The Blog of M.W. Chase
Wierd War Machines that Never Were
Posted: 3 Feb 2012Well, here’s some weird and wacky war machines that never really were.
The Tumbleweed Tank:
Leave it to the British boffins conjure up this month-of-all-wacky tanks. The Tumbleweed Tank would have been pretty awesome, if it wasn’t so obviously impractical. Oh well. That, and it could easily be defeated by a quick whack from a giant enemy croquet mallet.
The 305mm Mobile Gun:
Ka-pow! This was a ginormous mobile cannon was obviously very big, and was self-propelled, but I have very little information beyond what is written here.
The Treffaswagen:
A German WWI design, the Traffaswagen was… well… an armored box with two humongous wheels.
The Steam Wheel Tank:
Even the name screams steampunk, doesn’t it? The steam wheel tank is pretty much an armored steam tractor, one of the early American tank designs during the WWI period.
The 150 All-American Landship:
H.G. Wells would be proud! Called the Land Monitor, this 150 ton armored behemoth would have dominated the WWI battlefield. Sadly, it was never build–not even a prototype. Oh well.
The Tsar Tank:
Surly the most bizarre tank every designed, the Tsar Tank is a giant tricycle tank, equipped with three wheels (two huge wheels and a small one in the back) and three turrets (one main turret and two side turrets).
Ten Words to Stop Misspelling
Posted: 25 Jan 2012Here’s a neat little mnemonic tool to help you avoid some of the most commonly misspelled words in the English language. All credit is due to theOatmeal.com, and to see the original post please go here.
Click here to see the full Ten Words to Stop Misspelling
Must See Movies of 2012
Posted: 13 Jan 2012Here’s my top picks of the must see movies of 2012, in no particular order. Be sure to click the HD option to 720 and go full screen!
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
We all know the tale, and at long last the new movie has been revealed!
Click here to view the embedded video.
The Hunger Games
Based on the novel by Suzanne Collins, this looks to be an excellent film adaptation.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Prometheus
So, Mr. Ridley Scott… You claim Prometheus is not an Aliens prequel? I think we’ll judge for ourselves.
Click here to view the embedded video.
The Avengers
I do believe the Avengers movie will be a wild, fun ride.
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Wrath of the Titans
Another wild fun ride of a movie, and clearly a special effects extravaganza.
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The Expendables 2
If you want to see some legendary action heroes, I think this is the movie for you.
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G.I. Joe: Retaliation
I’m not saying the first G.I. Joe live action movie was awesome, but G.I. Joe: Retaliation actually looks pretty good. And more G.I. Joe like than the other film.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Zeitgeist 2011
Posted: 31 Dec 2011I hope you had a good 2011 and have a happy 2012. Google has put up a retrospective of 2011, highlighting from the search engine’s perspective the top stories and events of the past year. Sure, it’s just a promo for Google, but it’s still a great video. Enjoy!
Click here to view the embedded video.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Posted: 21 Dec 2011Only 374 days! Click the HD 720 and go full screen:
Click here to view the embedded video.
From Warner Brothers press release: “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” follows title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor, which was long ago conquered by the dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior, Thorin Oakensheild. Their journey will take them into the Wild; through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins and Orcs, deadly Wargs and Giant Spiders, Shapeshifters and Sorcerers. Although their goal lies to the East and the wastelands of the Lonely Mountain first they must escape the goblin tunnels, where Bilbo meets the creature that will change his life forever … Gollum. Here, alone with Gollum, on the shores of an underground lake, the unassuming Bilbo Baggins not only discovers depths ofguile and courage that surprise even him, he also gains possession of Gollum’s ‘precious’ ring that holds unexpected and useful qualities … A simple, gold ring that is tied to the fate of all Middle-earth in ways Bilbo cannot begin to know.”
Mac vs PC vs Linux
Posted: 15 Dec 2011Remember those old Mac vs PC commercials? Well, here’s some more — but with a new friend added!
Click here to view the embedded video.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Click here to view the embedded video.
72 and Sunny on Kepler-22b
Posted: 7 Dec 2011It’s 72 and sunny on Kepler-22b! Well, maybe. The Kepler Telescope team has announced confirmation of a terrestrial planet orbiting a G-class star (same type as our star) in the habitable orbit zone. The planet, dubbed Kepler-22b, is a little over twice the size of Earth, and orbits its host star in a circular orbit at a similar distance to Earth’s orbit around the sun, and it even has a close to Earth-like 290 day orbital cycle.
Artist's depiction of Kepler 22b
The star is 600 light-years away, so there is presently no way to actual get an image of the planet or (as yet) to determine its atmospheric composition. However, if the planet has an atmosphere of similar composition and density to Earth’s, it is a prime candidate for life. William Borucki, the Kepler mission’s principal investigator at NASA’s Ames Research Center, has this to say: “If greenhouse warming on this planet was similar (to atmospheric warming on Earth), its surface temperature would be something like 72° F,” he said. The article at Popular Science has more details on this exciting discovery.
So exciting is this discovery, that SETI has just announced that the US Air Force Space Command has provided additional funding to reactive the Allen Telescope Array and focus its ears on Kepler-22b, and similar candidate planets, for artificial signals.
Exciting times!
Just Glue Some Gears On It
Posted: 4 Dec 2011Just Glue Some Gears on it and call it Steampunk, yes? And if you believe that, old chap, I fear you are outrageously mistaken. Please observe the following musical recital to educate yourself on both what steampunk is, as well as what it most assuredly is not.
Click here to view the embedded video.
New Mars Rover Launches!
Posted: 27 Nov 2011The new Mars rover Curiosity has successfully launched and is now well on its way to the Red Planet. The 9 month journey will (hopefully) conclude in a successful landing and an awesome 2 year (plus) mission to explore the Gale Crater for evidence of microbial life.
Here’s the launch.
Click here to view the embedded video.
For the official press announcement, watch this:
Click here to view the embedded video.
And here’s a nice informational documentary on Curiosity itself. Pump it up to 720 HD and full screen!
Click here to view the embedded video.
Read more about the launch of Curiosity on Phil Plait’s blog.
Time Lapse From Space
Posted: 22 Nov 2011This is a fantastic video produced onboard the International Space Station while orbiting 250 miles above the Earth at 17,500 miles per hour. The video was put together by NASA Astronaut Ron Garan. It is absolutely stunning in every way. Just click play, make sure HD is on, click the full-screen mode button, and then just sit back and watch!
Click here to view the embedded video.
What really stands out are the city lights, thunderstorms, and auroras.