A Future Made of Carbon There are some who predicted the 21st century would bring a bio-tech revolution to change the world. That may still be true (a century's a long time these days), but I think there's another revolution that might change the world first - a materials science revolution. Specifically, carbon nanotubes, and the hugely diverse materials that can apparently be made from them.From Space Elevators to Display Panels to fighting cancer, carbon nanotubes prove their versatility. Imagine clothing made from carbon nanotubes - not only would it be bullet proof, it would be dryer proof! Virtually indestructible. And not made by human hands, it would the type of thing that eventually is produced by touching buttons on a "carbon replicator".Of course, it doesn't stop at clothing. What about building walls and car and airplane frames? Walls that are display ready? How about books? Wireless ready and electronic display books - that still feel like paper? That are indestructible? Indestructibility seems to go well with just about everything, doesn't it? How about integrating some of that into my bones? There are two more capabilities I'd like carbon nanotube materials to have - transparency and rigidity (carbon nanotube material can already be made either electrically conducting, or not, thermally conducting, or not...). If a sheet of carbon nanotubes can become transparent, then opaque, then transparent - well, now your house is just 4 steel pillars with carbon nanotube sheets stretched across - and windows everywhere whenever you like. And if it can be made rigid, then skip the steel - we'll have cars weighing 400 lbs and homes that can be packed up into your van (that gets 50mpg, btw). Oh, sorry, your wireless, internet-ready home, use any wall you like as your computer/TV.

There are some who predicted the 21st century would bring a bio-tech revolution to change the world. That may still be true (a century's a long time these days), but I think there's another revolution that might change the world first - a materials science revolution. Specifically, carbon nanotubes, and the hugely diverse materials that can apparently be made from them.

From Space Elevators to Display Panels to fighting cancer, carbon nanotubes prove their versatility. Imagine clothing made from carbon nanotubes - not only would it be bullet proof, it would be dryer proof! Virtually indestructible. And not made by human hands, it would the type of thing that eventually is produced by touching buttons on a "carbon replicator".

Of course, it doesn't stop at clothing. What about building walls and car and airplane frames? Walls that are display ready? How about books? Wireless ready and electronic display books - that still feel like paper? That are indestructible? Indestructibility seems to go well with just about everything, doesn't it? How about integrating some of that into my bones?

There are two more capabilities I'd like carbon nanotube materials to have - transparency and rigidity (carbon nanotube material can already be made either electrically conducting, or not, thermally conducting, or not...). If a sheet of carbon nanotubes can become transparent, then opaque, then transparent - well, now your house is just 4 steel pillars with carbon nanotube sheets stretched across - and windows everywhere whenever you like. And if it can be made rigid, then skip the steel - we'll have cars weighing 400 lbs and homes that can be packed up into your van (that gets 50mpg, btw). Oh, sorry, your wireless, internet-ready home, use any wall you like as your computer/TV.

An Aura that Breaks Things I once read someone's theory that magical things do happen in the world, but that some people radiate an aura that prevents such things. The result is that when the skeptics appear to debunk the magical claims, the phenomenon don't happen because skeptics tend to be these people around whom nothing magical ever happens.I like to think there is something to this theory. Some of us are very mechanically oriented, and some of us are not. I am the latter. I am such a bumbling idiot when it comes to doing simple handy-man-type tasks it's not even funny. I was talking with my father-in-law (FIL) over the weekend, describing my latest dismal failure in trying to install a semi-permanent baby gate at the top of my stairs. I couldn't find a stud to work with, and when I tried to install a wall anchor, it just ripped up the drywall. So we got talking about finding studs and how hopeless I am at it - my method of choice is to drill holes in the wall every 1/2 inch until I hit a stud. It is the only method that works for me. Of course my FIL was incredulous and asked me why I didn't just use a stud finder. Well, because I've never known one to work (I tried many many many!). They're nothing but false positives and false negatives. Of course, he wasn't satisfied with that because for him, they work perfectly.He got his stud finder and proceeded to demonstrate how well it worked, and lo - it marked out the studs on the wall at very regular, stud-like intervals (I don't know, every 16"? 18"? something like that). So then I tried it on a different wall. The entire 5 ft length apparently had no studs. Then he tried it, stud ... stud ... stud. I tried again and then I found lots of studs - every 4 inches a new stud! And mobile too! He tried again, very regular pattern. I tried moving the stud finder just like he did, but it still just didn't work for me.Am I cursed?

