The Skunk Works

user41796

02:17

@Air FTFY

hazzey

13:56

@GlenH7 @Air I'm not sure that the mag-lev question can be saved. I don't see there being enough background information in it to narrow it down. I agree with air that more questions is better at this point.

user41796

Well, it has 3 re-open votes at this point, but I'm going to let the community decide on that one. Even if re-opened, I don't think it's going to make a great question, but I wanted to give it a reasonable chance

Trevor Archibald

14:50

Unfortunately I think the answer for a lot of these questions about what's stopping something from happening on the technical side is "nothing, it's all about money"

Stack Exchange

0

Q: On the liabilities of liability questions

We (the community) need to decide what liability questions are on-topic or not for the site. Our current liability questions, which I have locked while we resolve this meta question. To what degree are structural engineers liable for catastrophic errors? What is an engineer's liability for c...

user41796

@TrevorArchibald ~~possibly~~ probably yes, but as technology changes that can shift the economics involved. I'd hope we could tolerate answers that say "No because XYZ is too expensive. Foo would need to change in order to make that work."

Trevor Archibald

We could, but it would absolutely need that second half

Stack Exchange

0

Q: Should questions with units include both Imperial and SI units?

We have users from all over the globe. Many of these people probably shake their heads at the US's use of Imperial units of measure. Many in the US feel confused when SI units are used. Do we need an official policy on this? Should we have a policy that units of measure include both forms of...

discussion

HDE 226868

15:37

I see you beat me to that one. . .

Trevor Archibald

Yup

It's okay, Ethan technically beat me to it, with a very similar but more succinct answer

HDE 226868

@TrevorArchibald I actually meant hazzey beating me to ask it - I had thought about it a day or two ago after the Aluminium/Aluminum question.

Trevor Archibald

Ahh ok

hazzey

16:25

@HDE226868 I was somewhat surprised that it hadn't been asked yet.

Stack Exchange

16:58

0

Q: What will be the difference between the aerospace engineering and aircraft design tags?

The aircraft-design and aerospace-engineering tags have seen a decent amount of use so far. I created aerospace-engineering1 as a more general term that could be applied to rockets and spacecraft (and, or course, spaceplanes). At the moment, though, they're being used rather interchangeably, as ...

discussion tags

Ethan48

18:39

engineering.stackexchange.com/questions/666/… just made me think maybe we should explore the disclaimer question a little further

Although with all due respect to @HDE226868, I don't think it's actually a Naive Design Question at its root, just poorly named. I don't know how end caps are calculated though.

HDE 226868

19:24

@Ethan48 You could be right.

@Elric The oil-engineering tag has been created and used:

0

Q: Is there a limit to the length of oil pipelines?

This is inspired by the discussion and controversy surrounding the Keystone Pipeline. The main part of the Keystone Pipeline system is about 3,400 kilometers long, stretching across a large portion of the United States. The Keystone XL extension would add another long section to it. Altogether, ...

future-projects oil-engineering

@Air Do you have the lowest rep score out of all the non-cm mods on SE? :-)

hazzey

@Ethan48 I agree. That question could be more clear, but I'm not sure that it is naive. It just needs to clarify if it is only asking about the end caps.

@HDE226868 Does the tag [future-projects] add anything useful as far as tags go?

HDE 226868

19:40

@hazzey I'm not sure. It's supposed to reference even larger extensions to Keystone, but since there's nothing on the table beyond XL, it's not too specific.

Air

@HDE Yup. The all mods list has data in the source so it was easy to verify. Next lowest has 266 on SO Japan.

Hopefully a temporary situation, though.

HDE 226868

(Starts bounty for 100 rep)

Kidding. We actually haven't had a bounty yet, though.

@Air Never mind.

hazzey

20:22

@HDE226868 I realize that it is a future project, I was just wondering how useful that tag will be moving forward. Does it matter if something is future or past? Will the tag need to change in a few years if it gets built?

Is this question just the other site sending us questions that they don't want to deal with?

HDE 226868

@hazzey Ah, you're right. That's a problem. I might get rid of it.

That was migrated because they think it will be better here than there.

Ethan48

@hazzey are you saying there is an aluminum plating process that doesn't require pickling? My understanding is that that's the problem with HDG is that all of the processes require pickling.

hazzey

@Ethan48 Apparently, they don't pickle the steel in that process. I'm looking for where I saw that.

