tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post2413933406771581517..comments2023-09-29T05:32:04.308-07:00Comments on StrangePegs: The A to Z of Fiction to Reality: LasersAndrew Leonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-18740569460198710852012-04-16T13:37:34.688-07:002012-04-16T13:37:34.688-07:00Shannon: Oh, I think people would be surprised if ...Shannon: Oh, I think people would be surprised if they knew all the ways that lasers are being used that we just don't see. Kind of like nanotechnology.<br /><br />Vero: Yeah, the potential of that one really scares me. <br /><br />Glad to have you! :)Andrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-33439435886503794712012-04-16T01:50:04.385-07:002012-04-16T01:50:04.385-07:00Ugh, I hate crowd control weapons, and the ADS is ...Ugh, I hate crowd control weapons, and the ADS is one of the most horrible IMO. <br /><br />Great post, Andrew! I'm definitely here to stay. ;)Veronica Sicoehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03741318844378921184noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-36632910994195451852012-04-15T13:19:48.095-07:002012-04-15T13:19:48.095-07:00Love that movie (Real Genius)! I was sad to reali...Love that movie (Real Genius)! I was sad to realize I do not own it, which I must remedy.<br /><br />Interesting info on weapon uses for them. We've come a long way in using lasers for other things, though, so all is not lost. They are mostly medical, but there are thousands of people out there who are grateful for continued work on lasers.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.thewarriormuse.com/" rel="nofollow">Shannon at The Warrior Muse</a>, co-host of the <a href="http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/" rel="nofollow">2012 #atozchallenge</a>! Twitter: @AprilA2ZShannon Lawrencehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00934641808195675935noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-49493325823774131752012-04-14T11:13:55.855-07:002012-04-14T11:13:55.855-07:00Stephsco: Yeah, jetpacks are real, but they only l...Stephsco: Yeah, jetpacks are real, but they only last a few minutes. Basically, you go up, and you come back down. There is a guy that has developed a winged jetpack that can fly a bit longer, but you have to come out of a plane to use it; otherwise, it's up and down. I think the longest flight time so far on a groundbased takeoff is around 4 minutes.<br /><br />Michael: Oh, there's some guy working on that, too. Of course, part of what he's worked out is that there is not enough raw material on the Earth to make one.<br /><br />Kern: Thanks for stopping in! I'm glad you enjoyed the post!<br /><br />Elizabeth: Yeah, they kind of scare me, too. I mean, sure, right now, they're non-lethal, but that's -only- because we've made them non-lethal. There's nothing to stop someone from, oh, continuing to boil people for longer than 5 seconds, and there's no threat of harmful gases in the area.Andrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-81781424326650439532012-04-14T11:08:34.588-07:002012-04-14T11:08:34.588-07:00Alex: I don't actually want lasers for my car;...Alex: I don't actually want lasers for my car; I want a huge hammer that comes off the roof and smacks the other vehicles. That would just be so much more fun, don'tchathink?<br /><br />Rusty: There's a short story I read long ago (that I wish I could remember the name of) about this guy arriving on another planet and being attacked by some kind of indigenous dog. The problem is that he only has a laser weapon, and it doesn't make any noise or allow the dogs to make any noise when they die, so none of the other dogs know there's anything to be scared of, so they just keep coming and coming. In the end, he has to make some kind of thing that makes a huge noise to scare them away. Basically, the laser, even though it killed the dogs, was useless.<br /><br />Grumpy: Lightsabers in a moment. The only issue with the heat vision is that it looks like lasers in the comic book. heh<br /><br />S.L.: Well, there are some guys working on lightsabers. They kind of work. Except they emit so much heat, they'd kill anyone holding it.<br /><br />ABftS: Hey, well, that's fun. But, I bet, you own CDs and DVDs and stuff, and those are made with lasers.<br /><br />Matthew: Okay, lightsabers: <br />My wife says I should have mentioned this in the post, but they're not rayguns... anyway...<br />Lightsabers were originally called laser swords. I don't think they were even originally made of light but more like regular swords that emitted laser energy or something. Of course, then, they dropped the word laser out of everything and they decided the beam should be made out of light and all of that stuff. As they ended up, though, they don't really have anything to do with lasers, because they're supposed to be beams of focused plasma.Andrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-44705078525343430082012-04-13T20:09:54.516-07:002012-04-13T20:09:54.516-07:00Awesome post. The new crowd control weapons are th...Awesome post. The new crowd control weapons are the scariest. I don't want to be microwaved! I am not human popcorn!