~e; Electromagnetic News & Views #104
From
brian carroll <human@electronetwork.org>
Date
Wed, 28 Apr 2004 18:44:33 -0500
===================================================
Electromagnetic News & Views -- #104
===================================================
00) Electronetwork.org Commentary (4/28/2004)
01) Top Stories of Electromagnetism
02) Electromagnetic health & safety
03) Electromagnetic trash & treasure
04) Electromagnetic security & surveillance
05) Electromagnetic power & energy
06) Electromagnetic current & human affairs
07) Electromagnetic transport & communication
08) Electromagnetic matter & information
09) Electromagnetic trends & inventions
10) Electromagnetic weaponry & warfare
11) Electromagnetic business & economics
12) Electromagnetic artworks & artifacts
13) special section: VP Cheney and EM issues
===================================================
00) --commentary--
This newsletter includes the addition of a special VP Cheney section
(13) for short-term management of the energy task force case before the
Supreme Court. also, in Top Stories is a regional nuclear threat very
much tied to assassination politics, which is why balancing data is
presented as coinciding with these dynamics, through slightly
tangential.
===================================================
01) --top stories--
---------------------------------------------------
Electromagnetic fields at home, at work
W O R K S H O P // thanks * (EM_architecture)
characteristics, health effects, how to properly
detect problem sources and identify effective mitigation
Dr. Andrew Michrowski, instructor
MONTREAL - le 24-26 septembre 2004 (en français)
TORONTO - September 17-19 2004
Friday evening: from 7 - 10 PM / Saturday and Sunday: from 9AM to 5PM
<http://www.essentia.ca/Workshops/workshops.htm>
// it would be amazing if a nuclear diplomatic track opened up
somehow...
// then it would seem more possible to directly deal with very troubling
// issues without a nuclear threat as part of any exchanges of violence.
// security in the region could also be more readily achievable this
way, it
// would seem, if there were a way to move ahead within nuclear
treaties...
UN nuclear chief to visit Israel-- The head of the United Nations
nuclear watchdog, Mohamed ElBaradei, is to visit Israel later this year.
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3666411.stm>
'He told Haaretz that such weapons were not "an incentive for
security" and urged Israel to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
(NPT).' ... 'An IAEA statement said: "[Mr ElBaradei] would intend to
use such a trip to... promote non-proliferation and a nuclear
weapon-free zone in the Middle East as well as to discuss bilateral
co-operation in nuclear sciences and applications."' ... 'Israel has
said simply that it would not be the first to introduce nuclear weapons
to the region.' ... 'Some experts believe it to be the world's sixth
largest nuclear power.' .. 'Its Arab neighbours have frequently accused
the international community of double standards - for requiring them to
be free of nuclear weapons while doing little, in their eyes, about
Israel.'
// note: nobel-peace prize recipient (Arafat) threatened with
assassination by nuclear state.
[related] Palestinian peace campaigner arrested // related to above
em-policy.
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,2763,1205176,00.html>
'The Oxford-educated don, who is the Palestinian Liberation
Organisation's representative in Jerusalem, has been working to
galvanise support for a peace plan he put together with Ami Ayalon, the
former chief of Israel's Shin Bet security service.' ... 'The two have
gathered tens of thousands of signatures in support of the plan, which
envisages a Palestinian state alongside Israel.' ... 'Paul Patin, a
spokesman for the US embassy in Jerusalem, said US officials were aware
of Mr Nusseibeh's arrest and were "trying to find out what's going on".
Mr Nusseibeh's spokesman, Dimitri Diliani, said the peace campaigner
had been in his office when Israeli border police arrived and told him
he was under arrest. "When he asked why, they told him he would find
out later," Mr Diliani said. "They didn't say where he was being
taken."'
// another nobel-peace prize winner, not in queue for state
assassination...