Ethan48

@hazzey Good to know. I learned something new today! Still sounds like not the best option for you since concrete doesn't react well.

@hazzey I saw some folks in other places asking if epoxy anchors were a good solution to similar problems, but there didn't seem to be consensus on the technical merits. They would certainly be much more expensive, and I imagine lower strength.

hazzey

20:39

@Ethan48 See the right side of page 2

Epoxy anchors typically refer to using epoxy around a steel rod. I wondered about this as an option, but epoxy is typically limited to about 1/2in maximum thickness. I like there to be more room for adjustment in the field.

Ethan48

@hazzey Oh, interesting. So the process applies both zinc and aluminum.

Air

@HDE226868 Nope.

(Chuck Testa)

Ethan48

@hazzey Well with post-set epoxy threaded rods, the holes could be drilled in the field for as much adjustability as your rebar allows, but that's exactly why I understand they're so expensive to specify.

hazzey

And sometimes post-drilled holes need to be roughened because they are too smooth. It just looks like all the options will require more money or time! That is always the case though!

Ethan48

@hazzey Good, fast, or cheap - pick two, right?

@hazzey Yeah, I know HILTI makes some adhesives that are approved for cored holes, but I don't know if any of the systems go that big. 2.5" are pretty beefy anchors.

hazzey

20:48

@Ethan48 It would be much better if you could just tell California to not have earthquakes...

HDE 226868

@hazzey I deleted that tag from my questions; it's still on another.

Ethan48

@hazzey I've been working on that for the last year. So far, so good.

Air

@Ethan48 You call this "so far, so good?"

Ethan48

@Air I've only even felt on in the last year. I think it's listening to me.

Air

There was one last month outside of Chester that my wife felt. Small but nearby.

Around a III MMI

I tend not to feel them.

Ethan48

21:03

@Air But for some strange reason, the plan checker keeps insisting that I have to plan on them.

@Air Cool to know that we have a whole California contingent here, even if we're at opposite ends of the state

Air

Lots of people, lots of engineering schools, lots of engineering projects.

Ethan48

@Air True, and I haven't had to shovel snow since I moved here. I don't know if you're so lucky.

Air

21:27

Shoveled plenty of it back in 2009-10. Not so much since moving to Sacramento.

I'd like to go back up north but there's no work.

Well, that's not entirely true; there are quite a few firms with offices in and around Redding, but that's still the valley. A little sprinkling of snow every once in a while, 120-degree temps in the summer, a little culture starved.

Have we had any bioengineering activity yet?

HDE 226868

@Air Biomedical: engineering.stackexchange.com/questions/tagged/…

Ethan48

I don't think so, since that very early (only maybe related) question about prdicting maximum lift strength

Air

@HDE226868 Yeah, reading them now. But I can't tell if we have any experts in the area.

HDE 226868

@Air I'd guess not.

Air

I'll have to reach out to UC Davis. They have a big department.

user41796

21:39

@Air minimal

user41796

@Air And despite my academic credentials, I certainly wouldn't consider myself expert in the area

HDE 226868

I wish beta sites could host community ads. We could get folks from Biology that way.

user41796

@HDE226868 ?! You can go place an ad for us over on their meta community ad question. Regardless of our site status, if the ad pulls in 6 votes it will go into their rotation. That's why I placed one over at Progs

HDE 226868

@GlenH7 I thought sites in beta can't. We can make ads, but beta sites can't display ads.

user41796

And that sealed pipe question does cause me a degree of heartburn. General SE guidance is that unless it's obviously clear that the poster is about to cause immediate and significant harm to themselves or others, then SE won't step in and mods aren't supposed to do anything.

user41796

21:47

@HDE226868 I'm going to revert back to "I'm clearly not following." :-) Are you asking if other sites can refer to us? Or if we can refer to other sites?

user41796

oh

HDE 226868

@GlenH7 I fixed a typo. A beta site can't show ads from other sites.

user41796

I think that's correct yes.

user41796

But the ads are really only useful for referring someone from the current site over to another site

user41796

And we need to be selfish and encourage them to stick around instead of visiting those icky, other SE sites. :-P

HDE 226868

21:49

Ah, yes, let's be antisocial. . .

user41796

@HDE226868 Yes, they should stay with us forever and never consider any other sites. Ever!

user41796

C'mon now, this is all about site building

HDE 226868

Well, we do have all the civil engineers here. . .

