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GayWolf420
June, 2025

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What is something massively outdated that humans have yet to upgrade?

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Dobber
Posts: 1698 - Karma: 9,832
What products are worse than they should be with today's technology?

I'm going to say toilet paper. It should be moisturized,scented, and biodegradable so you can shit out side more often.
10 years ago
769 103
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BenWhit
Posts: 4654 - Karma: 3,257
the technogology for mass producing razor blades. how the fuck can 5 of them costs 30 dollars
10 years ago
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nate1097
Posts: 361 - Karma: 524
our politicians
10 years ago
6 0
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seward
Posts: 5233 - Karma: 2,174
Dogs-Why can't they speak English yet?


haha, i have thought this to myself a million times.
not enough balls to ever say it to anyone though.
10 years ago
8 0
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Rusticles
Posts: 2180 - Karma: 1,337
shin-bangWhere are you getting this information about the 1 ton and 500miles? I may be wrong, but those numbers and 1 gallon of what? Diesel? does not sound remotely realistic? If you could give me a source I would believe but idk I'm skeptical on that statement


S.J.Whttp://www.factcheck.org/2008/07/fuel-efficient-freight-trains/


I think that says 1 ton of freight as well, not including the weight of the train. If you include the weight of the train it's even more impressive.
10 years ago
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Blindsurfer
Posts: 2252 - Karma: 2,802
public education system
10 years ago
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jakeordie
Posts: 665 - Karma: 3,281
roller blades
10 years ago
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Nikolaus
Posts: 863 - Karma: 1,000
I want stronger pencil leads. Also knees.
10 years ago
9 0
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theabortionator
Posts: 52695 - Karma: 175,144
droogz
10 years ago
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foolmetwice
Posts: 617 - Karma: 1,305
electric car technology should be way ahead of where it is. Fuck tha oil companies.
10 years ago
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Dobber
Posts: 1698 - Karma: 9,832
BenWhitthe technogology for mass producing razor blades. how the fuck can 5 of them costs 30 dollars


http://www.dollarshaveclub.com/
10 years ago
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MACAQUE
Posts: 2811 - Karma: 696
RusticlesYeah, I was pretty impressed when I started looking into it. I'm guessing but I think the wheels and track are pretty low friction comparatively to tires and highway, also the electric system is very efficient and can generate 100% torque at 0 rpm


Yup. Steel wheels on a steel track have almost zero rolling friction. Once you accelerate the train to speed the only power you need is to overcome energy loss due to friction and air resistance, and to climb hills. So on flat ground a freight train requires way less power than a car/semi/boat etc.
10 years ago
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PacificRimJob
Posts: 24730 - Karma: 30,008
The searchbar.
10 years ago
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BenWhit
Posts: 4654 - Karma: 3,257
Dobberhttp://www.dollarshaveclub.com/


true, but I really like my Gillette Mach 3.
10 years ago
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Casey
Posts: 8025 - Karma: 27,011
RusticlesYeah, I was pretty impressed when I started looking into it. I'm guessing but I think the wheels and track are pretty low friction comparatively to tires and highway, also the electric system is very efficient and can generate 100% torque at 0 rpm


Yeah its weird to think about, the friction of train wheels on a rail is so much less than tires on a road, once the train is moving it probably needs very little energy to sustain it.
10 years ago
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daOyster
Posts: 329 - Karma: 298
MACAQUEYup. Steel wheels on a steel track have almost zero rolling friction. Once you accelerate the train to speed the only power you need is to overcome energy loss due to friction and air resistance, and to climb hills. So on flat ground a freight train requires way less power than a car/semi/boat etc.


The coefficient of friction between the wheels and the tracks is pretty low. However I believe the force of friction is found by Multiplying the normal force by the coefficient of friction. And everyone knows trains are fucking heavy. So the force of friction remains pretty decent I believe. You wouldn't want a low force of friction applied to the wheels and tracks. The wheels would just spin out and you wouldn't go much anywhere. Same for hills, if you had a low force of friction, you'd never make it up. Plus that force is being distributed across the wheels on a very fine contact point compared to cars. This means the force of friction is probably going to be high.

TL;DR: The coefficient of friction is low between the wheels and tracks, but the force from the friction is very high due to the weight being distributed between all of the wheels on very fine points compared to a car tire. Train wheels don't flex that much. And the fact trains are fucking heavy. High force of friction = good for trains.
10 years ago
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MACAQUE
Posts: 2811 - Karma: 696
daOysterThe coefficient of friction between the wheels and the tracks is pretty low. However I believe the force of friction is found by Multiplying the normal force by the coefficient of friction. And everyone knows trains are fucking heavy. So the force of friction remains pretty decent I believe. You wouldn't want a low force of friction applied to the wheels and tracks. The wheels would just spin out and you wouldn't go much anywhere. Same for hills, if you had a low force of friction, you'd never make it up. Plus that force is being distributed across the wheels on a very fine contact point compared to cars. This means the force of friction is probably going to be high.

TL;DR: The coefficient of friction is low between the wheels and tracks, but the force from the friction is very high due to the weight being distributed between all of the wheels on very fine points compared to a car tire. Train wheels don't flex that much. And the fact trains are fucking heavy. High force of friction = good for trains.


Rolling friction is different than sliding friction. And frictional force doesn't really depend on contact area.
10 years ago
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Dobber
Posts: 1698 - Karma: 9,832
BenWhittrue, but I really like my Gillette Mach 3.


Dollar shave blades kinda suck to be honest, but the shave butter and aftershave is top notch. Saves so much money.
10 years ago
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603pow
Posts: 151 - Karma: 1,392
Drugs. We should have some insane shit that's not addictive or even slightly harmful.
10 years ago
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*DELETED*
Posts: 1043 - Karma: 938
10 years ago
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crotchvent
Posts: 1527 - Karma: 2,185
ThaLoraxCars-why the hell aren't electric cars supplemented by solar and wind or kinetic energy converters?

Dogs-Why can't they speak English yet?

The education system.


The range on most electric cars is terrible and solar and wind energy is super expensive and not that efficient. Plus solar panels vaporize the birds.
10 years ago
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byubound
Posts: 1636 - Karma: 9,873
.Frydesk top computers. they're pretty outdated right now. I guarantee that 8-10 years from now nobody will have a desk top computer.


I would guess that the computer of the future has something like the lightning port that Apple is using now but better, and functions as a laptop but then can be plugged into some kind of graphics/processor unit at home to make heavy gaming and video editing etc. possible.
But I think its time for a energy storage and battery overhaul. The top end battery's Tesla is using still only have an 8-10 year lifespan, and the basic idea has remained the same with different materials since forever. There has to be a more efficient way to do it.
10 years ago
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Casey
Posts: 8025 - Karma: 27,011
daOysterThe coefficient of friction between the wheels and the tracks is pretty low. However I believe the force of friction is found by Multiplying the normal force by the coefficient of friction. And everyone knows trains are fucking heavy. So the force of friction remains pretty decent I believe. You wouldn't want a low force of friction applied to the wheels and tracks. The wheels would just spin out and you wouldn't go much anywhere. Same for hills, if you had a low force of friction, you'd never make it up. Plus that force is being distributed across the wheels on a very fine contact point compared to cars. This means the force of friction is probably going to be high.

TL;DR: The coefficient of friction is low between the wheels and tracks, but the force from the friction is very high due to the weight being distributed between all of the wheels on very fine points compared to a car tire. Train wheels don't flex that much. And the fact trains are fucking heavy. High force of friction = good for trains.


Yeah I mean the efficiency of trains kind of disproves this. In my mind the massive weight of a train means once its moving that fucker is not stopping for like a mile. Car tires on asphalt provide grip, which is necessary for turning but grip means friction. A Train is iron on iron, there is no give, no bumps, largely no braking, if a train climbs to an elevation it can coast on a programmed route to a lower elevation like a rollercoaster would do with zero fuel expenditure.
10 years ago
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deleted5
Posts: 14507 - Karma: 13,510
https://www.newschoolers.com/videos/watch/770369/Humans-Need-Not-Apply
10 years ago
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*DELETED*
Posts: 1043 - Karma: 938
nocturnalhttps://www.newschoolers.com/videos/watch/770369/Humans-Need-Not-Apply


Damn, fun watch. So where does that leave the majority of humans in the next 100 years or so as far as day to day life or "earning their keep"?

(Also someone should create a thread dedicated to cool educational videos that are around 10 minutes or so a piece...)
10 years ago
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ThaLorax
Posts: 21111 - Karma: 8,652
crotchventThe range on most electric cars is terrible and solar and wind energy is super expensive and not that efficient. Plus solar panels vaporize the birds.


Wtf are you smoking? Solar vaporizing birds? Lay off the krokadyl man.

