{"id":8,"date":"2007-05-08T17:01:42","date_gmt":"2007-05-09T00:01:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bspcn.com\/2007\/05\/08\/how-lightsabers-work\/"},"modified":"2007-05-08T17:11:47","modified_gmt":"2007-05-09T00:11:47","slug":"how-lightsabers-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/localhost\/wordpress\/2007\/05\/08\/how-lightsabers-work\/","title":{"rendered":"How Lightsabers Work"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Chances are that you have seen a lightsaber at one time or another,  whether on the evening news or down at the local cantina. Therefore you  know that a lightsaber is an amazing and versatile device that is able  to cut through nearly anything in a matter of milliseconds.<\/p>\n<tr>\n<td><center><br \/>\n        <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/static.howstuffworks.com\/gif\/lightsaber-2.jpg\" alt=\"lightsaber\"><br \/>\n        Photo courtesy Lucasfilm Ltd.<br \/>\n      <\/center><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<p>\n  Have  you ever wondered how these remarkable weapons work? Where does the  energy come from, and how are they able to contain that energy in a  rod-like column of glowing power? <\/p>\n<p>In this article, you will have a chance to look inside a  lightsaber and discover the source of its incredible characteristics.  Let&#8217;s get started! <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p> <strong>It&#8217;s All In The Handle<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n<tr>\n<td><center><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/static.howstuffworks.com\/gif\/lightsaber-13.jpg\" alt=\"graflex model\"><br \/>\n        Photo courtesy <a href=\"http:\/\/entertainment.howstuffworks.com\/framed.htm?parent=lightsaber.htm&#038;url=http:\/\/www.parksabers.com\">Park Sabers<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\n          <strong>Graflex Model<\/strong>\n            <\/p>\n<p>      <\/center><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<p>A lightsaber is a unique device, created by hand &#8212; the  controls will be slightly different on each individual lightsaber that  you buy. But all lightsabers share the same general characteristics. If  you were ever to pick up and examine a typical lightsaber, here are  several things that you would immediately notice:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A lightsaber is normally about 30 centimeters long, about the size of a large flashlight.\n  <\/li>\n<li>At one end is the hand grip, belt ring and on\/off switch (a.k.a., the <strong>Activation Matrix<\/strong>).\n  <\/li>\n<li>At the other end there is the <strong>blade arc tip<\/strong> and <strong>stabilizing ring<\/strong>.\n  <\/li>\n<li>Somewhere on the case (generally near the blade end of the  lightsaber) you find one or two adjusting knobs for blade power and  blade length. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>When you turn on the lightsaber (*see important safety tips), you  will notice the blade rapidly extending to its set length. You can  adjust the length using the <strong>blade length adjusting knob<\/strong>. The lightsaber blade will make a distinctive sound that is typical of an <strong>arc wave energy field<\/strong>. You will also feel a gyroscopic effect in the handle, which again is a distinctive characteristic of <strong>the arc wave blade<\/strong>.  This gyroscopic effect can take some getting used to, so be sure to  handle any active lightsaber with extreme care until you are completely  familiar with its feel and handling. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Slicing and Dicing<\/strong><br \/>\nOnce active, the blade of a lightsaber can be used in four different ways. <\/p>\n<p>The most common use, of course, is slicing. A lightsaber is like  a sword on steroids. Cutting through any human limb &#8212; even an entire  torso &#8212; is trivial. It&#8217;s like cutting through a banana with a machete. <\/p>\n<tr>\n<td><center><br \/>\n        <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/static.howstuffworks.com\/gif\/lightsaber-3.jpg\" alt=\"self defense\"><br \/>\n        <strong>A lightsaber can help convince an assailant that no means no.<\/strong><br \/>\n      <\/center><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<p>With practice you can also use a lightsaber like a knife. For  example, if you need to cut open the belly of a large domestic animal  like a horse or a tauntaun, the lightsaber is the perfect tool. Simply  use the tip of the blade and control the depth of your cut just like  you would with a scalpel. <\/p>\n<p> Nearly anything you would normally find around the home or office is  easy to cut with a lightsaber, including steel pipes, reinforcing  beams, mounting struts and so on. If you happen to find yourself  hanging upside down in a cave, a lightsaber is the perfect tool to use  to cut the rope. <\/p>\n<p>Another common use is melting. For example, if you come upon a  three-foot-thick blast door, you cannot &#8220;slice&#8221; your way through it  like you can with a normal steel or concrete partition. But you can  plunge the blade of your lightsaber straight into the door and then  melt your way through it to cut out an opening. This normally takes  several minutes, but the results are most impressive to anyone on the  other side of the blast door. <\/p>\n<p> Another important use of a lightsaber is deflection, in two different ways: <\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>A lightsaber blade can deflect another lightsaber blade and block its path.\n  <\/li>\n<li>A lightsaber blade can deflect blaster bolts. In most  cases you will want to deflect the bolts back at the person who shot  them at you in the first place, but it is also possible to deflect them  toward other objects and people in the room. <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>A lightsaber user with a strong affinity for <strong>the Force<\/strong> has a distinct advantage in the latter situation. By using the Force,  the wielder can anticipate the path of the blaster bolt and align the  blade with that path prior to the bolt&#8217;s arrival. Using normal visual  tracking to accomplish the same effect can be far more difficult.<\/p>\n<tr>\n<td><center><br \/>\n        Important Safety Information<br \/>\n      <\/center><br \/>\n        A lightsaber is not a toy! Keep it out of reach of children at all times. Lightsaber locks are required in most states.<\/p>\n<p>There are two ends to any lightsaber &#8212; one end has the <strong>belt ring<\/strong>, while the other end houses the <strong>blade arc tip<\/strong> and <strong>blade emitter<\/strong>.  NEVER point the blade emitter of a lightsaber toward your own body.  NEVER look down the &#8220;barrel&#8221; of a lightsaber, even if you are &#8220;sure&#8221; it  is in safe mode. If you accidentally activate the lightsaber, serious  injury could result. <\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<p>\n  Written by <a href=\"http:\/\/entertainment.howstuffworks.com\/lightsaber.htm\" target=\"_blank\">Marshall Brain<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Chances are that you have seen a lightsaber at one time or another, whether on the evening news or down at the local cantina. Therefore you know that a lightsaber is an amazing and versatile device that is able to cut through nearly anything in a matter of milliseconds. Photo courtesy Lucasfilm Ltd. Have you [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/localhost\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/localhost\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/localhost\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/localhost\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/localhost\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/localhost\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/localhost\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/localhost\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/localhost\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}