Re: An interesting response
At 12:21 AM Thursday 4/10/2008, hkhenson wrote: I have recently been discussing the scope of a space based power satellite project with a bunch of high powered space engineers. They are all accomplished, one of them was the project engineer for the first moon lander. This started when I scaled a moving cable space elevator large enough (2000 tons a day) to put a real dent in the carbon/energy problems (300 GW/year production rate, displacing all the coal fired plants in the US in one year). So when one of them posted a study of a rocket with about twice the payload of a Saturn V, I extrapolated how many of them and what rate of launches it would take to ferry 2000 tons per day to GEO using rockets instead of a much more questionable space elevator. To my surprise, the energy payback went from under a day for the elevator to 15 days for rockets. You would have to dedicate the first 3 power satellites (15 GW) to making rocket propellants. Hardly a deal breaker. Takes 10 200 ton payload rockets each flying once a day to do it and with a blank check perhaps under 5 years to work up to this production rate and 6-7 years from start to get to a $50 billion a year revenue stream increasing at $25 billion a year. I didn't expect a response other than something like that's interesting but they reacted almost with horror, saying the best they could hope for is an almost useless 1 GW demonstration power sat in the next 10 or 15 years and that the only choice we have is to build lots of nuclear power plants. Now countries and companies in the world for the most part realize that there is a serious problem with energy, and that it isn't going to get better as we slide down the far side of oil production. It seems to me that a project that really could displace all fossil sources of energy with renewable solar energy and (using penny a kWh electricity) reduce the price of synthetic gasoline to a dollar a gallon would get a lot more support than a tiny demonstration project no matter how few in billions it cost. There is no doubt it's a big project, on a par with what we have spent on the Iraq war. But the market for energy is massive, oil alone is $3,000 billion a year. And there is no lack of money to fund it, Exxon can't figure out what to do with their profits so they are buying back $30 billion of their stock a year. The Chinese have a few thousand billions in US notes they would spend on a secure energy source large enough to meet their growing needs. So my question to you, is which be an easier project to sell, a demonstration project for a small number of billions over 10 or 15 years, or a really huge project in the high hundreds of billions to massively displace coal and oil with solar energy from space in under ten years? Keith Henson Or perhaps the real question is which of the following is the case? (1) Your figures and their figures disagree that much, in which case it might be worthwhile to have someone else independently check both sets of figures (probably a good idea in \\any\\ case), or (2) There is more on the agenda than simply finding longer-lasting, less-polluting sources of energy to replace oil. ? Maru . . . ronn! :) ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Battlestar Galactica
On 4/8/08, Curtis Burisch [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: The first one only came out today in the UK! They are doing a bunch of films, aren't they? Is it one for each main character? Oh, don't you have internet in UK? I'm in SA, saw the movie about a month ago :) Well, I saw it yesterday. It is a bit rubbish. Didn't know they were doing one per character, but I suppose it makes sense. Judging from the DVD this is not the case. They are releasing four films two months apart and they do not focus on individual characters. In fact one of the problems with Bender's Big Score is that there is too much Fry and not enough Bender. Saw the Simpsons movie last night. Yawn. Yes, meh seems to have been the general response. It is the same with Bender's Big Score: too much plot, not enough jokes. Martin ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Bay Area gathering? (was Re: Opera Night)
So... Let's plan on meeting near the airport (SFO, right?) around 3. Dan, you probably have my cell phone number, but I'll email it to you separately just in case. There's a Hyatt Regency just south of the airport (Bayshore near Broadway) which is right on the water. The lobby is an okay place to gather... I don't quite Or... down the street from there (south on Bayshore), there's a Max's Opera Cafe (motto: This is not a good place for a diet) where we could sip coffee and nibble on sugary fat things. Dan, what do you think? Anybody else going to join us? Nick On Wed, Apr 9, 2008 at 9:17 PM, Dave Land [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Dan, et al, This calls for a Bay Area get-together. When are you available, Dan? It sorta depends on what the powers-that-be decide. If we get together in San Francisco, I'm familiar enough with the area near Golden Gate Park to reccomend a restaurant. If it is south of there, then Sunday afternoon, sorta near the airport would work best for me. If it is the former, then you'll be able to meet two of my five daughters (the two biological ones) because I'm having dinner then. If not, then we can meet at a spot near the airport on Sunday before my flight. I fly in 1:30 on Friday and leave 6:10 on Sunday. I will be shot if I'm doing non-opera stuff from late Saturday afternoon until the evening. Much as I'd like to meet the Mini-Minettes, I also would be loathe to horn in on family time, and know how little my wife would appreciate it if a bunch of Internet neer-do-wells showed up at a family gathering out of town :-)... Also, I haven't even begun my taxes yet, so Saturday is probably going to be mainly given to that effort. Thus, a Sunday meet-up at or near the airport would work best. Peggy is going to a birthday party at lunch, so sometime after two or three would work for me. Dave ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l -- Nick Arnett [EMAIL PROTECTED] Messages: 408-904-7198 ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Bay Area gathering? (was Re: Opera Night)
Or... down the street from there (south on Bayshore), there's a Max's Opera Cafe (motto: This is not a good place for a diet) where we could sip coffee and nibble on sugary fat things. Dan, what do you think? If we are going to do this around 3 PM, I definately will need to have checked my stuff in or it will be a very short get together. My flight is at 6:10 PM. You might not know, since you live there, but the time between driving into the rental car agency and checking in is rather long and somewhat unpredictable. But, once I've checked in, I just need to be there early enough to pass through security with a boarding pass, so I could hit the airport as late as 5:15 without much in the way of risk. Could someone pick me up and drop me off at the airport. I think it would be terminal 1, but I can phone if it is not. Thanks in advance, Dan mail2web.com Enhanced email for the mobile individual based on Microsoft® Exchange - http://link.mail2web.com/Personal/EnhancedEmail ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Bay Area gathering? (was Re: Opera Night)
I'll pick you up. That seems smarter than meeting earlier, since the rental return is so unpredictable. It took until now for me to realize that Max's Opera Cafe would be so appropriate... ;-) Hey, who else is joining us? I KNOW you're out there. Nick On Thu, Apr 10, 2008 at 9:08 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Or... down the street from there (south on Bayshore), there's a Max's Opera Cafe (motto: This is not a good place for a diet) where we could sip coffee and nibble on sugary fat things. Dan, what do you think? If we are going to do this around 3 PM, I definately will need to have checked my stuff in or it will be a very short get together. My flight is at 6:10 PM. You might not know, since you live there, but the time between driving into the rental car agency and checking in is rather long and somewhat unpredictable. But, once I've checked in, I just need to be there early enough to pass through security with a boarding pass, so I could hit the airport as late as 5:15 without much in the way of risk. Could someone pick me up and drop me off at the airport. I think it would be terminal 1, but I can phone if it is not. Thanks in advance, Dan mail2web.com – Enhanced email for the mobile individual based on Microsoft(R) Exchange - http://link.mail2web.com/Personal/EnhancedEmail ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l -- Nick Arnett [EMAIL PROTECTED] Messages: 408-904-7198 ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Brin-l Digest, Vol 376, Issue 4
At 12:00 PM 4/10/2008, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: (Keith wrote) So my question to you, is which be an easier project to sell, a demonstration project for a small number of billions over 10 or 15 years, or a really huge project in the high hundreds of billions to massively displace coal and oil with solar energy from space in under ten years? Or perhaps the real question is which of the following is the case? (1) Your figures and their figures disagree that much, in which case it might be worthwhile to have someone else independently check both sets of figures (probably a good idea in \\any\\ case), or We don't disagree on any figures. I would defer to them if we did, they are the experts. (2) There is more on the agenda than simply finding longer-lasting, less-polluting sources of energy to replace oil. I am sure of that. The entire community seems to have been beaten down for so long they don't know what direction up is. I really don't think the initiative is going to come from the engineering community any more than it did back before Kennedy decided we would go to the moon. Keith ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: An interesting response
Takes 10 200 ton payload rockets each flying once a day to do it and with a blank check perhaps under 5 years to work up to this production rate and 6-7 years from start to get to a $50 billion a year revenue stream increasing at $25 billion a year. OK, let's do the math on that. At the present time, the cost of lift to geosynchronous orbit is $20,000 per kg or $20M per metric ton. Ten 200 ton payloads would be about 40 billion per day or 14.6 trillion per year. That's roughly the GDP of the US. The trick is, as it always has been, to lower launch costs. Unfortunately, even in inflation adjusted dollars, launch costs haven't dropped much over the past 40 years. The income stream (which you estimate at 25 billion/year) would also have to support ground receivers, safety mechanisms, transmission lines, etc. Plus, it costs money to build the actual arrays. If you can find a way to drop launch costs a factor of 100 to 500, then space based solar becomes a player. There is nothing like that on the horizon. Dan M. ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Ohio: Bill requires parents to volunteer
I don't see this going very far. The only thing this will accomplish is making money for attorneys with the slew of lawsuits it would generate. The question I have, is it still volunteering if it's mandatory? Idiots. Sometimes I'm ashamed to admit that I live in Ohio. Ohio: Bill requires parents to volunteer Published: April 9, 2008 at 9:13 PM COLUMBUS, Ohio, April 9 (UPI) -- An Ohio lawmaker has proposed a bill requiring parents of public school children to volunteer at the schools or pay a $100 fine. The bill, introduce by state Rep. Sandra Williams, would require parents to volunteer for a minimum of 13 hours each year or pay the fine, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported Tuesday. School districts reportedly would be responsible for telling the Ohio Department of Education which parents did not donate their time. Some residents feel the bill would be burdensome to families. This is just one of those stupid ideas that surface every now and then, said Elizabeth Papp Taylor, former Shaker Heights Parent Teacher Organization council president. Rep. Stephen Dyer, a Green Democrats, is one of five additional legislators co-sponsoring the bill. Ensuring that parents play a vital role in their children's life is the reason I signed on to it, Dyer said. http://tinyurl.com/65jxt5 ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Bay Area gathering? (was Re: Opera Night)
On Apr 10, 2008, at 11:13 AM, Nick Arnett wrote: Hey, who else is joining us? I KNOW you're out there. I'll bet you didn't know that I'm out there. Maree and I drove through SF today, and are staying in Petaluma for a few days. We plan to do a few trips in to see the sights and may well be interested in meeting up. Regards, Ray Ludenia. ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Ohio: Bill requires parents to volunteer
At 05:29 PM Thursday 4/10/2008, Gary Nunn wrote: I don't see this going very far. The only thing this will accomplish is making money for attorneys with the slew of lawsuits it would generate. The question I have, is it still volunteering if it's mandatory? Idiots. Sometimes I'm ashamed to admit that I live in Ohio. Achtung! Ve are here from the school district to let you know vhen you plan to volunteer . . . . . . ronn! :) ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Bay Area gathering? (was Re: Opera Night)
Cool. Are you saying that we are out there? I thought we were over here. Nick On Thu, Apr 10, 2008 at 3:35 PM, Ray Ludenia [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: On Apr 10, 2008, at 11:13 AM, Nick Arnett wrote: Hey, who else is joining us? I KNOW you're out there. I'll bet you didn't know that I'm out there. Maree and I drove through SF today, and are staying in Petaluma for a few days. We plan to do a few trips in to see the sights and may well be interested in meeting up. Regards, Ray Ludenia. ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l -- Nick Arnett [EMAIL PROTECTED] Messages: 408-904-7198 ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Ohio: Bill requires parents to volunteer
On Apr 10, 2008, at 3:29 PM, Gary Nunn wrote: COLUMBUS, Ohio, April 9 (UPI) -- An Ohio lawmaker has proposed a bill requiring parents of public school children to volunteer at the schools or pay a $100 fine. This was the policy at the private school Ryan attended through 4th grade: if you didn't volunteer for at least one of the two parent work days, you were fined $100. Actually, it was the other way around: you were charged $100, which would be refunded if you volunteered. It sure didn't feel good at a private school, I can imagine that it would not sit too well across a whole state, even if it is the kind of state that joins the rush of states banning gay marriage... The bill, introduce by state Rep. Sandra Williams, would require parents tovolunteer for a minimum of 13 hours each year or pay the fine, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported Tuesday. In Ohio, your time is worth about $7.70/hour. Dave In Soviet Ohio, the state volunteers YOU maru ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: An interesting response
Dan M wrote: The trick is, as it always has been, to lower launch costs. Unfortunately, even in inflation adjusted dollars, launch costs haven't dropped much over the past 40 years. Maybe even if launch costs were _zero_, orbital power satellites could still have a negative energy net production. Last time I heard (when I was working in the Space Industry, and not in the Oil Industry), solar arrays required more energy to be built than the energy they produced during their lifetimes. Alberto 'oil rulez, fsck space!' Monteiro ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Battlestar Galactica
Interesting premise, reasonably executed. What makes it stand out are the long long (long) takes, 4 and 5 minute action sequences done with steadycam. Great stuff. I noticed that take, and rewound to watch it no less than 3 times. Great cameraman there, great teamwork in a LARGE cast, and great continuity. I've worked in many stage plays and been in several cinema productions; my experiences have sensitized me to the brutally extreme sensitivity of long takes such as the one you mention to even the slightest error, so my admiration for the scene you mention is nothing but extreme. My personal theory is they tried to push this scene all the way to the exit boat, but that inevitable snafus prevented them from being able to accomplish this. I give them enormous credit for what they did manage to accomplish, though! C ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: ***SPAM*** Re: Battlestar Galactica
Anyway, I hate it when someone criticizes my favorite shows, so I guess I should have known better. I have to disagree with William's response in the strongest possible terms -- not your response, Olin (what an unusual and wonderful name!) I have read almost all science fiction ever published, and my biggest gripe with the genre is that there are not enough authors publishing enough works to satisfy my appetite. If it comes to the crunch, the reason I adore BSG as much as I do is that the cinematics astound me. The shaky 'home movie' effects during the space battles; the authentically weathered hulls of the ostensibly ancient human ships; even the easy-to-accomplish (yet incredibly difficult to ensure a scitentifically-convincing appearance) thermonuclear explosions, all combine to overwhelm me with pure appreciation of the art of making science fiction movies as embodied in what the art crew of this series has managed to accomplish. Yet this is not the reason I've given this series a five-star rating. Like 'Children of Men' I was literally moved to tears on many occasions whilst watching it. Several episodes had a vehemently emotional impact on me, to the point of sporadic lacrimation. There have been a few slow episodes, whose lack of compelling content has been attributed to excessively long story arcs (as a result of the producers overextending the story arc) however for the most part BSG have seldom disappointed me. The fairly powerful love/hate relationship between Kara Thrace and Captain Adama (the junior) enthralled me for some time. Personally I experienced a powerful attraction to Kara! It's been a slightly mixed bag so far; I personally am not a critic, but I loved it to bits would love to see several more series, not to mention many, many movies :) ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
