Star Wars Tech Talk
Two career engineers taking a deep dive into the tech of a galaxy far, far away.
Episodes
In this episode J.T. and Shane are joined by the (unpaid) SWTT intern, Mr. Chris R. (did we mention he's unpaid?). Three bonified and credentialled engineers discuss... ... ... du - doorsss... ... how in some instances the folks at Lucas Arts really seem to get it right, and... Goonieeesss in Spaaace. So, tune in and get your Iron Man on as they dive into the tech world of Return of the Jedi!
Numero uno on Shane's list, The Empire Strikes Back is not only heralded as the greatest Star Wars movie made to date, but a cinematic masterpiece in its own right. Your hosts couldn't agree more. In this episode Shane and J.T. rapid fire their knowledge all over the place talking about space slugs in the dating marketplace, the science of death, and the best reasons for talking out loud to yourself (despite who overhears you). ...
And so it begins! The origin story. The theatrical release that changed movie going forever and would forever change the lives of our hosts. A moment of silence please as we sit in reverence. OK. Moment over! In this episode the guys are joined by guest host Ken Nesbit and subject matter expert Doug Grant. The group discusses raisin' 'em right on Star Trek (you heard me), Jedi master training droids with clauses in their con...
In this episode the guys jump feet first into Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Joining J.T. and Shane is aerospace industry expert, Bill Ayrey; a globally recognized expert on the history of the development of space suits and author of the book Lunar Outfitters: Making the Apollo Space Suit! Along the way the guys discuss iconic lightsaber smack downs, their grandma and grandpa's extensive 8-track collections, and hippy dippy crysta...
May the Fourth be with you! In this episode the guys head into their first anthology with Solo - A Star Wars Story. Released in 2018 on the heels of The Last Jedi, Solo suffered at the box office, but not because of the efforts of our hosts, J.T. and Shane who did their part to patronize the movie... multiple times! In this episode the guys talk form and function, rusty train cars, and throw away lines of dialog that change the ...
Revenge... a dish best served cold, like, leftover pizza. Welcome to season 3 of SWTT!!!! Talk about exciting!!! In this episode join Shane and J.T. as they deep dive on forbidden magazine subscriptions, Dewalt brand droids, and cringy martial arts to take on some decades old head scratchers from Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith. Happy New Year everyone (even though it's February)!!
Happy gobble gobble day (one day removed)!! Continuing with their holocron-order viewing of the movies, the guys tackle topics from Episode 2: Attack of the Clones. Admittedly, not their favorite theatrical release of the franchise, the movie; however, is rich with techie content. In this episode, J.T. and Shane talk about bwaaaawwwwwnnnngggsssss, android Vaudeville acts, and starship design from ketchup packet stealing, space f...
In this episode the guys are starting a Star Wars movie marathon going in holocron order as they start in the prequals at The Phantom Menace. Episode 1 debuted in 1999 and ever since then J.T. and Shane have been pondering a number of the techie head scratchers that came out of it. In this episode they'll talk bongos, droid joint mechanics, and waste plasma. Weeeee-sa thinks you-sah be uh like'n it... HA!
In this episode Shane and J.T. are joined by guest host Charlie James from Chrome Dome Comics to answer the question; why is Stormtrooper armor so ineffective? (Spoiler alert... it's not!!!). More Star Wars origin stories. More Galaxy's Edge. More deep dives. So, grab your E11 blaster, don your bucket, tune up your voice changer and join the guys as they go to a galaxy far, far away to join the Imperial Engineering Corps (it's...
Happy Star Wars Day 2022!!! J.T. and Shane ponder the question; why, when C3PO's brain is hacked, does his eyes turn red??? A journey into the sequels (yes, yes, they know how the fandom thinks about the sequels) the guys talk about the rarity of quick Star Wars searches, cross-cultural time-immemorial warning flags, and FBI watch lists. Happy Star Wars Day and May the Fourth Be With You!!!!
Everyone loves a David vs. Goliath story. An Imperial Navy ship the size of New York City. Thousands of guns and turbo lasers. Millions of souls on its compliment. Darth Vader's personal ride. How did a craft the size of a soccer mom minivan take it down? In this episode Shane and J.T. discuss World War II tactics, wartime metrics, battle meditations, and dead loth-cats to answer the question: How could a lowly A-Wing get the...
A galaxy from a long time ago. A Republic protected by the Jedi for a thousand generations. The Star Wars universe is old and has been in existence for tens of thousands of years. Why, then, does it seem like the technology of Star Wars doesn't advance? Joining us this week is guest host Jeff B. and we deep dive into magic and mysticism, primitive societies, limitations in particle physics, and shameless advertisements to answe...
In this episode we have a guest host, Matt P. from the podcast School Pizza. We discuss the question, why do droids in the Star Wars universe feel pain? From aching joints to torture chambers in Jabba's palace, we take a deep dive into the field of artificial intelligence and why you WANT your intelligent machine to feel ouches! Along the way we take a trip down memory lane.
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