10/21/09 - DARPA Tries to Tap Elusive Casimir Effect for Breakthrough Technology
Named for a Dutch physicist, the Casimir effect governs interactions of matter with the energy that is present in a vacuum. Vacuums generally are thought to be voids, but Hendrik Casimir believed these pockets of nothing do indeed contain fluctuations of electromagnetic waves. Recent research done at Harvard University, Vrije University Amsterdam and elsewhere has proved Casimir correct—and given some experimental underpinning to DARPA's request for research proposals. Investigators from five institutions—Harvard, Yale University, the University of California, Riverside, and two national labs, Argonne and Los Alamos—received funding. DARPA will assess the groups' progress in early 2011 to see if any practical applications might emerge from the research. Program documents on the DARPA Web site state the goal of the Casimir Effect Enhancement program "is to develop new methods to control and manipulate attractive and repulsive forces at surfaces based on engineering of the Casimir force. One could leverage this ability to control phenomena such as adhesion in nanodevices, drag on vehicles, and many other interactions of interest to the [Defense Department]." Nanoscale design is the most likely place to start and is also the arena where levitation could emerge. Materials scientists working to build tiny machines called microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) struggle with surface interactions, called van der Waals forces, that can make nanomaterials sticky to the point of permanent adhesion, a phenomenon known as "stiction". To defeat stiction, many MEMS devices are coated with Teflon or similar low-friction substances or are studded with tiny springs that keep the surfaces apart. Materials that did not require such fixes could make nanotechnology more reliable. Such materials could skirt another problem posed by adhesion: Because surface stickiness at the nanoscale is much greater than it is for larger objects, MEMS designers resort to making their devices relatively stiff. That reduces adhesion (stiff structures do not readily bend against each other), but it reduces flexibility and increases power demands. Under certain conditions, manipulating the Casimir effect could create repellant forces between nanoscale surfaces. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Secretive Startup EEStor Worth More Than $1.5 Billion
The secretive startup in Austin, Texas, claims to have developed a new kind of capacitor that can store enough energy to propel an electric car 300 miles on a single charge. The company is not publicly traded, so investors who want to speculate on its “breakthrough technology” claims have only one way to get in on the action: Zenn Motor Company (ZNN: CA). - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Growing Numbers Of Americans Landing In Shelters Due To Foreclosure
Growing numbers of Americans who have lost houses to foreclosure are landing in homeless shelters, according to social service groups and a recent report by a coalition of housing advocates. Only three years ago, foreclosure was rarely a factor in how people became homeless. But among the homeless people that social service agencies have helped over the last year, an average of 10 percent lost homes to foreclosure, according to “Foreclosure to Homelessness 2009,” a survey produced by the National Coalition for the Homeless and six other advocacy groups. In the Midwest, foreclosure played a role for 15 percent of newly homeless people, according to the survey, reflecting soaring rates of unemployment — Ohio’s reached 10.8 percent in August — and aggressive lending to people with damaged credit. Most people who become homeless because of foreclosure had been low-income renters whose landlords stopped making their mortgage payments, leaving them scrambling for new housing with little notice and scant savings, according to the survey and interviews with shelters. But in recent months, there has been a visible increase in the number of former homeowners showing up in shelters. “These families never needed help before,” said Larry Haynes, executive director of Mercy House in Santa Ana, Calif. “They haven’t a clue about where to go, and they have all sorts of humiliation issues. They don’t even know what to say, what to ask for.” Many start off camping out in cars, particularly in warmer places. “We’ve seen a rise in people sleeping in their cars,” said Rick Cole, city manager in Ventura, Calif., which recently allowed car-camping in designated areas. “Some are foreclosed former homeowners, and some couldn’t afford their rent. People will give up their house before they give up their car.” Those with means try to rent homes or apartments, though tainted credit often makes that impossible. Growing numbers are landing in motels that rent by the week, cramming whole families into single rooms and using hot plates as kitchens. But as unemployment expands, many are losing the wherewithal to remain. Many take refuge with families and friends, occupying extra bedrooms, basements and attics. But such hospitality rarely lasts. So, as lean times endure and paychecks disappear, homeless shelters are absorbing those who have run out of alternatives. / (I feel so sorry for all these people being kicked out of their homes, DAMN all who caused it and aren't trying to fix it...you know who....screw health reform and 'the war', it's the ECONOMY STUPID! - JWD) - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Energy glider designer seeks $5M to take off
Inventor Dmitri Cherny's energy glider would rise 1,200 feet into the sky like a kite on a string, and generate electricity as it rises and falls in the winds, its tether turning a flywheel on the ground. Although the company has not yet shown that one of its gliders can be launched and produce electricity, the design is for the flywheel to generate up to 30 kilowatts of power, or up to 130,000 kilowatt hours per year. Highest Wind says its target market is more than 100,000 farms which use more than 150,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per year. Cherny said proof-in-principle has been shown by Worcester Polytechnic Institute professor David Olinger and his students, who have put such a glider into operation. Cherny believes he has found a way to make the system stable enough to commercialize. He is developing proprietary software to monitor the glider's in-flight performance through the use of sensors, radio frequencies and computer command. "The software is critical," Cherny said. "The software makes the glider smart enough to know when it's too windy to fly, when the sky is darkening, when the wind speeds are changing, when a storm is coming and it's a good idea to sit on the ground and wait it out." Cherny said the 300-pound, 40-foot glider will fly at a maximum altitude of 1,200 feet within the range of 20 to 40 mph winds, and its altitude can be automatically adjusted to stay within the wind range. If winds are too light, too strong or ice storms advance, radio frequencies should signal the glider to come down. It should stay in the air 85 percent of the time, he said. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - New Method To Help Keep Fruit, Vegetables And Flowers Fresh
