tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post8100596940756436803..comments2024-03-29T00:39:31.629-07:00Comments on CONTRARY BRIN: Science & Civilization March On! David Brinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comBlogger109125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-30849700523328338252008-03-02T18:23:00.000-08:002008-03-02T18:23:00.000-08:00Zorgon: thanks for the broadband links. Here's the...Zorgon: thanks for the broadband links. <A HREF="http://issuepedia.org/Internet_access" REL="nofollow">Here's the wiki page</A> if anyone wants to add anything.Woozlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17948248776908775080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-11830599240815524402008-03-02T10:36:00.000-08:002008-03-02T10:36:00.000-08:00Large 3 x 5 foot sheets of carbon nanotubes create...<A HREF="http://www.xconomy.com/2008/02/22/new-hampshire-startup-makes-worlds-largest-sheets-of-carbon-nanotubes/" REL="nofollow">Large 3 x 5 foot sheets of carbon nanotubes created</A>.<BR/>Startup predicts 100 square foot sheets by summer. Applications include airplane wings, ship hulls, car bodies, etc. Tensile strength 200 to 500 megapascals; if the tubes are aligned, it jumps to 1200 megapascals. Aluminum sheets of the same thickness rate at 500 megapascals but nanotube sheets are inestimably lighter. That superefficient car looking any more likely now, kiddies?<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/robotics/2008-03-01-robots_N.htm" REL="nofollow">Robots increasingly entering daily life in Japan.</A><BR/>Because of the country's emographic crisis, this has become a top priority, since there aren't enough young people to work as caretakers for all the elderly Japanese over 65.<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://www.expressnews.ualberta.ca/article.cfm?id=9131" REL="nofollow">Molecular biologists discover gene that blocks HIV.</A><BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7265464.stm" REL="nofollow">Drug resistant TB "at new highs," virtually incurable using any known antibiotic.</A><BR/>Dr Mario Raviglione, director of the WHO Stop TB Department, said: <BR/><BR/><I>"TB drug resistance needs a frontal assault.<BR/>"If countries and the international community fail to address it aggressively now we will lose this battle.<BR/>"In addition to specifically confronting drug-resistant TB and saving lives, programmes worldwide must immediately improve their performance in diagnosing all TB cases rapidly and treating them until cured, which is the best way to prevent the development of drug resistance." </I><BR/><BR/>Some countries, including former parts of the Soviet Union, have drug-resistant TB rates as high as 22% of their total population.<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://www.stjude.org/stjude/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=c1f47c877e668110VgnVCM1000001e0215acRCRD&vgnextchannel=fa1113c016118010VgnVCM1000000e2015acRCRD" REL="nofollow">Researchers unravel key step in apoptosis (self-programmed cell death), hope to prevent cell death in major injuries and diseases, viz., heart tissue dying due to heart attacks, etc.</A><BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://space.newscientist.com/article/dn13362-giant-ropes-of-dark-matter-found-in-new-sky-survey.html?feedId=online-news_rss20" REL="nofollow">Astronomers detect giant sheets of dark matter spanning 270 million light years.</A><BR/><BR/><B>NOTA BENE</B>: you <I>really</I> want to avoid launching spacecraft at the poles. All the high-energy particles get funneled down by the earth's magnetic field and hit the atmosphere, causing pretty aurora borealis light shows. Alas, once you get out of the earth's atmosphere, those super-high-energy particles will fry the folks in the spacecraft without a lotta extra shielding. Launching for low or near earth orbit should be avoided at the poles. Of course, if you're launching for interplanetary transit, <A HREF="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/03/060322174351.htm" REL="nofollow"> you still face the problem of getting bombarded with enough high-energy particles during the trip to develop some pretty serious health problems.</A> No one appears to have solved that problem yet.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10994509912655287453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-54531932218056019622008-03-02T04:23:00.000-08:002008-03-02T04:23:00.000-08:00The article that tintinaus pointed to states the ...The article that tintinaus pointed to states the Aust govt wants to get broadband to 25Mb/s rates for 98% of the country(still slower than the top three in Zorgon's links) and it will not be too hard to do because ~90% of Australians live in our capital citys and a further 8% are in other urban centers. So even though we only have a population of 21 mil(less than 1/10 of the US with a similar sized land mass), we mostly aren't all that spread out.