Sunday, October 30, 2011

INFORMAVORE's SUNDAY No 479

Dear Readers,

A lot of  quality info- the most interesting – for me
was- “Bad is stronger than Good” Please demonstrate that it does not tell the truth, if you can.
Best wishes,
Peter

SEARCH

INTERNET

 

Top 50 U.S. Web Sites (Properties) for September 2011: http://www.econtentmag.com/Articles/News/News-Item/Top-50-U.S.-Web-Sites-(Properties)-for-September-2011-78405.htm


The Internet, peer reviewed:                         http://www.kurzweilai.net/the-internet-peer-reviewed

In the Future, We Will Wear the Internet: http://bigthink.com/ideas/40830


SEARCH & FIND: What, where, how.  


The best sites for free sound effects on the Web:  http://websearch.about.com/od/dailywebsearchtips/qt/dnt0822.htm?nl=1

 

Ixquick Scores Another First: Encrypts ALL Searches

The World's Most Private Search Engine now makes SSL encryption the default:                                  http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ixquick-scores-another-first-encrypts-all-searches-2011-10-24

 

Unblock a Blocked Website: Ten Different Ways:

                                    
BLOGS and SOCIAL SITES

 

Twitter and TV Get Close to Help Each Other Grow:


GOOGLE

 

Gmail & Google Reader Getting Redesigns:

How Google is pushing Google + in your face: http://www.stateofsearch.com/how-google-is-pushing-google-in-your-face/

Blogger to Integrate With Google+http://googlesystem.blogspot.com/2011/10/blogger-to-integrate-with-google.html

 

Google's Business Experiment: Nothing but Web Computers that do everything in a Web browser are touted as an inexpensive alternative for companies.

 

Google's Eric Schmidt: Top 10 Reasons Bureaucrats Drive Me nuts:                   http://www.forbes.com/sites/sap/2011/10/26/googles-eric-schmidt top-10-reasons-bureaucrats-drive-me-nuts-2/

 

An update on Google  TV: http://googletv.blogspot.com/2011/10/update-on-google-tv.html:


WORDS, BOOKS, LIBRARIES

 

10 Words You Might Think Came from Science (But Are Really From Science Fiction):                                  http://io9.com/5850293/10-words-you-might-think-came-from-science-but-are-really-from-science-fiction


Subtext makes e-reading social:


ebrary now offering e-book downloads

SCIENCE

The 21st century brain- a new series at Big Think: http://bigthink.com/ideas/40772

 

Reading the brain:

Mind-goggling It is now possible to scan someone’s brain and get a reasonable idea of what is going through his mind: http://www.economist.com/node/21534748


What Neuroscience Tells Us about Morality
by Patricia S. Churchland:

 

Brain Scans Support Findings That IQ Can Rise or Fall Significantly During Adolescence:


Your brain won’t allow you to believe the apocalypse could actually happen:                                     http://io9.com/5848857/your-brain-wont-allow-you-to-believe-the-apocalypse-could-actually-happen

 

Astronomers discover complex organic matter in the universe:                                   http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-10-astronomers-complex-universe.html

 

Watching Motion of Electrons in Molecules During Chemical Reactions: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111014080023.htm


Researchers Identify Mysterious Life Forms in the Extreme Deep SeaP: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111024165037.htm

 

Do Bacteria Age? Biologists Discover the Answer Follows Simple Economics: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111027150207.htm


TECHNOLOGY

Production of Biofuel from Forests Will Increase Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Study Finds: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111023135657.htm

Disadvantages of Aviation Biofuels:

Amory Lovins On Creating A Prosperous Economy Without Oil, Coal, Or Nuclear:

10 inventions that wiped out businesses:

New Technique Turns Viruses Into Useful Tools In one simple step, viruses can be turned into sophisticated structures with novel optical or biomedical properties: . http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/38938/?nlid=nldly&nld=2011-10-24


Scientists develop affordable solar panel that work in the dak:

The all-telling eye Webcams can now spot which ads catch your gaze, read your mood and check your vital signs: http://www.economist.com/node/21533362


Inphographic- the tablet revolution:

New Method of Growing High-Quality Graphene Promising for Next-Gen Technology: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111017092026.htm


Mind-reading The terrible truth

Technology can now see what people are thinking. Be afraid:


EDUCATION, CULTURE, ART

Steven Pinker: Humans are less violent than ever: http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21228340.100-steven-pinker-humans-are-less-violent-than-ever.html?full=true

