Mindconnection eNL, 2012-08-05

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Long-time readers know I'm an IEEE Senior Member (and a past recipient of the IEEE's Outstanding Engineer Award). Though I left engineering long ago, I still find it interesting and I still subscribe to technical publications.

Something I keep reading about is the constant stream of technological advances. Some of these are fairly minor in their effect on improving our economy. But some could be real game-changers.

Item #1. If you stretch your memory, you might recall a time when ordinary peasants enjoyed inexpensive air travel. It's still relatively inexpensive, but only true masochists enjoy it. Note that I said "relatively," there. Anyone checking the cost of flying in the past couple of years will notice tickets cost more and then there are all those additional fees.

One reason for the high cost of air travel is the outdated radar method of bringing planes into the airport. This method wastes quite a bit of fuel, due to the "spacing" required for it to be safe. A couple of years ago, a company developed a GPS method that dramatically reduces the spacing and thus the fuel wastage. If airlines could save, say, $50 per passenger in fuel costs that could drop your cost of flying by a whole dollar (the other $49 going to executive salaries and bonuses). On the off chance the execs have any moral fiber at all, you could see affordable air travel return (though enjoyable air travel will recede into distant memory).

Parcels don't care if they get groped, exposed, x-rayed, or leered at. So the real benefit here, as this rolls out, is air shipping costs will probably drop quite a bit. So instead of paying $58, a lung, and a kidney to overnight something, you might pay just $38.

Item #2. This is relevant today, but first a bit of background. Over a decade ago, the MagnaDrive Corporation produced a product that couples a motor with its load magnetically instead of via a physical connection (e.g., gears and/or shaft). This has several enormous advantages. One is infinite variability, which means you don't have to size a gearbox to get the speed you need. Another is no transmission of vibration from motor to load or the other direction. Another is the reliability goes way up because you have so many fewer points of failure.

In fact, the magnets made from NdFeB (neodymium/iron/boron) can operate in extreme heat (300 DegrF, which is really, really hot for inside the typical motor and just not seen except in extreme applications) and they have a half-life of over 20,000 years. Yeah, that's the downside. You buy one and 20,000 years later there's a 50% chance it will crap out. Too bad, huh?

The problem with these drives is the magnets are made from rare earth materials. Thus, for a long time the drives were too pricey for most applications. But here's the twist. The term "rare earth" was applied when certain materials were first being used, and they were thought to be quite rare. Since then, many of these have proven not to be rare at all. So the price has come way, way down. The professional pubs have made quite a bit of happy noise about this.

A wonderfully written book, Earth Wars, provides some great information on the whole rare earth thing. My review of this book will be online by late August; mark your calendar to go to www.mindconnection.com/books to see what this one's about.

Item #3. This is related to our previous item, which made the point that motors that use "rare earth" metals are now economically feasible where they once were not so. Using such materials can reduce design heat losses from the rotor by an amazing 100%, and total losses by 25%. Total efficiency increases by 10% (yes, it's true that losses and efficiency are not linearly inverse, though they are inversely related).

Item #4. Unrelated to our previous item, manufacturers of personal safety devices have been doing brisk business and hiring people into good-paying jobs. Since 2008, firearm manufacturers (for example), have seen a 30.6% increase in American jobs. That same industry saw an increase of 66.5% in the federal taxes paid by industry companies. And you know this is a good thing because Jesse "Reverse Logic" Jackson has been telling people he wants to shut down the firearm industry and create jobs. Yes, those are mutually exclusive goals but that problem has not stopped him before. Armed citizens might be singing, to the tune of "Bring in the Clowns," a new ditty, "Bring on the Drones." Free skeet shooting!

Item #5. Amazon is hiring. Oops, not good news. It's actually bad news. Amazon is hiring at its pick centers, where people are pushed beyond the limits of human physical endurance and paid  very poorly. A female journalist took a job at one of these places for purposes of writing an article about it. What she had to say made the sweatshops in China seem like pleasure resorts by comparison. Amazon doesn't sell guns, either, so it's not helping provide those good-paying jobs you read about in item #4.

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As the fake "election" rhetoric spews forth and contaminates our "infosphere," it's almost impossible to avoid the chatter of the Stupiderati. Examining this rot can provide a lesson in brainpower, the same way examining a stool sample can help a doctor figure out what's really going on.

With the rhetoric, you have to look at the message behind the message. Actually, that is true of all code speak. You've probably seen those jokes, along the lines of "When a woman says X, she really means Y" (there's a male version, too). People speak in code for many reasons. By applying a little brainpower, you can become much better informed about what they are actually saying.

The actors playing out this "election" melodrama follow a script that appeals to specific demographics, and they do that with code words that say one thing and mean something else entirely. The only exception I know of is Ron Paul, who for the past twenty years has done exactly what he said he'd do. His consistency is remarkable. Which is why the mudstream media do not like him and go to extremes to show this.

Most voters see the "election" as a choice between two checkout lines in Wal-Mart, er, I mean between the employees of The Party (same corporation, different "sales clerks"). So they check one of the two "I approve of crime" boxes instead of actually voting. That's a zombie reaction, not a thinking one. Let's look at why.

The actual platforms of the two employees of The Party are identical. Anyone who has watched how these fools actually perform once in office can identify the consistent three-point platform:

1. Steal.
2. Steal.
3. Steal.

I could entertain you with a long list of code words and what they mean, but instead will give you a couple of examples and challenge you to decipher code words yourself. It's almost as fun as one of those word search games or a crossword puzzle. And it makes you zombie-proof.

Fake candidate 1. This guy says he's going to "stimulate" the economy by diverting more capital from it, when he gets the "second term I deserve." How he plans to do that from prison (where the term he deserves would presumably be served) is anybody's guess.

But let's assume he gets a second term he does not deserve, we are yet again subjected to accelerated plundering programs. Can all this extra stealing and massive diversion of capital out of the economy's productive sectors benefit the economy?

The answer is that the economy thrives or dies based on the amount of capital available to it. The govt does not have any money that it earns for goods or services produced. It must take money from the productive sector of the economy. The pork-barrel "stimulus" is always a theft, a diversion of funds to special interests like banksters. So this is akin to putting out a fire by dumping gasoline on it. Code word: Stimulus. Translates to: Stealing.

Fake candidate 2. This guy says he is going to increase "defense" spending. What he means is he's going to increase the amount of looting and plundering done by the Military Industrial Complex. The USA now spends about half of the world's total expenditures on military. That's insane. We have only 5% of the world's population.
 

It's worth noting that the Defense Acquisition Program burns through $21 million every hour of every day, with 95% of that producing nothing but more debt. This is exactly the opposite of defending the country. This program does about half billion dollars worth of sabotage to the country, every day.

Imagine buying your next car and paying for it 20 times over instead of just once; that's essentially how the DAP works. Code word: Defense. Translates to: Stealing.

It would be interesting to see if ANY of the "election" code words do not mean stealing. It would not surprise me if all of them meant that. Unfortunately, about 95% of the people voting in each "election" don't try to understand what's actually being said or what effect their "vote" actually has.

Only Ron Paul has not spoken in code. The fact these others do is another lesson in brainpower for another time.

Pass this eNL along to others, and they can also benefit. Here's some "free money" for you....

Easiest tip to do: If you have CFLs, remove them. Why: The CFL has very low power factor, and it consequently causes power quality problems in the rest of your home's electrical system. This means the compressor motor of your AC unit must use much more power to do the same amount of work.

In the electrical biz, we call this the difference between apparent power and actual power. You can just call it the difference between a high electric bill and an ungodly high one.

And your other tips, some of which may require time and money....

Leakage. Reduce the exchange of heat between your home and the hot outdoors:

• Caulk as needed.
• Insulate receptacles (buy those foam inserts).
• Check your windows for leakage; an IR gun is an inexpensive investment if you don't have one. Consider replacing your windows this winter, when deals abound on parts and labor. If they leak now, seal up with duct tape.
• Install thick shades that are designed to block out light. These really do work. Though not cheap, they are worth the investment. I got mine at Bed Bath and Beyond.
• If doors leak, install V weather stripping across the top and along the sides. For the bottom, find an appropriate sill seal. You might also place a rolled towel across the bottom of each door during peak heat times.

System.

• Change your air filter it it's at all dirty.
• Keep your condenser clean; check it on every odd-numbered day (or even-numbered, if you prefer).
• Think of upgrading to a more efficient unit, if the one you have is more than 12 years old. Plan on that for this winter, when there are likely to be rebates and other cost-savings.

Usage. When it's hottest outside, people run their AC. At that time, however:

• You are trying to cool across the largest temperature gradient. This is inefficient.
• The supply transformers are hot, and your bit of extra load might be the proverbial straw.
• Those overloaded transformers are probably supplying slightly dirty power, meaning your compressor has to work harder to deliver the same amount of output.
• Reduce or eliminate other loads during this time.
• Don't run "optional" loads during this time. Those include gadget chargers, plant lights,
• Keep that refrigerator closed during this time.
• If you have an ice-maker, understand that it pumps heat into your home to make that ice. More for your AC unit to handle.

Activities

• Set up a table on a porch that has an outdoor receptacle. Take cooking outside. On that table, you can put a coffee pot, hot plate, crock pot, popcorn popper, etc. Not all at the same time, mind you....
• Before opening the refrigerator or freezer, know exactly what you are going to put in there or take out. Be quick.
• Turn off modems and routers at night. They do produce a fair amount of heat, which you can verify rather easily. Normally, it's best to leave these on. But when you are paying a king's ransom to cool your home shut them off.

Other tips:

• Consider installing awnings.
• Map out your vegetation around your home. Consider re-landscaping this fall to improve sun protection.
• Where grass does not grow well, consider planting a ground cover.
• If your condenser is outside, make sure there is free airflow around it. Remove vegetation that blocks this. But add vegetation for shade if the unit is unshaded.
• Set the thermostat to a higher temperature and use fans. Yes, sounds simple. But many people think they "must" keep it under 75 degrees in their home. You can have it much warmer (e.g., 85), and stay fairly comfortable.
• Don't completely dry clothes in your clothes dryer. Not only does this damage the fabric, it wastes energy. It also adds heat to the house and exhausts air you're paying to cool.

 Consider the following off-limits:

• Name of pet, wife, husband, child, parent. In fact, any real name or any real word.
• Dates of birth, wedding, anniversary, graduation. In fact, any numbers representing anything real to you.
• Your address, phone number, SSN, anagram for your name, etc. If it represents something real to you, it's a lousy password.

If you hate your password because you can't possibly remember it, then it's probably a good password. If you have a hard time typing it without an error, that's another good sign. If you like your password and use the same one for everything, chances are good a hacker is going to like your password also.

Remember, your password isn't there to let you in. It's there to keep others out.

To understand the answer, you must know a few things about body fat.

• How much you weigh can be misleading. Measure the ratio of body fat to lean mass. That is what matters.
• The body has several types of fat. Depending on your s*x and your body type, it will over-accumulate in certain areas. That's why some people are pear-shaped and some are apple-shaped.
• If you have enough fat to distort your body shape, you have too much of the cancer-factory variety of fat.
• The point above excludes breast tissue in women. It also excludes "rump rounding" fat, which is not the same as fat that makes it look lumpy.
• Men: if you cannot see your abs, you are definitely too fat. These begin to have visual definition in the single digit body fat level, but you could still have excess body fat (e.g., love handles or underbelly roll) even at 8% body fat. It's an individual thing. Look in the mirror.
• Women: Look for smooth curves.

Age 50.

For women, it might help to find someone of your body type and height who has the body composition you are aiming for. Get a picture of her, and use it as a self-assessment tool. If she's had plastic surgery, rule her out. Make sure you are using a realistic model, not someone who will make you feel inadequate due to chasing after the unachievable.

What won't get you there:

• Walking (and other low intensity exercise) in lieu of hard exercise. If you want to walk for pleasure, then do that. In a park or nice neighborhood is good. But don't try to make it the cornerstone of your fitness plan.
• Special diets. These stress your body in bad ways, and take the pleasure out of eating.
• Traditional gym rat work. That whole body three times a week thing "for tone" does not produce the necessary adaptive response to strengthen your skeleton, improve your body fat ratio, or help create the best hormonal environment.
• Eating "foods" contaminated with corn sugar, drinking fruit juices, or getting any other endocrine modifiers into your body.
• Having an inconsistent sleeping schedule.
• Stressing out over how fat you are (this releases cortisol, which tells your body to store fat).

What will help get you there:

• If you want walking to be part of your fat loss program, try duck walking up several flights of stairs--you will get a new understanding of the word "burn" in the phrase "burn fat."
• Eating right, as a matter of course. Six small meals a day, mostly greens. Make the meals nutrient-dense. Make every calorie count, rather than counting calories.
• Brief but intense physical exertion. Stimulate, but don't annihilate, your muscles. Excessive numbers of reps and sets result in overtraining. Intense doesn't mean doing dangerous amounts of weight, either. It's about focus and concentration. Try doing one very slow repetition in absolutely perfect form using half your normal weight. Focus not on raising or lowering the weight, but on loading that muscle. It's the loading that stimulates the adaptive response. That response brings many health benefits, including stronger bones.
• Eating good whole foods.
• Go to bed at about the same time every night. You really do need your rest.
• Relax and enjoy life. Get outside. Do physical activities you enjoy. Don't worry about what others think; what matters is that you are doing what you need to do to reach your goals.

At www.supplecity.com, you'll find plenty of informative, authoritative articles on maintaining a lean, strong physique. It has nothing to do with long workouts or impossible to maintain diets. In fact:

• The best workouts are short and intense.
• A good diet contains far more flavors and satisfaction than the typical American diet.