ca9i

Adios

Thu, 24 Jan 2008 12:52:53 GMT

Hi everyone/Bi everyone,

It has been fun but I must be going. Numerous passwords to various accounts have been hacked so I am shutting down all my accounts. Therefore I urge you to delete me off your friends list in order to avoid the interest of whatever hacker nitwit is bugging me.

I shall leave this up for a few days before deleting the journal.

Regards

Making Junkies Healthier?!?

Thu, 10 Jan 2008 11:58:31 GMT

Chinese scientists have sussed 400(give or take) genes that make people addicted. to drugs. This is seen as welcome news! The idea seems to be that it will make possible to make druggies healthier!

I'm not so sure this is a good idea. Having shared accommadation with druggies & junkies I appreciate them having an achilles heel.

After all we're talking a lot of junkies are of a sort who have very little morals before they get addicted. I live with such people.

These are the sort of people who constantly play loud music at 3-5 in the morning, steal my food, money, personal possessions, threaten me with my Sabatiers(cheap barstards can't even buy they're own knives to attack me with), go through my mail, sell my credit detals to thier friends in India who buy Baht with it(you try explaining to the police that you're not an international drugs dealer) and are generally a pain in the arse.

They're not important enough to police or local prosecution authorities to put away for any length of time when caught breaking the law. they're rarley regarded as anything more noxious than 'ill' and have this ludicrous street cred, normally attributed to them by people who don't have to live with them.

Cure them? Fuck that! I like them slow & ill & weak. Makes them easier to pummel when they come after you with knives.

(White light) Don't you know it fills...

Fri, 28 Dec 2007 20:44:50 GMT

Amphetamine, NH2, has long been held to be the space-age drug of choice for those that wanted to work all day & party all night from the 1930's on. Tmes moved on but it was still the choice of those who had visions of the future. Velvet Underground bashed out ther classic track 'White Light ' that celebrated the drug. Of course over the recent ears there are those of us who aren't so enchanted with Speed after to having to share our neghbourhood with schizophrenic amhetamine users, not too mention our property:/

But I'd like to pose a question...

How long do you think it will be before someone 'cooks' n entertaining mix of amphetamine & the brain hormone called Orexian A?

Picked this up off a Wired News Header so I'm sure you've aready seen this.

Is this the new nasty drug for the future?

Statutory Silliness

Fri, 21 Dec 2007 17:44:22 GMT

Eek!

Recently after I agreed to take her international post to the post office one of my extremly unnatractive(not talking about looks) co-tentants hugged me while I was carrying some breakables(removing all chances of evasive manuvers) and offered to reward me by "raping" me.

It was as ridiculous as watching one of my fat, beery, friends insisting that some ethereal beauty was 'gagging for it'!' and particular desirous of having said sweaty oik 'sort them out'.

Some people are optimistic, some people are delusional and some people are so out of touch as to be on another planet.

Creationist Kills Evolution Debate

Mon, 17 Dec 2007 18:37:52 GMT

Fundamental Christian Essex finds a new friend while on a busman's holiday in New Sth Wales, AU picking fruit.

Striking up a friendship while working together Alexander York from Essex shares a few drinks with his new friends Rudi Boa, and girlfriend Gillian Brown, down the local pub. But the conversation leads onto 'Creationism'. Alexander York is a Fundamental Christian and supporter of 'Creationism'. Rudi Boa is a scientist and is not. An arguement ensues and carries on to the camp site where Rudi Boa is stabbed to death by Alexander York.
Link here!

I thought the judge may of been easy on Alexander York because he is a 'Christian'. Would he of been so easy on him if he were a Fundamental... Muslim? And York's argument that he had a kinive because he was preparing food... for people he arguing with? To be honest if I am having an argument with anyone and I have a knive in my hand my first reaction is to put the knive down especially if I'm drunk.

What can I say Alexander York may be right; there is no evolution- at least not in Essex:/

Not warm!

Fri, 14 Dec 2007 11:58:05 GMT

It was cold yesterday.

