tom jennings on Nostr: 1/2 Went back to the machine shop (Cayes, on Glendale) for the disposition of my two ...
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Went back to the machine shop (Cayes, on Glendale) for the disposition of my two cylinder heads.
It's interesting to watch magnaflux crack detection. There's a large horseshoe AC magnet that goes on the casting, magnetic flux back and for at 60 hz. Over this a saltshaker of magnetic yellow powder.
The powder dances on the surface, more or less evenly, except at cracks: induced current flow passes current around the crack, because a crack is a discontinuity, and the current turns each side of the crack into alternating magnetic poles, and the powder is attracted to the transient poles. Very clever.
I had to go down for this; he wanted me to see it done.
As an old neighborhood shop, he gets a lot of cranks and crazies and low ballers. He told me of multiple folks, men are the worst he said, newish cars, towed to his shop... "Can you change the oil".
The engine is totally without oil, at 80K or whatever miles. They didn't know to check the oil or take to a dealer for service. They never lifted the good to check anything.
When the car fails they tow to the dealer who says as much, you need regular service! Oil changes! Customer yells you didn't put enough oil in it!
Only then did it occur to me, these knuckleheads think oil goes on a new car, like a full fuel tank, and then goes for 300K miles and stops.
I know "cargo cult" is an ugly phrase, but it had a concise way to describe the idea of worshiping the surface of things, believing without any reason some idealized form.
What's a good replacement for that?
"Consumerism" is too generic and mild.
1/2
Went back to the machine shop (Cayes, on Glendale) for the disposition of my two cylinder heads.
It's interesting to watch magnaflux crack detection. There's a large horseshoe AC magnet that goes on the casting, magnetic flux back and for at 60 hz. Over this a saltshaker of magnetic yellow powder.
The powder dances on the surface, more or less evenly, except at cracks: induced current flow passes current around the crack, because a crack is a discontinuity, and the current turns each side of the crack into alternating magnetic poles, and the powder is attracted to the transient poles. Very clever.
I had to go down for this; he wanted me to see it done.
As an old neighborhood shop, he gets a lot of cranks and crazies and low ballers. He told me of multiple folks, men are the worst he said, newish cars, towed to his shop... "Can you change the oil".
The engine is totally without oil, at 80K or whatever miles. They didn't know to check the oil or take to a dealer for service. They never lifted the good to check anything.
When the car fails they tow to the dealer who says as much, you need regular service! Oil changes! Customer yells you didn't put enough oil in it!
Only then did it occur to me, these knuckleheads think oil goes on a new car, like a full fuel tank, and then goes for 300K miles and stops.
I know "cargo cult" is an ugly phrase, but it had a concise way to describe the idea of worshiping the surface of things, believing without any reason some idealized form.
What's a good replacement for that?
"Consumerism" is too generic and mild.
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