I once read someone's theory that magical things do happen in the world, but that some people radiate an aura that prevents such things. The result is that when the skeptics appear to debunk the magical claims, the phenomenon don't happen because skeptics tend to be these people around whom nothing magical ever happens.

I like to think there is something to this theory. Some of us are very mechanically oriented, and some of us are not. I am the latter. I am such a bumbling idiot when it comes to doing simple handy-man-type tasks it's not even funny. I was talking with my father-in-law (FIL) over the weekend, describing my latest dismal failure in trying to install a semi-permanent baby gate at the top of my stairs. I couldn't find a stud to work with, and when I tried to install a wall anchor, it just ripped up the drywall.

So we got talking about finding studs and how hopeless I am at it - my method of choice is to drill holes in the wall every 1/2 inch until I hit a stud. It is the only method that works for me. Of course my FIL was incredulous and asked me why I didn't just use a stud finder. Well, because I've never known one to work (I tried many many many!). They're nothing but false positives and false negatives. Of course, he wasn't satisfied with that because for him, they work perfectly.

He got his stud finder and proceeded to demonstrate how well it worked, and lo - it marked out the studs on the wall at very regular, stud-like intervals (I don't know, every 16"? 18"? something like that). So then I tried it on a different wall. The entire 5 ft length apparently had no studs. Then he tried it, stud ... stud ... stud. I tried again and then I found lots of studs - every 4 inches a new stud! And mobile too! He tried again, very regular pattern. I tried moving the stud finder just like he did, but it still just didn't work for me.

Am I cursed?

Sober thoughts The other night, I made Vivi watch the movie Ordinary People with me. This movie never fails to make me cry (and those who know me must know how rare that is). Yet, as we watched, I began to realize the movie just wasn't approachable for Vivi. When the big scene appeared and I was choking up, she was completely unfazed. She couldn't relate.I realized it was analogous to me watching the Spanish movies that she loves. I've watched them, tried to read the books, but the problem is the characters make no sense to me. They do ridiculous things, or engage in activity that is, to me, clearly immoral and/or repugnant. To her, they are familiar and heart-wrenching. Likewise, the characters in Ordinary People were equally repellant - being, from her point of view, cold, hateful, cowardly. How can one feel sympathy for such characters?One might think Vivi and I have a huge cultural gulf between us as a result, but actually we talk about it all the time and we each can understand exactly what it is about our differences that the other can't understand. I understand why she finds the distance in American families difficult to understand, and she understands why I think 40-year-old men marrying 12-year-old girls is a little creepy. Some might call it cultural relativism, but from my point of view, it's just recognizing that all cultures get things wrong - badly wrong at that.Declining AmericaIt saddens me to watch the whole Intelligent Design attack on science gaining apparent momentum. It seems like American culture is committing a kind of suicide or out-of-control immunilogical reaction by attacking such things as science, intellectualism, education, and critical discourse. We seem to avoid electing people who seem too smart. Could Al Gore have won the popular vote if he'd written this well-thought-out article in 1999?It's crazy watching our society implode like this. The consequences of dumbing ourselves down, of turning our backs on science and intellectual progress are frightening. It gets confused because there are scary things going on out there in the name of scientific progress, though, from my point of view, they are scary because a large impersonal corporation is wedging themselves into a position of power by creating a dependence on their existence - things like genetic manipulation of seeds and plants, drugs that solve problems created by the modern lifestyle, etc. Liberals and Religious Fundamentalists can often have some interesting common complaints about our current lifestyles, but the cure can't be just to go backward in time - that way leads simply to decline and eventually to economic subjugation by others who continued moving forward.I'm not happy about the environment in which I'm bringing a new life into the world, but I don't know where I can find a better environment. I suppose I should fight it harder, but I don't have a lot of fight in me.

