September 2017 Media Thread

ArisKatsaris

This is the monthly thread for posting media of various types that you've found that you enjoy. Post what you're reading, listening to, watching, and your opinion of it. Post recommendations to blogs. Post whatever media you feel like discussing! To see previous recommendations, check out the older threads.

Rules:

Please avoid downvoting recommendations just because you don't personally like the recommended material; remember that liking is a two-place word. If you can point out a specific flaw in a person's recommendation, consider posting a comment to that effect.
If you want to post something that (you know) has been recommended before, but have another recommendation to add, please link to the original, so that the reader has both recommendations.
Please post only under one of the already created subthreads, and never directly under the parent media thread.
Use the "Other Media" thread if you believe the piece of media you want to discuss doesn't fit under any of the established categories.
Use the "Meta" thread if you want to discuss about the monthly media thread itself (e.g. to propose adding/removing/splitting/merging subthreads, or to discuss the type of content properly belonging to each subthread) or for any other question or issue you may have about the thread or the rules.

Rules:

Please avoid downvoting recommendations just because you don't personally like the recommended material; remember that liking is a two-place word. If you can point out a specific flaw in a person's recommendation, consider posting a comment to that effect.
If you want to post something that (you know) has been recommended before, but have another recommendation to add, please link to the original, so that the reader has both recommendations.
Please post only under one of the already created subthreads, and never directly under the parent media thread.
Use the "Other Media" thread if you believe the piece of media you want to discuss doesn't fit under any of the established categories.
Use the "Meta" thread if you want to discuss about the monthly media thread itself (e.g. to propose adding/removing/splitting/merging subthreads, or to discuss the type of content properly belonging to each subthread) or for any other question or issue you may have about the thread or the rules.

Machs Effect interstellar propellentless propulsion mission proposal at NASA NIAC

https://www.nextbigfuture.com/2017/09/machs-effect-interstellar-propellentless-propulsion-mission-proposal-at-nasa-niac.html#more-137162

Next Steps • Publish – – One or more papers on results of our current laboratory scale test program – Additional peer-reviewed papers on theory are in preparation – Paper on IMES-1 design and Concept of Operations (CONOPS) • Upgrade test facilities and increase thrust – –Increase data rate and number of channels –Improve torsion balance – Increase thrust ~10x • Design an on-orbit test of the MEGA drive – – Our planned on-orbit test using a microsatellite (or CubeSat) is presently at TRL ~ 2 – We favor a rotational test, spinning a microsatellite up (and down) by opposing drives. This removes atmospheric drag as a major error source.