n i z e d n o i s e a s a p o l l u t a n t a n d b e g a n t a k i ng s t e p s t o l i m it c om mu n it y e x p o s u r e. Th r ou g h t he now def u nc t of f ic e , r e s e a r cher s de t er m i ne d t hat , t o ensu re t heir hea lt h a nd welfa re, resident s shou ldn’t be ex posed to more tha n a n average of 55 decibels over the course of a day. A ny t hing hig her, in ter ms of sound level or leng th of ex posure, cou ld increa se a n indiv idua l’s cha nces of hea r ing loss
E v e n t h o u g h t h e w o r l d a r o u n d u s h a s g o t t e n noisier since then par ticularly in cities and largely due to industrial noise our ears can’t adapt accord i n g l y, s ay s D e a n n a Me i n k e , Ph D, a n a u d iolo g i s t who st udies dangerous decibels at the Universit y of Nor thern Colora do in Greeley
O ver the la st few decades, researchers have seen t h at prolong e d ex p o s u re t o noi se c a n lea d t o h ig h blood pressure and other cardiovascular issues, and e ven ex a cerbat e ment a l he a lt h d i s or der s. Wh at ’ s more, noi s e p ol lut ion c a n b e more det r i ment a l at n ig ht , when ou r b o dies a re much more v u lnerable to sounds dur ing sleep.
w e r e h o u s e d i n C h i n a B u t w h e n t h e c o u nt r y b a n n e d t h e u s e a n d m i n i ng of cr y pt o c u r renc y t h at fa l l la r gely b e c au se of t he Ch i nese g o v e r n m e nt ’ s fe a r t h a t c r y p t o c u r r e n c i e s a r e a g a t e w a y t o f i n a n cia l cr ime a nd have a neg at ive impa c t on t he env iron ment m iners f locked to the U.S. According to the Bitcoin Mining Map developed by t he Un iversit y of Ca mbr idge in t he U.K ., t he U. S. now m a kes up t he majorit y of the tota l globa l ha shrate, or the computationa l power pro cessing cr y ptocur renc y t ra nsa ct ions.
In t he U. S., cr y pt o compa nies genera l ly set up shop in pla ces li ke t he Fi ng er L a ke s reg ion i n up s t at e Ne w York , ea s t er n Wa sh i ng t on, S out h D a kot a , a nd t ow n s l i ke Mu r phy a lon g t he Ten ne s s e e Va l le y They a ll offer cheap electricit y, and often, mines can be built in repur posed fa ctor ies
Not on ly is noise p ol lut ion a n issue, but t he a nnua l elect r icit y u se worldw ide from exclusively mining Bitcoin just one t y pe of cr y pto c u r r e n c y i s e x t en s i v e S om e s t u d ie s e s t i m a t e i t c a n e v e n e xc e e d t h at of ent i r e cou nt r ie s. Th i s over a l l h ig her com mu n it y ele c t r icit y use ra ises the cost for residents.
T H E P A I N O F N O I S
P
B e c a u s e c r y p t o c u r r e n c y i s r e l a t i v e l y n e w, t h e r e a r e fe w p e e r r e
A nd sou nd le vel g u idel i ne s for hea lt h i mpa c t s beyond hea r ing loss don’t yet ex ist “We don’t have l i m i t s for a n oi s e le v e l t h a t w o u ld pr e v e nt h e a r t at t a ck s, or prevent high blood pressure, or prevent depression,” says R ick Neitzel, Ph D, a noise p ol lu t ion ex per t at the Universit y of Michiga n
I n 2020, a n i nt er n at ion a l t e a m of r e s e a r cher s published a st udy in European Heart Journal where t h e y fo l l o w e d a b o u t 5 0 0 h e a l t h y a d u l t s fo r f i v e yea rs. They fou nd t hat ever y f ive decib el increa se over a ba seline 45 decib els for a 24 hou r spa n wa s a ssociated w ith a 34 percent jump in hear t at tacks, strokes, a nd other ca rdiova scu la r issues.
A n d i n t h e e a rl y 19 9 0 s , t h e Fe d e r a l Av i a t i on A d m i n i s t r at ion (FA A) s p on s or e d s e ver a l s t ud ie s t o d e t er m i ne h o w lo u d a n a i r p or t c o u ld b e w it h o u t m a k i n g r e s i d e n t s s e r i o u s l y a n n o y e d T h e y found that about ha lf of the residents rea ched that t h re shold of a n noy a nce when ex p o se d t o a n aver a ge of 75 decib els over a 24 hou r p er io d, a lt houg h t he y d id n’t c h a r a c t er i z e ho w t h a t m a n i fe s t e d i n hea lth impa cts But about 20 yea rs later, a g roup of G er ma n resea rchers t ra cked over 2,300 resident s who l ive d i n t he f l ig ht pat h of Fr a n k f u r t A i r p or t , a nd fou nd t hat t he indiv idu a ls who rep or t ed t o b e “strongly annoyed” by the noise were t w ice a s likely a s others to feel depressed or a n x ious.
The a nnoya nce a nd resu lt ing st ress t hat Ca l la ha n a nd her neig h bors fa ce shou ldn’t be discounted, says Neitzel “A nnoya nce is a huge b y pr o du c t of n oi s e e x p o s u r e , a nd w e d on’t r e a l l y u nd e r s t a n d h o w impor tant that is in terms of put ting someone at risk ”
When noise becomes a stressor a s it ha s been in Mur phy it a cti vat es t he a drena l s yst em, wh ich not on ly resp onds t o st ress but a lso r e g u l at e s a n i nd iv idu a l’s i m mu ne a nd c a r d iov a s c u l a r s y s t em “It ’ s not go o d t o sp end 8, 10, or 12 hou rs a day in t hat condit ion,” Neit z el say s It c a n d r ive up hea r t r at e a nd blo o d pr e s s u r e, a nd c a u s e pr ob lems dow n the line.
A s soon a s the mine came online, residents in the surrounding neigh borhood began noticing changes in anima l behav ior. Ronny and Kathy W i l l i a m s , w h o l i v e a t o p P o o r H o u s e M o u n t a i n Tr a i l , l a m e n t t h e decline of birds in t heir ba ck ya rd, where t hey keep mu lt iple feeders “We’ve seen ver y fe w goldf inches t h is yea r The hou se f inches ca me and went A nd I’ve only seen one Carolina w ren this year, ” Ronny says
Me a n w h i le , Ph y l l i s C a nt r e l l , w h o l i v e s a b o u t a s fa r from t he m ine a s t he Wi l lia m ses, ha s not ed t h at h awk s a nd e a g le s no long er ne s t ne a rby The hummingbird feeders on her deck she used to ref ill four times a day are now going three days before she replenishes them
The a r ea ne a r t he m i ne u s e d t o b e pr i me h a bi t at for w i ld t u rke y a nd de er Now, t he y ’ r e mov i ng fa r t h e r u p t h e m o u nt a i n s Mor r i s , for i n s t a n c e , h a s r e c e nt l y fo u n d d e e r i n h e r b a c k y a r d for t h e f irst t ime.
A h e r d o f h o r s e s t h a t l i v e o n a p a t c h o f l a n d a c r o s s f r om t he m i ne on H a r sh aw h av e b e en t r y i n g t o f le e mor e f r e q uent ly, t o o, a c c or d i n g t o t he L u g ie w ic z e s , w ho l i v e a c r o s s f r om w her e t he y ’ r e kept . On a wa r m weekend la st D ecemb er, on a day when t he fa ns from t he mine were especia l ly loud, Jennifer a nd Sha nnon Colema n spent a n hour t r y ing to w ra ngle the horses who seemed spooked by the noise a ll the while shout ing over the din, sta nding just f ive feet away from each other A nd dog s b eg in howling, says C a n t r e l l , w h e n t h e m i n e i s especia l ly loud at night .
R e s e a r c h s h o w s t h a t
hu n d r e d s of a n i m a l s p e c ie s a r e a f fe c t e d b y n oi s e , s ay s C l i nt on D. Fr a nci s, Ph D, a n e volut ion a r y e colog i s t who s t ud ies noi se p ol lut ion at Ca l i for n i a Poly t e ch n ic S t at e Un iver sit y, Sa n Lu i s Obi sp o.
The a bi lit y t o p erceive sou nd s a nd resp ond i s a pa r t of a “ u n iver sa l t hreat det ect ion s yst em ” a cross ver t ebrat es, he says “Hea r ing is used to pa ssively listen for threats whi le we ’ re doing other things ”
The i mp a c t of noi s e p ol lut ion i s p erh ap s b e s t ch a r a c t er i z e d for bi r d s Th e y m a y m o d i f y t h e i r s on g s t o b e a t a h i g h e r pi t c h or s i n g m or e f r e q u e nt l y t o s t a n d o u t a m id t h e n oi s e S om e f ie ld r e s e a r c h s h o w s t h a t a b o u t a t h i r d o f b i r d s m a y c o m p l e t e l y l e a v e a n a r e a b e c a u s e o f n o i s e p o l l u t i o n , w i t h m aj o r e c o l o g i c a l c o n s e q u e n c e s I n 2012, Fr a nc i s a nd h i s c ol le a g u e s pu bl i she d a s t udy t h at showe d l o w f r e q u e n c y i n d u s t r i a l n o i s e f r o m g a s w e l l s a n d c o m p r e s s o r s (clock ing in at a round 95 decibels) reshaped a rea s of the R at tlesna ke C a n y on H a bit a t M a n a g e m e nt A r e a i n n or t hw e s t e r n Ne w Me x ic o. Bi r d s t her e a r e c r it ic a l i n d i s p er si ng s e e d s of t he C olor a do pi nyon p i n e . A n d n o w, s om e p r e l i m i n a r y r e s e a r c h f r om F r a n c i s ’ s g r o u p sug gest s t hat noise p ol lut ion may lea d to in her it able cha nges in sp e cif ic sp ecies a nd p opu lat ion s. In ot her words: Nois y ent er pr ises li ke cr y pt o m i nes c a n a lt er t he w i ld l i fe nea r it for gener at ion s t o come But Fra ncis is hea r t ened by t he fa c t t hat when t he sou rce of noise is removed, a nima ls recla im where they once lived Thin k ba ck to the ea rly d ay s of t he C OV I D 19 pa ndem ic, for i n s t a nce, when t he song s of the white crow ned spa r rows in Sa n Fra ncisco g rew more frequent when t he d i n of t he cit y s ub side d, or l ion s n app e d a long t r a f f ic f re e roa d s i n S out h A f r ic a
D espit e t he a n noya nce, t he delet er iou s hea lt h ef fec t s, a nd t he da m a g e t o t h e e c o s y s t e m , t h e r e ’ s n o le g a l pr o t e c t ion for t h e r e s ide nt s
of Mu r ph y du e t o s c a nt z on i n g l aw s i n C h e r ok e e C o u nt y, w h ic h w o u ld o t h e r w i s e pr o t e c t r e s id e n t i a l a r e a s f r om i ndu s t r i a l de velopment . A l r e a dy, t her e a r e t h r e e m i ne s i n t he c ou nt y, a nd c it i z en s fea r more m ay b e com i ng.
