- **Dyson-swarm alternative**: kanzure proposed using reflective dust clouds instead of discrete solar panels to concentrate starlight at a single point, arguing it would be far cheaper to deploy.  
- **ImplicitCAD on Hackaday**: juri_ announced that ImplicitCAD—his programmatic CAD tool designed for 3-D printing—was featured on Hackaday.  
- **Microsoft’s JSON-based CAD**: kanzure noted Microsoft’s release of Maker.js, a pure-JavaScript CAD modeling library that introduces yet another JSON-based CAD format.  
- **Hugo Awards 2015 discussion**: Participants observed that Eric S. Raymond and Rolf Nelson appeared on the 2015 Hugo ballot, prompting debate over the quality and politics of contemporary science-fiction awards.  
- **Shortage of quality SF**: kanzure and JayDugger lamented the scarcity of concise, idea-dense science fiction and brainstormed solutions such as franchise-style ghostwriting, collaborative world-building projects, and resurrecting classic authors.  
- **Flyboard Air military use-case**: maaku argued that the new Flyboard personal flight platform could be lucrative for urban combat resupply and medical evacuation, while kanzure countered that fire departments lack funding.  
- **Convex optimization quip**: archels_ highlighted the value of reframing problems to fit existing “hammers,” noting that convexity often suffices for initial solutions.