Looking for authoritative explanations or information on a particular subject? Here are some of my favorite references.
The Space Shuttle News Reference Manual. A massive compendium of technical details, more than you ever wanted to know, about NASA’s “Space Transportation System.” What it lacks in pictures, it makes up for in thousands upon thousands of words. Favorite fact (so far): the water that is sprayed onto the launch pad just prior to main engine ignition is not for cooling, but for sound suppression. The shuttle’s engines are unbelievably (even fatally) loud, and without that spray of water, shock waves from the engines would be reflected back up from the launch pad and damage the shuttle’s delicate thermal tiles.
AerospaceWeb’s Question and Answer section. A wide range of reader questions, ranging from fourth-grade to Ph.D. level, answered by experts in the field. Two favorites: a solid explanation of shock diamonds, and an essay about Joseph Kittinger’s pioneering freefalls from a balloon hovering at more than 100,000 feet.
Wikipedia. While it occasionally lacks accuracy, it has staggering breadth, and the accuracy generally improves over time; to cite one example, in spring ’06 I revamped a poorly written article on exhaust gas recirculation in internal combustion engines, and my own inaccuracies have since been improved upon in turn. Think of any subtopic in any subject, whether it’s science, pop culture, history, politics, religion, or biographies, and chances are someone has written an article about it; in fact, just like my EGR article, chances are good that any article you find has already been revised and improved numerous times. One of my favorites is a list of cognitive biases. These are interesting quirks of the human mind and its thought processes that, if left unchecked, can form a serious impediment to rational inquiry. One of my other favorites? Their own list of unusual topics.
Acronym Finder. Ever come across an obscure acronym that left you wondering? This is the resource for you. DAMHIK!
Gasoline FAQ. A ton of info on gasoline – how it’s made, what’s in it, how it behaves under various conditions. It’s very well written, and extremely comprehensive. The whole FAQ is huge; that first link is to part 1. Here’s Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.
The Official U.S. Time. It displays the current time according to standards kept by NIST. Depending on the latency of your connection, the time displayed on your monitor may lag behind reality by a fraction of a second.
Area Code Map. All the telephone area codes for the US and Canada, laid out on a map. Your browser may shrink the image to fit it on the screen, making it illegible in the process; in MS Internet Explorer, you can hover your cursor over the image to bring up a button (at bottom right of the screen) that allows you to expand the picture back up to full/legible size. Aah, much better.
Look up Damn Near Anything. Get all kinds of data based on zip code, area code, address, demographics, and so on. Some of the searches require a free sign-up, but many of them don’t. Check it out!
MadSciNet. Answers to lots of obscure science questions, offered up by experts in the relevant field. Got a question they haven’t answered yet? Go ahead and ask!
Questions? Comments? Email me!
©2006, Mitchell P. Patrie