My shower runs hot & cold on it's own- do I complain? No. I wash many of my, not excessively, dirty plates in cold water(when they're not greasy) to save on energy. I walk around indoors in a shirt & jeans when everyone else is wearing several layers of thermals. So how would I know that it was cold yesterday?

Despite my, self imposed, resilience, my feet are blocks of ice this time of year. But it was so cold yesterday that in my general discomfort I completely forgot about how uncomfortable my feet was!

Well, It is Decvember. With any luck we will soon have snow...

which will turn to slush.

God I love central heating

Happy Burger, sir? That'll £5.50 & your 1st Born. Have nice day:)

Thu, 13 Dec 2007 18:18:03 GMT

I remember when McDonalds led the campaign to take the High Street. Claiming that they would reinforce local identity and uphold local architectural traditions Mcdonalds and other companies were allowed to erect shoddy & tasteless(much like their food) buildings which did more to proclaim their corporate identity than make any contribution to local culture.

If one is in any doubt that such corporations have no other intention than to exploit the public then the article in The Guardian, this Wednesday, should dispel that.

McDonalds drive-through customers pay £125 for taking more than 45-minute minnutes to eat a meal.

Fancy a pied a terre in the North Sea?

Mon, 10 Dec 2007 19:33:03 GMT

I often point to the rising sea levels as a primary factor that any state or corporate would have to consider if it wanted an industrial base in the future.

It seems the Dutch, who keep a closer & more rational eye on this subject, are considering their terrafroming technolgy options for the future.
Link here!

The Dutch parliment is asking a commission to examine the feasibility of building, Dutch territory, islands out in the North Sea.

But this isn't just vapourware to beguile the Dutch voters- who are keen for any residential property. The Dutch firm, Boralis has a successful history of building islands out at sea and would probably be the first choice to head any such project.

Cancer or Schizophrenia - take your pick

Sun, 09 Dec 2007 15:38:48 GMT

I'm often enthralled by futurists that espouse a briliiant future where everyone's happy.

I've always believed that one pays for what one gets, one way or another. And those wacky guys at the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, Boca raton, Florida, US seem to agree with me. They've just come up with some research that suggests that if you are schizophrenic you're less likely to suffer from cancer and vice versa.

Link here!

So for all those futurists that believe we'll be able to chose our own bodies or at least take the gene therapy until we get we want they have choice: Cancer or Schizophrenia:)

Now there's a happy thought with which to start the week:p

Racing Extinction

Thu, 06 Dec 2007 18:48:02 GMT

New, rare and threatened species discovered in Ghana's unique tropical forest in Western Africa

It's often been said that there are more flora & fauna on the planet than can possibly catalogued. A point often used by detractors of 'green' politics.

But the idea that the enviroment will forever be a bottomless resource of food ,medicines & raw materials despite all the crap we dump into it is the philosophy of 'Feast today, famine tomorrow'.

So when we do find new species or in this case a plethora of new species that are already facing extinction
it should be a wake up call.

Congestion charge causing two wheel accidents?

Sat, 18 Aug 2007 09:45:55 GMT

Just saw this. At first it looked like there might be some correlation between the Congestion Charge in London and the rise in accidents for two wheels vehicles.

The London congestion charge may be having an adverse effect on motorcyclist and cyclist casualties, according to research now published online in the journal Transportation.

Imperial College London and Loughborough University researchers found an increase of up to 40 more motorcycling casualties per month during the congestion charging period (from 7am-6.30pm) for inner London, excluding the congestion zone. However, they also found a drop of 5.6 motorist casualties per month in the congestion charging zone since the charge was introduced

Check out the article in Eureka Alert

But then I realise the rising rate of commuters taking to two wheels to get to the station for London or just bilking it all the way to work. That's right; noobs.

This is down to a lot of guys and girls checking out bikes & motorbikes and saying to themselves:
"that looks cool, can't be too hard then."

If you are an experienced two wheeler road user now might be a good time to make friends with these 'noobs'. Why? Because most of them fall into the yuppie demographic and those guys really make a fuss when they think they're getting the short end of the stick. Befriending them will (1: keep them alive & (2: incorporate them into a demographic that'll insist on better quality of services for two wheel users and more better recognition by insurance companies & the law of two wheelers contribution to road safety and general good manners. Two wheel drivers have a far lower rate of drunken drivers that kill other people. If they get anyone killed it's mostly themselves. They are very thoughtful that way:p

Robocop, that little bit closer to being on the streets

Thu, 16 Aug 2007 15:50:53 GMT

OK Anyone who wanted robocop in their burg? Now's your chance to lobby City Hall to allocate cash out of the budget for one.

Massachusetts State Police, SWAT teams in Houston, San Francisco, and Lubbock, TX all have the robots, according to Foster-Miller spokesperson Cynthia Black.

Story from Wired News

Link to my original post on this in cyberpunk

Ahhhh

Wed, 15 Aug 2007 18:53:53 GMT

Saw this offered somewhere on the internet(I'm not posting the address I don't think the poster needs the abuse:P)

I had to post it here though...

"
OFFERED: Kama Sutra (SW2)

The love teachings of Kama Sutra....
Got left at my house ages ago and i have just found it and have no use
for it. If anyone wants it let me know

Dont be shy...

"

I found it particularly touching that she says "have no use for it."

Teeny Robocop

Tue, 10 Jul 2007 18:14:17 GMT

There's been lots of news on robots being developed for policing so this is hardly news but perhaps iRobot has come up with a taser model cheap enough for civilian police authorities & security companies to afford?

I find it amusing that on nearly every newsite covering this story is the insistence is on how safe and non-lethal this taser carrying robot will be. That being the case why go on about it so much?

"Buy my African violets! They are perfectly safe!" :D

I've listed the links in order of decent pics:)

Katu

KPHO.com Vid

MSNBC

Newsfeedresearcher.com very good source on the subject

Teddy to the Rescue :)

Mon, 11 Jun 2007 17:49:40 GMT

The early report of a bear like robot in 'New Scientist' struck me as hype typical to the magazine

One assumes that the journalist in question just 'Ctrl+C' & 'Ctrl+V' the main body of company promotional material. Lo & behold the following copy, which is absolutely typical of the sort of sub-standard journalism that one has come to expect nowadays.

"The prototype Bear torso can lift more than...."

But what's wrong with that I hear you ask?

Well either the BBC journo had some friends who were inclined to be a bit more honest or they were just more careful about reporting this- like waiting for some photos to be faxed through:p The 'bear' appellation actually comes from the acronym 'BEAR' (The Battlefield Extraction Assist Robot ). BBC 'BEAR' story.

Of course someone at the New Scientist might have got a glimpse of a blow-up photo of the robot's head which does have some anthropomorphic teddy-bear-like qualities and thought 'Bear!' Well, that and one too many G&T's in the local hostelry while 'researching' the story.

But there are possibilities for the idea of a rescue robot. Especially if all recent advances in the technology are utilized...

New Scientist: Pack Collaborating Rescue Robots

New Scientist: Swarming Docking Rescue Robots

And here's the Vecna 'Bear' page so you can better check it out yourself

Watery Grave:p

Tue, 10 Apr 2007 11:44:44 GMT

In so_very_doomed 'jezebel873' sez:

"Old graves sinking beneath rising Chesapeake Bay"

Couldn't get my head round the actual physical realities of this. Don't know Virginia. So I looked it up on 'googlemap'

Everything seemed OK there. Then I remembered the 'firetree' hack:

Whoops. There ya go!

Brazil ethanol makes good. Oil punk, Bush goes to 'fix' it

Sun, 11 Mar 2007 16:34:32 GMT

Good old boys send their punk to let the new fish know who's running the joint

"Hi sweetcheeks.

Do we know each other? Sure we do;) You must know me!? I'm the texas oil bitch:D"

"The guys just want you to understand that they're happy for the 10% of you to scrape a few crumbs out of your ethanol development but as far as competing with US goes? Remember, we still own your ass & can call in the debt anytime."