Some Mur phy residents have lef t because of the n oi s e f r om t h e m i n e O t h e r s w h o h a v e p u t t h e i r life sav ing s int o t heir idyl lic mou nt a in home have n o c h oi c e b u t t o f i g ht for c h a n g e a n d s h o w u p t o t he com m issioners meet ing s in droves S o fa r, t he resident s ’ concer ns about noise mostly have fa l len on dea f ea rs The y ’ re a lso fr u st rat ed by t he la ck of a n s wer s f r om t hei r f ive com m i s sioner s a s t o how t he m i ne ende d up t here i n t he f i r s t pla ce.
The y ’ r e t r y i n g t o g e t t he i r e le c t e d of f ic i a l s t o enforce a 1999 count y ordina nce under which per p e t r at or s a r e f i ne d $50 a d ay for s u s t a i ne d noi s e ab ove 50 decib els. But t he commissioners say t hat the ordina nce is unenforceable w ithout the zoning
laws that Cherokee Count y la ck s.
A nd w it hout zoning laws, it’s imp ossible for a nyone to f ind a lega l s t a n d i n g t o h o l d a n y o n e a c c o u n t a b l e . I n L i m e s t o n e , Te n n e s s e e , wher e t he cr y pt o c u r r enc y comp a ny Re d D o g s e t up shop, r e sident s h a d r e c o u r s e b e c a u s e R e d D o g v i o l a t e d a n e x i s t i n g z o n i n g o r d i n a n c e . Th a t c o u nt y s u e d a nd w on . The m i n e i s s e t t o s hu t d o w n b y t he end of 2024, pay a s so ci at e d p en a lt ie s, a nd relo c at e aw ay f rom a resident i a l a rea
The Cherokee Count y boa rd of commissioners pa r t icu la rly Da n Eichenb a u m , G a r y We s t mor el a nd , a nd R a ndy Ph i l l ip s , who lo c a l s refer t o a s “t he t r ia d” for t heir sim i la r vot ing pat t er n s on cont rover sia l issues are not keen on chang ing the stat us quo None responded t o c om ment on t h i s s t or y A nd a m id t he c a l l s for z on i ng r efor m , a qu iet er cont ingent of Mu r phy resident s don’t w a nt a ny gover n ment int er ference in la nd u se or r ig ht s.
Since the Mur phy mine was set up last fa ll, it was par tia lly enclosed by wa l l sect ions in Febr ua r y, but loca ls say t hat on ly ma de t he sou nd worse, as the openings bet ween the wa lls funnel sound in ver y specif ic directions. Wa de, of Ex ponentia l Dig ita l, sa id that this pa r tia l enclo
s u r e help s t hem “ m a i nt a i n a nd pr e s er ve n a t u r a l c o ol i n g a nd a i r f lo w, r e s u lt i n g i n a m or e e n e r g y e f f i c i e n t o p e r a t i o n w h i l e f u r t h e r m i t i g a t i n g sou nd.” Mov ing for wa rd, Wa de says, t he compa ny w ill work closely w ith the commissioners to ensure the fa ci lit y doesn’t generate more noise.
For now, Mor r i s hop e s t h at t h i s yea r ’ s ele c t ion w ill help, a s the residents can vote for someone who w i l l m a ke de ci sion s i n t hei r i nt er e s t s “Unt i l you get the commissioners behind this a nd rea lly st a r t pu sh i ng for it , ch a ng e i sn’t g oi ng t o h app en, ” she says “It st a r ts w ith them ”
S i n c e t h e b u l l e t o n h e r d o o r s t e p , M o r r i s h a s t a k e n a b a c k s e a t a t t h e m e e t i n g s , b u t s h e ’ s s t i l l at tending and stay ing engaged. A lrea dy, not even a yea r out, she’s tired, a nd look ing for wa rd to what event u a l ly cou ld come a f t er t he m ine. For her, it means pea ce and quiet, and the para dise that Mur phy promised.
o ols m a ke u s hu m a n, but we a re not t h e o n l y o n e s w h o u s e t o o l s . S o m e b i r d s d r o p r o c k s t o c r a c k s h e l l s op en, a nd cer t a i n ap es u se st ick s t o get food or g room themselves. What m a k e s u s d i f fe r e nt i s t he t ho u g ht w e p u t i nt o t o ol m a k i ng, say s Ia n Tat t er sa l l, Ph D, c u r at or emer it u s at t he A mer ica n Mu seu m of Nat u ra l Hist or y in New York A r o u n d 2 6 m i l l ion y e a r s a g o, o u r a n c e s t or s rea li z ed t here wa s a s up er ior t y p e of ro ck for sha r p cut t ing edges ( li kely u sed t o but cher a nima ls) They chose these rocks, shaped them, and carried them for later use
“I f o u r pr e d e c e s s or s h a d n e v e r s t a r t e d m a k i n g st one t ools, we wou ld not b e t he rea soning creat u res t h at we a r e t o d ay. The i nvent ion of t he c ut t i n g t o ol
opened a whole world of possibilities,” says Tat tersa ll. T h e l e v e r, h o w e v e r, m i g ht b e t h e m o s t i mp or t a nt t o ol t o a dv a nce civ i l i z at ion b e yond meet i ng ou r ba sic need s of clot h i ng a nd fo o d, say s Vou la Sa r ida k i s, Ph D, c u r at or for t he col le c t ion s a nd a rch ives at the Museum of Science a nd Indust r y in Chica go. “So m a n y t o ol s d e p e n d on t h e pr i n c ip a l s of t h e le v e r ” Wr e n c h e s , pl ier s , h a m me r s , s h o v e l s , a nd ja c k s a l l help e d bu i ld ou r world b y h a r ne s si ng t he me ch a n i ca l a dva nt a ge of levera ge
Tho s e de s c end a nt s of t he f i r s t le ver s a r e a mon g our list of g reatest tools, and they’re not the only ones w ith a mecha nica l lineage that dates ba ck millennia But a l l t he t o ols here, ne w a nd old, a nd i n no pa r t ic u la r order, celebrat e hu ma n k ind’s capa cit y t o shap e the world.
A l t h o u g h t h e re a re d e d i c a te d c a r p e n te r p e n c i l s h a r p e n e r s , i t ’s a n o t h e r g a d ge t to ow n , l o s e , o r b re a k M o s t c a r p e n te r s u s e a u t i l i t y k n i fe to s h a r p e n t h e i r p e n
c i l s . T h i s a l l ow s yo u m o re co n t ro l ove r t h e s h a p e o f t h e t i p a n d h ow m u c h l e a d yo u w a n t ex p o s e d
To s h a r p e n t h e p e n c i l , s t a r t o n t h e b ro a d s u r f a ce w i t h t h e k n i fe b l a d e 5⁄8 i n c h to ¾ i n c h aw ay f ro m t h e e n d . W i t h t h e b l a d e s q u a re to t h e b o d y o f t h e p e n c i l , u s e yo u r t h u m b to p u s h t h e b l a d e
C a r p ent er s h av e t h i s a m a z i n g a bi l it y t o see t he u n rea l i z ed p ot ent ia l i n a t o ol , a pie c e of s c r a p w o o d , e v e n a dr y wa ll screw A nd if there’s any con s t r uc t ion sit e a r t i fa c t t h at s e em s t o h ave i n s pi r e d t hei r i m a g i n at ion, it ’ s the humble car penter’s pencil. Rea lly, it’s more t ha n a a l l pu r p ose ma rk ing i n s t r u ment t h at won’t r ol l aw ay. It ’ s a lso a scr ibing tool, a spa cer (the thin side is ¼ inch and the w ider fa ce is 9⁄16 inch), and the perfect accompaniment to a tape mea sure or square.
Ty pic a l l y, c a r p e nt e r s d r o p t h e s e w i d e , f l a t p e n c i l s a b o u t $ 3 f o r a 10 p a c k , a n y b r a n d w i l l d o i n t o t h e i r n a i l b a g t i p f i r s t s o t h e y c a n p l u c k t h e m o u t a n d s t r i k e a q u i c k line To do t his, put you r index f inger a l on g t h e s i d e of t h e p e n c i l l i k e i t ’ s a n e x t e n s i o n o f y o u r d i g i t , i n s t e a d of pi nch i ng it l i ke you wou ld t o w r it e w i t h i t . To s c r i b e a n u n e v e n s h a p e ont o w o o d , l i k e for l i n i n g u p a c a bi ne t on a br ick w a l l , l ay t he p enci l on it s f l at side t o t r a n sl at e t he sh ap e of t h e s u r f a c e (t h e w a l l ) y o u w a n t t o m a t c h t h e w o o d t o. For c u r v e s w i t h a sm a l ler r a d iu s or bu mp y s u r fa c e s , hold t he p enci l dow n on it s e dge
fo r w a r d , g r a d u a l l y l e a n i n g i t b a c k s o t h a t by t h e e n d o f t h e s t ro ke , t h e u t i l i t y k n i fe ’s b l a d e i s j u s t a b o u t p a r a l l e l w i t h t h e p e n c i l ’s l e a d R o t a te t h e p e n c i l 9 0 d e g re e s , a n d re p e a t t h e p ro ce s s o n t h e a d j a ce n t e d ge . R e p e a t o n t h e b ro a d e d ge a n d t h e re m a i n i n g n a r row e d ge
Of all the tools you use to shape wood, the handplane ha s come t o s y mb oli ze cra f t sma nship of t he hig h est order It’s a cut ting tool that’s desig ned to create tr uth: dea d straight and f lat sur fa ces rea dy for f in i s h i n g a n d j oi n e r y. Th e L i e N i e l s e n H a n dp l a n e (st a r ts at a rou nd $300) is a long t ime PM favor ite. Sure, it’s st unning to look at, but the beaut y is in its f lawless f lat su r fa ces, w icked ly sha r p (a nd ea s y t o r e sh a r p en) c ut t i ng e dg e, a nd pr e ci s e a dju s t ment capable of producing tissue thin shav ings.
