Monthly Archives: June 2017

Millennium Flacon vs Slave 1

The Millennium Falcon is the easily the most iconic ship in the Star Wars universe, but it’s not unrivaled. The Slave 1 has been used by two of the most notorious bounty hunters in the galaxy and has withstood everything anyone threw at it — outliving both its owners. In this post I will not only compare these two ships’ capabilities in battle, but also which is the better all around hunk of junk for a smuggler, bounty hunter, or any other shape or form of criminal.

In terms of sheer firepower Boba’s flagship can vaporize the Falcon instantly. The Falcon was originally a Corellian Engineering Corporation YT-1300fp light freighter, with an armament that consists of a powerful Corellian-built quad laser cannon on top, a concealed anti-personnel repeating blaster cannon near the ramp, and two illegal above-military-grade Arakyd ST2 concussion missile launchers. The Slave 1 is a highly modified Kuat Systems Engineering Firespray-class patrol and attack craft, armed with three twin rotating laser cannons, concussion missile launchers, way too expensive proton torpedo tubes, an ion cannon, a tractor beam projector, and seismic charges that can blow an asteroid to pieces. Both have strong enough shield generators to withstand heavy fire, but the Falcon is still no match.

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The layouts of the two ships are entirely different and suited for very different tasks. The Flacon is optimized for storage space, ideal for a smuggler transporting illegal cargo. Lando Calrissian installed hidden compartments under the deck, and a previous owner added a cargo jettison feature for tight situations when it’s better to ditch the cargo than answer questions — both features made its black market value skyrocket. The Slave 1 has two separate sets of artificial gravity generators that reorient for flight and landing, meaning walls, floors, and ceilings are relative. Instead of a large cargo hold, it has 5 detention cells, a Force-cage to hold Jedi or other Force-users, and stealth mode. It has very little storage and no cargo hold, and even the crew quarters are cramped.

Speed and power are two more factor to consider, and the ship that made the Kessel Run in 12 parsecs easily outruns the Mandalorians’ ship. The Falcon’s Class 0.5 hyperdrive is fully twice as fast as that of Imperial warships, while its sublights are heavily modified Girodyne SRB42s that can power it up to 1,050 km/h in-atmosphere. The Slave 1’s three F-31 drive engines can only reach 1,000 km/h in-atmosphere and has a Class 0.7 hyperdrive, making it significantly slower than the Flacon in hyperspace.

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A previous owner of the Falcon installed a main computer made of three salvaged droid brains: an R3 astromech, a V-5 transport droid, and a corporate espionage slicer droid. While they work together in emergencies, the ship is known to have arguments with itself. The exact computer the Slave 1 possesses is unknown, but it probably isn’t schizophrenic.

Overall, one ship isn’t better than the other. The Slave 1 is loaded solid with a wide range of weapons, deadly and nonlethal, and is optimized on the inside secure prisoner detention. It is an unstoppable vessel that can bring capitol ships to their knees and annihilate entire bases in a matter of minutes. The Millennium Falcon is sturdy, hard freighter full of surprises that can destroy fleets of TIEs with a few shots, but its real prowess is its unmatched speed and agility.

So if you prefer runs with little few incidents for impatient crime lords and colossal worms, the Falcon is is the perfect choice, but if you are willing to sacrifice cargo space and comfort for the adrenaline of clashing with squadrons and bringing warships down with a few shots, the Slave 1 should be your flagship.

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Types of Zombies

In the event of a global zombie apocalypse, the survival of the human race may depend on the simple task of identifying the type of outbreak. Despite everything Hollywood wants you to believe, a shot to the head won’t always get it done, and the methods of protection of humans and destruction of walkers differ based on the disease present.

There are three basic types of zombies: bacterial, bacterial but antibiotic resistant, and viral.

In the case of bacterial zombies, antibiotic darts might be the solution. This type of infection is a simple, though destructive disease that simply modifies or shuts down certain functions in the brain. Using a big dose at first is recommended at first to ensure that they really will die. It’s possible that a certain dosage kills the bacteria but doesn’t kill the host, but the physical damage might be too severe to save victims who are far into the process.

Bacterial but antibiotic-resistant zombies are dangerous. Highly resistant bacteria can be nearly indestructible, and killing the host might not be enough if the bacteria can repair it. To stop zombies like that you must temporarily disable them by whatever means are available, capture them, lock them up securely and kill them with fire. Don’t do this when pursued because it takes a long time to kill them and in the meantime makes them more dangerous. Only burn undead if they are locked up and can’t light anything.

If the outbreak is viral, killing the host will do the trick. The virus will be able to duplicate for a while, but eventually the host cells will run out of energy and die. If that doesn’t work, the disease is probably bacterial. However, there could be exceptions….

The most genius type of disease, bacterial or viral, is the kind that allows the host to live and acquire energy so that the disease can use the energy to duplicate itself. This kind will reprogram the victim’s brain to give it the sole purpose of spreading the disease and acquiring energy to do so. Killing the victim may or may not be enough. This is the real Hollywood zombie by the original definition of the word, and when they show up humanity is in big trouble.

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8+1 Best Supercars of 2017

Sports cars aren’t enough. The Z06 Stingray is losing it’s flashiness. Rich people want more. So automakers around the world invented the hypercar: the ultimate road legal track car–engineered for performance, whatever the cost.

I’m skipping the Mercedes-Benz Silver Arrow/Lightening concept because it’s not road legal, and the LaFerrari FXX K and McLaren P1 GTR because they are track cars, not road cars.

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9: Lamborghini Veneno and Veneno Roadster

The Veneno, named after a fighting bull like all the other Lambos, is a heavily upgraded Adventador with little room for error. It costs 4.5 million USD.

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8: Bugatti Veyron

While it no longer holds the world record for the fastest car ever, 254 mph (409 km/h) was no mean feat in 2013. It cost more or less $1.5 million. Nontheless, the 4044 pound heavyweight is ready for an upgrade, and the Chiron might not be enough.

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4: McLaren P1

McLaren’s ultimate series tops the charts in almost every way. The P1 GTR is the brand’s number one racing machine, and its road version does not disappoint. It’s price tag is “only” $1.4 million, which is better than many others on this list.

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6: Hennessey Venom F5

Hennessey seems to be trying to beat it’s own record set by the Venom GT. The F5 is estimated to hit 290 mph–a new world record by far. Bugatti’s reign is long over, and the Chiron won’t make a difference. Hennessey plans to keep this monster exclusive by limiting it’s number and increasing it’s price, but the numbers are unknown.

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5: Koenigsegg Regera

The newest upgrade from the Agera looks sleek and sporty, but that’s not all. Koenigsegg is confident to shred the road-legal top speed record by over 20 mph, clocking in at over 290.

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4: Bugatti Chiron

The brand’s newest upgrade from the Veyron came a long way, but was it wasn’t long enough to retake the world record speed from Hennessey. It costs a jaw-dropping 2.65 million USD, and certainly delivers some good performance. It’s not bad for a heavyweight monster car.

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3: LaFerrari

The LaFerrari (not Ferrari LaFerrari; just LaFerrari) came around in 2013 and still is the brands most exclusive supercar. It’s the continuation of the F40 line–F40, F50, Enzo Ferrari, FXX-K, and LaFerrari. Enzo would be proud.

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2: Lamborghini Centerario

A Lambo is an unlikely contender for second place, but this one earned it. The company wanted something special for a tribute to it’s founder, Ferruccio Lamborghini, and they did it. The Centenario finds the perfect balance sporty and stylish that is hard to find in today’s supercar lineup. Only 20 will be made, costing $1.9 million.

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1: Hennessey Venom GT

This car really deserves to be in the top spot. In 2014, the Venom GT set the record for the fastest-two seater ever made at 270.49 mph (435.31 km/h). It’s convertible counterpart clocked in at 265 mph, making it the fastest convertible to date. Only 29 were made, costing “only” 1.2 million USD each.

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0: Koenigsegg One:1

There isn’t supposed to be a zero in a top ten list. But the One:1 has to get a place, and first was already taken. This car has precisely one to one horsepower to kilogram of curb weight ratio, a feat previously considered impossible. The legendary ratio has finally been achieved by an out-of-the-way brand only seen in car shows and video games, when even Ferrari failed to get it done. It’s time to up your game, supercar companies.