The other night, I made Vivi watch the movie Ordinary People with me. This movie never fails to make me cry (and those who know me must know how rare that is). Yet, as we watched, I began to realize the movie just wasn't approachable for Vivi. When the big scene appeared and I was choking up, she was completely unfazed. She couldn't relate.

I realized it was analogous to me watching the Spanish movies that she loves. I've watched them, tried to read the books, but the problem is the characters make no sense to me. They do ridiculous things, or engage in activity that is, to me, clearly immoral and/or repugnant. To her, they are familiar and heart-wrenching. Likewise, the characters in Ordinary People were equally repellant - being, from her point of view, cold, hateful, cowardly. How can one feel sympathy for such characters?

One might think Vivi and I have a huge cultural gulf between us as a result, but actually we talk about it all the time and we each can understand exactly what it is about our differences that the other can't understand. I understand why she finds the distance in American families difficult to understand, and she understands why I think 40-year-old men marrying 12-year-old girls is a little creepy. Some might call it cultural relativism, but from my point of view, it's just recognizing that all cultures get things wrong - badly wrong at that.

Declining America

It saddens me to watch the whole Intelligent Design attack on science gaining apparent momentum. It seems like American culture is committing a kind of suicide or out-of-control immunilogical reaction by attacking such things as science, intellectualism, education, and critical discourse. We seem to avoid electing people who seem too smart. Could Al Gore have won the popular vote if he'd written this well-thought-out article in 1999?

It's crazy watching our society implode like this. The consequences of dumbing ourselves down, of turning our backs on science and intellectual progress are frightening. It gets confused because there are scary things going on out there in the name of scientific progress, though, from my point of view, they are scary because a large impersonal corporation is wedging themselves into a position of power by creating a dependence on their existence - things like genetic manipulation of seeds and plants, drugs that solve problems created by the modern lifestyle, etc. Liberals and Religious Fundamentalists can often have some interesting common complaints about our current lifestyles, but the cure can't be just to go backward in time - that way leads simply to decline and eventually to economic subjugation by others who continued moving forward.

I'm not happy about the environment in which I'm bringing a new life into the world, but I don't know where I can find a better environment. I suppose I should fight it harder, but I don't have a lot of fight in me.

RIAA Madness Every now and then I read something that forces me to re-appraise my estimation of what sort of world and nation I live in. I find it chilling to think that such cooperation between police and corporate interests comes about so easily, with the apparent effect of negating all those "rights" we thought were ours - things like search warrants and being told what you're being arrested for. Why are the police acting like the RIAA's dogs? Don't they have more pressing matters? I'm pretty sure if I were to make a call about violation of my copyright, I wouldn't get this sort of police action.My only question for the dear reader is - what would it take to convince you to boycott the RIAA completely? No more music from RIAA companies for you or your kids. Only buy/find music from non-affiliated labels. Can you do it? Are you willing? Or would that be too much to ask?

Every now and then I read something that forces me to re-appraise my estimation of what sort of world and nation I live in. I find it chilling to think that such cooperation between police and corporate interests comes about so easily, with the apparent effect of negating all those "rights" we thought were ours - things like search warrants and being told what you're being arrested for. Why are the police acting like the RIAA's dogs? Don't they have more pressing matters? I'm pretty sure if I were to make a call about violation of my copyright, I wouldn't get this sort of police action.

My only question for the dear reader is - what would it take to convince you to boycott the RIAA completely? No more music from RIAA companies for you or your kids. Only buy/find music from non-affiliated labels. Can you do it? Are you willing? Or would that be too much to ask?