April 19, 2023

/now/

Played myhouse.wd. 9/10

If you like custom wads for the og Doom and Doom2, then you may really like "myhouse.wad": https://www.doomworld.com/forum/topic/134292-myhousewad/

  1. make sure you have the latest Gzdoom

  2. Run the .pk3 file, not the wad

  3. 🤯

TIL (Today I learned)

Synthetic Helium

After a run in trying to get birthday balloons filled with helium and running to multiple stores, and knowing that helium is a necessary component for medical devices and lab research, I was curious what the solutions were and assumed that some sort of alternative must be possible.

Lazily, I turned to Google Bard (I don't have access to ChatGPT because I refused to give it my phone number to verify my account). Below is my short session.

TLDR: its possible to make helium via two methods, but neither appear to be commercial scale.

Prompt:

how to make synthetic helium

Response:

Helium is the second most abundant element in the universe, but it is also the second lightest. This means that it is very difficult to contain and transport, and it is also very easy to lose to the atmosphere. As a result, there is a growing interest in the development of synthetic helium production methods.

There are two main methods for producing synthetic helium:

  • Cryogenic distillation: This method involves cooling a mixture of gases until the helium condenses. The condensed helium is then separated from the other gases and collected.
  • Nuclear fusion: This method involves fusing hydrogen atoms together to create helium atoms. This is a very energy-intensive process, but it is also a very promising way to produce large quantities of helium.

Both of these methods are still in the early stages of development, but they have the potential to provide a sustainable source of helium for the future.

Here are some additional details about each method:

Cryogenic distillation:

  • This method is the most common way to produce synthetic helium.
  • It is a relatively simple process, but it can be energy-intensive.
  • The quality of the helium produced by this method is very high.

Nuclear fusion:

  • This method is still in the early stages of development.
  • It is a very promising way to produce large quantities of helium, but it is also a very energy-intensive process.
  • The quality of the helium produced by this method is very high.

It is important to note that both of these methods are still in the early stages of development, and it is not clear which method will be more cost-effective or efficient in the long term. However, both methods have the potential to provide a sustainable source of helium for the future.

Prompt:

Describe the process of creating helium using Cryogenic distillation.

Response:

Sure. Here is a brief overview of the process of creating helium using cryogenic distillation:

  1. Air is compressed and cooled. Air is compressed to a high pressure and then cooled to a very low temperature. This causes the air to liquefy.
  2. The liquefied air is separated into its component gases. The liquefied air is passed through a series of distillation columns. In each column, the air is heated and then cooled. The different gases in the air have different boiling points, so they will vaporize at different temperatures. This allows the gases to be separated from each other.
  3. The helium is collected. The helium is collected at the bottom of the distillation column. It is then cooled to a liquid state and stored in a tank.

The process of creating helium using cryogenic distillation is a relatively simple process, but it can be energy-intensive. The quality of the helium produced by this method is very high.