nerdgirl

Here’s an interesting, im-ever-ho, example of government using competition and strategies more commonly associated with market forces to spur innovation and development of technology that the market is not providing/will not pursue (i.e., where the free market fails the soldier, sailor, airman, and Marine as Vannevar Bush recognized back in the 1940s): the DoD DDR&E Wearable Power Program. From Defenselink press release: “The Wearable Power Prize seeks to reduce the weight of power systems that warfighters carry and aims to award a total of $1.75 million to the lightest weight systems that provide 20 watts of electrical power for 96 hours, but weigh less than 4 kilograms.” Technologies represented include fuel cells, (another example), piezoelectrics (generating a field by mechanical compression), nano-structured materials, polymeric-based rechargeable batteries, and mixed photovoltaics. VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

< Tosses up the non-sequitor, trying to re-direct-to-avoid-issue flag > Whether I have 1 kid, 12, or none is not relevant to unsubstantiated unilateral assertions. Whether I spank them all or hug them is also not relevant. The issue is the unsubstantiated causality that you claimed. Again, Is that your subjective, personal opinion, which may be fine for you? Or do you have some evidence to support that all-encompassing, definitive assertion? ... because all that's needed to prove false is one "screwed up kid" who was spanked. Remember the plural of anecdote is not data. /Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

It is my understanding that extracting petroleum products from tar sands (which are glorified asphalt) is easier than from oil shale. Tar sand oil and shale oil are not synonyms. Both are environmentally intensive by conventional methodologies, more akin in some ways to diamond or gold mining than traditional petroleoum recovery, Concur strongly! (Unless we are going back to that make more dinosours and and Paleozoic marine plankton & algae proposal. ) VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

That argument doesn't hold water and you know it. Shale oil and fields in the ocean have since been discovered. US and Canadian shale oil sources add up in trillions of barrels of oil. Trillions. Orders-of-magnitude more than the middle east. Canadian discoveries would not impact US peak oil. Since you assert a counter-argument to peak oil, you should know that peak oil calculations -- like the one to which I linked was updated in 2004 -- consider total resource available (oil discoveries) and production rate. Perhaps it is not my argument which is, eh, leaky?

Good question ... in a market economy. The tax dollars were largely to fund research to develop techniques and methods for extracting shale oil that industry wouldn't fund (like the NIH, NSF, DoD, etc do). Vannevar Bush recognized this in 1944. He also recognized the critical importance of basic and applied research for national security, innovation, and economic competitiveness (altho' he probably wouldn't have used the latter phrase as it's a more recent meme). There were also subsidies, including tax breaks similar to what there are currently. VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

You do bring forth an intesting and timely piece of history. The Carter administration invested millions in getting shale oil recovery started. President Reagan abandoned it in 1982, along with investment in solar energy. It's estimated that the shale oil in Colorado & Wyoming is ~800 billion recoverable barrels, 3x more than Saudi Arabia's proven reserves of conventional crude. Shale oil is NOT a silver bullet. It won't be as easy or cheap to recover as sweet crude ... but imagine if the US had only continued to invest in development of these technologies in the 1980s? VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

< eyes get wide > You’re arguing that the US should do something just because the rest of the world or Europe does/may do it? Why was that? Peak oil. Domestic oil discoveries peaked in 1971. Concur. So how about putting as much passion and effort (& advocating your representatives do as well) into advocating for solar energy and other alternative energy sources? VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

Fabulous! And as a single mom I commend you for that. What seems to be missing is the lack of causality and correlation in some of the claims that have been made: neither spanking = good, upstanding kids nor spanking = bad, juvenile delinquents has been supported by anything other than personal, subjective anecdote. (I'll put aside the issue of whether kids' behavior today is *really* different, whether laziness has a generational or age limit, and all the incredibly, responsible, super hard-working, super-disciplined young adults that are out there from my Girl Scout troop to the grad fellowship applicants I review every year for professional societies.) VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

< Tosses up the non-sequitor, trying to re-direct-to-avoid-issue flag > Again, Is that your subjective, personal opinion, which may be fine for you? Or do you have some evidence to support that all-encompassing, definitive assertion? ... because all that's needed to prove false is one "screwed up kid" who was spanked. Remember the plural of anecdote is not data. /Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

Actually crime rates among young adults have decreased in the US since the 1990s. And the causal factor had nothing to with presence or absence of spankings/corporal punishment. See primary data & popular press accounts here. The decrease has been linked -- positively correlated significantly -- to decline in use of lead in gasoline, paint, etc when young adults were in utero, infants, and toddlers. So if it in your opinion isnt the lack of discipline, then what has turned out nearly an entire generation of kids who think they are "victims" and think we owe them everything and that dont have to respect anyone or work to get it? Wasnt like that in the past generations, where kids were taught to respect people and got there butts warmed up for breaking rules.... You are assuming that spanking/corporal punishment correlates with personal responsibility. Do you have anything other than personal anecdote to support that? Historically, crime rates were much higher in past (i.e., pre-1900) when there were no restrictions on corporal punishment. Fear and intimidation does not equal respect. VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

Is that your subjective, personal opinion, which may be fine for you? Or do you have some evidence to support that all-encompassing, definitive assertion? ... because all that's needed to prove false is one "screwed up kid" who was spanked. Remember the plural of anecdote is not data. Actually crime rates among young adults have decreased in the US since the 1990s. And the causal factor had nothing to with presence or absence of spankings/corporal punishment. See primary data & popular press accounts here. The decrease has been linked -- positively correlated significantly -- to decline in use of lead in gasoline, paint, etc when young adults were in utero, infants, and toddlers. Makes me wonder what “truths” I accept currently that will be found untruth-worthy in the future? VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

So what do you think of what the article's content and what it suggests w/r/t Sen. McCain’s approach to foreign policy? Do you think that’s the leadership approach the US needs? If so, why? With what do you think it is "spot on" & why? I have not yet had a chance to read the original manuscript, obtained via FOIA. VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

If I was in some hypothetical situation – skydiving or not – in which another human collapsed in front of me or I found an unresponsive human, after determining situation was safe to approach; after determining the individual was non-responsive (‘tap, tap, tap’ “ARE YOU OKAY?”), not breathing, and lacking pulse; and after summoning EMS; I would begin CPR – chest compressions (30) and rescue breathing (2). Aka execute American Red Cross CPR training. In determining if someone’s airway is obstructed, some indication – if one’s observant and it’s not dark – of whether there is blood around the mouth should be possible. HIV has only been found in saliva in very rare cases. For me, the latter is such a small risk that I’m willing to take. If someone’s actively coughing up blood, they probably don’t need CPR. If someone is bleeding profusely – spurting – again they probably don’t need CPR. Depending on situation may be a "wait for EMS/ ambulence situation" or a "attempt to stop blood loss while waiting for EMS situation." To the original question – no, I don’t specifically want to know what communicable diseases my fellow skydivers have unless I’m planning to have sex with one of them. Otherwise it's not my business. Although if past experiences are any indication, my close skydiving friends usually confide in me if they have a long-term illness, e.g., Hep-C, etc. or it gets around the dz. IRL, I would hope that if someone with a bloodbourne transmissible disease was an active skydiver, that folks at the dz would be supportive (read: not assholes) such that it wouldn’t have to be a secret. Yeah, the real world doesn’t always work that way. Do think that it’s valuable for each person to think about what they would do and how they would do it if such a hypothetical situation arose. VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

Not unexpectedly, today's Meet the Press was devoted to recollections, rememberances, tributes, and clips of Tim Russert. One saying attributed to Russert as a favorite of his, struck me:"The best exercise for the human heart is to bend down & pick someone else up." VR/Marg

As always, my opinion – only that – is that you're not going to find the answer to your question in any report on pre-OIF intelligence and intelligence analysis. And it makes sense, if one considers that the Republican controlled 108th & 109th Congress were unlikely to initiate investigation of a sitting Republican President. The recently released Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Phase II Reports on Prewar Iraq Intelligence was originally a charge of a Republican controlled Senate (2004 - 108th Congress) … that took a while to get anything released, & it focused on intelligence. One will find that the Executive Branch had orders of magnitude more information (both all source intelligence and analyses) than Congress, which is (again) something of a truism as the Title 50 agencies are part of the Executive Branch. One is also likely to find discussion and documentation that intelligence analysts and policy makers reviewing the all source intelligence and analyses were inclined to be less skeptical or diligent than they should have been ... or minimize/dismiss/belittle analyses that did not fit the political goals (justifying war), e.g., the infamous State INR and DOE NNSA analysis on the aluminum tubes that was relegated to a footnote to the NIE and challenges to the alleged “mobile biological weapons labs” that were for hydrogen generation. One is also likely to find examples of intelligence that should have been discarded or independently confirmed (e.g., CurveBall) but were instead accepted, challenges dismissed/ignored, and used. Did the President himself actively engage in that? Probably not - more likely as a logistical factor than intentional choice or action. Did his advisors/appointees fail? Yes. Since he chose them does he have some responsibility? Not completely … but he probably should have chosen others or listened more actively to the Colin Powell's, the Michael May's (former director of LLNL, i.e., the DOE nuclear weapons lab) and the Matt Meselson's (who advised President Nixon on abrogating the US offensive biological weapons program). One will find indication that intelligence selected and analysis crafted to present the worst case. Reconciling whether it was more because of a desire/implicit expectation/explicit indications to suit political goals (justifying war) or because the intelligence community just had a major intelligence failure with 9-11, along with the still unresolved "Amerithrax" anthrax incidents, is unlikely to be answered with any certainty until 25+ years from now when classified and FOUO documents and memos are declassified or released through FOIA, if ever. Intelligence analysis is supposed to present the worst case, the best case, the most likely case, and provide some confidence measure; the latter is oft more art than science. What one finds in the reports is examples is which the only analysis that made it to policy makers was the worst case analysis with lowest confidence and that those low confidence estimates were sometimes lost along the human chain as the analysis made it to policy makers. VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

Yes, I agree that it’s fascinating that humans “posess the ability to progress [or regress] without having evidence of something” or anything … and that it’s not unusual. And it's an interesting, im-ever-ho, phenomena to think about and to debate. Humans figured out how to create agricultural hybrids and domesticate animals without understanding genetics. Humans devised schemes for making steel, soap, and beer without understand metallurgy or chemistry. Benjamin Franklin was accused of usurping the will of God because he placed one of his inventions -- lightening rods -- on church steeples substantially decreased the 'supernatural' effects of lightening during sermons. He made progress without understanding electromagnetism theory. A lot of skydivers use altimeters w/out understanding the underlying physical principles that make an altimeter work. While fitting the criterion you indicated, I’m not sure how those connect to presence or absence of a supernatural deity one way or another? Some don’t need a mysterious explanation. Or maybe I just don't understand your point. VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

I don't know what you were implying. One might say that my psychic powers aren’t working this week. Hence the question. Given the unclear use of the term: and the frequent confusion of the vernacular implication with the technical meaning, it was a legitimate request for clarification. Of course, you don't have to answer anything; re-directing comments at me is vaguely curious, however, and off-topic. I wasn’t aware there was any prohibition against such on Speakers Corner, if we want to have a geek … ahem, [ #800080]nerd[/#800080 ] fest, let's talk about pre-biotic synthesis of RNA, like this versus the biotic origin of RNA from earlier TNA or GNA debate. Or for a fabulous nerd fest – let’s look at the intersection of organic synthesis and photocatalysis and early Earth geochemistry of reducing atmosphere. For the more (astro)physics inclined, there’s the search for amino acids in the interstellar medium, of which the component molecules have already found. Now that’s a just a sliver of a geek … [ #800080]nerd[/#800080 ] fest. As opposed to asking for clarification on the ambiguous usage of a word with *very* different meanings.

Where? The Title 50 Agencies are part of the Executive Branch not Congress, i.e., it doesn't need a study or investigation. Access to the vast majority of all source intelligence and analysis is limited to the Title 50 agencies. But if you are genuinely interested a few good places to start would be: -- The Commission on the Intelligence Capabilities of the United States Regarding Weapons of Mass Destruction (your tax dollars funded it); --United States Senate, Select Committee on Intelligence Report on the U.S. Intelligence Community's Prewar Intelligence Assessments on Iraq ; -- Discussion of redactions on CIA documents presented to the Senate Intelligence Committee (who are cleared); -- CFR report on National Intelligence Estimates, of particular note is discussion on State INR getting the 'aluminum tubes' portion correct and being relegated to a footnote. Discussion from The National Journal. VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

Wow ... sad. He was an excellent representative of the 4th estate. VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

Do you mean "theory" in the vernacular speculative idea/hypthetical notion usage? Or in the precise scientific meaning? The two usages are almost antonyms of each other and most definitely NOT synonyms. VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

Sometimes it’s extraordinarily difficult to figure out who inserted an “earmark” … even for the folks who are supposed to send the money out. Don’t know who wrote, where they are located (even generally), or who the money is supposed to go to/be for (beyond some nebulous description). There is also a difference between Congressional Additions and “pork.” All Congressional Additions are NOT pork. The non-partisan, taxpayer watchdog group Citizen’s Against Government Waste Congressional Pig Book, which someone linked to recently, notes that to be called “pork”: “The 1,188 projects, totaling $2.8 billion, in this year’s Congressional Pig Book Summary symbolize the most egregious and blatant examples of pork. As in previous years, all of the items in the Congressional Pig Book Summary meet at least one of CAGW’s seven criteria, but most satisfy at least two: Requested by only one chamber of Congress; Not specifically authorized; Not competitively awarded; Not requested by the President; Greatly exceeds the President’s budget request or the previous year’s funding; Not the subject of congressional hearings; or Serves only a local or special interest.” Over the last 7 years, Congress has “plus’ed up” -- through Congressional Additions/"earmarks" -- administration programs that are authorized, are competitively awarded, are requested by the President, are subject to Congressional hearings, and serve broad, national interests. Notable examples include the DoD’s Chemical and Biological Defense Initiative Fund (CBDIF), which averages ~$21M additional across the BA 1-3 lines (basic research through advanced technology development) and the DoD Basic Research funding (>80% is awarded through the services). See attached slide … I take zero responsibility for the color scheme. VR/Marg p.s. I had know idea who Keith Olberman was ... google'd "Olberdouche," which does generate 1,590 hits. In a Bonfire-esque tribute, the first hit is to a page titled "Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler » Keith Olberdouche Gets a Spanking." Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

Thanks for posting that. Appreciate the reminder. The veil of potential culpability, which goes back to Aquinas, iirc: most humans are cognizant that puppies aren’t intentionally doing anything wrong. (There are sick bastards who claim delusionally that dogs, cats, small children are intentionally provoking them & "deserve" to be beaten abused.) Trying to not trivialize … but a more concise analogy is not occurring this morning … until the fictional character Jack Bauer on tv's 24 tortures a puppy and “obtains vital information,” some folks will continue to dismiss, to excuse, to rationalize, to ignore the available counter-evidence, or even to argue the necessity for the type of behavior you note. Then puppies will be subject to suspicion of culpability in some folks minds and arguments. VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

Interesting piece. Thanks for passing it along. The author, Nicholson Baker, has a Quaker background (a Christian sect that practices pacifism). Just from the CNN article on Nicholson Baker's book, Human Smoke, it’s clear that his argument is *NOT* with casus bello w/r/t the Nazi internment and death camps against Jews, Romany, Homosexuals, etc. Instead the thesis strikes me more – possibly to Baker’s protest – as furthering Clausewitz’s famous line that “War is merely a continuation of politics,” especially the behaviors of states leading to war and in the initial conflict that in historical hindsight (rather than being caught up in the "fog of war" of the time -- another Clausewitizian term originally) other actions were possible that would have prevented the Genocide. VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

In the US, from the NSF, DoD, DOE, EPA, and NIST. Through their basic research, applied research, advanced technology development, Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR), and Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Programs. Larger companies frequently then acquire the small, start-up as a product is ready to go to market or IPE (+/- 5y), e.g., this Dubai conglomerate that acquired 50% stake in a Santa Rosa, CA-located small business in altenative energy or this UK-based "energy" conglomerate that acquired an alternative energy technology developed at Florida State University. VR/Marg Act as if everything you do matters, while laughing at yourself for thinking anything you do matters. Tibetan Buddhist saying

Or like Atlanta's Atlantic Station (even has its own wikipedia page). Privately financed remediation of an area close (