RE: Semi-OTC Lasers
From: Robert G. Seeberger http://wickedlasers.com/ For the last few months you have been able to buy lasers that could pop balloons, melt trash bags, cut electrical tape, and melt through plastic. It is a fairly interesting advance in materials science that allows consumers to do such things with an over-the-counter product. (Of course, you aren't going to find these at your local electronics stores) The lasers here (especially the green ones) tout some amazing capabilities such as being visible(the priciest model) at 120 miles(193.12128 K)while using 3 volts of power supplied by everyday AA or AAA batteries that should last for 2 hours (2 metric hoursG) on a 100% duty cycle, even if the laser itself costs $2000 (1648 Euro/1129British pound). I expect that the price of lasers with this kind of capability will come down over time and that simultaneously, legislation to curb their availability and criminalize their misuse will occur. These kinds of lasers are somewhat dangerous toys in the hands of the well intentioned, but in the hands of crafty and mischievous malcontents. Thanks for that link. I got the 75mw Phoenix and well, its fantastic. I can see it on things several kms away, and it does look like it bounces of the moon. It is a perfect star pointer. Using my powers for good Maru ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Semi-OTC Lasers
Andrew Paul wrote: From: Robert G. Seeberger http://wickedlasers.com/ For the last few months you have been able to buy lasers that could pop balloons, melt trash bags, cut electrical tape, and melt through plastic. It is a fairly interesting advance in materials science that allows consumers to do such things with an over-the-counter product. (Of course, you aren't going to find these at your local electronics stores) The lasers here (especially the green ones) tout some amazing capabilities such as being visible(the priciest model) at 120 miles(193.12128 K)while using 3 volts of power supplied by everyday AA or AAA batteries that should last for 2 hours (2 metric hoursG) on a 100% duty cycle, even if the laser itself costs $2000 (1648 Euro/1129British pound). I expect that the price of lasers with this kind of capability will come down over time and that simultaneously, legislation to curb their availability and criminalize their misuse will occur. These kinds of lasers are somewhat dangerous toys in the hands of the well intentioned, but in the hands of crafty and mischievous malcontents. Thanks for that link. I got the 75mw Phoenix and well, its fantastic. I can see it on things several kms away, and it does look like it bounces of the moon. It is a perfect star pointer. Using my powers for good Maru You are very welcome!G Being all sci-fi fans means that some of us are going to be futurists of some stripe. And if you are the kind of person who gets worked up about the future.well dammit, you just gotta have a laser! Now that you got the biggest stick on the block, I suppose we have to start treating you with respect..NOT! G xponent Wielders Of Coherent Beams Maru rob ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Semi-OTC Lasers
At 03:29 PM Saturday 2/25/2006, Julia Thompson wrote: Ronn!Blankenship wrote: P.S. It's pretty well overcast tonight. Unlike the spotlight someone has going to the NE of here, my pointer will not reach far enough to put a visible spot on the clouds. It will suffice, however, to mark any branch on any tree visible from here. How far will it get through thick fog? I mean the sort of fog that makes you wish you hand't had a meeting away from home that evening because you're crawling along at 15 mph because if you go much faster, you might not see the edge of the road before you start to go off, and you're taking the turns around 5 to make sure you don't end up in one of the deep ditches on either side of the road you're turning on to. Julia who had a meeting Tuesday evening and came home through some really nasty fog, and who really, really wishes the county had sprung for paint on one road in particular I'd be interested in the answer to that question, too, but afaik we haven't had any thick fog like that since I got it, unless perhaps there was an occasion when it formed and dissipated while I was asleep and I never even looked out the window and saw it. I think there might have been a bit of light haze once or twice, but nothing you couldn't easily see through and just noticed because of the effect it had on street lights or distant trees. No fires with thick smoke, either. (Thankfully.) I'll keep it in mind and see if I can try it the next time there is a thick fog (assuming I am somewhere stationary and have the pointer handy rather than being stuck behind the wheel trying to get through it myself . . . ). And since you mentioned this, I wonder what it would look like during a moderate to heavy snowfall? Not that such seems to be in the short-range forecast: it is supposed to be in the upper 60s-low 70s the next few days. OTOH, the blizzard of '93 occurred in mid-March, so I suppose it's not completely out of the question . . . --Ronn! :) Since I was a small boy, two states have been added to our country and two words have been added to the pledge of Allegiance... UNDER GOD. Wouldn't it be a pity if someone said that is a prayer and that would be eliminated from schools too? -- Red Skelton (Someone asked me to change my .sig quote back, so I did.) ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Semi-OTC Lasers
who had a meeting Tuesday evening and came home through some really nasty fog, and who really, really wishes the county had sprung for paint on one road in particular I'd be interested in the answer to that question, too, but afaik we haven't had any thick fog like that since I got it, unless perhaps snip Hazers and fog machines are used to make light beams visible in professional lighting applications. In other words, if you have a PA rental service or a discotheque around, you might be able to arrange for some demonstation of their fog machines (hazers provide, as the name suggests, haze; this is sufficient to make beams visible, but does not significantly limit the visibility). You'll get a bit blinded by the reflected/diffused light from the laser youself if you stand in a thick fog. As your eyes adapt to the very bright beam nearby, and the fog limits your vision as well, you won't be able to see the beam further away. You'll need a second person who travels along the beam to observe in the fog. Note that extremely thick fog (visibility signifiacntly less that 1m/3ft) is uncommon even in professional lighting. Loss of orientation is one thing, but panic isn't very far away at this point as well. However, it might be an option for your research. Instead of visibility range 50m, you could work at much closer ranges and scale accordingly. Best regards, Klaus ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Semi-OTC Lasers
Julia Thompson wrote: Ronn!Blankenship wrote: P.S. It's pretty well overcast tonight. Unlike the spotlight someone has going to the NE of here, my pointer will not reach far enough to put a visible spot on the clouds. It will suffice, however, to mark any branch on any tree visible from here. How far will it get through thick fog? I mean the sort of fog that makes you wish you hand't had a meeting away from home that evening because you're crawling along at 15 mph because if you go much faster, you might not see the edge of the road before you start to go off, and you're taking the turns around 5 to make sure you don't end up in one of the deep ditches on either side of the road you're turning on to. Some laser funG: http://www.ibiblio.org/Dave/Dr-Fun/df9706/df970626.jpg http://www.repairfaq.org/sam/humor/cdllptr1.gif A microwave laser: http://www.repairfaq.org/sam/humor/ultlptr.gif How to build a laser with strawberry jelly: http://www.rugbyschool.net/sub/phusion/articles/laser.htm xponent Funday Morning Maru rob ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Semi-OTC Lasers
label on the one I have here) that the human eye isn't very sensitive to it. The green ones lase at 532nm, which is near the wavelength (~550nm) where the human eye is most sensitive, so the beam from a green laser is much more visible than that from a red laser of the same power, making the beam from a class 1 green laser pointer visible in a dark room or outside at night (even when there are some lights not too far away) as it reflects off moisture and dust particles naturally present in the air. I also forgot that a shorter wavelength means scattering at smaller particles (which a beam of longer wavelangth would ignore). The reason why blue light gets scattered by tobacco smoke (the causes the visible effect of the smoke appearing blue). - Klaus ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Semi-OTC Lasers
Ronn!Blankenship wrote: P.S. It's pretty well overcast tonight. Unlike the spotlight someone has going to the NE of here, my pointer will not reach far enough to put a visible spot on the clouds. It will suffice, however, to mark any branch on any tree visible from here. How far will it get through thick fog? I mean the sort of fog that makes you wish you hand't had a meeting away from home that evening because you're crawling along at 15 mph because if you go much faster, you might not see the edge of the road before you start to go off, and you're taking the turns around 5 to make sure you don't end up in one of the deep ditches on either side of the road you're turning on to. Julia who had a meeting Tuesday evening and came home through some really nasty fog, and who really, really wishes the county had sprung for paint on one road in particular ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Semi-OTC Lasers