"Also the boys don't care how you do it but keep those homies of yours under control, huh?"

More on this: The Gaurdian & Tribe
Mwa, mwa. Ciao;)"

Brazilian Biofuels

BBC News

Telegraph

It hardly seems credible that news services are reporting Bush's visit to Brazil to view & discuss the production of sugar cane ethanol as just a friendly visit from the country that has imposed punitive duties on Brazilian ethanol.

Mr Rubens Barbosa, former Brazilian ambassador in Washington was quoted:
"The duties that the US imposes on ethanol is nearly equal to the price of production, yet Brazil is so competitive that we are exporting directly to the United States, despite the duty."

So a successful ethanol production program in Brazil could encourage the rest of the third world to do the same and, thus, threaten the western industrial-military complex's headlock on the energy market.

Also in the same article Alfred Szwarc of the Sao Paulo sugar growers' association (UNICA) says the current US trade position penalises renewable fuels while rewarding fossil fuels. It should, he said, be the other way around.

Is it likely that the same energy industry that backed Bush & the Gulf Wars in order to get priority concessions are likely to now take a soft diplomatic approach to a neighboring continent that they've been raping for decades??

"Hey, all you latinos. Forget that we've been screwing you over for, oh I don't know how long, just sign any piece of paper we put in front of you and it'll all be a groovey love-in"
Sounds copacetic, no?

Also take into account the statements discouraging any investment or interest in Brazilian ethanol energy from nominated UN Environment Programme, Achim Steiner's by the notorious Ex-Secretary-General Kofi Annan:

"If global expansion of biofuels takes place without right now at the beginning looking at sustainability criteria, we may very well risk having a setback."

The professional relationship between Achim Steiner and Ex-Secretary-General Kofi Annan is questionable at best.

From the pen of ardent thatcherite, Dr Nile Gerdiner:
"Questions also remain regarding Annan's appointment of German activist Achim Steiner as Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) just months after Steiner helped award Annan $500,000.[7]Steiner, whose four-year term of office began in June 2006, was part of a nine-member jury chaired by a senior U.N. official, which gave a cash gift to Annan last December."

Smells like BS to me

This scenario is shaping up to be another piece of third world-bashing by the industrial-military complex. The U.N. rarely shows imitative in these cases but head of the UN Environment Programme, Achim Steiner, in Brazil in the week leading up to the visit of President Bush argues that this new energy revolution, international norms and standards should be set to ensure that biofuels really are helping the environment, and that negative impacts are minimised.

Mr Steiner says: "If global expansion of biofuels takes place without right now at the beginning looking at sustainability criteria, we may very well risk having a setback."

Stiener argues that industry itself has an interest in sticking to strong environmental standards, to avoid a potential consumer backlash further down the line if biofuels are found to be destroying ecosystems and threatening wildlife.

Smells like BS to me

If Stiener isn't another punk of the industrial-military complex then his scriptwriters are:/

More from the Heritage foundation

In my research I was a little surprised to find that out of all the newservices the original breadhead's broadsheet seems to have at the clearest, if prejudiced, view of the subject:
Financial Times:

More relevant gloom and doom from your fellow LJ'rs...

There's a piece in 'The Blog' that relates to this but since dark_syndicate are a LJ contributers and found it first& have noted & posted the link I'm happy to link to them.

so_very_doomed: Energy industry in Sth America

so_very_doomed: Gas price rises

so_very_doomed: Repercussions of ethanol boom?

Love these guys. They can pull a cloud on the sunniest day:D

Bathroom Playtime!

Thu, 01 Feb 2007 11:39:31 GMT

No apolgies for lifting this off the BoingBoing site.

Okaay.
I know this is for kids but I'm sure consenting adults can find a better use for this product

Mommi allaways said people used to entertain themselves ina the old days and it were better too :p Jeloo wrestling at home?!?

Hmm, definately making me think about getting a larger tub in. Probably need to be reinforced, floor too :D

US military has a new 'heater'

Sat, 27 Jan 2007 15:57:45 GMT

This is weird. Not the subject but two things in a space of 30 days that I have any opinion on.

