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User: WindBourne

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  1. Sit tight; OCO2 is coming on Pollution In China Could Be Driving Freak Weather In US · · Score: 1

    One of the real problems with China is that few fully realize how bad of shape they are in. When OCO2 comes out and the numbers are measured for CO2 flows in and out of CHina, the world is in for a shock.

  2. Not too many, but instead, LOUSY ones. on U.S. Biomedical Research 'Unsustainable' Prominent Researchers Warn · · Score: 1

    Seriously, the more that I see of today's profs the less impressed I am. Have you noticed how many announcements are made about various new items that never make it to market, or even to change the R*D? In some cases, it is all predicated on lies. The profs that the universities are hiring are HORRIBLE, and getting worse. Bad R*D and bad teaching.

    The American universities are falling apart, in no small part, because of the quality of ppl being hired.

  3. LOL on $250K Reward Offered In California Power Grid Attack · · Score: 1

    These attacks have cost them 10s to 100s of millions. Yet, they are only willing to put up .25M. This shows how poorly ran American companies are today.

  4. He would do better to help fund Great Point Energy on Michael Bloomberg: You Can't Teach a Coal Miner To Code · · Score: 1

    Seriously, GPE can convert the coal to methane at a costs of around 6-7/MMBTU. That can be sold to Europe and Asia. And yes, Europe will buy it since Russia is now holding them hostage. And in Asia, it will sell for 3-4x what it costs.

  5. Re:Who is best situated to replace oil and coal? on 93 Harvard Faculty Members Call On the University To Divest From Fossil Fuels · · Score: 1

    exactly right. What is needed is NOT to try and destroy them, but instead to get them to change because you DO have large investments.
    In addition, they need to put their money where their mouth is. Get them to put in geo-thermal HVAC on campus. Put in solar panels that were built by these companies. Heck, if these schools would go together and say that they will buy X amount of solar panels from one of those companies if they built them in the USA, they could help those companies make the jump. At the same time, they gain with cheap electricity.

  6. Keep the investment. on 93 Harvard Faculty Members Call On the University To Divest From Fossil Fuels · · Score: 1

    Instead, push them to put in geo-thermal into your school for HVAC, OR buy some of their solar panels if they sell them, IOW, make it happen by buying from them and supporting them to change things. Simple as that.

  7. wow. 250K? on NASA Setting Up $250,000 Mars Lander Competition · · Score: 1

    They should offer up 250 million to the first American one that can do this. It would be a fraction of the costs of what NASA would pay. And if they give them until say 2020, it would really push it. Heck, I would not be surprised to see ATK make that happen.

  8. Re:Glitterboyz on the way on Navy Debuts New Railgun That Launches Shells at Mach 7 · · Score: 1

    Actually, they only need to do about 8MJ for the A10. Ideally, make a gattling gun type approach to it.

  9. Re:New Railgun? on Navy Debuts New Railgun That Launches Shells at Mach 7 · · Score: 1

    well, I do not understand this. Back in Dec, the DOD announced that BAE won. Now, they are testing GA's system. I have to wonder if BAE is going on to develop something else.

  10. Now, they need to create several one-offs. on Navy Debuts New Railgun That Launches Shells at Mach 7 · · Score: 1

    In particular, for the ships, they need a replacement for Phalanx. Basically, imagine a gattling gun with these at say 8 megajoules rather than 64 mj that this uses. Simply fire small rounds to take out an incoming missile or plane that comes within 20 miles.

    In addition, the house republicans need to allow the DOD to stop production on the M1A2. They want to upgrade the system so that it will have better protection from IEDs, but also so that the main gun can be replaced with this. A tank that can shot shells like this just 10 miles, but in particular, can do it with 3 second bursts, would be a major change in warfare.

  11. Re:No terminal guidance on Navy Debuts New Railgun That Launches Shells at Mach 7 · · Score: 1

    Not quite. You can bet on it that they will ahve a smart shell that has fins/electronics so that it can move a couple of degrees around, which would be enough to handle moving targets.

  12. Re:Quibble on Navy Debuts New Railgun That Launches Shells at Mach 7 · · Score: 1

    yup. However, far more likely, is that a smart warhead will be developed so that it can steer a bit around.

  13. Re:Longevity of the guns on Navy Debuts New Railgun That Launches Shells at Mach 7 · · Score: 1

    BAE and GA have been working on that. That is why this has taken almost a decade. Hopefully, China does not have the technology because, what you describe is the main problem, which is from heat.

  14. Re:100mi range seem optimistic on Navy Debuts New Railgun That Launches Shells at Mach 7 · · Score: 1

    Keep in mind that while most of these shells are dummies, some of them will be smart shells with the ability to move a bit.

  15. Re:New Railgun? on Navy Debuts New Railgun That Launches Shells at Mach 7 · · Score: 1

    Not really old news. THis is the winner of all that work. Prior to this, BAE and GA were competing to make these, which is not easy. And DDX has been gutted, so now, the focus is on putting railguns on current ships. Personally, I wish that they would make the DDX, but make it nukes so that it can have plenty of power to run motor, lasers and multiple railguns.

  16. I thought that BAE won the contract? on Navy Debuts New Railgun That Launches Shells at Mach 7 · · Score: 1

    BAE had another contract for building more of these. How did GA get this? Do not get me wrong. I am happy to see this since rail guns are about the sanest approach to weapons. BUT, GA had lost the contract.

  17. Re:Not at the cutting edge on Under Revised Quake Estimates, Dozens of Nuclear Reactors Face Problems · · Score: 1

    Actually, I am hopeful that the current situation with Russia along with the CO2, will make us re-think nukes. We desperately need to phase out our need on coal/nat gas, not just in America, but throughout the west.

  18. Re:Not at the cutting edge on Under Revised Quake Estimates, Dozens of Nuclear Reactors Face Problems · · Score: 1

    You know, I think that is the whole issue with America today. We have far too few companies with MBAs for executives that only chase short-term $. Thank good for SpaceX, Tesla, Spike Aviation, etc.

  19. Re:Not at the cutting edge on Under Revised Quake Estimates, Dozens of Nuclear Reactors Face Problems · · Score: 1

    did not know that. Wonder why they would do that. They were the ones with the most thorium experience. In fact, ft. st. vrain's reactor was a great success. The real issue was the back-end.

  20. This is SO trivial to solve. on Apple, Google, and Amazon's Quest For One Remote Control Is Futile · · Score: 1

    Seriously, these companies could easily solve this and with a dirt cheap solution.

  21. Re:You need more than a battery to store grid ener on Tesla: A Carmaker Or Grid-Storage Company? · · Score: 1

    Yeah, its not like solar, wind, and micro hydro ever use DC->ac converters, and transformers.

  22. Re:Batteries ARE their most valuable engineering on Tesla: A Carmaker Or Grid-Storage Company? · · Score: 1

    The batteries with thermal management and electronics? Yes.
    The cells? Nope.

  23. WRONG on Tesla: A Carmaker Or Grid-Storage Company? · · Score: 1

    Giga-factory is no more panasonic than tesla belongs to Mercedes and Toyota. It belongs mostly to Musk/Tesla. In addition, it is vastly re-engineered from what panasonic runs. With this factory, they will more than double the world's production of lithium batteries, while using less than 1/10 of the labor that panasonic does.

    So few ppl understand Musk, but his real claim to fame is NOT simple engineering. It is Industrial engineering. In all aspects he is looking at the economics of how this works. For example, SpaceX F9 is mostly cheap because of 10 engines all the same. In addition, how their bell is manufactured is a fraction of what other's costs.
    Tesla is the same way.
    And solar city will be either buying an American solar panel company, OR will build their own in the states, within 2 years.

  24. Re:There is already a Tesla home battery pack on Tesla: A Carmaker Or Grid-Storage Company? · · Score: 1

    yes, but, considering that if you do not use the electricity, the excess is bought by the electric company means that you have deal.

  25. Re:There is already a Tesla home battery pack on Tesla: A Carmaker Or Grid-Storage Company? · · Score: 1

    That payback depends on where you live and how much you use. Personally, we are fine with it. In fact, we will likely buy it out in 4.5 years.