FINANCIAL REFORM

The Continued Comedy of Reform

When it comes to the country's financial system I think it is clear that our lawmakers let us down over the last decade or so. It is easy to point out things that every president and administration has done wrong in the last 30 years but it is impossible to pin this on a single party because both have played a substantial role in the collapse. To see this you don't need to look any further then the two idiot, thieving, lying, cheating, stealing, scumbags that are in control, the retard from Alabama Richard Shelby and the out and out liar from Connecticut Christopher Dodd. Both are criminals, period.

TECHNOLOGY REVIEW

MIT Identifies 10 World Changing Technologies

In the recent publication of MIT's Technology Review a list of 10 technologies were described as having the potential to change the world. I subscribe to this magazine and was excited when I read the article abstract on the site thinking it would lay out the likely suspects of nanotechnology and genetics but it turned out to be much more specific than that. When I quickly glanced through the list I was surprised by the inclusion of cement as a top ten technology, maybe for Rome I thought. Obviously, there is a little more to it than that. This story will be released in the May/June issue.

The list did have some surprises that I wouldn't have thought about, below is a quick summary of the 10 items listed in the article. Each entry has a short video or abstract associated with it, click on the associated image to open the link. I've also included any relevant links that can supply a more descriptive explanation about the technologies described here. Also, here is the primer video for the article from the editor and publisher of Technology Review, Jason Pontin.

Shop Tour 2010:

Part II

This is a continuation of the wood shop tour, if you haven't see it here is the link to part I. The last article left about halfway through the storage areas of the shop so this post will pick up there.

There is only one cabinet left to describe and that's the most recent addition to the shop, but still isn't entirely complete. I made this cabinet to store hand tools like screwdrivers, chisels in the main part and then smaller items in the door. The components for the cabinet door are cut and ready to be glued and screwed, the door will expose about 2½" of depth which is enough to store the smaller items.

The cabinet is made from cherry for the frame and birch plywood for the carcass and panel.The dimensions are 28" wide by 7" deep and 32" high which allows for a fair amount of storage. The pliers will likely be moved to a different cabinet and configuration at some point because this really wasn't made for them - thanks God there is always something else to build.

Everything Connected:

IBMs Video Explanation of the Internet of Things

This is an excellent video put together by IBM as part of their SmarterPlanet initiative, as is usually the case from IBM the video is very well done and gives a good  perspective on the future of connected things. Obviously they have a big stake in the game, not only do they design and manufacture RFID chips but they are also heavily involved with most of the other components used including software.

The idea of establishing a central nervous system for the planet is a by product of building an Internet of things, especially when the concept is extended using contributions from nanotechnology and even the new digital brand of biology. IBM stays relatively conservative in the video trying to represent the simplest concepts that make up IoT, but they do an outstanding job with them. I originally found this on ReadWriteWeb where it was referred to as: "...artistic, succinct, optimistic and inspiring video explaining what could well become a big factor in how the future unfolds.", I agree.