Neutron star radiation from pulsars is thought to be primarily emitted from regions near their magnetic poles. If the magnetic poles do not coincide with the rotational axis of the neutron star, the emission beam will sweep the sky, and when seen from a distance, if the observer is somewhere in the path of the beam, it will appear as pulses of radiation coming from a fixed point in space (the so-called "lighthouse effect"). The fastest-spinning neutron star known is PSR J1748-2446ad, rotating at a rate of 716 times a second or 43,000 revolutions per minute, giving a linear speed at the
Racing the Beam speed electron beam across the screen. "Racing the Beam" discusses the history of the VCS platform and the design decisions that impacted the types of games that could be written for it. Specific titles such as "Combat", "Pitfall!" and "Yars' Revenge" are analyzed from a technical and cultural perspective. "Racing the Beam" is the first in a series of books on early video game platforms, and has been cited by modern Atari 2600 enthusiasts as an inspiration for attempting to write new games for the platform. Racing the Beam Racing the Beam: The Atari Video Computer System is a book