The entire point of my point was that solar, wind and kinetic energy EXTENDS the range of the car.... the technology is there, but for whatever reason it's not readily available yet.
10 years ago
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Powstagram
Posts: 250 - Karma: 2,564
BenWhitthe technogology for mass producing razor blades. how the fuck can 5 of them costs 30 dollars


Companies like Gilette actually make a loss on the initial razor product itself, so they charge top dollar for replacement blades to make up for that loss, even though the blades take pennies to produce en masse. Really sucks. Same with printers and printer cartridges to an extent.
10 years ago
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Rusticles
Posts: 2180 - Karma: 1,337
APSheWantsTheDelectric car technology should be way ahead of where it is. Fuck tha oil companies.


ThaLoraxWtf are you smoking? Solar vaporizing birds? Lay off the krokadyl man.

The entire point of my point was that solar, wind and kinetic energy EXTENDS the range of the car.... the technology is there, but for whatever reason it's not readily available yet.


Yeah, Electric vehicles seem to be held back by their batteries or lack of a consistent ample supply of electricity. If it wasn't for the lack of sustained power supply, an electric drive vehicle would destroy conventional vehicles. A motor(s) with only two bearings and one moving part, transmissions with no moving parts, a portion of the breaking is frictionless, plus they are far more reliable. With the capabilities of an electric system I'm surprised there isn't some kind of turbine/electric hybrid. Elon Musk might be onto something though.
10 years ago
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MLJ
Posts: 1849 - Karma: 3,649
ThaLoraxWtf are you smoking? Solar vaporizing birds? Lay off the krokadyl man.

The entire point of my point was that solar, wind and kinetic energy EXTENDS the range of the car.... the technology is there, but for whatever reason it's not readily available yet.


With solar power, I could see how that would work, but with wind are you proposing having a little turbine on the top of the car, or something along those lines? You realise that that would just increase friction so much that it would end up using more energy than it creates?
10 years ago
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OzzyJ
Posts: 723 - Karma: 927
TommyDcereal boxes, why can't we reseal those bags yey?


resealable
10 years ago
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ThaLorax
Posts: 21111 - Karma: 8,652
MLJWith solar power, I could see how that would work, but with wind are you proposing having a little turbine on the top of the car, or something along those lines? You realise that that would just increase friction so much that it would end up using more energy than it creates?


Nope, just as one example, you could use the engine fan as the turbine and create energy from both its kinetic movement and the engines heat exhaust. The heat off of cars are literally wasted energy.
10 years ago
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eheath
Posts: 61964 - Karma: 126,873
crotchventThe range on most electric cars is terrible and solar and wind energy is super expensive and not that efficient. Plus solar panels vaporize the birds.


Yeaahhh, nope.
10 years ago
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Bateman
Posts: 8593 - Karma: 8,600
AnathemaReligion.



i agree with you though
10 years ago
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Bateman
Posts: 8593 - Karma: 8,600
crotchventThe range on most electric cars is terrible and solar and wind energy is super expensive and not that efficient. Plus solar panels vaporize the birds.


Congratulations! Your application for congress has been approved. Welcome aboard!
10 years ago
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Broken_Rides
Posts: 334 - Karma: 224
Rusticlestransmissions with no moving parts


I'd like to see this, LOL.
10 years ago
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Bateman
Posts: 8593 - Karma: 8,600
Also, television.

Not the technology of the TV's, but whats on and how it's viewed in our homes. Everyone is streaming everything right now. Streaming is the future of television if this continues.
10 years ago
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daOyster
Posts: 329 - Karma: 298
One thing that has always bothered me was why they don't make electric hybrids that have a pure electrical drive train and use a generator to supplement a battery that could also power the car a far ways. The Tesla Model S has a frunk that you could totally fit a gas powered generator in. Add some ventilation and fire proofing and just plug it into the charging circuit. Might lose some initial range due to the heavier weight, but you'll gain it in the range the gas power adds. And then use the gas power as fall back instead of electric fall back.
10 years ago
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250r
Posts: 2276 - Karma: 1,013
passive hydrogen generators, hydrogen cars would probably be more of a thing if we could make these generators cheaper

in whistler we had hydrogen busses but wasn't worth it at all because we here having it trucked all the way from fucking quebec to here.


sure engines running alcohol make some good power, electric cars have stupid amounts of torque right off the line, but hydrogen is the most energetic substance out there. could be some crazy hydrogen cars down the line. 2 stroke deisil like motors are getting big for hydrogen, but its easiest to just make a steam engine since hydrogen burns so hot. would probably be similar to driving an electric car, no gears, just insane power right off the line.
10 years ago
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ShredAZ
Posts: 1054 - Karma: 641
The referenced post has been removed.


This guy gets it!
10 years ago
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Rusticles
Posts: 2180 - Karma: 1,337
M-U-DI'd like to see this, LOL.


