Yes, I'd reDirect funding from.mil to complete R & D to bring Molten Salt Reactors (MSR) to approval & to market sooner... Safe Small Liquid-Fuel Nuclear Reactors, eg, IMSR, LFTR, SSR, Thorcon, WAMSR's & the like)
In place of Trump's demand that NATO boost their.mil spending to 2% - we could all do Lots Morefor ourselves & the planet. IF we DROPPED our (USA's) 3.5%.mil spending to that same 2%, that Trump thought appropriate.
Renewables don't work; cf: RoadmapToNowhere.com (which rebuts Stanford Prof Mark Z Jacobson's [100% WWS] plan (a job-creation program?;-)
Look, with Liquid-Fuel Nuclear (ie, Molten Salt Reactors = MSR) due~2025, the "Nu Clear" path becomes: "Build long-lasting MSRs, located near places where power is needed or is now used"
MSRs offer Sealed, Factory-made Cores (that later become "secure caskets" for their modest amounts of shorter-lived waste: eg, ~300 years vs Today's nukes' ~300,000 years); they need No Refueling across 7 years of operation.
How much down-time do Today's Fuel-Rod based dinosaurs lose, due to lengthy ReFueling stoppages (every ~18 months...)?
It won't be so different, even "newer" SMR designs, like (over-funded, IMO) NuScale - each of whose modules includes, eg, a 50 MW power-generator, & who's greater quantity of waste needs much longer-term secure storage.
I say to Greens who love Renewables: Do the Math.
Even with "Fukushima-era" (ie, Fuel-Rod based) NPP's, Renewables don't stand a chance of providing all the Energy we need, in the space, time & $$ we have to offer.
It gets even better when Thorium (which becomes U-233) replaces Uranium as MSR Fuel:
As if from an IQ test, ask: Which of these is preferable, eg, based on expected worker-injuries & -deaths?
3,000,000 tonnes toxic Coal; = 200 tonnes Raw Uranium [in Fuel-Rod NPP]; = just 1 tonne Thorium (in an MSR),...in that Each of the above quantities of Fuel can be used to make the SAME amount of Electricity.
(Source: "Thorium- Energy for the World" (2016, Springer) It's in the Abstract of the intro by physicist Carlo Rubbia)
(Note: You don't need to buy that co$tly book to get the article; get Rubbia's eye-opening intro. free, eg, in the Amazon's Sample of its Kindle edition.
Concluding:
I Propose: THAT we Postpone all Fusion R+D, & redirect it's funding to MSR R+D Until MSRs are producing all the Energy needed for Fusion R+D
Easy to Predict: If we embrace & propagate MSRs, they will Preclude the need for Fracking (past, present & future), & enable us keep more of Earth natural for future generations, not to mention: greatly reducing the need for (& cost of) secure storage for Nuclear Waste, as well as the period over which it needs to be stored.
And - with the resulting huge reductions in CO2 + other GHG's - we can expect to see a healed Climate sooner, rather than later.
The rest is Commentary... So, go out there & do what you can to Bring MSRs Sooner.;~)
PS 1: For NuScale's down-sides, hear the ~1 hour-long interview of its (CTO?) in Episode 14: "NuScale's New Scale for Nuclear" by Oregon Dept of Energy here: https://energyinfo.oregon.gov/...
Can anyone tell me how much LESS CO2 will be emitted into our atmosphere, ie, due to GP's pressuring Lego to stop with these marketing tasks?!?
So, what should GreenPeace be doing INSTEAD, in our opinion...?
Well, here are some ideas, off the top of my head:
1. call for enegy-intensive Fusion R&D to STOP, ie, UNTIL all of its energy needs are met with zero-emission "Nuclear 2.0" energy (ie, from Molten Salt Reactor (MSRs), preferably Energy from Thorium from Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors (LFTRs)
2. Openly DEBATE whether or not an Anti-Nuclear policy (by environmental groups) still makes any sense, ie, in light of proven FEATURE of "Nuclear 2.0"...ie, the new / old Molten Salt Reactor (MSR) technologies, which seem to already be in the pipeline.
(See YouTube video "Nuclear in Alberta..." on Dr David Le Blanc's company's expectation that smaller, transportable MSRs will be both Approved (for use in Canada) & Operational (at least providing process heat... WITHIN 6 - 8 YEARS).
Old nukes need replacements, we know MSRs are the safer alternative nuke designs & a growing number of knowledgeable people are already supporting work to help bring "Nuclear 2.0" into existence & practical use.
Oil-rich Norway has created a Thorium Research Lab.
China & India have committed to constructing prototype "Nuclear 2.0" reactors.
Taiwan seems to be aiming for a [Thorium-based] heat engine.
PS If "Nuclear 2.0" ISN'T (for you) the way to go forward, what is & why? Thanks.
Fusion research seems to get all the Gov't $$$ it needs, & uses all the energy it needs, even when it comes from fossil fuel powered energy plants...
While USA's Energy from Thorium, Molten Salt Reactors & Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors - which could produce 100% green energy - for Fusion & lots more users across the planet.
Much basic & applied work supporting MSR & LFTR work was done in the 1950's, so perhaps it's not to be "sexy" enough to draw funding today.
It may be unethical to run (Gov't-funded) "mega-energy-consuming-projects" like Fusion, eg, as CO2 levels & storm-activity continue to rise, hand-in-hhand.
We need Ethical Committees (like those whose approval is needed when humans are involved in medical trials) to decide whether such mega' projects as Fusion should be put on HOLD, pending implementation of 100% green energy sources, like Energy from Thorium, that is long overdue.
While it's nice that a Canadian company found funding from some mining companyl who'd have to burn a lot of natural gas, if they don't get heat from the company's (coming) small, transportable Molten Salt Reactors, in the coming 6+ years.
But USA has wasted too much $$$ on war-making & Fusion R&D, that could have brought MSRs & LFTRs into implementation decades ago... This is not to say it can't / shouldn't do so NOW. It should!
Lots of people feel strongly about this. More media focus & more people pushing their politicians, at all levels, to re-focus Science R&D on "finishing the work" begun by Alvin Weinberg, so long ago.
R&D into Fusion is -not- "too big [in $$$ spent] to fail"
I don't get WHY we've embraced high-cost Fusion for as long as we have, ie, while continuing to ignore -proven- Energy from Thorium's cost-effectiveness, energy-efficiency & very low waste production advan- tages over sloppy current (ie, "Nuclear 1.0") nuclear technologies, especially after Fukushima's proof of its relatively unsafe nature.
CURRENT "best" nuclear reactor designs give only:
a. excessively high construction (& financing) costs b. low levels of safety, even w/best human operator c. high costs for (solid) fuel-rods (zero $ in LFTRs) d. 1% of fuel-rods' energy used, when pulled out e. costly reactor down-times to change fuel-rods f. much more costly spent-fuel waste by volume & $$ g. higher proliferation risk, due to plutonium in waste h. high cooling-water usage (also restricts location) i. low temp. output means inefficient electricity gen'n j. costly security req'ts dictate fixed-location plants k. reputation for poor decision-making, at each step
EfT's Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors offer us:
a. lower construction costs (low operating pressure) b. intrinsic safety (they're"walk-away safe") c. no needs for any fuel-rods at all d. about 99% fuel utilization: & can eat "spent-fuel" e. shorter shutdowns possible, but unnecessary f. much less waste produced; reduces "old" waste g. reduced proliferation risk; no weapons grade Pu h. needs NO scarce water (locate "anywhere") i. high temp. output means efficient electricity gen'n j. cost-effective factory-made & modular options k. genuine pride in design excellence & efficiency
Community-driven push for new LFTR-enabling regulations & gov't support for R&D funding for Energy from Thorium (LFTRs), more modular LFTRs (meaning less need for costly grid infra- structure & transmission costs & energy losses).
In short, an opportunity of a Lifetime for cheap, reliable, safe, & "peace-conducive" energy, that would get us back on-track towards "increased quality of Life for the next generation."
So, "Nuclear 2.0" Energy from Thorium (LFTRs) seems good to me.:-)
So, there could arise a market for "[recently] used terrorists' 9tSIM cards" (Terrorists might see 2 incentives for selling their old SIMs into it - at least if they're very mobile: reduce chance of being killed & some easy $$).
Who'd buy?
Well, anyone wanting soneone -else- dead; instead of paying a high-priced professional killer, all that person would need to do (theoretically) is to:
1. buy such a SIM & a cheap phone [equipped with GPS] 2. plant phone (with the SIM installed) into target's briefcase, etc. 3. await news of target's "death by CIA"
This is yet another reason to -stop- these pre-trial killings by CIA, et al. We have enough geniune "collateral damage" already, without the above.
So, since reading this news item about 4.4.2, we've had to Power Off & shelve a fleet of Nexus 7's that have just self-updated to 4.4.2.
But we were -lucky- to have [remnants of] an older fleet - made by Samsung - on-hand, that we'd -almost- forgotten about, ie, after noticing Samsung's "slowness" to release Android upgrades. We -had- a dangerous habit of "only the latest will do" but have quickly come to appreciate Samsung...
Now, we wonder if our Korean friends there weren't just doing -tests- for privacy / security downgrades, in Android... and holding back the "latest" versions, until they notice -restoration- of our privacy / security levels. Perhaps a fiction... but... it was really nice to find some Samsung Android 4.1.2 devices near at hand, this morning.:-)
[ Could this privacy / security downgrade be NSA inspired? Could Apple's products be next to follow? ]
1. Turn OFF all Android 4.4.2 devices - [ Could be inconvenient, particularly for phones & phablets. ] 2. Don't allow any other devices to [Auto-]Update to 4.4.2 3. Find -older- devices to replace those Turned OFF (in Step 1) - [ Could be costly, if you don't have old devices on-hand. ] 4. Remove installed [Google-] apps' updates. 5. Wait for Goggle to notice [hopefully, FAR] FEWER 4.4.2 systems online (assuming they can't switch them back On...)
and to decide to -lift- their game, before we have to -seriously- consider migrating to Apple...
