tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51969438563450721232024-03-09T05:32:13.089-08:00Devoted SkepticScience, Technology, and, Innovation...but mostly Science!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.comBlogger35125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-42878428475456887512012-09-28T10:27:00.001-07:002012-09-28T10:28:26.674-07:00Stations in Space<h2>
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: x-large;">Space Stations</span></h2>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDH4gKXIGyNqassNkHGUdAcczVbFZrq_oHNkW-ZPefautBXaIXviwxVXlCMLjyO9Col8YSo8RkZslpdQla6ShG0gA6_IickyyISa5hukdBQ83KbAaoHLZyyvtod_0ECooGvaSCh9hGgZI/s1600/600px-Skylab_Program_Patch.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Skylab Mission Patch" border="0" height="199" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDH4gKXIGyNqassNkHGUdAcczVbFZrq_oHNkW-ZPefautBXaIXviwxVXlCMLjyO9Col8YSo8RkZslpdQla6ShG0gA6_IickyyISa5hukdBQ83KbAaoHLZyyvtod_0ECooGvaSCh9hGgZI/s200/600px-Skylab_Program_Patch.png" title="" width="200" /></a><br />
Space Stations appear everything from science-fiction dreams of extra-planetary life in space to research in low earth orbit. For many in the public, their first experience with any sort of space station began with the iconic pinwheel style station used in the film <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2001:_A_Space_Odyssey_(film)" target="_blank">2001: A Space Odyssey</a>. Gracefully floating through space while spinning it was majestic and in 1968 when the film was released, we may have been heading toward a future with space way-station and we may be on our way there again with a new proposal by <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/" target="_blank">NASA</a> to put a station on the far side of the moon at<a href="http://www.universetoday.com/97569/will-nasa-really-build-a-gateway-l-2-moon-base/" target="_blank"> Lagrange point 2</a>. In this post I want to talk mostly about early space station history and interesting facts pertaining to space station history.<br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: large;">SpaceLab and MOL</span></h3>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8xmDM8H0Q_G92PBNjFcOj8nGvI2cdZIOe9PgysY_TBPwzVuH53TabmvsvyMmwKwvUQ_3WN_OfUij4iiSCB48nWo5SMewKtA8X2Pgbb90RGLZBhhYp7eCEvc-6yKeEmVLv4gAu3orGPhU/s1600/240px-Skylab_(SL-4).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Skylab in orbit" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8xmDM8H0Q_G92PBNjFcOj8nGvI2cdZIOe9PgysY_TBPwzVuH53TabmvsvyMmwKwvUQ_3WN_OfUij4iiSCB48nWo5SMewKtA8X2Pgbb90RGLZBhhYp7eCEvc-6yKeEmVLv4gAu3orGPhU/s1600/240px-Skylab_(SL-4).jpg" title="Skylab in orbit" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Skylab in orbit </td></tr>
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The first US space station was <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/skylab/index.html" target="_blank">Skylab</a>. Launched in 1973, Skylab orbited from 1973 till 1979 when, entering the atmosphere Skylab burned up and parts of the station were spread South-East of Perth, Australia. Interestingly Skylab almost did not come into fruition. The Air force was working on a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manned_Orbital_Laboratory" target="_blank">Manned orbiting Laboratory</a>(MOL) that would have been used for a variety of different experiments but mainly for reconnaissance utilizing large optical cameras as well as side scanning radar. Eventually the Air Force decided that unmanned spy satellites were more cost effective for spying and MOL was scrapped. Skylab orbited for 2,249 days but was only occupied for 171 during 3 manned space flights to the station. During manned occupation of Skylab astronauts were able to confirm the existence of <a href="http://solarscience.msfc.nasa.gov/Skylab.shtml" target="_blank">coronal holes</a> in the Sun and collect data on the effects of microgravity on humans.<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwoaG40hIdg3AF7AJ754tunqkWJf9e8YIE9T2gYPGREg9o6k4EO_218rLFxhjha12gsbgRK663-1j3CRmpQCyEeI51eLdPAYNVivHJqBES9qIJHpfADZPvLtAM24Qm2Nu6Jp0vQnZf4yE/s1600/MOL_USAF.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwoaG40hIdg3AF7AJ754tunqkWJf9e8YIE9T2gYPGREg9o6k4EO_218rLFxhjha12gsbgRK663-1j3CRmpQCyEeI51eLdPAYNVivHJqBES9qIJHpfADZPvLtAM24Qm2Nu6Jp0vQnZf4yE/s320/MOL_USAF.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Proposed MOL Space Station</td></tr>
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In 1974 NASA had planned to mothball Skylab but performed 2 studies detailing the reuse-ability of the station. An early shuttle mission would have boosted Skylab to a higher orbit extending its life by another 5 years and subsequent shuttle flights would upgrade and retrofit Skylab for a variety of experiments. In 1979 greater than expected solar activity heated the outer layers of the Earth's atmosphere increasing drag on the orbiting station and in turn brought about its demise faster than initially expected.<br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: large;">Almaz</span></h3>
Because of the perceived threat to the Soviet Union that the MOL presented the Soviet Space program responded by developing and launching three space stations. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Almaz" target="_blank">Almaz</a> program that launched the three stations designated them as civilian Salyut Space Stations as a cover for their real military purpose. <br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;">Salyut 2</span></h4>
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Salyut 2, the first to be launched, failed 13 days into its mission. Three days after launch the third stage of the delivery vehicle exploded causing debris to collide and sever a fuel line. Salyut 2 entered the atmosphere on May 28, 1973.<br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;">Salyut 3</span></h4>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9RTOUl_1JTis-Hcf_PLTU8Ygllm-cJPMsmMBIRHmZwWIlXwJoC4u8WMwqMgO8w5Sq1uPvCAHsLsDaz0yBEI4g8DDztjDxyAfIQFGfAx9GraBMSmuPhNMda22vg_tXrTJi1XBSSCMmRLE/s1600/338px-Almaz_drawing.svg.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="line drawing of salyut station" border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9RTOUl_1JTis-Hcf_PLTU8Ygllm-cJPMsmMBIRHmZwWIlXwJoC4u8WMwqMgO8w5Sq1uPvCAHsLsDaz0yBEI4g8DDztjDxyAfIQFGfAx9GraBMSmuPhNMda22vg_tXrTJi1XBSSCMmRLE/s200/338px-Almaz_drawing.svg.png" title="line drawing of salyut station" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Salyut Station Depiction</td></tr>
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Second of the three Soviet spy stations to launch was also the first (from my research) to test a firearm in space. Little is known about this mission but reports of test firing a "Self Defense" gun at 500 and 3000 meters occurred. On January 24, 1975 the station was deorbited over the Pacific Ocean.<br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;">Salyut 5</span></h4>
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The final of the three Salyut stations was launched on June 22, 1977 and used actively for reconnaissance but also several experiments were carried out. Crystals were grown in space and an aquarium where fish were studied in a microgravity environment were also on board. Additionally cosmonauts had a televised conference with school students while in space. On the first mission the cosmonauts left earlier than planned because the air became contaminated causing physical and psychological problems for the crew. Salyut 5 was deorbited on August 8, 1977.<br />
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I wrote this article because it interested me, and I were interested you may also be interested. I didn't know that there was a manned space reconnaissance program until I began reading about Skylab's history, and had never really considered it. With spy satellites I had assumed there had been no manned reconnaissance initiative but I see the logic behind the programs and the reason for their ultimate demise.<br />
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There is certainly more space station talk to be had and I plan to cover the proposed new station to be positioned Lagrange 2 and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iss" target="_blank">ISS</a> but that is for a future article. <span style="color: #cc0000;"> Please feel free to comment any facts or information you may have regarding space stations below.</span><br />
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Have a great weekend!<br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: large;">~Yati</span></h3>
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Links to additional Resources:</h4>
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<a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/military/astrospies.html" target="_blank">Nova Astrospies</a></div>
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<a href="http://airandspace.si.edu/exhibitions/gal114/SpaceRace/sec400/sec442.htm" target="_blank">Spies in Space</a></div>
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<a href="http://www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov/history/skylab/skylab.htm" target="_blank">Skylab - detailed history</a></div>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-8596347952748578022012-09-26T14:18:00.005-07:002012-09-26T14:20:32.246-07:00Curiosity is a Stranger in a Strange Land<h2>
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;">Stranger in a Strange Land</span></h2>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsLouN9rvofpyx_1IwgyPtvOen2btibicx_-5LrWuNFcofwghsdMBbAVjSxMWvcJxFHmMu5v8__Ic4F8w-s0SAc73005Q-xPN2pVyjEiTwIcxINhG3vyKwAQytXhZuwAGThiwC7eU_uWQ/s1600/crecent_phobos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Phobos Crescent as seen by Curiosity" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsLouN9rvofpyx_1IwgyPtvOen2btibicx_-5LrWuNFcofwghsdMBbAVjSxMWvcJxFHmMu5v8__Ic4F8w-s0SAc73005Q-xPN2pVyjEiTwIcxINhG3vyKwAQytXhZuwAGThiwC7eU_uWQ/s1600/crecent_phobos.jpg" title="" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Phobos Crescent - JPL </td></tr>
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Curiosity left Earth's atmosphere on November 26th, 2011 traveling toward her new home, Mars. Much like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stranger_in_a_Strange_Land" target="_blank">Valentine Michael Smith</a> she has become a stranger in a strange land. With the foreign landscape before Curiosity, approximately one third of Earth's gravity, and an extremely thin atmosphere, I expect the sight of a thin crescent in the sky would be a faint reminder of home. <br />
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Curiosity cannot suffer any of the organic issues we as humans may, when we visit our planet's smaller, red sister. <a href="http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/details.php?id=5918#2" target="_blank">Curiosity</a> won't get homesick, or miss relatives. She won't yearn for the fall sun setting over a valley painted red and yellow by autumn. Curiosity will not miss the fish swimming in streams or the cool mountain air. And although I have anthropomorphised Curiosity by referring to it as "her", I have done this consciously as sailors would refer to their ships. <a href="http://caribbean-pirates.com/nautical_superstitions.php" target="_blank">Sailors</a> would speak kindly and gently to their ships and they hoped that their vessel would return the favor.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxutt4eyQG837rif71SnnN4WHQKDuGAe8lsILgYVi0D6fiZp0qJ76UQasOEeIYTkPUFelaDBaWvViYdp72y4-u2OkCoMGFl1ziaJbvd5bJPgv_NWapREDYZIjy5qJVsBpyQtNl4Gcvj3M/s1600/691093main_pia16220-946.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxutt4eyQG837rif71SnnN4WHQKDuGAe8lsILgYVi0D6fiZp0qJ76UQasOEeIYTkPUFelaDBaWvViYdp72y4-u2OkCoMGFl1ziaJbvd5bJPgv_NWapREDYZIjy5qJVsBpyQtNl4Gcvj3M/s320/691093main_pia16220-946.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
We are all sailors riding through the fabric of time and space. On this ship you choose the level of your participation. You can choose to ignore the greatness of what we have accomplished and will continue to accomplish. You can choose to complain about the expenses involved in space exploration and travel, remaining ignorant you use technology directly derived from the space program on a daily basis. Or, and this is a big or, you may be one of the few who have the opportunity to enter space, you may be even one of the very, very, few who will set foot upon another extra terrestrial body within the next decade. Or like myself you may only visit these places through your internet connection and your mind, and maybe a <a href="http://www.worldwidetelescope.org/Home.aspx" target="_blank">telescope</a>, but this is a journey we can all take together.<br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">~Yati</span><br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-47585823458558061442012-09-24T22:50:00.001-07:002012-09-24T22:50:12.046-07:00App Review: Podax<div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTaE2XTdhbJT4H-ej1N6jecSJ_i5AXBxVJp-QzptYak2FX7BtvD86wfDgMrRrNmyCbte93klGswkiGvVvCgZlwIHh2uWjzlxKiVdsQUfXbI-fZUEZVlEmgPH5IwHURHD35p9zkaaz83Kg/s1600/px.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Podax Podcast Android Applicaton" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTaE2XTdhbJT4H-ej1N6jecSJ_i5AXBxVJp-QzptYak2FX7BtvD86wfDgMrRrNmyCbte93klGswkiGvVvCgZlwIHh2uWjzlxKiVdsQUfXbI-fZUEZVlEmgPH5IwHURHD35p9zkaaz83Kg/s1600/px.png" title="" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Podax </span><span style="font-size: small;">by axleby <span style="color: #3d85c6;">(free)</span></span></h2>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjhFr8UKM2RbAcbacdhf4_JH5VK0exSbZ452FwDnLU7ZrfUWoQMRPdcDusf1SDcT-gSu1DAladSzp6G77McP2I7OdfIJGl2i5ixGYU3FCMZKhOTKV5kosc12fyc_0li1B__z_PmK2K5jk/s1600/3stars.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; color: #db5a01; display: inline !important; font-size: 30px; line-height: 1; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; outline: none; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="31" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjhFr8UKM2RbAcbacdhf4_JH5VK0exSbZ452FwDnLU7ZrfUWoQMRPdcDusf1SDcT-gSu1DAladSzp6G77McP2I7OdfIJGl2i5ixGYU3FCMZKhOTKV5kosc12fyc_0li1B__z_PmK2K5jk/s1600/3stars.png" style="background-color: transparent; border: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" width="200" /></a></h2>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.axelby.podax&hl=en" target="_blank">Google Play</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"> - </span>Apple App Store unavailable</span><br />
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 20px;"><b>Google</b></span><span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"> recently <a href="http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2012/08/giving-you-better-google.html" target="_blank">announced</a> that they would be discontinuing their Android podcast application Google Listen. I know that there were a lot of people who didn't like the interface and preferred a paid application and I can understand their position. It wasn't a very pretty interface and adding new podcasts was often difficult and you had to find the correct RSS feed and hope that it would pick them up properly.</span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/8022307186/" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Untitled by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Podax Subscription Screen" height="320" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8174/8022307186_c9c2458507.jpg" title="" width="188" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Podax - Subscription<br />Refresh Page</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">However managing Google listen with Google reader simplified things and because both were so closely integrated it made subscribing much easier from the reader web interface than it ever was from the application. However once you had gotten your podcast subscriptions sorted out, it was very basic, it would update the podcasts subscriptions and you would listen to them. If you want to delete a podcast, you delete it. Very simple and very easy to use.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">But, because listen was yanked from the play store I decided to find replacement app that was free. Normally I have been able to find free apps for nearly anything I might want to do. I may have to put up with ads, or a banner, or some sort of pop-ups but free none the less. Now that is not to say that I am against paid apps. I have purchased a few dozen apps over the years but I generally always look for a free app before I go down the purchase rout. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">And now we get to Podax...which was not my first choice in fact it wasn't my 8th choice, I believe that this was my ninth choice (ok so we don't yet get to podax). I looked at </span><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=mobi.beyondpod&feature=nav_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDMsIm1vYmkuYmV5b25kcG9kIl0." style="line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">Beyond pod</a><span style="line-height: 20px;"> ($6.99 Paid) which had good reviews and looked like it was a pretty solid app but then i found out that I would need to refresh each of my feeds individually, pro does this for you, and not wanting to refresh the 35 or so podcast I subscribe to, I moved on. Next up </span><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.my_pod.mypod&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsIm9yZy5teV9wb2QubXlwb2QiXQ.." style="line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">My Pod</a><span style="line-height: 20px;"> ($3.86 paid) which looked good but then I found out it would only sync 10 feeds in the free version which would not work at all for me. I also tried </span><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.doubleTwist.androidPlayer" style="line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">Double Twist</a><span style="line-height: 20px;"> which looked really cool and as a media file player it seemed to work quite well. I even installed the desktop program and was able to manage music on my phone but if I wanted to do this wirelessly I would need to pay for that option (</span><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nullsoft.winamp&feature=related_apps#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEwOSwiY29tLm51bGxzb2Z0LndpbmFtcCJd" style="line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">winamp</a><span style="line-height: 20px;"> does this for free) I could subscribe to podcasts but could not import my Google Reader subscriptions, not to say that it can't be done(there are instructions on their site that did not help me at all), however I suspect this is a paid feature and if it isn't it is not </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;">very intuitive.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/8022010298/" style="background-color: white; clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Untitled by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Show Queue" height="320" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8169/8022010298_b30676ee7e.jpg" title="" width="188" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Show Queue</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">Finally I happened upon Podax. It did import my Google Reader subscriptions immediately but then things slowed down. When refreshing podcasts the app grinds to an apparent slow halt...however it is working in the background,really it is...wait for it...I assure you, it might be working. It may look like it has locked up your phone, it may actually have locked the phone, but it is probably working in the background. Once all of my podcasts had been refreshed Podax then proceeded to download the fresh episodes from my discription. Once the initial refresh was completed the download went fine and using the app was not enjoyable, but also, not a bad experience either. I did try refreshing the podcasts again and noticed the same performance issues. The best way to work this is to allow the app to run the podcast update and let it go. Once it is done the interface is still a bit clunky but it is functional and I nearly always go for form over function.</span></span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/8022009862/" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Untitled by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Podax Subscription Screen" height="320" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8041/8022009862_221da48053.jpg" title="" width="188" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Podcast Sub Screen</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">I rated the app three out of five stars because although it works, it doesn't work well and is glitchy. However once you get past the glitches and are able to use the app, it does work and it works fairly well.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">To sum up...</span></span></span></h3>
<h4>
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">The app is functional, it works, it is not pretty. It does have glitches but it is free and ad free. I give it a reserved recommendation as the app is maintained and hopefully gets better. So far it is the best free podcast app i've come across however I would be happy to try any other apps you may suggest, please suggest below in the comments.</span></span></h4>
<div>
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<h2>
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">~Yati</span></span></h2>
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span></div>
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/8022007173/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Untitled by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Podax Player Screen" height="320" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8319/8022007173_8a00425cae.jpg" title="" width="188" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Podax Player Screen</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com43tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-54113161449904616452012-09-21T22:40:00.000-07:002012-09-21T22:40:32.634-07:00To OV-105 Endeavour: Farewell Old Friend.<h2>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Farewell Old Friend,</span></h2>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc2ndHD1RIO-Mvzksfeb7LXL1N95jUH2AE7bgcsp5tiK0LMVZdq900DRsDKMTSdjqWa0Ze6DPCre7ZEHUSTOYvM7JdUEd-YHWaaR-Dk9stVxSdd0YkFuEWcF-iO1_49MZiMQdwEplDkiw/s1600/NASA_logo.svg.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc2ndHD1RIO-Mvzksfeb7LXL1N95jUH2AE7bgcsp5tiK0LMVZdq900DRsDKMTSdjqWa0Ze6DPCre7ZEHUSTOYvM7JdUEd-YHWaaR-Dk9stVxSdd0YkFuEWcF-iO1_49MZiMQdwEplDkiw/s200/NASA_logo.svg.png" width="200" /></a></div>
For an old friend, she was the youngest in the <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/shuttleoperations/orbiters/orbiters_toc.html" target="_blank">fleet</a>. Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis, Columbia, Enterprise and, of course, Endeavour, they were their own type of beautiful. Originally the shuttle program was a glorified space trucking system. Taking supplies and experiments to and from the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iss" target="_blank">International Space Station</a>. After the first few initial space flights, everything began to seem ordinary. The shuttle would travel to space, perform it's mission and then glide back through the atmosphere. Catch a ride back to the <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/home/index.html" target="_blank">Kennedy Space Center</a> and repeat.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">But Then</span></h3>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/Qa7icmqgsow?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
<br />
I remember watching President Reagan giving the <a href="http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1148298/posts" target="_blank">speech</a> honoring our brave Astronauts who, as he put it<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Slipped the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of god."</blockquote>
I remember my elementary school teacher telling our class that she has applied for NASA's<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teacher_in_Space_Project" target="_blank"> teacher in space program</a>, the one which <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christa_McAuliffe" target="_blank">Christa McAuliffe</a> got into, and died riding Challenger. I remember that day in 1986, we watched the Challenger launch in class because it carried, a teacher. I had watched many shuttle launches with my father, I knew something was wrong, 72 seconds after lift off when she began to break up it wasn't the boosters separating it was something else. I remember in my class our teacher didn't know what to say to twenty 3rd graders who just watched 7 astronauts die. I didn't think this goodbye would be that difficult to write but it was very sad, and still brings a tear to my eye.<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">Endeavour got her Name</span></h3>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3xBz7jW-v2fk5CSUd3uMBybOX8_jSaJy7SCiC6wsZdqEzvJIouoHhqWs9MGMTUf6HMTIMmP-K_xQvyOSd7IdQyMre1t65-rbYaKWaIuIpUHNud_pgWO0wjmSW-Rz3iWBJyhOOIoIgFMM/s1600/endeavour-STS-127_Launch_Pad_39A.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3xBz7jW-v2fk5CSUd3uMBybOX8_jSaJy7SCiC6wsZdqEzvJIouoHhqWs9MGMTUf6HMTIMmP-K_xQvyOSd7IdQyMre1t65-rbYaKWaIuIpUHNud_pgWO0wjmSW-Rz3iWBJyhOOIoIgFMM/s200/endeavour-STS-127_Launch_Pad_39A.jpg" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Endeavour<br /><span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 16.883333206176758px;">prior to mission </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/STS-127" style="background-color: #f9f9f9; background-image: none; color: #0b0080; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 16.883333206176758px; text-decoration: none;" title="STS-127">STS-127</a><span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 16.883333206176758px;">, May 31, 2009</span>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I participated when NASA later sponsored a naming campaign for the next shuttle that was just called "the orbiter" by the news outlets. We were instructed to find and research an old sailing vessel that contributed in some way to exploration. Always having loved pirates, especially <a href="http://www.nationalgeographic.com/pirates/bbeard.html" target="_blank">Black Beard</a>, I wrote an essay asking NASA to name the new orbiter the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_Anne%27s_Revenge" target="_blank">Queen Anne's Revenge</a>, I still think that would have been really cool. <br />
<br />
Endeavour, named after the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Endeavour" target="_blank">HMS Endeavour</a> gained a fitting name. the HMS Endeavour rounded cape horn and explored Australia. She was commanded by Lieutenant <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Captain_James_Cook" target="_blank">James Cook</a> (later Captain Cook) and she observed the 1769 transit of Venus. But I still like the Queen Anne's Revenge.<br />
<br />
The unfortunate result of the closing of the shuttle program is that NASA now does not have a manned space transport. And what is truly sad about this, is due to massive budget cuts for the past 31 years NASA's manned flight program consisted only of low earth orbit flights. <br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">We Can't Stop Here</span></h3>
<br />
Not to take any glory from a program that has yielded so many achievements. Achievements which have allowed us to learn so much. And still with continuing budget cuts and the federal government's inability to act in the interest of our future, we still have not put a man on Mars, and we have not returned to the Moon.<br />
<br />
