Clean up your computer! is a site explaining some of the ethical background over who really made your computer (and other electronic components).
According to their report, more than 1/3 of all computers are made in third-world countries. The workers are low-skilled and low-paid, and often women. Many are employed on consecutive short-term contracts (3 months at most), so they're in fear of loosing their jobs. Factory conditions may be unsafe, wages below the legal minimums, with compulsory overtime. Workers are often faced with degrading treatment.
Take the Electronics employment quiz to see if you could get a job at a Mexican electronics factory. (Hint: there's discrimination in hiring practices)
The self-parking feature on the Japanese 2004 Prius will not work if the driver does not have their foot on the brake pedal. True, the Prius does not have object recognition to avoid running over something - that's what the driver is for. The driver does not have to steer into the parking space, but they do have to brake. No lawsuits - if the car hits something it's because the driver did not brake, not the car!
I heard of the watch a while ago. I think they were being offered last year when the Speedpass was being linked up to some trial locations here in MA.
I haven't heard of the McDonalds' (although it seems like a good idea), but there are a couple of area Stop & Shop (chain grocery/pharmacy) stores in MA that accept the Speedpass. The charge goes to your speedpass account (you pay by waving the tag by the credit card scanner), and your SpeedPass account doubles as your Stop & Shop loyalty card which gets you the sale prices and double coupons and such. Don't have to sign anything, either. http://www.speedpass.com/stopandshop/
My husband and I often work long or odd hours, or other committments will have us coming and going, but we usually have access to a computer while at work, besides what we have at home.
It's very easy to chat about the day (vent frustrations, really, or the question of what's for dinner and who's picking it up, etc.) while it is happening or we have a free moment. There are days that if we see each other, one of us might be sleeping, so we may not get to chat at home for a few days in a row, but through email and IM we can still communicate ("don't wait up for me" - "dinner is on your own", etc.)
If it weren't for IM, I'd fear that we wouldn't get to talk very often or know what's going on in each other's lives. But since we're usually both wired, we can still communicate even when we're not in the same physical place.
any naming problems due to copyright?
on
Star Wreck Trailer
·
· Score: 1
Author Leah Rewolinski has a series of paperback books, all satires of the Star Trek franchise, already titled "Star Wreck."
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle- ur l/index=books&field-author=Rewolinski%2C%20Leah/10 2-4393073-2089732
Star Wreck: The Generaton Gap Star Wreck II: The Attack of the Jargonites Star Wreck III: Time Warped: A Parody-Then, Now and Forever Star Wreck IV: Live Long and Profit: A Collection of Cosmic Capers Star Wreck V: The Undiscovered Nursing Home Star Wreck 6: Geek Space Nine: An Extraterrestrial Example of Extreme Silliness Star Wreck No 7: Space the Fido Frontier
In order to conserve cargo space/weight, England and the US military used "V-Mail" for letter communication between soldiers and their families during World War II. There was a specified V-Mail form that letters were to be written on. The form would get copied onto microfilm, and it was the microfilm that was sent overseas (not the paper form). When it reached the end point, it was blown back up into letter form and delivered to the recipient.
Some info here: http://www.postalmuseum.si.edu/exhibits/2d2 a_vmail.html http://www.deadmedia.org/notes/49/496.html
The report was covered by slashdot quite a few times... http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=03/04 /22/135421 5 http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=03/04/12/144 220 6 http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=03/03/19/173 624 9
Most 35mm movie theaters show films at 24 frames per second (but usually each frame is shown 2 times, for 48 Htz). Fast enough to fool the eye.
NTSC is fractionally less than 30 frames per second.
These lower frame rates are fast enough to fool the eye/brain into perceiving motion. (Although, since I used to be a licensed film projectionist, I can usually spot dirt or a splice mark that's on a single frame of film when watching a movie (24fps)...)
GM scrapped the EV1, an electric car. One of their excuses was the CA charger mandate.
All of the current hybrids available on the market do not use any plug to charge their batteries. The batteries charge off of excess power from the gasoline engine, and recapture lost kinetic energy through regenerative braking to charge their batteries. No plug.
(GM did drop their hybrid Durango plans a while back, I think out of development cost reasons. Most of their planned hybrids are just poorly-named 42v systems.)
Of course, if you're so inclined, some people have added the ability to run their house off of their hybrids, plugging their house into the car used as a generator, but that's in the other direction.
Some people would love to see a griddable hybrid. The concept is that you recharge at night at home. You drive for ~30 miles (a commute distance that most Americans drive under) on electric/battery only. If you need to go a longer distance, or the battery needs more charging, the gas engine comes on. Doesn't exist yet.
If you don't like watching your power movement, or the biofeedback for the MPG based on your driving patterns, you can easily turn off the LCD screen. (turning it back on is a bad UI design - different button sequence entirely...)
Pretty much all non-Navigation touch-screen functions are accessible using conventional dash buttons. (In the 2004 Prius, if you have the Navigation system, you also get voice-control, so you really don't need the display...)
if you live in Japan there is also the hybrid Estima (7-8 passenger minivan similar to the Previa), and the mild-hybrid Crown large sedan.
if you can wait a year or so, Ford should have out their hybrid Escape (info: http://www.hybridford.com (Flash only), a "small" SUV/CUV that actually has towing capacity. Lexus should also have their RX330 hybrid (the RX400H) small SUV/CUV out (see http://www.lexus.com/about/hybrid/index.html with Toyota shortly following with the hybrid Highlander cousin.
I've also heard of the GM/Saturn Vue, the Nissan Altima (I think that's the model), and the Toyota Sienna, as next on the block with hybrid powertrains (i.e. full/assist hybrids).
if all you care about is a high MPG new vehicle, by all means get a VW TDI.
if you care about the air quality in your area, switch to some decent biodiesel (or get the good stuff from Europe - US diesel is very dirty).
The "worst" of the current hybrids on the market ranks as a ULEV. The 2003 Honda Civic hybrid (CVT) and the 2004 (redesigned) Prius all meet the AT-PZEV emissions standards. No diesel can be that clean.
Because safety is such a concern for small cars in particular, we have designed the Tango around a roll cage that meets or exceeds both SCCA and NHRA regulations. These are racing organizations that specify cage design to protect the occupants of cars crashing at over 200 mph. In addition, the extremely high strength-to-surface area ratio of a steel roll cage allows superb visibility from within the Tango. Rollover too is a great danger for many vehicles. The Tango, being so narrow, would look to the layman's eye to be unstable. But in fact, the Tango has stability that exceeds that of most sport cars.
Hey, it can't be worst than riding on a motorcycle (aka donor-cycle).
I've heard this before, too, but haven't fully gotten into the habit yet.
You drink more water in a day. Water is good for you. You don't get the sugars that you'd get in soda/pop or in fruit juices. Your body works more efficiently when it is properly hydrated.
That, and if you drink more water in a day, you have to go to the bathroom more often. That'll get you up and out of your chair and walking around more often. It might be to the bathroom, but it's still you walking somewhere you wouldn't have gone otherwise.
I was watching an Unwrapped! episode about sport foods/drinks the other day. Apparently researchers have found that you'll drink more fluids if you get a lightly-flavored water than if you drink plain bottled/tap water. And they also suggest drinking before and during exercise, not just after, to have more exercise stamina, and also because most people are constantly dehydrated and just don't know it.
The info page includes info about advertising claims (what to be skeptical about), info about how to drive more efficiently (like following speed limits, combining short trips together, not idling, etc.), and also has a list of various "gas-saving" devices and products on the market that the EPA has tested (most of which don't work).
Currently I think that the gas/electric hybrid is the best touring vehicle (as opposed to a commuting vehicle) platform, but I have yet to see one that I like. The Toyota Prius [toyota.com] I got to look at closely a few weeks ago was very disappointing. A 1989 Honda Civic CRX [fueleconomy.gov] gets better milage! The Toyota drive system is overly complicated with a gearbox that allows the wheels to be driven by either the electric motor and/or the gas engine. The added complexity and weight of the gearbox offset any efficiency gains of the electric system.
So, you're comparing a 1989 manual-transmission vehicle to a current (2001+) automatic-transmission vehicle for MPG? In case you didn't notice, since 1989 greater regulations have been put on vehicles with regard to emissions, which typically has brought the MPG down for most vehicles. Why not compare the 1989 Honda Civic CRX HF from your post to the current crop of 2003 Civics? http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/bymodel/2003_Honda_ Civic.shtml With the exception of the hybrid Civics (mid-high 40s MPG), all of the gasoline or CNG Civics get in the 30s for MPG on the EPA test cycles. Big difference than your 1989 model.
And I wouldn't call the Prius' ECVT heavy. The Power Split Device is a planetary gear system, with much fewer parts than a conventional transmission. The last time I checked it's a little larger than the size of a soda can! not a lot of weight there. any "extra" weight would be from the battery pack or electric motors that wouldn't be in the car if it wasn't a hybrid.
For those interested in how the Prius design truly works, check out this site (particularly the "Understanding the Prius" link): http://www.channel1.com/users/graham/MyToyotaPrius/PriusFrames.htm
Also I don't see what all the hoopla is about the hybrids VW makes a diesel golf and beetle that gets 52 on the highway Besides my 2001 Saturn SL gets 41 on the highway and better than 35 in the city</i>
It's not just about the mileage (although that is a big part of it). It's also about the emissions. A VW TDI (manual transmission) may get in the high 40s for MPG, but all the NOx and particulate matter gives it a really low score for smog-producing compounds. The Toyota Prius (CVT) is SULEV, the Honda Civic HEV is ULEV (manual) or SULEV (CVT), and they're both in the high 40s+ for MPG. (The CVT Honda Insight has about the same MPG, and is SULEV. The manual Insight gets 60+ MPG and is ULEV.)
Check out http://www.epa.gov/greenvehicles/ to see just how your vehicle ranks for both greenhouse gasses (directly proportional to MPG) AND also smog emissions.
But what is the effeciency of your car's engine, compared to that of the power plant?
And let's not forget that there are also losses of power from the gas engine to the wheels (like in the transmission/gears) too in conventional automobiles.
And what about the upstream emissions for driving a fossil-fuel vehicle (gasoline or diesel)?
The fuel still has to be pumped from the ground, transported via tanker (ship or truck or pipeline) to a refinery (those things aren't very clean), and then sent to your local gas station via ship/truck/pipeline. and there's leaks in pipelines, and extra fuel used to transport via ship/truck (which may also leak).
Yes, there's emissions from power plants for electric vehicles, but the alternative of the refineries for gasoline/diesel vehicles isn't any better!
Slashdot Mirror
Clean up your computer!
is a site explaining some of the ethical background over
who really made your computer (and other electronic components).
According to their report,
more than 1/3 of all computers are made in third-world countries.
The workers are low-skilled and low-paid, and often women.
Many are employed on consecutive short-term contracts (3 months at most), so they're in fear of loosing their jobs.
Factory conditions may be unsafe, wages below the legal minimums, with compulsory overtime.
Workers are often faced with degrading treatment.
Take the Electronics employment quiz
to see if you could get a job at a Mexican electronics factory.
(Hint: there's discrimination in hiring practices)
The self-parking feature on the Japanese 2004 Prius
will not work if the driver does not have their
foot on the brake pedal. True, the Prius does
not have object recognition to avoid running over
something - that's what the driver is for. The
driver does not have to steer into the parking
space, but they do have to brake. No lawsuits -
if the car hits something it's because the driver
did not brake, not the car!
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=03/09/01/195825 2
Shouldn't the folks approving articles check to
see if the story has already been posted before?
-Michelle
owner of a 2001 US and 2004 US Toyota Prius
co-moderator of http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/toyota-prius/
I heard of the watch a while ago. I think they
were being offered last year when the Speedpass
was being linked up to some trial locations here
in MA.
I haven't heard of the McDonalds' (although it
seems like a good idea), but there are a couple of
area Stop & Shop (chain grocery/pharmacy) stores
in MA that accept the Speedpass. The charge goes
to your speedpass account (you pay by waving the
tag by the credit card scanner), and your SpeedPass
account doubles as your Stop & Shop loyalty card
which gets you the sale prices and double coupons
and such. Don't have to sign anything, either.
http://www.speedpass.com/stopandshop/
My husband and I often work long or odd hours, or other committments will have us coming and going, but we usually have access to a computer while at work, besides what we have at home.
It's very easy to chat about the day (vent frustrations, really, or the question of what's for dinner and who's picking it up, etc.) while it is happening or we have a free moment. There are days that if we see each other, one of us might be sleeping, so we may not get to chat at home for a few days in a row, but through email and IM we can still communicate ("don't wait up for me" - "dinner is on your own", etc.)
If it weren't for IM, I'd fear that we wouldn't get to talk very often or know what's going on in each other's lives. But since we're usually both wired, we can still communicate even when we're not in the same physical place.
Author Leah Rewolinski has a series of paperback
- ur l/index=books&field-author=Rewolinski%2C%20Leah/10 2-4393073-2089732
books, all satires of the Star Trek franchise,
already titled "Star Wreck."
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle
Star Wreck: The Generaton Gap
Star Wreck II: The Attack of the Jargonites
Star Wreck III: Time Warped: A Parody-Then, Now and Forever
Star Wreck IV: Live Long and Profit: A Collection of Cosmic Capers
Star Wreck V: The Undiscovered Nursing Home
Star Wreck 6: Geek Space Nine: An Extraterrestrial Example of Extreme Silliness
Star Wreck No 7: Space the Fido Frontier
http://www.audible.com/cartalk/ipod
The CarTalk guys have been pitching this "deal"
for a while - Join audible.com for a year, get
$100 off an iPod.
V-Mail
2 a_vmail .html
In order to conserve cargo space/weight, England
and the US military used "V-Mail" for letter
communication between soldiers and their families
during World War II.
There was a specified V-Mail form that letters
were to be written on. The form would get copied
onto microfilm, and it was the microfilm that was
sent overseas (not the paper form). When it reached the end point, it
was blown back up into letter form and delivered
to the recipient.
Some info here:
http://www.postalmuseum.si.edu/exhibits/2d
http://www.deadmedia.org/notes/49/496.html
This report from the Center for Democracy and Technology pretty much addresses how to get spam:h tml titled "Why Am I Getting All This Spam?"
4 /22/135421 54 220 63 624 9
http://www.cdt.org/speech/spam/030319spamreport.s
The report was covered by slashdot quite a few times...
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=03/0
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=03/04/12/14
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=03/03/19/17
any reason for the frame rate to be so fast?
Most 35mm movie theaters show films at 24 frames per second (but usually each frame is shown 2 times, for 48 Htz). Fast enough to fool the eye.
NTSC is fractionally less than 30 frames per second.
These lower frame rates are fast enough to fool the eye/brain into perceiving motion. (Although, since I used to be a licensed film projectionist, I can usually spot dirt or a splice mark that's on a single frame of film when watching a movie (24fps)...)
So why the added complexity of a 70fps system?
GM scrapped the EV1, an electric car. One of their
excuses was the CA charger mandate.
All of the current hybrids available on the market
do not use any plug to charge their batteries. The
batteries charge off of excess power from the gasoline
engine, and recapture lost kinetic energy through
regenerative braking to charge their batteries.
No plug.
(GM did drop their hybrid Durango plans a while
back, I think out of development cost reasons. Most of their planned hybrids are just poorly-named 42v systems.)
Of course, if you're so inclined, some people have
added the ability to run their house off of their
hybrids, plugging their house into the car used as
a generator, but that's in the other direction.
Some people would love to see a griddable hybrid.
The concept is that you recharge at night at home.
You drive for ~30 miles (a commute distance that
most Americans drive under) on electric/battery
only. If you need to go a longer distance, or the
battery needs more charging, the gas engine comes
on. Doesn't exist yet.
If you don't like watching your power movement, or
the biofeedback for the MPG based on your driving
patterns, you can easily turn off the LCD screen.
(turning it back on is a bad UI design - different
button sequence entirely...)
Pretty much all non-Navigation touch-screen functions are accessible
using conventional dash buttons. (In the 2004
Prius, if you have the Navigation system, you also
get voice-control, so you really don't need the
display...)
2001-2003 Prius vs. Echo. (2004 Prius is very different.)
U nderstanding/InternalCombustion.htm for a more detailed explanation/comparison.
Prius is older (1998 model year).
Similar body style (both compacts).
They share some of the same engine block.
the Echo is not available in a CVT.
Base Echo is missing a bunch of stuff that's standard
in a base 2001-2003 Prius.
The engines use a different stroke cycle, with the
Prius' a bit more efficient. See http://home.earthlink.net/~graham1/MyToyotaPrius/
2000-current Honda Insight, 2-seater:p ?ModelName=Insight
p ?ModelName=Civic+Hybrid
l e.html and here http://www.toyota.com/prius/minisite/specs/specs_b ody.html )
http://www.hondacars.com/models/model_overview.as
2003-current Honda Civic Hybrid 5-passenger compact sedan:
http://www.hondacars.com/models/model_overview.as
2001-2003 Toyota Prius 5-passenger compact sedan:
http://www.toyota.com/prius
2004 Toyota Prius 5-passenger midsize liftback:
http://www.toyota.com/prius/minisite/index.html
(for those who dislike Flash, info here:
http://www.toyota.com/prius/minisite/html/printab
if you live in Japan there is also the hybrid
Estima (7-8 passenger minivan similar to the Previa),
and the mild-hybrid Crown large sedan.
if you can wait a year or so, Ford should have out
their hybrid Escape (info: http://www.hybridford.com (Flash only),
a "small" SUV/CUV that actually has towing capacity.
Lexus should also have their RX330 hybrid (the
RX400H) small SUV/CUV out (see http://www.lexus.com/about/hybrid/index.html
with Toyota shortly following with the hybrid
Highlander cousin.
I've also heard of the GM/Saturn Vue, the Nissan
Altima (I think that's the model), and the Toyota
Sienna, as next on the block with hybrid powertrains
(i.e. full/assist hybrids).
if all you care about is a high MPG new vehicle,
by all means get a VW TDI.
if you care about the air quality in your area,
switch to some decent biodiesel (or get the good
stuff from Europe - US diesel is very dirty).
The "worst" of the current hybrids on the market
ranks as a ULEV. The 2003 Honda Civic hybrid (CVT)
and the 2004 (redesigned) Prius all meet the AT-PZEV
emissions standards. No diesel can be that clean.
Whenever you switch from one car to another, you
have to get used to the new car.
Compared to most other vehicles, the Toyota Prius'
brakes can seem a little "grabby." After a short
time driving, you get used to it.
Heck, I'd rather have "grabby" brakes compared to
"mushy" brakes any day, for safety reasons!
http://www.commutercars.com/intro.html#safety
Because safety is such a concern for small cars in particular, we have designed the Tango around a roll cage that meets or exceeds both SCCA and NHRA regulations. These are racing organizations that specify cage design to protect the occupants of cars crashing at over 200 mph. In addition, the extremely high strength-to-surface area ratio of a steel roll cage allows superb visibility from within the Tango. Rollover too is a great danger for many vehicles. The Tango, being so narrow, would look to the layman's eye to be unstable. But in fact, the Tango has stability that exceeds that of most sport cars.
Hey, it can't be worst than riding on a motorcycle (aka donor-cycle).
I've heard this before, too, but haven't fully gotten
into the habit yet.
You drink more water in a day. Water is good for you.
You don't get the sugars that you'd get in soda/pop or in fruit juices.
Your body works more efficiently when it is properly
hydrated.
That, and if you drink more water in a day, you have
to go to the bathroom more often. That'll get you
up and out of your chair and walking around more often. It might be to the bathroom, but it's still you walking somewhere you wouldn't have gone otherwise.
I was watching an Unwrapped! episode about sport foods/drinks
the other day. Apparently researchers have found that
you'll drink more fluids if you get a lightly-flavored
water than if you drink plain bottled/tap water.
And they also suggest drinking before and during
exercise, not just after, to have more exercise
stamina, and also because most people are constantly
dehydrated and just don't know it.
good report, but how many times does it have to show up on /. ?
/ 144220 6&mode=nested&tid=111&tid=95
/ 173624 9&tid=111
Originally Posted by CowboyNeal on 11:41 AM April 12th, 2003
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=03/04/12
which itself was a repeat story:
Posted by michael on 02:33 PM March 19th, 2003
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=03/03/19
The info page includes info about advertising claims (what to be skeptical about), info about how to drive more efficiently (like following speed limits, combining short trips together, not idling, etc.), and also has a list of various "gas-saving" devices and products on the market that the EPA has tested (most of which don't work).
Currently I think that the gas/electric hybrid is the best touring vehicle (as opposed to a commuting vehicle) platform, but I have yet to see one that I like. The Toyota Prius [toyota.com] I got to look at closely a few weeks ago was very disappointing. A 1989 Honda Civic CRX [fueleconomy.gov] gets better milage! The Toyota drive system is overly complicated with a gearbox that allows the wheels to be driven by either the electric motor and/or the gas engine. The added complexity and weight of the gearbox offset any efficiency gains of the electric system.
_ Civic.shtml With the exception of the hybrid Civics (mid-high 40s MPG), all of the gasoline or CNG Civics get in the 30s for MPG on the EPA test cycles. Big difference than your 1989 model.
s /PriusFrames.htm
So, you're comparing a 1989 manual-transmission vehicle to a current (2001+) automatic-transmission vehicle for MPG? In case you didn't notice, since 1989 greater regulations have been put on vehicles with regard to emissions, which typically has brought the MPG down for most vehicles. Why not compare the 1989 Honda Civic CRX HF from your post to the current crop of 2003 Civics? http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/bymodel/2003_Honda
And I wouldn't call the Prius' ECVT heavy. The Power Split Device is a planetary gear system, with much fewer parts than a conventional transmission. The last time I checked it's a little larger than the size of a soda can! not a lot of weight there. any "extra" weight would be from the battery pack or electric motors that wouldn't be in the car if it wasn't a hybrid.
For those interested in how the Prius design truly works, check out this site (particularly the "Understanding the Prius" link): http://www.channel1.com/users/graham/MyToyotaPriu
Also I don't see what all the hoopla is about the hybrids
VW makes a diesel golf and beetle that gets 52 on the highway
Besides my 2001 Saturn SL gets 41 on the highway and better than 35 in the city</i>
It's not just about the mileage (although that is a big part of it). It's also about the emissions. A VW TDI (manual transmission) may get in the high 40s for MPG, but all the NOx and particulate matter gives it a really low score for smog-producing compounds. The Toyota Prius (CVT) is SULEV, the Honda Civic HEV is ULEV (manual) or SULEV (CVT), and they're both in the high 40s+ for MPG. (The CVT Honda Insight has about the same MPG, and is SULEV. The manual Insight gets 60+ MPG and is ULEV.)
Check out http://www.epa.gov/greenvehicles/ to see just how your vehicle ranks for both greenhouse gasses (directly proportional to MPG) AND also smog emissions.
But what is the effeciency of your car's engine,
compared to that of the power plant?
And let's not forget that there are also losses
of power from the gas engine to the wheels (like in
the transmission/gears) too in conventional automobiles.
And what about the upstream emissions for driving
a fossil-fuel vehicle (gasoline or diesel)?
The fuel still has to be pumped from the ground,
transported via tanker (ship or truck or pipeline) to a
refinery (those things aren't very clean), and then
sent to your local gas station via ship/truck/pipeline.
and there's leaks in pipelines, and extra fuel used
to transport via ship/truck (which may also leak).
Yes, there's emissions from power plants for
electric vehicles, but the alternative of the
refineries for gasoline/diesel vehicles isn't any
better!
Actually, the Prius is a production vehicle. Been in Japan since the '98 model year (1997).
The Toyota Echo came out in '99 or '00 or so, and except for some similar looks (like the new '03 Corolla), that's about all it shares with the Prius.
Oh, and the Ford Escape HEV gets several of its hybrid components from the same vendor as Toyota gets their hybrid Prius components. Go figure.