Joel Cohen: Top 10 key population trends on Earth with 7 billion: http://earthsky.org/human-world/joel-cohen-top-10-key-population-trends-on-earth-with-7-billion

 

Rethinking Higher Education: http://bigthink.com/ideas/40852


7 billion people and you: What's your number?: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-15391515


Grist for the cognitive mill:

 

 

Curiosity Is Critical to Academic Performance:


Decision-Making: What You Want Vs. How You Get It:


Psychologists Defend the Importance of General Abilities

 

Bad is Stronger than Good: Why Eliminating the Negative is More Important than Accentuating the Positive: http://bobsutton.typepad.com/my_weblog/2011/10/bad-is-stronger-than-good-why-eliminating-the-negative-is-more-important-than-accentuat http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203499704576622550325233260.html

 

The defenders of Negativity:

Nice: ten things you should be able to say before you die:

http://davidkanigan.com/2011/10/27/10-things-you-should-be-able-to-say-before-you-die/


 

A Rest, a Meal, Then Death for 5,000-Year-Old Glacier Mummy: Scientists Consolidate Results of Research Into Ötzi’s State of Health and His Death: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111025091533.htm

 

Women Aren't Becoming Engineers Because of Confidence Issues, Study Suggests: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111025091646.htm


What is the “Zeigarnik Effect” and how does it help you avoid distraction, focus and get things done?: http://davidkanigan.com/2011/10/26/what-is-the-zeigarnik-effect-and-how-does-it-help-you-avoid-distraction-focus-and-get-things-done/


BUSINESS


The Depression: If Only Things Were That Good:

 

The Global Innovation 1000: Why Culture Is Key. Booz & Company’s annual study shows that spending more on R&D won’t drive results. The most crucial factors are strategic alignment and a culture that supports innovation:                        http://www.strategy-business.com/article/11404?gko=dfbfc&cid=20111025enews

 

Disappointing Recovery, Not Much Growth in Sight:

http://knowledge.wpcarey.asu.edu/article.cfm?articleid=2045

 

Yet More Grim Inequality News from the CBO:

Gerry McGovern-The Customer Spring: Empowered customers rise up:                                    http://www.gerrymcgovern.com/nt/2011/nt-2011-10-24-Customer-spring.htm


The economy in haiku:

From Cultural Offering- Exepundit’s greatest hits: http://culturaloffering.com/2011/10/24/execupundit-greatest-hits.aspx

Why should you keep it simple:

Managing Yourself: How to Cultivate Engaged Employees


The Dangers of Comparison shopping:

HEALTH & MEDICINE

Studying Depression: Researchers Demonstrate Rare Animal Model: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111024133030.htm

 

Human Brains Are Made of the Same Stuff, Despite DNA Differences:  http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111026143719.htm

 

Brain Scans Reveal Drugs' Effects On Attention

 

Religious, Spiritual Support Benefits Men and Women Facing Chronic Illness, Study Finds: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111026143811.htm


Natural intestinal flora involved in the emergence of multiple sclerosis:  http://esciencenews.com/articles/2011/10/27/natural.intestinal.flora.involved.emergence.multiple.sclerosis

 

A More Modern Blood Thinner Researchers get closer to making the drug heparin without raw animal materials:. http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/39002/?p1=A2


Babies and toddlers should learn from play not screens: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-babies-toddlers-screens.html

 

How Cannabis Causes 'Cognitive Chaos' in the Brain:




FOOD & COOKING

 

How many people in the world today are hungry?:

http://earthsky.org/food/how-many-people-in-the-world-today-are-hungry

 

Vertical Farming: Apple Store Meets Greenhouse Meets Skyscraper:                  http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2007/12/is-the-world-re/

High-Tech Hydroponic Farm Transforms Abandoned Bowling Alley  http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/10/gotham-greens-hydroponic-farm  (with thanks to Jed Rothwell)


Scary Can Be Exciting When It Comes to Strange Traditional Foods: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111020105904.htm


'Magnetic Tongue' Ready to Help Produce Tastier Processed Foods: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111026122416.htm



MISCELLANEA

 

A good read for weekends: http://www.thisistrue.com/


SELECTED NEWS

SPAM & SPYWARE   

VIRUSES & e-CROOKS

Take the Web safety quizz:

 

Antivirus Testing: The Two Most Important Posts You Will Ever Read:

http://antivirus.about.com/b/2011/10/20/antivirus-testing-the-two-most-important-posts-you-will-ever-read.htm?nl=1


