Well, Wasn't that a blast and a half?

Maybe SpaceShipOne's flight will awaken a few of those Washington cronies up to the possibilty that Bush's Moon and Mars plan might be possible.

just for the record. If Australia was to get really interested in a manned space program, i reckon that even the government over here could run it reasonably efficiently and at a lower cost than NASA (privately would be even better, though govt. is just an example). I've been doing alot of reading over the last few days, and i reckon that with the enginuity of alot of the engineers over here and their willingness to tell the "pollies" and the bureaucraps where to get, as well as the abundance of resources, space and facilities, and companies that have experience in building highly efficient, safe and reliable yet cheap equipment, as well as the differing laws and regulations present that it could be possible. I think that we've also done a ton of stuff with SCRAM-Jets b4 as well. Alot more than any1 else from what i've been able 2 gather 2.

Probably just dreaming.

also Author, that would of meant that you would of done a bit of work with NORAD, right? Tracking satelites, space junk and maintaining satellite communications right? That woulda kept u busy.

Cheers,
Colin.

During the 2nd Gulf War, while the US and the Britts were havin all sorts of problems with their operations computers (big multimillion hunks of junk) due to sand, overheatting etc., Australia had practically none, and we were running computers that had pretty much just come off the shelf of a computer shop. They were running faster, more reliable and longer than the other allied ones. Wanna know the secret? its amazing what an aussie army technician/engineer can do with some condoms, a set of computer water cooling pipes, and an old reverse cycle air conditioner. All of this, with the computer included, cost less than $1400 per computer needed by the Aussie troops over there @ Camp Skippy.
Lets just say that the fellas that were running the Brit's and Yank's equivalent were both impressed, highly jelious and annoyed @ the same time. (The fact that the Aussies also invited a few Yanks and Brits over b4 they packed up, and totally whooped them in a few tactical computer games(ah, training exercises) didn't help either )


Thats just one example of what lengths we'll do to get the best out of what we have. If we got really interested in a space program, I wouldn't be surprised with what stuff we'd come up with, and what materials its made out of either.

Cheers,
Colin.

Well thats us told then! It must be easier for the ANZAC forces to improvise 'cus there's no way in hell they are going to get to use those condoms any other way! 20-17

Hi colin,


And you base this on what? I'm not doubting you, I have no basis for that, I just would like some sort of evidence. I lived in Australia for a while (even spent a bit of time in Armidale) and find it hard to imagine that the Australian government could even approach what you say. So, if you could point me to a news article(s) or some sort of other evidence I would very much like to read it.


"space and facilities" ... very probably, but not an abundance of resources (which is the linch-pin). Of course you might have a good source for this also so please point me in the right direction, so that I might learn a bit (I haven't been in Australia for some years and things have probably changed)


Well the University of Queensland sure did have one stunning success (July 30, 2002) ... except they still haven't been able to find the payload (which is unfortunate). In the sense that they actually got a scram-jet to fire off and fly at quite a rate of knots, yes Australians have done some stuff ... but it's hardly a ton. But, of course, I may have missed something ... links?

How is Armidale in 2004? I haven't been there since ... gosh ... 1980 (!) ... or has the University of New England spread out to other cities now?

Cheers mate.

A few things-

1. we do use those things quite a bit. i.e. the condoms. for more reasons than u stated. Why do you think our birth-rate is so low?

2. Facilities include: Woomera Rocket Range, University of Queensland, the space and aeronautical departments of the CSIRO, plus a few aircraft part manufacturing companies (some of which are doing some really interesting stuff with Lockheed-Martin, Boeing and Airbus) alot of other Uni's (UNE included) are looking into this area as well. (Vice-Chancellor stated this in a speech that I attended)

3. There were a few other launches of SCRAM-jets that you may not of heard about. A few of these were done as a combined effort with a few foriegn universities. That U-Q launch, i reckon it probably ended up in the ocean, or hit someplace in the Nullabour Plains. If it hit there, well you'll never find it cause it would of either desintigrated on impact or partly desintigrated then collapsed through the thin layer of soil there and fallen into the limestone caves below.

4. In the last 15 years, we've come a long way in terms of aeronautical technology. this is largely due to a change in the attitudes of governments. You would of been here when Malcolm Fraiser was Prime Minister. Nearly all of the Governments since then have had a different attitude towards engineering. I don't think that it would be any harder for us to build an x-prize style craft, than what it has been to make SpaceShipOne. Also alot of the tech. needed has been around for ages.


5. Armidale/UNE is Great! Nothing has really changed here since 1980, in terms of growth, and location. The Teacher's College got moved over here sometime around then, and a couple of new residential colleges popped up as well as a new IT building. I'm staying @ Earle Page. I suspect that you would of stayed at either one of the main colleges or @ the international college, Mary White?

Cheers,
Colin.

Here's a possible association. If you are spending more of your late teens and early twenties getting something which approaches the best education available, you are going to have less time to ... uh ... screw around. Aussies are, despite appearances, a decently educated bunch and so perhaps that's why the birth-rate is lower than that of many other nations. Also, if you are being tempted with a higher paid professional occupation which is contingent on getting that education, when you do screw around (having been tempted by an often over-riding non-professional pursuit) you are going to study condoms quite closely to ensure they're going to do their job properly. And of course, when you pay close attention to anything ... well then some of the less obvious applications occasionally cum to light ... hence the army engineers of cdoak's warstory were merely applying their prophylactic education to the problems of sealing microelectronics against unwanted fluid exchange.

Sand is often considered a fluid.


Ouch dude, that really hurts, how old do you think I am anyway? Thanks for answering my questions, you've stimulated my "google" gland (which is probably located somewhere in the prefontal cortex).

DR Keith! Well really.

What? I thought I was just being seminal.

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=seminal

(second intent, or first, you decide)

God, what have i started?

and where do u get sand from? No beaches around here

You do know though, if space flight goes ahead, its going to render the "Mile High" club obsolete, don't you?

Cheers,
Doaky.

P.S. You did say 1980 you were here Doc. I guess that you were in your 20's then, I'd say you would have to be in your mid 50's now.

All of the below is for cdoak ... everyone else can comfortably and safely ignore it.


Your assumption is somewhat inaccurate. I was not in my 20's then ... I wasn't even a teenager! My parents managed one of the motels (can't remember the name, used to be called the Sunset Motel, but it's not that anymore - it's one of the ones on the corner of Barney and Marsh Streets) and I went to Armidale Primary School. I was just under twelve years of age in 1980 ... Nevermind mate.

P.S. I got the sand from your second post


... and there you go. Have a good one mate!

cdoak wrote

"(The fact that the Aussies also invited a few Yanks and Brits over b4 they packed up, and totally whooped them in a few tactical computer games(ah, training exercises) didn't help either )"

thrippt Ever played Age of Empires 2? i once beat two australians in a 1v1v1 with a wonder, they sacked my town once, but did not finish me off and starting fighting eachother, I delayed indicating I was going to join into that battle.... while I rebuilt my town... and built another wonder....

And won



One time when they were attacking I said.... "DIE FORIGNORS!!"

The response.... "HEY, THAT HURT" *imagines that in an australian accent*

I'd like to visit australia someday...

Texan, you beat 2 Aussies in Age of Empires 2? well, I admit some of us are a real role-over, though the fellas who LAN and such are tops (and I know a lot of gamers). What you did though, even though you were rebuilding, could nearly be classified as "camping."

that "Hey that Hurt" bit sounds as if it came from my little bro. Hes good with 1st person games, though not strategic ones. He often plays A-Of-E2 on the net.

Doc Kieth, I know exactly which motel you are talking about. Its now called the Country Comfort, I think. You went to APS? I went to Bundarra Central for a while, and also Glen Innes Public School. I bet that you will remember us. lol.

Thou Texan and anyone else, you want to play with some of us elite fellas from SMGL (Sydney Metro Gamers League), prepare to loose.

Cheers,
Colin.