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-63144146649263031612008-03-02T01:40:00.000-08:002008-03-02T01:40:00.000-08:00"What if you were caught every time you exceeded t..."What if you were caught every time you exceeded the speed limit."<BR/><BR/>The latest development seems to be that people are getting multiple tickets for one speedy drive along a stretch of highway with multiple cameras. And I think the real answer to the above question is "people would mostly stop speeding".<BR/><BR/><BR/>On the topic of space elevators - there *is* a variety of tethered launcher for the poles - the idea being to spin the tether horizontally fast enough to keep the ends up. The tether wouldn't need to be nearly as long as a conventional space elevator, but air drag has to be avoided or dealt with somehow. I came across an artist's conception once, but can't find it now.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-52199309354207153352008-03-02T00:35:00.000-08:002008-03-02T00:35:00.000-08:00Source data about broadband internet speeds, prici...Source data about broadband internet speeds, pricing, and penetration by country:<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/07/AR2006110701230.html" REL="nofollow">"America's Broadband Disconnect" Washington Post, Nov. 2006</A><BR/><BR/><I>"As the Congressional Research Service puts it, U.S. consumers face a `cable and telephone broadband duopoly.' (..)<BR/>"The telecom merger spree has left many office buildings with a single provider -- leading to annual estimated overcharges of $8 billion."<BR/>op. cit.</I><BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://209.85.173.104/search?q=cache:OMExMUrffW8J:www.freepress.net/docs/bbrc2-final.pdf+congressional+research+service+America+broadband&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=10&gl=us" REL="nofollow">"Broadband Reality Check II: The Truth Behind America's Digital Decline"</A><BR/><BR/><I>"The U.S. broadband market is dominated by regional duopolies of cable and telephone companies that face little competition.<BR/>• Despite claims of “fierce competition,” Cable modem and DSL platforms account for 98 percent of the residential broadband market.<BR/>• The top 10 broadband providers, each a regional monopoly in cable or DSL, made up over 83 percent of the entire U.S. broadband market.<BR/>• A recent Government Accounting Office (GAO) report on broadband shows that the median U.S. household has only two terrestrial broadband services providers available.<BR/>• According to the GAO, nearly 1 in 10 consumers don’t have access to any broadband providers.<BR/>• FCC data show that over 40 percent of U.S. ZIP codes have one or zero DSL and/or cable <BR/>modem provider reporting service."</I><BR/>op. cit.<BR/><BR/>(1 kilometer = approximately 0.6 mile, so 1 square mile = about 2.56 square kilometers)<BR/><BR/>DENMARK - 128 people per square kilometer<BR/>AUSTRALIA - 2.6 people per square kilometer<BR/>NORWAY - 12 people per square kilometer <BR/>NETHERLANDS - 1023 people per square kilometer<BR/>ENGLAND - 383 people per square kilometer<BR/><BR/>NY CITY - 23700 people per square mile<BR/>SAN FRANCISCO - 15500<BR/>CHICAGO - 12300<BR/>BOSTOM - 11900<BR/>PHILADELPHIA - 11700<BR/>WASHINGTON DC - 9900<BR/>BALTIMORE - 9100<BR/>DETROIT - 7400<BR/>LOS ANGELES - 7400<BR/>MILWAUKEE - 6500<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://www.websiteoptimization.com/bw/0711/" REL="nofollow">Chart of average advertised broadband speed by country in megabits, October 2007.</A><BR/><BR/>Note that New York City, with 24,000 people per square miles, maxes out at 7 megabits, while Norway, with around 4 people per square mile, has an average 12 megabit broadband connection. Clearly the reason for these broadband speed differences <I><B>isn't</I></B> population density.<BR/><BR/>Robert X. Cringely sums it up in his column <A HREF="http://www.pbs.org/cringely/pulpit/2007/pulpit_20070803_002641.html" REL="nofollow">"Game Over":</A><BR/><BR/><B>One caveat: because of geography, we should discount stats from Australia and Canada. These countries have populations that cluster mostly around the edges. In Australia, almost all the population clusters around the coast with virtually no one living in the desert interior, and in Canada almost all the population clusters around the U.S. border. For this reason, population density figures in these two countries prove deceptive. For the rest of the countries cited, however, viz., France, Norway, the Netherlands, etc., the population density figures are reasonable and representative.</B><BR/><BR/>The conclusions drawn by all these studies match Dr. Brin's and my suggestions -- the monopoly/duopoly regional broadband internet markets in America need to be forced open to competition, which can be done at the regulatory level by the FCC without any need for new legislation. Market forces should take care of the rest.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10994509912655287453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-61083030890339173682008-03-01T18:27:00.000-08:002008-03-01T18:27:00.000-08:00Lightning internet on wayTime for a bit of hollow ...<A HREF="http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/lightning-internet-on-way/2008/03/01/1204227055167.html" REL="nofollow">Lightning internet on way</A><BR/><BR/>Time for a bit of hollow laughter i think.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-16417730680043447172008-03-01T17:49:00.000-08:002008-03-01T17:49:00.000-08:00Oh, believe me, I feel the Internet thing quite co...Oh, believe me, I feel the Internet thing quite completely. Between the single telco and single cableco, the market is essentially divided so that the telco takes in most or all of the lower-speed broadband service, with the cableco at higher speed tiers.<BR/><BR/>Effectively there is no choice. And frankly, unless I agree to a bundle arrangement the telco offering even that looks mighty unpalatable. <BR/><BR/>And I hate bundled services. I just don't *need* call waiting, for example, because I think it's rude to use it on people. <BR/><BR/>All this doesn't stop Qwest from sending me advertisements for their 7 Mbit service, of course. It comes in the phone bill, online, on TV, and in direct mailings, only to have them tell me that I can't get it when I inquire.Rob Perkinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15618647194288598056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-89560694186000977602008-03-01T11:36:00.000-08:002008-03-01T11:36:00.000-08:00A couple of things re Zorgon's last post --First: ...A couple of things re Zorgon's last post --<BR/><BR/><B>First</B>: do you happen to know of any sources for the Japan vs. US internet situation? I'd love to post something about this on Issuepedia (it relates on several levels, especially with regard to what you said about our faux love of competition), and while I've certainly heard this story before it would be more convincing with some hard data.<BR/><BR/>I'd absolutely love to be able to thorougly demolish the whole "well, why *shouldn't* we let ISPs charge more for access to some services? They need to make money <I>somehow</I>, right?" argument, not to mention the "Hey, it's their wires -- they should be able to charge whatever they want!" argument and of course the "You're always free to take your business somewhere else!" argument (already looking rather wilted around the edges even to the staunchest free market believers, I should think).<BR/><BR/><B>Second</B>, re cellphones: From personal observational data, cellphones seem to be very popular with poor and possibly even homeless people. This makes a great deal of sense: combine the fact that it's nearly impossible to get any kind of job without a phone and the fact that you can have a cellphone without having a permanent address or even a bank account, it's a perfect match.<BR/><BR/>Also, as a co-parent of three high-maintenance children, one of which is autistic, I can safely say that the cellphone helps a great deal with not being tied down to the household. I wouldn't say that it's absolutely <I>vital</I>, but this situation would have been a lot more difficult to manage in the pre-cellphone era.<BR/><BR/>So, no, it's not just doctors -- but I'll concede that most people probably don't need a cellphone that desperately. (On the other hand, we only pay about $7/month to keep our prepaid phones active, so it's hardly a huge dent in the budget.)Woozlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17948248776908775080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-26256768257875667252008-03-01T06:11:00.000-08:002008-03-01T06:11:00.000-08:00Regarding broadband, I must side most strongly wit...Regarding broadband, I must side most strongly with Dr. Brin. If we look at Japan, which has one of the most spectacularly sucecssful broadband infrastructures in the world, it came about because the japanese goernment made a conscious decision to foster competition.