How to Check Out a Hoax:



WiFi

Biggest Ever Study Shows No Link Between Mobile Phone Use and Tumors: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111020191848.htm



EVENTUALLY, IT WAS AN M-DAY FOR ROSSI



The October 28  1MW test in Bologna has generated some energy but even more questions. The believers are very happy
but the spectrum of opinions is very broad from great triumph to obvious scam. Old saying: “Some say Mr. X is dead, some say he is still alive; the truth is somewhere in the middle.”  So with the demo of Rossi.  470+ kWh during 5.5 hours of  self-sustaining regime sounds excellent- if the results are really, certainly, real
and verifiable. I have would have preferred 55 hours of clear excess, at says O/U of 15 and with the measuring instruments visible to the public. A much longer test anyway, telling more about the degree of maturity of the technology.

But my opinion and anybody else’s opinion are not relevant, Rossi has said he has a Customer, and this Customer, if contented will buy the complete 1 MW setup. It seems the Customer was satisfied
with the results and has paid the price.
Is the Customer real or was the deal just a farce?  A protocol was signed by a gentleman called Domenico Fioravanti and it is suggested he is or was a colonel. The Customer’s modus vivendi and modus operandi is secrecy, we were told. Good candidates
are the Army, the Cosa Nostra or some world conspiracy.,including Big Oil who wants to kill it’s competitors in n early phase.
We have no idea why the setup was bought and what will the Customer do with it. Will let it to rust in secrecy, will convert it in a real and useful energy source? Not a word about license and the future is unknown.

When Rossi was working with Defkalion the strategy was natural and clear, the generators will conquer the energy market. Now...to cite a phrase based on a famous Churchill saying very timely tomorrow:

 It's a mystery. Broken into a jigsaw puzzle. Wrapped in a conundrum. Hidden in a Chinese box. A riddle."
The Riddler, The Long Halloween

Rossi alludes to the fact that his work is done, October 28 was a M-day for Rossi, M from Money- if the Customer was real. It was a M day. M from Marvelous for his fans and a M-day, M from Mystery for  those who want to know the Truth and want to see really well-done convincing experiments. Will such a program start?




Friday, October 28, 2011

1MW TEST: E-DAY or T-DAY for ROSSI?

1MW TEST: E-DAY or T-DAY for ROSSI?

October 28. 2011- the much hyped and waited 1MW E-cats test takes place in Bologna, after being planned first for Greece and then in the US.

Great Expectations and a lot of sympathy are generated
many people  think Andrea Rossi is a savior who has solved the energy problems of the future. He says that if this test is a success, then his mission is grosso modo accomplished.
My opinion is different and I feel it is a duty of honor and an act
of honest journalism to tell it before  the results of the test will
appear on the Web presented by Rossi himself, by an still unknown AP journalist, by Stirling Allan from PESN, by Daniele Passerini
and probably by some people living in the neighborhood of Rossi’s
place who will or will not see a volcano of steam in action.

Many people want that this should be an E-Day, a historic day for Energy. I think this has to be first of all a T-Day, a day when we know the Truth, how far is the E-cat, alone or so collectively as in today’s setup, 156 active cores combined, from being a real energy
saource, a commercial product? I think it is quite far and there are
a lot of problems to be solved, tens of parameters to be discovered
and optimized, thousands of man-hours to be spent for development.
Actually in http://egooutpeters.blogspot.com/2011/08/anticipating-1mw-demo.html I wrote about this Demo and have told that Rosai claims much too high. And regarding the result of the test:

if Rossi demonstrates he can offer a commercially mature generator, able to compete with those already on the market,
this would be a real triumph, BUT if he fails- please notice! this will NOT be a catastrophe, will NOT push back LENR research with 20 years- NO, if Rossi’s demo fails, then Rossi’s demo has failed, that’s all. LENR is viable, is developing and has a great future, with or without Rossi...”

I have abstained than from telling that the combination of 330  small E-cats is anti-technical, but will do it now when “only” 156 cores are forced to work together and I accept the responsibility for this statement.

You know my friends, I am not a superstitious individual, however I have sometimes the impression that the Web gives some anticipative answers to my explicit or implicit questions- or tries simply to give me some suggestions. This morning at the site of one of my favorite uber-bloggers, the Canadian painter Robert Genn I found the following quote:

Any ideal system is its own worst enemy, and as soon as you start to implement visions of grandeur, they just fall apart and turn into tyranny." (Ben Nicholson)
This is for political systems and I have a long and painful experience with this. But idealistic systems are bad and dangerous in all cases and for thinking they turn not only in domination but in  great lies too.
Now, Andrea Rossi has tried from the very start to impose an idealistic situation- an E-cat already heating a space for two long years, high power production= 12-15 kW, “very” over-unity, O/U around 200. Then the E-cat has evoluted and involuted, progressed and regressed in the same time. I think he had to sacrifice performance for control and that this was  a pessimisation phase in the global optimization action. Simply told, the product is not ready for the market.
This essay is already too long and soon (or not so soon) we will start get some info and disinfo. So I have to conclude saying that the known facts push me to think that the  Test is not  fake, but the Customner is fake, with a very high probability. Who will accept such a short test, who sends Consultants for leading such a risky experiment?
The world needs solid, reliable, well done experiments made in the natural order (individual generators first), not shows. Realism not idealistic fairy tales for adults.

Saturday, October 22, 2011

INFORMAVORE's SUNDAY No 478

My Dear Friends,

I still hope you will multiply successfully and disseminate INFORMAVORE’s SUNDAY everywhere even if the time
of this type of newsletters is, more or less, over. I am thinking
about how to increase the immediacy of the information I am
sending to the world. But first I want to arrive to issue 500.

You can find many good papers here- especially about thinking
and social sites.
In the real World, the Crisis is still our bad neighbor and the world
is increasingly suffering from chronic Probletence-  but eventually a very resistant dictator was lynched and has learned that the inevitable happens. But not only such things happen and this makes the world really interesting/

Very truly yours,
Peter


SEARCH

INTERNET

 

Mary Meeker’s Internet Trends 2011 — Global, Mobile, and Immersive:


SEARCH & FIND: What, where, how.  
  
Use Clicker to track your favorite TV shows:

 

50 Kick-Ass Websites You Need to Know About:

                                    
BLOGS and SOCIAL SITES

Social Media- video:

10 Truths about Social Media & Social Business you need to know: http://thebrandbuilder.wordpress.com/2011/10/18/10-truths-about-social-media-social-business-you-need-to-know/



Social Media Report: Spending Time, Money and Going Mobile:


A Social-Media Decoder New technology deciphers— and empowers—the millions who talk back to their televisions through the Web:


GOOGLE

 

G oogle's Brin touts company's focus and research:



How Google’s self driving car works:

A new look for Gmail:                    http://googlesystem.blogspot.com/2011/10/new-look-for-gmail.html


WORDS, BOOKS, LIBRARIES

Ambiguous words:

 

Shakesperae Insult Kit:

Free Audio Books: The Top Eight Websites:


 

Reading a Book Versus a Screen: Different Reading Devices, Different Modes of Reading?:                   http://infodocket.com/2011/10/20/reading-a-book-versus-a-screen-different-reading-devices-different-modes-of-reading/


SCIENCE

How Touch and Movement Contribute to the Development of the Brain: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111014080017.htm

 

Young Human-Specific Genes Correlated With Brain Evolution:

 

Unexplained communication between brain hemispheres without corpus callosum: http://www.feedblitz.com/f/f.fbz?Preview=594480#1

 

IQ Is Not Fixed in the Teenage Brain: http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2011/10/iq-is-not-fixed-in-the-teenage-b.html?ref=em&elq=a0289ffc61a54d40ac9795253862b5e7


CENtral Science:  http://cenblog.org/

 

A New Discipline Emerges: The Psychology of Science:

 

New Evidence for the Oldest Oxygen-Breathing Life On Land:



Interpreting Bloodstaim Patterns:

Fingerprinting:

 

Microbes help giant pandas overcome meat-eating heritage Researchers find the microorganisms that help bears digest bamboo: http://www.nature.com/news/2011/111017/full/news.2011.596.html?WT.ec_id=NEWS-20111018

 

EmTech: Get Ready for a New Human Species Now that we can rewrite the code of life, Darwinian evolution can't stop us, says investor Juan Enriquez:


Science shot..an anti-aphrodisiac:

Researchers reveal baby-killer birds:



TECHNOLOGY

Interesting news on Technology, Web and Internet:
http://www.blogsdna.com/about-us/ (I have subscribed to this)

 

