chuck kottke

Ah, nothing like a "pet thread"!:laugh3: Good Pick Nick;). And more of my babble..:P So, if a vehicle were to be made 2/3 lighter, then the old estimate of "an auto consumes as much energy to make as it uses in fuel in its lifetime" goes down considerably as well. 1/3 the mass, ~1000 pounds, would cut overall energy consumption as dramatically. The Dymaxion car chimed in at something like 1800 pounds - but it was big. And it used a standard Ford drivetrain, so only so much weight could be reduced. I'm thinking aluminum-magnesium alloys, or aluminum-silicon alloys, along with composites (bio-composites, glass fibers). We could go whole hog, and try for an all-carbon-composite vehicle, but that might break the bank in the expense department. Leave that to the Lamberts, Rolls, Duesenbergs, Bugatti's, etc. until they get the materials and prices down, and the production up. What did GM do with the Ultralight? Just looking at HP to cruise at 50 MPH, a midsized pickup or SUV takes 42 HP, a Toyota Prius takes 20 HP, a Mazda Miata takes 13 HP, and GM ultralight takes 11HP. I could add the rest if I can get data on them.. But the point is there, and what goes for mass as well - more is lost in acceleration and braking than in rolling & air resistance, so the lighter vehicles make a really big difference- plus they're fleet-footed. Imagine a 180 pound runner, vs. a 360 pound runner. Sure, the 360 pound runner is perfect for a defensive line, but the 180 pound runner goes faster than greased lightning. Quick off the block, can turn on a dime, and maneuver like a barn swallow. Vehicles are no different: power-to-weight ratio is tops in sport vehicles.

Thanks Nick! I'm just trying to fit the pieces together, that's all. And the critical thoughts help a great deal, to consider whether our imaginations are creating something that will work or will not work in the real world. So with the better engine, 40 mpg becomes 80 mpg; 80 mpg becomes 160 mpg when weight issues, drag, and cooling are better addressed. If half the power were to be from solar - recharged lithium batteries, then 160 mpg becomes effectively 320 mpg. Or perhaps even more, if the solar canopy parking lots are used. Perhaps the engine may only be needed in winter, at night, or in bad weather, or on trips longer than 120 miles. Mileage could be considered to be in the 500 mpg range - liquid fuel consumed little more than the oil changes and lubricants in vehicles mechanical components. (I try and console the Houstonites, that their fair city's economy could be geared to make solar cells, panels, wind turbines, lithium batteries, etc. with the oil & gas energy today, thus keeping them economically strong, and job creation strong as well into the far future). But considering the alternatives - all electric is looking promising as well. Somewhere I heard a report of an electric car that could be recharged in as little as 5 minutes. Hmm.. Well, when one goes to fill up currently, it takes perhaps 2&1/2 minutes at the pump, so this isn't too bad! All-electric, if it were locally produced, would be of reasonable efficiency, from renewable sources. But is there enough Lithium on the planet to replace the global auto fleet with batteries for the millions of vehicles? Something to research.. It's plentiful in the deposits - salt lakes and salt flats - but is there enough... We could perhaps mine the island of New Caledonia, and then replace the subsoil and missing mass with ordinary stone and earth, with a surface of the nickel-rich soil needed for the unique plant species there.. Nickel-Iron batteries, or Nickel-metal-hydride batteries may be needed - perhaps both are possible - to save the ecological world, and obtain the mineral resources we need to maintain a high standard of living. Unless some new technology comes along.. Still, getting the fuel economy up in the 200 to 300 mpg range would make switching to electric, bio-diesel, alcohol, etc. all the more practical - 90% of the answer is in efficiency. Performance issues - so, accelerating a 3,500 pound vehicle is what's keeping the marriage of efficiency and sport from happening. I was just pondering that - go out and floor your car once. You can just feel the incredible torque and power that engine has to deliver to get that big iron and glass and plastic boat to accelerate. And braking all the same. A ton and a half, being rapidly slowed by these little metal discs and pads - little wonder they glow cherry red on the stock car circuits! Now imagine a vehicle that weighs just 1000 pounds. You could just touch the accelerator pedal, and you'd be flying! Safety, safety, safety - the old saw of the auto industry (even though consumer demand, not auto makers, made it happen). The old equation of weight=safety is not necessarily true. In vehicles with small generator sets, and batteries in the floors and elsewhere, the front end can then be devoted to crumple zones. Better still to make the car or truck so impact energy is absorbed as a bird's feathers and body do - hence the falcon catching it's prey at a smashing 200 MPH dive has no troubles. So, light is the way to go! And safety, as in vehicle stability? Well, putting the batteries at the bottom means the center of gravity is low, low, low! Better around curves, better in accidents that would otherwise cause a roll-over. Traction - a big issue. Light vehicles have difficulty here, but then making softer tires, special tread designs, and perhaps even a type of emergency skid plate would solve this one. Less mass means less need for traction to stop a vehicle as well. Size issues - there's a tough problem. Cross-sectional area is one part of the equation. Drag coefficient is the other. Some auto makers have already shown it's possible to do it - but the drag coefficients have got to be minimized for the SUV vehicles to remain tall and wide. (Or to be driven slower - fat chance of that ever happening!). Challenges still abound, but we've got the answers. Now getting them to be applied in the marketplace is the question.

Was it in the Marshall Islands, or Western Samoa?

I hope they get the problems fixed, and price things affordably - I do believe the organic foods are better - what's often overlooked in the methods of measuring vitamin content is the fact that organic foods contain significantly more of the metal ion centers in the vitamins found in the vegetable or fruit, and it is these ions that make the vitamins function; they also have more vitamins overall (especially if they're non-hybridized), and the fresher the produce, the better. Storage of fruits and vegetables knocks down their vitamin C content especially, so freshly picked and shipped fruits have the most C by far. But the biggest thing with the organic movement is to reduce the overall impact as well, and give a fair shake to the farmers. Hence, the Fair-Trade label, the concept of locally produced foods (much less energy used to get it there, and to have it fresh), and the reduction in the amounts and types of pesticides used to produce the food. I'd rather have an organic apple, for instance, knowing that if it's done right, there's little risk to the grower, the groundwater, the neighboring community, and the people working to grow it and pick it get paid a descent wage. Considering that it's meant to be more local (unless it's something that doesn't grow in that climate), it helps reduce the carbon footprint of the food, and reduced shipping and handling should help offset the extra costs in raising produce the organic way. What one has to consider as well is how the big ag firms have stacked the deck at the regulatory agencies (at least here in the US), and hence skew the facts to fit their agenda. Part of the reason we need campaign finance reform (from the grass roots) is to stop the placement of industry cronies into our various food-related agencies, especially at the head positions, so the agencies can do their jobs correctly once again. I would take a careful look at anything coming from them, and see who's pushing an agenda at these places.

Miss Connecticut, I think that's mostly true for most of us!;) And Dave, I do the same - without passengers, I tend to rev it up a little more. I've been compared to Dustin Hoffman in Rainman, esp. the part where Dustin keeps saying to his brother: "I'm a good driver".. which is true, mainly because Dustin has never gone farther in the car than around the block & up the driveway!:lol: But actually I'm alright, except when I have to go anywhere with my brother - it's like driving a staff car for the General then, and the General likes to give orders! (turn here! No dummy, get in this lane! Use the frontage road - it's quicker!!) - he drives me nuts sometimes..:dozey:

Hello Jenny! I'm happy to hear that you got tickets for the 22nd - enjoy the show, and in the meantime, there's this bananas website for us loonies!:P

Hello & Hola, Carla! Well, if you can get some taller feet for the laptop (to give it more space below to cool better - lifters for the little pads on it) that might help. Laptops have other problems, such as little batteries clipped inside, which power the internal RAM when the computer is off - after a while, those batteries (thin lithium cells, often like watch batteries) start to go bad, and can give you the symptoms you're having. (I learned this the hard way, by buying a used laptop with issues!). Power supply instabilities could be another cause...