To whit:

On the BBC site I discovered that the US military have just released news of their new riot control device. A heat gun! In fact it's just a big electrical wave emitter knocking out a focused beam of 'millimeter waves'. This beam will deliver an intense heat so powerful that any demonstrators will forget what they were demonstrating about and head for the hills. No problem, right?

Well, maby that might be the case if there was more information on this device and the wavelength of the millimeter waves used. I know millimeter waves are used for radar radio astronomy and for some wifi purposes but I don't understand how millimeter waves used can be used like this. The only thing I do know is that they occupy a space between microwaves and the infra red on the electromagnetic spectrum. But there's certainly more questions than answers on this subject.

The Canadian national defence site suggest the millimeter waves are also being researched a s a surveillance tool???

One of things that concerns me about this, besides the lack of information on a 'safe weapon' to be used on civilians, is the politics of deciding how & where this device will be used and what it theater it was originally designed for.

Of the quotes from the BBC article that are worthwhile pondering over are from a Dr Wright concerned that America is developing weapons of "tuneable lethality" whereby "you can tune in the amount of pain the weapon provides, from heating to death".

(And this is for use on, supposedly, unarmed civilians.)

And then from a Bill Sweetman who questions whether the Humvee-mounted version of the ADS - a "pretty obvious target" - would be vulnerable to a rocket-propelled grenade.

This is a very interesting point since once seeing the vehicle it has an obvious profile and would certainly be a target for any weapon. So one can only suppose this device is not intended for use in the third world but in the west where demonstrators are less likely to open fire with ordnance on the device and the vehicle carrying it???

On a lighter note one of the things that made me sit up and take notice while I was surfing for info was the involvement of that Cyberpunk2020 corporation; Millitech in millimeter wave technology :)

Fancy a rubber slapper?

Tue, 23 Jan 2007 11:54:13 GMT

Fancy a rubber slapper?

OK I lifted this from BoingBoing but it still makes me smile.

If english isn't your first language then you probably wouldn't know that a slapper is slang:

slapper

Noun. 1. A sexually promiscuous woman. Derog.
2. A contemptible woman.

So when i saw the link in BoingBoing to the post in Modern Mechanics on the police use of Rubber Slappers I found it particularly amusing since the term can not only be used to describe a crude, laviscous, charmless female but is a popular instrument withing the communities.
And rubber slappers have also been used for some time as a, fairly, safe instrumnet for administering punishment for some time now:
Check link

Not a rubber fetishist myself but all this talk of rubber slappers has got me in the mood for some dodgy slut wrapped up in rubber:) But where to find one? Ah, I know, I'll ask a policeman! :)

Censorship in dictatorial regimes

Fri, 18 Aug 2006 19:25:09 GMT

The Chinise goverment has a long history of censoring freespeech. This time the Chinese Goverment has 'made up' some new rules that websites cannot distribute short films without prior government approval.

Check link below...
http://www.boingboing.net/2006/08/16/china_cracks_down_on.html

And even tibetans 'safe'in Dharamsala, India cannot evade the pernicious Chinese censorship.
Check link below...
http://www.wired.com/news/technology/internet/0,71617-0.html?tw=wn_index_3

Good thing that we don't have to worry about non-elected goverments in the west making up (& breaking) the law as it goes along to stop the regular folks accessing communications technology...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/12/AR2006081200692.html

Oops, my bad!

Uplift?

Fri, 18 Aug 2006 15:53:08 GMT

Recent discovery may lead scientists to research to 'make apes intelligent'.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-08/uoc--ndg081006.php

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-08/uoc--bgs081506.php

The ancient greeks surmised that Atlantis had monkey servants.
And barring the 'Planet of the Apes' and 'Animal Farm' as a nightmare scenario, animal servants have long been a popular subject of fiction.

Is it possible that we now have the technology within our sight if not our grasp to 'uplift' hereforeto 'dumb' beasts?

Check link...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uplift_Universe

Smart Police in 'liquid bomb 'plot?

