The Daily Yardman Thread

Re: MTD Yardman Transaxle Rebuild

Darryl G said:

I'm an environmental scientist - that was my former career - and first started researching global warming out of courosity over 25 years ago when most people hadn't even heard of it. I have no doubt that global warming is real and that it's being caused by human activity but not sure whether it's a good or bad thing. Based on historical cyclical global warming and cooling trends, we should be heading towards another ice age. I've got to think that an ice age would be worse. :smile:

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Well of course Darryl, I had no knowledge of your background or vocation, ( how in the hell did a scientist get such a great sense of humor ?? ) my uncle was a scientist at the ol Cape-Canaveral during the 50s & 60s (very-dry sense of humor) anyway I believe what I learned in Elementary and Jr. High schools, the ice-ages then warming cycles and so forth, I accept it easily when I see pictures of the Grand-Canyon, all that melting ice made a lot of water, and water I believe is what formed that canyon, LOT'S of water of a VERRRRRRRY Lonnnnnng time, I just find that mankind, since the inception of the combustion engine and the advent of the Industrial Age could possibly have contributed THAT much damage to this planet, besides, this place is half-way to HELL already !! ..:laughing:..:laughing:

Re: MTD Yardman Transaxle Rebuild

Boobala said:

Well of course Darryl, I had no knowledge of your background or vocation, ( how in the hell did a scientist get such a great sense of humor ?? ) my uncle was a scientist at the ol Cape-Canaveral during the 50s & 60s (very-dry sense of humor) anyway I believe what I learned in Elementary and Jr. High schools, the ice-ages then warming cycles and so forth, I accept it easily when I see pictures of the Grand-Canyon, all that melting ice made a lot of water, and water I believe is what formed that canyon, LOT'S of water of a VERRRRRRRY Lonnnnnng time, I just find that mankind, since the inception of the combustion engine and the advent of the Industrial Age could possibly have contributed THAT much damage to this planet, besides, this place is half-way to HELL already !! ..:laughing:..:laughing:

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your uncle was probably a theoretical physicist, half the time they dont even know there are other people in the room

Re: MTD Yardman Transaxle Rebuild

Roger B said:

Hey there Doc,

I thought of you this past Monday when I took my Rt 209 'Short Cut'. I looked across the 206 bridge but didn't see you.. Tooted my horn anyway.. All that snow melted yet? We slid in right behind that storm. Spent Sunday night in Fredricksburg, VA saw the first snow on the ground Monday morning in West Virginia and then had snow on the ground all the way to Mass. None fell on us, which was fine with me as my Toyo's are worn right down to the wear bars, I was trying to get every mile out of them I could. Figured I was safe in FL as long as I didn't get caught in one of their 'floods' they call a "rain storm". I just ordered a set of Michelin Premier LTX's for the Santa Fe, they go on tomorrow.

Most of the snow here along the coast in Maine has melted, just patches in the woods and places where the plows left big snow banks.

Hope all is well with everybody, Boo keeps me updated with the # of views and all... Glad to see you've picked up a couple new folks who actually contribute and post something.

It's good to be home and able to get out in the shop and do stuff.. Only 29*F this AM, but I lit off the wood stove and was working in my tee shirt and shop-apron before lunch time. Digging through all the little items I picked up at various flea markets in FL. that need restoration work. Boo tell you about the flea market in Webster? 35 acres of shops and tables on 60 acres of land!! Un-freakin'-believe-able! We saw maybe 25% of it. We-(Boo and me)-decided we would build hot-rodded electric wheelchairs for the next time we go there!

Hope all your projects are coming along well..

Roger

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Glad you made it home safe Roger! I did wave when you went by....you just couldn't see me througt the trees

Re: MTD Yardman Transaxle Rebuild

Scientists tend to have a sense of humor. It's engineers that don't, lol.

My career was mostly doing environmental site assessments and remediation of contaminated soil and groundwater, but I did a lot of other types of work as well. Consultants don't tend to say "sorry we don't do that" when a client approaches them with a prospective project. One of my projects was responding to a call from IBM for dirty outside windows at one of their research facilities! It turned out that acid rain was dissolving the masonry of the building and it was running down the windows causing mineral deposits to accumulate on them. They rejected my proposed solution of acid washing the windows and instead replaced them.

What complicates predictions of the effects of "greenhouse gasses" is the natural feedback loops that tend to attenuate imbalances. For instance warmer temperatures increase evaporation, which means more clouds that have a cooling effect.