Did you know that millions of tons of fruits and vegetables in the United States end up in the trash can before being eaten, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture? Microbiologist George Pierce's method uses a naturally occurring microorganism -- no larger than the width of a human hair -- to induce enzymes that extend the ripening time of fruits and vegetables, and keeps the blooms of flowers fresh. The process does not involve genetic engineering or pathogens, but involves microorganisms known to be associated with plants, and are considered to be helpful and beneficial to them. "These beneficial soil microorganisms serve essentially the same function as eating yogurt as a probiotic to have beneficial organisms living in the gastrointestinal system," Pierce said. The process works by manipulating the organism's diet so that it will over express certain enzymes and activities that work in the ripening process and keeping the flower blooms fresh. In a very simple sense, climacteric plants -- such as apples, bananas, peaches and tomatoes -- respond to climactic change, and when they do, they produce increased levels of signal compounds like ethylene. For fruit such as peaches, ethylene causes the peach to ripen, increases aroma chemicals, but unfortunately, makes the peach very fragile. "If you've seen ripe peaches, they will simply fall apart," Pierce said. "It will lose 90 percent of its ability to resist pressure, which means that if a peach responds normally to ethylene, it is subject to bruising when you ship it." The enzymes produced from Pierce's new method reduce the response to signal compounds so that it takes a longer period of time for fruits to ripen, doubling the time it takes for ripening. The catalyst in this process can be distributed through various formulations and configurations. These include being incorporated into shipping boxes, packing materials or used to treat the air of shipping containers. It could be used either with individual fruits or vegetables or for larger, bulk quantities. This new process could have a big impact on preventing waste, improving the consumption of healthy fruits and vegetables, allowing companies to ship produce longer distances. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - The Medical Benefits of Carbon Monoxide
"For more than a century, carbon monoxide has been known as a deadly toxin. In an 1839 story, Edgar Allan Poe wrote of 'miraculous lustre of the eye' and 'nervous agitation' in what some believe are descriptions of carbon monoxide poisoning, and today, cigarette cartons warn of its health dangers. But a growing body of research, much of it by local scientists, is revealing a paradox: the gas often called a silent killer could also be a medical treatment. It seems like a radical contradiction, but animal studies show that in small, extremely controlled doses the gas has benefits in everything from infections to organ transplantation." - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Shawnee inventor’s advice to stop burglaries is simple: Zip it
A new locking system promises to thwart thieves, and its developer says it will be made in Shawnee. Stan Demster has begun to produce and market the Doorzipper, a new device that “turns anybody’s door into a bank vault,” Demster says. “We do our testing on the cheapest door you can buy at Lowe’s, and you cannot beat it in,” he said. Doorzipper engages 24 interlocking stainless steel tabs along the edge of any door when a key or latch, just like a deadbolt, is used to twist them into place. The first Doorzippers were installed last year, Demster says, and the product’s patent has been pending for about nine months. Demster said he quickly realized his first locking mechanism had several flaws. “Being a young man, I didn’t realize it was a great lock, they couldn’t pick the lock or anything, but they could just kick the door in,” he said. “I realized the issue was making the door force proof.” It then took another 15 years to develop a lock that would reinforce the doorjamb and the door itself, and even stay hidden from sight: the Doorzipper. Similar to putting several locks down the side of a door, as often seen in popular culture images of New York City apartments, the Doorzipper reinforces the door along its length. But because one strip of upward-facing steel tabs is put on the inside of the door, and one strip of downward-facing tabs is put on the inside of the doorframe, it is invisible when the door is closed. The strip on the doorframe is nailed into the studs of a home, further reinforcing it, whereas many deadbolts are only nailed into a flimsier wooden support inside the doorframe, Demster said. Other benefits of the lock: it is easy to rekey; it is unable to be broken into with “bump keys,” keys that will work for all locks of the same type, or “key bumping,” a way of picking locks; and it more forcefully pulls the door up against weather sealing, saving energy. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - The US's Reverse Brain Drain
TechCrunch has a piece by an invited expert on the reverse brain drain already evident and growing in the US as Indian, Chinese, and European students and workers in the US plan to return home, or already have. From an extensive interview with Chinese and Indian workers who had already left: "We learned that these workers returned in their prime: the average age of the Indian returnees was 30 and the Chinese was 33. They were really well educated: 51% of the Chinese held masters degrees and 41% had PhDs. Among Indians, 66% held a masters and 12% had PhDs. These degrees were mostly in management, technology, and science. ... What propelled them to return home? Some 84% of the Chinese and 69% of the Indians cited professional opportunities. And while they make less money in absolute terms at home, most said their salaries brought a 'better quality of life' than what they had in the US. ... A return ticket home also put their career on steroids. About 10% of the Indians polled had held senior management jobs in the US. That number rose to 44% after they returned home. Among the Chinese, the number rose from 9% in the US to 36% in China." - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Alzheimer’s victims fitted with GPS-like U-TDOA
First it was for finding stolen cars, then keeping track of criminals, now Alzheimer’s sufferers are being fitted with tracking devices. This has been going on for some time now, but unlike the old tracking devices we’re seeing an update in technology to take advantage of the cell network for communications. The person wearing the device can be located using Uplink Time Difference Of Arrival or U-TDOA. This is the same technology that is used by 911 services to calculate the location of a cell phone. Alzheimer’s is a frightening disease. The thought of a loved one wandering off with nothing to identify them and no recollection of who they are is a fear of every family dealing with the illness. There’s no doubt that this is a cost-effective solution that really works. / U-TDOA - Uplink Time Difference of Arrival, is a real time locating technology for mobile phone networks that uses multilateration based on timing of received signals to locate a mobile phone. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Cosmic Radiation Makes Trees Grow Faster
"The BBC reports that researchers at the University of Edinburgh have found that Galactic Cosmic Rays (GCRs) somehow makes trees grow faster. GCRs vary according to the 11-year solar cycle, with more GCRs hitting the Earth during solar minimum when there is a lull in the solar wind, which normally acts to protect the inner solar system from external galactic radiation. The mechanism might have something to do with GCRs increasing cloud cover, which diffuses sunlight and increases the efficiency of photosynthesis. Nevertheless, the researchers remain mystified and are requesting further ideas and research collaboration to test hypotheses. (How about Radiation Hormesis, AKA 'Vitamin-R?')" Here is the paper's abstract at the journal New Phytologist. The researchers say: "The relation of the rings to the solar cycle was much stronger than to any climatological factors. ... As for the mechanism, we are puzzled." - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Firefox Now Auto-Blocks Microsoft .NET Extensions
Firefox users on Windows probably have the .NET Framework Assistant extension installed, even if they didn't try to install it. Microsoft issued a high-priority security patch for Windows systems and through Internet Explorer's update mechanism, but for Firefox users who haven't applied the patch, Mozilla has added the Microsoft .Net Framework Assistant and Windows Presentation Foundation extensions to its blocklist, noting that users should see the extensions disabled upon their next log-in. Update: Mozilla security chief Mike Shaver writes in a blog post that Mozilla has removed .NET Framework Assistant from its blocklist, as the extension was determined not to be a vulnerability to the "browse once and own" code exploit. Shaver writes that a more thorough explanation, and tips on how to prevent and customize auto-blocking, will follow. If you still see those extensions enabled on your Windows system, Mozilla's security chief has written about the special means of removing them, as they often can't be disabled by default. Better still, if you see extensions in your Firefox Add-Ons menu that you can't quite remember installing, or question what purpose they serve, take this as a lesson in why uninstalling them might be a good idea. - Full Article Source / Firefox Disables Microsoft .NET Addon - "Around 11:45 PM Friday night, I was prompted by Firefox that it had disabled the addons that Microsoft has been including with .NET — specifically, the .NET Framework Assistant and the Windows Presentation Foundation. The popup announcing this said that the 'following addons have been known to cause stability or security issues with Firefox.' Thanks, Mozilla team, for hitting the kill switch and hopefully this will get Microsoft to release a patch sooner." - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Creators Try Pick-Your-Price Experiment
2D Boy, the independent game studio behind World of Goo, recently celebrated the game's one-year anniversary by offering it at whatever price buyers cared to pay. They've now released some sales statistics about how people responded to the opportunity. The average price during the sale was $2.03; the game normally retails for $20. According to a survey of why people paid what they did, 22.4% said it was all they could afford at the time, and 12.4% said they already owned World of Goo and were buying it for a different platform. (Yes, there is a Linux version.) Over 57,000 people took advantage of the offer, which was enough for 2D Boy to term it "a huge success." Interestingly, they also saw a significant increase in sales through Steam, and a smaller increase through Wiiware. They've decided to extend the experiment until October 25th. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Tiny Pallet House offers cheap, quick Emergency Housing
As hurricane Gustav plowed across Cuba headed for the gulf coast of the United States memories of Katrina and the potential displacement of thousands got me thinking. I wanted to do something to help. It occurred to me that someone else might find what I now [sic] about building with shipping pallets useful in the coming weeks and months. So I setup this simple micro-blog to make it easy to show others one way to build with pallets. The tiny house pictured here would use about 50 to 70 pallets. I left the roof off the design because I’m thinking more and more that the roof should be conventionally framed. Pallets over head just seems a little too risky, although I think Roy is going to find a way to do it safely. For those of you playing with Google SketchUp here is my SketchUp file. Also note that the pallets in the drawing are an odd size, 45? by 40?. That may explain why Roy had such a hard time getting rid of them. Standard 48? by 40? pallets tend to be easy to sell and give away, odd sized pallets are a different story. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Smoking Bans Reduce Heart Attacks and Disease
Bans on smoking in places like restaurants, offices and public buildings reduce cases of heart attacks and heart disease, according to a report released Thursday by a federally commissioned panel of scientists. The report, issued by the Institute of Medicine, concluded that exposure to secondhand smoke significantly increased the risk of a heart attack among both smokers and nonsmokers. The panel also said it found that a reduction in heart problems began fairly quickly after a smoking ban was instituted and that exposure to low or fleeting levels of secondhand smoke could cause cardiovascular problems. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Youth of Today are the Lost Generation
Bright, eager - and unwanted. While unemployment is ravaging just about every part of the global workforce, the most enduring harm is being done to young people who can't grab onto the first rung of the career ladder. Affected are a range of young people, from high school dropouts, to college grads, to newly minted lawyers and MBAs across the developed world from Britain to Japan. One indication: In the U.S., the unemployment rate for 16- to 24-year-olds has climbed to more than 18%, from 13% a year ago. For people just starting their careers, the damage may be deep and long-lasting, potentially creating a kind of "lost generation." Studies suggest that an extended period of youthful joblessness can significantly depress lifetime income as people get stuck in jobs that are beneath their capabilities, or come to be seen by employers as damaged goods. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Senate Approves Bill for Hydrogen Car Research
The hydrogen car may have legions of fervent fans, but Energy Secretary Steven Chu apparently is not among them. Earlier this year, the Nobel Prize-winning scientist essentially zeroed government funding for the clean vehicles and came close to mocking their potential, saying the technology needs four "miracles" before it can become widely adopted. "Saints only need three," he cracked in a magazine interview. But the hydrogen car is back. On Thursday, the Senate agreed to restore nearly all the money for hydrogen car research that the administration had proposed to cut. The measure, part of an appropriations bill previously approved by the House, is expected to be signed by President Obama. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Energy Dept. Audit Finds Flaws in Its Energy Star Program
The Energy Department has concluded in an internal audit that it does not properly track whether manufacturers that give their appliances an Energy Star label have met the required specifications for energy efficiency. Some manufacturers could therefore be putting the stickers on unqualified products, according to the audit, by the Energy Department’s inspector general, Gregory H. Friedman. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Dems look to debt for 'doc fix'
When President Barack Obama promised that health care reform would be fully paid for, many wondered how Democrats would fund a key provision whose cost is almost a third of the reform’s $900 billion price tag: protecting doctors from annual cuts to their Medicare reimbursement rates. The Senate’s answer? Leave it out of the health care bill, rename it a “budgetary problem” and fix it separately — but without paying for it — by lumping it into the national debt. Voilà, promise kept. That’s how Senate Democrats are dealing with their $245 billion Medicare reimbursement dilemma. The so-called doc fix was long expected to be part of comprehensive health care reform, but House and Senate Democrats now are signaling that they plan separate bills to deal with the expensive problem. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - America Moving from Kingdom of Cash to Socialism Slowly but Surely
Philosophers say that capitalism is driven not by hard cash, but rather, striving for hard cash. It’s driven not by the production of goods, but rather, striving for consumption of these goods. If everyone had these values, the “dog-eat-dog” principal would be the major principal in the world history. But America failed to do it. There are plenty of “underdeveloped” people in the world who continue to cherish spiritual values. There are not that many chances left to force them into worshiping money since these “underdeveloped” people adopt western technology and become stronger. The appeal to adopt American values doesn’t work either. Why would we adopt the system if the system is in crisis? Pragmatic America realized that billions of people are not willing to live in the kingdom of hard cash and decided that it would be better off leaving this kingdom itself. Now the USA is talking about introducing elements of socialism. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Commandos Field Test ‘Plasma Knife’