:laugh3: God, I love those answers! Nick, you're right - another way of looking at it, in a logical sense - everything else that is false is not truth; what remains is truth. Jay, that's true too - coerced answers are whatever it takes to stop the coercion, generally. But I began to think about the concept of how we view things - and how poor a job the dictionary does of defining things! Truth - see 'fact'. Fact - see 'truth". That's a synopsis of what one dictionary definition has to offer. To me, I look at it this way: Truth: An observation, usually condensed, recounting events pertaining to a certain question. The logical observation is the best the observer can ascertain and retell based on empirical evidence & logical arguments which lead to a certain observed outcome. We cannot know absolute truth, but can approach it based on evidence and a logical chronology of events leading to a logical outcome. Approaching the same problem from different directions, and finding the same outcome strengthens the argument for the truth about the matter in question. Since absolute truth encompasses all the forces and know parameters in the universe, we can only find a condensed or abbreviated version of the truth; perhaps a thread which runs throughout the universe, or a subset of a larger reality. But in a human sense, truth in the mind is what we perceive to be correct according to our way of seeing things. One, for example, might be questioned about whether they have vacuumed the house. Perhaps to one person, the house is clean from going over it with a vacuum, but to another, some crumbs have been missed, and thus not clean. To a clean-room technician, any particle of dust would be unacceptable, and to someone who has just come from a muddy field, the house could have already been seen as clean. So in seeking truth, defining and refining the question can come up with a more accurate analysis of the matter. In circuits, a logic gate can offer an answer limited to the input, and thus truth is easily quantifiable. But this is merely a subset of the whole, and thus we have constructed a device which is designed to simplify things; rules which may or may not apply to the known universe at different levels, or may not apply to other universes, but fit nicely in ours. I did see the PBS special on the Greeks - Socrates prominent in the program - and began to wonder how far along they really had come? Apparently the concept of molecules had been mentioned in a set of burned manuscripts placed above one tomb! Congruent - corresponding; harmonious with reality. Reality - the quality or fact of being real. Real - existing as or in fact; actual; true. Another words, a true statement is one that is corresponding with the quality of existing as a fact. But then what is a fact? Perhaps we, being human, can all start with a common framework of observation from our senses, our human experiences, and how our minds work. Our common experiences allow for a sort of supra-neural networking, and the ability to follow arguments for or against things. Reflection on things as they are, and questioning our assumptions seems a good way at getting closer to the truth - and towards deeper meaning in life as well. Still, it's quite an incredible distance we've gone - seeing the universe through the lens of a spacecraft designed to observe the larger universe, and send the information back to earth, where it is retrieved and stored in computers.. If not for the quest for truth and belief that we can understand the workings of matter and energy-- of forces, we might never have gone past the level of travelers in life...

Just A Question Socrates might have asked: What is "Truth"?

The answer is simple - and not a giant leap, really. Redesigning the auto, for something more of the sports-car shape and responsiveness, it would take panels on the upper surfaces, and a second panel of equal size roughly to propel it to and from work (the daily commute here being 15 miles, one-way). On a sunny day..:thinking: What to do in winter - that is the question.. 4X the panels for winter, and run with a bio-diesel genset in the vehicle. In fact, the genset could charge the batteries while the cars in the open-air lot or while parked in the driveway, no operator need be around it! Or perhaps hydrogen storage in zeolites in summer, stocked up for winter use.. Farming everything for fuel just won't cut it, so I'm looking always for a solution. Rel. to Fossils: With all the talk about CO2 storage below ground, I have to wonder if that's just not another problem in the making, really. Will it stay put, and what if an earthquake cracks the underground rock formation? Why do all that, when conservation will solve 90% of the problem off the bat, and the rest can be covered by renewables? But the solar-car leaves questions still. What % of autos are parked in indoor lots/car ramps? How many would be willing to leave the car outside the garage to get it's sun exposure? Perhaps most of us would opt for grid-intertie systems, with most of the power made by the power company, and then they could bid on parking lot canopy panels - good to keep it cooler & more shaded in summer, and get the charge we all need. Ideas welcome; pleace chime in!

Great Thread, Ziggy!:sunny: They always seem to give their best performances in Toronto - can anyone tell me why that is?

??Artist-related medical reasons? What on earth could that be?:thinking:

pop rock? Pop rocks? Oh wait, those are those little fizzy things we used to put in our mouths..:laugh3: Post-ambiance rock, sleepy-time rock, and trilobite rock?

Welcome Maggy! (did you know there was a song by Jerry Rafferty about someone named Maggy?);)

"Mars ain't the kinda place to raise your kids. And there's n one there, if you did.." Welcome Endri!!:sunny::escaping:

Luckily, it must have went off well!:)

Doing well, Nick, doing well - just been busy with gardening, work, and life in general. Still trying new sounds on the piano, and planing lumber in the shop. How's the summer been going for you?