(Any additional suggestions would be most welcome.)
We had some unopened [backup] devices on-hand, purchased at discount, after release of newer models.
PS We now appreciate Samsung's "slowness" to release system updates... maybe they quietly test each one & wait for tests to indicate no reduction of privacy / security features, before passing them on to us...? I -hope- so, we do -not- know for sure.
From the first talk we viewed on EfT, we were intreagued... Safe Nuclear Energy? (Cf Kindle eBook: "Nuclear 2.0" We paid ~ $2 for it at Amazon.com; YMMV).
Instead of costly solid fuel rods (only ~ 2% of whose energy is used before they're sent to costly storage), liquid fueled reactors need no such rods. Instead, their liquid fuel (about 98% of whose energy) is used.
The LFTR is just one of the several designs being discussed. Some want ASD's in their designs, ie, with an Accelorator in the picture. (I'm sure still other designs will be proposed, possibly incorporating something else that a particular physicist knows well enough to build into it.)
There's plenty of time to innovate, discuss, simulate & build prototypes... Join in the Fun (Did he say Fun?!?) & games of designing safe nuclear power plants, for a change.
Don't let Fukushima's disaster send the baby (nuclear industry) out with the bathwater (a particular design, used at Fukushima)!
We didn't stop sending shuttles, etc. up to the ISS, ie, even after 2 losses! So, let's not let the greenest energy source get away from us... Embrace Next Gen Nuclear Energy, eg, LFTRs = Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors.
So, Energy from Thorium (promoted, in part, by an international group, which just concluded its 2013 Conference, at CERN, in Geneva) could be deemed as a -commercially- extreme concept, eg, since - if/when Thorium-/LFTR-based nuclear power (cf the recently released eBook "Nuclear 2.0") begins to replace fossil-fueled & even Uranium-based powe plants - a number of well-endowed commercial interests may feel unduly threatened by EfT.
Could the info & organisations who would like to bring EfT -sooner- into pur energy markets be deemed "extremists" & see their web sites, etc. get blocked 8n the UK, etc.?
Especially if the energy used to make a PV Solar Cell is still -less- than the amount it's expected to produce, over its lifetime, PV solar energy might not be the best choice of sustainable energy to invest in.
(Batteries for -local- storage of electrical energy might be good, eg, as anything that disconnects one's home or office from mains power is a problem almost anywhere.)
In a post-Fukishima world, the EC - if not [also] Germany - should be investing in Energy from Thorium (eg, developing improvements of its proven technology from the 1950's, which even Germany has successfully trialed in the 1960's or the 1980's, I understand).
For many of the reasons (ie, features), cf Prof Dr Eduardo Greaves' [36-min.] talk "Thorium as Nuclear Fuel in Molten Salt Reactors" (on YouTube.com). (The impatient can search TED.com for Sorensen's 10-min talk & view at least its last 5 min's.)
R&D should run in parallel with Education & Debate, in the hopes that the Public will soon "get" that there are several types of reactor, some (eg, Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors = LFTRs) being much -safer- than Fukushima's reactors proved to be.
We should all understand the differences between even Canada's (long ago) improved CanDo reactors (still in the same "safety class" as Fukushima's, I understand) -and- LFTRs, which are expected to be not only "walk-away safe" but also cheaper to build & run.
After people come to understand the significant differences & inherent advantages in the design of LFTRs (and their safety levels are verified in ways that give all peoples confidence to embrace them, even near their back yards), we'll be able to make another great stride in our energy technology that can enable us to:
1. reduce CO2 emissions, & also turn back Climate Change that appears to be caused by it
2. enable any & all nations to build & use LFTR-technology - instead of current Plutonium-producing reactors, that we limit today
3. reduce the amount & cost of spent-fuel storage, eg, by consuming that fuel & getting energy from what was once waste
4. reduce or even eliminate "oil wars"
5. enabling us to -stop- "fracking" for Shale Oil &/or Coal-Seam Gas (CSG), which destroys water & land resources
6. reduce internal conflicts within nations (eg, legal battles & protests over "fracking")
7. redirect our minds to innovative & exploratory projects, in Science, Medicine, Space, Community Development, etc.
I see only win-win's from Energy from Thorium... are there any risks or disadvantages?
Let the debate continue, eg, in you comments & replies.
And... We were referring to the rumoured but AFAIK never delivered upgrade to PlayBooks, that could have come out with the latest product releases... We think it still can & should be released, to help users retain some value in their mostly devices.
If that's impossible le, let RIM release the tools & info to enable those who can (& may still want to) attempt to do that, eg, as an Open Source project, as a tribute to the company & its device...
As it is, however, watching a worldwide fleet of such devices go out of currency (as the company unduly continues to wait for those of us who- who once trusted it to keep our devises up-to-date - to trust it again. We didn't & won't.
When will companies begin to enable its customers to enjoy the freedom of choice, in such matters, rather than opting for a "they'll have choice but to buy the new model" last resort - rather than encourahe a lasting, trust-rewarding relationship...
