Questions: Technology & Internet

A KEI car, pronounced like “kay”, is a vehicle category in Japan for autos that are at most ~11 feet (340 cm) long, ~4.9 feet (150 cm) wide, and ~6.6 feet (200 cm) tall.

Due to their small size, KEI cars don’t meet current US safety standards, and changes to the vehicles and the regulations would be needed. US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy told CNBC that KEI cars are “probably not” for anyone who wants to drive on a freeway, but “if there’s a market for those vehicles, I want to give our manufacturers the opportunity to build those cars.”

[picture and news item courtesy of Morning Brew]

Would you buy a KEI car?

Please vote in the poll.

There are two basic types of computer keyboards: QWERTY and ABC, which defines the way he keys are arranged. The QWERTY keyboard also has US and UK versions, as well as versions for other countries and languages.

What type of keyboard do you prefer to use?

Please vote in the poll.

I just got back from a long trip overseas, it dawned on me while listening to YouTube, and I'm talking about the same YouTube I listened to in the United States, that there were no damn ads, I watched a real estate video today that was 8 minutes, and it interrupted three times for ads. At this point, if it's the same ad over and over again, I go out of my way to go to their YouTube channel and thumbs down it.

I hope it is Jeff Bezos. I would love to see the first rocket to the moon to be a giant penis.

This is the eighth and last in a series on auto makers in the world.

Italy is known for many things, including the manufacture of automobiles.

The poll lists the major Italian auto-makers, in alphabetical order.

Which do you think is the best Italian auto-maker?

This is the seventh in a series on auto makers in the world.

The United Kingdom is known for many things, including the manufacture of automobiles.

The poll lists the major British auto-makers, in alphabetical order.

Which do you think is the best British auto-maker?

Everybody knows about drones and probably knows about Lasers being the great hope in combating them. Every country is working on them. The pic is off an Australian offering.

This little beauty comes stock standard with a 100 KW laser but can be optioned up to 150 KW. It is rated at 20 drones per minute but could be 30 with the 150KW option. It's range is 3 KM for a drone kill but can dazzle sensors at 8KM

I was listening to a podcast which suggested China would probably use paratroopers initially on Taiwan then use amphibious landings.

It is an obvious thought to think why not laser paratroopers as they float down? Below this laser is a flat plain. Why not pick off enemy paratroopers on the plain as well?

According to Google a 10 KW laser can kill a person and fully option this bad boy is 15 times higher. It probably doesn't pro rata but that could be 15x30 = 450 soldiers per minute. Useful.

Also according to Google, 5 mW permanently blinds people. 5mW/150KW = 30 micro seconds per shot. Your ability to disable enemy troops is only limited by how fast you can point the laser at the paratroopers eyes because it would blind them very quickly.

The key point is a purely defensive drone laser could be an extremely good offensive weapon.

I imagine if a laser is to kill an enemy combatant it will have to burn a hole into the heart, lung or brain. That could hurt. To blind probably hurts less but it leaves the enemy combatant permanently incapacitated.

I'm interested on what people think the ethics of Direct Energy Weapons fire on people are. I think if it can be done it will be done especially when it is an existential threat.

What do people think the ethics are? Multi choice can't cover it. So put it in the comments.