Tensile vs. Shear Strength
by Jeff
Image text: Although really, the damage was done when the party planners took the hole punch to the elevator ribbon to hang up the sign.
The Space Elevator is an idea about how to quickly move ships, people and supplies into orbit without the
The Tower of Babel was an ancient building built so that it would be a testament to man's ability and would go so high, it would have its top among the heavens. This is why the comic is referencing a "modern Babel" because the space elevator would have its top among the stars.
Tensile Strength is the maximum load that a material can support without fracture when being stretched.
Shear strength is the maximum shear stress which a material can withstand without rupture. The comic is making a pun on this because the Black Hat character is using "shears" or scissors to cut the elevator ribbon.
This comic is also referencing how at a Grand Opening, there is a "ribbon cutting ceremony". In the comic, there is a "ribbon cutting ceremony", however, the ribbon that is cut is not the ceremonial ribbon, but the space elevator ribbon.
February 3rd, 2010
I noticed that the words on the right side of the “elevator” all rhyme too.
August 20th, 2010
The form is that of a Burma-Shave ad.
February 3rd, 2010
The first line just ends. At least on my computer.
February 4th, 2010
Agreed, Locutus. This is a poem withing a comic.
And the missing portion of the first line could read something like, “without the use of rockets or other autonomous vehicles.”
February 4th, 2010
Umm… ok, the concepts are clear. But what exactly is this comic referencing? Any unfortunate events at any “Grand Opening” recently?
February 4th, 2010
i think it reffers to the cutting the nasa budget by obama.
he wants more private firms managing spacetravels rather than nasa,
so the 3 characters on the left are the “non scientific”, and the character on the right is appaled about the cutting,mb also about the cutting mentioned first
January 2nd, 2012
that makes sense. the three characters to the left seems to be oblivious to the impending disaster while the one to the right is horrified. if you want to stretch the simbolism further, the lift could represent modern science, which, as history shows it (Roman age => dark age) can easily be destroyed by men’s follies.
August 20th, 2010
I love the way the elevator looks like a generic office-building elevator, complete with up and down buttons..
December 2nd, 2010
you don’t need party planners if you are just going to hold a very small party for your personal friends `~-