Most of your so called “psychics” use a technique called cold reading to dupe people into believing they can talk to the dead or see your future. Most of our exposure to these “psychics” is via the media where segments are edited down to portray the “psychic” in the best possible light. So what does an unedited cold reading look like?
It’s pretty comical actually:
I almost feel some sympathy for James Van Praagh – his “readings” don’t seem to be going very well and he’s visibly distressed about it.
I said almost because James Van Praagh and others like him (yes I’m pointing at you Sylvia Brown and John Edward) dupe millions of often grieve-stricken, hurting people into believing their complete and utter bull-shit for one single reason: profit. It’s despicable.
Companies like Monster Cable were walking a fine line with their high priced analog cables because most people can’t tell the difference between gold plated, gas injected cable and coat hanger. But when the switch to digital started Monster was quick to cross way, way over that line by duping people into thinking they needed an overpriced cable to connect their HD devices. The problems is, HDMI is a digital signal and unlike analog signals (like composite video), it’s either there or it’s not. So, whether you have a $250 cable or a $6 cable your TV is going to look the same. Continue reading “Monster Cable – Monster Rip-off”
DANGER: This project deals with mains voltages which, among other things, can KILL you DEAD. If you choose to replicate any portion of this project I am in no way responsible for any adverse consistences that may result.
So, I have this vapor tight light fixture that I’ve been wanting to make blink on and off, like a radio or cell phone tower signal light but was having a hard time coming up with a practical way to do it.
The main problem is that the light fixture runs off of 120 volts and I was not finding a practical cheep a way to control a mains voltage light. Sure I could use a DMX controller but that’s expensive and overkill. I found light socket flasher buttons (insert the “button” between the bulb and the socket and heat change makes the light blink) but those are old school, hard to find, wear out over time, and the flash rate is not customizable.
Of course I thought about using a microcontroller like my Arduino to control the light, but interfacing mains voltage devices with low voltage microcontrollers seems to be something a lot of people steer away from (the Arduino forums seem to be particularly against it). So, I was having difficulty finding circuit designs that would put me on the right path.
that I’ve been wanting to make blink on and off, like a radio or cell phone tower signal light but was having a hard time coming up with a practical way to do it.
