Those who have worked in television will appreciate this, I know I did.
We Got That B-roll
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The Great Horse-Manure Crisis of 1894
Seems America had an “emissions” crisis near the turn of the 20th century. Although no one had an answer to the problem it seemed to take care of it self thanks to a new mode of transportation. I first read about this in Levitt and Dubners “Super Freakonomics,” and googling gave me a few articles that seem to predate the book.
http://www.uctc.net/access/30/Access%2030%20-%2002%20-%20Horse%20Power.pdf
Another:
http://www.thefreemanonline.org/columns/our-economic-past-the-great-horse-manure-crisis-of-1894/
http://www.freakonomics.com/2010/09/08/horse-manure-the-gift-that-keeps-on-giving/
Enter Stagnation, not much has changed in our lifetimes.
Tyler Cowen tells us that we should adjust our expectations for economic growth in the US.
http://www.npr.org/2011/03/07/134324066/Misconception-Will-U-S-Economy-Grow-Indefinitely
Tools (technology) never die!
Think about it, every technology that has ever existed is still being manufactured new somewhere in the world!
Kevin Kelly (founding editor of Wired Magazine) tells NPRs Robert Krulwich:
“I say there is no species of technology that have ever gone globally extinct on this planet.”
He explains, “I can’t find any [invention, tool, technology] that has disappeared completely from Earth.”
Krulwich, as most would argue, this just can’t be true!
http://www.npr.org/blogs/krulwich/2011/02/04/133188723/tools-never-die-waddaya-mean-never
The conclusion:
http://www.npr.org/blogs/krulwich/2011/02/24/133962028/tools-never-die-the-finale
Only 20 percent of the energy in each gallon of gasoline is actually used to move the vehicle forward.
According to a recent MIT graduate that’s a fact. He’s developing a way to capture the energy lost through a vehicle’s shock absorbers.
Your Own Personal Hydrogen Generator?
http://www.sciencefriday.com/program/archives/200911203
Star Wars Uncut
What would happen if you took George Lucas’s classic Star Wars film and split it up into 15 seconds clips, then distributed those clips to hundreds of fans to remake in their own way? Well, you’d get the Star Wars Uncut project on Vimeo’s video sharing site. It’s amazing the variety and hilarious re-enactments of every nerd’s favorite movie. Not sure if all this amalgam of bathrobe clad extras will actually go together in a watchable full length movie or not but the results of just watching a few clips is more than entertaining!
Star Wars: Uncut Trailer from Casey Pugh on Vimeo.
Electric Cars and Hybrids Not So Economical
One of the touted benefits of electric vehicles is the fuel cost savings, but it appears that’s not necessarily the case according to Edmunds. Aside from the high purchase cost, a gas sipping Aveo is considerably much cheaper to operate than a Prius! And depending on how the electricity is generated used to charge the Prius, they may not be any better for the environment.
… consumers could see that at 1,250 miles a month, a 2010 Toyota Prius would cost, on a national average, $67 a month at the pump, while an electric Mini E would cost $49 a month to “fill” from a 220-volt charger in the consumer’s garage; the monthly gasoline bill for a four-cylinder Chevrolet Aveo would be $11, and a 2011 Chevrolet Volt – running on gas and electricity – would cost $54.
Google Street View Painter
Bill Guffey is an artist in Kentucy that has painted a series from the 50 states using Google maps Streetview as reference.
http://billguffey.blogspot.com/search/label/States
Great Acapella cover of the song Africa
Every once in a while you come across something creative and unique and this is one of those times: