• A “technology usefulness quiz” (http://theuniverseas.com/how-useful-are-you-take-this-technology-quiz) circulated; participants scored 10/10 but questioned its value, framing it as baseline knowledge rather than a source of pride.

• The 2009 Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Barack Obama was discussed with skepticism; participants noted that the science Nobels require active campaigning and expressed more interest in the technical prizes.

• MIT’s Center for Bits and Atoms video archive (http://ng.cba.mit.edu/show/video.html) was highlighted for open-source fabrication demos, including a “Spirit Chair” CNC build, an electro-stepper motor based on hypocycloid gearing, and a hovering robot concept.

• A debate on hexayurt construction compared 4 × 8 ft plywood vs. foil-faced foam panels; trade-offs included airtightness, waterproofing, labor efficiency, and the need for power tools, with links to plywood hexayurt videos and cost comparisons.

• The channel explored unconventional shelter tech: soft tiles, Reflectix insulation, inflatable satellite dishes (GATR), and the open-source CEB press and Hexacube as alternatives to hexayurts.

• Web-scraping for profit was critiqued after discovering AggData.com selling curated lists (e.g., $39 for every Arby’s location), questioning the market size for such data.

• Presentation planning for the H+ Summit focused on balancing generic open-source principles (GNU, FSF, Debian, Ubuntu) with DIYbio demonstrations while avoiding overlap with an existing DIYbio talk.

• Participants shared links to open-source culture artifacts: apt-get wife memes, COCOMO cost-estimation model, and the Mallard project for modular documentation.

• Genehacker revived the WWII Focke-Wulf Triebflügeljäger tail-sitter VTOL concept and speculated on 3,000 psi water-jet safety for DIY applications.

• Real-time weather radar sources were compared (NWS vs. Weather Underground) for tornado tracking, alongside jokes about ototoxic ibuprofen and the need for better emergency alerts.