What differentiates our current warming trend from natural warming and cooling cycles is the rate of change, which is far greater than normal, which makes it difficult for plants to adapt. Plants can't just pack up and move the way animals can.

I'm not a subscriber to the Doomsday predictions of some, but I do believe that our activities have had an effect on our climate and that it would be wise to try to limit our greenhouse gas emissions. That's all I can say for now, I've reached my self-imposed electrical energy quota for the day.

Re: MTD Yardman Transaxle Rebuild

Darryl G said:

Scientists tend to have a sense of humor. It's engineers that don't, lol.

My career was mostly doing environmental site assessments and remediation of contaminated soil and groundwater, but I did a lot of other types of work as well. Consultants don't tend to say "sorry we don't do that" when a client approaches them with a prospective project. One of my projects was responding to a call from IBM for dirty outside windows at one of their research facilities! It turned out that acid rain was dissolving the masonry of the building and it was running down the windows causing mineral deposits to accumulate on them. They rejected my proposed solution of acid washing the windows and instead replaced them.

What complicates predictions of the effects of "greenhouse gasses" is the natural feedback loops that tend to attenuate imbalances. For instance warmer temperatures increase evaporation, which means more clouds that have a cooling effect.

What differentiates our current warming trend from natural warming and cooling cycles is the rate of change, which is far greater than normal, which makes it difficult for plants to adapt. Plants can't just pack up and move the way animals can.

I'm not a subscriber to the Doomsday predictions of some, but I do believe that our activities have had an effect on our climate and that it would be wise to try to limit our greenhouse gas emissions. That's all I can say for now, I've reached my self-imposed electrical energy quota for the day.

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YEAH .. UH.. well.. UMMMMM.. uh.... THAT'S why "THE-MAN" gave us brains to invent A/C & Heat .. :laughing:..:laughing:

Re: MTD Yardman Transaxle Rebuild

Darryl G said:

I'm an environmental scientist - that was my former career - and first started researching global warming out of courosity over 25 years ago when most people hadn't even heard of it. I have no doubt that global warming is real and that it's being caused by human activity but not sure whether it's a good or bad thing. Based on historical cyclical global warming and cooling trends, we should be heading towards another ice age. I've got to think that an ice age would be worse. :smile:

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Well the problem is in other ice ages humans could just move closer to the equator and start up all over again.
This time that can not happen so we could expect at least 1/3 of the population freeze to death.
Then because we have allowed our diets to become dominated by monopoly agriculture probably 3/4 of the remaining will starve to death.
Then because we are humans the remaining people will go to war with each other for possession of the remaining ariable lands because economically it is cheaper to kill your neighbour & steal their food than to find / grow your own.
Thus the planet will end up with a sustainable number of humans for the next 10,000 years.

AS to weather it would be a good thing or not, all depends if the remaining humans actually learn from the experience but I seriously doubt it.
We know what happens with deforestation , it is called Easter Island, but we still chop down virgin forest to make toilet paper and fibre board boxes cause it is cheaper to pay some vigalanties to move in and wipe out the forest dwelling natives then chop down all the trees that to get some on to sort through the trash and pull all the paper product out for reuse. Smartest species on the planet ?

There was great excitement down here about the resumption of supersonic air flight.
All of these planes will be flying in the very thin ozone layer and considering the damage & cost to OZ caused by the current ozone hole which is only partially healed one would have though that the reporting might have been a little circumspect, but no every reporter was hanging off the ceiling at the prospect of being able to fly to London in 3 hours or 4 hours to New York, if you can afford the ticket.

Re: MTD Yardman Transaxle Rebuild

I've studied population theory a bit and when the population of a species increases to the point it that it exceeds the carrying capacity of its habitat there will eventually be an adjustment in that population. We are no different and sooner or later it will happen to us. But I'm not going to lay awake at night worrying about it, since I'll be one of the survivors! :laughing:

Re: MTD Yardman Transaxle Rebuild

Darryl G said:

I've studied population theory a bit and when the population of a species increases to the point it that it exceeds the carrying capacity of its habitat there will eventually be an adjustment in that population. We are no different and sooner or later it will happen to us. But I'm not going to lay awake at night worrying about it, since I'll be one of the survivors! :laughing:

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Darryl ...... you're lucky I like YOU !! ........ I'm one of the "ADJUSTERS" !! ..:laughing:..:laughing:

Re: MTD Yardman Transaxle Rebuild

at this rate members are going to need a PHD to comment on this thread

Re: MTD Yardman Transaxle Rebuild

:dance1: