Amesj's Odditorium

[alkemical]

http://www.scientificamerican.com/bl...nce-2011-03-07

You can increase your intelligence: 5 ways to maximize your cognitive potential

[alkemical]

http://gizmodo.com/#!5777888/ibm-pat...tuffed-animals

IBM Patents HAL-Like Computer System for Stuffed Animals

[alkemical]

http://www.disinfo.com/2011/03/corpo...ight-paradigm/

Corporations Versus Individuals: The End of the Left/Right Paradigm




Looks like the New World Order isn’t going to be a global Big Socialist Government (unless, perhaps, you count corporate socialism). Barry Ritholtz wrote in September of last year:

Every generation or so, a major secular shift takes place that shakes up the existing paradigm. It happens in industry, finance, literature, sports, manufacturing, technology, entertainment, travel, communication, etc.

I would like to discuss the paradigm shift that is occurring in politics.

For a long time, American politics has been defined by a Left/Right dynamic. It was Liberals versus Conservatives on a variety of issues. Pro-Life versus Pro-Choice, Tax Cuts vs. More Spending, Pro-War vs Peaceniks, Environmental Protections vs. Economic Growth, Pro-Union vs. Union-Free, Gay Marriage vs. Family Values, School Choice vs. Public Schools, Regulation vs. Free Markets.

The new dynamic, however, has moved past the old Left Right paradigm. We now live in an era defined by increasing Corporate influence and authority over the individual. These two “interest groups” – I can barely suppress snorting derisively over that phrase – have been on a headlong collision course for decades, which came to a head with the financial collapse and bailouts. Where there is massive concentrations of wealth and influence, there will be abuse of power. The Individual has been supplanted in the political process nearly entirely by corporate money, legislative influence, campaign contributions, even free speech rights.

This may not be a brilliant insight, but it is surely an overlooked one. It is now an Individual vs. Corporate debate – and the Humans are losing.

Consider:

• Many of the regulations that govern energy and banking sector were written by Corporations;

• The biggest influence on legislative votes is often Corporate Lobbying;

• Corporate ability to extend copyright far beyond what original protections amounts to a taking of public works for private corporate usage;

• PAC and campaign finance by Corporations has supplanted individual donations to elections;

• The individuals’ right to seek redress in court has been under attack for decades, limiting their options.

• DRM and content protection undercuts the individual’s ability to use purchased content as they see fit;

• Patent protections are continually weakened. Deep pocketed corporations can usurp inventions almost at will;

• The Supreme Court has ruled that Corporations have Free Speech rights equivalent to people; (So much for original intent!)

None of these are Democrat/Republican conflicts, but rather, are corporate vs. individual issues.

For those of you who are stuck in the old Left/Right debate, you are missing the bigger picture. Consider this about the Bailouts: It was a right-winger who bailed out all of the big banks, Fannie Mae, and AIG in the first place; then his left winger successor continued to pour more money into the fire pit.

Read more here. Bunglaow Bill wrote regarding Ritholtz’s article:

It didn’t take long for the light bulb to go off in my head once I got to the third paragraph to see truth in his article. The first and obvious is the recent bailouts, which included the bailouts to General Motors and Chrysler. The American people were sold on the bailouts being essential to save American jobs; perhaps there is some truth to that. However, it wasn’t long after the bailouts when GM began the talk of closing down American factories and building factories in China, Mexico, and Korea.

Left vs. Right became in government terms corporations vs. individuals. There was no guarantees in the bailouts, nothing that forced automakers to invest in our country. It was just easy money thrown their way at the expense of the taxpayer to make up for their bad corporate decisions.

We see it in the biotech business. I hate to say this, but I see the same thing developing thanks to a bad decision by our Supreme Court that allows corporations to patent life. This has led to Monsanto and other corporations taking over the nation’s food supply by forcing farmers to use genetically modified seeds thanks to pollen that contaminates farmers fields who worked hard to provide a healthy alternative to GMO foods. Innocent farmers are being taken down the river because surrounding farmers planted Monsanto seeds and the wind blew the pollen in their direction. Once the pollen mixes with a pure field, Monsanto sends it’s lawyers ready to make honest family farmers pay up for patent infringement.

Monsanto sends their Monsanto police teams onto private property spraying Round Up in non-Monstanto fields to see if the corn dies or not. If it doesn’t die, Monsanto then accuses farmers of the unauthorized use of their seeds. The problem, like I said, may revolved around the wind cross pollinating with a Monsanto GMO field.

Farmers are losing everything they have worked for all their lives over this practice. I think it’s wrong.

From 2001 on, it seems like Republicans became moderate liberal Democrats–ready to spend money and grow government. While Americans are angry at Democrats for threatening more Constitutional rights, it’s hard not to point out the Republicans set all of this up with the Patriot Act. We have known for more than a year, Obama wants to increase the power the Patriot Act gave the government to track people.

Read more at Bungalow Bill’s Conservative Wisdom.

[alkemical]

I personally think 3D printing is a tool we can use to compete with China:

http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/on...-reporter.html

http://gizmodo.com/#!5779365/3d+prin...aluminium-bike

[alkemical]

http://inhabitat.com/samsung-unveils...ransparent-tv/

Lea Bogdan
Samsung Unveils Solar-Powered Zero Energy Transparent TV

[alkemical]

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_17553507

"Farm" owners

Tom Cruise
Actor
Property: Five parcels of land on a mesa northwest of Telluride, about 248 acres in a region of high-end vacation homes
Property tax: $400

Gail Schwartz
State senator
Property: 15.4 acres of partially irrigated meadowland near Basalt
Property tax: $54.52

Charlie Ergen
Media mogul
Property: The Enchanted Mesa Ranch, nearly 600 acres near Ridgway
Property tax: $3,185

Walker Stapleton
Treasurer
Property: 180 acres near Castle Rock
Property tax: $116

Klaus Obermeyer
Ski pioneer
Property: 3.2 acres along a road that parallels Colorado 82 near Basalt
Property tax: $27.80

Goldie Hawn
Actor
Property: 34.56 acres and a 2,700- square-foot home that adjoins Kurt Russell's property with two residences
Property tax: $2,873

Read more: In Colorado, some famous faces, names get ag-land tax breaks, too - The Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_17...#ixzz1G7DeaRvy
Read The Denver Post's Terms of Use of its content: http://www.denverpost.com/termsofuse

[alkemical]

http://www.blacklistednews.com/index.php?news_id=12979

Breaking: Newly Obtained Homeland Security Documents Reveal Radical Shift In Internet Policy
Published on 03-08-2011 Email To Friend Print Version
Share |

Source: Demand Progress

Brian McCarthy ran a website, channelsurfing.net, that linked to various sites where you could watch online streams of TV shows and sports networks. A couple months ago, the government seized his domain name and on Friday they arrested him and charged him with criminal copyright infringement -- punishable by five years in prison.

We just obtained a copy of the complaint (below) that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) made against him -- and they don't even allege that he made a copy of anything! Just that he ran what they call a "linking website" which linked to various sites with copyrighted material. Under that sort of thinking, everyone who's sent around a link to a copyrighted YouTube video is a criminal.

This is another shocking overreach by DHS and ICE -- a steamship-era department that's proving once again that it doesn't understand the Internet. We need to push back -- and fast -- before they try to lock up more Americans.

PETITION TO JANET NAPOLITANO, DIRECTOR OF HOMELAND SECURITY, AND JOHN MORTON, DIRECTOR OF IMMIGRATION AND CUSTOMS ENFORCEMENT: There's nothing wrong or illegal about posting a link to a website. This is another shocking overreach by ICE: You need to drop the charges against Brian McCarthy right away.

SIGN THE PETITION HERE: we'll deliver the petition to DHS and ICE later this month.

[alkemical]

Originally Posted by alkemical

http://www.scientificamerican.com/bl...nce-2011-03-07

You can increase your intelligence: 5 ways to maximize your cognitive potential

http://technoccult.net/archives/2011...Technoccult%29

7 Ways to Amplify Your Intelligence

Kuszewski’s list:

1. Seek Novelty – “People who rate high on Openness are constantly seeking new information, new activities to engage in, new things to learn—new experiences in general.”

2. Challenge Yourself – “Individual brain training games don’t make you smarter—they make you more proficient at the brain training games,” Kuszewski writes. “Once you master one of those cognitive activities in the brain-training game, you need to move on to the next challenging activity. Figure out how to play Sudoku? Great! Now move along to the next type of challenging game.” (Previous Technoccult coverage)

3. Think Creatively – “Contrary to popular belief, creative thinking does not equal ‘thinking with the right side of your brain.’ It involves recruitment from both halves of your brain, not just the right.” (Previous coverage)

4. Do Things the Hard Way “There are times when using technology is warranted and necessary. But there are times when it’s better to say no to shortcuts and use your brain, as long as you can afford the luxury of time and energy.”

5. Network “By networking with other people—either through social media such as Facebook or Twitter, or in face-to-face interactions—you are exposing yourself to the kinds of situations that are going to make objectives 1-4 much easier to achieve.” (Previous coverage)

[alkemical]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology...aleks-krotoski

The Guardian has an excellent ongoing series called ‘Untangling the Web’ that examines the social psychology of the internet and how it affects our lives.

Written by social psychologist Aleks Krotoski it’s looked at everything from what effect the internet has had on out sex lives to how it has affected hate campaigns.

Rarely predicable and always informative the series is well worth keeping an eye on, with the latest column on disability being particularly good.

[alkemical]

http://wrongwaywizard.blogspot.com/2...-at-image.html


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypercube






http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2060/...8f023cf5_o.jpg

[alkemical]

http://www.space.com/11038-china-sun...explained.html

China's 'Two Suns' Video Unexplained By Science



To check whether more has been learned about the double sun effect since the time of Minnaert's writing, Life's Little Mysteries consulted several atmospheric optics experts. None of them had ever seen anything quite like the effect shown in the video.

"This is not a common optical phenomenon that we're seeing here," said Grant Perry, an atmospheric scientist at the University of Wisconsin Cooperative Institute for Satellite and Meteorological Studies. "I'm asking myself if this is an artifact of the lens, but if that were the case – if it's reflections of the lens elements – then the images would move in relation to each other as the camera moves," Perry said. "But that doesn't happen."

In terms of an optical explanation, he said, "You would have to assume it is particles of ice or something in the atmosphere aligned in such a way that they would refract the sunlight at that very small angle, but only in one direction. It would require some fairly peculiar characteristics."

Several related atmospheric optical effects are fully explained by science. Sun dogs, sunset mirages, sun pillars and sun halos are all relatively common and well understood. But not this effect.

"It's very intriguing," said Kaler.

[alkemical]

http://bigthink.com/ideas/31550?utm_...+Think+Main%29

How Women Are Changing the Web
Dominic Basulto on March 8, 2011, 12:24 AM
Laptop_girl

If the Web had a gender, it would be female. There, I've said it. Despite all the traditional indicators typically cited - such as the declining number of women signing up for computer science majors at our nation's universities or the relatively small number of female tech CEOs - the future of the Web is largely being determined by women, and it's not just a matter of demographics. Yes, women now account for more than 50% of the workforce for the first time ever, but the way we think about and use the Web is also changing.

The Web is less about coding and programming, and more about design and aesthetics. Just a few years ago, go-to destinations on the Internet for Web designers would have included sites like Slashdot; now they also include sites like Swiss Miss and Core 77. As a result, typical surveys that examine the number of people in Internet-related fields are likely under-counting the number of women. When it comes to the Web, roles like "social media strategist" and "community manager" are just as likely to be women as men.

[alkemical]

People don't understand Cognitive Liberty:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_liberty

Cognitive liberty is the freedom to be the absolute sovereignty of the individual’s own consciousness. It is an extension of the concepts of freedom of thought and self-ownership.[citation needed]

The American nonprofit Center for Cognitive Liberty and Ethics, founded and directed by neuroethicist Dr. Wrye Sententia and legal theorist Richard Glen Boire, defines cognitive liberty as "the right of each individual to think independently and autonomously, to use the full spectrum of his or her mind, and to engage in multiple modes of thought."[1]


___


Now, I don't want to get into the politics regarding their stance on the freedom of/from drugs, but i'll drop some knowledge here so it's disclosed:

An individual who enjoys cognitive liberty is free to alter the state of their consciousness using any method they choose, including but not limited to meditation, yoga, psychoactive drugs, prayer and so on. Such an individual would also never be forced to change their consciousness against their will. So, for example, a child who is forced to consume Ritalin as a prerequisite for attending public school, does not enjoy cognitive liberty, nor does an individual who is forced to take anti-psychotics in order to be fit to stand trial, nor an individual who faces criminal charges and punishment for changing the state of their consciousness by consuming a mind-altering drug, although other explanations for criminalization of some drugs do not fit this argument.[citation needed]

We're playing with half a deck as long as we tolerate that the cardinals of government and science should dictate where human curiosity can legitimately send its attention and where it can not. It's an essentially preposterous situation. It is essentially a civil rights issue, because what we're talking about here is the repression of a religious sensibility. In fact, not a religious sensibility, the religious sensibility.
—American freethinker Terence McKenna in: Non-Ordinary States Through Vision Plants, Sound Photosynthesis, Mill Valley CA., 1988, ISBN 1-569-64709-7

American psychologist and writer Timothy Leary has summarized this concept by postulating two “new commandments for the molecular age”:

* Thou shalt not alter the consciousness of thy fellow men.
* Thou shalt not prevent thy fellow man from changing his or her own consciousness.[2]

Now, why isn't the "mind" free? Why is "thought" bought and paid for? What sort of discussion on ethics needs done?

Knowledgenugget:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuroethics

Neuroethics is the ethics of neuroscience, and the neuroscience of ethics.[1]

The ethics of neuroscience deals with matters as a subclass of bioethics. Examples include the issue of mind control via the administration of psychopharmaceuticals substances, such as whether or not to give mind altering drugs to an autistic person to make them more "normal",[2] or the ethics of brain surgery such as performing an anterior commissurotomy to control epilepsy,[3] a consequentialist moral anthropologist considering the consequences of Mayan brain surgery, or a politician considering the ethics of war and the use of brainwashing techniques,[4] or the ethics of speech writing to control the mind of a crowd.[4]

The neuroscience of ethics deals with questions of moral development in the child, as in work of Piaget in the 20th century, or more modern theories of free will that derive from evolutionary theories and molecular biology.[5]

The origin of the term "neuroethics" has occupied some writers. Rees and Rose (as cited in "References" on page 9) claim neuroethics is a neologism that emerged only at the beginning of the 21st century, largely through the oral and written communications of ethicists and philosophers. They state that neuroethics addresses concerns about the effects that neuroscience and neurotechnology will have on other aspects of human life, specifically personal responsibility, law, and justice. Further, they claim that neuroethical problems will become real by the 2020s.

Adina Roskies identified two major divisions in neuroethics: the ethics of neuroscience and the neuroscience of ethics.[6] Research falling under the first area, the ethics of neuroscience, is focused on the ethics of practice of neuroscience and "the implications of our mechanistic understanding of brain function for society... integrating neuroscientific knowledge with ethical and social thought". The neuroscience of ethics borrows from the field of neurophilosophy and examines the neurological foundations of moral cognition.[6]

So what does the DSM now have to say:

http://www.stealthisknowledge.com/fr...ental-illness/

Is nonconformity and freethinking a mental illness? According to the newest addition of the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders), it certainly is. The manual identifies a new mental illness called “oppositional defiant disorder” or ODD. Defined as an “ongoing pattern of disobedient, hostile and defiant behavior,” symptoms include questioning authority, negativity, defiance, argumentativeness, and being easily annoyed.

The DSM-IV is the manual used by psychiatrists to diagnose mental illnesses and, with each new edition, there are scores of new mental illnesses. Are we becoming sicker? Is it getting harder to be mentally healthy? Authors of the DSM-IV say that it’s because they’re better able to identify these illnesses today. Critics charge that it’s because they have too much time on their hands.

New mental illnesses identified by the DSM-IV include arrogance, narcissism, above-average creativity, cynicism, and antisocial behavior. In the past, these were called “personality traits,” but now they’re diseases.

And there are treatments available.

All of this is a symptom of our over-diagnosing and overmedicating culture. In the last 50 years, the DSM-IV has gone from 130 to 357 mental illnesses. A majority of these illnesses afflict children. Although the manual is an important diagnostic tool for the psychiatric industry, it has also been responsible for social changes. The rise in ADD, bipolar disorder, and depression in children has been largely because of the manual’s identifying certain behaviors as symptoms. A Washington Post article observed that, if Mozart were born today, he would be diagnosed with ADD and “medicated into barren normality.”

According to the DSM-IV, the diagnosis guidelines for identifying oppositional defiant disorder are for children, but adults can just as easily suffer from the disease. This should give any freethinking American reason for worry.

Although the authors of the manual claim no ulterior motives but simply better diagnostic practices, the labeling of freethinking and nonconformity as mental illnesses has a lot of potential for abuse. It can easily become a weapon in the arsenal of a repressive state.

So....You want to talk about violent rhetoric eh:


House passes the "Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act"

First let’s take a look at the definitions of violent radicalization and homegrown terrorism as defined in Section 899A of the bill.

The definition of violent radicalization uses vague language to define this term of promoting any belief system that the government considers to be an extremist agenda. Since the bill doesn’t specifically define what an extremist belief system is, it is entirely up to the interpretation of the government. Considering how much the government has done to destroy the Constitution they could even define Ron Paul supporters as promoting an extremist belief system. Literally, the government according to this definition can define whatever they want as an extremist belief system. Essentially they have defined violent radicalization as thought crime. The definition as defined in the bill is shown below.

`(2) VIOLENT RADICALIZATION- The term `violent radicalization' means the process of adopting or promoting an extremist belief system for the purpose of facilitating ideologically based violence to advance political, religious, or social change.

The definition of homegrown terrorism uses equally vague language to further define thought crime. The bill includes the planned use of force or violence as homegrown terrorism which could be interpreted as thinking about using force or violence. Not only that but the definition is so vaguely defined, that petty crimes could even fall into the category of homegrown terrorism. The definition as defined in the bill is shown below.

So we have a war on Cognitive liberty, THOUGHT...FREE THOUGHT. What happens as this new language that is defined by "The State". So now we have a virus of thought that is propagating it's way through out brains that consume this message.

We've seen VNR's used by the Executive Branch, and we know that a % of callers to "talk radio" shows are paid propaganda.

Which brings up propaganda techniques:

Rhetorical Techniques

During the period between World Wars I and II, the now-defunct Institute for Propaganda Analysis (IPA) developed a list of common rhetorical techniques used for propaganda purposes. Their list included the following:

* doublespeak
* fear
* glittering generalities
* name-calling

Other Techniques / Terms

* ad hominem
* apologise
* astroturf
* bad science
* bait and switch
* big lie
* buzz
* buzzwords
* comic books
* concision
* controlling the message
* demonizing the opposition
* disinformation
* divide and conquer
* echo chamber
* front group
* greenwashing
* guerrilla marketing
* junk science
* misinformation
* photographic manipulation
* policy laundering
* politics of personal destruction
* Political Code Words
* product placement
* providing pictures
* Public Service Announcments
* push poll
* quoting out of context
* release of forged documents
* repetition
* straw man
* swiftboating
* using celebrities
* talking points
* vagueness
* video news releases
* viral marketing (word of mouth)

Most people base their arguments on "something they heard/saw/read/etc", this is "Argument from Authority":

Examples of appeals to authority
[edit] Arguments

* Referring to the philosophical beliefs of Aristotle: "If Aristotle said it was so, it is so."
* Referring to a famous text or work: "Democracy in America criticized American political party division, so we ought to promote bipartisanship."
* Quoting a well-known personage: "As Samuel Johnson said, patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel." Implying that, therefore, patriotism is always bad. (The term "patriot" was used at the time by radical followers of John Wilkes, whom the conservative Johnson opposed); or "There is no need to critically examine Plan A because [person's name] is in favour of it, and [person's name] is [experienced, knowledgeable, respected] in this field."
* Referring to what one is told by one's teacher and/or parent: "My teacher said so, therefore it must be so."
* Believing something because it is attributed to an honored profession, as in: "This doctor recommends (brand-name) aspirin" or "Bankers recommend that people have six months' wages in a savings account".
* Appealing to some reference or citation from a famous book or author without considering the actual truth of the citation. References in no way ensure, without any doubt, that the claim is true. References simply show where the information or claim possibly originated and to avoid plagiarism.
* Appeals to various well known opinion poll firms that are assumed to have collected the best data from a large enough sample, and that there were no leading questions.

[edit] The nature of the fallacy

An appeal to authority cannot guarantee the truth of the conclusion, given the nature of truth and the Consensus theory of truth, because the fact that an authority says something does not necessarily make it so. The fact that, objectively, a proposition is in fact true or that it has good unrelated arguments supporting it will be what makes authorities believe it to be true. The fallacy comes in when the opposite situation occurs, with authority opinions leading to the belief itself. Thus, an appeal to authority confuses cause and effect.

As with all logical fallacies, the fact that an argument is an appeal to authority does not make its conclusion untrue (this line of thought is sometimes known as the logical fallacy fallacy) and does not make it unreasonable to believe the truth of the argument. It also must be noted that a rigorous concept of truth is a complex subject. In informal logic, the fact that a majority of experts in a given field believe X—for example, the fact that nearly all medical scientists think that HIV causes AIDS and reject AIDS denialism—makes it more reasonable for a person without knowledge in the field to believe X.

The bandwagon fallacy is very similar to the appeal to authority, given that it—with popular opinion being cited in support of an idea rather than popular opinion coming to believe an idea based on the idea's own inherent truth—confuses cause and effect in the same way. In normal conversation, these two fallacies frequently intermingle. For example, consider the statement: "Basically everyone, economic experts included, supports the financial bailout and so must I."

So when people argue via Authority, they are only advertising. They aren't thinking for themselves...but the trick is...THEY DON'T EVEN KNOW IT. That's the rub, they are made to think they thought it.

How does this work? Faith & Trust. They feel that their source for information is TRUSTED. They don't look at their source's agenda, or what profit is to be gained.

How can you have a conversation with someone who is only waiting to repeat the same message over and over again...?

Let's ask Newt!

NOTE: this is all verbatim from GOP documents

As you know, one of the key points in the GOPAC tapes is that "language matters." In the video "We Are a Majority," Language is listed as a key mechanism of control used by a majority party, along with Agenda, Rules, Attitude and Learning. As the tapes have been used in training sessions across the country and mailed to candidates, we have heard a plaintive plea: "I wish I could speak like Newt."

That takes years of practice. But we believe that you could have a significant impact on your campaign and the way you communicate if we help a little. That is why we have created this list of words and phrases.

This list is prepared so that you might have a directory of words to use in writing literature and mail, in preparing speeches, and in producing electronic media. The words and phrases are powerful. Read them. Memorize as many as possible. And remember that, like any tool, these words will not help if they are not used....

...third time I've said that. (Laughter.) I'll probably say it three more times. See, in my line of work you got to keep repeating things over and over and over again for the truth to sink in, to kind of catapult the propaganda. (Applause.)

--source link

image
Contrasting Words

Often we search hard for words to help us define our opponents. Sometimes we are hesitant to use contrast. Remember that creating a difference helps you. These are powerful words that can create a clear and easily understood contrast. Apply these to the opponent, their record, proposals and their party.

decay... failure (fail)... collapse(ing)... deeper... crisis... urgent(cy)... destructive... destroy... sick... pathetic... lie... liberal... they/them... unionized bureaucracy... "compassion" is not enough... betray... consequences... limit(s)... shallow... traitors... sensationalists...

endanger... coercion... hypocrisy... radical... threaten... devour... waste... corruption... incompetent... permissive attitudes... destructive... impose... self-serving... greed... ideological... insecure... anti-(issue): flag, family, child, jobs... pessimistic... excuses... intolerant...

stagnation... welfare... corrupt... selfish... insensitive... status quo... mandate(s)... taxes... spend(ing)... shame... disgrace... punish (poor...)... bizarre... cynicism... cheat... steal... abuse of power... machine... bosses... obsolete... criminal rights... red tape... patronage

"The conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society. Those who manipulate this unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of our country."