The Speed Square is arg uably one of the most usef u l build ing tools. Its markings help speed up repetitive procedures when fra ming wa lls or cut ting ra f ters. The or ig ina l Swa n s on S p e e d S q u a r e P r o ($12) come s w it h S w a n s on ’ s Blue B o ok , w h ic h c ont a i n s i n s t r uc t ion s a nd e x pl a n a t ion s of t he geomet r y, ca lcu lat ion, a nd layout of v ir t ua l ly a ny ra f ter conf ig uration If you ’ re only framing occa siona lly, it’s a fa nt a st ic resource A side from fra ming, the Speed Squa re c a n b e u s e d for j u s t a b o u t e v e r y w o o d w or k i n g p r oj e c t , i nclud i n g she d s, shelve s, f i r e wo o d r a ck s, picn ic t a ble s , Adironda ck cha irs, workbenches, a nd sawhorses
In a dd it ion t o m a rk i ng a ng le s a nd pa r a l lel l i ne s, a nd lay ing out ra f t er c ut s, t he t o ol’s f lat ba se ma kes it ea s y t o check that st uds or joints are square (a s show n above). One more use: a saw g uide. Hold the lip of the square against the bot tom edge of the piece you ’ re cut t ing a nd press dow n on the top to g uide the saw for per fectly straight cuts. You can a lso f lip it around to cut at a 45 deg ree angle or rotate it on the pivot point to cut at a ny a ngle.
W it h lo c k i n g pl ier s , s u d d e n l y y o u ’ r e S up er m a n Us e t he m t o c l a mp m e t a l for w e ld i n g , g ra b ont o st r ipp ed b olt s, pu l l na i ls The or ig i n a l I r w i n V i s e G r i p 10 W R ($1 9) l o c k i n g pl ie r i s s i mple , w e l l b u i lt , a n d s t i l l g r e a t i n a l l resp ec t s. The ne w mo del ha s bu i lt in w ire c u t t er s a nd a r e c e s s i n it s a dju s t i n g k nob t o a c c e pt a 3⁄1 6 i nch A l len w r ench t h a t le t s y ou mor e e a si ly a nd pr e c i s ely a dju s t a nd r ele a s e the tightening force.
The Sk i l wor m gea r circu la r saw (Sk i lsaw) w i l l t u r n 100 in a cou ple years A cent ur y is a blip in the timeline of tools, though among p ow er e d , h a nd held i mplement s , it a p pr o a c he s a n e t er n it y The Sk i lsaw ma kes use of a spira l steel “ wor m ” on the end of its motor shaf t, which spins a worm gear below it The out put from that gear d r i v e s t he bl a de , r e du c i n g mot or s p e e d a nd i nc r e a s i n g t or q u e Today’s descenda nt , the 7¼ inch Lig ht weig ht Sk i lsaw ($200), is a n impressive ref inement of t he ea rly models, now about ha lf t he weight (a rea sonable 11 pounds 8 ounces), fa ster, and undoubtedly safer. A nd its revelator y capabilit y a por table saw rea dy to fra me your nex t house, a nd the one a f ter that rema ins.
There a re few la ndscaping tools a s usef u l a s a round point shovel It digs a nd moves dir t , g ravel, sa nd, snow a nd ice, debr is, a spha lt , a nd concret e It scrap es, pr ies, a nd chisels it s way t hroug h ro ot s, a nd is even helpf u l in f ight ing br ush f ires
A shovel a lso ma kes an amazingly effective fulcr um to move the pra c t ic a l ly i m mov a ble f rom you r law n: L ay a n op en ba ck shovel facedow n on the ground, place the tip of the digging bar under what you want to lift (such as a fence), and place the leng th of the dig ging ba r into the bla de crev ice. You ca n use your foot on the dig g ing ba r t o prov ide force. The rou nd no se g ive s you t he a bi l it y t o ro ck t he shovel slightly lef t or r ight a s needed to a id in the lif t .
A quick note: Squa re nose shovels a re quite a g i le in demolit ion work , wher e t he y c a n pr y of f d r y w a l l, s c o op out i n s u l at ion , a nd lif t appliances for remova l But for its versatilit y, our deser t island shovel is this Bu l ly Tools 14 Gauge Rou nd Point ($46)
T h e t o o l s t h a t l i t e r a l l
r fe c t l y s q u a r e d s t r u c t u r e s t h a t s t i l l s u r v ive
T h e E g y p t i a n s ’ t o o l l o o k e d a n d f u n c t i o n e d a l m o s t e x a c t l y a s i t d o e s t o d a y : a p oi nt e d w e i g ht , h a n g i n g f r o m a s t r i n g . W h e n y o u s u s p e n d i t , fo r e x a mple , f r om t he t op of a d o or w ay, y o u c a n c om p a r e t h e d i s t a n c e f r om t h e s i d e of t h e d o or w a y a t t he t op of t he st r ing t o t he d ist a nce from t he side t o t he b ot t om of t he weig ht t o det er m i ne whet her it i s s q u a r e . It c a n a l s o b e s u s p ende d f r om a n A f r a me t o a c t a s a hor i z ont a l le vel
It s n a m e c o m e s f r o m t h e L a t i n w o r d f o r l e a d ( plu mbu m), a nd it w a s a v it a l t o ol i n t he con s t r uc t ion of t he Rom a n Empi re, say s Sa r id a k i s The t o ol e v e n e a r n e d i t s e l f a B i b l i c a l m e t a p h o r i n I s a i a h 28:16 17, wh ich r e a d s t h at G o d “ w i l l m a ke ju s t ice t he l i ne, a nd r ig ht e ou snes s t he plu m met ” i n Z ion
A m o der n l a s er le v e l f r om B o s c h or M i l w a u k e e i s a f i n e a dd it ion t o a ny t o ol k it t o d ay, b u t w e s t i l l c a r r y a plu m b, l i k e t h e E m p i r e 8 o z . S t e e l Pl u m b Bob ($7), a s wel l. It’s indest r uc t ible a nd im mu ne t o a mbient l ig ht , a nd t he bat t er y ne ver d ies.
The screwdr iver is so f u nda ment a l t o day t h a t i t ’ s t o u g h t o t h i n k o f a n y p r o f e s siona l trade job or DI Y project that doesn’t r e q u i r e a t l e a s t o n e M o r e l i k e l y, y o u ’ l l ne e d t wo or t h re e, m ay b e more, wh ich i s why, since its int roduct ion in 1988, we ’ ve b e e n hu g e f a n s of t h e P i c q u i c mu lt i bi t s c r e w d r i v e r T h e C a n a d i a n t o o l m a k e r now of fer s 10 ver sion s, w it h t he P ic q u ic S i x p a c Pl u s ($15) a s i t s f l a g s h ip. I n i t s b o d y, t he s c r e w d r i v e r s t or e s s i x ¼ i nc h bits tough enough to use w ith a n impa ct d r iver wh i le t he a lu m i nu m sh a n k w it h a m a g ne t ic b a s e hold s t he work i ng bit (a seventh one) f ir m ly in pla ce.
If there’s a ny thing a L eather ma n tool is, it’s a n a chievement of eng ineer ing. The L eat her m a n Wave+ ($110) is t y pica l in t hat respect. It wou ld be one thing if the tool pa cked in k nife bla des, pliers, and screwdrivers, and only some of them f unctioned. But ever y thing work s on a L eather ma n. Tet r is 18 tools into a n 8.5 oz. pa ck age that is 4 inches long a nd about ¾ inch thick; if that isn’t a mar vel, we’d like to k now what is.
W h e n a g e n e r a t ion of n e w A m e r i c a n f a m i l i e s w a nt e d t o s e t t l e d o w n a f t e r W W I I , t h e e a r l y P a s l o d e p n e u m a t i c na iler ensured they got roofs over their hea ds From t he 194 0s t o 1950s, new home con s t r uc t ion double d Th i s feat w a s p u l l e d of f w i t h n e w t i m e s a v i n g t e c h n olo g y l i k e t h e n a i le r a n d c i r c u la r saw (see pa ge 58). Instea d of t a k ing seconds t o p ou nd in a sing le na i l, mu l t iple n a i l s c o u ld b e f i r e d i n a s e c on d . B u i l d e r s a n d f r a m e r s g a i n e d a n e w level of ma st er y over t he work sit e.
To d a y ’ s f a v or e d pn e u m a t i c n a i l e r from Pa slode, the 3½ inch 30 Deg ree P o w e r M a s t e r ( $ 2 7 9 ) , i s a h e a v y d u t y n a i l e r t h a t d o e s n ’ t s a c r i f i c e c o n v e n i e n c e I t f e a t u r e s m a n u a l o r s e q u ent i a l f i r i n g t r i g g er op t ion s a nd is capable of sin k ing up t o 12 na i ls p er s e c on d It ’ s a l s o d e s i g n e d for s i mp l e d e p t h a dj u s t m e n t , s o y o u c a n e a s i l y c a l ibr at e t he dept h of you r n a i l s. Th i s m o d e l i s a l s o p e r fe c t for t o e n a i l i n g , t h a n k s t o a s p i k e d n o s e p i e c e t h a t a l lo w s y o u t o s e c u r e l y bi t e i nt o w o o d a s you f i re.