Pun intended.

user41796

:-)

Ethan48

@GlenH7 Yeah, it's entirely possible it will go fine, just a much higher risk project than I would want to be involved in.

user41796

21:55

@Ethan48 It's that balance between "what's SE's liability" vs. your conscience in what you'd knowingly allow another human being to do.

user41796

I'd be lying if I said I didn't look for a big fat warning of "Don't do this at home" that I could slap on that question

Air

You can always comment.

But if we continue to grow, there'll be more such questions.

user41796

@Air precisely. And we can't catch them all.

Ethan48

@GlenH7 Yeah, I don't think that it's a matter of liability, wither for us or for SE. But it might be nice to have a meta post to point people at that gives a kinda standard "Here's why what you're doing is dangerous, and why it's still going to be dangerous after you you put on some safety gear like they taught you in 10th grade shop class."

Air

Yeah, I mean it's not like they're Pokemans.

2

HDE 226868

21:57

@Air Beat me to it.

@Ethan48 That would be a nice post.

Air

I like the idea of a meta post that we could use as a reference for "this is dangerous"

user41796

@Ethan48 Using a flimsy shield of Lexan isn't likely going to be as effective as you think when you generate pressures sufficient to rupture a steel vessel.

Air

That's exactly the kind of thing we want to be putting together during this public beta period.

Ethan48

@GlenH7 Just because for the most part we'll be inclined to calmly suggest possible options or improvements, and they might not hear the trepidation in my voice the same way they would if they were sitting next to me.

@GlenH7 Exactly.

user41796

@Air Yeah, that's starting to sound like a good idea. Many things within engineering can be extremely dangerous. It's not the site's job to prevent people from attempting such things

user41796

21:59

Although, for the record, if you attempt to create FOOF, then you're simply a madman

Ethan48

@Air OK, if that doesn't conflict with the previous disclamer Idea, let's try it. If nobody beats me to it, I'll try to write one once I"m home form work.

user41796

The engineering disclaimer would have been to the effect of "You're not receiving professional engineering advice. ~~Suck it~~ Suffer if your structure collapses."

Ethan48

@GlenH7 Oh, yeah. I think that is implied with "People on the internet told me."

user41796

This is to the effect of "If it seems really stupid and you still try it, don't blame us for having tried something really stupid."

HDE 226868

The folks on the law proposal must be having a tough time of it.

user41796

22:01

Also, the disclaimer was something that was going to go on the main site. This will be a meta post of "meh, you got advice on the internet and clearly didn't dig deep enough."

user41796

I'm a bit worried I left my recent question too broad, so feel free to edit and narrow it if need be

HDE 226868

it's != its. Fatal error. The question must be killed. And burned.

It doesn't seem too bad. Could you add a photo?

Ethan48

@GlenH7 This is not worthy of posting on the main site, but I heard in a radio story a few years ago that putting OTC medications in blister packs so you had to break out each pill, suicide rates by overdose went down.

user41796

@HDE226868 <sigh>

user41796

That's an interesting anecdote, yes

user41796

22:11

I don't think this particular pill can be that toxic, but I can see that

user41796

@HDE226868 I looked, but couldn't find anything that really captured it

user41796

@HDE226868 The ones I found show either the box or the inner foil pack, but not the outer foil envelope

HDE 226868

Daily xkcd:

@GlenH7 Hm. Tricky.

user41796

Back story on that one - I've got some severe head pain for another issue that normally isn't related to migraines. I popped one of the migraine pills to see if it would cut the pain (it didn't), but it led me to wondering why they put so much effort into double wrapping the thing

HDE 226868

Did trying to get it out of the packaging cause another headache?

user41796

22:14

And yes, for the record, I have a prescription for the med. :-P

user41796

@HDE226868 Unlike other blister packs I've used (ahem, nyquil) this one was actually pretty easy

Air

I think we'll end up putting a general site disclaimer in the Help Center and/or FAQ post

The "don't try this at home" or "at your own risk" disclaimer won't apply to most of the content on the site, so it can live in its own Meta post for handy linking

HDE 226868

@Air Sounds good.

@GlenH7 I was looking through some of the badges - You only got the Informed badge yesterday?!

user41796

22:31

@HDE226868 psssh. Who visits the tour?! ;-)

user41796

Not sure what I'm missing for biographer

user41796

never mind, apparently that was awarded

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