"If we understand the mechanism and motives of the group mind, it is now possible to control and regiment the masses according to our will without their knowing it."

-- Edward Bernays

[alkemical]

http://hackaday.com/2011/03/10/youll...8Hack+a+Day%29

You’ll shoot your eye out…with a 1MW laser pulse pistol

G.I. Joe used them to battle Cobra’s evil forces. Han solo shot his first in the Mos Eisley Cantina. For years, hand-held pulse laser guns have been something that existed only in the realm of cartoons and movies…until now.

German hacker [Patrick Priebe] recently constructed a laser pulse gun that looks so good, it could have easily come off a Hollywood movie set. Its sleek white and black exterior adds intrigue, but offers little warning as to how powerful the gun actually is.

Fitted with a Q-switched Nd:YAG laser, it fires off a 1 MW blast of infrared light once the capacitors have fully charged. The duration of the laser pulse is somewhere near 100ns, so he was unable to catch it on camera, but its effects are easily visible in whatever medium he has fired upon. The laser can burst balloons, shoot through plastic, and even blow a hole right through a razor blade.

[Patrick] says that he is more than happy to help out anyone looking to source parts and build one for their own use, so what are you waiting for?

Stick around for a quick demo video of the gun in action.

[alkemical]

http://inhabitat.com/u-s-department-...t-of-gasoline/

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has just announced a breakthrough discovery in the world of biofuels. Led by Energy Secretary Steven Chu, the research team headed up by the Department’s BioEnergy Science Center has developed a cost effective method for converting woody plants straight into isobutanol, which can be used in conventional car engines like gasoline. The new discovery will not only provide a feasible and important alternative to oil, but have potential to create a considerable amount of new jobs in rural parts of the country.

Non-edible woody plant matter is the focus material for the biofuel endeavor, and scientists have been on the hunt for a cost effective way to break down the cellulose to obtain the soft innards which could be used for fuel. Scientists have now pinpointed a microbe, the Clostridium celluloyticum, able to process the cellulose. The same microbes have also been proven effective in cleaning up polluted sites, powering fuel cells, and even transforming wastewater into bioplastic. The new super microbe is also able to break down plant matter and produce isobutanol in one relatively inexpensive step, as compared to conventional biofuel production which requires a multi-stage process using various microbes that complete different functions.

In his announcement Chu also pointed out that biofuel production has the potential to create new jobs in rural parts of the country by putting more farmland into production. But it is worth noting that the DOE’s new isobutanol process does not necessarily rely on new agricultural – apart from cultivated biofuel crops, the mircrobes can also process woody waste from other crops including wheat and rice straw, corn stover, and lumber waste. It is the handling, transporting and refining of the wate that could potentially generate new jobs.

[alkemical]

http://www.humpjones.com/rear/entry/...****ing_truth/

Banksy = Pure ****ing Truth

Posted Mar 10, 2011
...DON’T EVER ASK ME IF I WROTE THIS.

People are taking the piss out of you everyday. They butt into your life, take a cheap shot at you and then disappear. They leer at you from tall buildings and make you feel small. They make flippant comments from buses that imply you’re not sexy enough and that all the fun is happening somewhere else. They are on TV making your girlfriend feel inadequate. They have access to the most sophisticated technology the world has ever seen and they bully you with it. They are The Advertisers and they are laughing at you.

You, however, are forbidden to touch them. Trademarks, intellectual property rights and copyright law mean advertisers can say what they like wherever they like with total impunity.

**** that. Any advert in public space that gives you no choice whether you see it or not, is yours. It’s yours to take, re-arrange and reuse. You can do whatever you like with it. Asking for permission is like asking to keep a rock someone just threw at your head.

You owe the companies nothing. Less than nothing, you especially don’t owe them any courtesy. They owe you. They have re-arranged the world to put themselves in front of you. They never asked for your permission, don’t even start asking for theirs.

[alkemical]

http://www.blacklistednews.com/index.php?news_id=12989

Company suspends DHS site because of its creepy pedophile content...

Source: The Smoking Gun




In an aggressive bid to entice prospective “sex tourists,” the Department of Homeland Security last year launched an undercover web site that purported to arrange trips from the U.S. to Canada, where clients could engage in sexual activity with minors, The Smoking Gun has learned.

The “Precious Treasure Holiday Company” web site was active until a few weeks ago when its Massachusetts-based web hosting firm removed the site from its servers, apparently in response to a complaint about its content. Now, visitors to precioustreasureholidaycompany.com are greeted with the message, “This site has been suspended.”

After a year online, the DHS undercover site may have fallen victim to its own sleazy, overt come-on. As seen at right, the site’s front page carried three symbols that an FBI intelligence bulletin has identified as being used by pedophiles. Additionally, the site’s acronym, PTHC, is an allusion to “preteen hardcore” pornography. The site’s carefully misspelled motto--“We Help Make Your Fantasy’s Come True!”--also does little to mask its illicit intentions.

An account executive with the hosting firm, who appeared unaware that “Precious Treasure Holiday Company” was a government operation, said that following a site’s suspension an internal investigation is launched. Upon the review’s completion, a site is either reinstated or reminated. The executive, Jason Crawford, added that if a customer’s site is found to contain illicit material like child pornography, the FBI is contacted.

[alkemical]

References to dumbing down in popular culture

* The 2005 film Idiocracy portrays a society 500 years in the future massively dumbed down by low-IQ people enthusiastically outbreeding the most intelligent parts of society.
* Pop group The Divine Comedy sing about "mindless fluff" on television in their song "Dumb it Down" from their album Regeneration.
* British Anarcho-Folk band Chumbawamba portray culture in the United States as growing increasingly simplistic and mindless in their song Dumbing Down
* American hip hop trio Ugly Duckling lambasts the trend in American discourse of "dumbing down", with their song Dumb It Down.
* American rapper Lupe Fiasco attacks dumbing down lyrics on his song "Dumb It Down" saying "They told me I should come down cousin, but I flatly refuse, I ain't dumbin' down nothing."
* American rapper Jay-Z was quoted on the song "Moment of Clarity" off of his "Black Album" saying, "I dumb down for my audience and double my dollars / they criticize me for it; but they all yell 'holla!'"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dumbing_down

[alkemical]

Originally Posted by alkemical

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...689944350.html

The television is channeling you.

The television is channeling you.

Data-gathering firms and technology companies are aggressively matching people’s TV-viewing behavior with other personal data—in some cases, prescription-drug records obtained from insurers—and using it to help advertisers buy ads targeted to shows watched by certain kinds of people.

At the same time, cable and satellite companies are testing and deploying new systems designed to show households highly targeted ads.

The goal: emulate the sophisticated tracking widely used on people’s personal computers with new technology that reaches the living room.

One of the most advanced companies, Cablevision Systems Corp., has rolled out a system that can show entirely different commercials, in real time, to different households tuned to the same program. It can deliver targeted ads to all the company’s three million subscribers concentrated in New York, Connecticut and New Jersey.

In an early test of Cablevision’s technology, the U.S. Army used it to target four different recruitment ads to different categories of viewers.

[baja]

http://www.mindmovies.com/mm21/john_...60&tv=l&ver=21

[alkemical]

"I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells."

Dr. Seuss.

[baja]

You think the law of allowing is nonsense?

[baja]

It's what makes our reality (dream) what it is or what it isn't

[alkemical]

Originally Posted by baja

You think the law of allowing is nonsense?

Who are you talking too?

[alkemical]

Originally Posted by baja

It's what makes our reality (dream) what it is or what it isn't

Sorry baja - this is where I disagree. You can't out run "destiny".