Ever y t ra de ha s it s ha mmers Met a lwork ing ha s the ba l l peen, m a s on r y h a s s t one a nd br ick h a m mer s, c a r p ent r y h a s f r a m ing ha m mers Ea ch ha m mer is opt im i z ed t o it s t a sk s, p er fec t in its ow n way. But there is one universa l ha mmer ever yone old enoug h t o c a r r y a t o olb ox shou ld ow n: t he t r i m h a m mer. O u r s h o p h a s h a d t h i s s i mple , a l l s t e e l 16 o z . E s t w i n g R i p t r i m h a m mer ($27) for a b out a dec a de. The t h i ng i s i nd i sp en sa ble and unbrea kable, and w ill handle ever y thing but framing and fra n k ly, it w i l l ha nd le even that for sma l l DI Y projects.
It ca n cut up a box, but don’t ca l l it a box cut ter On a job sit e, it c ut s sh i ng le s, r o of i ng p ap er, d r y w a l l, a nd bui lding paper. It ca n t r im ma son ’ s st r ing a nd scribe lines on wood and if needed, scribe on steel a nd a lu minu m. The nea rly indest r uc t ible St a n ley 9 9 ($7) m a i nt a i n s i t s 19 6 0 s i n d u s t r i a l lo ok , b u t now it a lso ha s a reinforced nose t o b et t er hold t he bla de in pla ce.
T h e f l o o r j a c k o p e n s u p a w o r l d o f p o s s i b i l i t i e s t o t h e h o m e m e c h a n i c B e y o n d t he oi l ch a ng e, it le t s you q u ick ly s w ap out wheels, repa ir bra kes, or in st a l l a cat a ly t ic conver ter ca ge It ca n a lso lif t or lower com p on e nt s s u c h a s t he s u s p e n s ion , e x h a u s t , a nd even a different ia l or t ra nsmission
The f i r s t k now n u s e of hyd r a u l ic p ower d at e s b a ck 8,0 0 0 ye a r s t o i r r ig at ion ch a n nel s i n Mesop ot a m ia , t houg h w at er w a sn’t pressurized and used a s a tool until the mid 18t h cent u r y, a nd t he f irst hyd rau lic press wa s patented in 1795. Hydrau lic ja ck s ( lif t i n g i n s t e a d o f p r e s s i n g ) a p p e a r e d i n t h e fol low ing deca des
Today’s f loor ja ck is a hor izonta l hydrau lic b ot t le ja ck w it h a shor t lever on one side to lif t a nd a long lever ( ha nd le) on the other t o apply pr e s s u r e Th at de t a ch a ble h a nd le m i g ht b e t he s e c on d mo s t u s e f u l t o ol i n a g a r a ge; sl ip it over t he end of a brea ker ba r to dislodge especia l ly st ubbor n bolts
A goo d f loor ja ck is ma de to b e ser v iced, s ay s C r a i g Hof f m a n , s p ok e s m a n for H a r b o r F r e i g h t To o l s , m a k e r s o f f l o o r j a c k s like the Day tona 3 Ton P rofessiona l ($170) u s e d by m a ny of ou r s t a f f a nd w r it er s. The c h r o m e r a m c a n b e c l e a n e d a n d r e l u b r i c at ed, a nd t he rol ler s u nder neat h it c a n b e g r e a s e d for e a sier movement A nd ch a n g i ng t he oi l e ver y t h re e yea r s m a i nt a i n s t he ja ck’s power
A reciprocat ing saw ca n cut t hroug h lu mb er even if it’s emb ed de d w it h n a i l s. He ck , it c a n c ut t h r oug h ju s t a b out e ver y t h i ng shor t of a rock It’s the go to tool for remodeling a nd demolition You may a lso k now it a s a Saw za l l, due to t he domina nce of t hat M i lw a u ke e To ol re cip saw A nd wh i le t he c at egor y h a s b e come crowded, we still recommend, use, and tr y not to abuse too ba dly the Milwau kee 15 A mp Super Saw za ll ($199) It can cut a ll com mon for ms of met a l: steel, a luminum, copper, a nd ca st iron Of course, the bla de you pick ma kes a l l the difference (see below)
Fo r cu t t i n g t h ro u g h co n s t r u c t i o n l u m b e r, w h i c h t y p i c a l l y h a s n a i l s e m b e d d e d i n i t , u s e a b l a d e l i ke Le n ox G o l d Yo u c a n a l s o u s e a d e m o l i t i o n b l a d e , w h i c h i s w i d e r a n d t h i c ke r, m a k i n g i t b e t te r a b l e to re s i s t b e n d i n g . I f yo u ex p e c t to cu t m e t a l a n d w a n t a s i n g l e b l a d e to h a n d l e eve r y t h i n g , c h o o s e o n e w i t h 10 te e t h p e r i n c h (t p i) . A l t h o u g h t h i s b l a d e
w i l l cu t l e s s a g g re s s i ve l y, i t w i l l b e ea s i e r to co n t ro l A s a r u l e o f t h u m b fo r m e t a l cu t t i n g , u s e a re l at i ve l y co a r s e b l a d e (fewe r te e t h , l i ke 1 8 t p i) fo r t h i c k m e t a l , s u c h a s w h e n cu t t i n g b a r s to c k U s e a b l a d e w i t h m o re te e t h (24 t p i) fo r cu t t i n g t h i n m e t a l a n d tu b i n g
Ch o o s e a l o n ge r b l a d e i f yo u w a n t to cu t wo o d o r m e t a l f l u s h to a s u r f a ce T h e ex t r a b l a d e l e n g t h a l l ow s yo u to f l ex t h e b l a d e i n to a cu r ve d s h a p e , l e t t i n g yo u s aw aw ay t h e wo o d o r m e t a l a s yo u r u n t h e b l a d e a g a i n s t t h e s u r f a ce fro m w h i c h yo u a re re m ov i n g i t
If t here i s one p ower t o ol t h at c a n get you out of a t oug h sp ot du r i ng a home repa i r or remo del, it ’ s t he osci l lat i ng mu lt itool. It saws, g r inds, sa nds, scrap es, a nd p olishes. It do es nea rly a ny t hing you need to do, w it h t he except ion of d r i l ling holes, a nd work s in pla ces ot her p ower t o ols ca n’t rea ch, s uch a s u nderc ut t ing wo o d do or t r im t o clea r thin pla n k f loor ing. A nd it work s on a va r iet y of mater ia ls: steel, a luminum, ca r pet , ha rd t i le, sof t t i le, ha rdwood, sof t wood, and various pla stics. The Fein Mu ltima ster ($200) ha s gained a follow ing over the la st 25 years a s tra des people a nd a ccomplished a mateurs have recog nized its outsize abilit y a nd durabilit y. It’s pra ctica lly our r ight ha nd in most home projects.
OUR 3
The of fset shap e of the tool ’s blades makes f lush cut s a b reeze If a nail is p oking out somewhere, remove it without dis turb ing the surroun dings O r when ins t alling new f loor ing , cut out the b ot tom of trim an d door jambs to make room .
You may want to cut out an d replace the grout in a bath area jus t to freshen it up, or you may have a major bath remodel or repair that occurs when you replace a shower valve , for example An oscillating tool ’s carb ide grit at tachment can cut b oth grout an d even the tile it self if necessar y
You can imp rove the appearance and energ y ef f icienc y of old wood win dows with an over haul that inclu des san ding , cut ting slot s for weather stripping, and removing layers of old paint An oscillating multitool ’s s a n ding , grin ding , a n d saw blade at tachment s p rovide for all of these
I
18. A xe
The 2.6 million years since our f irst stone chop ping tools is an intimidating histor y to stand up a ga inst . It’s unfa ir to ex pect that we a s mu lt i ple species over this timeline wou ld create the g r e at e s t t o ol k now n t o a ny l i fe for m I n s t e a d, we seek a platonic idea l of the a xe itself: What is today’s per fect chopping tool? O ur best a ns wer i s t h e C o u nc i l To o l Vel v i c u t 2 l b Hu d s on B ay ($173) It s c a rb on s t eel hea d i s sh a r p ened a nd honed by ha nd a nd sits atop a n A mer ica n hick or y h a n d l e , a l l b a l a n c e d t o h e lp y o u h i t y o u r t a rget ever y t ime
The fa m i lia r pist ol g r ip p ower dr i l l shap e emer ged from t he labs of S. D unca n Bla ck a nd A lon zo Decker a round 1917. A nd W W I I s p u r r e d t he c r e a t ion of l i g ht e r d r i l l s for t he fa c t or y women that kept America running. These smaller drills became pr ized for home repa ir work a nd ha d a tendenc y to wa lk out of the factories, says Peter Liebhold, curator emerit us for the Divi sion of Work and Industr y at the Smithsonian
Cordless models emerged in the 1960s, but they were expen sive a nd t he b at t er ie s wer e mor e u s ef u l a s do or s t op s B y t he 1980s, Ma kita’s 7 2v cordless drill began to catch on, f irst w ith r e p a i r t e ch n ic i a n s for sm a l l job s B y t he end of t he de c a de, r emo deler s, ele c t r ici a n s, a nd plu mb er s si m i l a rly embr a ce d the handy tool.
Today’s lithium ion bat ter y drills are a revolution in them selves for their power and reliabilit y. And our favorite drill in the shop today is DeWa lt’s DCD999 ($239) for the control prov ided by its three speed transmission and an 11 position clutch ring.
The w rench, one of the most obv ious descendants of our pre historic levers, largely operates on the premise that for ever y fa stener there is a matching w rench or w rench socket wa it ing to rot ate its f lat , consistent sur fa ces
E xc e pt t h at ’ s not how t he world work s Tr y t o r emove a s t uck hex b olt w it h a 12 p oi nt w r ench, a nd t ho s e si x side s c a n b e c om e one W he n i t lo ok s l i k e y o u ’ v e g ot n o t h i n g t o w rench w it h, a pip e w rench w i l l save t he day. (The y ’ re a lso unmatched on pipes, of course.)
D evelop ed by invent or Da niel St i l lson a rou nd 1869, t he pip e w r ench i s s e t ap a r t b y it s i nt ent ion a l ly lo o s e, a dju s t able upp er jaw w it h ha rd ser rat ed t eet h. That play a l lows it t o bi nd a nd cl a mp dow n on a pip e or s t r ipp e d s c r e w when you pu sh t he ha nd le of t he w rench dow n. It a lso spa res you from hav ing to reset the w rench when you pull up on the han d le, a s pu l ling up unbinds the jaw from your st r ipped nut or pipe Just ma ke sure you ’ ve lef t a spa ce bet ween the ba ck of t he w rench op en ing (t he side w it hout t eet h) a nd t he objec t being t ur ned to g ive the jaws spa ce to t ighten dow n
Si nce S t i l l s on ’ s pat ent e d de sig n, t he g r e at e s t a dv a nce ment has been the aluminum w rench body, which can reduce the tool’s hef t by a round 40 percent That’s a cr ucia l weight sav i ng s, whet her you ’ ve got t he t o ol i n you r h a nd a l l day or just need to rea ch a sing le awk wa rd ly pla ced pipe. R idg id’s 12 inch a luminum straight body pipe w rench ($60) clocks in at a rea sonable 2.5 pounds despite a heav y dut y build. It’s a lso ma de ent irely of repla ceable a nd wa r ra nt y covered pa r ts. It’s a tool you ca n ex pect to never repla ce.
Gr e ek my t holo g y of fer s t h i s or ig i n for t he s aw : Ta l o s , n e p h e w o f p r o l i f i c i n v e n t o r D a e d a l u s , fou nd i n s pi r at ion i n a f i sh s pi ne a nd mo dele d a ja g ged st r ip of iron a f ter it to invent the f irst saw H i s t or i c a l l y a c c u r a t e? No t a c h a n c e Th e f i r s t k now n me t a l pu l l s aw s d a t e b a ck a l mo s t 7,0 0 0 y e a r s A n d b y t h e e n d of Ta lo s ’ s t a le , h e’d b e e n t u r n e d i nt o a p a r t r id g e a s pr o t e c t ion f r om h i s now jea lous, murderous uncle.
The 19 t h c ent u r y ’ s m a s s pr o duc t ion of s t e el g a v e u s t o d a y ’ s s a w s . Fo r m o s t o f t h e l a s t t w o m i l l e n n i a , s a w s w e r e m a d e o f i r o n , s a y s Te d I ng r a h a m , d i r e c t or of t he Z lot of f To ol Mu s eu m in Sout h Hero, Ver mont . Iron isn’t a pa r t icu la rly hard meta l A nd the ensuing kinking, or t w isting, of t he bla de wa s such a problem it ea r ned t he old t wo person saw the na me “miser y whip ”
A round the 1880s, a golden age of saws daw ned w i t h t h e w id e a v a i l a bi l i t y of m or e d u r a ble a n d f le x i ble s t e e l Tw o p e r s on s t e e l s a w s d r o v e t h e booming American timber industr y while smaller s t e el h a nd s aw s of fer e d a v a s t i mpr ovement for w o o d w orker s . The s aw s of t h i s er a w er e bu i lt t o la st built for someone to ma ke their liv ing using it . M a ny of t he s e s t e el saw s r em a i n t o d ay, but i f you don’t have t he t ime a nd pat ience t o hu nt one dow n, 181 yea r old toolma ker Disston is reintro ducing its D 8 ha nd saw (rea d more on pa ge 84).
The ea rl ies t t o ol s of mea s u rement were not h i ng more t h a n not ches m a rke d i n a leng th of wood or stone, but ev idence of mea surement systems shows up in w ritings on cuneifor m tablets from a ncient Sumer rough ly 6,000 yea rs ago, says Sa r ida k is A ncient Eg y pt h a d t he f i r s t k now n s t a nd a rd mea s u r e, t he r oy a l c ubit (a b out 21 inches), ba sed on the leng th of an early pharaoh’s arm from elbow to middle f inger tip Inscribed wood rods the f irst r u lers used to mea sure out the roya l cubit and its fractions still sur v ive after roughly 3,000 years.
The next great leap in handheld measuring tools didn’t arrive until the 1820s with the spring back measuring tape, though it still required a large, donut shaped carr y ing ca se. The f irst tr u ly pocket size tape mea sure arrived in 1963 w ith the Stan ley PowerLock ($15). That design is so r ugged and reliable that Stanley still uses it and we ’ re still using our PowerLocks.
Fe w t o ols st i l l u sed t he world over were so p er fec t at incep t ion t h a t t he y r em a i n l a r g ely u nch a n g e d Ye t s ome of t he early needles from around 27,000 years ago cou ld absolutely put a but t on ba ck on you r f la nnel t o day The sew ing need le wa s a lso a key technolog y that set humans apar t from Nea n der t h a l s , who ne ver d i s c over e d or a dopt e d t he t o ol . Ba ck t hen , s e w i ng a l lo we d ou r a nc e s t or s t o bu i ld we at her t ig ht shelt ers from a n ima l h ides a nd creat e wa r mer, less dra f t y clot hes for ou r long pro ces sion a rou nd t he g lob e. A s t a r t er pa ck for this auspicious tool, like the Singer A ssor ted Ha nd Need les ($6), may not f it in w ith the rest of the implements i n you r t o olb ox , but it deser ves a sp ot nex t t o it . A nd a b out that but ton you ’ ve been mea ning to reat t a ch
Star ting at the inside of the shir t , poke the needle through the fabric and thread it through the button Bring the needle downward and thread it through the diagonal opposite hole and the shir t . Repeat three times , then do the same on the other two holes Once the but ton is secure, poke the needle up through the fabric at it s base Loop the thread around the stitching underneath the button six times . Then poke the needle through that stem sideways three times and cut to secure it .
Place the t ap e’s hook where you’ll be making the cut Put the tip of the util it y knife blade a gains t the hook an d p inch the blade there with your thumb. Your other han d goes at the en d of the dr y wall , p inch ing the appropriate leng th mea surement on the tape. From there you move b oth han ds at the same time , drawing the knife an d t ap e down the dr y wall with con sis tent downward p ressure. Crack of f the piece of dr ywall an d cut the pap er on the other side to relea se it
M O V I E S T R A N S P O R T Y O U t o a not her pl a ce or t i me let t i ng you for g et e x t er n a l d i s t r a c t ion s a nd c a r e s f r om you r d ay B ut i f you ’ r e not up for going out to a t heater, you ca n create t hat sa me cinemat ic ex p er ience in a k i l ler home theater of your ow n No t on l y d o e s a h om e t h e a t e r i m m e r s e y o u i n t h e m o v ie w a t c h i n g e x p e r i e n c e , i t h a s s om e o t h e r p e rk s a s w e l l It c a n br i n g y o u r f a m i l y t o get her i n a de d ic at e d spa ce (G et e ver yone of f t hei r phones for a bit!) It prov ides an oppor t unit y to re experience f ilms you ’ ve a lready seen, but from a different va nt a ge point a nd in a more int imate set t ing. A nd don’t forget you ca n a lso watch the big ga me in this sa me spa ce w ith a ma zing sou nd a nd v ideo qu a lit y. Plu s, you r h ig h t ech set up for wat ch ing sp or t s a nd mov ies w i l l b e t he env y of you r fr iends a nd neig hb ors.
Chris Wyllie ha s been designing and installing home theaters for more than 15 years through his company S E A L Solutions Inc His projec t s have run the spec trum, from a living room space designed for a client ’s disabled child to dedicated theater rooms for celebrities , including Liam Neeson and the late James Gandolf ini. A former Nav y SEAL, Wyllie uses his militar y experience to implement a mindset of no limitations in ever y thing he does
W h e n pl a n n i n g w h e r e t o s e t u p y o u r t heat er, con sider a ny u nu sed spa ce i n y o u r h o m e t h i n k b a s e m e n t , a t t i c , or e ven a s p a r e r o om. If none of t he s e o p t i o n s a r e a v a i l a b l e , t h e n a l i v i n g r o om , a g r e a t r o om , or a n a r e a wher e y o u n o r m a l l y w a t c h m o v i e s c a n b e t r a n s f o r m e d i n t o a m o r e d e d i c a t e d v ie w i ng spa ce.
N o t e w h e r e t h e e n t r a n c e o r t h e ent r a nce s, i f t her e ’ s mor e t h a n one i s lo c at e d i n t he ro om a nd how p e ople move t hroug h t he spa ce The b est wa l l for t he s cr e en i s t he one t h at won’t b e i n t h e p a t h of p e o p l e w a l k i n g i n a n d out a nd i n f r ont of you r v ie w i ng a r e a Th a t s a i d , a l s o p a y a t t e nt i on t o w i n d o w s , w h i c h , d e p e n d i n g o n w h e r e t he y ’ re lo c at e d, c a n c a s t l ig ht on you r s c r e e n . L a s t l y, i f y o u r r o o m h a s a n y c olu m n s or w a l l bu mp out s t h at c a n n o t b e m o v e d , y o u ’ l l h a v e t o d e s i g n you r spa ce a rou nd t hem.
Ta k i n g a l l t h i s i nt o c on side r a t ion w i l l help you det er m ine t he b est a rea s i n t h e r o o m f o r s c r e e n p l a c e m e n t , seat i ng, a nd ot her comp onent s
I f y o u r s p a c e a l l o w s , I r e c om m e n d a l a s er pr oje c t or a nd 120 i nc h (d i a g o n a l) s cr e en or l a r g er. It g et s you mor e s c r e en si z e for you r dol l a r t h a n a T V, plus the benef it of new 4K la ser projec tor technolog y.
Ty pic a l pr oje c t or s h ave bu lb s t h at slowly d i m w it h t i me, a nd a l a mp l i fe
of 1,0 0 0 t o 2,0 0 0 hou r s. If a l ig htbu lb in your projector pops, there’s time and money involved to repla ce the bu lb and ma ke the f i x.
L a ser projec t ors, howe ver, of fer up t o 10 t i mes t he l i fespa n, plu s p ea ce of mind when you press power
O f c o u r s e , a h u g e T V s c r e e n a l s o prov ides a g reat foundat ion for a home t heat er For a t r u ly im mersive ex p er i ence, choose a 75 inch screen or larger
Some inst a llers say you ca n’t go too big (I M A X , a n y on e?), b u t e n s u r i n g t h a t you ca n see t he ent ire screen from a ny seat in the room is most impor t a nt .
T h e r e a r e w a y s t o c a l c u l a t e t h e b e s t v ie w i n g d i s t a nc e f r om y o u r d i s play to the seat ing a rea , a lso ca lled the s weet sp ot (see “Fi nd t he S weet Sp ot ” on pa g e 71). Th i s i s t he opt i m a l pl a ce i n y o u r r o o m t o e nj o y b o t h t h e b e s t pic t u r e a nd t he b e s t s o u nd q u a l i t y a nd where you’l l wa nt t o a r ra nge you r seating Don’t limit yourself to a row of recliners, though Choose comfor table pie c e s a s e c t ion a l s ofa or love s e at a nd avoid pla cing them too close to the screen, which ca n cause eye st ra in.
No mat ter how spect a cu la r the ima ge, w a t c h i n g a m o v i e w i t h s u b s t a n d a r d
Don’t skimp on the sound Invest in a surround sound receiver and speakers for the most realistic cinema experienceaudio wou ld be a major letdow n.
S o a not her i mp or t a nt s t e p i n c r e at i ng y o u r h om e t h e a t e r e x p e r ie n c e i s m a t c h ing your big screen w ith big sound.
T h e w a y t o a c h i e v e t h i s i s w i t h s u r r o u n d s o u n d , w h i c h w i l l p l a c e y o u r i g h t i n t h e c e nt e r of t h e a c t ion Yo u ’ l l b e a ble t o f e e l a n d h e a r s o u n d s c o m i n g t o w a r d you, from b ehind you, a nd pa ssing by you B el ie ve me, t here’s no b et t er w ay t o w at ch a n a c t i on m o v i e l i k e To p G u n : Ma v e r i c k o r t a k e i n a n a u d i o e x t r a v a g a n z a l i k e B o h e m i a n R h a p s o dy.
Tra ditiona l surround sound is 5.1 chan nels (f ive spea kers plus one subwoofer), but some s y s t em s h ave a s m a ny a s 13.2 ch a n nels, or even more.
It m i g ht s e e m l i k e t h e m or e s p e a k e r s
2 3 6
l y p ull t h e T V aw ay fro m t h e w a ll a n d rot ate i t to g a in acce s s to co n n e c t i o n s o n t h e back panel fo r adjus t ment s
4 0 0 I f yo u ’re u n a b l e to i n s t a l l s u r ro u n d s o u n d s p ea ke r s b e h i n d t h e l i s te n i n g p o s i t i o n , t h i s re ce i ve r l e t s yo u e n j oy v i r tu a l f i ve cha n n e l s u r ro u n d s o u n d w i t h a l l t h e s p ea ke r s p la ce d i n t h e f ro n t of t h e ro o m .
7
6
. 2 SYSTE M / $ 4 ,74 3 W i t h t h i s s y s te m ’s d u a l p owe re d subwo ofer s , you ’ll enjoy lot s of l ow r u m b l e i n yo u r h o m e t h eater, p e r fe c t fo r ac t io n f li ck s W h en yo u ’re n ot w atch i n g m ov i e s , i t p rov i d e s a n i d ea l lis te n i n g space t hat p u t s yo u r ight in t h e ro o m w i t h yo u r f avo r i te m u si cia ns
There are t wo for mula s for f ig uring ou t t he ideal view ing angle in your home theater
According to t he So ciet y of Motion Pic ture and Television Engin eer s (SM PTE), t he b es t view c a n b e c a lculate d by div i din g t h e screen’s dia gonal mea surement (in in ches) by 0 6 For examp le, a s creen t hat m ea sures 75 in ches dia gonally is b es t viewed 125 in ches from your seat . From t here, no seat should have more t han a 3 0 degree viewing angle to the center of the screen
But THX , the company founded by f ilm maker G eorge Luc a s , ha s a dif ferent formula , one that p u t s t he ideal dis t an ce from t he screen closer Rather than divide t he dia gonal m ea surem ent by 0 6, you divide it by 0.835, w hich p u t s the ideal viewing dis t ance from a 75 i n c h s c re e n to yo u r s ea t a t a b o u t 9 0 i n c h e s
you a dd , t he b e t t er t he s ou nd w i l l b e, but that is not necessa r i ly the ca se C h o o s e t h e t y p e a n d n u m b e r o f s p e a k e r s b a s e d o n t h e s i z e o f y o u r
r o o m I f y o u r s p a c e i s s m a l l a n d c o z y, o p t f o r a 5 1 s y s t e m L a r g e r r o om s a r e b e t t er s u it e d t o 7 1 or e ven 9 1 systems
R ather tha n purcha sing indiv idua l components, a smar t and cost effective opt ion is a home t heater in a b ox. This is t y pica lly plug and play and includes ever y thing you need: speakers, speaker wires, connectors, and surround sound receiver w ith remote.
L i g h t i n g c o n t r o l i s k e y i n t e r m s o f b ot h nat u ra l lig ht a nd a r t if icia l lig ht To prevent su n lig ht from ent er ing t he r o om a nd w a s h i n g o u t i m a g e s , c o v e r w indows w ith blinds, drapes, or bla ck out fa br ic. To set t he mo o d i n side, u se a remot e d i m mer, wh ich a l low s you t o c ont r o l l i g ht i n g f r om y o u r s e a t on c e y o u ’ v e s e t t l e d i n a n d y o u r e y e s h a v e
a dju s t e d When t he cre d it s s t a r t rol l i ng, u se it t o slowly r a i se t he l ig ht s
Now t hat you r ro om is set up, it’s t ime to press play, rela x, and enjoy the show With all the systems involved, you could find yourself with too many remote con trols, which not only creates clut ter but a lso might confuse someone who is tr y ing to operate your home theater.
T h e s o l u t i o n : a u n i v e r s a l r e m o t e c o n t r o l t h a t c a n h a n d l e b a s i c f u n c t ion s a s w el l a s mor e a d v a nc e d , s uc h a s c o m m u n i c a t i n g w i t h y o u r s m a r t home dev ices a nd work ing w ith mu lt i ple bra nds of elect ronics
With so many options available, it’s easy to create a home theater that meets both your budget a nd room requirements and, more impor tantly, one that a llows you t o escap e dist ra c t ions, a ccom mo dates the best v ideo a nd audio you ca n buy, and ultimately makes you happy.
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m a d e b y o n l y a h a n d f u l o f c o m p a n i e s a n d w e r e employed a lmost exclusively by professiona l trades men D esig ned to ma ke long, st ra ig ht cut s in sheet materia l like ply wood these saws are more a ccu r a t e a n d e a s i e r t o u s e t h a n t a b l e s a w s . B u t t h e i r si ng u la r pu r p o se a nd h ig h pr ice (some more t h a n $1,000) ma de them ha rd to just if y for folk s who need one on ly occasiona lly. That has a ll changed, though, as many companies have recently a dded t ra ck saws to their lineups. We ca l led in a ra nge of saws to test how well they work a nd see what their dif ferences a re, in ca se you ’ re consider ing get t ing one yourself.
To e va lu at e t hese t ra ck saw s, we u s e d t hem t o c ut t h r oug h den s e, 2 x 4 fo ot , 9 ply, ¾ i nch m aple ply wood. We set up the t ra ck s, a djusted the saws ’ depths, a nd ma de repeated cuts 48 inches long at both 45 and 90 d e g r e e s We s t a r t e d o u r c u t s , b o t h of f t h e e n d s of t h e p l y w o o d a n d b y plu n g i n g t he bl a de s i nt o t he w o o d To t e s t m a x i m u m c u t d e p t h , w e stacked up three sheets of the ¾ inch ply wo o d, s e t t he saw s t o t hei r de ep es t set t i ng, a nd t hen mea s u red how d e e p t h e k e r f w a s for e a c h s a w. We a ssessed the track saws ba sed on how ea s y t he y were t o set up a nd u se, t he q u a l i t y of t he s aw e d e d g e t he y le f t , a nd how much ef for t it t o ok t o pu sh them a long the t ra ck.
8 " 9 " 2 " 3 " E L E N A R P N O ( I L L U S T R A T I O N )
I f yo u wa nt to m i m i c t he a ccu ra c y of a t ra ck saw wit ho ut t he i nves t ment , yo u ca n b u i ld a m a kes h if t t ra ck to u se wit h yo u r own ci rcu la r saw To do t h i s , yo u ’l l need a s heet of p ly wo o d wit h a clea n fa c to r y ed ge
1 / M a r k t h e f a c to r y e d ge (A) a n d cu t 2 to 3 i n c h e s of f of i t
2 / Cut an additional 8 to 9 inches (B) of f the sheet of ply wood
3 / Position the 2 to 3 inch strip (A) on top of and along the edge of the larger strip (B), with the factor y edge facing the middle
4 / Screw the narrow strip to the wider strip.
5 / Run the shoe of your circular saw along the factor y edge (A), trimming a clean, straight edge on the bottom strip (B)
Most frequent ly, t ra ck saws a re u sed for cut t ing mater ia l that comes in la rge sheets, li ke ply wood or paneling. While you can cut these she e t s on a t a ble s aw, t he y c a n b e u nw ieldy a nd d i f f ic u lt t o h a nd le , e s p e ci a l ly i f you ’ r e w ork i n g b y y o u r s e l f. B y f l ip pi n g t h e e q u a t ion mov ing t he saw over t he sheet inst ea d of v ice versa you ca n a chieve much g reat er cont rol A nd by g uiding the saw w ith a t ra ck, you get much g reater a ccura c y A s i d e f r om t h e t r a c k , t h e s a w i t s e l f i s a l it t le d i f fe r e nt f r om a t y pic a l c i r c u l a r s aw
With the bla de retra cted, above the shoe, you c a n p o sit ion t he saw f lat on t he t r a ck O nce a lig ned, you c a n plu nge t he bla de dow n a nd push the saw a long the tra ck.
