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Water Powered Cars Not Just H2O

As unbelievable as this may sound, cars running on water are just about to be become reality – that’s on condition that the major oil companies and car manufacturer don’t try to “kill” the idea first. And what makes this story even more intriguing is that people who try to develop such an idea are either bought out by major energy producers or die under mysterious circumstances.

The use of water as a fuel is not a new idea; and was originally thought up by a British chemist and physicist named Michael Faraday back in 1825. The whole concept revolves around the chemical make-up of water itself – which composes nearly 70% of the earth’s surface, as well as own bodies. From a pure chemical standpoint water, or H2O, is the combination of two molecules of hydrogen and one of oxygen – hence the elemental term H2O. Separately, both pure hydrogen and oxygen are very volatile elements, and can explode and burn profusely if exposed to even a spark. According to the developers of these new engines, the secret is separating the molecules and using the hydrogen as fuel.

A Japanese company Genepax, claims that it is now on the verge of producing a small commuter car that works by an engine that is actually powered by water – all kinds of water: saltwater, freshwater, even tea! The engine is actually an electric one that is powered by fuel cells which themselves receive their power from the hydrogen and oxygen that has been separated from water. The company’s executives say that the car can operate up to an hour on one liter of water and is completely non-polluting. While this idea is great for us, it’s terrible to the major oil companies, as well as the oil producing countries that supply them. Perhaps this is why so much objection to this idea is currently being generated, as can be seen in the following story:

The man who is said to be responsible for developing this idea is an American named Stan Meyer, who developed a process to remove hydrogen from water and turn it into a power source. He even built a prototype vehicle, a dune buggy, that was able to “split” the hydrogen in the water and “burn” this new fuel in an ordinary engine that had been converted to run on hydrogen fuel. His idea was even picked up by several news stations, who sent reporters to see and test drive Meyer’s new invention. But the idea as “put on ice” in 1998 when Meyer died from supposed food poisoning a day after he reportedly signed a contract with the U.S. Department of Defense to build engines that ran on this hydrogen-from-water concept.

Perhaps the Japanese Genpax company will have better luck than Stan Meyer did in marketing a car that runs on water. Since Japan is an energy starved nation that has to import virtually all its energy from abroad (most of it from the Middle East), the Japanese government will look more favorably on the idea and even offer assistance. After all, Japan is an island nation, completely surrounded by – you guessed it – H2O ( with a little sodium chloride and other minerals thrown in).

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Bottled Gas A Cheaper & Cleaner Fuel Option

It’s much less expensive than regular refined gasoline, and they won’t let your car into a below ground shopping mall parking lot if you have this installation, but at least half a million cars and trucks in the USA have already been converted to run on liquefied propane gas, otherwise known as LPG. From an environmental standpoint, using bottled LPG gas in your car is also much cleaner, with virtually no emissions, as compared to even unleaded gasoline.

hyundaiSo what’s involved with doing this and, how much does it cost? It appears that If you are a backyard mechanic, you can have your car converted to run ion LP gas for a little as $150, including storage tank or bottle. Or, if not, you can take your wheels to any number of repair garages that specialize in this sort of thing, and get it done for a bit more One garage owner said that a person “can bring his car in early in the morning and pick it up afterwards in the late afternoon. For newer cars (1995 and upwards) a special kit is available that has high pressure hoses and gauges that send the liquefied bottled gas into the engine from a bottle or “balloon” located under the rear baggage compartment of the car (where most spare tires are today).

From a cost standpoint LP gas and LNG (liquefied natural gas) is about 40% cheaper than diesel fuel – and 20% cleaner.

Automobile manufacturers are beginning to jump on the LP gas “bandwagon” and Volkswagen already has a 1.6 liter “Bi-fuel” Golf model that will run either o f LP gas or gasoline. And Hyundai is coming out with a LP gas hybrid model this month that features both a 1.6L Liquefied Petroleum Injected (LPI) four cylinder engine assisted by a 15KW electric motor with a continuously variable transmission.

With auto manufacturers becoming more interested in offering LP gas options in their alternative fuel vehicle marketing “mix” it appears that more and more people are beginning to realize the benefits of the saying: “go cheaper (and cleaner) with gas”.

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Sputnik Obesrvatory

The Sputnik Obesravtory was launched today and its another masterpiece by Jonathan Harris. I have been following his work for several years and this looks like a great video project. I like this video and path about Bacteria computing…

It’s the result of a two-year collaboration with New York-based Sputnik, Inc., an organization that documents contemporary culture through intimate video interviews with hundreds of leading thinkers in the arts, sciences and technology, covering a wide range of topics.

The central premise of the Sputnik project is that everything is connected to everything else, and that topics and ideas that may seem fringe and even heretical to the mainstream world are in fact being investigated by leading thinkers working in fields as diverse as quantum physics, mathematics, neuroscience, biology, economics, architecture, digital art, video games, computer science and music. Sputnik is dedicated to bringing these crucial ideas from the fringes of thought out into the limelight, so that the world can begin to understand them.

Conducted over more than ten years and previously unavailable to the public, the interviews within the site chronicle some of the most provocative human ideas to have emerged in the last few decades. The site itself aims to highlight the interconnections between seemingly disparate thinkers and ideas, using a simple navigational system with no dead ends, where every thought leads to another thought, akin to swimming the stream of consciousness.

There are about 200 videos on the site today, and there will be thousands more added over the coming weeks, months, and years.

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The Obama “BTU II ” Energy Bill – Right for the Times?

With America still in a deep recession and more than 3.6 million jobs lost during the past 8 months, the last thing most people want to know about is a new government energy bill that will result in people paying even more for fuel for their cars and for electricity and other fuels to cool their homes this summer and provide ample heating this coming winter.

Pres. Barack Obama in EgyptEnter the Obama Administration’s new “Carbon Tax” or “Green Energy” tax bill which is supposed to discourage Americans against using excessive amounts of carbon based energy, i.e. energy powered by carbon based fossil fuels, in order to encourage them to begin switching over to alternative and renewable energy sources, such as solar power, hydrogen gas, and other similar fuels.

The main problem in doing this, according to opponents of the bill, which includes virtually all Republican Congressmen and women and Senators (as well as many Democrats) is that Americans are simply not ready to switch to these new fuels – as they simply aren’t available yet. And the costs to American tax payers for increased fuel prices and higher overall taxes is estimated to run to more than $150 billion over the next ten years, or an average of about $3,100 per household.

The new bill is planned in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by the year 2050. Energy companies using carbon based fuels will have to obtain a special permit from the U.S. government in order to produce electricity by using carbon based fuels.

Proponents of the new bill, led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, claim that the gradual switch over to clean technology and carbon less fuels will create millions of new jobs. There might be some truth in that claim, and it will also mean that the switch over to new energy sources will result in millions of Americans losing their jobs as well. The proposed bill is also said by many to be reminiscent of the Clinton administration’s BTU Energy Bill in 1993 when Democrats passed a bill, advocated by then Vice President Al Gore, that would have taxed the amount of energy used by measuring British Thermal Units, or BTUs in both homes and industries. This would have resulted in taxes on energy used going up considerably, and as a result was defeated by Congress. The new bill is even being called by many opponents as the BTU II Bill.

While there is little doubt that Americana must rely less on fossil fuels, much of which is imported from the Middle East, those opposed to the new bill say that the process must be done gradually, and especially not during an economic crises like the one Americans are currently going through. It will take a long time before most Americans will be traveling about in total electric cars, or ones fueled by hydrogen or by water (which every chemistry student knows is composed of 2 atoms of hydrogen and one of oxygen).

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Should Three Year Old Get Cell Phones?

It was bound to happen sooner or later, but it now appears that specially made cell phones are now available for kids as young as age 3 (old enough to not be using the phone as a teething ring). A British cellular phone company has decided to make a marketing push towards an age group that is barely potty trained, let alone have even knowledge of numbers or written language. Called the Firefly, the phone is available in attractive “little kid colors” like pink for girls and blue for boys. The phones also have special rings to them that can be programmed with favorite kid’s tunes or nursery rhymes.

cell kidsOperating the device is very simple, with only for basic symbols beside the on/off button. The symbols are a male caricature to denote “Daddy” and a female one for “Mommy”. If Junior has a problem like wetting his pants in preschool, or just misses his parents, he simply pushes the button for either mom or dad and their cell or other chosen number will ring. The phone isn’t meant to be an actual cell phone, but up to 20 different phone numbers can be stored, and if the child is smart enough, he or she can be taught to push different “speed dial” numbers for other important people, including grandparents, and even emergency 911 type of numbers. Kids can also receive phone calls from the stored numbers, enabling parents, working ones, to be able to communicate with their children during working hours.

The phones are already a bit hit in the U.K. and Ireland, as well as in America, where they sell for around $100, and will undoubtedly be soon available in Europe. Many people in countries in which young children as young as age 5 or 6 already have personal cell phones see this new device as one that will get kids “hooked” on using cell phones at an even earlier age than they are now. Many parents who already have astronomically high cell phone bills because their kids simply use them too much are beginning to agree that these devices are causing more harm than good, despite their benefit as a “tracking device” to better know where their kids are.

“This is simply not healthy; why do kids this age have to be contacted by cell phone?” one British parent asked, when questioned about whether he planned to purchase this phone for his child. Maybe there is some logic in this, as kids (and adults) got along fine without these communication devices came into existence.

Now for the good stuff (NYTimes.com):

In January, the National Research Council in the United States also delivered a report – commissioned by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration – that reviewed existing scientific studies around the world and urged further research on the impact of mobile phone use on children and pregnant women.

“This clearly is a population that is going to grow up with a great deal of larger exposure than anybody else because the kids use the phones all the time,” said Frank Barnes, a professor of engineering at the University of Colorado in Boulder, who led the study. “And you’ve got growing bodies and brains, so if there is going to be an impact, that’s likely to be a more sensitive population.”

Every year, the average age of novice mobile phone users is dropping, reaching the age of 10 last year, according to Scott Ellison, an analyst at International Data Corp. He forecasts that the 9-and-under market will increase to nine million users in the United States and $1.6 billion in revenue by 2010.

Telephone use is also getting more precocious in Europe, according to a Eurobarometer survey of almost 1,000 children in 29 countries, most of whom had telephones after age 9.

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David de Rothschild & Voyage of the Plastiki

David de Rothschild is no ordinary person; and certainly no ordinary adventurer. The son of Britain’s Evelyn de Rothschild of the famous Rothschild banking family, and a known adventurer and environmentalist, David has already accomplished a number of feats in his 31 years, including crossing both the Arctic icecap and entire continent of Antarctica, including reaching both geographical poles.

David RothschildHis love for plant earth and concern for its environment has resulted in his launching of what appears to be his most harrowing feat of adventure to date. And that feat entails sailing a homemade craft made almost entirely of discarded plastic bottles, tied together by web mesh.
His destination: the gigantic “plastic island”, located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and made up of waste plastic and other material – and said to be almost twice the size of the American state of Texas.

His voyage, a journey of nearly 11,000 nautical miles, will begin off the State of California, continue until reaching the “island” now floating in an area known as the Great Pacific Gyre (southwest of Hawaii) and finally ending in Sydney Australia. The improbable voyage, on a craft made up of the same type of flotsam that the Plastic Island is said to be made of, is to make people aware that our oceans, the giver of much of our planet’s food and oxygen sources, are in danger to being turned into nothing but floating garbage dumps; and as a result will make life on earth even more threatened.

The journey, which was to have begun in March, 2009, was delayed until mid-summer, which could make de Rothschild’s trip even more perilous due to the occurrence of typhoons and other serve storms which are more prevalent during the summer and autumn months.

Following his journeys to both geometrical polar regions, David led an expedition to the Ecuadorian rain forest in South America, in order to monitor the effects that oil drilling and other man-created ecological endeavors are having on one of the last remaining virgin rain forest regions on earth. The damage that this drilling is having on this region, in order to obtain more greenhouse gas creating fossil fuels, is most disturbing, he notes.

The 60 ft catamaran craft, made out of 12,000 plastic bottles and other recycled plastic material woven into self-reinforcing polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a very strong webbing material , will be his home and that of his crew during the voyage, which he says will take about three months. “The only worry I have (concerning the voyage) is that I get sea-sick in a bath tub. But when one is as committed as I am to do such a thing, it will be done” he says. The craft that he and the small crew of scientists and ecologists will sail on has been named Kon Tiki, after the primitive raft that Norwegian adventurer and writer Thor Hayerdahl used to cross the Pacific Ocean in 1947. The main difference now is that the gigantic plastic island they are sailing to was much smaller then – if it existed at all.

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Summer Solstice Draws Crowds of Druids to Stonehenge

More than 30,000 Druids and curious spectators attended this year’s annual Summer Solstice ritual at the ancient Stonehenge monument in southern England.

The event, which ushers in the summer solstice (when the longest day of year is marked) is said to have magical as well as healing properties to all who gather to see the sun’s beams piercing between the geometrical positions of the monument. A few couples were on hand to “tie the knot” in traditional Druid fashion, and were dressed in what are said to be authentic Druid costumes.

The Druids are said to be an ancient animistic pagan cult who lived in the British Isles as long as 2,000 years ago – during Roman times. Originally, they worshiped trees and practiced human sacrifice, usually with unfortunate captives from the many wars these people were involved in with other groups who lived in what the Romans referred to as Britannia. Their religious beliefs were banned by the Catholic Church and Church of England for centuries, until contemporary groups began to present the religion in milder forms, during the 17th Century.

“It’s the most magical place on the plant. When you touch the stones from inside the ‘circle’ you feel warmth like you’re touching a tree and not stone – you’re absolutely drawn to its love” said a Druid participant, who owns and antique and New Age objects shop.

The party began the night before and went on into the wee hours, until the sun was first noticed peeking though the clouds and touching Heel Stone, the central focus point of the monument. A number of vendors were offering al kinds of “magical” Druid charms and amulets, which added something special to the occasion.

