Walking Robots with Wheels

This demo of the Unitree B2-W came up on YouTubewith the shot of the guy sitting astride the robot, and I thought wow! Why wow? Well, because there's a set of discussions that center around the usefulness of mecha.

These evolve around things like ground pressure, height and volume of vehicle that walks, and why oh why would you have walking mechs with wheels? It's that last discussion I'm addressing, with a shout out to my friend Roger who isn't convinced why you'd have legs if you've got wheels.

Mecha are specialized platforms. They'll be used where terrain makes the deployment of conventional wheeled or track vehicles difficult or impossible. There role will be to act as armoured support for infantry.

Think how gun Portée's were used by the SAS during WW2.

I'd had that thought too when when I was thinking out a plausible way for the introduction of purpose built mecha. They would start as field expedient platforms developed from exoskeletons that become big enough that you change from wearing the armour to a suit that's driven instead.

I'm thinking useful in urban environments wrecked by war, or traversing steep terrain where deploying anything other than  infantry is a real slog.

So, that's all for now. I've been remiss in posting stuff due to health issues, made worse by starting the new year with shingles.

Catch you all on the bounce.

I Don't Know

 

I'm sharing, "Fine, I'll Talk About the Drones..." because it nails down the issue of the drone sighting in New Jersey, without me having to do any of the work that writing about it would have required. Life is short, and it's hard work debunking things that people want to believe in.

Remember, it's perfectly acceptable to say, I don't know to any question you're asked.

It's like the 1906 adage from Maurice Switzer, "It is better to remain silent at the risk of being thought a fool, than to talk and remove all doubt of it."

Another post as proof of life, which has been a bit difficult for the last month or so. Catch you all on the bounce.

Two Reviews by my Peers

Review from Amazon

Two authors have reviewed Bad Dog, which is a great compliment. Neither of them were sent complimentary copies, which means they bought it on their own dime, and neither did I ask them to write me a blurb to promote my novel.

The review above is from Blaine Pardoe, who has written some of the core canon novels for the BattleTech universe, and is currently writing the Land & Sea SF series that runs to eight novels covering the invasion of Earth's ocean by underwater aliens.

The review below is from Tim Taylor who has written a whole bunch of great Mil-SF books.

Tim Taylor

Excellently handled, this novel of near(ish) future mech combat starts off as a gritty military sf tale with plenty of realism and dark humor. It carries that through to the end too, but also slices it through with something completely different: the holographic multiverse and a day that won't let the main character complete. I didn't know how this was going to finish until the last pages. Recommended for fans of Cole & Anspach's Galaxy's Edge and the Four Horsemen Universe. 

Consider this post proof of life, as Real Life (TM) has diverted me from blogging. I'm working on my next post reviewing the books I've read this year which I'll publish over the Christmas period. 

That's all for now. Catch you all on the bounce.

Contact: Sagan Addresses Fermi

Enrico Fermi  asked, why haven't we seen signs of alien civilizations at a conference in the summer of 1950. This led to the so called, The Fermi paradox, which really isn't a’ a paradox in the traditional sense of the word.

In Contact, Jodie Foster plays Dr. Eleanor "Ellie" Arroway who Carl Sagan based on the real life astronomer Dr. Jill Tarter, gives one answer: we're not ready yet.

SF as a Proper Name

 

This video discusses Proper Names by John Searle. My reason for posting this is to ask the question should SF or science fiction be considered a proper name?

Searle's Theory

1. Names can be a single word, or a cluster of words, that define the name

2. When descriptive names no longer describe the original thing they're still valid

3. Names don't have to be statements, or necessarily true; they're contingent facts

4. Names have a unique and plausible use within language

5. Names can describe non-existent objects or persons

6. Objects or persons can have more than one name and be the same object or person

TL;DW:  Or in this case, does the name science fiction make science fiction, science fiction?

The Games Behind Your Government's Next War

The YouTube channel People Make Games just released this piece presented by Quinn called, The Games Behind Your Government's Next War. I'm sharing because it is both entertaining, and educational.

My opinion, for what it's worth, know what you can control, and know what you can't.

It's fine to have ideals, hold oneself to a moral standard, or examine the ethics of what we do, but without an understanding of human nature, the evolutionary pressures that drive our behaviours. Arguably, everything we do is determined by a combination nature and nurture.

So, my take away... a renewal of enthusiasm to work on my wargame.

Mil-SF with Mecha!

Some recent acquisitions that I acquired. The Partlow books are highly recommended as being for being so very moreish. The stories grip you by the throat and won't let go.

Splashdown is the first novel for the Land & Sea series, which is a new mecha based tabletop wargame coming soon. More info here, miniatures and more are coming too.

Pardoe starts the story very much in the style of Tom Clancy. Then about halfway into the first book he takes the story up to the next level, making you feel the hurt and pain that the characters are going through.

Book three, chapter twenty-eight really moved me. I'll say no more. I will leave reviews when I have time on Amazon and Goodreads. Again, recommended.