Quoting <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Zubrin" target="_blank">Robert Zubrin</a><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivElOGIRv1L6-PUQqeqH2c7NystFOcnHoIuPaQwrUfdAAXRjEKOWfRgieVGpTg54t3JzyybQ9Xp9gNn7xrPilLvYTw7kamOHduVUw0ATxEitUzeAEXR2L2WX8d6WGTbK996nvNZQFFeiw/s1600/Mars_and_Syrtis_Major_-_GPN-2000-000923.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivElOGIRv1L6-PUQqeqH2c7NystFOcnHoIuPaQwrUfdAAXRjEKOWfRgieVGpTg54t3JzyybQ9Xp9gNn7xrPilLvYTw7kamOHduVUw0ATxEitUzeAEXR2L2WX8d6WGTbK996nvNZQFFeiw/s200/Mars_and_Syrtis_Major_-_GPN-2000-000923.jpg" width="200" /></a>"It shouldn't be humans to Mars in 50 years. It should be humans to Mars in 10"</blockquote>
And then after that, lets land on Titan or an asteroid. Lets discover if there is life under the icy surface of Europa.<br />
<br />
My great hope is that with the last flight of Endeavour, and so many people watching the skies, so many tweets and so many instagram photos. So many facebook posts and so many news reporters covering the shuttle's last chapter. My hope is that we do not lose the excitement we felt watching OV-105 taking her final flight.<br />
<br />
We must go on we must enter deep space and we must succeed.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">~Yati</span></h3>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-66924588357887007902012-09-20T20:22:00.000-07:002012-09-20T20:23:36.890-07:00Virgin Mars?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpedBA5SYxwL1L3vlir5UMntuYvU9jbJr0lCYxN1jXvsVMXZG8lvGkE8TFTPw1ATv1vOAKU3toSNcXXdDrP_Rjs6RcJhdOF8dNmJusxEmZZQt0gyh7lhY9qwaeH90tpLkOR7TtrEUnEkE/s1600/200px-Virgin.svg.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpedBA5SYxwL1L3vlir5UMntuYvU9jbJr0lCYxN1jXvsVMXZG8lvGkE8TFTPw1ATv1vOAKU3toSNcXXdDrP_Rjs6RcJhdOF8dNmJusxEmZZQt0gyh7lhY9qwaeH90tpLkOR7TtrEUnEkE/s200/200px-Virgin.svg.png" width="200" /></a></div>
<h2>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Virgin Mars</span></h2>
<div>
<br /><div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Branson" target="_blank">Sir Richard Branson</a> recently announced that he is "determined" to establish a human population on Mars. Branson is well known for his <a href="http://www.virgin.com/" target="_blank">virgin brand</a> record stores, phone service, Virgin airways and of course Virgin Galactic an upcoming space tourism venture.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivElOGIRv1L6-PUQqeqH2c7NystFOcnHoIuPaQwrUfdAAXRjEKOWfRgieVGpTg54t3JzyybQ9Xp9gNn7xrPilLvYTw7kamOHduVUw0ATxEitUzeAEXR2L2WX8d6WGTbK996nvNZQFFeiw/s1600/Mars_and_Syrtis_Major_-_GPN-2000-000923.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivElOGIRv1L6-PUQqeqH2c7NystFOcnHoIuPaQwrUfdAAXRjEKOWfRgieVGpTg54t3JzyybQ9Xp9gNn7xrPilLvYTw7kamOHduVUw0ATxEitUzeAEXR2L2WX8d6WGTbK996nvNZQFFeiw/s320/Mars_and_Syrtis_Major_-_GPN-2000-000923.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mars as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
Branson is also known for his relaxed yet driven style, and although I would prefer to see <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/" target="_blank">NASA</a> or the <a href="http://www.esa.int/esaCP/index.html" target="_blank">ESA</a> (but really NASA) establish the first Mars settlement, if we can see an increase in our technological knowledge or capabilities due to Branson's Mars endeavors it would be better than no advancement at all. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
At a point in history where NASA's budget is shrinking steadily, an investment by the private sector is better than no investment. However what private sector companies develop, they own. They do not have to share their technology, and they can charge whatever price they wish. When the public sector (NASA, ESA, <a href="http://www.nsf.gov/" target="_blank">National Science Foundation</a>, etc) develop a technology it is available freely to the public to be built upon. New companies and in some cases whole new industries are created. </div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggCRbqPW8EJt-G8o_-p2bTIvRA6i3ZT3xzVpTHxYo4yHugOOrvRzmbHaiKYjZuEe3i_eSAtBurASwIJoBOjxD40OGxDVKZOSIQ8lrAGLVsetCowzt19qnh7E4q5evt6TFN17QmiILDRc8/s1600/5.3.10RichardBransonByDavidShankbone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggCRbqPW8EJt-G8o_-p2bTIvRA6i3ZT3xzVpTHxYo4yHugOOrvRzmbHaiKYjZuEe3i_eSAtBurASwIJoBOjxD40OGxDVKZOSIQ8lrAGLVsetCowzt19qnh7E4q5evt6TFN17QmiILDRc8/s320/5.3.10RichardBransonByDavidShankbone.jpg" width="247" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Richard Branson</span><br /><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by David Shankbone</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br /><div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Science and scientists who traditionally had worked in the public sphere were able to share and build on ideas working cooperatively and arriving at solutions faster than they would be able to alone. Private entities wish to keep information secret, or wish to patent it to protect their investment. This in and of itself is not evil or wrong, obviously who wouldn't want to protect their investment, but generally this can slow down formation of new theories and technologies.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
So, Sir Richard Branson, Good luck! I hope you are able to open a luxury resort on Mars, I just hope <a href="http://www.penny4nasa.org/" target="_blank">Penny4NASA</a> and citizen support for our public space program allows NASA to beat you there.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">~Yati</span></h3>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-28911392015341060932012-09-19T14:59:00.000-07:002012-09-19T15:03:59.221-07:00Curiosity Day 43<h2>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">This is how Curiosity Rolls!</span></h2>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-y_Jnbmx7ER4/UFo5KDLxwqI/AAAAAAAAANE/_uduMklAzWo/s1600/MSL_Mars_trek.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-y_Jnbmx7ER4/UFo5KDLxwqI/AAAAAAAAANE/_uduMklAzWo/s400/MSL_Mars_trek.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Curiosity's Progression by Sol<br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; line-height: 16px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona</span></span>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial; line-height: 16px;">The above map shows the progress <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/msl/index.html" target="_blank">Curiosity</a> has made from sol 0, (August 6, 2012) through today Sol 43 (September 19th, 2012).</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="line-height: 16px;">Depicted above is the trek Curiosity has made after setting down at </span><a href="http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/msl/news/msl20120822.html" style="line-height: 16px;" target="_blank">Bradbury Landing</a><span style="line-height: 16px;">. The trek follows an eastward path toward the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glenelg,_Mars" target="_blank">Glenelg area</a>.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="line-height: 16px;">Glenelg, Mars (or Glenelg Intrigue) is located near <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gale_crater" target="_blank">Gale Crater</a> and is a natural meeting point for three types of terrain which Curiosity will examine, one of which is layered bedrock which will feel the bite of Curiosities drill.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="line-height: 16px;">The name Glenelg came from a geological point of interest near Yellowknife, Canada. Other named geological features in the area derive their names from the Yellowknife area. The name is also a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palindrome" target="_blank">palindrome</a> which is dovetails nicely with Curiosity's intended path which is programmed to pass Glenelg twice. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="line-height: 16px;">Currently Curiosity has 290 Meters on it's odometer, and hopefully many more klicks to go!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">~Yati</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-small;">I previously covered Curiosity's first jaunt <a href="http://www.devotedskeptic.com/2012/08/science-curiosity-tally-ho.html" target="_blank">here</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span></span>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-32973565831140468422012-09-18T05:52:00.000-07:002012-09-18T19:59:39.581-07:00Thorium Nuclear Power NOW!<h2>
The Case for Thorium</h2>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwXunDEX2VgXldLKaiwF_l5s3v-jAiqJBXGRp9Ht9R7cq_Oq45yOI50T95CcconKBMd-ANpsC491bnJRGhzxtvNVH7zOqTuIkqd52NZPyhaMOBukL8RTGy1eeyb38ZUdBIYa401xdzPuA/s1600/thorium.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwXunDEX2VgXldLKaiwF_l5s3v-jAiqJBXGRp9Ht9R7cq_Oq45yOI50T95CcconKBMd-ANpsC491bnJRGhzxtvNVH7zOqTuIkqd52NZPyhaMOBukL8RTGy1eeyb38ZUdBIYa401xdzPuA/s320/thorium.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
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Japan's Nuclear Problem</h3>
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Recently, news reports have indicated that Japan will be<a href="http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/9e9466c6-ffee-11e1-a30e-00144feabdc0.html#axzz26esYQ5SU" target="_blank"> discontinuing</a> their Nuclear power programs, this is not only startling but disheartening. As more and more coal burning plants are constructed CO2 gas emissions continue to rise and continue to increase the temperature of our global climate. <br />
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I know many will cite the fact that fissile waste material is dangerous and expensive to store and arguably worse pollutant than CO2, and that is a fair assessment, this is where Thorium comes in. <br />
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Before I make my case for Thorium I want to go over the some of the history of nuclear power and some of the reasons why it was relatively unsafe and why Thorium is safe and necessary if our species is to last on this planet with real quality of life in the future.<br />
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Part of the reason so many nuclear reactors were built in the 60s and 70s was to gain plutonium which in turn was used in nuclear weapons in the escalating arms race against the USSR.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Y6rr0KaAqjIldaH9xo5RwFeMzXtR8pEY3KRTWPq2BQ9GgL9PBNoHQyYUwZSzYMujQ9mYbAUTnTtZ9scBhR7x_tbsmJ8tvJr5IKDpTzlbmFJvWpQ2DC9m3DGmp-yH5mB7ncxepErryf0/s1600/Susquehanna_steam_electric_station.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Y6rr0KaAqjIldaH9xo5RwFeMzXtR8pEY3KRTWPq2BQ9GgL9PBNoHQyYUwZSzYMujQ9mYbAUTnTtZ9scBhR7x_tbsmJ8tvJr5IKDpTzlbmFJvWpQ2DC9m3DGmp-yH5mB7ncxepErryf0/s320/Susquehanna_steam_electric_station.jpg" width="320" /></a>Hundreds of water cooled fission reactors were built all over the world. Water cooled reactors were much more popular and can easily been observed with the large cooling towers and large containment structures around the reactor itself. In order to efficiently turn the turbines water is super-heated under pressure, if pressure were to be lost the liquid would flash into steam, a volume differential of over 1500 to 1. If the containment structure is too small, or if there is a leak, then water bearing radioactive material would enter the atmosphere. <br />
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Now not all is doom and gloom, even with our current nuclear technology, watt for watt nuclear power is the safest energy source currently in use claiming fewer lives per watt than any other power source.<br />
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Enter Thorium</h3>
Thorium has actually been used as a fuel for many years and there were several reactors built in the United States that operated without a significant accident. There are several reactors currently using Thorium as a fuel supply, for example the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/India%27s_three_stage_nuclear_power_programme" target="_blank">Indian 3-Stage Program</a>. Thorium is the 39th most common element in the earth's crust making it readily available the however for Thorium to become fissile it must first be transmuted to Uranium 233. With current fission reactors this is possible and as with India's 3 stage process the first two stages are utilized to create the thorium fuel used in the final stage. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3AAJbLybTvRFFuYA07lxQtF75w02qHsIKPC6TQb9iHAQYyolKMe18zCXmsYUI3UPH92_FuHKg2tUQfrhS8tCgmYc-I6R59kCZUyxUfxEG-V7zj_faXpbb26JOMuHaAm5gwOyviN3NOpE/s1600/radiation-symbol.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3AAJbLybTvRFFuYA07lxQtF75w02qHsIKPC6TQb9iHAQYyolKMe18zCXmsYUI3UPH92_FuHKg2tUQfrhS8tCgmYc-I6R59kCZUyxUfxEG-V7zj_faXpbb26JOMuHaAm5gwOyviN3NOpE/s200/radiation-symbol.jpg" width="200" /></a>The Thorium molten salt reactor design was championed by Dr. Alvin Weinberg of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Originally designed for use in long range aircraft and known as the "chemist's reactor" Oak Ridge studied and experimented with the Molten Salt Thorium Reactor for many years until 1973 when Dr. Weinberg was fired by the Nixon administration. Dr. Weinberg was fired because he wished to continue pursue Thorium and Molten Salt research but the administration wished to research the riskier Liquid Metal Fast Breeder Reactors. After Dr. Wineberg's departure from Oak Ridge Thorium research in the US waned. <br />
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Resurgance</h3>
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Interest in Molten Salt Reactors powered by Thorium fuel has recently increased due in large part to the efforts of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kirk_Sorensen#Kirk_Sorensen" target="_blank">Kirk Sorensen</a> who came upon the idea while attempting to design a power source for the Moon. He found that there is a great amount of Thorium on the Moon and although there is no atmosphere allowing solar energy to work well there is a two week night while the Moon orbits the Earth making solar energy much less effective due to current battery storage technology. While researching methods of nuclear power generation he found a book dealing with Thorium reactors from the early days of Nuclear Power.<br />
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Safety</h3>
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We worry about nuclear meltdowns, or environmental issues causing problems with nuclear plants (fukushima in japan for example) or spent fuel disposal issues. Although the odds of another Chernobyl or 3-mile island occurring are very small there is a possibility with ageing infrastructure and cost cutting. If a water cooled nuclear reactor loses the ability to circulate it's coolant it can melt down or breach, if a Thorium powered Molten Salt Reactor loses the ability to circulate the Molten Salt coolant a salt plug at the bottom of the reactor will melt and the liquid will drop into a small containment system below the reactor. Because Molten Salt will not boil and does not require expansion if there is a loss of pressure. Japan has publicly stated that they are going to be steering away from nuclear power but are considering <a href="http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/intelligent-energy/japanese-utility-mulls-thorium-reactor-for-safe-nuclear/16513" target="_blank">Thorium as an answer</a>.<br />
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More Power To you!<br />
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~Yati</h3>
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Below I have provided several links to additional information as well as Kirk Sorensen's Ted Talk about Thorium Reactors<br />
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<a href="http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/intelligent-energy/safe-nuclear-indias-thorium-reactor/15707" target="_blank">Smart Planet Article on Thorium</a><br />
<a href="http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/intelligent-energy/japanese-utility-mulls-thorium-reactor-for-safe-nuclear/16513" target="_blank">Japanese Consider Thorium</a><br />
Kirk Sorensen's Site <a href="http://energyfromthorium.com/">http://energyfromthorium.com/</a><br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-61732580694212953822012-09-16T09:45:00.001-07:002012-09-16T09:47:19.206-07:00Measles, Mumps, Rubella, and Death<h2>
Measles, Mumps, Rubella and Death</h2>
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<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/be/Typhoid_inoculation2.jpg/800px-Typhoid_inoculation2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="234" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/be/Typhoid_inoculation2.jpg/800px-Typhoid_inoculation2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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In 1998 <a href="http://www.thelancet.com/" target="_blank">The Lancet</a> published a paper penned by Andrew Wakefield linking autism with the MMR(Measles, Mumps, and Rubella) vaccine. Media coverage was wide spread including impassioned interviews of parents of autistic children who believed that they had caused their children's autism by inoculating them with the MMR vaccine. This caused confidence in the vaccine to falter world-wide resulting in fewer children receiving the vaccination and greater instances of outbreaks of Measles, Mumps and Rubella.</div>
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This new religion of those who follow the anti-vaccine mantra will not be swayed. Even after several papers have been published refuting the results of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Wakefield" target="_blank">Wakefield</a>'s paper, vaccine administration rates have remained lower and incidence of measles have increased dramatically. </div>
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We all care and worry about our kids. We worry about the food they eat, the education they receive, and what may be in store for them in the future. It is hard for us to be impartial and look at things based on data and science when our children's health is in the balance especially, when sensational claims by experts, friends, and media outlets seed doubt in our minds. The reaction of most parents it to avoid any perceived risks for their children and this is natural, it is gut instinct, a feeling. But feelings and gut instincts are not truth. No matter how much we would like them to be they are not, and because of this we should educate ourselves and wrap ourselves in the warm blanket of reason and data.</div>
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Wakefield & Bad Science = Rise of the Virus</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Morbillivirus_measles_infection.jpg/800px-Morbillivirus_measles_infection.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Morbillivirus_measles_infection.jpg/800px-Morbillivirus_measles_infection.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Measles Infection</td></tr>
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I twas found in his paper, Wakefield was found to have had several undisclosed financial <a href="http://www.bmj.com/content/342/bmj.c7452.full" target="_blank">conflicts of interest</a> with MMR studies. He was given the opportunity to replicate his experiments or retract his paper and he declined to do either. 10 of his coauthors retracted the paper's interpretation in 2004 yet he remained steadfast in his support of his position.</div>
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The results are that we now face a world where uncommon diseases will be come common again. Mumps and Measles are on the rise. In the England and Wales during the first 6 months of 2012 twice as many cases of measles have been reported as had been reported in the same time period for 2011. These diseases have been taken for granted for decades because vaccines have protected us and our children.</div>
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Heard Immunity</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_HkxVpRtNOIRVDKCjNB2iMKCRqrOm7w8szMMQni3mE19FQuILETgEaociqt1SDlpOweqrx_eDMsmd-Q3YbP6oaDyzwW3Sw-sgtq1m-c8vkS3he_GJhrRmqgIdTIuWn7rcEh3R94lndLU/s1600/151107vaccine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_HkxVpRtNOIRVDKCjNB2iMKCRqrOm7w8szMMQni3mE19FQuILETgEaociqt1SDlpOweqrx_eDMsmd-Q3YbP6oaDyzwW3Sw-sgtq1m-c8vkS3he_GJhrRmqgIdTIuWn7rcEh3R94lndLU/s320/151107vaccine.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Those who do not immunize their children are putting all of us at risk. They can, not only contract and spread diseases causing billions in public funds but due to the larger un-vaccinated population, those who are unable to receive vaccination because of medical issues are no longer protected by heard immunity. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herd_immunity" target="_blank">Heard immunity</a> occurs where a large percentage of a population is vaccinated against a disease. Those who have not been administered vaccination are relatively safe because of the large number of vaccinated people that surround them. This reduces the probability that they will encounter an infected person and, if infected the are much less likely to infect others.</div>
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Those who choose not to inoculate their children are not only making the decision to leave their children unprotected from potentially deadly diseases like the measles, but they are also choosing to put children who are unable to be vaccinated at risk as well.</div>
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Please, read everything about the <a href="http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002026.htm" target="_blank">MMR Vaccine</a> and understand the entire picture before making a decision, and I encourage you to get your children vaccinated!</div>
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~Yati</div>
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Here are several links that discuss the flawed study as well as other general vaccination information:</div>
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<a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2196809/Is-measles-way-asks-Dr-Ellie-Cannon.html" target="_blank">Measles: A killer on the way back</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2011/may/27/mmr-vaccinations-data" target="_blank">MMR Vaccination Rates</a> (Europe 2011)</div>
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<a href="http://arstechnica.com/science/2012/08/widespread-vaccine-exemptions-are-messing-with-herd-immunity/" target="_blank">Widespread vaccine exemptions messing with heard immunity</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/concerns/autism/index.html" target="_blank">CDC Concerns about Autism</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.bmj.com/content/342/bmj.c7452.full" target="_blank">BMJ - Wakefiled's Article was Fraudulent</a></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-39292198809744842862012-09-14T03:27:00.002-07:002012-09-18T05:57:15.365-07:00Tech Video:Import Excel Data into a SQL 2012 Table<h2>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"> Import Excel Data into a SQL 2012 Table</span></h2>
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is a brief posting with my first YouTube video, as promised I detailed the process in a video that I had first mentioned in the <a href="http://www.devotedskeptic.com/2012/08/tech-import-excel-data-into-sql-2012.html" target="_blank">original screen shot article</a> I created a few days ago. I will also be creating a short video that goes over the reverse process, bringing data from a SQL Table into an Excel Spreadsheet similar to<a href="http://www.devotedskeptic.com/2012/09/tech-export-sql-to-excel-with-script.html" target="_blank"> this article</a> I had posted.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/IaCC213CXRo?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></span></div>
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(<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IaCC213CXRo" target="_blank">Video Link</a>)</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Have a good one!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">~Yati</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-16240349104038914272012-09-12T14:27:00.001-07:002012-09-12T14:28:19.268-07:00App Review: Battery<div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr9qrhB98-ISXPmwTDQ3rDc6xaTKPNfDKVQJ-q-My6902sSXiESzT8URFRt8TMvX9rDAdV2luu8rV7NuX9C7beYnHJKK5D2oSStryo7mgkTTrZ0g6Tz_Nxy8RiMBtErTOZn4mzZ7tnvwg/s1600/battery.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr9qrhB98-ISXPmwTDQ3rDc6xaTKPNfDKVQJ-q-My6902sSXiESzT8URFRt8TMvX9rDAdV2luu8rV7NuX9C7beYnHJKK5D2oSStryo7mgkTTrZ0g6Tz_Nxy8RiMBtErTOZn4mzZ7tnvwg/s1600/battery.png" /></a></div>
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<h2 style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1; margin-bottom: 16px;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Battery HD </span><span style="font-size: small;">by samllite.ch <span style="color: #3d85c6;">(free)</span></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg_iBuIsHjRj8XsQ01JFk8f_SgDwhJj38h7IV6p0JBHiBwAsFj8MDPBKP6zxr8nRNptGZYW1vgguVpCwjiAodqYeLTyFX7_bQwIw_j-6Mcz3Ckly1kGdD6qo6enHdjRnC1_SED7pOTezo/s1600/4stars.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; color: #db5a01; display: inline !important; font-size: 30px; line-height: 1; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; outline: none; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="31" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg_iBuIsHjRj8XsQ01JFk8f_SgDwhJj38h7IV6p0JBHiBwAsFj8MDPBKP6zxr8nRNptGZYW1vgguVpCwjiAodqYeLTyFX7_bQwIw_j-6Mcz3Ckly1kGdD6qo6enHdjRnC1_SED7pOTezo/s1600/4stars.png" style="background-color: transparent; border: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" width="200" /></a></h2>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ch.smalltech.battery.free&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsImNoLnNtYWxsdGVjaC5iYXR0ZXJ5LmZyZWUiXQ.." target="_blank">Google Play</a></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;"> - </span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Apple App Store unavailable</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Battery HD</b></span> application by smalllite.ch is a great battery app for your android device. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7980387905/" style="background-color: transparent; clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Untitled by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Untitled" height="320" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8299/7980387905_7fa7023ecf_n.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Main Screen</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;">One of the firs things I began noticing when I first began using my android phone was that the battery indicator seemed to go from full, to half, and then to empty, and it was difficult to know how much time I might actually be able to use my phone. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"> I had tried several battery apps over time, as I am sure many of you, dear readers, have as well. What I noticed most about this application is that i am still using it on my phone approximately 6 months after first installing it. That is in and of itself a good reason to endorse the application, however there are several very interesting features this app offers.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7980387362/" style="background-color: transparent; clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Untitled by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Untitled" height="320" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8307/7980387362_78cfa1eb76_n.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the info Screens</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The first Feature</span> i would like to mention is the information screen. pull down the status bar and click on the running application you are presented with a visual depiction of your battery, and this is very similar to most of the other apps available out on the app store. The difference I noticed here (and there may be other apps out there that do this i've jsut settled on this one) is that you are able to glean a great amount of information from the various screens.</div>
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If you <span style="font-size: large;"><b>swipe to right</b></span> to left you can see how long it would take to charge your battery both on AC and via USB. you can see how long you would be able to use a flashlight app, how long you might be able to talk, how long you will be able to use WIFI, and so on.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7980386058/" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Untitled by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Untitled" height="320" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8438/7980386058_e73b319f98_n.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Discharge Graph</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;">
There is a discharge graph that you can also display that will show the speed at which your battery discharges over time.</div>
<div style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;">
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">There are several options that can be configured and although I had installed the free version it appears as if all of the options that are most useful are available and configurable. In fact the only thing that reveals that this is a free vs paid app is the advertisements that appear. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">The ads are neither intrusive nor annoying and other than wanting to give some money to the developer, (which isn't a bad idea) it isn't necessary to purchase the full app.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">One of the more useful features of the app is a numerical battery percentage that is shown at the upper-left hand side of the status bar (86 in the instance of my phone at the time I took the screen shot).</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7980386561/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Untitled by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Untitled" height="320" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8441/7980386561_0ffe535a7c_n.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Available Options</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><span style="line-height: 20px;">Overall this is a great application and has many useful features and options. It certainly fulfilled my needs in a battery application for my android phone. I recommend this application. I give it 4 out of 5 stars because although it is a great app there are a lot of other battery apps available that are similar and it isn't a "game changer" sort of app. But again it is excellent at what it does. </span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"></span></span><br /><span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"></span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>~Yati</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"></span></span><br /><span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"></span></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr9qrhB98-ISXPmwTDQ3rDc6xaTKPNfDKVQJ-q-My6902sSXiESzT8URFRt8TMvX9rDAdV2luu8rV7NuX9C7beYnHJKK5D2oSStryo7mgkTTrZ0g6Tz_Nxy8RiMBtErTOZn4mzZ7tnvwg/s1600/battery.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7980386033/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Untitled by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Untitled" height="320" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8315/7980386033_ce71417f81_n.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Charging Screen</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-67668798035939803772012-09-10T19:32:00.000-07:002012-09-27T21:29:49.420-07:00We Must Ride the Lightning<br />
<h2>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7974911460/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="Lightning_by_Stock_by_Kai by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Lightning_by_Stock_by_Kai" height="150" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8311/7974911460_b0d1b5a48e_t.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">We Must Ride the Lightning and
Ride it well…</span></span></h2>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;">A quote from<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_A._Heinlein" target="_blank"> Robert Heinlein</a>,
he was referring to technology and warfare in the atomic age but I am going to
discuss lightning. Lightning is pretty
common, we’ve all observed it, and some of us have even had the <s>opportunity</s>
misfortune of being its conductor. Odds
that a person in the United States will “ride the lightning” once in their
lifetime (naturally, not as ordered by the state) is approximately 1 in
3,000. Lightning here within our
terrestrial amphitheater, with all of its truly awe inspiring power and might
still seems fairly mundane because it is a fairly common occurrence. In this article we are going to discuss
extraterrestrial lightning. But first,
what is lightning?<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;">What is lightning?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;">Many of you may know what
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightning" target="_blank">lightning</a> is, but it bears repeating for those who may not. Lightning is a large electrostatic discharge
caused by a differential in electrical charge within the atmosphere. Simply put, ground discharge lightning occurs
when the ground and atmosphere have a difference in charge that is so great
that difference discharges in the form of a large spark. Lightning is similar
to when a person shuffles their feet along the ground and gets a shock when <a href="http://www.sciencemadesimple.com/static.html" target="_blank">touching a door knob</a>. That is all fine and good,
but other planets have lightning?<span style="font-size: 10.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7974910915/" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="071128155513-large by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="071128155513-large" height="240" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8320/7974910915_52bf186ba9_z.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Artist's Depiction of a Venusian Storm</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<h3>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Venus</span></span></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;">Earth is not the only planet that has an atmospheres
so it stands to reason that other planets may have atmospheric conditions
leading to lightning strikes. The first
recorded lightning strike was recorded by the Russian <a href="http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1978-086A" target="_blank">Venera 12</a> space probe,
these results were later called into question in 1999 when the <a href="http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/" target="_blank">Cassini space orbiter</a>
flew by and detected no signs of lightning.
However in 2005 the ESA launched the Venus Express orbiter which was
able to confirm that lightning does occur in the Venusian atmosphere. One fact that makes Venus’ lightning unique
and interesting when compared with other planets, is that the Venusian clouds
are comprised of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere_of_Venus" target="_blank">sulfuric acid</a> rather than water. This means the mechanics of
rain drops falling and rubbing amongst each other causing the charges to build
also occurs with other chemicals. This
could mean that on Titan with its methane seas, and <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/cassini/whycassini/cassini20110317.html" target="_blank">methane rain</a> most likely
also experiences lightning. If this is
the case we may be able to peek into an environment somewhat similar to Earth’s
own primordial state currently taking place on the surface of Titan.<span style="font-size: 10.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<h3>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Jupiter</span></span></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7974911552/" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="jupiter by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="jupiter" height="170" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8321/7974911552_168af859d0_m.jpg" width="226" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jupiter Storm</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;">In 2007 the <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/newhorizons/main/index.html" target="_blank">New Horizons mission</a>, a very exciting mission in its own right, used Jupiter for a gravity
assist on its way to Pluto (still a planet at the time and still a planet in
our hearts) was able to record lightning strikes near the Jupiter’s North and
South poles. Some of the bolts were up
to 10 times as powerful as any lightning strikes recorded on earth. During both the Galileo mission in the 90s
and voyager probe in 1979 lightning was recorded nearer the equator. Similar to storms that occur on Earth water
vapor rises and ice particles form, then fall colliding on their way down
towards the surface, building electrical charge which then discharges as
lightning. Jovian </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;">storms not only have
extremely energetic lightning, but due to the incredible gravity rain falls
faster causing the charges to build quickly.