// since the nuclear issues are relevant to everyone and policy based
it is of
// major concern and the below quote differentiates a position often
referred
// to, previously, with regard to unworkable foreign policies that may
do more
// damage, even for their own causes, than whatever intended good. in
this way
// it is believed to critique such policy is well within the rights of
citizens,
// and it is not to demonize entire peoples over the failures to deal
with the
// biggest and most complex issues of science, technology, culture, and
religion
// that remain unresolved, yet also threaten world war, to focus on
such issues.
// often, 'the day after' is referred to as a 'nuclear holocaust', by
the way...
// so efforts to change directions or to pursue a madman nuclear
strategy (which
// only would work, it seems, if one is not an actual madman) are
em-related...
[em-related quote] Nobel Laureate Warns on Anti-Semitism // (radio is
two-way)
<http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/wire/sns-ap-europe-anti-
semitism,0,3938398.story?coll=sns-ap-world-headlines>
'"Stop! Stop a disease that has lasted so long. Stop the poison from
spreading," Wiesel said." .. 'Wiesel, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in
1986 for his writings on the Holocaust and campaigning against evil in
the world, pointed to violence against Jews and desecration of
cemeteries in many countries.' .. '"The Jew I am belongs to a
traumatized generation. We have antennas. Better yet, we are antennas,"
he said.' .. '"If we tell you that the signals we receive are
disturbing, that we are alarmed ... people had better listen."' ... 'He
said he found "particularly contemptuous" comparisons of Israel's
policy toward the Palestinians to Nazi Germany's atrocities against the
Jews.' ... 'German President Johannes Rau said it was important to
distinguish between anti-Semitism and criticism of Israel, although he
acknowledged that "massive anti-Semitism" is behind much of the
opposition to Israeli policy.'
North Korea Vows It Won't Transfer Nukes // nuclear diplomacy.
<http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/wire/sns-ap-nkorea-
us,0,1537683.story?coll=sns-ap-world-headlines>
'Foreign Minister Paek Nam Sun said North Koreans "denounce al-Qaida,"
said Harrison, who returned from Pyongyang on Saturday and was en route
to Washington.' .. '"We are opposed to all types of terrorism and will
never transfer our nuclear material to anyone else," he quoted Paek as
saying. "Our nuclear program is solely for our own self-defense."'
GAO: Nuke weapons sites remain vulnerable // .US
<http://salon.com/news/wire/2004/04/27/nukes/>
'For the first time, the Energy Department is asking security planners
to prepare for the possibility that a terrorist would try to take over
a facility holding nuclear material, barricade himself inside and try
to fashion a crude nuclear weapon and detonate it in a suicide attack.'
.. 'Security plans previously have been designed under an assumption
that a terrorist would break in to steal the material and could be
thwarted on the way out.'
---------------------------------------------------
02-- electromagnetic health & safety
---------------------------------------------------
Nuke Mosquito, End Malaria?
<http://www.wired.com/news/technology/
0,1282,63210,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_10>
'One African child dies of malaria every 20 seconds. People in poor,
remote villages are usually unable to get treatment and so Knols's
research aims to nip the problem in the bud by destroying the mosquito
that transmits the malaria parasite.' .. 'The IAEA is best known for
its inspections of countries like Iran and Iraq, suspected of building
atomic weapons. But the agency has already used its expertise to wipe
out the dreaded tsetse fly, which can transmit fatal sleeping sickness,
from the island of Zanzibar.' .. 'The Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) is
a simple idea. Scientists breed insects and expose the males to enough
radiation to render them sterile. The males are then released into the
environment to breed with the females, whose eggs are unfertilized and
never hatch.'
Dental X-rays might result in small babies, study suggests
<http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2004-04-27-rays-pregnancy_x.htm>
'A total of 1,117 low birth weight babies, or those weighing less than
5 pounds, 8 ounces, were born to study participants. Women who had had
dental X-rays during pregnancy faced about double the risk of having a
low birth weight baby born either prematurely or full-term, and more
than triple the risk of having a full-term underweight baby.' ...
'Hujoel said it is unclear how dental X-rays might affect fetuses but
theorized that the radiation might cause subtle changes in the
functioning of the mother's thyroid gland, in the neck.'
Could nanomachines be tomorrow's doctors?
DNA computer diagnoses disease and dispenses drug.
<http://www.nature.com/nsu/040426/040426-12.html>
Molecular basis for Mozart effect revealed
<http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994918>
'Patients with Alzheimer's disease perform better on spatial and
social tasks after listening to the sonata. And playing Mozart for
severely epileptic patients quietens the electrical activity associated
with seizures, while other kinds of music do not.'
Language 'Center' Of Brain Shifts With Age
<http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/04/040428062634.htm>
Future Blood Tests May Use Tiny Bar-codes To Speed Disease Diagnosis
<http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/04/040428060851.htm>
---------------------------------------------------
03-- electromagnetic trash & treasure
---------------------------------------------------
[rien]
---------------------------------------------------
04-- electromagnetic security & surveillance
---------------------------------------------------
Judge Blocks Terror Web Site From Jurors
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-4023651,00.html>
'The case is seen as a major test of a provision in the Patriot Act
that allows people to be prosecuted for providing ``expert advice or
assistance'' to terrorists.'
Banks targeted in Windows hack attack // via drudgereport.com
<http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/04/27/1082831541968.html>
'Malicious attackers in Brazil, Germany and the Netherlands tried to
use a vulnerability in Windows to break into some of Australia's
largest financial institutions, including at least three banks, over
the Anzac weekend, according to the Atlanta-based security firm,
Internet Security Systems.'
Corporate computer security menace rising fast
<http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994925>
---------------------------------------------------
05-- electromagnetic power & energy
---------------------------------------------------
Katondwe Mission Hospital Staff Cry for Electricity // **
<http://allafrica.com/stories/200404270271.html>
'AUTHORITIES at Katondwe Mission Hospital in Luangwa are calling for
the electrification of their institution which is the only referral
hospital in the district.' .. 'The hospital has been using a power
generator and a solar system as sources of power for its operations.'
Swiss blamed for European electricity fiasco // .EU intra-national
powergrid
<http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT/
FullStory&c=StoryFT&cid=1079420589324>
'The French and Italian energy regulators have called on Switzerland
to implement a legislative and regulatory framework coherent with
European Union legislation to ensure the security of electricity
supplies in Europe.' ... '"In the absence of an adequate regulatory
framework, there is an incentive for the electric companies to load
excessively their lines and to reduce their operating costs at the
expense of security in their own system and of security in the
neighbouring systems," their report states.' .. 'On September 28, two
consecutive incidents involving power lines and trees in the Swiss
grids provoked the crisis....'
New Allies in the Energy Wars // .US, NYT op-ed
<http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/26/opinion/26MON5.html>
'This was not politically risky for either man. Mr. Richardson, who
served as President Bill Clinton's energy secretary, is known for his
progressive views on these issues. Mr. Schwarzenegger's constituents
include many lively and vocal environmentalists. Even so, their joint
appeal for more enlightened strategies contrasts sharply with the
gridlock over energy policy in Washington and with the Bush
administration's faithful obeisance to the needs of producers of
traditional fuels like oil, natural gas and coal.' ... 'The statement
is timely because energy policy at the national level is moving in
exactly the opposite direction....'
Purnomo says OPEC may reset oil price range
<http://www.thejakartapost.com/
detailbusiness.asp?fileid=20040428.M02&irec=3>
'OPEC president Purnomo Yusgiantoro said the price band of US$22 to
$28 per barrel was deemed no longer suitable for present conditions as
it had been set in 2000.' ... 'Asked if the price band would be changed
to between $25 and $32 as suggested by analysts, Purnomo replied it was
possible.' ... 'The OPEC reference basket price is the average price of
seven crude oils, namely Saharan Blend (Algeria), Minas (Indonesia),
Bonny Light (Nigeria), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Dubai (United Arab
Emirates), Tia Juana Light (Venezuela) and Isthmus (Mexico).'
Saudi, U.S., Cross Swords on High Gasoline Price
<http://www.reuters.com/
newsArticle.jhtml?type=domesticNews&storyID=4958845>
'Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi pinned the blame on the "balkanized
gasoline markets" in the United States, while Kyle McSlarrow, the
deputy U.S. energy secretary, insisted the cause is high crude oil
prices.'
Greenspan: High oil prices here to stay -- Fed chief says higher prices
affect businesses but that U.S. is also less energy dependent. //
drudgereport
<http://cnnmoney.printthis.clickability.com/pt/
cpt?action=cpt&title=Greenspan+says+high+costs+would+keep+energy+use+in+
check+-
+Apr.+27%2C+2004&expire=&urlID=10051644&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fmoney.cnn.
com%2F2004%2F04%2F27%2Fnews%2Feconomy%2Fgreenspan.reut%2Findex.htm%3Fcnn
%3Dyes&partnerID=2200>
As We See It: Electricity overhaul looming // .ca.us
<http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/archive/2004/April/28/edit/stories/
01edit.htm>
Wiring concerns add electricity to council's debate
<http://www.fwbusinesspress.com/
default.asp?sourceid=&smenu=110&twindow=&mad=&sdetail=1743&wpage=1&skeyw
ord=&sidate=&ccat=&restate=&restatus=&reoption=&retype=&repmin=&repmax=&
rebed=&rebath=&sal=>
'According to bids on The Tower project, a variance to the city's
electrical code allowing less expensive wiring in high-rise buildings
could save the developer about $150,000 - not a lot on a $65-million
project.' .. 'But put four large downtown residential projects into the
works, and consultants hired by developers to examine safety data on
the proposed wiring say the savings over the five projects could amount
to $1.5 million, money they say the city could be used as an economic
incentive to future developers in place of or to supplement tax and
other incentives.' .. 'The catch is, however, that the National
Electrical Code, an industry standard that sets guidelines for the use
of electrical wire and equipment in buildings, since 1975 has suggested
limiting the use of nonmetallic wiring to buildings three stories or
under. Nonmetallic, or NM, wire is a plastic insulated wire seen
commonly in residential construction, although it is approved for all
types of construction.' .. 'Metallic-clad, or MC cable, which encloses
insulated conductors in a flexible metallic sheath, is typically used
in high-rise buildings because the sheath protects the wires from
possible nicks in metal stud construction.'
---------------------------------------------------
06-- electromagnetic current & human affairs
---------------------------------------------------
Libyan leader embraces West -- Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi has
used a landmark official visit to Europe to urge peace and disarmament.
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3661789.stm>
'Colonel Gaddafi said by renouncing weapons of mass destruction, Libya
had secured more benefits for itself than it could by possessing such
weapons.' .. 'Speaking in Brussels, he urged other countries to follow
his example.'
Madrasas Slowly Warm to Computers // no sci-tech
<http://www.wired.com/news/technology/
0,1282,63125,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_1>
Anti-Semitic site drops off Google // neo-Nazi site
<http://news.com.com/2100-1038-5200203.html?part=dtx&tag=ntop>
'The outcry over the appearance of Jew Watch in Google results
attracted an online petition campaign, a "Google bombing" effort to
lower the site's relevance in Google rankings and a letter from U.S.
Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) that asked Google to alter the results.'
China Suspends TV Crime, Violence Shows // 7 day holiday.
<http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/wire/sns-ap-china-
television-violence,0,2321815.story?coll=sns-ap-world-headlines>
'Television programs and movies should not air programs or images
"showing blood, violence, murder or terrorism," said the notice, which
called for "severe controls" during the weeklong holiday, when many
children switch from studies to channel surfing.' .. 'The rule was
aimed at improving the "ideological and ethical construction of minors"
and fostering a healthy and favorable environment for their
development, the notice said.' .. 'Broadcasters were also warned to
take care when airing "revolutionary plays" dating to the era of
Communist leader Mao Zedong, who died in 1976. Some such programs were
giving young Chinese who have little understanding of those more
overtly Communist times "romantic notions," it said.'
Iranian Women Protest Polygamy TV
<http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/04/28/world/main614524.shtml>
'Despite being restricted from the nation's highest political posts,
Iranian women — who number over 32 million of the nation's 68 million
population — enjoy more political rights than women in most neighboring
Gulf Arab states, possessing the right to vote and hold public office.'
---------------------------------------------------
07-- electromagnetic transport & communication
---------------------------------------------------
Warning: May Contain Explosives // sensor-based 'smart containers'...
<http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,63192,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_2>
'With sensor-equipped shipping containers, and Bluetooth and satellite
communications, shippers and homeland security officials will get an
unprecedented look inside what many experts consider America's most
vulnerable target: its import supply chain.' ... 'The containers will
be under constant surveillance on sea and land -- something that is not
done with the vast majority of shipping containers today.'
Low-Watt Radio Wields Its Power // private cultural programming...
<http://www.wired.com/news/politics/
0,1283,63198,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_3>
'Although the FCC closed its last application window in July 2001,
hundreds of applications are still pending.' .. 'And the permits
haven't necessarily encouraged the kind of broad, diverse discourse
many advocates, including the NFCB, hoped low-power stations would
provide. Instead, nearly half of the 710 low-power permits the FCC has
issued have gone to religious organizations, the bulk of which are
broadcasting what Aiyetoro described as "extremely conservative"
programming....'
Robotic traffic cones swarm onto highways
<http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994932>
'The self-propelled markers take the form of robotic three-wheeled
bases for the brightly coloured barrels that are set out to demarcate
road repair zones. Farritor says they can open and close traffic lanes
faster and more safely than humans.'
Scientists Post A Lower Speed Limit For Magnetic Switching // SLAC
<http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/04/040426054807.htm>
'In a computer hard drive, a writing head hovers over a disk that’s
rapidly spinning – at up to 15,000 rotations per minute, or 150 times
faster than a CD player. An electric current running in the head
creates a magnetic field, which records data by turning tiny areas of
the disk’s surface into microscopic magnets. The disk is coated with a
special, grainy material that allows only two, opposite directions of
the magnetization, representing the 0 or 1 of a basic unit of data, or
bit. High recording speed requires the coating material to respond and
switch its poles quickly enough to record each bit reliably.'
---------------------------------------------------
08-- electromagnetic matter & information
---------------------------------------------------
// supercomputers could lead to innovations in solar architectures of
large
// developments when doing solar and angular and yearly calculations in
very
// fast, changeable designs to transform suburbs into sustainable
dwellings.
// plus, freeways with real-time traffic models, structural, other
factors...
Supercomputers Speed Car Design
<http://www.wired.com/news/autotech/
0,2554,63185,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_7>
Faster circuits go for gold
Lasers could build three-dimensional computer chips.
<http://www.nature.com/nsu/040419/040419-13.html>
'Creating tiny golden images in blocks of glass might seem like the
latest in up-market jewellery design. But the technique could lead to a
new generation of electronics....'
Internet dating analysed: Study of online relations may reveal winning
tactics.
<http://www.nature.com/nsu/040419/040419-10.html>
'Ultimately, such analyses could reveal information with a practical
use. Marketers and political campaigners, for example, are interested
in finding out how to identify and target people with numerous contacts
(called hubs), who might spread the word about a product or candidate.
These people might also be more likely to pass on a sexually
transmitted disease, and so be targeted with public-health information.'
Brain Visualized In Real Time As Animal 'Smells'
<http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/04/040427055713.htm>
---------------------------------------------------
09-- electromagnetic trends & inventions
---------------------------------------------------
The Biggest Jolt to Power Since Franklin Flew His Kite // (nuclear?)
graphic**
<http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/27/science/27COND.html>
'Success could spring superconductivity from the modest niches that it
has occupied in fields like medical diagnostics and give it wide
commercial applications. In addition to cutting costs and raising
reliability in generating and distributing electricity, superconductive
wire could replace copper wire in motors to save space and cut energy
costs in factories and on ships. Railroads might finally embrace maglev
technology, which allows high-speed trains to ride magnetic fields
above superconductive rails.'