Sat, 12 Aug 2006 15:50:36 GMT

On 10 August, 2006 newservices announced UK police had busted a plot to bomb UK planes to US.

On 10 August, 2006 newservices announced UK police had so badly bungled the Daminola Taylor murder investigation that it took 6 years for the legal system to convict the murderers.

Do these two statements seem somehow contradictory of the UK police's competence?

Because in every newsservice that has covered this story the one thing that catches my eye is that the 'terrorists' are said to to have 'planned' to bomb several planes and are said to have 'planned' to to use a 'liquid bomb'. I have not read or heard of one news story where the police have produced a 'liquid bomb', or the chemicals to make it, as evidence.

I don't doubt for one moment that there are many angry muslims who talk about militant action and even talk about thier 'plans'. I 'plan' to win the lottery. On the strength of my 'plans' surely my bank can follow the goverment's example and take my 'plans' as a serious and real force in the world and loan me the cash to buy that new porsch? Or am I just being silly?

This reminds me of the Birmingham Pub bombs episode. 6 men were arrested for it, jailed and later released because there was "insufficient evidence" to convict. It was a spin job by the UK goverment to put Irish republibcanism in a bad light. One wonders if, in years to come, the same will be revealed of all these 'islamic attacks' on the west.

Investigation into the Birmingham Pub bombs has never been satisfactory. Especially the allegations that Special branch in colllusion with the UDA 'arranged' for radicals to have in thier possession explosives and 'directions' from the IRA. Is it at all possible that the liquid bombs exist only in the mind if the UK security services's imagination?

Misinformation spin on 9/11 conspiracys on their way

Thu, 10 Aug 2006 18:39:03 GMT

Just picked up an article on CNN. It's a 'neutral' reporting of the 9/11 conspiracy phenomenon. Check link below...
http://www.cnn.com/2006/EDUCATION/08/06/sept11.theories.ap/index.html

The article takes no obvius bias but in the article it uses a sub-header in bold:

" 'It's not really science' "

And follows with

"But some worry the academic background of the group could do that anyway.

Members of the conspiracy community "practically worship the ground [Jones] walks on because he's seen as a scientist who is preaching to their side," said FR Greening, a Canadian chemist who has written several papers rebutting the science used by September 11 conspiracy theorists.

"It's science, but it's politically motivated. It's science with an ax to grind, and therefore it's not really science." "

There's no such thing as unmotivated science- loads of people working in the hard and soft sciences has an act to grind. I hope they do. It's bad enough to be on the receiving end of a clerk's sarcasm but the idea that none of the people researching new medicines, pollution-free fuels, better housing technologies don't give a $hit about the work they would be f*cking depressing.

The phrase " 'It's not really science' " is a loaded statement designed to stick in the mind. Look out for it, you will see it again where 9/11 conspiracys are mentioned in the future.

On the other hand I wouldn't look to Kevin Barrett or any of his associates as gurus. When misinformation spins are invested in by the great and powerful they choose their targets very carefully. Should he be discredited thereafter all 9/11 conspiracy data will be suggested to originate from him or any of his advocates.

A slightly less slanted article on the same subject...
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/08/06/national/a203046D91.DTL&hw=9%2F11+Conspiracies&sn=001&sc=1000

For myself while I am in no way 100% convinced the US Gov, or factions within, conspired to bring about the 9/11 disaster there are many questions I would like to have answered like...

Exactly what happened to the pentagon that day?

When are the public to have access to the forensic evedence of both disasters?

Robot on-the-ball !

Thu, 10 Aug 2006 17:38:31 GMT

At last a development in robots that move, independantly. While all those bipedal robots were interesting none of them ever quite looked like anything more than a clockwork toy.

Carnegie Mellon University researchers, Mssrs Lauwers, Kantor, Mampetta, Schearer, Karthikeyan and Hollis have decide to go the route of another toy -a ball rather than legs.

Check link below for more info(also pretty pictures/vids!)...

http://www.msl.ri.cmu.edu/projects/ballbot/