Special Operations Command have “completed ongoing testing and field evaluation studies” of the next best thing, according to a Pentagon budget document. It’s a Plasma Knife which cuts through flesh with a “blade” of glowing ionized gas. But rather than being a weapon, the Plasma Knife is a surgical instrument that could save lives. Commandos often find themselves in remote areas without the luxury of medical backup, which is why they require their own emergency medical capability. And that’s where the Plasma Knife comes in. If you survive the massive tissue damage caused by a bullet or an improvised bomb, then the biggest immediate risk is bleeding to death. The Plasma Knife is a tool to stop bleeding. In a sense it goes right back to the old technique of cauterization , where you stop the bleeding by applying red-hot irons. Modern surgeons have electrocautery which uses an electrically-heated wire, for the same purpose. The more advanced version is radiosurgery, which replaces the wire with high-energy radio-frequency radiation which heats tissue directly. All of these work on the same basic principle of stopping bleeding by creating an impermeable layer of necrotic tissue. Or to put it another way, you melt the flesh the form a bandage. The necrotic – that is, dead – tissue is comprised of two layers, a porous outer layer in which all the moisture has been completely vaporized, and an impervious layer where proteins have been broken down but some water remains. The key thing is not to simply blast the bleeding wound with heat, as that literally burns away the flesh and makes the injury deeper. Energy has to be applied in a controlled fashion. The Plasma Knife resembles tools used for radiosurgery, but has the advantage that it produces plasma (hot ionised gas – not the liquid sort of plasma found in blood) which penetrates the outer porous layer of dead tissue without damaging it. In principle this means that more serious blood flow, such as that caused by large blood vessels being severed, can be stemmed without doing major damage. As the name suggests, the Plasma Knife can also be used as a surgical cutting instrument. As with laser and radiosurgery tools, it can be sterile even in field conditions. And it cauterizes and seals the incision as it goes. A normal medical Plasma Knife relies on mains power, but the commando version is described as being low-power and wearable, suggesting it has a separate power pack. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Ultracapacitor Bus Recharges At Each Stop
"A US company and its Chinese partner are piloting a bus powered by ultracapacitors in Washington DC. Ultracapacitors lack the capacity of regular batteries but are considerably cheaper and can be recharge completely in under a minute. Sinautec Automobile Technologies, based in Arlington, VA, and its Chinese partner, Shanghai Aowei Technology Development Company, have spent the past three years demonstrating the approach with 17 municipal buses on the outskirts of Shanghai. The executive director of Sinautec touts the energy efficiency of this approach: 'Even if you use the dirtiest coal plant on the planet [to charge an ultracapacitor], it generates a third of the carbon dioxide of diesel.'" - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Fortress Moon
Anyone with two brain cells to rub together had to wonder what was up with NASA bombing the moon last week. They were looking for water? Really? The entire surface of the moon is pitted with craters. They had to gouge out two more to look for water? Nobody bought it. The conspiracy theories sprouted instantly all over the Internet. One of the funniest is my friend Alan Cabal's, on this CounterPunch site, managing to link President Obama's Nobel to the deaths of two Jewish astronauts to the old saw about secret Nazi fortresses on the moon. (I think maybe Robert A. Heinlein was the first to expound that one, in his 1947 novel Rocket Ship Galileo.) Or it was alien moon bases they were bombing. Or it was to alter the moon's gravitational effect on earth's tides. Or to stop the gradual expansion of the moon's orbit, which they tell us is increasing at 3.8 centimeters a year. Or — this was as inevitable as the tides — it was yet another attempt to cover up the fact that the Apollo landings were faked. This is a classic example of the way the federal government actively encourages conspiracy theories to distract us rubes from whatever it's really up to. The Air Force let ufologists natter about the alien crash at Roswell for half a century as a handy distraction from what was really going on there. No doubt some large percentage of the UFOs sighted over the decades have been test flights of military aircraft in development. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Berlin ‘Green’ Brothel Offers Discounts to Cyclists
A brothel in Berlin has leapt on the “green” bandwagon by offering discounts to clients who can prove they arrived by public transport or bicycle. “Everyone’s a winner,” explained Regina Goetz, a former prostitute who runs the “Maison d’envie” (House of Desire) brothel in Berlin’s Prenzlauer Berg, a district in the former East Berlin. “The environment is a topic on everyone’s lips and it’s pretty difficult to park around here. So we came up with the idea of an ‘eco discount’ of five euros (£4.50) to anyone who leaves the car at home,” Ms Goetz said. “The crisis has slashed our turnover in half in the last year,” the 56-year-old said. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - New Impulse rocket engine could make trips to Mars realistic
Ion propulsion, discussed since the original Star Trek TV series, is now close to the point where it could be tested on a flight to the moon, says Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield. It would take about 39 days to reach Mars, compared to six months by conventional rocket power. Because Mars and Earth only pass close together every two years, space experts have always assumed a crew would have to travel one way, wait a year, then fly back the next time the planets were close together - raising huge problems for food, air and water storage. But ion drive could make a return trip possible during a single close approach of Earth and Mars. “It turns electrical power into thrust so that we can use solar energy” to power a spaceship, he said. The engine would accelerate a spaceship non-stop until it's halfway to Mars, producing a tiny stream of argon gas that it fires out the rear of the spacecraft. Then it turns the engine around and decelerates non-stop until reaching Mars. “You accelerate halfway, decelerate halfway,” he said. There are also plans to use the ion engine on the space station to counteract the slight drag from wisps of Earth's atmosphere. This drag makes the station slow down slightly (creating tiny amounts of gravity) and forces crews to burn fuel regularly to boost their orbit. Ad Astra says its first tests were successful, and it is now working with Nautel on a more powerful engine. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Jupiter's Moon Europa Has Enough Oxygen For Life
New research suggests that there is plenty of oxygen available in the subsurface ocean of Europa to support oxygen-based metabolic processes for life similar to that on Earth. In fact, there may be enough oxygen to support complex, animal-like organisms with greater oxygen demands than microorganisms. A model of Europa's interior, including a global ocean. If a 100 kilometer-deep ocean existed below the Europan ice shell, it would be 10 times deeper than any ocean on Earth and would contain twice as much water as Earth's oceans and rivers combined. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - PriceFalls.com - catch deals as they fall
Pricefalls.com is an online reverse auction site using the “Dutch Auction” method of entering your bid as prices fall in a steady decline. You can buy the item immediately at any point in the falling prices. The auction ends when a predetermined floor is reached. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Sound Effects you can capture or download
If you'd like to provide some sound effects while you read this blog, try this: Virtual Studio Audience Soundboard. Try playing different sounds at the same time. Use them on your friends, or add sounds to your videos from the download section.

