Gardening Goings On: 10 Foot Planet

I have started a new Blog with the family for all the Garden Goings On as there is enough material there to warrant its own site.

http://www.10footplanet.blogspot.com

Enjoy

Technology Tidings: Transparent Aluminium

Oxford scientists have created a transparent form of aluminium by bombarding the metal with the world’s most powerful soft X-ray laser. 'Transparent aluminium' previously only existed in science fiction, featuring in the movie Star Trek IV, but the real material is an exotic new state of matter with implications for planetary science and nuclear fusion.

Full article is Here

The material is apparently a completely new state of matter and of course its implications are enormous in terms of both space and deep sea exploration. It has other fantastic implications in the area of Nuclear Fission though I don't personally appreciate that aspect.

The new technology works by knocking out a key electron within the Aluminium atoms that leaves its basic crystaline structure intact rendering the material transparent to certain light.

"'What we have created is a completely new state of matter nobody has seen before,’ said Professor Justin Wark of Oxford University’s Department of Physics, one of the authors of the paper. ‘Transparent aluminium is just the start. The physical properties of the matter we are creating are relevant to the conditions inside large planets, and we also hope that by studying it we can gain a greater understanding of what is going on during the creation of 'miniature stars' created by high-power laser implosions, which may one day allow the power of nuclear fusion to be harnessed here on Earth.

The discovery was made possible with the development of a new source of radiation that is ten billion times brighter than any synchrotron in the world (such as the UK’s Diamond Light Source). The FLASH laser, based in Hamburg, Germany, produces extremely brief pulses of soft X-ray light, each of which is more powerful than the output of a power plant that provides electricity to a whole city."

Music Mutterings: The Kinks (Wonder Boy)

La-la-la-la...
Wonder boy, lifes just begun.
Turn your sorrow into wonder
Dream alone, dont sigh, dont groan
Life is only what you wonder.
Day is as light as your brightest dreams,
Night is as dark as you feel it ought to be.
Time is as fast as the slowest thing,
Life is only...

Wonder boy,
Wonder boy.
Everybody is looking for the sun.
People strain their eyes to see,
But I see you and you see me,
And aint that wonder?

Wonder boy, some mothers son,
Life is full of work and plunder[? ].
Easy go, life is not real,
Life is only what you conjure.

Wonder boy,
And the world is joy, every single day.
Its the real mccoy,
Wonder boy.
Everybody is looking for the sun.
People strain their eyes to see,
But I see you and you see me,
And aint that wonder?

Wonder boy, some mothers son,
Turn your sorrow into wonder
Dream alone, go have your fun.
Life is only...
Life is only...
Life is only...

An old favourite - apparently John Lennon was fond of this one too!

Technology Tidings: Witricity

I was listening to Coast to Coast AM with George Noory (a highly recommended show for anyone interested in 'other' ideas of what we are all doing here!) just last week and the guest was talking about Harmonic Resonance technologies, Tesla and wireless electrical systems. As I mentioned in a previous post I have a great interest in the work of Nikola Tesla...Wireless electricity...is it possible...?

Well...while researching gardening of all things I came across this story from the BBC - A system that can deliver power to devices without the need for wires has been shown off at a hi-tech conference....wow!

The system is based on work by physicist Marin Soljacic at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). It exploits "resonance", whereby energy transfer is markedly more efficient when a certain frequency is applied. When two objects have the same resonant frequency, they exchange energy strongly without having an effect on other, surrounding objects.

For example, it is resonance that can cause a wine glass to explode when a singer hits exactly the right tone. But instead of using acoustic resonance, Witricity's approach exploits the resonance of low frequency electromagnetic waves.

The fascinating thing about this technology is that all you need is a 'like minded' receiver (by which I mean same resonant frequency) coil inside a laptop, television, toaster that matches the energy source transmitter and it will automatically make use of the resonant electricity to charge or power itself. No more wires, cables, batteries etc. The system utilises magnetic fields so keep your floppy disks somewhere else but otherwise the technology appears harmless to humans, pets and cockroaches (I say appears as we often can't predict the effects of these systems until someone has had decent exposure to it....Thalidomide anyone?).

Interesting enough the article in discussing precursors to the technology mentions the work and ideas of Edison and Tesla and writes "Tesla even went so far as to build a 29m-high aerial known as Wardenclyffe Tower in New York. "It ran into some financial troubles and that work was never completed," said Professor Soljacic"....financial trouble...It was canned by JP Morgan to prevent universal free energy!! Haven't you been on YouTube!!

*takes of his tin foil hat and returns to his discourse*

A world without wires is a fascinating idea - it bodes well for electric cars that charge themselves in your own garage or at the office carpark....surely that's not going to make big oil very happy though....

The full article is available at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8165928.stm.

Enjoy!

People Ponderings: Nikola Tesla

Geniuses are always fascinating to read about. Their single minded focus on their goals leaves them open to ridicule and exploitation for their foibles, quirks and general disregard for the practical elements of life, especially finances.

I can pretty unreservedly say that Nikola Tesla enlightened the modern era. He gave us alternating current power, modern radio, radar, neon and flourescent lighting, remote control and almost it is believed universal free energy.

While most of his inventions, as is the modus operandi of capitalist imperialism, were turned to violence, war and monetary gain, Tesla himself forsaw and pursued a world of peace and enlightened mankind. He sought to lift the burdens of humanity and bring a new era of abundance and joy to all peoples.

Seeing the coming of World War II he sought to create a device that would make any country, regardless of size, safe within its own borders. It was rejected as was his device to create an ionosphere of unlimited energy for free use for every person of every nation.

Tesla was an inventor, scientist and engineer of the highest order. A veritable Superman!
He left us with a multitude of modern technologies, patents and scientific data.

He died leaving no offspring or legatees of his brilliant mind who might have carried on his work. He created fortunes for many money driven men but died penniless.

Ok...rewind that back please....universal free energy?!?!....apparently Tesla was working with resonant frequencies of the earth to potentially transmit unlimited electric power. He also found the same harmonics in the sea, air and space and believed that energy could be transmitted into any of these mediums and then utilised anywhere on the planet instantaneously...wow...and I mean WOW! Time to build a lab and do some experiments!

Book Botherings: "The Transition Handbook" - Rob Hopkins

From oil dependency to local resilience. "We have little time, and much to accomplish" - Richard Heinberg, author of 'Peak Everything'.

This is a ground breaking book! Not just because it says so on it's back cover but because the idea of transitioning anywhere from the mindless slog of capitalism and endless (though the end appears nearish) growth and expansion is both refreshingly freeing and utterly terrifying. But this book is a solid how to, not in the sense of the appropriate forms to have prepared for your new community's various activities but in the sense of preparing yourself and your neighbours and family, mind, body and soul or in their words head, heart and hands for a move towards self-sufficiency and local community living.

Transition Initiatives are based on four key assumptions:

• That life with dramatically lower energy consumption is inevitable, and that it’s better to plan for it than to be taken by surprise.

• That our settlements and communities presently lack the resilience to enable them to weather the severe energy shocks that will accompany peak oil.

• That we have to act collectively, and we have to act now.

• That by unleashing the collective genius of those around us to creatively and proactively design our energy descent, we can build ways of living that are more connected, more enriching and that recognise the biological limits of our planet.

This great upbeat guide offers the tools, resources and reasons to prepare ourselves adequately for the coming economic, social and cultural renaissance.

Family Fathomings: A dose of humility

I find having a son one of the greatest joys and pleasures of my life, let alone three of them. Three little souls bursting with joy and unfettered love and merriment. We have a wall of the boys' drawings and written gifts etc that to be honest I don't particularly notice most days. Today I did and found the following reminders of who we are for our children.

"Happy Father's Day! I love you because you play with me before you go to work"

"Happy Father's Day! I love you because you resol me"

"I love it when Daddy plays Brandy with me"

Time spent and love given is the currency of children. It's also an opportunity to open a door for our own souls to be merry and joyous. It is easy to get caught up in the great tribal buffalo hunt for wealth and ownership of stuff but the true treasures lie in our relationships, especially those with our children.