Perhaps someone who still can will help those who want to... to at least turn the fleet of PlayBooks into something useful... Eg, a handy console for a wise selection of video tutorials from KhanAdamy.org.
That's our hope for RIM...
They came, they made & sold (in this case, PlayBooks), they left something of some value for a unique purpose, supporting Education... So their creation won't go to the same kind of Hell that Apple's Lisa did, long ago...
So, anyone interested in encouraging their children to be more enterprising & active in earning a living & providing for themselves could - in some lawyer- approved text, included in their will - make clear that their wish is that any / all IP, that they (the parent) may have created & contributed to the world, should be considered to be in the Public Domain forever.
Such a text might even include a statement that the\ parent believes that they wish to encourage children to do those things (listed above).
Q.E.D. (at least for those, who want to continue the work, rather than encourage the consumption - by the children - of any assets left to them)
The example (of action, if not will text, per se) is The B. & M. Gates Foundation.
Why not "use up" - preferably, in humane ways - the wealth, rather than hand it over to people, who had little to do with its creation...?
+Beard didn't fit on Subj line, but all 3 were to be seen "masking" licensee's photo.
We think it was OK... since S. AU's gov't had same person's Driver's license in its database.
Why should beard + sunglasses + hat be OK on a firearm license???
Well, if someone finds that f/arm license, why make it easy to know who to follow home, eg, as footwork before breaking-in to steal guns...?
We say ir should be the norm, along with instructions to consider shaving off the eard, to make it even harder to make use of by such crims. Such licensees could also be advised to to to the photo shoot with coloured hair, for the same reason.
When I was in Grad School, I heard that Ohio's state uni's considerd a student to be an Ohio resident (able, then, to pay a lower resident's tuition)... after 6 months of living in Ohio.
For those with a [grand-]parent living in a land of tuition-free uni's, see if you can get residency or even [dual-]citizenship, on that ground.
Join the creative minority & you may find you have more options than those who don't think outside the state / country, in which they were born.
1. Create businesses based on hiring talented people who've NOT got costly degrees, paying them less (since their Educ costs would be less = living- + Internet-costs + time).
2. Create -testing- businesses (which offer genuinely challenging/meaningful "Degree Equivalency" certifications, but no courses)
Outgoing FTP is a way to share files, but - for the one holding & publishing some file(s) via FTP - they must have & run FTP ser- ver(s).
Freedom of Speech implies a "Right to Serve" IMO.
Being -forced- by ISP restrictions against running servers seems anti-competitive, since it -forces- the ISP's customer to pay (some- one) for unnecessary / unwanted hosting services.
By extending the definition of "net neutrality" to -include- a well- defined "Right to Serve" (since not to have such a right makes one subservient to external hosting services, by unbalancing the innately -balanced- TCP/IP protocols, which underlie the Internet) would let one (with content) choose between self- hosting & outsourcing the hosting of that content.
Start out self-hosting, until you decide to let someone else do that for you (eg, after the content becomes popular).
One way to reduce the cost of Cancer may be to support alternatives to "Cut, Burn & Poison" = another docu- mentary, eg:
1. Burzynski's Antineoplaston treatments, which seem to be capable of resolving brain cancer in children, etc.
Documentary: "Burzynski - Cancer is Serious Business" reports some successful cases, showing before & after -scans- for tumors / tumor growth / resolution, from well-known, large medical centers & traditional cancer treatment facilities. (Patents for his antineoplastons are cited with patent numbers.)
An adviser to Pres Obama is cited as one who has said that a reason Burzynski's treatments aren't recognized or getting any public funding is: They could cause collapse of -exsiting- Cancer research & treatment enterprises, including pharmaceutical co's.
(Parts 1 & 2 are out, with Part 3 on the way. See: www.BurzynskiMovie.com for details.)
[Movie may also be found & viewed on YouTube.com]
Controversy: FDA has repeatedly investigated the inventor / doctor (Burzynski) with at least four (4) Grand Juries -declining- to find reason for charge.
(US FDA appears to be "the bad guy" in this story.)
Burzynski might do well to consider CrowdSourcing the $$$'s needed to complete remaining clinical trials of his treatments - past & future.
2. TED.com as at least one short talk on using Electric Fields to stop cancer tumor growth.
Add your fav alternative cancer treatment in replies - IFF the source(s) you cite -include- scans showing before & after scans, etc.
Slashdot Mirror
Yes, I'd reDirect funding from .mil to complete R & D to bring Molten Salt Reactors (MSR) to approval & to market sooner...
Safe Small Liquid-Fuel Nuclear Reactors, eg, IMSR, LFTR, SSR, Thorcon, WAMSR's & the like)
In place of Trump's demand that NATO boost their .mil spending to 2% - we could all do Lots Morefor ourselves & the planet. IF we DROPPED our (USA's) 3.5% .mil spending to that same 2%, that Trump thought appropriate.
Renewables don't work; cf: RoadmapToNowhere.com (which rebuts Stanford Prof Mark Z Jacobson's [100% WWS] plan (a job-creation program? ;-)
Look, with Liquid-Fuel Nuclear (ie, Molten Salt Reactors = MSR) due~2025, the "Nu Clear" path becomes: "Build long-lasting MSRs, located near places where power is needed or is now used"
MSRs offer Sealed, Factory-made Cores (that later become "secure caskets" for their modest amounts of shorter-lived waste: eg, ~300 years vs Today's nukes' ~300,000 years); they need No Refueling across 7 years of operation.
How much down-time do Today's Fuel-Rod based dinosaurs lose, due to lengthy ReFueling stoppages (every ~18 months...)?
It won't be so different, even "newer" SMR designs, like (over-funded, IMO) NuScale - each of whose modules includes, eg, a 50 MW power-generator, & who's greater quantity of waste needs much longer-term secure storage.
I say to Greens who love Renewables: Do the Math.
Even with "Fukushima-era" (ie, Fuel-Rod based) NPP's, Renewables don't stand a chance of providing all the Energy we need, in the space, time & $$ we have to offer.
It gets even better when Thorium (which becomes U-233) replaces Uranium as MSR Fuel:
As if from an IQ test, ask: Which of these is preferable, eg, based on expected worker-injuries & -deaths?
3,000,000 tonnes toxic Coal; ...in that Each of the above quantities of Fuel can be used to make the SAME amount of Electricity.
= 200 tonnes Raw Uranium [in Fuel-Rod NPP];
= just 1 tonne Thorium (in an MSR),
(Source: "Thorium- Energy for the World" (2016, Springer)
It's in the Abstract of the intro by physicist Carlo Rubbia)
(Note: You don't need to buy that co$tly book to get the article; get Rubbia's eye-opening intro. free, eg, in the Amazon's Sample of its Kindle edition.
Concluding:
I Propose: THAT we Postpone all Fusion R+D, & redirect it's funding to MSR R+D Until MSRs are producing all the Energy needed for Fusion R+D
Easy to Predict: If we embrace & propagate MSRs, they will Preclude the need for Fracking (past, present & future), & enable us keep more of Earth natural for future generations, not to mention: greatly reducing the need for (& cost of) secure storage for Nuclear Waste, as well as the period over which it needs to be stored.
And - with the resulting huge reductions in CO2 + other GHG's - we can expect to see a healed Climate sooner, rather than later.
The rest is Commentary... So, go out there & do what you can to Bring MSRs Sooner. ;~)
PS 1: For NuScale's down-sides, hear the ~1 hour-long interview of its (CTO?) in Episode 14: "NuScale's New Scale for Nuclear" by Oregon Dept of Energy here: https://energyinfo.oregon.gov/...
Frankly, I think GreenPeace is BROKEN...
Can anyone tell me how much LESS CO2 will be emitted into our atmosphere, ie, due to GP's pressuring Lego to stop with these marketing tasks?!?
So, what should GreenPeace be doing INSTEAD, in our opinion...?
Well, here are some ideas, off the top of my head:
1. call for enegy-intensive Fusion R&D to STOP, ie, UNTIL all of its energy needs are met with zero-emission "Nuclear 2.0" energy (ie, from Molten Salt Reactor (MSRs), preferably Energy from Thorium from Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors (LFTRs)
2. Openly DEBATE whether or not an Anti-Nuclear policy (by environmental groups) still makes any sense, ie, in light of proven FEATURE of "Nuclear 2.0" ...ie, the new / old Molten Salt Reactor (MSR) technologies, which seem to already be in the pipeline.
(See YouTube video "Nuclear in Alberta..." on Dr David Le Blanc's company's expectation that smaller, transportable MSRs will
be both Approved (for use in Canada) & Operational (at least providing process heat... WITHIN 6 - 8 YEARS).
Old nukes need replacements, we know MSRs are the safer alternative nuke designs & a growing number of knowledgeable people are already supporting work to help bring "Nuclear 2.0" into existence & practical use.
Oil-rich Norway has created a Thorium Research Lab.
China & India have committed to constructing prototype "Nuclear 2.0" reactors.
Taiwan seems to be aiming for a [Thorium-based] heat engine.
PS If "Nuclear 2.0" ISN'T (for you) the way to go forward, what is & why? Thanks.
Fusion research seems to get all the Gov't $$$ it needs, & uses all the energy it needs, even when it comes from fossil fuel powered energy plants...
While USA's Energy from Thorium, Molten Salt Reactors & Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors - which could produce 100% green energy - for Fusion & lots more users across the planet.
Much basic & applied work supporting MSR & LFTR work was done in the 1950's, so perhaps it's not to be "sexy" enough to draw funding today.
It may be unethical to run (Gov't-funded) "mega-energy-consuming-projects" like Fusion, eg, as CO2 levels & storm-activity continue to rise, hand-in-hhand.
We need Ethical Committees (like those whose approval is needed when humans are involved in medical trials) to decide whether such mega' projects as Fusion should be put on HOLD, pending implementation of 100% green energy sources, like Energy from Thorium, that is long overdue.
While it's nice that a Canadian company found funding from some mining companyl who'd have to burn a lot of natural gas, if they don't get heat from the company's (coming) small, transportable Molten Salt Reactors, in the coming 6+ years.
But USA has wasted too much $$$ on war-making & Fusion R&D, that could have brought MSRs & LFTRs into implementation decades ago... This is not to say it can't / shouldn't do so NOW. It should!
Lots of people feel strongly about this. More media focus & more people pushing their politicians, at all levels, to re-focus Science R&D on "finishing the work" begun by Alvin Weinberg, so long ago.
R&D into Fusion is -not- "too big [in $$$ spent] to fail"
I don't get WHY we've embraced high-cost Fusion
for as long as we have, ie, while continuing to ignore
-proven- Energy from Thorium's cost-effectiveness,
energy-efficiency & very low waste production advan-
tages over sloppy current (ie, "Nuclear 1.0") nuclear
technologies, especially after Fukushima's proof of
its relatively unsafe nature.
CURRENT "best" nuclear reactor designs give only:
a. excessively high construction (& financing) costs
b. low levels of safety, even w/best human operator
c. high costs for (solid) fuel-rods (zero $ in LFTRs)
d. 1% of fuel-rods' energy used, when pulled out
e. costly reactor down-times to change fuel-rods
f. much more costly spent-fuel waste by volume & $$
g. higher proliferation risk, due to plutonium in waste
h. high cooling-water usage (also restricts location)
i. low temp. output means inefficient electricity gen'n
j. costly security req'ts dictate fixed-location plants
k. reputation for poor decision-making, at each step
EfT's Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors offer us:
a. lower construction costs (low operating pressure)
b. intrinsic safety (they're"walk-away safe")
c. no needs for any fuel-rods at all
d. about 99% fuel utilization: & can eat "spent-fuel"
e. shorter shutdowns possible, but unnecessary
f. much less waste produced; reduces "old" waste
g. reduced proliferation risk; no weapons grade Pu
h. needs NO scarce water (locate "anywhere")
i. high temp. output means efficient electricity gen'n
j. cost-effective factory-made & modular options
k. genuine pride in design excellence & efficiency
Community-driven push for new LFTR-enabling
regulations & gov't support for R&D funding for
Energy from Thorium (LFTRs), more modular
LFTRs (meaning less need for costly grid infra-
structure & transmission costs & energy losses).
In short, an opportunity of a Lifetime for cheap,
reliable, safe, & "peace-conducive" energy, that
would get us back on-track towards "increased
quality of Life for the next generation."
So, "Nuclear 2.0" Energy from Thorium (LFTRs) :-)
seems good to me.
So, there could arise a market for "[recently] used terrorists' 9tSIM cards"
(Terrorists might see 2 incentives for selling their old SIMs into it - at
least if they're very mobile: reduce chance of being killed & some easy $$).
Who'd buy?
Well, anyone wanting soneone -else- dead; instead of paying a high-priced
professional killer, all that person would need to do (theoretically) is to:
1. buy such a SIM & a cheap phone [equipped with GPS]
2. plant phone (with the SIM installed) into target's briefcase, etc.
3. await news of target's "death by CIA"
This is yet another reason to -stop- these pre-trial killings by CIA, et al.
We have enough geniune "collateral damage" already, without the above.
I'd never pay for sending my data to a targets phone.
Too much risk of inflated costs in invoices later.
Yes, I guess this could apply to web hosting fees, too.
Last time I checked, /. comments could be rated
by randomly selected [registered] readers,
I hope you've got a similar scheme i Twister...?
So, everybody likes a deal, &
few resist giving a false "Like"
in response to a freebie or big discount on something they want.
Therefore, many / most "Likes" are meaningless CfC's. IMO.
You want Open Source? Cool... Firefox is your friend.
Fast? Try Opera.
Both are our friends, at the moment.
So, since reading this news item about 4.4.2, we've had to Power Off & shelve a fleet of Nexus 7's that have just self-updated to 4.4.2.
But we were -lucky- to have [remnants of] an older fleet - made by Samsung - on-hand, that we'd -almost- forgotten about, ie, after noticing Samsung's "slowness" to release Android upgrades. We -had- a dangerous habit of "only the latest will do" but have quickly come to appreciate Samsung...
Now, we wonder if our Korean friends there weren't just doing -tests- for privacy / security downgrades, in Android... and holding back the "latest" versions, until they notice -restoration- of our privacy / security levels. Perhaps a fiction... but... it was really nice to find some Samsung Android 4.1.2 devices near at hand, this morning. :-)
[ Could this privacy / security downgrade be NSA inspired? Could Apple's products be next to follow? ]
1. Turn OFF all Android 4.4.2 devices - [ Could be inconvenient, particularly for phones & phablets. ]
2. Don't allow any other devices to [Auto-]Update to 4.4.2
3. Find -older- devices to replace those Turned OFF (in Step 1) - [ Could be costly, if you don't have old devices on-hand. ]
4. Remove installed [Google-] apps' updates.
5. Wait for Goggle to notice [hopefully, FAR] FEWER 4.4.2 systems online (assuming they can't switch them back On...)
and to decide to -lift- their game, before we have to -seriously- consider migrating to Apple...
(Any additional suggestions would be most welcome.)
We had some unopened [backup] devices on-hand, purchased at discount, after release of newer models.
PS We now appreciate Samsung's "slowness" to release system updates... maybe they quietly test each one & wait for tests to indicate no reduction of privacy / security features, before passing them on to us...? I -hope- so, we do -not- know for sure.
From the first talk we viewed on EfT, we were intreagued... Safe Nuclear Energy? (Cf Kindle eBook: "Nuclear 2.0" We paid ~ $2 for it at Amazon.com; YMMV).
Instead of costly solid fuel rods (only ~ 2% of whose energy is used before they're sent to costly storage), liquid fueled reactors need no such rods. Instead, their liquid fuel (about 98% of whose energy) is used.
The LFTR is just one of the several designs being discussed. Some want ASD's in their designs, ie, with an Accelorator in the picture. (I'm sure still other designs will be proposed, possibly incorporating something else that a particular physicist knows well enough to build into it.)
There's plenty of time to innovate, discuss, simulate & build prototypes... Join in the Fun (Did he say Fun?!?) & games of designing safe nuclear power plants, for a change.
Don't let Fukushima's disaster send the baby (nuclear industry) out with the bathwater (a particular design, used at Fukushima)!
We didn't stop sending shuttles, etc. up to the ISS, ie, even after 2 losses! So, let's not let the greenest energy source get away from us... Embrace Next Gen Nuclear Energy, eg, LFTRs = Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors.
So, Energy from Thorium (promoted, in part, by an international group, which just concluded its 2013 Conference, at CERN, in Geneva) could be deemed as a -commercially- extreme concept, eg, since - if/when Thorium-/LFTR-based nuclear power (cf the recently released eBook "Nuclear 2.0") begins to replace fossil-fueled & even Uranium-based powe plants - a number of well-endowed commercial interests may feel unduly threatened by EfT.
Could the info & organisations who would like to bring EfT -sooner- into pur energy markets be deemed "extremists" & see their web sites, etc. get blocked 8n the UK, etc.?
Especially if the energy used to make a PV Solar Cell is still -less- than the amount it's expected to produce, over its lifetime, PV solar energy might not be the best choice of sustainable energy to invest in.
(Batteries for -local- storage of electrical energy might be good, eg, as anything that disconnects one's home or office from mains power is a problem almost anywhere.)
In a post-Fukishima world, the EC - if not [also] Germany - should be investing in Energy from Thorium (eg, developing improvements of its proven technology from the 1950's, which even Germany has successfully trialed in the 1960's or the 1980's, I understand).
For many of the reasons (ie, features), cf Prof Dr Eduardo Greaves' [36-min.] talk "Thorium as Nuclear Fuel in Molten Salt Reactors" (on YouTube.com). (The impatient can search TED.com for Sorensen's 10-min talk & view at least its last 5 min's.)
R&D should run in parallel with Education & Debate, in the hopes that the Public will soon "get" that there are several types of reactor, some (eg, Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors = LFTRs) being much -safer- than Fukushima's reactors proved to be.
We should all understand the differences between even Canada's (long ago) improved CanDo reactors (still in the same "safety class" as Fukushima's, I understand) -and- LFTRs, which are expected to be not only "walk-away safe" but also cheaper to build & run.
After people come to understand the significant differences & inherent advantages in the design of LFTRs (and their safety levels are verified in ways that give all peoples confidence to embrace them, even near their back yards), we'll be able to make another great stride in our energy technology that can enable us to:
1. reduce CO2 emissions, & also turn back Climate Change that appears to be caused by it
2. enable any & all nations to build & use LFTR-technology - instead of current Plutonium-producing reactors, that we limit today
3. reduce the amount & cost of spent-fuel storage, eg, by consuming that fuel & getting energy from what was once waste
4. reduce or even eliminate "oil wars"
5. enabling us to -stop- "fracking" for Shale Oil &/or Coal-Seam Gas (CSG), which destroys water & land resources
6. reduce internal conflicts within nations (eg, legal battles & protests over "fracking")
7. redirect our minds to innovative & exploratory projects, in Science, Medicine, Space, Community Development, etc.
I see only win-win's from Energy from Thorium... are there any risks or disadvantages?
Let the debate continue, eg, in you comments & replies.
Energy from Thorium gives us one more way to resolve this issue, ie, beyond 1. Withholding nuclear technology and 2. Sharing it with Iran, namely:
Share the safe, non-Plutonium-generating Energy from Thorium (LFTR technology with Iran &;anyone who' ready to use it.
We trust it eventually became obvious, that we were referring to PlayBook, despite that name from being clipped from the OP's title line...
Wide (not wise)
And... We were referring to the rumoured but AFAIK never delivered upgrade to PlayBooks, that could have come out with the latest product releases... We think it still can & should be released, to help users retain some value in their mostly devices.
If that's impossible le, let RIM release the tools & info to enable those who can (& may still want to) attempt to do that, eg, as an Open Source project, as a tribute to the company & its device...