Tra ck saws a re a ccurate because the bla de c u t s e v en w it h t he e d g e of t he t r a c k . W hen y o u d r o p t h e t r a c k o n y o u r m e a s u r e m e n t ma rk s, w ith the edge fa cing the wa ste side of the cut , the bla de fa l ls r ight on your ma rk s.
There are t wo key features The tracks have non slip strips on the bottom that help prevent them from moving around. And since the saw is traveling per fectly straight, there’s minimal friction on the sides of the blade.
While setup can be trick y, some folks use track saws to install wood or lami nate f looring. This requires care because, in many cases, the track will be wider than the f looring planks. So you’ll have to set up a couple of planks to fully suppor t the track and make sure it ’s stable before attempting to make your cut.
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surprisingly power ful Although it did t ake us longer to cu t t hrough t hree sheet s of p ly woo d , it didn’ t s t r ug gle We s t ar ted cu t s at t he en d of t he pan el sin ce, b ec ause the riving knife wr aps under the blade, it couldn’ t p lunge into t he woo d We had to b e min d ful pa ssing t he s aw over t he seam in t he t r ack , a s it could hang up Cu t qualit y w a s compar able with the corded models .
Price: $5 8 9 (s aw), $1 27 (t
s w a s co n f i r m e d d u r i n g o u r te s t i n g , a s we p u s h e d t h e s aw ea s i l y t h ro u g h t h re e l aye r s of p l y wo o d , to a d e p t h of 2 1⁄3 2 i n c h e s , w i t h o u t s t r a i n i n g We u s e d t h e G K T 1 3 22 5 L w i t h B o s c h ’s 63 i n c h t r a c k , w h i c h s t aye d p u t , e n s u r i n g s t r a i g h t , a ccu r a te cu t s We fo u n d t h e d e p t h a n d b eve l s e t t i n g s s i m p l e to u s e , e n a b l i n g u s to m a ke c l ea n cu t s a t a ny a n g l e
Cu t t i n g Sy s te m S aw K i t co m e s w i t h eve r y t h i n g T h e 62 i n c h t r a c k i s a o n e p i e ce a f f a i r t h a t w i l l wo r k fo r m a ny p roj e c t s , b u t yo u ’l l w a n t a n e x te n s i o n fo r cu t t i n g a ny t h i n g l o n ge r K re g ’s s aw h a d t h e d e e p e s t cu t of a ny we te s te d , a t 2 1⁄8 i n c h e s , b u t re q u i re d m ov i n g s l owe r t h a n w i t h t h e B o s c h We a p p re c i a te d t h e co l l e c t i o n s o c k , w h i c h h e l p e d re d u ce t h e s awd u s t f l y i n g a ro u n d
K re g ’s Ad a p t i
O B I L E G A M E S Y S T E M S H A V E L O N G B E E N V I E W E D A S i n f e r i o r t o g a m i n g c o m p u t e r s a n d c o n s o l e s T h a t ’ s because their sma l ler components a re of ten too wea k to keep up w it h t he r ising g raphics dema nds of new t it les Tr a d i t ion a l g r a p h ic s c a r d s a n d pr o c e s s or s n e e d e d t o h a n d le t he w ork lo a d a r e e x p en si v e a nd l a r g e a nd r u n hot rely ing on the spa ce a nd power supply of a desk top tower. A nd if you wa nt compa rable st reng th on the go, you ’ re look ing at bulk y gaming laptops w ith poor heat dissipation and bat ter y life.
But the arriva l of Va lve Cor poration’s Steam Deck redef ines what a gaming computer can be by creating a whole new categor y: afford able handheld gaming PCs. The Steam Deck condenses a powerful rig into an 11 inch por table system that weighs just 1.5 pounds.
This a l l in one set up (from $399) combines a cont rol ler, touchscreen, a nd cooling s ystem into a le g it i m at e h a nd held comput er t h at u nt e t her s the PC gaming ex perience from the desk. Its slick console like interface ma kes it easy to pick up and pl ay you r l ibr a r y of comput er g a me s. A nd when you ’ re home in front of you r T V or ga ming moni t or, you ca n con nec t it t o a USB C hub t o ex pa nd it s con ne c t i v it y a nd out put it s d i s pl ay t o l a r g er s c r e en s a t h ig her r e s olut ion s W h i le it ’ s e a s y t o t h i n k of t he S t e a m D e ck a s t he comput er e q u iv a lent of t he Ni nt endo S w it ch, m a ke no m i s t a ke, its capabi lit ies a re lea g ues a hea d
The Deck is more power f u l for stronger g raph ic s p er for m a nc e, wh i le g i v i ng you t he opt ion t o t wea k v i s u a l set t i ng s. Mea nwh i le, it ret a i n s t he u nrest r ict ed cu st omi zat ion level of a PC a l low i n g y o u t o i n s t a l l g a m e m o d i f i c a t i o n s o r e v e n e nt i r e o p e r a t i n g s y s t e m s l i k e W i n d o w s . D o c k ing t he dev ice pa ssively cha r ges it s bat t er y whi le prov iding a ccess to USB por t s so you ca n use it a s a desk t op comput er, complet e w it h t he opt ion t o con ne c t a ke y b oa rd a nd mou se The s y s t em a l so c o m e s l o a d e d w i t h a L i n u x d e s k t o p m o d e f o r brow si ng t he web or lau nch i ng creat ive appl ic a tions for ta sk s like ma k ing music, editing v ideos, or s t r e a m i ng l ive E ver y t h i ng r u n s a s smo ot h ly w it h in t he St ea m D eck’s compa c t b o dy a s it do es on a t r a d i t ion a l de s k t op c omp u t e r, w h ic h i s a n i mpr e s sive fe at for a de v ice t h at h a s b e en a long t i me com i ng.
Va lve g ot it s s t a r t de velopi ng s of t w a r e r a ng i n g f r om g a m e s t o a p pl ic a t ion s s u c h a s S t e a m , i t s f l a g s h i p p r o g r a m a n d t h e o n e t h e D e c k i s bu i lt a rou nd. Th i s plat for m i s pa r t d ig it a l g a me s t or e f r ont , p a r t l i br a r y, a n d p a r t s o c i a l m e d i a for comput er g a mers Th roug h it , Va lve cont rols approx imately 70 p ercent of t he dig it a l dist r ibu tion ma rket for PC ga ming “Va lve is most va lued on t he revenue of it s St ea m dig it a l cont ent deliv er y ser v ice, wh ich la st yea r d id over $6 bi l lion in revenue, ” says t ech indu st r y a na lyst A n shel Sa g A nd t h i s i n t u r n prov ides t he c apit a l ne e de d for ha rdwa re R &D.
T h e c o m p a n y h a s h a d i t s s i g h t s s e t o n t h e St ea m D eck si nce it b eg a n de velopi ng h a rdw a re 10 yea rs ago. Va lve’s eng ineers toyed a round w ith the concept of a ha ndheld computer system while work i ng on t he S t ea m C ont rol ler it s h a rdw a re debut, which launched back in 2015 “We thought
Co m p u te r s re q u ire p ro p e r t h e r ma l mana ge ment to re m ove exce s s w a r m t h O ve r h eate d co m p o n e n t s t h rot t l e g a m i n g p e r fo r m a n ce w i t h la g a n d l o s t fr a m e s T h e cr a m p e d g u t s of m ob il e d ev i ce s c a n ’ t w i t h s t a n d h i g h te m p e r atu re s n ea r l y a s well a s t h e la r ge r co n f i n e s of d e s k to p
To a d d re s s t h i s , Va l ve b u il t a t h e r ma l mana ge ment s y s tem into t h e Stea m D e ck t hat u s e s a m ix of
s of t w a re a n d j u s t a sin g l e f a n to co o l m u l t ip l e pa r t s by s p e ci f i c a m o u n t s “ We c a n e s s e nt ia ll y a ll o c ate o u r co o lin g b u d ge t to each co m p o n e nt by co nt ro lling t h e a ir f l ow pat h ove r t h e m ot h e r b oa rd a n d t h e t h e r m a l co u p l i n g f ro m t hat co m p o n e nt , ” s ay s p ro g r a m m e r Pi e r re Lo u p G r i f f a i s T h i s d r aw s l e s s p owe r a n d ma ke s fo r a lig hte r co n s o l e w i t h o u t creat ing a dis t r ac t ing a m o u n t of n o i s e
T h e r m a l co n t ro l i s l e f t in yo u r ha n d s s o yo u c a n to g g l e t h e e n e r g y u s a ge l i m i t dire c t ly from t h e
Stea m D e ck ’s q u i ck s e t t i n g s T h i s re s t r i c t s h ow m u ch w at t a ge t h e p ro ce s s o r u s e s Lowe r in g i t s l evels ke ep s t h e h eat d ow n a n d ex te n d s bat te r y li fe at t h e co s t of p e r fo r ma n ce B u t fo r eve n d e e p e r co n t ro l , yo u c a n in di v i d ua ll y c a p fr a m e r ate s a n d re fre sh r ate s dire c t l y fro m t h e
D e ck ’s s of t w a re
it wou ld b e co ol i f t here w a s a scre en i n t he m id d le , a nd w e e v e n h a d a pr o t o t y p e t h a t i nc lu de d o n e , ” s a y s L a w r e n c e Ya n g , a Us e r E x p e r i e n c e Desig ner at Va lve. “But the tech wa sn’t there yet , s o w e s h e l v e d t h e i d e a . ” E a c h s u c c e s s i v e h a r d w a re relea se f rom t he S t ea m L i n k t o t he Va lve Index contr ibuted developments in ergonomics a nd display technolog y t hat la id t he g roundwork for the product ion of the Stea m Deck. O ver t ime,
t he c omp onent s e s s ent i a l for a p or t a ble s y s t em sh r u n k dow n i n b ot h si z e a nd pr ice t o m a ke t he Steam Deck a rea lit y. The f ina l piece of the puzzle fel l int o pla ce when Va lve worked w it h sem icon d u c t o r c o m p a n y A d v a n c e d M i c r o D e v i c e s t o create a semi custom, a l l in one processing chip ca l led the Va n G ogh to power the Deck
Va n G o g h i s a n A c c eler a t e d P r o c e s si ng Un it (A PU) t h at buck s t he ener g y a nd si z e dem a nd s re q u i re d t o r u n t he D e ck A n A PU i s a pro ces sor w it h b u i lt i n g r a p h ic s . Th i s s av e s on s p a c e a nd con s u mes les s p ower t h a n r u n n i ng t wo i nd iv id u a l pro cessor a nd g raph ics c a rd comp onent s for b e t t e r b a t t e r y l i f e . “ T h i s c h i p e n a b l e d S t e a m D e ck t o b e p er for m a nt enou g h t o pl ay t he l at e s t t r i p l e A g a m e s b u t a l s o i n c r e d i b l y p o w e r e f f i cient w it h a g r e at p er for m a nce p er w at t r at io,” s t at es Ya z a n A ldeh ay y at , a n eng i neer at Va lve.
