Live data from Hacker News

Man Supposedly Flies With Custom-Built Bird Wings

wired.com

61–70 of 164 posts

Re: Man Supposedly Flies With Custom-Built Bird Wings

#61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're not the only one. If this is real, they seem to have gone out of their way with editing to make it look like a fakery. I would have been far, far more convinced by simple, unedited HD footage. For what it's worth, a friend of mine who is a Boeing engineer saw it and cried "fake." I think I need more information.

It reeks of "Liquid Mountaineering." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oe3St1GgoHQ Especially the cheesy editing. If this is an attempt at viral marketing, it's worth remembering how many people got pissed at the shoe company that commissioned the Liquid Mountaineering ad - Hi-Tec I think it was. Edit: If you watch his previous video, at 1:53 here you can clearly see the leaves changing as it blurs and cuts to another s…

Liquid Mountaineering looks to be the exact opposite of this.

That was clearly a platform just under the surface of the water. The actual footage was genuine, they just weren't doing what they claimed to be doing, whereas this certainly looks to be a total fake job.

Stage magic vs cut-rate Michael Bay

Re: Man Supposedly Flies With Custom-Built Bird Wings

#63

Things that make this video implausible: 1) You have the engineering fortitude to come up with something that has never been done before, and you choose to attach it to your body with a consumer grade backback? And not even a full hiking one with multiple points of attachment? No rock-climbing harness? 2) Fabric is waaay too loose on the wings to be effective in any kind of aerodynamic sense. At best this is a kite 3…

The disregard for the physics of the situation is actually quite insulting. The "demonstration" is so far from realistic its not even worth a debunking. Here is an example of what this man is claiming to have done, actually being done, by a team of engineers working for years: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0E77j1imdhQ

Though in the OP video, there isn't any claim that it's human powered, so it's a bit different even if still implausible.

Re: Man Supposedly Flies With Custom-Built Bird Wings

#64
Disclosure: I fell for this. That said here is another red flag:

The guys reaction at the end of the video is not one of triumph and excitement. Here are some videos of what real reactions look like:

First time skydiving:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v...

Breaking a world record:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v...

Winning:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EOcf6oEiRT0&feature=playe...

*Edit - Fixed last link

Re: Man Supposedly Flies With Custom-Built Bird Wings

#66
This is absurd (and I can't believe its at the top of hacker news).

The article insinuates this is human powered flight.

Any realistic attempt at a solely human powered flying machine would utilize leg power, not arms which pale in comparison in terms of power output.

Also seems a bit fishy a buzzing sound, much like that of an engine, starts the same time as the wing flapping.

Interesting engineering feat but definitely not the holy grail of man powered flight. This is Turnigy powered flight, big deal.

"The design is based on mechanics used in robotic prosthetics."

Re: Man Supposedly Flies With Custom-Built Bird Wings

#68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

it's definitely fake - check the previous video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0tKFOcHyrI&t=1m30s

Sooooo fakity fakely fake! It's oh so convenient that the cameraman "happens" to look down and the camera happens to blur (what is it refocusing on?) between the time when the wings are resting on the ground and when they are picked up and ready for the test flight. Then the camera is conveniently moving and keeping things just a tad blurry while the wings start up. If you compare the appearance of the wings before a…

Definitely fake as there is a black square on the right wing in the later (CGI, after the camera has looked up again) images that doesn't exist in the earlier (real) footage. You can clearly see this in the video and your screengrab.

From the video it is also obvious that there is no way someone could have stuck that there in the time it took for the camera to turn away and back again.

Re: Man Supposedly Flies With Custom-Built Bird Wings

#69
This video is fake, that has been established beyond doubt. But CGI, even "prosumer" CGI like this, is really getting better. Even at this level, people are relying on "hints" that a CGI transition has taken place - camera looks away, is obscured, or the picture is blurry.

Give it a couple of years and those distracting-from-transition tricks probably won't be necessary any more. Then what?

Re: Man Supposedly Flies With Custom-Built Bird Wings

#70

Disclosure: I fell for this. That said here is another red flag: The guys reaction at the end of the video is not one of triumph and excitement. Here are some videos of what real reactions look like: First time skydiving: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v... Breaking a world record: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v... Winning: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EOcf6oEiRT0&f…

Not to be a jerk, both those three videos you posted don't seem to encompass exactly what happened here.

I'm not saying it's a real video but everyone's reaction is different towards any event. I don't think this can be counted as proof against the 'realness' of the video.

Post reply on HN