BIOCHAR AND MR. FORD
AN ARTICLE in Science, 23 November 2012, Vol. 338, discussed “biochar,” a technical term that I felt compelled to investigate. The article described biochar as “Carbon Storage with Benefits.” Specifically, … Continue reading
COMMON INTERESTS, UNCOMMON FIBER
A CARBON-FIBER link is being forged (er… woven) between BMW and Boeing. According to Reuters, the two companies will cooperate in research and development of this lightweight material. Carbon fiber … Continue reading
HIGH ON SPEED
I HASTEN to say that this item has nothing to do with drugs. Rather, it’s on the perception of movement and its feeling of exhilaration. It’s also about bees and … Continue reading
CHEERS, PROF!
AN ITEM in a recent Science magazine, Vol. 338, 9 November 2012, had a great opening line: “Biodiversity has driven doctoral candidates from Trinity College Dublin to drink.” Having once … Continue reading
EV GLOSSARY
THIS IS a bit longer than the usual mini-essay, but for completeness it’ll be a single item. I’ll not fancy it up with photos or charts; it’s a glossary, pure … Continue reading
FORD OVERDRIVE
RECENTLY IT was May 22, 1949, and I was listening to an ad for Ford Overdrive. (Such are the wonders of Sirius XM and its Radio Classics channel 82.) Despite … Continue reading
SPACE FRONTIER 1952
DESCRIBED AS “the story of the greatest adventure awaiting man,” Across the Space Frontier is a wonderful book written by top space scientists in 1952. A good many of their … Continue reading
A NEED FOR (COMPUTER) SPEED?
MY FELLOW tweeters (see @simanaitis) recently received one derived from my reading Turing’s Cathedral, George Dyson’s wonderful book about the post-WWII emergence of the digital age. What’s more, the October … Continue reading
CATAPULTING INTO SCIENCE
ARTICLES IN The Orange County Register, Sunday, Nov. 11, 2012, seem to counter each other. One laments the apparently low priority in the U.S. given to mathematics and science. The … Continue reading
SOLAR HYDROGEN
THE PROMISE of a hydrogen highway populated by highly efficient fuel-cell vehicles depends on readily available—and inexpensive—H2. The electrolysis of water is one source of this hydrogen: Applying an electric … Continue reading
