Moved across town, got internet, went through a flu, and wrote a big chunk of a business plan… CHECK
Back to the usual blog. Some of these stories have been developing over the course of the last week. You should be aware of them.
- Starting with something fun, the US Women’s water polo team posed in the buff along with dozens of other high profile athletes in this year’s ESPN Magazine Body Issue. The imagery in this second annual special edition is sure to raise some eyebrows – at least.
Coming soon to ESPN
- The Three Lakes Winery has gone above and beyond the call of creativity this season by using sweet pie-grade pumpkins to craft a $10 bottle of pumpkin wine. According to reviews, it’s more drinkable than several $10 bottles made with actual grapes. They suggest heating the wine with mulling spices, which doesn’t sound like a half-bad idea. Bottoms up.
- Sunday was a sad day for sports and paranormal enthusiasts alike. Paul, the psychic octopus who successfully predicted many of the World Cup winners, died in his sleep. No word yet on whether anyone plans to eat Paul in an attempt to absorb his ability.
- In mid-October the China Daily Newspaper reported that China would be cutting its rare-earth exports by up to 30% next year, effectively blowing a hole in the tech industry. A few days later, China went out of its way to deny this claim. Naturally, no one knows what to believe. The uncomfortable truth is that China can use their monopoly on rare-earth mining as a bargaining chip in negotiations with other developed world powers. On Tuesday the 26th, U.S. House Science and Technology Committee Chairman Bart Gordon said today he is talking to senators in an effort to convince them to pass a measure on rare-earth elements shortly after the Nov. 2 election. Rare-element mining is about as environmentally friendly as clubbing baby seals with spare parts from a BP oil rig, however, it remains an unavoidable fact that this is now a matter of national security. The story continues to develop…
- In spite of the US Federal Reserve printing trillions of dollars (something they call quantitative easing) every few weeks, Tim Geithner swore the US would not devalue the dollar. Just days later, Ben Bernake announced that the FED would buy another $1.7 Trillion dollars in assets using printed money, sparking fears of 1970s style inflation. The whole thing seemed a bit disingenuous to many critics of an economic “low-dollar policy” designed to make the USA more competitive with developing nations.
- As more currency traders invest in Brazilian currency as a safe-haven against the unstable Dollar and heavily manipulated Yuan, Finance Minister Guido Mantega announced significant new taxes on foreign investors in an attempt to halt the rapid appreciation of his nation’s money supply. “There is nothing the Brazilian government can do to fight against the record low yield levels in developed economies,” Bank of America Corp. said in a note to investors. “The government has engaged in an impossible war.”
- On the science front, both anti-gravity generators and Star-Trek style deflector shields are approaching reality. Exciting stuff.
Magnetic Deflector Shield
- This one will bake your noodle – there is new evidence suggesting that the third dimension is just a holographic projection. Zoom in close enough and the “pixels” actually begin to blur. Hello Matrix… have you seen Morpheus or Neo? A new device is being built to further test this development.
- The RealClear network has launched two new portals. Real Clear Science and Real Clear Religion. No word as to whether the two staffs ever lunch together in a friendly manner.
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