10/21/09 - Open Letter to Bill Maher on Vaccinations
Editor of 'Skeptic Magazine', Michael Shermer writes, "Years ago you invited me to appear as a fellow skeptic several times on your ABC show Politically Incorrect, and I have ever since shared your skepticism on so many matters important to both of us: creationism and intelligent design, religious supernaturalism and New Age paranormal piffle, 9/11 “truthers”, Obama “birthers”, and all manner of conspiratorial codswallop. On these matters, and many others, you rightly deserved the Richard Dawkins Award from Atheist Alliance International. However, I believe that when it comes to alternative medicine in general and vaccinations in particular you have fallen prey to the same cognitive biases and conspiratorial thinking that you have so astutely identified in others. In fact, the very principle of how vaccinations work is additional proof (as if we needed more) against the creationists that evolution happened and that natural selection is real: vaccinations work by tricking the body’s immune system into thinking that it has already had the disease for which the vaccination was given. Our immune system “adapts” to the invading pathogens and “evolves” to fight them, such that when it encounters a biologically similar pathogen (which itself may have evolved) it has in its armory the weapons needed to fight it. This is why many of us born in the 1950s and before may already have some immunity against the H1N1 flu because of its genetic similarity to earlier influenza viruses, and why many of those born after really should get vaccinated. Vaccinations are not 100% effective, nor are they risk free. But the benefits far outweigh the risks, and when communities in the U.S. and the U.K. in recent years have foregone vaccinations in large numbers, herd immunity is lost and communicable diseases have come roaring back. This is yet another example of evolution at work, but in this case it is working against us. (See www.sciencebasedmedicine.org for numerous articles answering every one of the objections to vaccinations.) - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Need to document your Accident? Try Accident Sketch
Here's a site that lets you draw a diagram of your traffic accident: Accident Sketch. Draw a perfect sketch of the accident online just with a few mouse clicks and add your sketch to your personal digital accident report. Including helpful advices for your settlement of claim. / Vehicles, streets, traffic signs, arrows, braking marks etc. can be dragged out of the accordion menu on the left side into the drawing area by pressing and holding the left mouse button. You can change the position of items by clicking once and holding down the left mouse button while dragging. All elements can be rotated by using the green point or by holding the right mouse button.. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - Remove Pet Hair With Rubber Gloves
There's no trick or gimmick with this tried and true method of pet hair removal. All you need is a pair of typical rubber gloves found in the cleaning aisle at your local grocer or big box store. Slide them on and you're set to get frisky with your sofa and car interior. After a good rub down (hubba hubba) the fur should lift and stick to the glove. Simply submerge your hands in water and the hair will unstick and float on top of the water for you to gather and dispose of. You can of course remove the excess fur without water, but we've always been fans of the quickest and easiest method possible, and from experience, I can say this works like a charm. - Full Article Source