And more easily blind people than the class 1 lasers. Want to kill someone? Wait till he drives past on th efreeway, point the laser at his eyes and there he goes. The perfect crime, killing people with an intuitive point and click interface. I have a class 1 green laser rated at 4.99mW that I use for a star pointer which would likely be sufficient for that purpose. (Drives the cat crazy, too.) The downside of doing what you describe at night is that the beam of even a class 1 green laser is visible at night (the very reason it is useful for pointing out objects in the sky), so any witnesses would be able to describe where the beam came from. The laser Rob described is actually bright enough that the I was temporarily blinded by a red laser while traveling in a train (some years ago). I suppose one these normal laser pointers. The air was clear and I could not make out where the beam came from. I ssume that the beam was turned on before it hit me, that it took the operator a few seconds to home in. If I had noticed the beam (or the spot) before, I would have taken appropiate measures (having worked around industrial lasers of the cuts-though-concrete-walls variety, I am trained to extreme reactions at the sight of a laser beam getting close...). I didn't immediately realize what happened when the beam hit my left eye - it was the first time that I looked into a laser beam. Since then, I have a few black spots flyling before my left eye (such laser damage was described to me as being like flies flying in front of your eye, and now I can confirm that). A normal retinography shows nothings, but I can see it, close to the center of my field of view. Took me more than a year to get used to it. However, even temporary blinding will be a problem when, for example, entering a curve. Traffic in the opposite direction is very close, and during the curve entrace, it is not sufficient just to keep the steering wheel in position. Yup, there are people who enjoy throwing rocks from freeway bridges. People aleady got killed by that. Green lasers might be the new geek way to have such fun... - Klaus ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Semi-OTC Lasers
At 10:11 AM Friday 2/24/2006, Klaus Stock wrote: And more easily blind people than the class 1 lasers. Want to kill someone? Wait till he drives past on th efreeway, point the laser at his eyes and there he goes. The perfect crime, killing people with an intuitive point and click interface. I have a class 1 green laser rated at 4.99mW that I use for a star pointer which would likely be sufficient for that purpose. (Drives the cat crazy, too.) The downside of doing what you describe at night is that the beam of even a class 1 green laser is visible at night (the very reason it is useful for pointing out objects in the sky), so any witnesses would be able to describe where the beam came from. The laser Rob described is actually bright enough that the I was temporarily blinded by a red laser while traveling in a train (some years ago). I suppose one these normal laser pointers. The air was clear and I could not make out where the beam came from. About the only way to make the standard red laser pointer beam visible is to be in a reasonably dark room (e.g., a lecture hall with the main room lights out and the main illumination being the lights on the blackboard or the light coming from a movie or video screen at the front upon which something is projected) and then to have the room filled with smoke or steam or to take a couple of dirty erasers off the chalk tray and clap them together to fill the air with chalk dust, and the beam won't stay visible for long. That's because the color of the beam is such a deep red (630-680nm, according to the label on the one I have here) that the human eye isn't very sensitive to it. The green ones lase at 532nm, which is near the wavelength (~550nm) where the human eye is most sensitive, so the beam from a green laser is much more visible than that from a red laser of the same power, making the beam from a class 1 green laser pointer visible in a dark room or outside at night (even when there are some lights not too far away) as it reflects off moisture and dust particles naturally present in the air. I ssume that the beam was turned on before it hit me, that it took the operator a few seconds to home in. If I had noticed the beam (or the spot) before, I would have taken appropiate measures (having worked around industrial lasers of the cuts-though-concrete-walls variety, I am trained to extreme reactions at the sight of a laser beam getting close...). I didn't immediately realize what happened when the beam hit my left eye - it was the first time that I looked into a laser beam. The first time I recall that happening was back in the early 70s when I was in one of the university physics labs and opened the door to the next lab (that building was designed in a square ring with most of the classrooms and faculty offices around the outside and the inside occupied by a series of interconnecting labs with the equipment room, power supply board, etc., in the middle) and discovered that someone had a low-power HeNe laser pointed at the other side of the door. (I think someone had taped a piece of white paper to the door to use for a screen to demonstrate diffraction patterns.) As an astronomer, I do keep a pretty close eye on my vision (:)), and I haven't noticed any damage from that or subsequent accidental exposures, although I do take care to avoid exposure. Since then, I have a few black spots flyling before my left eye (such laser damage was described to me as being like flies flying in front of your eye, and now I can confirm that). A normal retinography shows nothings, but I can see it, close to the center of my field of view. Took me more than a year to get used to it. However, even temporary blinding will be a problem when, for example, entering a curve. Traffic in the opposite direction is very close, and during the curve entrace, it is not sufficient just to keep the steering wheel in position. That's what I was thinking of, and indeed this green laser pointer I have would be more than sufficient for that purpose. At night, shining it into another room with light-colored walls or ceiling illuminates the other room just as well as shining a flashlight in there would. Yup, there are people who enjoy throwing rocks from freeway bridges. People aleady got killed by that. Including a professor at another university here in Alabama a few years ago when an iirc 10-lb rock came crashing through her windshield. Green lasers might be the new geek way to have such fun... I fear that will be so. Particularly now that the prices for class 1 green lasers are significantly less than $100. (They are still considerably more expensive than common red laser pointers because to get the green color requires a 2-step process: the first step generates an infrared laser beam at 1064nm, then the second step doubles the frequency to get the green wavelength of 532nm. This also makes them
Re: Semi-OTC Lasers
P.S. It's pretty well overcast tonight. Unlike the spotlight someone has going to the NE of here, my pointer will not reach far enough to put a visible spot on the clouds. It will suffice, however, to mark any branch on any tree visible from here. --Ronn! :) Since I was a small boy, two states have been added to our country and two words have been added to the pledge of Allegiance... UNDER GOD. Wouldn't it be a pity if someone said that is a prayer and that would be eliminated from schools too? -- Red Skelton (Someone asked me to change my .sig quote back, so I did.) ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Semi-OTC Lasers
http://wickedlasers.com/ For the last few months you have been able to buy lasers that could pop balloons, melt trash bags, cut electrical tape, and melt through plastic. It is a fairly interesting advance in materials science that allows consumers to do such things with an over-the-counter product. (Of course, you aren't going to find these at your local electronics stores) The lasers here (especially the green ones) tout some amazing capabilities such as being visible(the priciest model) at 120 miles(193.12128 K)while using 3 volts of power supplied by everyday AA or AAA batteries that should last for 2 hours (2 metric hoursG) on a 100% duty cycle, even if the laser itself costs $2000 (1648 Euro/1129British pound). I expect that the price of lasers with this kind of capability will come down over time and that simultaneously, legislation to curb their availability and criminalize their misuse will occur. These kinds of lasers are somewhat dangerous toys in the hands of the well intentioned, but in the hands of crafty and mischievous malcontents. To be clear, these particular devices have *some* potential for misuse, but I expect that the next generation of devices that will come on the heels of cheaper devices of this generation will have capabilities that could be problematic for security and law enforcement, hence the expectation of more restrictive legislation concerning their possession and use. xponent Call For Comment Maru rob ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Semi-OTC Lasers
For the last few months you have been able to buy lasers that could pop balloons, melt trash bags, cut electrical tape, and melt through plastic. And more easily blind people than the class 1 lasers. Want to kill someone? Wait till he drives past on th efreeway, point the laser at his eyes and there he goes. The perfect crime, killing people with an intuitive point and click interface. - Klaus ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Semi-OTC Lasers
On Feb 24, 2006, at 12:15 AM, Robert G. Seeberger wrote: To be clear, these particular devices have *some* potential for misuse, but I expect that the next generation of devices that will come on the heels of cheaper devices of this generation will have capabilities that could be problematic for security and law enforcement, hence the expectation of more restrictive legislation concerning their possession and use. Well yes. There are increasing problems for pilots - people with lasers like to illuminate planes and choppers, and pilots are at risk of dazzling or eye damage. Was a report on Australian tv last night, so I'm now an expert. ;) Charlie ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Semi-OTC Lasers