<br /><br /><a href="http://elizabethtwist.blogspot.ca/" rel="nofollow">A-Z @ Elizabeth Twist</a>Elizabeth Twisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03133959633383307056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-73295621788625659492012-04-13T17:57:36.176-07:002012-04-13T17:57:36.176-07:00This post is amazing! Not just a history lesson on...This post is amazing! Not just a history lesson on the genesis of lasers, but a science lesson thrown in, too! It gladdens the heart of my inner geek to read it!<br /><br />I'm so glad to have discovered your blog through the A to Z Challenge. I'll be back for more. :)Kern Windwraithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16771591425163484238noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-9078271479968852502012-04-13T09:38:34.825-07:002012-04-13T09:38:34.825-07:00I just hope they don't invent a Death Star.I just hope they don't invent a Death Star.Michael Offutt, Phantom Readerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10557969104886174930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-73287829070303304692012-04-13T09:06:58.849-07:002012-04-13T09:06:58.849-07:00@A beer for the shower: lasers + cats = highly ent...@A beer for the shower: lasers + cats = highly entertaining!<br /><br />I love that 1930s raygun, it's so cool looking. I read recently that jetpacks are a reality, they're just really really expensive.Stephscohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06328839483008086049noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-16600136474266919292012-04-13T08:40:30.557-07:002012-04-13T08:40:30.557-07:00What an excellent breakdown!
Now, what about ligh...What an excellent breakdown!<br /><br />Now, what about lightsabers?Matthew MacNishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03264738483763244969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-79629484802651445022012-04-13T07:54:27.650-07:002012-04-13T07:54:27.650-07:00The biggest thing lasers have ever done for me is ...The biggest thing lasers have ever done for me is allow me to torment my girlfriend's cat. And if that's as good as it ever gets...meh. I'm okay with that.A Beer for the Showerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17029139745335325356noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-53350685379925397672012-04-13T07:41:10.606-07:002012-04-13T07:41:10.606-07:00Life goal, own a laser gun. Or a lightsaber - I...Life goal, own a laser gun. Or a lightsaber - I'm not picky. When is someone going to start working on that? And Real Genius...pretty genius.S. L. Hennessyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06514651403542719387noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-80727340877630670802012-04-13T05:32:55.607-07:002012-04-13T05:32:55.607-07:00Probably the least possible conception of lasers a...Probably the least possible conception of lasers are the lightsabers in Star Wars, which are supposed to be like laser swords.<br /><br />I guess Superman was on to something with the heat vision thing though.PT Dillowayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09394481476862013009noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-58660193771557165522012-04-13T05:10:17.359-07:002012-04-13T05:10:17.359-07:00I must have seen Real Genius a dozen times. One of...I must have seen Real Genius a dozen times. One of my favorites too. I always had this idea for a story - well, sketch really - where a these guys find/steals a couple of real handheld gamma lasers. They end up shooting each other with them, but no one realizes it because there is nothing to see, no bright lights, just some clicking in the weapon.<br /><br />In the end, they die of massive tissue damage hours later, most of the intervening time they combatants were arguing about whether or not the guns actually did anything.<br /><br />Which is my point, TV lasers are awesome, because they are pretty and make cool sounds. Real life lasers don't do that. Even those laser tag games are lame because to even have a chance of seeing the laser the place has to be so foggy you almost can't breathe.Rusty Carlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09887821877521181811noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-39277463315892638672012-04-13T03:49:30.093-07:002012-04-13T03:49:30.093-07:00Real Genius! Well done, sir.
We've worked a lo...Real Genius! Well done, sir.<br />We've worked a long time on lasers with nothing to show for it. No sharks with frickin' lasers on their heads. No lasers for the front of my car. (Yes, I am an impatient driver.)Alex J. Cavanaughhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09770065693345181702noreply@blogger.com