Zero-G Pen - Writing the Past

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Zero-G-ers
Andrew~Gloria~Shengyi M10406 <3 The Zero-G Pen aims not only to write, but to inject that slight bit of warmth into the cold Cold War. {Quote}
"For history is as it is,

yours truly"

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Wednesday, February 10, 2010

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Pretty Much the Cold War

Here's a funny clip on the Cold War. Take the info with a pinch of salt, but do appreciate its entertainment value.

My keyboard rests at 10:26 PM

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Short Video for you nice people!

This video is basically a revised summary of the Cold War, so for people lazy to study... here it is! :D

My keyboard rests at 8:59 PM

Monday, February 8, 2010

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Why 'Zero-G-Pen'

Perhaps some of you may be wondering, what's behind the title. It sounds kinda random.

Actually it probably is. If you deem the following urban legend as random.

During the Cold War, the United States and Russia occupied themselves with the Space Race, trying to compete with each other to see who would venture furthest beyond anywhere humans have every reach, or reach there the fastest. So it was natural that both parties invented rockets to send their astronauts into space.

As we are physicists we know that in space there is zero gravity. Or zero apparent gravity, to be more specific, as there is merely an equilbrium of gravitational force. We also know that pens work on the flow of liquid onto paper, and the flow of liquid needs gravity. But there is no gravity in space. How are the great astronauts, pioneers and adventurers (provided the rocket does not explode or break apart), going to take down notes of their historic journeys into space? This problem puzzled both parties greatly.

The engineers (at Fisher Space Pen Company) pondered over this difficulty over and over again, and one of them came up with a brilliant idea. They could invent a pen which could withstand zero gravity by making the ballpoint with tungsten carbide which is precisely fitted to prevent leaks, and the ink is forced by compressed air. The company then brought the pen to NASA who eventually judged that despite the exorbitant costs required to produce the pen, it is probably a worthwhile investment. So millions and millions of dollars were pumped in to manufacture and refine this pen, eventually leading to a model which astronauts used.

The catch: Russia faced a similar problem. The universe is impartial, its problems are imposed on everyone. But Russia used an entirely different solution. They used a pencil.

My keyboard rests at 9:15 PM

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A peek into the past.

Hi!

I guess we had better start with a rough introduction to the Cold War, although all of us here are history students and there're no other visitors to our blog so there's not really a point. But it's probably a nice warm-up to the real deal!

The Cold War (1945-1989) was a period of time in history where the 2 major superpowers, USA and USSR, were competing with each other over many areas, and had a very hostile relationship. Sometimes relations got so cold that a hot war might have broken up (fortunately there wasn't). The characteristics of the Cold War are as follows:

1. Struggle for Power

USA was a capitalist country, while USSR happens to be a communist country. One was in the West, while the other was in the east. Both countries were trying to compete with each other to gain the status of super-superpower of the world, aiming at spreading their own ideals, or preventing the spread of the other. The struggle of power was also evident in other aspects of the war, such as the Space Race, where both countries were fighting to send people out into the vast depths of the galaxy (actually, they never reached further than the solar system, and till now, no one has).

We can perhaps also say that the struggle for power (or of ideology) is also evident in the supposed proxy wars that happened during the Cold War. Examples include the Korean War and Vietnam War. Frankly, my personal opinion is that proxy wars are very evil, for they punish the innocent in the non-USA/USSR countries. But take my opinion with a pinch of salt.

The divide between the 2 countries can be represented by the division of Berlin by the Berlin Wall.

2. Cultural Development

Culture was perhaps an escape for the ordinary people from the stresses of the Cold War. Sometimes listening to Elvis' cult rock may help you forget about the fact that perhaps tomorrow there might be a nuclear explosion which will wipe out the entire world population (unfortunately including yourself).

There was a rapid development of pop culture, especially rock and roll. The highly hypnotic rhythm was probably soothing to some extent. The rise of Elvis Presley, Beatles, U2 etc. was phenomenal, and there are not many artists these days which can beat their sphere of influence. Science also took a major leap, with the first step on the moon and the invention of the TV, polio vaccine etc. (This was partly also because the two countries used this as a playing field to determine who was more superior.) Sports also took on a wider audience, with baseball becoming America's favourite sport.

There was also an evolution of a counterculture in the United States especially. That's where the hippies and LSD came from. LSD belongs to a class of drugs called psychedelic drugs, which gives is intaker hallucinations and images of strange but intriguing patterns. (don't ask me how I knew about this, but rest assured I did not take those drugs.)

That about marks the end of the first official post I guess! :D

My keyboard rests at 8:38 PM

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