A Fish of an Idea.  Analyzing swimming schools of fish inspired a California biophysicist to try to improve the performance of wind turbines:

 

Plastic Fantastic: The Future of Biodegradables:

 

Industrial By-Products Upgraded Into Fuel:


Three new developments in creating better grapheme:

Kinect Turns Any Surface Into a Touch Screen Researchers combine a Kinect sensor with a pico projector to expand the possibilities for interactive screens.: http://www.technologyreview.com/computing/38933/?nlid=nlcomp&nld=2011-10-19

 

Seeing Through Walls: New Radar Technology Provides Real-Time Video of What’s Going On Behind Solid Walls:


EDUCATION, CULTURE, ART

Why the  Scientific Revolution Happened:

Use the Khan Academy to learn almost anything for free:

Musical aptitude relates to reading ability: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111016212019.htm

 

Infographic – The Science of Peer Pressure:


Forgetting Is Part of Remembering::



Geography quizzes:

The 50 coleest fictional cities:


Thinking Europe without thinking

Neo-colonial discourse on and in the western Balkans:

Nuanced thinking:

 

Why We're at War With Ourselves: Understanding Racism as an Introduction to Psychology: http://bigthink.com/ideas/40646



…a thousand words:                            http://culturaloffering.com/2011/10/20/--a-thousand-words.aspx

The psychology of bribery:

 

Why Does God Love Beards?A discussion of facial hair in world religions:

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2011/10/many_religions_require_their_men_to_grow_beards_why_does_god_lik.html.


BUSINESS


Learning not to compete:

 

How to Punish Corporate Wrongdoers to Deter Bad Behavior


Learning, changing and thinking:

http://www.jarche.com/2011/10/learning-changing-and-thinking/

 

Competing for the Global Middle Class Three types of companies are jockeying for position in emerging economies, seeking to capture the loyalty of billions of new consumers:



13 tips for setting performance:

Larry Summers: Conscience is the Knowledge That Someone is Watching: http://bigthink.com/ideas/40292

There’s Enough Math in Finance Already. What’s Missing is Imagination. http://bigthink.com/ideas/40649?page=all


Creativity is a vital skill for leaders:                                   http://people-equation.com/creativity-is-a-vital-skill-for-leaders/

Get things done:


HEALTH & MEDICINE

Hidden Genetic Influence on Cancer Discovered: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111013121514.htm

Bioengineering to Generate Healthy Skin: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111017075511.htm

Molecules to Medicine: Clinical Trials for Beginners:

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/2011/10/06/molecules-to-medicine-clinical-trials-for-beginners/


 

Drunkorexia:' A Recipe for Disaster:


FOOD & COOKING

 

All for one aim: Multi-pronged approach to fight hunger:

 

Agricultural Development Key to Ending Hunger in Africa:

 

Global Meat Production and Consumption Continue to Rise:

 




Laser Makes Sure Food Is Fresh:

 

Taste buds- complementary flavors (visualization): http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/visualizations/taste-buds/

Food Without Preservatives -- Thanks to Self-Cleaning Equipment:


MISCELLANEA

 

Psychopathic Killers: Computerized Text Analysis Uncovers the Word Patterns of a Predator

 

You Tube Insult Generator:


SELECTED NEWS

SPAM & SPYWARE   

VIRUSES & e-CROOKS

 

A Brief History of Malware; The First 25 Years:

 

Six most memoravble viru s mistakes: http://antivirus.about.com/od/whatisavirus/tp/antivirusmistakes.htm?nl=1

 

Debunking Antivirus Conspiracy Theories

The Business Side of Malware

http://antivirus.about.com/od/whatisavirus/a/malwarebusiness.htm?nl=1

 

The Criminal Cloud Criminals are using cloud computing to share information and to superpower their hacking techniques: http://www.technologyreview.com/business/38720/?nlid=nlbus&nld=2011-10-21

 

New Malware Brings Cyberwar One Step Closer Stuxnet-like code found on industrial machines in Europe may have performed reconnaissance in preparation for attack:. http://www.technologyreview.com/computing/38955/?nlid=nldly&nld=2011-10-21

 

Smartphone malware could identify words typed on nearby keyboards:                                   http://www.gizmag.com/spiphone-identifies-keyboard-typing/20220/

 

Top 10 Best Free Online Virus Scanners

  

WiFi

 

New Google Smart Phone Recognizes Your Face The Galaxy Nexus phone includes face unlocking, improved voice recognition, and touch-sharing.