HERE ARE SOME INTERESTING THINGS
-21 February 2005-
A Google search for your convenience!
13 May 2007
Hey there! It's been awhile since I wrote anything. In the last couple of years I've really been irritated with the MPAA and RIAA. They are such greedy entities. They try to find anyway possible to squeeze more money out of the consumer. Check into it, you'll be surprised. Do a Google search or just check out Techdirt. The things and lengths they go to are horrible.
--Did you know that Robert Picardo (emergency holographic medical program from star trek voyager) was the witch in Legend? I would have never guessed. Anyway, here is the photographic proof. Nothing important, just a tidbit of info
-19 February 2005-
--What a day! After years upon years of not seeing them we got to spend the day with some of my oldest and dearest friends Ed and Renee Slininger. I've known Ed since ninth grade which makes it about 13 years now. We met their two children which are four and two years old. The last time I saw Renee she was pregnant with the, now oldest, son. It was a very nice day. We met in Oklahoma City at the half-way point between Broken Arrow, Ok where they live and Burkburnett, Tx where we live. It was so nice to walk around the mall and have lunch with them all. All of us just fell back into place with each other like years hadn't past between our meetings. The kids are great, and it wasn't as weird as I thought to meet them. Ed and Renee's mental file has been seemlessly updated with the new information. They have become wonderful parents. Full of patience and nurturing. I'm sure they would admit to frayed nerves once in a while but that's normal. We look forward to reconnecting our friendship even further. Plans have been sketched out for the near future and I cannot wait.
--Another friend of mine, this time in California, had a birthday today. Happy Birthday Jonathan! It was very nice to talk to him today too. Boy was he surprised to learn that I was riding around in the back of Ed and Renee's van. He was even more surprised to learn that I now live in Texas.
-16 February 2005-
We are settling in rather quickly here in Wichita Falls, Texas. We have found a place to live and like it very much. We had intended on buying a house upon arrival but our plans changed. We're only going to be here for a few years and we've had to buy all the normal household appliances. The reason for that is our appliances had been provided for us while we were overseas. Now that we are back in the U.S. we don't have it provided. Anyway, that in addition to having to buy a car (we were only allowed to ship one) put a hurt on our finances. Oh yeah, and the wife, of course, doesn't have a job yet. We've only been here three weeks so she hasn't had any time to even look. Perhaps in a couple/three years we'll recover enough to buy.
-15 February 2005-
My wife and I just returned from four years living in Britain. It was a wonderful experience that we will treasure always. We saw and did things that we never thought possible. All the places and things we were able to explore. Castles, Manor Houses, Hadrian's Wall, Paris, Scotland, England, Ireland, and more. Too much to list today. I will write more about our adventures in the United Kingdom and beyond and time goes on. We now live in Texas so I'll write about that as I learn things about the place.
-14 February 2005-
Wow, it has literally been years since I updated this page. Today is 14 February 2005! It is strange to say that the year is 2005. The International Space Station is fast becoming a flop. Granted the Shuttle Columbia didn't help things but come on. You have to wonder what the deal is. Sure we have problems that we cannot seem to get over down here on Earth but we went to the moon over thirty years ago! I like all the exploration using un-manned probes. This maps out the way for future missions yada, yada, yada... Anyway, There are some amazing things in the works that are not quite ready. Such as the recent winning of the X-prize (took long enough!). A private company finally got a craft into space. Well, the upper atmosphere at least. Hopefully we experience a renaissance in regards to space travel/use. Oh well, I'll write more later on.
Okay, I have to address this question. I have seen many news stories over the years, and read many accounts of what people call UFO's. First off let me say that I firmly believe that we all underestimate the potential of the human mind. You may be talking about the roman aqueducts, the Egyptian Pyramids, the Aztec Pyramids, the Great Wall of China, or UFO's. Most people wonder how humans could have made such things, and that aliens must have assisted. Sure, take the easy way out. I believe that where there is a will, there is a way. I think that we did all of those ancient monuments all by our lonesome. Why not? Now don't think that I discount the possability of extraterrestrial life, because I also think it is very small minded to think that in a universe with trillions of stars we are the only life supporting rock out in space. Face it people, UFO's (for the vast majority of sightings) are probably highly classified HUMAN inventions being tested by US. Could there be alien ships checking us out too? OF COURSE!
Teleportation
While not quite like James T. Kirk and Mr. Spock's famous ship-to-Earth travel, it is not so different. Scientists have developed a working theory which will be tested this year of a device that will take the information of matter (a cell, an animal) and copy it atom by atom and transmit the information to a different facility for reconstruction using elements that are on hand. I will add to this story once I recieve more information.
Speed demon CPU's
The latest and greatest of the computer brain's are here. The 1 Ghz CPU has hit the ground running. AMD and Intel have both released these quick little beasts. Unfortunately the chips are based on existing architecture and are not as fast as we all might have hoped (did I just say that a Ghz computer isn't fast??!!) But never fear, the two companies will be releasing brand new chips that live up to the dreams of blazing fast CPU speeds we all want. The Intel pentium 4, and the AMD... well I am not sure what they will call theirs....
Farthest away Spacecraft
The man made object that is the farthest away from our little rock in the ether is Voyager 1. This hardy little space probe was sent out back in 1977 with a mission to fly by the outer planets. Now in February of 1998 it is the most distant man made object. Even at the speed of light, radio signals from V1 take over nine hours to reach us.
Ion Drive!
A long time resident of science fiction, ion propulsion has finally been realized. Not only that, but the thing can find its own way through the ether as well! NASA has dubbed the craft, DS1 (Deep Space 1). Could there be a DS9 in the future...? Anyway,the engine was constructed by Hughes Electron Dynamics Division. The engine uses Xenon atoms which are heavy, nonreactive gas particles. High velocity electrons are bounced off the Xenon atoms which ionizes them. The discharge chamber and Xenon atoms are positively charged at 1100 volts. At the ejection port are screens made of Molybdenum. The screen allows the Xenon to escape towards space (0 volts) at an astounding 68000 mph. As the Xenon escapes it is focused into 3000 lines of thrust. The exhaust is described as, "...a faint blue haze." The craft also has onboard navigational capabilities. Once a week the craft will take a photo of the surrounding space and use it to calculate what changes in velocity it will take to stay on course.
Space-time warp
Well, there is finally proof for what some of us have known for a long time. Not only is there a link between space and time, but it can be bent, and altered. The astronomers involved used the space around a black hole to tentatively prove this theory. The NASA satellite Rossi X-ray Timing explorer was used because it was designed to study the radiation emitted by matter falling towards neuron stars and black holes. This tugging on space time is being called frame dragging
Manned Mars Mission
NASA is planning a manned mission to Mars! It is expected to be launched around the year 2019. This is nice, but we all know how schedules go... Anyway, the mission is supposed to consist of 5-7 astronauts made up of the creme de la creme of scientists. It is also possible that there will be married couples on board because of the already stable relationship involved. This, because of the long trip in such tight quarters. It will be a six month trip there and back, with a lay-over of more than a year on Mars. Many pre-mission launches are going to take place to send life supporting systems to the red planet before the astronauts ever get there. These will contain the fuel, and possibly another launch vehicle for the return trip. The pre-launches will also send more pre-packaged food, as the food will have run out on the long journey. This will be the biggest undertaking in human history.
Just some thoughts...
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