<BR/><BR/>In 1996, Japan was actually far <I><B>behind</I></B> America in internet speed and accessibility. Since then, Japan forced enough competition among ISPs that now even rurual areas of Japan get 100 megabit fiber to the home. So the claims that (A) Japan only has great broadband because it has dense urban areas, and (B) Japan has better broadband than we because they started later and got hte advatage of higher tech, are both provably false. If (A) were true, Chicago and New York city would have great 100 megabit fiberoptic broaband...but they don't. If (B) were true Japan would've been far ahead of us since the 80s in internet access, and the reverse was true. Japan has only pulled dramatically ahead int he last 10 years.<BR/><BR/>The last thing we need in America is some command-and-control system with gigantic bureaucratic waste delivering our broadband. Remember that the intenret infrastructure is very different from muni water or sewage systems, because a muni internet system would have to constantly upgrade to higher and higher speeds, better switches and routers, and new tech we can't imagine yet. Gov't bureaucracies are rotten at this kind of continual imaginative upgrading in which newer technologies eat older ones. Markets are ideal for that.<BR/><BR/>The thing is, in America we <I>talk</I> a lot about free markets, but in <I>practice</I> we hate free markets. America since Reagan has become the Land of the Monopoly. In 1996 there were 15 big ntaionwide ISPS; today, there are 5. After the AT&T breakup, the bell system has mostly reassembled itself. There are only 3 big cable companies nationwide. It's gotten so bad that cable TV providers have started to negotiate statewide instead of by individual community with regulators. <BR/><BR/>It's just grotesque. If we actually had a free market for cable TV or telecom or internet providers, things would be viable. But right now, we've only got a "choice" between a duopoly in most areas. <BR/><BR/>Did you know that none of the cable TV providers now make much money off providing cable TV? The vast lion's share of their profits now comes from grotesquetly overcharging customers for broadband, and from the even more usurious cellphone charges. The difference is that you don't usually <I><B>need</I></B> a cellphone unless you're a doctor on call, or a lineman, or in some other specialized profession. Everyone else can make do with a regular phone. But there is no substittue for broaband -- if you're on dialup, as I am, you're locked out of streaming audio, streaming video, flash, pretty much everything.<BR/><BR/>Catfish N Cod makes various points about efficiency with bioengineered critters. The chagneover to a different infrastructure would also requires lots of work. Yes. So? IF we'd spend out time and money on those kinds of issues instea dof pissing away half a trillion bucks per year on a military designed to defeat a Japanese Imperial Navy that no longer exists and a Soviet Army in Europe that no longer presents a threat, we could go a long ways toward solving the problems Catfish N Cod adduces.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10994509912655287453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-60802382109520381152008-02-29T12:51:00.000-08:002008-02-29T12:51:00.000-08:00Rob: The problem is that you risk having the haves...Rob: The problem is that you risk having the haves and the have-nots differ from town to town. I'll use as an example a town I lived in once. The inhabitants of this town are (outside of the lucky few who live close to the town borders) unable to get DSL, which costs a mere $20 (along with telephone, which most people have). If you want cable internet, you either spend $60 plus taxes or get a $15 rebate and get cable television and cable internet for I think around $70 plus taxes. For those people who hate the cable companies and who would welcome the competition of DSL? Sorry, they can't because of the exclusivity contract that the big-name cable company has with the town... an exclusivity contract that <I>offers the inhabitants of the town no discounts as to costs of internet</I>.<BR/><BR/>When a telephone company asked if they could expand their fiber optic services through the town, they were told in no uncertain terms they would be charged <I>per pole</I> so to be able to expand their infrastructure. The phone company told the town to go jump in a lake and built the fiber optic network around the town. I'm unsure if that was related to the exclusivity contract or not.<BR/><BR/>Mind you, said town also went without high speed internet for several years because of an exclusivity contract with a cable provider <I>that was not offering internet services</I> but was considering maybe doing so in a few years or so. Until of course they were bought out.<BR/><BR/>The people who have suffered from all of this politicking and idiocy over the Internet? The inhabitants of the town. <BR/><BR/>Dr. Brin: By having a federal mandate to build a country-wide high speed internet system and then having the providers be middlemen to the people, this level of idiocy would be ended. Towns and cities wouldn't be able to insist on fees and charges to expand infrastructure (because the Federal Government already dealt with that), local politics would take back seat to much of the process, and the <I>people and industries served</I> by high speed internet would be able to get the job done.<BR/><BR/>The problem with expanding the internet infrastructure is a combination of local and state politics and corporate greed. High speed internet is an important aspect for the continuance of industry and education in this country. As such, the federal government has a responsibility to get involved and cut through the red tape that has strangled the process (as well as tax breaks that the MiniBells and Cable Companies got to <I>expand</I> the infrastructure in the first place and then failed to do).<BR/><BR/>Corporate America had its chance. It squandered it. It's time for the government to build the information superhighways to match the physical superhighways across the nation, uniting every state and every city, and in doing so expanding the potential of our country's economic, educational, and scientific power.<BR/><BR/>Robert A. Howard, <A HREF="http://www.tangents.us" REL="nofollow">Tangents Reviews</A>Acacia H.https://www.blogger.com/profile/07678539067303911329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-14277316779272314882008-02-29T11:11:00.000-08:002008-02-29T11:11:00.000-08:00Bah, the system deleted some of my citokate commen...Bah, the system deleted some of my citokate comments.<BR/><BR/><I>Good point for bacteria. Freeman Dyson and I are thinking more along the lines of bioengineered plants. Plant seeds in, say, tar sands soil. Harvest the JP4 jet fuel when the trees grow.</I><BR/><BR/>The problem is that domestication often causes decreased evolutionary fitness -- resources are diverted to production instead. <BR/><BR/>This doesn't happen if the product is evolutionarily useful -- fragrances for flowers, antibiotics for yeast -- but wild wheat and maize don't need irrigation, and the domesticated high-yield strains do.<BR/><BR/><I>To my knowledge, no forest ever died because humans failed to water or fertilize it.</I><BR/><BR/>That's because xylem is evolutionarily advantageous. If you can find a way to make JP4 advantageous for the tree, it probably won't need tending; but if it can't use it, then you probably will.<BR/><BR/><I>You download the free open source plans into your fabricator via the internet.</I><BR/><BR/>Only works for common, simple items, most likely. Medium-level items by barter or market. High-level items by barter or purchase.<BR/><BR/><I>The nanofiber particles come from the bioengineered plants you grow in your backyard. The energy comes from the bionengineered solar cells that grow on the roof of your house as shingles.</I><BR/><BR/>I doubt you will have the capacity, especially early on as there will be efficiency problems.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-50262355107032795702008-02-29T08:49:00.000-08:002008-02-29T08:49:00.000-08:00David, your simple law would not enable small muni...David, your simple law would not enable small municipalities and outlying suburbs with any innovation or broadband; the telcos and cablecos would simple chew on each other in six or seven large cities for a year or two before engaging in a stock swap.<BR/><BR/>The suggestion is innovative but the route around it for the "free market" is easy to spot, which complicates the law.<BR/><BR/>Provo, Utah once had a fantastic "innovation". It simply awarded two cable franchises and ordered them not to interfere with one another's lines in some kind of arrangement. I think it's since long gone, though; one of the franchisees managed business worse than the other and didn't renew or something, or couldn't win the rapacious most-favored-nation bundle contracts which Viacom, TW, Scripps, and all the others foist on the cablecos. <BR/><BR/>Reforming this will be far from simple. I might prefer a more local approach. If a cableco wants a franchise renewal from, say, a city of 200,000 or larger, it must also seek out and win non-exclusive franchises, with commitments to build infrastructure if needed, from surrounding municipalities. Or, no two neighboring cities may be served by the same cableco, unless both are served by both cablecos.<BR/><BR/>Even that idea is fraught with complexity.Rob Perkinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15618647194288598056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-81355727335367211772008-02-29T04:54:00.000-08:002008-02-29T04:54:00.000-08:00Completely OT and has been around for a while, but...Completely OT and has been around for a while, but why not?<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://qntm.org/?global" REL="nofollow">Proposed Solution To Global Warming</A>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-10346459056381259332008-02-28T21:48:00.000-08:002008-02-28T21:48:00.000-08:00Ironically, I am MUCh more capitalistic on this ma...Ironically, I am MUCh more capitalistic on this matter.<BR/><BR/>Simple law: The boundaries between all cable and network companies get hazy. Each may build into their neighbor's territory by a mile a year. Any that refuse to be aggressive instead LOSE territory by a mile a year.<BR/><BR/>Watch how fast they invest. And compete. No taxpayer expense.David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-82184870735430659732008-02-28T19:54:00.000-08:002008-02-28T19:54:00.000-08:00Makes me almost wish I had cable. Except, you know...Makes me almost wish I had cable. Except, you know, the fact that 99% of cable programs are worthless trash and it's not worth the money they want to extort out of you for the few decent programs out there.<BR/><BR/>Now all we need is a decent competitor for iTunes that isn't proprietary, works with other computer video programs, and has a decent quality level. Though I suppose that would also require a decent broadband system...<BR/><BR/>What we need is a nationalized broadband system. Have the U.S. government put up the broadband lines across the country. Then they license it out to companies to use. The companies don't have to set up their own broadband networks and can specialize on other services. So basically the government is responsible for the broadband infrastructure and Comcast, AT&T, Verizon, and the others support the government network and act as middlemen for the consumer.<BR/><BR/>Really, when you think of it, it's the <I>best</I> method of ensuring this country has broadband access comparable with the rest of the world.<BR/><BR/>Rob H.Acacia H.https://www.blogger.com/profile/07678539067303911329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-10609316165275184312008-02-28T19:05:00.000-08:002008-02-28T19:05:00.000-08:00I appear on several episodes of the new History Ch...I appear on several episodes of the new History Channel show "The Universe" starting with one on March 11.David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-14247812310073291162008-02-28T18:41:00.000-08:002008-02-28T18:41:00.000-08:00Back from giving a dinner speech in LA for a JPL r...Back from giving a dinner speech in LA for a JPL robotics conference. Saw the IMAX film on the Mars Rovers. <B>You folks have got to see this one!</B><BR/><BR/>Zorgon, very clever, but jester wins a big prze for rapid citokate research!<BR/><BR/>Robert, speeding comes up in discussions of The Transparent Society . What if you were caught every time you exceeded the speed limit. One guy said “I’dd pay thousands in $200 fines and lose my license, just for keeping up with traffic!”<BR/><BR/>Dolt. The REASON we have $200 fines is because people are rarely caught. If people were universally caught we’d either (1) put in automatic speed governors, or (2) vote in reasonable laws that treated the first 15mph of excess speed as a metered chargeable, like a long distance call, that you’d pay if in a justified hurry, but that’d make you slow down if you had no urgent need.<BR/><BR/>Yes, robert, but the fundies are fast becoming a self-degregated caste of hate-drenched know-nothings. We may be forced to spin off several hundred rural-southern counties and let them finally be the Confederacy, just to keep our nation.David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-16445124582947708652008-02-28T16:57:00.000-08:002008-02-28T16:57:00.000-08:00Hmm! A whistleblower:Chief Guantanamo prosecutor t...Hmm! A whistleblower:<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/chief-guantanamo-prosecutor-turns-critic/2008/02/28/1203788536058.html" REL="nofollow">Chief Guantanamo prosecutor turns critic</A><BR/><BR/>Meanwhile, mad King George <A HREF="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7269452.stm" REL="nofollow">seeks ongoing immunity from prosecution</A> for telecommunication companies assisting in wiretapping operations:<BR/><BR/><I>"The law expired, the threat to America has not expired," Mr Bush said.</I><BR/><BR/>If you think about the 'expiry of law' (and accountability), and recall Sir Thomas Moore's views on the chopping down of sheltering trees, you will realise he speaks the truth, but not as he knows it.Tony Fiskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14578160528746657971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-65877799522213239902008-02-28T16:56:00.000-08:002008-02-28T16:56:00.000-08:00"How about NSPD-51, or HSPD-20, wherein the presid..."How about NSPD-51, or HSPD-20, wherein the president grants himself (aka 'a National Continuity Coordinator') the power to assume complete executive control in the event of a national 'catastrophic emergency' without congressional approval."<BR/><BR/>Got it, I know what you're talking about now.<BR/><BR/>I've been following that story for awhile. I'm bothered no Democratic candidate has made an issue of that yet.Kelsey Gowerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13285652800584374081noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-45586807797298847842008-02-28T14:45:00.000-08:002008-02-28T14:45:00.000-08:00wrt population density: it may seem counterintuiti...wrt population density: it may seem counterintuitive to the rustic idyll we all cherish, but urban centres are actually a greener way of living than everyone reverting to the country (cost of stretched infrastructure, transport etc.).<BR/><BR/>However, as Catfish notes, there's a lot more to high density dwelling than throwing a mass of concrete prefabs together and doling out the soylent green. As Melbourne's 2030 plan is discovering, people have to want to live in such places, and town planners need to recognise and incorporate the factors that make compact communities work. One important factor appears to be layout and connectivity. Indeed, a network analysis of a town's roads and pathways can identify its potential slum areas without cribbing off the police reports and property prices.<BR/><BR/>----<BR/>anon who uses ZipCar, have you seen the little flurry over at <A HREF="http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/007861.html" REL="nofollow">WorldChanging</A> on the topic of service?Tony Fiskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14578160528746657971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-16093853918308891442008-02-28T13:04:00.000-08:002008-02-28T13:04:00.000-08:00I recall a recent report stating that a larger por...I recall a recent report stating that a larger portion of the U.S. population is switching religious affiliations, with the largest denomination becoming "nondenominational Christian."<BR/><BR/>Rob H.Acacia H.https://www.blogger.com/profile/07678539067303911329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-59883617577895726532008-02-28T13:01:00.000-08:002008-02-28T13:01:00.000-08:00Is this a hoax?Electronic tatoo display runs on bl...Is this a hoax?<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://www.physorg.com/news122819670.html" REL="nofollow">Electronic tatoo display runs on blood.</A><BR/>http://www.physorg.com/news122819670.htmlsociotardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11697154298087412934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-68461588927637312062008-02-28T12:07:00.000-08:002008-02-28T12:07:00.000-08:00Re: innovation crisisOne reason the United States ...Re: innovation crisis<BR/><BR/>One reason the United States is in peril of becoming a technology laggard might be because of increasing religious fundamentalism.<BR/><BR/>I found some charts <A HREF="http://normdoering.blogspot.com/2008/02/religion-as-force-for-ignorance-and.html" REL="nofollow">that suggests that there is an inverse correlation between a country's religiosity and its per capita GDP</A>.normdoeringhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03279378756658563565noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-84604895542339359022008-02-28T11:33:00.000-08:002008-02-28T11:33:00.000-08:00Zorgon, while I'm sure that there are some (by no ...Zorgon, while I'm sure that there are some (by no means ALL) SUV's that can match/beat the typical US Army 2.5 ton truck used in 1944, none are matching the 6 ton truck used by the supply units (Red Ball Express).<BR/><BR/>For those interested in the 'Ultimate SUV', look into the US Army's DUK/W 'Duck', a Ford 6 wheel drive truck built into a boat frame.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-66560651904923282232008-02-28T07:41:00.000-08:002008-02-28T07:41:00.000-08:00Rob H.:"Why do we speed? The illusion that we're s...Rob H.:<BR/><BR/>"Why do we speed? The illusion that we're saving time."<BR/><BR/>Actually, I speed because it is safer to do so. Staying at the speed of traffic is much safer than going slower than the speed of traffic. Plus, the cops don't pull you over for doing seven miles over a 60mph speed limit.<BR/><BR/>I walked to work today, as I do every day. This enables me to save over five thousand dollars a year, because I live without a permanent car. Instead, I use ZipCar, where I only need to pay for a car when I'm using it (the free gas and insurance is a bonus).<BR/><BR/>Most people can't take the inconvenience of public transportation, which is sad.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com