Thursday, October 1, 2009

NYTimes: At 60 M.P.H., Office Work Is a High-Risk Job

DRIVEN TO DISTRACTION: At 60 M.P.H., Office Work Is a High-Risk Job
For those who have turned their vehicles into wired offices, the
convenience of constant contact and work efficiency outweighs the risk
of a wreck.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/01/technology/01distracted.html

See the game that demonstrates how distracted texting is... at
https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/07/19/technology/20090719-driving-game.html

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Crash test - look how far we've come


Look at the difference in intrusion of the front of the car - wow.

NYTimes.com: Fanfare for the Working Van


The New York Times

Built for small business:

"...a navigation system with an

in-dash computer that can

be linked to a business owner's

office or home computer.

Using it, a document from

the office or home can be opened,

modified and printed on

a Bluetooth-linked printer."

AUTOMOBILES / CAR REVIEWS | September 27, 2009
Behind the Wheel | 2010 Ford Transit Connect: Fanfare for the Working Van
By CHERYL JENSEN
Since 2003 Ford has sold more than 625,000 Transit Connects in 58 countries, but its proportions are startlingly new to Americans.

Monday, September 28, 2009

An RV that gets better than 20 mpg and sleeps 4.


This diesel motorhome based on the Dodge/Mercedes Sprinter van gets reports on magazine tests and from people's blogs as getting 21 to 24 mpg loaded. That's a whole lot better than <10 mpg for most motor homes. They have ingeniously crammed everything you need for 4 into an unexpanded long Sprinter chassis and body.
http://www.roadtrek.com/models.aspx?ModelID=23&YearID=11&Country=USA

NYTimes: Solar Power, Without All Those Panels

PhotoVoltaic encapsulants and photovoltaic integrated building materials etc.
NOVELTIES: Solar Power, Without All Those Panels

Now shingles, siding and tiles can contain the photovoltaic cells that
homes need to harness the sun's power.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/27/business/27novel.html

Saturday, September 26, 2009

NYTimes: The Claim: Lack of Sleep Increases the Risk of Catching a Cold.

From The New York Times:

REALLY?: The Claim: Lack of Sleep Increases the Risk of Catching a Cold.

As cold season approaches, many Americans stock up on their vitamin C
and echinacea, but heeding the advice on getting more sleep could be
more important.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/22/health/22real.html

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Magnetic Liquid is Crazy

Check out this video on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fpI4EiGACo8&feature=youtube_gdata


Sent from my iPhone

Ferrofluid: How it works

Check out this video on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvtUt02zVAs&feature=youtube_gdata

Sachiko Kodama, Yasushi Miyajima "Morpho Towers -- Two Stand


Ferrofluids are made up of tiny magnetic fragments of iron suspended in oil (often kerosene) with a surfactant to prevent clumping (usually oleic acid). The fluid is relatively easy to make at home yet extremely expensive to buy on-line. How does $165 a liter sound? Pretty bad, right? Read on to learn how to make ferrofluids on the cheap.
There are many commercial applications for ferrofluids--speakers and hard drives being the most common. The oily fluid prevents debris from entering hard drives when a small amount is placed between the magnets and shaft. In the case of speakers ferrofluids remove heat from the voice coils and help dampen the cone movement. (From Popular Science)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=me5Zzm2TXh4&feature=youtube_gdata


Sunday, September 20, 2009

Friday, September 18, 2009

SWATH semi submerged Catamaran

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catamaran?wasRedirected=true

Catamarans are slowed by their large surface area at water line. The
SWATH design submerges the flotation and minimizes hull size at the
water line. The boat plows through waves rather than riding over them,
so it's stable in rough seas.

Electric hybrid boat


It was described in this month's Popular Science, page 15. I was surprised to see that it took 2200 pounds of batteries. Of course, they wanted it to run for 3 hours on batteries only, and they needed an electric motor with 268 horsepower to get it to go 38 mph. 

Thursday, September 17, 2009

NYTimes.com: Gadgetwise: It's Your Lipitor on Line 2


A pill bottle that sends a text message if you haven't taken your pills! How cool is that?

TECHNOLOGY | April 01, 2009
Gadgetwise: It's Your Lipitor on Line 2
By Roy Furchgott
A networked pill bottle calls to remind you to take your medicine

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