Docking the Steam Deck expands its connectivity to larger monitors
Va n G o g h s t a n d s o u t f r o m o t h e r S y s t e m s on a C h i p b e c a u s e i t ’ s b u i l t on A M D’s R DN A 2 a rchitect u re, which a lso p owers t he latest gener at ion of c on s ole s. The resu lt is p ower f u l ga ming p e r for m a n c e t h a t s u p p or t s t h e n e w e s t d i s pl a y t e ch nolo g y feat u re s l i ke r ay t r a ci ng a nd A M D’s Fidel it yF X up s c a l i n g s y s t em . Th i s r u n s g a me s at a lo wer r e s olu t ion t o b o o s t f r a me r a t e s wh i le ret a ining high a mounts of det a i l
But g raph ics set t ing s a ren’t lo cked dow n li ke t he y a re w it h con soles, so players c a n pu sh v is u a l s t o t hei r l i m it s at up t o 60 f r a mes p er second Still, crank ing set tings for stronger per formance k i l l s t he b at t er y fa s t er. “Va n G o g h i sn’t a s opt i m i z e d fo r m o b i l e fo r m f a c t o r s l i k e t h e S t e a m D e c k , w h ic h i s w h y I t h i n k y o u s e e Va l v e of fe r ing so much g ra nu la r it y t o u sers in t er ms of how much p er for m a nce a nd bat t er y life t he y wa nt t o get out of the dev ice,” says Sag. If you simply wa nt to play a ga me for a s long a s possible, you ca n use t he s u g g e s t e d s e t t i ng s t o sl ig ht ly r e duce g r aph ics qua lit y a nd fra me rates to ex tend bat ter y life
In addition to the custom chip, the Steam Deck ci r c u it b o a r d hold i n g it i s a fe at i n it s el f, a s it ’ s densely pa cked to f it w ithin the body That posed a c h a l le n g e , s i n c e t he i nt e r n a l de s i g n n e e d s t o b e la id out for b ot h m a x i mu m breat h a bi lit y a nd r e p a i r a bi l it y s o DI Yer s c a n m a ke r e pl a cement s or h a rdw a re upg r a des a le vel of c u s t om i z at ion that’s a ha l lma rk of PC ga ming.
S t e a m D e ck’s c onven ienc e a nd p er for m a nc e c o m e s a t t h e c o s t o f c o l o r r e p r o d u c t i o n . T h e 1280x800 resolut ion is cr isp on t he sma l l 7 inch L CD s cr e en , wh ich t a r g e t s a mo de s t 80 0 p at 6 0 f p s . Ho w e v e r, i f y o u h old i t u p n e x t t o a s m a r t phone or Nintendo Sw itch w ith a n OLED display, you c a n see ju st how f lat colors c a n app ea r Tr ue blacks on OLED screens are created by t urning off i nd iv idu a l pi xel s, wh ich cr e at e s a s t r ong er con t r a s t t h a n a n L CD s c r e en Th i s r e s u lt s i n much more v ibrant hues and ink y blacks The back light ing on the Steam Deck’s LCD screen ma kes blacks look g ray, most dist ra ct ing in da rk scenes. W h i l e a S t e a m D e c k w i t h a n OL E D d i s p l a y wou ld b e a welcome upg ra de, it s L CD screen is a sma ll pr ice to pay for a por table that r uns the lat est games. Valve sold over one million Steam Decks in just under a year from its relea se show ing the m a s s a p p e a l of a h a n d h e ld g a m i n g P C . B u t i t s power for the price w ill be a tough act to follow
M a x i m u m e ffi c i e n c y a g a i n s t g r e a s e
To u g h o n s t a i n s , g e n t l e o n c l o t h e s
U s e i t o n :
Wo r k s g r e a t o n f o o d s u r f a c e s
P r o f e s s i o n a l - g r a d e c o n c e n t r a t e d d e g r e a s e r t h a t e ff o r t l e s s l y w i p e s a w a y e v e n t h e h a r d e s t a n d c r u s t e d o n g r e a s e a n d g r i m e I t r e a l l y w o r k s !
A v a i l a b l e a t
P O P U L A R M E C H A N I C S . C O M / D E G R E A S E R
A s a budd i n g t e en a g e c a r p en t e r, I w a s h i t i n t h e r i g h t e y e by a f ly i ng f i n i sh n a i l It w a s a m i r a cle I d id n’t lo s e my e ye or even suffer much injur y. It wa s enough of a lesson that I’ve worn safet y gla sses ever since. St i l l, when I t r ied St og g les prot ec t ive eye wea r t h at ’ s a hy br id b et we en g la s ses a nd go g g les, w i t h s i d e a n d t o p s h i e l d s m o l d e d i n t o t h e e y e piece I li ked their comfor t most .
I’ve b e en w e a r i n g t hem for s e ver a l mont h s i n our shop testing tools and building projects and f i nd t hem s o com for t a ble, I of t en end up wea r i ng t h e m a t m y d e s k (t h e i r R x m a t c h e s m y r e a d i n g gla sses) That’s thanks to their light weight and a fit that doesn’t cha fe my ea rs or the br idge of my nose
Th i s s a y s a lo t a b o u t t h e s e g l a s s e s , b e c a u s e o v e r the la st 45 yea rs, I’ve wor n just about ever y for m of pr ot e c t ive g e a r, f r om welder’s m a sk s t o s t a nd a r d safet y gla sses Usua lly, I can’t wait to ta ke them off But Stog gles a re a brea k through in lens cla r it y, fog resist a nce, r ug gedness, a nd comfor t .
If you are so inclined, you can buy pink, cat eye shaped Stoggles. But this is not daint y, fashion f irst e ye wea r. Molde d f rom p olyc a rb onat e pla st ic w it h a n A mer ica n Nationa l Sta nda rds Instit ute (A NSI) Z 87.1 r a t i n g , t he y c on for m t o A NS I’s c r it e r i a t o w ithstand both high velocit y and high mass impact
A ll these feat ures a dd up to one impor t a nt fa ct No m at t er how g o o d s a fet y g la s s e s a re, t he y c a n’t protect you if you don’t wea r them A nd you’ll wa nt to wear these Roy Berendsohn
“I’’ve gotten many compliments on this watch The craftsmanship is phenomenal and the watch is simply pleasing to the eye ” M , Irvine, CA
from Henry Ford’s favorite quote concerning his automobiles, “You can have any color as long as it is black ” Black dialed watches became the rage especially with pilots and race drivers Of course, since the black dial went well with a black
dial watch easily moved from the airplane hangar to dancing at the nightclub Now, Stauer brings back the “Noire”, a design based on an elegant timepiece built in 1936 Black dialed, complex automatics from the 1930s have recently hit new heights at auction One was sold for in excess of $600,000. We thought that you might like to have an affordable version that will be much more accurate than the original Basic black with a twist. Not only are the dial, hands and face vintage, but we used a 27 jeweled automatic movement. This is the kind of engineering desired by fine watch collectors worldwide. But since we design this classic movement on state of the art computer controlled Swiss built machines, the accuracy is excellent We have priced the luxurious Stauer Noire at a price to keep you in the black only 3 payments of $33 So slip into the
back of your black limousine, savor some rich tasting black coffee and look at your wrist knowing that you have some great times on your hands
An offer that will make you dig out your old tux. The movement of the Stauer Noire wrist watch carries an extended two year warranty But first enjoy this handsome timepiece risk free for 30 days for the extraordinary price of only 3 payments of $33 If you are not thrilled with the quality and rare design, simply send it back for a full refund of the item price. But once you strap on the Noire you’ll want to stay in the black
ha ndsaw, I wa s shocked. In this era of power tools, the compa ny wa s rev iv ing a saw that went out of product ion in the 1950s. A nd it wa s using the or ig ina l fa ctor y draw ings to g uide the process.
When Disston introduced the D 8 in the 1880s, it wa s a new ta ke on handsaws: light and sma ll, ea sier to handle, and more suited to cut ting framing lumber. But car penters a lso loved the D 8 for its abilit y to follow a cut line. A nd the saw ’ s superior meta llurg y made it nearly indestr uctible. Old Disston ads showed how you could bend the blade into a U and have it spring back into shape.
I’m a hand tool g uy; I like their simplicit y, their safet y, and the v iscera l satisfaction that comes from using a sha r p tool So I ca ref u lly unw rapped the t wo D 8s: a f ine tooth crosscut saw (show n a b ove) a nd a coa r se t o ot h r ip saw I a d m i re d t he g r a cef u l w a l nut h a nd le w it h t r a d it ion a l br a s s screws a nd the subtle cur ve of the cut t ing edge
I put a Dougla s f ir 2x8 a cross some sawhorses, ma rked a line, a nd cut it , ma r veling at how ea s ily the crosscut saw churned through the lumber I adjusted my stance and cut another block, then a not her, a nd a not her, a nd ended up saw i ng a whole pi le of wo o d Ea ch blo ck w a s dea d on a cc u rate What the old t imers sa id about the D 8 wa s itself dea d on: It cuts t r ue Roy Beren d sohn