10/21/09 - De-Stink Smelly Shoes With Cat Litter
To eliminate odors inside your shoe, simply fill a loose knit sock or some pantyhose with litter and tie it off. Work it into each shoe and allow to sit for 24 hours. The litter will help dry up the stinky bacteria that causes the smell, and it's likely a lot cheaper than powders and potions sold at big box stores (especially if you've already got it on hand). That's about all there is to it. Outdoors web site Trails.com has more details, so head to their instructions for the full low-down. Cat litter isn't just useful for your precious feline friends, of course—we've already shown you how it can be used to save your soaked cellphone. - Full Article Source

Mommy...

10/18/09 - Autonomous Indoor Robocopter
"Researchers at MIT's Robust Robotics Group have developed a robotic helicopter capable of autonomously flying inside buildings or other GPS-denied environments. It has an on-board camera and a laser scanner that maps the local environment. The video talks about search-and-rescue and civil engineering applications, but it also brings somewhat scary reminders of Minority Report to my head. How long till I see one of these chasing me down a dark alley? The team's website has more videos showing earlier stages of the project." - Full Article Source

10/18/09 - A Step Closer To Cheap Nuclear Fusion and true OverUnity

The Focus Fusion Society reports that the scientists and engineers at Lawrenceville Plasma Physics have finally built an operational Dense Plasma Focus device. While still at less than half power, they were able to achieve a pinch on their device. The small company that Eric Lerner started recently gathered enough funding to start a two-year study on the validity of his theory regarding fusion-inducing plasmoids. If the theory holds, the device will produce more electricity than it consumes. In contrast to the billions of dollars spent on Tokamak fusion (think ITER), LPP is conducting their research on a budget around a million dollars. Yet, if it works, it will provide nuclear fusion with much simpler equipment and much less cost. Eric Lerner and Focus Fusion have been discussed on Slashdot before." - Full Article Source

10/18/09 - Oath Keepers pledges to prevent dictatorship in United States
Depending on your perspective, the Oath Keepers are either strident defenders of liberty or dangerous peddlers of paranoia. Launched in March by Las Vegan Stewart Rhodes, Oath Keepers bills itself as a nonpartisan group of current and retired law enforcement and military personnel who vow to fulfill their oaths to the Constitution. More specifically, the group's members, which number in the thousands, pledge to disobey orders they deem unlawful, including directives to disarm the American people and to blockade American cities. By refusing the latter order, the Oath Keepers hope to prevent cities from becoming "giant concentration camps," a scenario the 44-year-old Rhodes says he can envision happening in the coming years. It's a Cold War-era nightmare vision with a major twist: The occupying forces in this imagined future are American, not Soviet. "The whole point of Oath Keepers is to stop a dictatorship from ever happening here," Rhodes, a former Army paratrooper and Yale-trained lawyer, said in an interview with the Review-Journal. "My focus is on the guys with the guns, because they can't do it without them. "We say if the American people decide it's time for a revolution, we'll fight with you." Oath Keepers is not preaching violence or government overthrow, Rhodes said. On the contrary, it is asking police and the military to lay down their arms in response to unlawful orders. The group's Web site, www.oathkeepers.org, features videos and testimonials in which supporters compare President Barack Obama's America to Adolf Hitler's Germany. They also liken Obama to England's King George III during the American Revolution. The homeland security report added that "disgruntled military veterans" might be vulnerable to recruitment by right-wing extremist groups. That warning was enough to make Rhodes feel paranoid. "They're accusing anybody who opposes Obama of being a racist or a potential terrorist," he said. "What they're saying is, 'We're coming after you.'" The motto of Oath Keepers: "Not on our watch!" The message Rhodes hears from the government: We're watching you. "When you believe in something, you have to do more than just pay it lip service," said Freeman, the group's Southern Nevada director and national peace officer liaison. "This is a crusade I believe in." Rhodes said he hopes Oath Keepers members think about the lawfulness of day-to-day orders they receive. For example, if a police officer feels he is being asked to do an illegal search of a home or vehicle, he should stand down. Rhodes eventually wants to create a legal defense fund for Oath Keepers who are disciplined by their employers for defying orders they deem unlawful or immoral. "The message to law enforcement is not to become a tool of oppression," he said. / From the Oath Keepers website - Ten Orders we will NOT OBEY because we will consider them unconstitutional (and thus unlawful) and immoral violations of the natural rights of the people. Such orders would be acts of war against the American people by their own government, and thus acts of treason. We will not make war against our own people. We will not commit treason. Recognizing that we each swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic, and affirming that we are guardians of the Republic, of the principles in our Declaration of Independence, and of the rights of our people... - Full Article Source

10/18/09 - A weird, though surprisingly well done take on Chemtrails vs Contrails
Remember the 1988 John Carpenter movie 'They Live'? Part science fiction thriller and part dark comedy, the film echoed contemporary fears of a declining economy, within a culture of greed and conspicuous consumption common among Americans in the 1980s. In They Live, the ruling class within the monied elite are in fact aliens managing human social affairs through the use of a signal on top of the tv broadcast that is concealing their appearance and subliminal messages in Mass media. Character George Nada accidentally picks up a pair of sunglasses, when he later dons the glasses for the first time, the world appears in shades of grey, with significant differences. He notices that a billboard now simply displays the word "Obey"; without them it advertises that Control Data Corporation is "creating a transparent computing environment." Another billboard (normally displaying "Come to the Caribbean" written above a lovely woman lying on a beach) now displays the text "Marry and Reproduce." He also sees that paper money bears the words "This is your God." All printed matter around him contains subliminal advertising. Additionally, he soon discovers that many people are actually aliens, who are human-looking except for skull-like faces. When the aliens realize he can see them for what they truly are, the police suddenly arrive. Nada escapes and steals a police shotgun; he eventually stumbles into a local bank filled with aliens. Upon entering he proclaims, "I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass.. and I'm all out of bubblegum." A shooting spree ensues and after killing many of them, one of the aliens sees him and disappears after twisting a dial on his wristwatch. / Thanks to KatMan for the link. - JWD - Full Article Source

High Voltage & Free Energy Devices Handbook
This wonderfully informative ebook provides many simple experiments you can do, including hydrogen generation and electrostatic repulsion as well as the keys to EV Gray's Fuelless Engine. One of the most comprehensive compilations of information yet detailing the effects of high voltage repulsion as a driving force. Ed Gray's engine produced in excess of 300HP and he claimed to be able to 'split the positive' energy of electricity to produce a self-running motor/generator for use as an engine. Schematics and tons of photos of the original machines and more! Excellent gift for your technical friends or for that budding scientist! If you are an experimenter or know someone who investigates such matters, this would make an excellent addition to your library or as an unforgettable gift. The downloadable HVFE eBook pdf file is almost 11MB in size and contains many experiments, photos, diagrams and technical details. Buy a copy and learn all about hydrogen generation, its uses and how to produce electrostatic repulsion. - 121 pages - $15.00 - Source

DVD - the Physics of Crystals, Pyramids and Tetrahedrons
This is a wonderful 2 hour DVD which presents one man's lifelong study of pyramids, crystals and their effects. Several of his original and very creative experiments are explained and diagramed out for experimenters. These experiments include; 1) transmutation of zinc to lower elements using a tetrahedron, 2) energy extraction from a pyramid, 3) determining mathematic ratios of nature in a simple experiment, 4) accelerating the growth of food, 5) increasing the abundance of food, 6) how crystals amplify, focus and defocus energy, 7) using crystals to assist natural healing, 8) how the universe uses spirals and vortexes to produce free energy and MORE... - $20 DVD + S&H / Source to Buy and Youtube Clip

14 Ways to Save Money on Fuel Costs
This eBook is the result of years of research into various methods to increase mileage, reduce pollution and most importantly, reduce overall fuel costs. It starts out with the simplest methods and offers progressively more detailed technologies that have been shown to reduce fuel costs. As a bonus to readers, I have salted the pages with free interesting BONUS items that correlate to the relevant page. Just filling up with one tank of gas using this or other methods explained here will pay for this eBook. Of course, many more methods are out there but I provided only the ones which I think are practical and can be studied by the average person who is looking for a way to immediately reduce their fuel costs. I am currently using two of the easier methods in my own vehicle which normally gets 18-22 mpg and now gets between 28 and 32 mpg depending on driving conditions. A tank of gas for my 1996 Ford Ranger costs about $45.00 here so I am saving around $15-$20 PER TANK, without hurting my engine and with 'greener' emissions due to a cleaner burn! The techniques provided in this ebook begin with simple things you can do NOW to improve your mileage and lower your gas costs. - $15 eBook Download / Source to Buy

