Paul Allen Lends Personal ROV To Study Coelacanths 32
crudmonkey writes "It took a custom-made submarine, billionaire Paul Allen, and a tenacious desire lasting well beyond two decades to unveil enigmatic details about the life of the coelacanth—the primitive fish that invariably hooks researchers. A study published earlier this year in the journal Marine Biology summarizes 21 years of coelacanth population research."
Re:Intellectual Ventures? (Score:4, Funny)
As anyone who knows me could tell you, I really don't care about having a lot of money.
But sometime before I die, I would like to be able to use the phrase, "my personal submersible" if only for the way it makes my mouth feel to say those words.
Re:Intellectual Ventures? (Score:4, Funny)
Well, you can still say those words ... "alas, I will never have my own personal submersible". It just might not be as satisfying.
But, for the record, I would also like to be able to use the phrase "my personal submersible" ... "hey baby, want to come down to the marina and see my personal submersible?". It's just so Austin Powers.
Re: (Score:3)
"hey baby, want to come down to the marina and see my personal submersible?"
Ptttf! Loser.
Heeeay baaaybee. Wanna come back to my secret government facility? I'll let you drive a car on Mars.
-
Re: (Score:2)
There are machines that fit the definition of a "personal submersible" which only cost around a thousand IBT (note at foot of message)
These are rather like underwater mopeds with a head/ shoulders shroud which is supplied with air by a SCUBA system (there's also a "bail-out bottle" in the ones I've seen advertised) ; this provides buoyancy at the top
Re: (Score:2)
Thank you, sincerely, for the information and your willingness to share it.
You've given me half a dozen starting points for various miscellaneous quests.
Re: (Score:2)
I'll consider that a positive result then.
Thanks for the feedback ; it's appreciated.
Reason for research? (Score:5, Funny)
Re: (Score:2)
I tip my hat to you sir.
Re: (Score:1)
/me sputters coffee on dual-head 27" LCDs
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Can I use it whenever I see Courier New? It's like Slashdot's Comic Sans.
I keed. I keed.
Mostly.
Ok, not really.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Yet another example of the 1% Overlords only using their money to build 1-acre hot tubs, drink 100-year-old Scotch from disposable diamand shot glasses, and keep other people poor because that's what makes them happy.
Yeah--because the 1% sends someone out to bitch slap any recruiter that tries to give you a job?
Or are you whining because you don't have the intelligence and skills to get into a position like Paul Allen?
I'll be the first to admit that I don't have those skills. And I'm not butt-hurt about it either. The entire world can't be billion-dollar-CEOs. Who would take out the trash, sweep the floors, build the products, run their servers, or design the next iPhone?
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
Actually, I was being sarcastic. Too subtly, apparently.
My subtlometer is either broken or off-scale low. ;)
Re: (Score:2)
Even if everyone had a PhD, somebody still has to mop the restroom floors and take out the garbage. There are not enough high-end jobs to go around.
Plus, excessive wealth undermines democracy because the rich buy more influence in order to get richer in order to buy more influence in order to get richer in order to...
Re: (Score:1)
Don't confuse the master and the inmate that gets his ration in a bigger bowl than yours.
Waaaay bigger, ok ok. But sometimes even deserved.
The inmate reasons about the bowl size, the master plays with bowl sizes so that inmate keep fighting over them instead of starting a revolt.
Occupy Paul Allen's Submarine (Score:1)
Ya know, I don't see any Occupy protestors bitching about how they don't have a submarine. Get with the program people!
Re: (Score:1)
"Primitive" often means "closer to an earlier form" rather than "non-sophisticated". Sometimes you just find a nice niche and/or a nice combo of features that allow you to hang out for hundreds of millions.
Good stuff! (Score:4, Interesting)
I'm extremely excited and I'll tell you why (lucky you).
When I was attending grade school in the1960's I came across a book in the school library that described, with pictures, this creature found alive sometime in the '30s which had been previously thought by man to be long extinct. I don't think there was another kid who found this even remotely interesting, but I was spellbound. I never lost this fascination and over the years occasionally thought about this strange and reclusive creature, and if it had in fact survived.
Fast forward to 1998. I was working in a bicycle shop in a small out of the way resort town and the owners had managed to hire a talented bike guy from another state they met on the phone through business.
Soon after he showed up, I noticed a small tattoo he had just above one of his ankles. It was quite unusual but somehow familiar. I knelt on the floor and took a closer look. Are you kidding me?? It was a Coelacanth!! We exchanged stories about our experiences of youthful discovery and quickly bonded.
Fast forward to yesterday. I saw the Paul Allen/Coelacanth story somewhere and followed the links. Paul Allen should not get as much credit as the media apparently thinks he deserves.
Go here for the full story:
http://news.mongabay.com/2011/1114-ucsc-west_coelacanth.html
And here for history and up to date info on the Coelacanth, including video!:
http://www.arkive.org/coelacanth/latimeria-chalumnae/video-00.html#text=All
My friend in coelacanth still works at the bike shop, but I have moved on. I emailed him and know he'll be as excited as I am. I may have to get a tattoo and keep the love alive. Brotherhood of the Coelacanth, anyone?
USPO (Score:1)
No doubt looking for something important to patent.
Perhaps movement of fish through water by fin propulaion?