You probably already have if you've seen a train or a heavy haul truck. Electric motors can vary their speed without any moving transmission parts, no clutch and can add significant brake power with out friction with an inverter and dynamic braking
10 years ago
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Rusticles
Posts: 2180 - Karma: 1,337
daOysterOne thing that has always bothered me was why they don't make electric hybrids that have a pure electrical drive train and use a generator to supplement a battery that could also power the car a far ways. The Tesla Model S has a frunk that you could totally fit a gas powered generator in. Add some ventilation and fire proofing and just plug it into the charging circuit. Might lose some initial range due to the heavier weight, but you'll gain it in the range the gas power adds. And then use the gas power as fall back instead of electric fall back.


There is a company that is making semi trucks with pure electric drive and a turbine that charges the batteries, it's mostly for stop and go city driving.

Not sure why they haven't tried using turbines for pure hybrid's. they have great power to weight, They could probably even cut out the batteries.
10 years ago
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crotchvent
Posts: 1527 - Karma: 2,185
eheathYeaahhh, nope.

Would you care to elaborate?

The referenced post has been removed.


This right here is where we need to go.
10 years ago
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Tinga
Posts: 11349 - Karma: 2,333
I think the postal system is pretty outdated. Shit I gotta pay money for you to take my property take it some where else and then I have to pay more money to guarantee that it gets there.
10 years ago
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Lé.Skiing
Posts: 10035 - Karma: 8,128
I know scientists have already been working on battery technology, but I feel we should be seeing this awesome new battery technology now. I want to charge my technology faster and have it last longer. Also That new Tesla battery that was just released for home use should be better for $3,000. Maybe my standards are just too high.
10 years ago
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msg
Posts: 1108 - Karma: 3,269
crotchventWould you care to elaborate?


Tesla?
10 years ago
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crotchvent
Posts: 1527 - Karma: 2,185
dodgeTesla?


The range is 265 miles and that's if your driving the car nicely which isn't very good range when comparing it to a gas powered car.
10 years ago
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*DUMBCAN*
Posts: 2447 - Karma: 5,628
The referenced post has been removed.


How am I agreeing with you, of all people...

Nuclear power is the shit. Particularly thorium, but no-one seems interested in making thorium reactors cos you can't make bombs outta them. Curiously that seems to be an argument for both sides of the U vs Th argument.

Plus we need some new uranium research reactors, the price of 99mTc is really killing my research group. Interestingly the USA accounts for almost half the worlds demand for 99mTc, a radioactive isotope used to screen cancer progression and blood flow as a few of many examples, but is yet to produce a single atom of it (commercially. There are 5 reactors producing the isotope worldwide, several more if you count for a new but more expensive production route from 98Mo that does not require as specialised a reactor).

As for battery tech... If only we could mass produce graphene. It's within touching distance but we just can't get there yet. Graphene based batteries have shown a ton of promise in the extremely small scale. Also Li-ion batteries really aren't sustainable, lithium is as finite a resource as oil and it is far more environmentally damaging to extract it.

Electric cars could be the future, but with autonomous vehicles being the next step I could see conventional roads becoming a thing of the past.
10 years ago
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S.J.W
Posts: 7609 - Karma: 31,172
Tanner Hall's keyboard needs an upgrade
10 years ago
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.otto.
Posts: 3495 - Karma: 12,919
OP's Clash of Clans base
10 years ago
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Broken_Rides
Posts: 334 - Karma: 224
RusticlesYou probably already have if you've seen a train or a heavy haul truck. Electric motors can vary their speed without any moving transmission parts, no clutch and can add significant brake power with out friction with an inverter and dynamic braking


I'm well aware of current electrically powered vehicular technology.

Technically the electric motor is the transmission, assuming it's powered by a diesel generator.

Even if that's not the case and it's solely battery powered, an initial gear increase between the output shaft and wheels is definitely required to achieve any reasonable speed.

To achieve significant speed a transmission would be required, any motor(electric, gas, diesel, propane, etc..) spinning past about 15000 rpm are seen as high performance machines, requiring extensive maintenance at sustained high rpms. Basically a transmission is the only way to deliver the power without redlining the power plant into mechanical failure.

There's no reasonable way to achieve high speeds (60mph+ or 100kmh+) without the use of a transmission.

Jet engines and Rocket engines are about the only exceptions.
10 years ago
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deleted5
Posts: 14507 - Karma: 13,510
the problem with electric cars is there only as good as the electric grid that they are on. If your state uses a lot of coal to make electricity. Your car isn't a eco friendly as another state that uses more wind turbine energy. pluging your car into the wall is not the future either, its going to be removable batteries, or cars that can go thousands of miles on a single charge.
10 years ago
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