Soldering iron added to nano-toolkit
<http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994938>
Green tea polishes hard drive heads
<http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994929>
// not sure if this is possible, yet the idea of a 'home server' with
multiple
// processors would be, potentially, ideal if it could run multiple OS'
for an
// entire home network, off of one server (instead of multiple
computers, etc.)
// such that a screen-device or portable could tap into the virtual
computer and
// share an internet connection, while each runs different softwares.
maybe one
// OS would run a webserver, on a partition, another an OS sync for
PDAs/cells.
IBM packages server virtualization tools
<http://news.com.com/2100-1010-5201664.html>
[and] IBM Brings Mainframe Virtualization To The Server
<http://www.crn.com/sections/BreakingNews/
dailyarchives.asp?ArticleID=49782>
---------------------------------------------------
10-- electromagnetic weaponry & warfare
---------------------------------------------------
em-related: Saudi Says U.S. Criticism Undermines War // relates to oil
and opec
<http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/wire/sns-ap-us-saudi-
relations,0,1421661.story?coll=sns-ap-world-headlines>
'Al-Faisal said al-Qaida's attack on America on Sept. 11, 2001, was
part of its plan to eventually replace the Saudi kingdom with an
Islamic theocracy.' ... 'Al-Faisal said both sides needed to work to
"reverse the trend towards alienation and suspicion" so they could
cooperate in their fight against terrorism and al-Qaida.'
EM-quote: Saudis Aided in Iraq More Than Thought
<http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/wire/sns-ap-iraq-war-
saudis,0,5763088.story?coll=sns-ap-world-headlines>
'The Saudis provided tens of millions of dollars in discounted oil,
gas and fuel for American forces. During the war, a stream of oil
delivery trucks at times stretched for miles outside the Prince Sultan
air base, said a senior U.S. military planner.' .. 'The Saudis also
were influential in keeping down world oil prices amid concern over
what might happen to Iraqi oil fields. They increased production by 1.5
million barrels a day during the run-up to war and helped keep Jordan
-- which had relied on Iraqi oil -- supplied.'
Iraq Oil Terminals Closed After Attacks; 2 Are Killed // suicide
boats...
<http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/
news?pid=10000087&sid=abLM41D1MHF0&refer=home>
'Coalition forces intercepted the vessel and were boarding it when it
exploded, he said. At least four sailors were also injured. Twenty
minutes later, two boats were spotted about 20 kilometers away
approaching the Basrah oil terminal. Both exploded before reaching the
facility, Graybeal said.'
[and] Suicide raids on oil platforms mark new threat
Three US sailors die as attackers detonate boats
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1203428,00.html>
'The apparently coordinated and brazen raid marks an alarming new
threat. It was the first time the US military in Iraq has faced suicide
bombers on boats and the most serious attack yet on the oil industry.
Saturday's attacks fit a pattern of ever-widening violence across
Iraq.' ... 'Many highlighted the similarities with the suicide boat
attack on the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000, which killed 17 American
sailors and was blamed on al-Qaida.'
[and] Al-Zarqawi Claims Iraq Oil Terminal Attack
<http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/wire/sns-ap-iraq-oil-
attack,0,7078386.story?coll=sns-ap-world-headlines>
'There was no way to verify the claim, which would be the first by
al-Zarqawi for any attack in Iraq.'
---------------------------------------------------
11-- electromagnetic business & economics
---------------------------------------------------
Founded in 1846, a tech company goes digital
<http://www.iht.com/articles/510710.html>
'It is one of the oldest technology companies in the world. Founded in
the German city of Jena in 1846, Zeiss has been in business almost
since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. That is an
exceptional feat, considering the short shelf life of many
technological creations and the companies that try to exploit them.' ..
'Zeiss has been able to thrive so long in such a mercurial line of
work, people who know the company say, because it sticks only with what
it does best, optics, while continually upgrading the technology within
each of its specialist industries - it devotes 9 percent of its revenue
to research and development - and entering new ones as they take hold
scientifically and commercially.'
