Color at the End of the Tunnel for Radiation Detection

 
This is a pretty big breakthrough in nuclear emissions detection technology.  It could be a real game changer for detecting difficult to measure emissions from special nuclear material.  Who would have ever thought that color would be the key?

High-Tech Paint Turns Any Surface Into a Battery

My buddy Clay sent me this link about some cool research taking place at Rice Univ. where a paint has been developed that can store electrical energy like a battery.  Just think, solar cells on the roof of your car and battery paint on the hood and trunk.

The down-side is that mixing the paint is right up there with the hazards of working in a meth lab.

Prometheus - Mythology Stimulating Scientific Discovery

Emory University Professor David Lynn is an internationally-recognized researcher and teacher in the general areas of molecular recognition, bioorganic chemistry and chemical biology. Watch as he discuses how stories and mythology help to stimulate the human imagination and push us to greater scientific discoveries all within the context of Ridley Scott's film Prometheus (2012).

The Heart of Matter

An overview of current research in nuclear physics.

Curiosity's Seven Minutes of Terror

This video is a followup and a behind the scenes look at the technical challenge to getting the Curiosity to land safely on the surface of Mars.  It appears to be very difficult.  There is no margin of error.  Keep you fingers crossed.

The First 100-Watt LED Bulb

Hitachi Appliances will release the 100-watt LED light bulb in July.  No information on the cost.  I'll be Germany is interesting in a few truckloads.

Dept. of Energy Releases New Video Looking at Cleanup Along the Columbia River

Interesting video showing the cleanup effort at the Hanford Nuclear Site in Washington State.  I had an assignment at the site in the mid-90s to do a study on some of the sludge at the bottom of a spent fuel pool.  They are a long way and a few billion dollars from finishing the cleanup effort.  The legacy of the Manhattan Project is creating work for generations. 

Top 10 Ways to Get Free Wi-Fi Anywhere You Go

Today's post is sort of a milestone.  It's my 800th post on this blog.  I've made an effort to be fairly consistent about posting something every two or three days.  I hope my research as been interesting and useful for most readers.

At the end of May I bought my blushing bride a new iPad.  She loves it.  I decided to get the Wi-Fi only model with 64 GB.  The display is as impressive as all the written hype.  It is about the best hand-held device I've seen for watching videos.  No problems with battery life.

That being said, click here to read about some creative ways to get free Wi-Fi.

Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity Rover Animation

One of the most ambitious NASA probe missions so far.  Great animation sequences.

The Known Universe

A video of the world's most complete four-dimensional map of the known universe.  Wow!

The 6 Creepiest Lies the Food Industry is Feeding You

This is disturbing.  Even before I read this article, I have done my best to avoid eating anything from China, but that may be only the tip of the proverbial iceberg.

Kurt Sorensen Interviews MSR Guru Paul Haubenreich

Paul Haubenreich and Alvin Weinberg made history in the 50's, 60's and 70's at Oak Ridge National Laboratory developing, testing, and proving the concept of the Molten Salt Breeder Reactor.  Kurt Sorensen is on a mission to revive the technology to be part of the next generation of nuclear power generating reactors.  If it were not for all the lusting for plutonium in the weapons complex, nuclear power would be safer and more firmly established world wide.

Faulty Testing by Mitsubishi on the San Onofre Steam Generator Tubes

This is not good news for the So. Cal. Edison and their customers.  Probably the safest option is to replace the steam generators, but I'm sure it will be the most costly.  In the mean time, there may be a big sucking sound in the area as more natural gas gets diverted to electric power production.

Wasteland: The 50-Year Battle to Entomb Our Toxic Nuclear Remains

This detailed article covers a lot of ground and presents excellent graphics and some videos.  I would be surprised if Continuing Education Credits are  not offered upon  completion.

US Coal Use Falling Fast

The economics of natural gas and the environmental issues of coal burning for the production of electricity in the USA has caused a shift in most utilities.  The share of electricity coming from coal is expected to fall below 40% for the year.  Four years ago it was 50%.  That's big.

Harold Urey's Lunar Landing Sites (1961)

My graduate research professor, Paul K. Kuroda lectured often on some of Harold Urey's work.  They corresponded frequently over three decades.  Professor Urey was the scientist who coined the term "cosmochemstry" for the new discipline in the 1950s concerning the science of geochemistry as applied to extraterrestrial bodies.

Much of Kuroda's research was focused on the origin of the chemical elements and the mysterious isotopic anomalies of xenon in meteorites, which is a specialized area of cosmochemistry.  There was a lot of interest in the xenon isotopic distribution in lunar materials, which was compared to terrestrial and meteorite minerals.  Kuroda was able to predict the existence of extinct Pu-244 in the early solar system based on mass spectroscopic analysis of stable fission products in meteorites in the 1960s.

How Tim Cook is Changing Apple

Steve Jobs' successor is making his mark and trying to keep the Apple magic going.  Click here to read the story in Fortune.

10 Bets That You Will Always Win

What America Spends on Groceries

An article in the Planet Money Blog at NPR states that we spend less money today on groceries than we did 30 years ago.  Look at how the breakdown of money spent on food groups has changed.  Amazing.  No wonder we are in an obesity battle.

How to Lease Your Own Home Solar Power System

Here is an interesting approach to getting an affordable home solar power system.  If the price for solar cells drops enough in time for the solar tax subsidies expiration in 2016, this could be fairly popular.  I would also want a switch that would let me take my system off the grid anytime I wanted.

The New Internet Opened for Business Last Wednesday

Did you miss it?  I did.  The Internet was about to run out of IP addresses and this fixed the problem.  Click here to learn more.

Bizarro For the Day

Germany's Nuclear Phase-Out

Germany has it's hands full and it's wallet out as the German government and power industry try to find a way to transition to all nuclear power plants being phased-out by 2020.  It will not be easy and it will certainly not be cheap.

On Facebook 'Likes' Become Ads

The personal data mining continues on Facebook.  Click here to read about how your name and face could become the material for ads on Facebook.  It is amazing how freely we are giving ourselves to the marketplace and who knows what all else.  It's crazy, even this linked article has a 'Like' button.

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