Bush used that as an excuse to cause another bloodbath, a poorly executed one, where all peaceful means and containment were not tried first. I am a strong advocate of applying intelligent means to pressure regimes into changing, and giving time for the people on the ground to find a solution (containment seems to have worked with Colonel Kadafi, and a few bloodless revolutions, like Chile's and Czechoslovakia's). Only after absolutely all else has failed, after all deliberation, and with careful planning and preparedness, should we venture forth using military force, for peace-keeping objectives. What Bush tried was preemptive, and did not allow the patience of containment and incentives for change from within to work; Bill Clinton's mistake was to choose to bomb Iraq's civilian infrastructure (water, sewage treatment, electric plants, etc.) - hurting the people, but not the regime. Hopefully, the new administration's leaders have learned from these massive blunders.. But watching a genocide begin and then unfold, killing 800,000 in Rawanda, or 300,000 as in the Balkans, isn't such a nice thing either. I remember my days at the University, and I recall one of the foreign exchange students from Rawanda asking me for help - anything to get our government to stabilize the situation - but there wasn't anything I or anyone could do - public opinion was against action after the US - Somalia attempt to assasinate the warlords had failed miserably, and George Setphanopolus was reading approval ratings to determine the level of administarion actions; so it happened - while we all watched the horror of it all, unfold before our eyes on TV. Most of the latter analysis suggests strongly that had the UN had more troops, or the Belgians had keep a stronger presence, or the US had sent in troops, and had taken out a radio station or two, the whole mess might have been defusable, and with economic improvements and efforts to secure equity between the groups, the fighting stoppable. True - why didn't other African nations do more to help prevent the disaster?? That is a good question as well. But the fact is that nobody acted, and 800,000 innocent civilians died as a result. A fire from the cycle of revenge is an awful thing to let loose, when it can be contained.

Great to hear you've started one, Nick!! True, animals are a constant pressure on gardens - but if you keep them in check, 80% of the harvest is yours to keep...;) Here, I am working on a new fence - good to keep out rabbits and deer, but pointless against birds, voles, squirrels, and chipmunks. So I live with a few losses - the lower snap peas devoured, and a few beans missing, but most of it's intact. You should be alright with the tomatoes, as the leaves and stems are poisonous - most animals taste them, but then leave them alone. Florida's the right climate for tomatoes - they love it hot!! Here, it's been a cool summer - perhaps 74 F today.. Corn crop is tasseling, and I'll need to get the electric fencer and insulated wire up in time before the raccoons start their yearly forays into my garden!:) Try some corn - Florida's season might be alright for two crops, if the corn is a day-neutral variety - one of the sweetest garden rewards!

Ka-ching! Here's the change for that fried policy!;) First of all, her name is Hillary Rodham Blythe:laugh3:, and secondly, maybe it's worth it, if we can stop another bloodbath before it gets going. I just hope Hillary uses all diplomatic and peaceful means first to prevent a genocide type event, as a military solution often isn't one. But remembering Rwanda's genocide, it would have been better to have had a presence as a peace-keeping force - either the Belgians, or the US, or the UN - had we had more troops there, and had acted to cut off some of the radio broadcasts, and established peaceful negotiations, it might have turned out differently - but each situation calls for a different approach. Steering clear of it all sometimes is allowing a powder keg to ignite.. Getting the economies of Africa on a strong footing, and removing the huge debt burdens would go a long way towards making life improve and relieve some of the cycle of poverty in the African states, IMHO..

:rolleyes::laugh3: Good one, Perhaps modern retro listening? Post-ambiance??:P R&B with a twist of Lime?:P:P

:rolleyes::laugh3: Oh well, - less tailgaters then. (or in Florida, tail-gators?)

Light Metal.:P

Goodnight miss Goodnight.:)

Either that, or they are trying to get auto sales back up, and keep the auto sector busy.. It's perhaps a way of paying back the donors, and keeping political power - auto workers, auto makers, dealer, etc. - and the cash contributions to campaigns. Well Nick, at least one good thing comes of it - less rusty parts will be falling off other vehicles in front of you or I on the freeway!:laugh3: