...let's get rid of those pesky satilites that keep track of global warming. Obviously, another Democratic plot to undermine the efforts of the good people in our energy sector to make sure Americans can continue to scarf all the fossil fuels they want.
I'm a book & document conservator, and paper is _great_ for long-term storage, provided some reasonable precautions are taken in handling. (I have plenty of paper samples that are 500+ years old and look like they were made last week).
That said, however, imagine the volume of paper necessary to contain all the data we manipulate day in and day out for just about any large scale research project these days. And the stuff isn't exactly easy to process when churning numbers...
Actually, such a merger probably would make a difference to you. That's because with the clout that the combined company has, it will be able to dictate what cable channels have access, possibly even what the content on those channels would be. Sure, there's still the 'freedom' to surf through all the channels provided, but with the lowest-common-denominator of mass culture, it'll just continue to be all dreck.
And I believe the same principle will apply to information systems, as one company has the ability to determine what the prevailing technology will be. This is the underlying principle behind anti-trust legislation in this day and age.
Quite true. And here's a project that may be of interest, also sending laser light to the moon, though for a different purpose altogether: art. Yeah, it's crazy, but still, check out the url...
With Amazon's announcement that they have just finished their 17th quarter of straight losses, and have dimished expectations for income revenue for the rest of this year, you have to wonder. Clearly, AOL isn't doing this for the short term, but more for the clout that this sort of consolidation relationship brings.
So, the multinationals just keep growing. Big surprise, eh?
Like my economics profs always said..."In the long run, we're all dead." But I'm not quite sure that's what they meant....
And there will probably be the smarmy comments that this technology cannot ever work, for x, y, and z reasons. Sure, it has a great distance to go, but without the dream of success, there would be no attempt, and without those lessons, no chance of success. Edison had it right with his comment about developing the electric light, when he said that several years of filament failure had been useful in eliminating non-viable materials, thereby increasing the odds that he'd find the right one.
My hat's off to the folks at the Planetary Society for having the gumption to attempt this.
There's nothing wrong with it being just a playful idea. Getting hung up on the practicalities of such an enterprise using extant technology is like saying that we might as well never dream...
It isn't really a question of 'need' (except as a deep-seated urge to explore and colonize that seems to be genetic, tho' more apparent in some people than others). Perhaps it's more of a matter of seeking inspiration, of finding joy in the prospect of such a grand enterprise, or even participating in it.
Economies of scale do require the development of an underlying infrastructure, but once that infrastructure is in place, cost and reliability do usually come way down. It's the difference between building the Stealth Bomber or a 777. Now, a 777 isn't cheap (and space craft never will be, either), but their cost is manageable, given the current economic model. No similar economic incentive exists for the mass production of the Bomber and consequently per-unit cost remains disproportionately high.
In spite of all the technological hurdles, in spite of the cost overruns and disappointments, there is something very special about Space that appeals to a large segment of the human population. Maybe it isn't rational - but those dreamers who seek to undertake any enterprise with great risk are seldom deterred by purely rational arguments. The best of them, the scientists and engineers who share the dream, seek to minimize the risk, to lower the hurdles...but the inspiration of that dream still drives them.
You're right. We won't be going to Mars (or even back to the Moon) in the next 5 years. Yet the inspiration of that enterprise now will make it possible to achieve that goal eventually.
Slashdot Mirror
...let's get rid of those pesky satilites that keep track of global warming. Obviously, another Democratic plot to undermine the efforts of the good people in our energy sector to make sure Americans can continue to scarf all the fossil fuels they want.
*sigh*
"Certainly, your honor, that information is right here on my laptop...somewhere...hey, anybody seen..."
"Does anybody really know what time it is?
Does anybody really care?"
And from watching Cheney, you'd never know he even had the operation...;)
...the skinny-dippin' possibilities...;)
Now, the _real_ trick would be to convince the Pentagon that there is a threat to the US from Mars...
I'm a book & document conservator, and paper is _great_ for long-term storage, provided some reasonable precautions are taken in handling. (I have plenty of paper samples that are 500+ years old and look like they were made last week).
That said, however, imagine the volume of paper necessary to contain all the data we manipulate day in and day out for just about any large scale research project these days. And the stuff isn't exactly easy to process when churning numbers...
And the Justice Dept. denied that any of the missing FBI bows & arrows had anything to do with the death.
...to sell the broadcast rights to Fox to finance the mission.
Actually, such a merger probably would make a difference to you. That's because with the clout that the combined company has, it will be able to dictate what cable channels have access, possibly even what the content on those channels would be. Sure, there's still the 'freedom' to surf through all the channels provided, but with the lowest-common-denominator of mass culture, it'll just continue to be all dreck.
And I believe the same principle will apply to information systems, as one company has the ability to determine what the prevailing technology will be. This is the underlying principle behind anti-trust legislation in this day and age.
Quite true. And here's a project that may be of interest, also sending laser light to the moon, though for a different purpose altogether: art. Yeah, it's crazy, but still, check out the url...
M$ just wants to acquire the resources to take on AOL-Time-Warner-Amazon...
With Amazon's announcement that they have just finished their 17th quarter of straight losses, and have dimished expectations for income revenue for the rest of this year, you have to wonder. Clearly, AOL isn't doing this for the short term, but more for the clout that this sort of consolidation relationship brings.
So, the multinationals just keep growing. Big surprise, eh?
Like my economics profs always said..."In the long run, we're all dead." But I'm not quite sure that's what they meant....
Yeah, I was punning. But you're right, not everyone would have caught it. I'll use a smiley face after it next time. ;)
Shouldn't that be 'Moneyshot'?
And there will probably be the smarmy comments that this technology cannot ever work, for x, y, and z reasons. Sure, it has a great distance to go, but without the dream of success, there would be no attempt, and without those lessons, no chance of success. Edison had it right with his comment about developing the electric light, when he said that several years of filament failure had been useful in eliminating non-viable materials, thereby increasing the odds that he'd find the right one.
My hat's off to the folks at the Planetary Society for having the gumption to attempt this.
"Root, hole, or die?"
Soon they'll be able to make gold-pressed latinum.
Talk about crazy ideas: you can join in this project...
I'm shocked! SHOCKED!
There's nothing wrong with it being just a playful idea. Getting hung up on the practicalities of such an enterprise using extant technology is like saying that we might as well never dream...
Um, get a government not run by guys from Big Oil...
Quantum chips? Every flavor possible in every bag?
I loved the quote from NASA that this was the "Earliest baby picture possible..."
It isn't really a question of 'need' (except as a deep-seated urge to explore and colonize that seems to be genetic, tho' more apparent in some people than others). Perhaps it's more of a matter of seeking inspiration, of finding joy in the prospect of such a grand enterprise, or even participating in it.
Economies of scale do require the development of an underlying infrastructure, but once that infrastructure is in place, cost and reliability do usually come way down. It's the difference between building the Stealth Bomber or a 777. Now, a 777 isn't cheap (and space craft never will be, either), but their cost is manageable, given the current economic model. No similar economic incentive exists for the mass production of the Bomber and consequently per-unit cost remains disproportionately high.
In spite of all the technological hurdles, in spite of the cost overruns and disappointments, there is something very special about Space that appeals to a large segment of the human population. Maybe it isn't rational - but those dreamers who seek to undertake any enterprise with great risk are seldom deterred by purely rational arguments. The best of them, the scientists and engineers who share the dream, seek to minimize the risk, to lower the hurdles...but the inspiration of that dream still drives them.
You're right. We won't be going to Mars (or even back to the Moon) in the next 5 years. Yet the inspiration of that enterprise now will make it possible to achieve that goal eventually.