The Fallen of WWII

This is a powerful video that puts a quantitative perspective on the immense loss of life during World War II.

The Fallen of World War II from Neil Halloran on Vimeo.

NUKEMAP

When the U.S. dropped the atomic bomb, Little Boy, on the Japanese city of Hiroshima in 1945, it inflicted a huge number of casualties (~100,000 deaths) and completely leveled large portions of the city.

However, in the big scheme of nuclear warfare, this bomb and its cousin, Fat Man, which was detonated a few days later over Nagasaki, were relatively tame. Their explosive yield (15kt and 20kt, respectively) are a small fraction of the capability of the current American, Russian, or Chinese arsenals.

Fat Man

To give us all a sobering perspective on this, Alex Wellerstein created an interactive web site called NUKEMAP. Simply place the marker on your home (or any other location of your choosing), select a yield (or a specific bomb from the drop-down menu), and see the various damaging effects. Very interesting ...

B-24 in WWII: 1 Plane Every 55 Minutes

Someone recently reminded me of a historical fact that stands as an example of human ingenuity: during the U.S. ramp-up for World War II, Henry Ford applied his assembly line techniques to help build 1 new B-24 Liberator bomber aircraft every 55 minutes! Working in two 9-hour shifts, Ford produced over 8,000 aircraft in about two years.

The video below highlights the power of this mass-production effort.

Perfect Circles

Over the years, I have taught my kids the story of the Italian painter, Giotto. He may not be the most famous of the many talented Middle Age painters, but my kids were fascinated by the story of "the perfect circle". At one point the Pope asked Giotto to draw something to prove his skills as an artist, and Giotto proceeded to draw a circle so perfect that everyone thought he had used a compass.

My kids were naturally skeptical of their father's claims about perfect circles, until last week when my daughter found the following video on YouTube:

I was likewise fascinated, and it turns out that there may be even more background to this story.

Regardless, every now and then I catch myself trying to draw a perfect circle. Let's just say that I don't think Giotto has to worry about my outperforming him!

The Venus Project

A few months ago, a friend of mine introduced me to the work of renowned futurist, Jacque Fresco. Over the years, he has developed a number of amazing theories about how to structure our global human society in ways that are much better -- on so many levels -- that our current systems.

To showcase his work, he started creating a microcosm community in Venus, Florida. The culmination of his life's work has taken the shape of The Venus Project, which I hope to visit later this year.

Since Jacque is about to turn 98, I want to get there soon. In the meantime, here are some images of the amazing buildings and communities he has designed:

"Dream Bigger, Change History"

On October 31, 2013, I moderated a roundtable discussion at the Pioneers Festival in Vienna, Austria. The "Explorers Panel" including Ariel Fuchs of SeaOrbiter and Bas Lansdorp of Mars One, both of whom are working on incredibly ambitious entrepreneurial ventures. The Festival was a 3-day celebration of technology innovation, with 50+ speakers, 25+ startups, and 2500+ attendees.

There were some technical glitches that prevented the introduction and conclusion from going exactly as planned, but overall the entire session went quite smoothly.

It consisted of 4 sections:

• Part 1: "Dream Bigger, Change History"
• Part 2: Highlights from my professional life
• Part 3: Panel discussion
• Part 4: Conclusion

Here is the video:

Since the final edit of the public video focused more on me and the panelists than on the constantly changing slides, here is the entire slide presentation:

"Space Oddity" on the ISS

Many of my friends and colleagues in the space industry have complained that since the heyday of Apollo NASA has suffered from twin ailments: (1) lack of vision and leadership; and (2) lack of connection with the public.

Well, last week the outgoing Canadian commander of the International Space Station, Chris Hadfield, released a video that in 5 minutes created more public support for human space exploration than decades of effort by NASA's PR machine. This was the first music video shot in space. With over 13M views on YouTube, here is his rendition of David Bowie's Space Oddity:

"Newsroom" -- Opening Scene

First, let me say that I have been a huge fan of Aaron Sorkin ever since I fell in love with West Wing. His writing style is unmistakable, providing rapid-fire inspirational and insightful dialogues among various intelligent characters. And he is unafraid to be honest.

This was on display in spades with last year's opening scene of his latest creation, Newsroom, an HBO series. I believe every American should watch this scene, especially starting at 3:07.

Amazing Photos from the Great Pyramids

Last month a couple of young Russian photographers made headlines for scaling the pyramids at Giza and shooting photos of the surrounding landscape. In order to preserve these ancient wonders, such climbs are strictly forbidden. The daredevils escaped unnoticed, and then brought down all sorts of public condemnation on themselves by making the photos freely available on the Internet.

I agree that the young men should have gone through proper channels for their project rather than taking it upon themselves to risk injury and property damage with a clandestine operation. However, I don't think anyone can deny that the powerfully unique images they captured are awe-inspiring. They should certainly help re-vitalize public support for preserving, studying, and protecting these and other treasures of human society.

[Loose] Personal Ties to Pope Francis

Earlier this week (on March 13, 2013), the Catholic Church elected its new Pope to become the "Archbishop of Rome". The cardinal they selected, Jorge Mario Bergoglio, was an historic choice on many counts, but he was also special for me through two very personal connections. First, he was formerly the Archbishop of Buenos Aires, which is where I was born and spent my first six years. Second, he selected the papal name of "Francis" after St. Francis of Assisi, who was also the namesake of my high school alma mater. Felicitaciones, Papa Francis!

Felix Baumgartner & Red Bull Stratos

Like nearly 8 million other people around the world, on October 14, 2012, my family and I were glued to the Web (and Discovery News) watching Felix Baumgartner and the Red Bull Stratos team break several skydiving records as he jumped from his capsule at an altitude of 128,000 feet (roughly 24 miles!) and broke the sound barrier on his way down.

Not only did he succeed on virtually all of his record attempts (he came up ~10 seconds short of the record for longest freefall), but also the entire event was executed phenomenally well by Red Bull and all of its partners around the world. It was a huge publicity bonanza, continuing to garner public attention even weeks later. I wished that James Cameron, National Geographic, and their partners had executed nearly as well during his March 2012 record-breaking solo submarine dive to the deepest point in the ocean.

This is one of my favorite images from the historic day.

Here is an official Red Bull summary video.



Here is an official Red Bull video where you can faintly hear the sonic boom at :25.

"Ocean Men: Extreme Dive"

Last fall I had the privilege of spending a fair amount of time in Monterey with Bob Talbot, who is a world-reknown photographer and a gifted film maker. He shared with our team his IMAX documentary, Ocean Men: Extreme Dive, which tells the story of two world record free-diving rivals: Cuban-born Pipin Ferreras and Italian Umberto Pelizzari. It is a fascinating story told through Bob's amazing imagery. You can enjoy it on Hulu or on YouTube below.

Unique Shuttle Linkup

On April 19, 2012, NASA and the Smithsonian conducted an unusual exchange: two retired Space Shuttles changed ownership. On the runway outside the Udvar-Hazy Center near Dulles Airport, the two vehicles were placed nose-to-nose for a ceremony marking the occasion.

Photo courtesy Ken Kremer
On the left is Enterprise, the first test vehicle in the Shuttle program. It never flew in space, but it provided valuable information that helped usher in the 30-year Shuttle era. On the right is Discovery, NASA's workhorse vehicle that flew more missions and spent more time in space than any other Shuttle. Discovery arrived at its new home in the Air & Space Museum, taking the place of Enterprise, which will be displayed at the Intrepid Museum in New York.

TROY - opening quote

This is one of my favorite movie quotes of all time, and I play it on my iPad during every business trip. It makes me evaluate every day to make sure I am spending every minute on truly worthwhile activities. It keeps me focused on what is really important and allows me to let everything else slide by.


Men are haunted by the vastness of eternity.
And so we ask ourselves,
Will our actions echo across the centuries?
Will strangers hear our names long after we're gone and wonder who we were, how bravely we fought, how fiercely we loved?

- Odysseus

Cameron Succeeds!

I wrote an earlier post about the "Race to the Bottom" of the world's oceans. Well, yesterday James Cameron succeeded in his solo dive to the deepest part of the world. Very exciting times ahead for ocean exploration and manned submersibles!

"Race to the Bottom"

Over the past few weeks, the global media has been making a big deal about a proclaimed "Race to the Bottom". This "race" refers to several individuals and companies seeking to reach the bottom of the Mariana Trench, the deepest part of the planet's oceans, in a variety of different submarines. Of course, this is really not a race at all, since two men (Jacques Piccard and Don Walsh) already made the descent over 50 years ago as part of a U.S. Navy exercise. In fact, as Walsh likes to put it, this current frenzy is really just a "Race for Second".

That being said, there is no denying that this recent crop of adventurers and explorers is helping to rekindle a worldwide public interest in the oceans, manned submersibles, and exploration in general. Here is a brief overview of each participant in this "race":

James Cameron


The famed director of mega-hit films like the Terminator and Alien series, Titanic, and Avatar, has had a long-time fascination with the oceans, manned submersibles, and exploration in general. He is close friends with the recognized godfather of research submarines, Anatoly Sagalevich, he has made several descents to the Titanic, and he has produced underwater documentaries such as Aliens of the Deep and Ghosts of the Abyss. Overall, he has over 70 dives in deep submersibles. He leads a NatGeo-backed team that has spent almost eight years developing a one-person submarine specifically for the attempt to reach the bottom of Challenger Deep within the Mariana Trench. If successful, Cameron will set the world solo diving record, and the team will boast the world's deepest diving active submarine.

Outlook. Cameron will likely make the full descent by the end of March 2012.

Richard Branson


In late-2010, sailboat racer Chris Welsh decided to honor one of his heroes, world-record aviator/sailor/explorer Steve Fossett, by taking up the challenge he was working on when he perished in a plane crash in 2007: the world solo diving record to the bottom of the Mariana Trench. Fossett had commissioned Graham Hawkes to design a submarine specifically for the world-record attempt, but he died before the sub got to its sea trials. Welsh purchased the unfinished sub from Fossett's estate, hired Hawkes to complete the project, and partnered with Richard Branson, Fossett's long-time partner, to create Virgin Oceanic ("VO"). While Branson has garnered the media spotlight during this "race", VO still remains Welsh's passion project, expanded to include diving to the deepest points in each of the world's five oceans.

Outlook. The sub has not yet passed its pressure tests, so it is unlikely that VO will make its dive attempt until late-2012.


Triton Submarines


Triton is a reknowned builder of submarines specifically tailored for use aboard luxury yachts. The company is fronted by master-marketer Bruce Jones and headed by acclaimed sub expert Patrick Lahey, and together they have delivered six submarines ranging in depth capabilities from 1,000 feet to 3,300 feet and carrying 2-3 passengers in different configurations. They have extended their unique sub designs to include a three-person Full Ocean Depth ("FOD") model 36000/3, which could reach the bottom of the Mariana Trench.

Outlook. Triton is still looking for its first client to pay for the development of the FOD 36000/3.


Deepsearch


The brainchild of famed ocean explorer Sylvia Earle and initially backed by Google Chairman Eric Schmidt, the Deepsearch project is taking a unique "open source" approach to community-based design and development of a deep-diving submarine. The project is spearheaded by Deep Ocean Exploration and Research, an ocean engineering firm headed by Sylvia's daughter, Liz Taylor.

Outlook. This project is still looking for additional financing to move beyond initial design stage.

No Time On Our Side

One of the most common questions we get about our submarine, Antipodes, is this: how long can you survive in case of an emergency?

As with most submarines, especially those with similar A+1 safety classifications from the American Bureau of Shipping, the answer is 72 hours, or roughly 3 days. (Actually, the technically correct answer is 360 man-hours, so 72 hours is at our full complement of 5 people.) Of course, it is difficult for me to imagine what it would be like to be trapped in a small submersible with four other people for three days ... the whole time waiting to be rescued.

In 1973, two submarine pilots had the misfortune of living through this exact experience. At the end of an exhausting 9-hour mission 150 miles off the coast of Cork, Ireland, the Pisces III submarine became disabled and sank to the ocean floor at 480 meters (1,575 feet), trapping pilots Roger Chapman and Roger Mallinson with no way out. They waited on the sea bottom for over 3 days while a massive global rescue effort took place with the entire world watching and holding its collective breath. Much like the Apollo 13 mission three years prior, it was a life-and-death struggle where hundreds of professionals worked feverishly to bring home safely two brave men from an immensely hostile environment. The outcome was a testament to the courage of the trapped pilots, but an even stronger affirmation of the ingenuity, resolve, and teamwork of the many people who made possible the successful recovery of the sub and crew.

Chapman later wrote a gripping book about the ordeal, and he appropriately entitled it No Time On Our Side. I think about this story every time I get in our sub, and I have made it required reading for all of our pilots and crew. I hope that someday someone will turn this into a major motion picture and associated documentary, because it is a dramatic human story that should be shared with a global audience and new generation of explorers.

Buy this book at Amazon!

Do Humans Matter?

Over the years, I've seen many different graphical representations of the history of human existence in the context of the history of the earth (or the universe). This recent one using a 24-hour clock image was not necessarily unique, but the title generated some interesting debates in the comments.

About Time: Innovating our Calendar System

Every now and then, someone comes up with an innovation that seems like "D'oh! That makes sense!" ... *after* they bring it up. As we celebrate the dawn of the new year, it is only fitting that Steve H. Hanke and Richard Conn Henry have now devised a new twist on our old Gregorian calendar. Their proposed system would ensure consistent days/dates every year, with 30-day months, a 31-day month every third month, and an additional week in December every 5-6 years to replace our quadrennial leap year day. Sounds cool to me ... now, they just need to convince the world to make the switch!

The Decline of the American Empire

As my wife will readily attest, I've been predicting the decline (if not outright collapse) of the United States (aka "the American Empire" or "the Great Experiment") by the year 2020. Depending on other world events (and on the precise definition of "decline" or "collapse"), I believe that this could happen much sooner but regardless no later than 2030. This position has been variously supported--either directly or indirectly--by many others, including Warren Buffett, John Sculley, and ... Igor Panarin, a Russian academic who made news recently by predicting the collapse of the U.S. by 2010.

My thoughts have been primarily focused on basic private concerns like, "if the U.S. is indeed collapsing, where should I raise my kids in order to position them (and their kids) for success in the new world order?" However, Panarin understandably takes a much more academic approach, and he even predicts how the U.S. will ultimately be divided among the remaining world powers.

click on the image for a larger view

Given the fundamental economic breakdown in the U.S., the renewed (ongoing/heighened) tensions in the Middle East and India/Pakistan, and a rookie administration about to take over the White House, who knows what the next couple of years will bring? I often wonder what it would've been like to live in Rome (or in the outskirts of the Roman Empire) in the middle of the 5th century.