Indestructible Super Mug To Save Humanity 300
prostoalex writes "Next time a ceramic mug falls on the ground, you won't have to buy a new coffee:"A team of undergraduates at the university in Socorro designed a ceramic mug that can fall 15 feet onto concrete pavement and still hold a full cup of java afterward without leaking."" Thank god I can sleep easy at night ;)
Bah. (Score:5, Informative)
When I first read the summary, I thought these kids had designed some new interesting ceramic material that would prove to have many practical applications. After all, that's what the contest is for...
From TFA:
But the New Mexico Tech team used a different tactic...making part of their mug expendable, to save the rest. In short, they cheated.
Now don't get me wrong...I'm all for thinking outside the box...after all, I'm the one whose egg drop [pitsco.com] design in high school incorporated a parachute, ensuring my egg could survive a drop from any altitude. I was the clear winner, because I too 'thought outside the box'.
Did I get a commendation for my cleverness? Did I get a write-up in USA Today?
No. I got an F, despite there being no rules whatsoever prohibiting parachutes (although I hear they wrote in that rule the following year).
These New Mexico Tech students 'thought outside the box', and in doing so, completely subverted the whole point of the competition. Using this strategy, they managed to net second place, and they get a newspaper article for it.
Again, bah.
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
But how long for gravity to kick in? Nine feet in the contest, and 15 feet ability, are not useful for my coffee table or desk. If it could correct within 50cm, thus stopping the carpet from getting dirty, then it would be worthy.
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
I think the reason why the judges liked this entry was because it was a practical engineering solution similar to what you'd see in the real world. While every engineer wishes that a magic material would come along to solve all their problems (and on rare occasions they do get that wish), most of the time an engineer is forced to make the type of tradeoff seen in the coffee cup.
Not a university :) (Score:4, Interesting)
That is the administrations improved PR in work.
As a proud alumni, I'd like to point out, just because our adminstration hates it when we do so, that the name is New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, and it is not a University
</rant>
Sorry for that. Several years ago the administration decided make increasing enrollment it's biggest goal, which came with talks of improving freshmen retention. Tech already accepts almost anyone who applies (a good thing), and about half drop out after before completing their junior year. While a couple classes seemed to be "weeding-out classes", most were reasonably challenging for those willing to learn. So there is naturally concern that standards will drop as a result of the administrations direction.
The practice of slapping the word Univerity into all the press releases started at the same time, and the two are linked in my mind, hence the rant.
Anyway, sounds like a fun competition, and best regards to the materials students that designed the project.
Re:Not a university :) (Score:2)
Actually, it's usually used to distinguish the difference between a school that has a post-graduate program from one that doesn't.
This isn't always true anymore, of course, since some "Colleges" offer both undergraduate and graduate programs.
Tech is a university. (Score:2)
If you look at the press release [nmt.edu] from Tech, and not the USA Today article, they never mention university, so your rant is a bit off base.
Oh, and BTW, I went to Tech, too. I still like to call it School of Mines, though, as it was one of the land grant colleges from back in the 1890's. Freshmen retention has always been a big issue for Tech because most classes we
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
These New Mexico Tech students 'thought outside the box', and in doing so, completely subverted the whole point of the competition. Using this strategy, they managed to net second place, and they get a newspaper article for it.
I see. So any idea that maintains the spirit of the competition but violates the rules is cheating, is it? I say 'bah!' to that. As a graduate of t
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
Yet, despite all of the above (or perhaps more accurately, because of them), finding a way to "cheat" usually means the difference between success and failure. And in the real world, your boss won't care if the container lands on its side - Only that his coffee doesn't spill.
If you can't do that, you're not a good e
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
The idea in both situations is to design something that can survive the impact -- not avoid the impact, which is what you did,
They came up with an innovative solution to the problem. You just avoided the problem altogether.
