from Hacker News

Designing, folding, and flying the finest paper airplanes [video]

by farnsworthy on 4/8/18, 6:38 AM with 11 comments

  • by lisper on 4/8/18, 4:46 PM

    Some historically interesting links along the same lines:

    https://lifehacker.com/181548/build-the-worlds-best-paper-ai...

    The first comment is particularly interesting. I have a very clear recollection of seeing the followup to the 60 Minutes episode he talks about. Back then, they would read snippets of letters they received from viewers at the end of the show. After the paper airplane episode (which I did not see, but wish I could find a video of) someone wrote, "You dummies! Show us how to fold the damn thing!" Which they then proceeded to do. Very, very quickly. Following the procedure in real time was hopeless, and this was back in the days when VCRs were still exotic new technology. We did not have one. But the memory of hearing Harry Reasoner (I'm pretty sure it was him) reading that snippet has stuck in my brain all these years.

    If anyone can lay their hands on a copy of either one of these episodes that would be really awesome.

  • by agumonkey on 4/8/18, 11:02 AM

    parts of my brain lit up just remember the feeling of paper again my fingers while folding creases in primary school.

    it's super cool to see his semi physical approach between momentum/lift etc. Makes me wonder how much you could get by adding a few bits of metal/rubber in the design (even minuscule but functional bits)

    Also youtube has a lot of paper plane competitions in Japan. Fun to watch, less explanations(npi) but some involved fluid dynamics ground effect.

  • by farnsworthy on 4/8/18, 3:01 PM

    "After going about as far as I could go folding planes, I decided I need to study this other field, this art called 'Origami.' So I worked on that for about ten years..."

  • by socialist_coder on 4/8/18, 9:03 AM

    Very cool video. Awesome how he took the world record with a "real" plane instead of just a dart.

  • by deckar01 on 4/8/18, 7:38 PM

    Anyone have an alternate source? This Wired video player crashes Chrome on my iPhone.

  • by wheresmyusern on 4/8/18, 5:46 PM

    i appreciate the effort to make video content accepted here on hn, but this is not video content that i think should be on the front page. this is flat out not very intellectually interesting.