"The cave digger" is a nice documentary on Ra Paulette, who was somewhat addicted to digging elaborately decorated caves in soft rock.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9n_bHcZaGJs
The underground world of hobby tunneling
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Re: The underground world of hobby tunneling
#162I have a crawlspace under half my house, and made the mistake of watching a YouTube video about how to do "underpinning". Now I want to dig it out down to 10ft to use for some desperately needed storage space, maybe some gym space. Our local building office is amazingly supportive of DIYers, and I appreciate them double checking my work.
I did that in a low basement once. I had to replace the crumbled concrete floor anyway, so I figured I’d dig it down a foot or two while I was at it… then I found out the house was sitting on a shale ledge.
Turns out excavating shale by hand or with a jack hammer is incredibly difficult! It breaks into tiny pieces, bit by bit. Then you have to shovel said pieces into buckets and haul them out. Really heavy buckets because rocks.
One of the few jobs I threw in the towel and hired out. It still took 3 people 2 days to dig out about 18 inches. Never again!
Re: The underground world of hobby tunneling
#163I wonder if there's DNA markers that predispose people to this type of "hobby". There's evidence that humans lived in caves and underground bunkers for extended periods of time. There's even ancient underground cities with dedicated water sources and ventilation systems. See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derinkuyu_underground_city
There is certainly some psychological component at play. One of my favorite childhood memories is of me and my cousin digging tunnels for our hotwheels cars in a 10' mound of dirt my grandpa had hauled in. I recently tried this new Enshrouded game with another friend and we dug a tunnel for our base (for no reason). I just find it... cozy?
I think ancestral cave dwelling may for sure be a factor here, wrt evolutionary psychology (a scientific domain I wish was not as primitive)
Re: The underground world of hobby tunneling
#164Earlier quoted context omitted.
Careful, generally, diverting or otherwise messing with the flow of waterways is illegal. Got a talking to from a DNR officer when I was a kid.
Those terrorist bevers must be stopped at all costs.
Re: The underground world of hobby tunneling
#165This article reminds me of 3 Alarm Lamp Scooter: https://darknetdiaries.com/episode/39/ Such a sad yet interesting story.
More information[1][2] about 3 alarm lamp scooter and the accidental death case. What a story, Daniel clearly is “insanely” smart, and he gave a few talks at various conferences like Defcon. One such talk was about Bitcoin[3] very early and he makes some damn good arguments. Would be fascinating to hear from him today after his prison time. I assume he still has Bitcoin so money is probably not a concern. [1] https:/…
Thanks for linking the Bitcoin talk I’ll check it out.
Re: The underground world of hobby tunneling
#166Earlier quoted context omitted.
More information[1][2] about 3 alarm lamp scooter and the accidental death case. What a story, Daniel clearly is “insanely” smart, and he gave a few talks at various conferences like Defcon. One such talk was about Bitcoin[3] very early and he makes some damn good arguments. Would be fascinating to hear from him today after his prison time. I assume he still has Bitcoin so money is probably not a concern. [1] https:/…
Thanks for linking the Bitcoin talk I’ll check it out.
$8 a bitcoin when he gave the talk. Dear lord!
Re: The underground world of hobby tunneling
#167Earlier quoted context omitted.
Careful, generally, diverting or otherwise messing with the flow of waterways is illegal. Got a talking to from a DNR officer when I was a kid.
Not just illegal, the potential impact on a waterbed is huge. I spoke at length with a BLM hydrologist about this, artificial deepening of discrete hot spring pools can and has caused entire areas to wash out into a uniform warm muck.
Y’all realize they change all the time, right?
Re: The underground world of hobby tunneling
#168Earlier quoted context omitted.
Not just illegal, the potential impact on a waterbed is huge. I spoke at length with a BLM hydrologist about this, artificial deepening of discrete hot spring pools can and has caused entire areas to wash out into a uniform warm muck.
Y’all realize they change all the time, right?
I'm sure you know much more about natural rates of mineral deposition and erosion and the potential effects of altering them than a literal industry professional with decades of experience.
Re: The underground world of hobby tunneling
#169Earlier quoted context omitted.
You can say the same about any hobby that is more dangerous than sitting in the sofa. We would need to make it illegal to do any type of diving, climbing of mountains, skiing off-pist etc.
Or instead of illegal, limit mandatory rescuing, or have people to pay for it themself. Btw. no one will rescue you, if you need help above 7000 m. (unless you made special arrangements with somebody) Or, just don't change much. And as far as I know, in many states around the world, you will have to pay for helicopter rescue, unless your insurance covers it (but the insurance fee is really not that much).
Yes, I agree. Same with boating just for fun. Let the people drown or pay to be rescued. They took a risk choosing to be on the water. They should pay the price for that risk.