At 09:12 AM Thursday 2/23/2006, Klaus Stock wrote: For the last few months you have been able to buy lasers that could pop balloons, melt trash bags, cut electrical tape, and melt through plastic. And more easily blind people than the class 1 lasers. Want to kill someone? Wait till he drives past on th efreeway, point the laser at his eyes and there he goes. The perfect crime, killing people with an intuitive point and click interface. I have a class 1 green laser rated at 4.99mW that I use for a star pointer which would likely be sufficient for that purpose. (Drives the cat crazy, too.) The downside of doing what you describe at night is that the beam of even a class 1 green laser is visible at night (the very reason it is useful for pointing out objects in the sky), so any witnesses would be able to describe where the beam came from. The laser Rob described is actually bright enough that the beam can be see in the daytime (I'm not sure about in bright sunlight). I'd like to get one for demonstrations in class but don't have a spare $2K atm. -- Ronn! :) Ronn Blankenship Sometime Adjunct Instructor of Astronomy/Planetary Science University of Montevallo Montevallo, AL Disclaimer: Unless specifically stated otherwise, any opinions contained herein are the personal opinions of the author and do not represent the official position of the University of Montevallo. ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Semi-OTC Lasers
At 01:54 PM Thursday 2/23/2006, Charlie Bell wrote: On Feb 24, 2006, at 12:15 AM, Robert G. Seeberger wrote: To be clear, these particular devices have *some* potential for misuse, but I expect that the next generation of devices that will come on the heels of cheaper devices of this generation will have capabilities that could be problematic for security and law enforcement, hence the expectation of more restrictive legislation concerning their possession and use. Well yes. There are increasing problems for pilots - people with lasers like to illuminate planes and choppers, and pilots are at risk of dazzling or eye damage. People don't think. And I don't let anyone else use my green laser pointer. Or, in fact any of the red ones. (Some idea of how much the price of the latter have come down is that I found a pen for $3 which has a red laser pointer and blue LED flashlight included.) Was a report on Australian tv last night, so I'm now an expert. ;) Of course! --Ronn! :) Since I was a small boy, two states have been added to our country and two words have been added to the pledge of Allegiance... UNDER GOD. Wouldn't it be a pity if someone said that is a prayer and that would be eliminated from schools too? -- Red Skelton (Someone asked me to change my .sig quote back, so I did.) ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Semi-OTC Lasers
- Original Message - From: Ronn!Blankenship [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: Killer Bs Discussion brin-l@mccmedia.com Sent: Thursday, February 23, 2006 9:17 PM Subject: Re: Semi-OTC Lasers At 09:12 AM Thursday 2/23/2006, Klaus Stock wrote: For the last few months you have been able to buy lasers that could pop balloons, melt trash bags, cut electrical tape, and melt through plastic. And more easily blind people than the class 1 lasers. Want to kill someone? Wait till he drives past on th efreeway, point the laser at his eyes and there he goes. The perfect crime, killing people with an intuitive point and click interface. I have a class 1 green laser rated at 4.99mW that I use for a star pointer which would likely be sufficient for that purpose. (Drives the cat crazy, too.) The downside of doing what you describe at night is that the beam of even a class 1 green laser is visible at night (the very reason it is useful for pointing out objects in the sky), so any witnesses would be able to describe where the beam came from. The laser Rob described is actually bright enough that the beam can be see in the daytime (I'm not sure about in bright sunlight). I'd like to get one for demonstrations in class but don't have a spare $2K atm. Retinal damage is a very real problem even with low powered lasers and is likely the more frequent type of laser misuse. The danger I am thinking about concerns such lasers ability to cut through plastics and such. What if one were to use a laser to cut through a barrier that separated two chemicals that normally should be kept a good distance from each other? I suspect that the list of such chemicals is much larger than the list of chemicals normally searched for, frex when boarding planes. How about water and phosphorus? I imagine there are also some normally innocuous chemicals (precursors) that when combined create a poisonous gas or possibly a nerve agent. Significantly increasing the numbers and types of chemicals that law and security agencies *need* to search for is quite a problem. I expect that I am imagining only the simplest variations of such a device. but it seems to me that such a device would be fairly simple to build and conceal/disguise. xponent Pandora's Box Of Tricks Maru rob ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
