A group of people are working on Open Source modular tools that can help communities build a modern village in the third world. It appears that making these tools is on average 8 times cheaper than buying the ready built tools from manufacturers and the group is making the plans for these tools [...]]]>

A group of people are working on Open Source modular tools that can help communities build a modern village in the third world. It appears that making these tools is on average 8 times cheaper than buying the ready built tools from manufacturers and the group is making the plans for these tools available on the net as they are developed.

The Open Source Ecology site, Global Village Construction Set, contains the full set of plans and documentation developed so far.

The units encompass modern component making units like a 3D printer and Plastic Extrusion as well as basic hydroponics and industrial tools.

A project worth watching.

Seems like a technique created for food may be applicable to medical use. Scientists are proposing that the technique used to preserve sushi can be used on human organs. Making longer term storage viable.

Normally, when something is frozen ice crystals form and as they form they expand, rupturing the cell walls and [...]]]>

Seems like a technique created for food may be applicable to medical use. Scientists are proposing that the technique used to preserve sushi can be used on human organs. Making longer term storage viable.

Normally, when something is frozen ice crystals form and as they form they expand, rupturing the cell walls and destroying the tissue. This new technique fast freezes them and stops the crystals forming. Thus making their restoration viable and opening the way for long term storage and, eventually, a bank of replacement organs where you could search for organ compatibility. Viable tissue will now be retained for future use and not discarded as medical waste.

From what it says I suspect that this process could also be used to cryogenically freeze people near death and restore them when a cure comes along or viable donor tissue is available. I wonder if someone is looking for a dying volunteer to try this in the near future. If it works then it opens up a new way for us to treat people and one that isn’t just for people like Walt Disney.

Couple this with the new methods they are looking at to dispose of bodies and you can see a scenario where at the scene of an accident they freeze you. Either preserving your body for recovery, for spares or for disposal. Frightening really. I wouldn’t like my slightly injured frozen body to be subject to the whims of a doctor looking for spares for Cameron or someone like that.

With all the upset with the economy, the uselessness of our political masters and they way we are lied too I see more and more people becoming activists.

Now being an activist doesn’t mean that you are like the students going out and objecting because they have to pay for their services. It [...]]]>

With all the upset with the economy, the uselessness of our political masters and they way we are lied too I see more and more people becoming activists.

Now being an activist doesn’t mean that you are like the students going out and objecting because they have to pay for their services. It means someone who is active in politics.

Of course in this day and age you don’t have to go out to cause trouble. A DOS attack seems to be a good way of making your views known. After all unless you do something everyone just ignores you. This turning the other cheek we have been brought up to believe doesn’t seem to work. The only way to make yourself known is to make noise. It works for the whingey whiney people. So it will work for us.

In the meantime lets clog up the inner workings of our society. Let’s put our sabots, shoes, in the machines. All legally though. Let’s not give plod something they can use against us. In the meantime download what you can on to your computers and encrypt them or store them on removeable drives. There are plenty of online books on there on how to sharpen sporks, make hemp rope or even make your own SMG if you feel the need to go that far.

BTW Phil Luty was in prison for producing this book. The book is one of many that can be bought over the internet. Even now nobody knows where Phil Luty is. Don’t seem to remember Mandela supporters calling for his release. It seems our politic clout is only against other governments. Ones we don’t like.

2011 is going to be the year where it all starts. I want to be ready and my sporks are sharpened.

Tilting at windmills. Yet they class this as a success as they don’t generate the electrickery in their country.

Being green still means the same as it did all them years ago. Niave and easily led.

and the wheel continues to [...]]]> Here is the way our lords and masters plan for the future.

Tilting at windmills. Yet they class this as a success as they don’t generate the electrickery in their country.

Being green still means the same as it did all them years ago. Niave and easily led.

and the wheel continues to turn.

Wikileaks had one big problem in that it was hosted in the Cloud under Amazons watchful eye. Then all of a sudden it was discovered [...]]]> It seems that if you are powerful enough you can ‘nudge’ firms into doing the right thing. Even if the right thing is actually wrong. Cameron is watching carefully.

Wikileaks had one big problem in that it was hosted in the Cloud under Amazons watchful eye. Then all of a sudden it was discovered that the data being hosted broke Amazon’s T&Cs after a quick word from a politician and Amazon threw Wikileaks off its cloud servers. Wikileaks being the paranoid organisation it is had everything all prepared for a quick swap out. So all was not lost on the web side.

How about your organisation? You got a good backup plan? Still feel comfortable about being in the cloud where you could suddenly discover that it is no different from an ISP and that you can be kicked off at any time if you are deemed persona non grata and with no recourse what so ever?

When governments start interferring in this way and big corporates just roll over because they are scared they will be next then the Internet is already under government control.

That cannot be good.

Now, I know it is simply a USB hard drive. Just like the one we use to store data. You [...]]]> Here is something to make you more secure that I was looking at doing myself a few years ago but I was unable to get it working at the time. A portable OS.