Even non pagans were impressed, which was helped this year by good weather. Many came because they said that the mystical qualities of the event were good for “healing of the soul” as well as the body. One person, a yoga instructor from Lithuania, said that “this place gives us so much energy and hope that we can forget about the problems of our everyday lives and believe that all our wishes will come true”.

And if they believe it, their wishes most certainly will come true – for a day anyway.

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FDA Waging War on Natural Swine Flu Remedies

The US Federal Department of Agriculture (FDA) is trying to censure all companies producing natural product remedies which are labeled as being effective in treating the H1N1 influenza virus, otherwise known as swine flu. The situation appears to be getting so intense that the FDA is putting out notices against these companies, saying”

“Firms that fail to take correction action,” the FDA warns, “may also be referred to the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations for possible criminal prosecution for violations of the FFDC Act and other federal laws.”

What seems to be going on is that only remedies that have been “approved” by the FDA, including Tamiflu (the anti viral drug produced by “Big Pharma” companies like Roche) and a new anti-swine flu vaccine also being developed by these mega pharmaceutical companies, are getting the blessing of the American watch dog cabinet department; and is being paid for by American taxpayers – many of whom won’t be able to receive the vaccine due to supply shortages.

Health observers are saying that by the time the new vaccine (said to be effective against the H1N1-A version of the virus) becomes available, the virus will have already mutated and combined with “local” flu viruses, making the vaccine’s effectiveness virtually useless.

Already, a wealth of natural herbal remedies against various forms of flu viruses is available in holistic and natural products stores. Many of them have been seen to help give a natural immunity to these viruses including ones like Avian or “bird flu” and SARS. But resistance to these remedies, including fortified Royal Jelly (made by bees), Vitamin C and D, Omega 3 oils, and olive leaf extract, has been going on for years and is nothing new. The hysteria being caused by the H1N1 virus (which appears to be no more deadly that the annual types of influenza that kills thousands to people world-wide) has resulted in even the White House becoming involved in trying to “protect” the American public from the disease.

Although not so prevalent now, with summer here and most people spending a lot of time outdoors, the H1N1 virus will most likely become more prevalent this coming fall and winter when most people are indoors – especially in shopping malls, schools and universities and other places where large groups of people often congregate (including indoor sports arenas and stadiums ). By the way, Vitamin D, obtained by most people from exposure from sunshine, is one of the best things to help a person build up a natural immunity against these viruses.

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World Environment Day 2009 Promotes Climate Change Awareness

Are we any closer to saving planet earth, despite increasing environmental awareness? It didn’t seem way on June 5th, when World Environment Day (WED) 2009 was commemorated to promote more environmental awareness. The economic doldrums that the entire world is still experienced seems to have taken center stage, although a number of activities took place on this day, that was founded a more than 35 years ago by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) to make the world more aware of environmental mess that the world’s human population has caused, especially pollution and global warming.

This year’s theme was “Your planet needs you! Unite to combat climate change”. And a number of climate problems were discussed in order to urge the world community to agree to a new deal involving climate change, due to be dealt with in December.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon spoke on the need to do more for helping combat global warming and climate change by doing a number of environmental friendly activities such as planting trees, riding bicycles more, and turning out unnecessary lights to save electricity usage.

Roz SavageEvents to commemorate the day were held in various places, including Mexico the host country for this year’s WED; where a number of dignitaries including California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger participated in a conference held in Mexico’s Yucatan Province, located directly south of California.

Despite everything, a number of environmental “heroes” were noted, including:

  • Roz Savage who is rowing s small craft across the Pacific Ocean to make people aware of increasing CO2 levels.
  • David de Rothschild, who is building a boat out of recycled plastic, and plans visit the “plastic garbage patch” in the middle of that body of water.
  • And Project Kaisei, a team of innovators who are studying how to capture waste in the ocean, detoxify it, and recycle it into diesel fuel.
  • The current, ongoing UN tree planting campaign was also noted, in which more than 4 billion trees of a planned 7 billion have already been planted around the world during this campaign, scheduled to end in December, 2009.

    A number of countries around the world scheduled projects, including Afghanistan, where clean up projects of schools and mosques in the major cities were scheduled.

    WED has been commemorated since 1972, and obviously, the world was in much better shape then than it is today. “For one thing, you could walk to North Pole without worrying about falling through a crack or fissure (in the polar ice cap) into the Arctic Ocean” a UN official noted.

    And we’re sure that “plastic garbage patch” in the Pacific Ocean was much smaller in 1972 for sure.

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    GM’s Electric Car Chevy Volt – Video Test Drive

    This is an interesting video of the Chevy Volt, GM’s electric and gas assisted vehicle proving once again that the people that ran GM should not be allowed near any business. This vehicle can travel for 40 miles before it uses gas and if you travel less then that on a daily basis then the only thing you’ll need is to charge the car.



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