# Summary of #hplusroadmap IRC Discussion (March 24, 2009)

• Kanzure discussed using a thermodynamics paper's data tables containing "power required (kW)," "process rate (kg/hr)," and "electricity required (J/kg)" to create metadata for manufacturing processes that could be parsed by a GNU units wrapper.

• A discussion about Finite Element Analysis (FEA) applications noted that "bands" appearing in matrices of neighboring coefficients might explain the speedup claimed by FastFEA technology.

• A soft pneumatic exoskeleton weighing only 6 pounds was shared (http://cwwang.com/2008/04/08/soft-pneumatic-exoskeleton/), with debate about whether it qualifies as an exoskeleton without a rigid skeleton.

• Participants discussed DIY genome sequencing possibilities, including a proposed "genome sequencing lottery" and the theoretical goal of developing affordable personal sequencing tools.

• A discussion of self-replicating machines referenced Freitas' KSRM metrics for determining whether a design is truly self-replicating, including concepts like the Tukey Ratio and mean average of parts addition.

• A potentially significant cold fusion development was shared via an article (http://www.physorg.com/news157046734.html) with the comment "damn cold fusion might just work."

• A CAD resource was shared (http://cad.devl.org/examples.html) that appears relevant to the group's design and manufacturing interests.