Re:Most problems are best avoided. (Score:2)
Re:Most problems are best avoided. (Score:2)
You can't. You don't even have to _hit_ anything to cause an injury. Eventually what you run up against is the deceleration force causing your arterial ligament to split your aorta in two just like a guillotine - the principal cause of death in deceleration trauma (car accidents, plane crashes, etc). Sometimes the aorta will come right off the heart at the level of the coronary ar
Re:Most problems are best avoided. (Score:2)
(* Yes, I hate "just do X..." too.)
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
The rules you linked clearly used the word 'vehicle'. A parachute is not a vehicle.
You cheated, got caught and you're whining about it god knows how many years later!
tihi :)
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
Most egg drop contests have a no parachute rule, but if his didn't, then he clearly won.
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
It's purpose is to aid with deceleration (retard your fall), not acceleration.
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
C'mon, give him a break. It obviously meant a lot to him!
Re:In Soviet Russia... They use a pencil. (Score:2)
And no I wasn't going to do the cliche, but remember the story about the millions NASA pumped into making the ballpoint pen that could be used in zero gravity, but the Soviets saved time and money by using a pencil. (Even though I remember reading a snopes article)
But the lesson is th
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
[...]
But the New Mexico Tech team used a different tactic...making part of their mug expendable, to save the rest. In short, they cheated.
Good design is more important than good materials. So I think the win was fair.
Second, go NMT!
You're thinking too far inside the slashbox (Score:2)
I think you have a right to be bitter. Per the rules you posted, you should not have gotten an F. Now, if during your class the spirit of the class was to deal with materials or polymers or impact resistance then your parachute idea would have been against the spirit of the contest. Egg dropping contests are common in engineering an
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
also, if you had enough materials for a parachute, your egg-drop contest simply wasn't restrictive enough.
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
I lost an egg-drop competition at my work because the vague rules didn't specify a bullseye hit (not only did the egg have to survive but it had to hit a bullseye on the ground when dropped from 50 feet). The winning team had a giant sheet of plastic that basically covered the bullseye, which was considered a hit, despite the egg being 10' from the actual target. My team's egg was an inch away from the
Nobody likes a smartass. (Score:2)
In most cases, the organizers of the competition have a management, not engineering mindset.
These folks typically do NOT like the unexpected, especially in contests they're organizing.
If you participate in these competitions, you learn some really important things about engineering:
As an engineer, you must listen to your Client and determine:
What the Client he says he wants.
What the Client really wants.
What the Client needs.
What the C
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
Read again. The rules didn't forbid parachutes.
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
The part that he omitted was that teachers are petty pathetic little fucks who don't like being outsmarted by their students. Then again, this is common knowledge so he really didn't need to spell it out. Those who can, do; those who can't, teach.
Re:Bah. (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Bah. (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
Getting an F for original thinking, my foot.
Re:Bah. (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
BTW, I'll bet you could find a novelty set somewhere that has some (or even all) the pieces with parachutes attached.
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
Does it make sense, ladies and gentlemen of the jury. It does not. And so I urge you to acquit the king of this checkmate, because it doesn't make sense.
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
*Juror's head explodes*
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
Obviously you've never played chess using my rules. I think it's quite an improvement on the original game, but I have trouble finding people to play with. I wonder if this might have something to do with my rules for castling, which involves a car battery, jumper cables, live hornets, and kerosene.
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
"and it's another tense moment here in the world championship as the current - wait, I can't believe it, oh it's a sudden paradrop the the 8th rank and a surprise queening! I think the Russians have taken the title again this year..."
Re:Bah. (Score:3, Funny)
ObYoungOnes:
Vyv (trying to fix a video recorder): Yeah, but it doesn't say, "ensure the machine isn't full of washing-up liquid"!
Mike: Well it wouldn't, would it?! I mean, it doesn't say, "ensure you don't chop up your video machine with an axe, put all the bits in a plastic bag and bung em down the lavatory"!
Vyv (grabs video recorder): Doesn't it? Maybe that's where we're going wrong!
Re:No rule against nukes either (Score:2)
Re:No rule against nukes either (Score:2)
Actually, that would be against international law and if you had a nuke I'm sure your opponent would let you win, but I think you'd have more to worry about the team of highly trained anti-terrorist soldiers that kind of like the guys from Rainbow 6.
What you are thinking of would be like if we played a game of chess and I started playing a boom box really loud with Vanilla Ice while every
Re:No rule against nukes either (Score:2)
I'm sure its not against the rules, but I think it is quite questionable.
Actually, the FIDE ( Fédération Internationale des Échecs or World Chess Federation) Handbook, does have rules against distractions. It is covered in Chapter 15, Ethics http://www.fide.com/official/handbook.a [fide.com]
Re:No rule against nukes either (Score:2)
-the smaller the number of items/materials in the design, the lower the score (lower is better)
-the lighter the container, the lower the score
-the container must come to rest inside a target area, so delivery precision is a key component of the contest.
My to my cousin's chagrin, she was essentially disqualified when her entry bounce
Re:Bah. (Score:3, Insightful)
And even if you (the organizer of the competition) think about it as a loophole, you can't "punish" the player for it, because at the time of the contest it was conformant to the rule. What you can do, however, is change the rules for next year's competition. That's how it is done in a fair contest.
Re:Bah. (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
--
XviD review: 500kbps to 4000kbps [palmdrive.net]
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
Read the rules he posted -- the competition isn't so much to get an egg to fall w/o breaking (although that is required), but to take as much time as possible in doing so. The longest amount of time in the air wins.
Unsure how a parachute is "out of the box" thinking though.
The traditional egg drop contest went the way of the dodo when someone realized that a piece of bread and some cr
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
Antigravity?
One or two swallows (European) grasping a bit of string with the egg tied into it?
Re:Bah. (Score:2)
Just like Toast (Score:3, Funny)
The secret is to butter the bottom of the mug, thus ensuring that it always lands the right way up.
Re:Just like Toast (Score:2)
Boo (Score:2)
They didn't use any fancy ceramics, instead they gamed their design.
Clever, but
Next Project: A Ballmer-Proof Chair (Score:2, Funny)
It will have the ability to absorb impacts from dropping, kicking or throwing due to sudden fits of rage and violent outbursts of anger. [sys-con.com]
Re:Next Project: A Ballmer-Proof Chair (Score:2)
I mean, that old guy doesn't even read Slashdot and he's heard it a million times
Re:Next Project: A Ballmer-Proof Chair (Score:2)
I wish he would shoot me, then I could come back and apologize to him and his family for all the problems I had caused.
Re:Next Project: A Ballmer-Proof Chair (Score:2)
I wish he would shoot me, then I could come back and apologize to him and his family for all the problems I had caused.
He only did that because of some political ass kissing and under-the-table palm greasing.
Who cares about the mug. (Score:2)
Round Bottoms (Score:4, Insightful)
From TFA "It's rounded (at the bottom)"
That'll sit nicely on a desk...
Re:Round Bottoms (Score:2)
Re:Round Bottoms (Score:2)
Re:Round Bottoms (Score:2)
Not if you... (Score:2, Funny)
Pics (Score:5, Informative)
Crumple Zones & the Lazy Man Maneuver (Score:3, Interesting)
As the mug falls, it gathers velocity towards the ground (thank you, gravity) and upon impact it stops when it meets the resistance of cement. This resistance means that the prior amount of kinetic energy must be absorbed at some point in the mug or absorbed by the concrete (not too feasible).
I'm going to say that I'm not accounting for everything here
The strategy behind their solution is that they used a "crumple point" at the base of the mug. What they refer to as "the bomb" is really just a crushable base that sufficiently absorbs the energy. Therefore, the energy does not transfer to the coffee (which would thus splash it everywhere). This is a lot like the crumple points on modern car frames. My car's frame has points at which, if I run into something, the energy will be absorbed in the event of extreme energy transfer. This stops the energy from transferring to my body and causing me to splash everywhere. Let me tell you, you do not want to splash everywhere; it's quite messy and rather painful. As a car designer, you'd like to know precisely where energy will be transferred to in the event of an accident so you create crumple zones. If a car is in a sufficient collision, often times it will be necessary to have the vehicle "pulled" which means spending a lot of money to have some goof put it in a very expensive machine that pulls on the frame until everything is back to near perfect specs and calibration.
I, on the other hand, prefer loading it onto a flatbed trailer, attaching a hand winch to both axles and laying underneath it and winching until your friend tells you that the doors can open and they no longer touch the front quarter panels. Alignment? Oh, that's just for rich people and inspectors.
Now, what I don't like about this mug design is that it seems to be a one shot deal for the mug. Yes, you've saved your coffee but your mug is shot.
I'm reminded of when I used to work in a restaurant and ceramic plates and glass would occasionally drop by mistake from my hands and the hands of coworkers. Now, as time went on, I noticed that glass objects like drinking glasses would have one bounce. I do not know why but they would have one bounce and then SMASH
Knowing this, if I saw an empty glass falling, I knew I had one bounce to try and save it but the bounces weren't always too high. Years of hacky sack training on sipas finally became useful. Now, there is a move I was taught that we called a "lazy man" that involved kicking the foot out but actually using the ankle movement to kick the bag up into the air. There were a few times when a glass dropped and after the first bounced I lazy manned it up and caught it and I was a god for 10 minutes at least in the back of the kitchen. Sure, there were times when it just looked like I was booting a glass into the wall but it was worth it. I always wondered if those saved glasses would ever get another bounce if they dropped again.
Re:Crumple Zones & the Lazy Man Maneuver (Score:4, Informative)
I'm going to venture a guess here. The bottom of the glass is the heaviest and strongest part, especially on restaurant glasses made for heavy use and frequent washing. It stands to reason that the glass would turn so that the bottom hit the ground first. The bottom strikes the ground unevenly, recoils, and the glass is thrown into a spin. When it strikes the ground again, it's with the much more fragile side of the glass.
Re:Crumple Zones & the Lazy Man Maneuver (Score:2)
Glass can be "bruised" (Score:2)
No, they get one bounce each. According to my spouse and close friends in the chemistry trade, glassware bruises on the first shock and shatters on the second (unless the force is so extreme that it gets pulverized in one shot or so trivial that it is completely unharmed). My o
Re:Crumple Zones & the Lazy Man Maneuver (Score:2)
Re:Crumple Zones & the Lazy Man Maneuver (Score:2)
IANAMEoP (Mech Engr or Physicist), but couldn't the mug be designed to deflect its downward momentum horizontally upon impact (i.e., rolling)? That's usually what stuntmen do when they jump out of windows, is it not?
Mmmm, shards (Score:2)
Coffee and beer drinkers aside, I wonder if a design that that could be used to transport hazardous or toxic liquids.
Re:Mmmm, shards (Score:2)
Actually, the article says the contest rules required the mug to be dropped on its side. While this mug is self-righting, the starting position would sort of preclude any coffee to begin with.
The design has one function -- to protect from a drop. It does nothing for impacts from any other direction. Smack it hard enough and it would shatter. I doubt that would be very useful for tra
Re:Mmmm, shards (Score:2)
So now we have coffee mugs with "crumple zones". What's next - air bags?
I care more about heat conductivity (Score:2)
Make me a mug that looks like a nice ceramic, but has the termal insulation value of my vaccum sealed travel mug.
Re:I care more about heat conductivity (Score:3, Insightful)
Time tested coffee mug (Score:2, Funny)
Extreme (Score:2)
It's 9.5 inches tall, 5.5 inches in diameter and practically indestructable. I have no reservations about chucking it 15 feet up into the air.
It'll hold 52 ounces, but can be modded [virtualfreshair.com] to hold 38% more.
In 1967 (The Graduate) the future was plastics.
Which is the Next Big Thing? Ceramics or nano-stuff?
what I really want to know (Score:2)
Is it stain resistant? (Score:2)
Re:Is it stain resistant? (Score:2)
Misleading blurb (Score:2)
Here I was hoping that they had found a way to prevent the coffee to be spilled when dropping the mug.
Dropping a mug 15 meters on concrete is not part of my coffee cup usage patterns anyway.
In the car (Score:2)
Weighing the Merits (Score:2)
On the other hand, I have to appreciate the creation of a contest entry designed to satisfy the verbatim rules of the contest, as my buddy and I are responsible for at least a page of prohibitio
What about the 'IT Crowd' solution? (Score:2)
Pardon me... (Score:2)
Did the kids come up with a new, unbreakable ceramic? No.
Did they come up with something that can be used more then once? No
Did they come up with something that would retain its coffee if knocked off a table? No
When i read the summary I thought: A coffee mug that I can drop whenever, from whereeer, and it'll keep its coffee.
This article is nothing like the summary makes it sound like. These cups can be used a grand total of one time (after which you need a whole new crumple zo
Huh? (Score:2)
so what you're saying is, this new mug is spill-proof?
They didn't win.... (Score:2)
Java (Score:2)
So they use a garbage collector?
I'm shocked (Score:2)
So what are you replacing? (Score:2)
Cost of coffee to Starbucks: $0.20
Price of coffee at Starbucks: $2.50
Cost of bad customer service: Priceless
Any coffee shop worth its salt should replace a broken cup of coffee... within reason. Of course they are under no obligation to, but it's got to be cheaper than investing in bomb shaped, ceramic nightmares from hell.
This is an intreresting academic exercise... right up there with "Who can design a vessel that can save an egg dropped from 200 feet?". That gem has kept sc
Umm...but I still need a new one after dropping it (Score:2)
So I can either place that sorta-kinda designer piece I got then (hey, it's a one-of-a-kind after dropping, none will look the same way when they hit the floor!) and carefully balance it so it stays upright, or I can go out and do what I do now already after dropping my coffee:
I go out and buy a new cup.
What'
Re:Umm...but I still need a new one after dropping (Score:2)
Weeeel, yes. Technically, in that the coffee is not on the floor and won't need to be given 5 seconds of attention with a wet rag. The pointy shards of shattered ceramic, now, they're every-fucking-where. And a lot harder to deal with.
How do you drink from a cup that can't spill (Score:2)
Uhmm.. Forgetting Galileo's little experiment? (Score:2)
Hmm. Unfortunately, they've mastered crumple zones at the expense of understanding basic laws of physics...
That would be "aerodynamics", not "gravity", that might help the mug to align its top side above the "heavier" sacrificial bomb side. After all, I think that Galileo confirmed that the heavier cannonball
Second place? (Score:2)
The article features the second-place winners, so what does the first-place design look like?
Have one already (Score:2)
I still have a nice, big mug that I bought in 1987 as a freshman in college. Its made out of this wonderful, space-age material called 'plastic'.
Amazing stuff.
- Necron69
Re:wow 2 of 20... (Score:2)
Re:Twice? (Score:2)
Re:excuse me, you dropped your coffee (Score:2)
It was made by Hornsea Pottery, and it was given to me around twenty years ago. It has a picture of a monkey on either side. It's a fairly straight-sided white cylinder with perhaps a slight bluish tint to it, and a square-ish handle. It has a very slight chip or imperfection in the rim, which I suspect it probably acquired when that Mars-sized planetoid crashed into the Earth some billi
Re:excuse me, you dropped your coffee (Score:5, Informative)
Re:excuse me, you dropped your coffee (Score:2)
Am I the only one who took physics? (Score:2)
Re:Picture (Score:2)