U.S. gasoline up another 3 cents per gallon
<http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/energy/2004-04-25-gas-
prices_x.htm>
// this is a start, yet the bottleneck issue seems to be the juggling
of many
// services that add up to an average of a few hundred dollars a month
for basic
// access to what are becoming daily, necessary technologies of
interacting with
// an evolving society and its speed and organization- cell phone,
e-mail, web,
// wireless, data, tv, radio-- bit and byting now mega-nickle and
giga-diming...
Bush Calls for Ban on Broadband Taxes // larger scope/goals necessary...
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/uslatest/story/0,1282,-4020598,00.html>
'Bush, whose speech in Minneapolis on Monday will address this and
other technologies that are changing the world, has set 2007 as a
deadline for providing speedy Internet access called broadband to every
American home.' ... '``By being an innovative society and promoting
innovation, we'll have lasting prosperity,'' Bush said last week.
``We're lagging a little bit on ... the access of broadband technology,
and I think we need to kind of accelerate it with good policy.'''
// have heard of such software being used in very large franchises
where the
// management comes from the central headquarters, all automated,
tabulated
// every night, and this sounds reminiscent of this type of management.
yet,
// it is also wondered if the software itself is able to 'bridge' the
online
// and offline worlds as an interface, to co-exist, as a result of
necessity
// and with some pragmatism, given its tasking and workload, data
aesthetics.
// whereas if a purely visual expressionism it may not carry such
meaning...
The science of the retail sale
<http://news.com.com/2100-7343-5200232.html?part=dtx&tag=ntop>
'Northern Group fed three years of detailed historical sales data
along with current inventory information from nearly 300 stores into
ProfitLogic's program. Then the software--mathematical algorithms
developed by a team of 16 Ph.D.s--recommends the best way to get rid of
slow-moving merchandise while doing the least damage to profitability.'
... 'Yet the technology does have some stumbling points. Some retailers
haven't done such a great job collecting data over the years, or
haven't kept enough of it around for these software programs to crunch.
Then there's the problem of "dirty data," the result of redundant or
inaccurate record-keeping.'
Shell cuts 2,800 technology jobs
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3665193.stm>
---------------------------------------------------
12-- electromagnetic artworks & artifacts
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SIGNAL_SEVER! - TRANSIGNAL 1 // thanks *
by Projekt Atol, Delray and guests (SLO/US/UK/FR/DE/RA)
Friday April 30th. 7.30pm-1am (First performance 8pm)
Lucid, The Printworks, M4 2BS. Tel +44(0)161 817 2929
Live performance by musicians, visual artists and high frequency and
satellite telecommunications experts from Projekt Atol, Makrolab and
Pact Systems jamming live over satellites and working with and within
the radio zones of the electromagnetic spectrum makrolab.ljudmila.org
Supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic Of Slovenia and
the Cultural Department of the City of Ljubljana. Mobile connections
live
£6/£5 concs. Or free with festival pass or day pass. Ticket info.
<http://www.futuresonic.com/>
Microchip weavings by Wloganfry // amazing work!!
<http://www.dmoma.org/lobby/microchips/microchips_1.html>
<http://www.dmoma.org/lobby/microchips/microchips_2.html>
<http://www.dmoma.org/lobby/microchips/microchips_3.htmL>
Five Concerts All at Once, and It's Quiet // scanner. thanks*
<http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/24/arts/music/24SOUN.html>
'For long stretches of the Tune(In))) the Kitchen, a four-hour
electronic music gathering on Thursday night that was as conceptual as
its title, the only sounds in the Kitchen came from people strolling
around and sporadic conversations.' .. 'But the airwaves in the room
were alive with abstract sounds. Four simultaneous performances and a
channel of video soundtracks were broadcast to the FM radios and
headphones of the audience. The musicians worked at tabletop setups,
never knowing who was listening.'
===================================================
13) VP Cheney and EM-related issues
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Administration Says a `Zone of Autonomy' Justifies Its Secrecy
on Energy Task Force // *** ? autonomous democratic government ?
<http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/25/politics/25SCOT.html>
'Just as the administration is arguing in the detainee cases for the
exercise of presidential authority without judicial interference in
policies related to the war on terrorism, it is making sweeping claims
in the energy case for the existence of a constitutionally protected
"zone of autonomy" for presidential advice received in the ordinary
course of proposing legislation.' ... 'The statute exempts any
advice-giving group "composed wholly of full-time, or permanent
part-time, officers or employees of the federal government." Since all
members of the Cheney task force, formally called the National Energy
Policy Development Group, are federal employees, the administration
maintains that the law simply does not apply.' ... 'The administration
is arguing that the "de facto member doctrine" was never intended by
Congress and should be rejected by the Supreme Court....'
[related] Cheney aide now lobbyist on energy // ***
<http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2004/04/25/
cheney_aide_now_lobbyist_on_energy/>
'The executive director of Vice President Dick Cheney's energy task
force, whose closed-door meetings with industry executives enraged
environmentalists and prompted a Supreme Court showdown this week,
became an energy lobbyist just months after leaving the White House,
records show.' ... 'Then, a day after leaving government service, he
opened a consulting business. Nine months later, Lundquist was a
registered lobbyist for companies that stood to benefit from the energy
policy he helped craft, according to 2003 lobby disclosure records
reviewed by the Globe.' ... 'Lundquist's behind-the-scenes role as
policy coordinator, vice presidential aide, and ultimately as a
lobbyist for energy companies highlights some of the concerns that have
led consumer groups to seek the opening of the task force's records.'
... 'Government ethics law prohibits a former senior government
employee from lobbying his former department or agency for one
year....' ... 'The Lundquist Group is based in a posh office building
perched kitty-corner from the Capitol. Other lobbyists are in the
building, including Joe Allbaugh, a close friend of the president, with
whom Lundquist shares an office suite.'
[and] Scalia scoffs at notion that he's biased toward Cheney
<http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2004-04-25-scalia_x.htm>
'Northwestern University law professor Steven Lubet, who specializes
in legal ethics, says the practice of having individual justices —
rather than the full court — decide whether a conflict of interest
exists does not inspire public confidence.' .. 'Says Lubet: "Justice
Scalia resolved every disputed issue (regarding his impartiality) in
his own favor. It would have been more reassuring if the identical
opinion had come from the full court."'
em-related: Cheney's plan to attack // WMD, nuclear, oil...
Vice president's desire for war created tension with Powell
By Bob Woodward
<http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/journalgazette/news/editorial/8517246.htm>
'Cheney then listed all the reasons inspections could mire them in a
tar pit.'
A Vision of Power
<http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/27/opinion/
27KRUG.html?pagewanted=print&position=>
I've Got a Secret
Dick Cheney's absolute right to know and not tell.
By Dahlia Lithwick // interesting...
<http://slate.msn.com/id/2099569/>
'Alan Morrison has 15 minutes to represent Sierra Club, and he quickly
runs afoul of both Scalia—the guy he tried to bump off the case—and
Justice John Paul Stevens, who gang up on him about the breadth of the
discovery order. (Listen here.) Stevens asks Morrison, "What relief can
you get if you win this lawsuit?"; and answers his own question—"You
get discovery! You get more discovery!" And Scalia adds that the
difference between having only government employees on the committee
and private citizens/Ken Lays is simply in voting. "The essence of
being a committee member is voting," he says. "That's the only
discovery you need, did any nongovernment member of the committee
vote?" (Listen here.)' .. 'Paul Orfanedes has 15 minutes on behalf of
Judicial Watch, and Scalia again distinguishes between "involvement of
private individuals on the task force" and influencing the task force's
ultimate decisions. Scalia will make this point about six times this
morning, and maybe I just imagine the echoes of his own protests about
the difference between "participating" in a duck hunt and being
improperly influenced by the vice president.'
[and] Justices give Cheney sympathetic ear // simply unbelievable.
<http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2004/04/28/
justices_give_cheney_sympathetic_ear/>
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