...then I might have felt endeared to them.
As it is, however, watching a worldwide fleet of such devices go out of currency (as the company unduly continues to wait for those of us who- who once trusted it to keep our devises up-to-date - to trust it again. We didn't & won't.
When will companies begin to enable its customers to enjoy the freedom of choice, in such matters, rather than opting for a "they'll have choice but to buy the new model" last resort - rather than encourahe a lasting, trust-rewarding relationship...
Perhaps someone who still can will help those who want to... to at least turn the fleet of PlayBooks into something useful... Eg, a handy console for a wise selection of video tutorials from KhanAdamy.org.
That's our hope for RIM...
They came, they made & sold (in this case, PlayBooks), they left something of some value for a unique purpose, supporting Education... So their creation won't go to the same kind of Hell that Apple's Lisa did, long ago...
So, anyone interested in encouraging their children
to be more enterprising & active in earning a living
& providing for themselves could - in some lawyer-
approved text, included in their will - make clear
that their wish is that any / all IP, that they (the parent)
may have created & contributed to the world, should
be considered to be in the Public Domain forever.
Such a text might even include a statement that the\
parent believes that they wish to encourage children
to do those things (listed above).
Q.E.D. (at least for those, who want to continue the
work, rather than encourage the consumption - by
the children - of any assets left to them)
The example (of action, if not will text, per se) is
The B. & M. Gates Foundation.
Why not "use up" - preferably, in humane ways -
the wealth, rather than hand it over to people,
who had little to do with its creation...?
WiFi + VoIP system design to enable local calls;
add Internet connectivity to enable outside calling.
+Beard didn't fit on Subj line, but all 3 were to be seen "masking" licensee's photo.
We think it was OK... since S. AU's gov't had same person's Driver's license in its database.
Why should beard + sunglasses + hat be OK on a firearm license???
Well, if someone finds that f/arm license, why make it easy to know who to follow home, eg, as footwork before breaking-in to steal guns...?
We say ir should be the norm, along with instructions to consider shaving off the eard, to make it even harder to make use of by such crims. Such licensees could also be advised to to to the photo shoot with coloured hair, for the same reason.
When I was in Grad School, I heard that
Ohio's state uni's considerd a student to
be an Ohio resident (able, then, to pay a
lower resident's tuition)... after 6 months
of living in Ohio.
For those with a [grand-]parent living in
a land of tuition-free uni's, see if you can
get residency or even [dual-]citizenship,
on that ground.
Join the creative minority & you may find
you have more options than those who
don't think outside the state / country, in
which they were born.
Eg:
1. Create businesses based on hiring talented people who've NOT got costly degrees, paying them less (since their Educ costs would be less = living- + Internet-costs + time).
2. Create -testing- businesses (which offer genuinely challenging/meaningful "Degree Equivalency" certifications, but no courses)
etc.
Outgoing FTP is a way to share files, but - for the one holding &
publishing some file(s) via FTP - they must have & run FTP ser-
ver(s).
Freedom of Speech implies a "Right to Serve" IMO.
Being -forced- by ISP restrictions against running servers seems
anti-competitive, since it -forces- the ISP's customer to pay (some-
one) for unnecessary / unwanted hosting services.
By extending the definition of "net neutrality" to -include- a well-
defined "Right to Serve" (since not to have such a right makes
one subservient to external hosting services, by unbalancing
the innately -balanced- TCP/IP protocols, which underlie the
Internet) would let one (with content) choose between self-
hosting & outsourcing the hosting of that content.
Start out self-hosting, until you decide to let someone else
do that for you (eg, after the content becomes popular).
One way to reduce the cost of Cancer may be to support
alternatives to "Cut, Burn & Poison" = another docu-
mentary, eg:
1. Burzynski's Antineoplaston treatments, which seem
to be capable of resolving brain cancer in children, etc.
Documentary: "Burzynski - Cancer is Serious Business"
reports some successful cases, showing before & after
-scans- for tumors / tumor growth / resolution, from
well-known, large medical centers & traditional cancer
treatment facilities. (Patents for his antineoplastons are
cited with patent numbers.)
An adviser to Pres Obama is cited as one who has
said that a reason Burzynski's treatments aren't
recognized or getting any public funding is: They
could cause collapse of -exsiting- Cancer research &
treatment enterprises, including pharmaceutical co's.
(Parts 1 & 2 are out, with Part 3 on the way.
See: www.BurzynskiMovie.com for details.)
[Movie may also be found & viewed on YouTube.com]
Controversy: FDA has repeatedly investigated the
inventor / doctor (Burzynski) with at least four (4)
Grand Juries -declining- to find reason for charge.
(US FDA appears to be "the bad guy" in this story.)
Burzynski might do well to consider CrowdSourcing
the $$$'s needed to complete remaining clinical trials
of his treatments - past & future.
2. TED.com as at least one short talk on using Electric
Fields to stop cancer tumor growth.
Add your fav alternative cancer treatment in replies
- IFF the source(s) you cite -include- scans showing
before & after scans, etc.