Now, I know it is simply a USB hard drive. Just like the one we use to store data. You can now get them over 64Gb with 32Mb at a very reasonable price. More than enough to put an OS on and make your system secure.

Now, you can already download mini versions of most of the OS’s which are designed to be stored on USB sticks and booted from. There are even sites on how to set up bootable USB version like XP and Linux. Search and find one that works for your system. This means that as the systems HD is not used it does not contain any data or even history of your computer work. The history and the data are, of course, stored on the USB stick.

To use, simply insert the USB stick into a powered off system that allows boot from USB. Most modern systems allow this. Boot from the USB stick. Do your work ensuring you do not save to the HD and then shutdown as usual and remove the USB. This will leave no trace on the computers HD and you have the work you wanted on the USB.

What we should also do is to erase the USB every so often, and after every major bit of work, and delete the audit trail. Rebuild again with a fresh clean USB system. Preferably from a master USB for convenience.

Of course this leads to a minor bit of inconvenience as we lose all our favourites and set ups but as you are going to only use the USB drive for controversial work it isn’t that much of an issue. You use your main PC for everyday stuff and just ensure that anything controversial is stored on the USB sticks. If you must keep the data, keep them all in a secure box and don’t forget not all USB drives look like your standard USB drive. Take case with your selection.





Plod are going to have to take your entire house when they raid. Should keep them busy for a bit.

As an added bonus USB sticks are much easier to destroy than a HD and much quicker. If you are prepared you could do so within seconds. I tried several methods for a self destruct using various methods, mechanical, electrical and chemical. Some were better than others. In my experience working with classified material the approved way to destroy them was to disassemble the drives, sand blast the disk platters and then feed the remains into a ‘chomper’. This chomper cuts everything put into it into 2mm chunks. Overkill maybe, but certainly effective.

Like everything though there are disadvantages. USB sticks get lost or damaged easily and the media in them is only good for about 1000 rewrites. So after a while they will start to fail. If you have a master and rebuild regularly simply destroy them and build a new one.

Soon HDs will be a thing of the past. Everything will be SSD (Solid State Devices) and PCs will be much smaller. This whole thing could become much easier but what are the odds on manufacturers building the SSDs into the motherboards and armouring the cases meaning that we may have to continue with USB sticks for some time to come.

Back in [...]]]> One thing that SciFi has always done which real science has avoided is to explore the make up of extraterrestrial life. SciFi leads the way with silicon life as well as life made up of energy and life so large our space ships just irritate it as a flea does to us.

Back in real life we have pretty much decided that life can only real come about in the same way we have. Thus we look for planets that fall into the kiss spot from their suns, planets that have certain percentages of CO2 and other similar criteria that the Earth used to or has.

I’ve often wondered about that. Being someone grounded in science yet having read so many books I often wonder about how our scientists can be so confident? I believe that there are different life forms out there. Maybe not as many types as there is sub species but certainly more than just a carbon based life form.

Now it appears our scientists are going to have to rethink. We have discovered a new life form on Earth. It will complicate things for them as no longer should they look at a planet and say ‘That can’t support life’ but they will instead be saying on every planet ‘That may support life’ and with Earth type planets ‘That may support life as we know it’

Personally, I think this makes little difference in reality. Until we get out there and start exploring then we will not find anything regardless if it carbon, silicon or even gold.

I think though in reality we have no real idea of how life is made up out there. Our arrogance makes us still think we are Gods chosen creatures and the centre of the universe and we could find that carbon based life forms are not as common as we think and that there are many more forms of life we have never even thought of.

I just hope that when we meet some they don’t squish us by accident or think we are a new form of fruit.

For over two decades now cars have being getting more and more electronic and more and more dependent on servicing by manufacturers and major garages, effectively driving out the [...]]]> I’ve talked before about how lately we seem to have moved into over engineering things instead of engineering new things. Remember I like things simple.

For over two decades now cars have being getting more and more electronic and more and more dependent on servicing by manufacturers and major garages, effectively driving out the old style mechanics and making home servicing or all intents and purposes impossible. No longer is there the possibility that your kid just leaving school can buy a decent fix it up motor and make it roadworthy. No points to learn and adjust, no simple distributor. All electronically controlled so you need a ton of electronic equipment just to give it a tune up and two tons if you have to do any diagnostic work.

All this is under the guise of improvements and yet as far as I can see cars still break down regularly and it seems to me that all the breakdowns are with the new improved parts. The replacement points work fine, the replacement LEDs instead of bulbs and so on are great. They have improved the parts that used to cause all the failures as they should but then they went on to complicate everything else and, IMO to increase maintenance revenues, they made the rest so complicated it screws up regularly. All the parts are return to factory swap out. Great for a garage. Less so for you when a faulty resistor for a light in the engine management system causes the system not to start until you hand over cash for a new motherboard and installation costs.

Under the guise of security they introduce immobilisers controlled by chips. The chips break and suddenly you can’t use your car. Doesn’t matter you have the key in your hand it just doesn’t work. You can no longer get a spare key from your local locksmith either. You have to pay £75 for a key instead of £5 and if you lose one you need to pay £400 for a new set of locks from the manufacturer. Now that isn’t what I call progress.

Now this isn’t just down to car manufacturers. Washing machines, dishwashers, boilers and most white goods and modern kit are built the same way. Disposable parts and nothing that can be repaired by someone outside the trade and it all costs. After all this allows manufacturers to hold courses training repairmen and only allowing spares to those that are trained and up to date. Easy money and the loser is the man on the street. This doesn’t much sound like progress to me.

And a final thought. If things go the way they seem to be going then many of these manufacturers will be going out of business or the man on the street will no longer be able to afford to spend £100 on a replacement board for his combi boiler. This means that for the want of a fix up you could be down a major item you need to live. Now let’s take that a step further and imagine you are getting in your car in the middle of the icy weather, the new global warming, and it won’t start. Do have the items in your freezing car to survive overnight when you can’t even start the engine to warm the car up.

The only problem is that they are all the same. Are any modern cars without sophisticated electronics? Looks like that 1965 Land Rover that Farmer Giles has is more practical than you think it is.

I’d always been interested in science since school and used to play about at home. I carried on from school playing with science, electronics [...]]]> One is where we use logic and facts to form conclusions and the other is where we form conclusions from what we know is right without those troublesome pesky facts.

I’d always been interested in science since school and used to play about at home. I carried on from school playing with science, electronics mainly but a bit of chemistry. I still have a bit of lab gear although my electronic equipment and components are sadly depleted. This is where I learnt my lessons on trial and error and generating a theory and testing it to prove it.

Many years ago I believed in Gun Control. It just made sense that we should control access to guns harder. It was a pain because they included me in with the plebs who didn’t deserve them. It was OK though because I then went on to be too busy bringing up a family to notice that everything got a lot worse. Later I wanted to get back into guns but found I couldn’t. The culture was demonised for our own good. The only way I could get one then was from the same people that sold drugs and I didn’t know any because I never took drugs. Bugger.

Then I read some articles by gun owners in the US on the Interweb thingy. The facts were pointed out and then I realised I had been lied to for years. They had out and out lied to me knowingly to further their own agenda.

On every other subject I read about the subject before I start getting involved be it politics, brain surgery or gardening. For some reason whinging and whining about guns, and several other subjects, were being treated as facts without a shred of evidence even by myself. Even whingey whiney people who called themselves scientists got in and talked about their views rather than confusing the issue with facts. Now of course, I like to think of anything I’m told and feed it through a common sense filter. Climate change, Gun Control, Politics, Drugs, Terrorism, Foreigners are others we don’t really analyse correctly.

Now it appears though that the scientific community is fighting back and trying to recover its good name. OK. It’s Drugs that they are looking at but it is a start. A full scientific study of the harm drugs do to society and what a surprise it is nothing like what our puritan leaders tell us. The liars, what a shocker.

Global Warming is already falling apart and it won’t be long before we get a similar debunking there and the green taxes our lords and masters are pushing for are shown as the purely money grab they are.

Hopefully, the scientific community can also have a purge of all those who have knowingly contributed to the many scams, Climate Change, Drugs, Fatty Foods, Salt, Bacon and Drink. These people do not deserve to be called scientists.

Fast forward to now. Nowhere [...]]]> Hundreds of years ago people walked on to rickety wooden ships and embarked on a journey that they knew they would not return from. They travelled to the Americas and their pioneering spirits and self sufficiency created the best society we have ever known. A golden age started then.

Fast forward to now. Nowhere on earth can you escape the grasping hands of socialists. People who do not create but drag us all into mediocrity to further their own agendas.

The next opportunity we have to do the same is when we leave this planet and move into space and it looks like that opportunity may be closer than we think. NASA is looking at sending pioneers on a one way trip to Mars.

Of course there is a significant difference between Mars and America and that is that Mars will not support life. The pioneers will need to be supplied from Earth for some time. However, once they build the units that will allow them to be self sufficient a new era will begin.

The pioneers will create the first space age society. I wonder how long it will be before they think of themselves as Martian and create their own society. Hopefully this time they will write their constitution in such a way that any whingey whiney liberals who try and subvert it will be prosecuted.

I’m tempted to volunteer myself just to get away from the petty rules and regulations being put in place here as there is nowhere on Earth that you can do that.

The future beckons but I’m not convinced the funding and will will be there to make this a reality. I think we are entering a scientific dark age where scientists are just there for political reasons such as global warming, justifying draconian legislation for our own good and not for the advancement of our species. I hope I am wrong. I’m thinking of emigrating there and I’m hoping they keep riff raff socialists out this time.