KeelyNet BBS Files w/bonus PDF of 'Keely and his Discoveries'
Finally, I've gotten around to compiling all the files (almost 1,000 - about 20MB and lots of work doing it) from the original KeelyNet BBS into a form you can easily navigate and read using your browser, ideally Firefox but it does work with IE. Most of these files are extremely targeted, interesting and informative, I had forgotten just how much but now you can have the complete organized, categorized set, not just sprinklings from around the web. They will keep you reading for weeks if not longer and give you clues and insights into many subjects and new ideas for investigation and research. IN ADDITION, I am including as a bonus gift, the book (in PDF form) that started it all for me, 'Keely and his Discoveries - Aerial Navigation' which includes the analysis of Keely's discoveries by Dr. Daniel G. Brinton. This 407 page eBook alone is worth the price of the KeelyNet BBS CD but it will give you some degree of understanding about what all Keely accomplished which is just now being rediscovered, but of course, without recognizing Keely as the original discoverer. Chapters include; Vibratory Sympathetic and Polar Flows, Vibratory Physics, Latent Force in Interstitial Spaces and much more. These two excellent bodies of information will be sent to you on CD. To give some idea of how Keely's discoveries are being slowly rediscovered in modern times, check out this Keely History. If alternative science intrigues and fascinates you, this CD is what you've been looking for... - Source

New Vanguard Sciences eBooks - Save a Tree! eBooks make great gifts!
Shape Power - Dan Davidson's analysis of the mysterious pyramid energies, Keely's aether force, Reich's orgone energy, Schauberger's diamagnetic energy, plus a host of others, and shows how shape and materials interact with the universal aether to modify the aether into electromagnetic, gravitic, and various healing energies... - Shape Power Youtube

The Physics of the Primary State of Matter - published in the 1930s, Karl Schappeller described his Prime Mover, a 10-inch steel sphere with quarter-inch copper tubing coils. These were filled with a material not named specifically, but which is said to have hardened under the influence of direct current and a magnetic field [electro-rheological fluid]. With such polarization, it might be guessed to act like a dielectric capacitor and as a diode...

'The Evolution of Matter' and 'The Evolution of Forces' on CD
Years ago, I had been told by several people, that the US government frequently removes books they deem dangerous or 'sensitive' from libraries. Some are replaced with sections removed or rewritten so as to 'contain' information that should not be available to the public despite the authors intent. A key example was during the Manhattan Project when the US was trying to finalize research into atomic bombs. They removed any books that dealt with the subject and two of them were by Dr. Gustave Le Bon since they dealt with both energy and matter including radioactivity. I had been looking for these two books for many years and fortunately stumbled across two copies for which I paid about $40.00 each. I couldn't put down the books once I started reading them. Such a wealth of original discoveries, many not known or remembered today. / Page 88 - Without the ether there could be neither gravity, nor light, nor electricity, nor heat, nor anything, in a word, of which we have knowledge. The universe would be silent and dead, or would reveal itself in a form which we cannot even foresee. If one could construct a glass chamber from which the ether were to be entirely eliminated, heat and light could not pass through it. It would be absolutely dark, and probably gravitation would no longer act on the bodies within it. They would then have lost their weight. / Page 96-97 - A material vortex may be formed by any fluid, liquid or gaseous, turning round an axis, and by the fact of its rotation it describes spirals. The study of these vortices has been the object of important researches by different scholars, notably by Bjerkness and Weyher. They have shown that by them can be produced all the attractions and repulsions recognized in electricity, the deviations of the magnetic needle by currents, etc. These vortices are produced by the rapid rotation of a central rod furnished with pallets, or, more simply, of a sphere. Round this sphere gaseous currents are established, dissymetrical with regard to its equatorial plane, and the result is the attraction or repulsion of bodies brought near to it, according to the position given to them. It is even possible, as Weyher has proved, to compel these bodies to turn round the sphere as do the satellites of a planet without touching it. / Page 149 - "The problem of sending a pencil of parallel Hertzian waves to a distance possesses more than a theoretical interest. It is allowable to say that its solution would change the course of our civilization by rendering war impossible. The first physicist who realizes this discovery will be able to avail himself of the presence of an enemy's ironclads gathered together in a harbour to blow them up in a few minutes, from a distance of several kilometres, simply by directing on them a sheaf of electric radiations. On reaching the metal wires with which these vessels are nowadays honeycombed, this will excite an atmosphere of sparks which will at once explode the shells and torpedoes stored in their holds. With the same reflector, giving a pencil of parallel radiations, it would not be much more difficult to cause the explosion of the stores of powder and shells contained in a fortress, or in the artillery sparks of an army corps, and finally the metal cartridges of the soldiers. Science, which at first rendered wars so deadly, would then at length have rendered them impossible, and the relations between nations would have to be established on new bases." - Source

15 New Alternative Science DVDs & 15 MP3s
An assortment of alternative science videos that provide many insights and inside information from various experimenters. Also MP3s extracted from these DVDs that you can listen to while working or driving. Reference links for these lectures and workshops by Bill Beaty of Amateur Science on the Dark Side of Amateur Science, Peter Lindemann on the World of Free Energy, Norman Wootan on the History of the EV Gray motor, Dan Davidson on Shape Power and Gravity Wave Phenomena, Lee Crock on a Method for Stimulating Energy, Doug Konzen on the Konzen Pulse Motor, George Wiseman on the Water Torch and Jerry Decker on Aether, ZPE and Dielectric Nano Arrays. Your purchase of these products helps support KeelyNet, thanks! - Source to Buy

Six Ways to Support Keelynet