Jupiter’s storms are often larger than the entire Earth, and along with
gravity, and an extremely dry atmosphere, an atmosphere made up almost entirely
of hydrogen and helium, the rain can fall very fast. All of these things culminate into
the…perfect…storm.</span></div>
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<h3>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Saturn</span></span></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7974915350/" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="PIA14921_690x460 by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="PIA14921_690x460" height="213" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8302/7974915350_bafef5dba1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Saturn Lightning</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;">Daytime lightning had not been
observed until March 6, 2011. The
Cassini spacecraft was able to visually observe a lightning strike in a very
large storm. Scientists have calculated
that the bolt Cassini saw was about 3 billion watts and lasted for one
second. The flash was approximately 100
miles in diameter and exited the top of the cloud surface. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;">The very fact that other
planets exhibit and experience atmospheric conditions similar to those found on
Earth helps shape our perception of the planets around us. They are different from ours and we may not
be able to live on them, for now, but they are more similar than one would
first suppose. Of course we would not
have been able to learn about these weather patterns if NASA, the <a href="http://www.esa.int/esaCP/index.html" target="_blank">ESA</a> and the
Russian Space programs had not sent space vehicles to explore them. The insight we gain by observing weather on
other planets may help us to understand the weather here on the planet we call
home.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">~Yati</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;">The following quite is taken
from a <a href="http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?1456568" target="_blank">memo</a> that Robert Heinlein wrote to for the Naval Air Material Command in
1945 it is a bit of a pessimistic viewpoint for humanity, but this was not an
uncommon view held by many scientists at the time. None the less it is where I derived the
title of this posting and they are still the words of Heinlein.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; line-height: 115%;">This
question needs to be approached with humility and with real desire to serve
rather than simply with the idea of preserving a particular bureaucratic
institution as a going concern. It may be conclusively assumed that, while war
may possibly be successfully outlawed through the use or the threat of the use
of the atomic bomb, the atomic bomb itself may no more be outlawed than sex or
the silent stars. It’s here, we’ve got it. It is a<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><u>fait accompli</u>. We must at all
times be ready and willing to use it. If our culture is to survive we must
contain that power with sober judgment and humanity. It is a simple fact that
(1) we can not afford a war ever again, (2) the atomic bomb cannot be
abolished, nor can it be indefinitely kept from other peoples. We must ride the
lightning and ride it well. I conceive the atomic bomb as being the force
behind the police power for a planetary peace. Perhaps the custodian will be
called the “Armed Forces of the U.S.” or perhaps the “Peace Forces of </span></blockquote>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-41786365936694239862012-09-09T07:19:00.002-07:002012-09-09T07:23:14.889-07:00Tech: SQL String Concatenation<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7936785414/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="sql_server by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="sql_server" height="163" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8030/7936785414_683929e4af_m.jpg" width="200" /></a>
<br />
<h2>
Tech: SQL String Concatenation</h2>
<div>
This will be a very short basic article dealing with very basic string concatenation.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
In this instance I was asked to combine a first name and last name in a table. First names and last names are separate columns in the SQL database I happened to be working with. For full MSDN reference you can go to this <a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms177561.aspx" target="_blank">link</a>.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h3>
First</h3>
<div>
Here is a simple SQL statement, I am retrieving the top 10 first and last names </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><span style="color: blue;">select top</span> 10 <span style="color: #38761d;">first_name, last_name</span><br /><span style="color: blue;">from</span><span style="color: #38761d;"> ccontacts</span></b></span></blockquote>
This script will return the first 10 first and last names from the table named ccontacts.</div>
<div>
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<div>
</div>
<div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7962482388/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="resluts_no_concat by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="resluts_no_concat" height="244" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8435/7962482388_3b34c0fca0.jpg" width="201" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
You can see that the results contain a first name and last name. Now I need the first name and last name returned in one column separated by a space, similar to the way you would see them in regular print.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
To return results like this we need to use a simple concatenation statement within the select statement.</div>
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<br /></div>
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</div>
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In order to return the first name and last name together as a full name field as you can see below, adding the first name, a blank space ' ', and the last name will return both first and last name as a full name field. I used the '<span style="color: blue;">as</span>' modifier to allow the column name to be fullname.</div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b><span style="color: blue;">select top</span> 10 <span style="color: #38761d;">first_name, last_name,</span></b> (
<b><span style="color: #38761d;">first_name</span></b> <span style="color: #38761d;">+</span><span style="color: red;"> ' '</span> <span style="color: #38761d;">+</span>
<b><span style="color: #38761d;">last_name</span></b> ) <b><span style="color: blue;">as</span> <span style="color: #38761d;">fullname</span> <span style="color: blue;">from</span><span style="color: #38761d;"> ccontacts</span></b></span></blockquote>
Here you can see the results with firstname_name, last_name, and fullname.<br />
<br /></div>
<div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7962537192/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="slq_concat_fname_lname by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="slq_concat_fname_lname" height="241" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8445/7962537192_fa39c36d60.jpg" width="383" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Now lets say that we want the first name and last name but we want the format to be last name then a comma, space, and finally first name.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><span style="color: blue;">select top</span> 10 <span style="color: #38761d;">first_name, last_name,</span></b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"> ( </span><b style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><span style="color: #38761d;">last_name</span></b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">+</span><span style="color: red; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"> ', '</span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">+</span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"> </span><b style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><span style="color: #38761d;">first_name</span></b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"> ) </span><b style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><span style="color: blue;">as</span> <span style="color: #38761d;">fullname</span> <span style="color: blue;">from</span><span style="color: #38761d;"> ccontacts</span></b></blockquote>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div>
As you can see below we are still returning the first name, last name, but now the fullname column is last name, comma, space, first name.</div>
<div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7962613056/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="slq_concat_lname_comma_fname by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="slq_concat_lname_comma_fname" height="245" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8298/7962613056_841b5dea71.jpg" width="326" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
As I mentioned at the onset of this article, it would be very simple, dealing with simple string concatenation. While working my "day job" as I run into small tech issues I will continue to create articles such as these to outline tech issues in general.</div>
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have a great day!</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
~Yati </div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-29893011630889987072012-09-06T06:21:00.000-07:002012-09-06T06:25:05.939-07:00The Restaurant at the End of the Universe<br />
<h2>
The Restaurant at the End of the Universe</h2>
<h3>
Space Food</h3>
<div>
<br /></div>
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<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/Gagarin_in_Sweden.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="200" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/Gagarin_in_Sweden.jpg" width="137" /></a>Another of my favorite <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Restaurant_at_the_End_of_the_Universe" target="_blank">books </a>by one of my favorite authors,<a href="http://www.douglasadams.com/" target="_blank"> Douglas Adams </a>. I have borrowed his title to write about food in space. A little bit of history and a little bit of future. </div>
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<h3>
Firsts</h3>
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Yuriy Alekseyevich Gagarin was the first human to pull back our planet's drapes and leave the atmosphere for outer space. He consumed 3 containers of food, they were shaped similar to toothpaste tubes. Each weighing 160g. Two were pureed meat and one was a chocolate sauce. Similarly John Glen squeezed apple sauce from a tube as part of an experiment, Initially US scientists were concerned that swallowing would be difficult in low gravity but John Glen reported no issues when he consumed applesauce.</div>
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As space technology improved so did the food that was available to astronauts. The food slowly evolved from tubes of various pureed items or gelatin coated dry snack foods to freeze dried foods reconstituted by water.</div>
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<a href="http://www.eatmedaily.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/apollo-peas-orange-drink-cocoa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="apollo-peas-orange-drink-cocoa" border="0" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-19881" height="274" src="http://www.eatmedaily.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/apollo-peas-orange-drink-cocoa.jpg" title="apollo-peas-orange-drink-cocoa" width="320" /></a>By the time <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Armstrong" target="_blank">Neil Armstrong</a> was getting ready for the Apollo mission that would make him a household name, food for space use had come a long way. But there were many concerns that needed to be addressed that were not necessary for the first human forays into space. First Apollo 11 would be an 8 day mission, therefore the food would not just be there for Astronauts to satisfy a short term craving, the food was necessary. It needed to be calorie and nutrient packed and it needed to survive launch and spaceflight and be somewhat palatable.<br />
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By early space food standards the Apollo Astronauts ate like kings. Hot dogs and thermo-stabilized cheddar cheese were a couple of things on the menu along with bacon cubes. Beverages included coffee and an orange-grapefruit drink. Tang which is often associated with space was not provisioned on Apollo 11.<br />
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<h3>
Space Shuttle Food </h3>
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<div>
<a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/johnson/images/content/137193main_Food_Tray_med.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" id="il_fi" src="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/johnson/images/content/137193main_Food_Tray_med.jpg" style="padding-bottom: 8px; padding-right: 8px; padding-top: 8px;" width="320" /></a>When regular space flight by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle" target="_blank">Space Shuttle Missons</a> began the array and variety of foods had increased dramatically. The latest nutrition technology was used to design meals that would fit each individual astronaut based on their height and weight. A standard menu was base around a standard shuttle mission of 7 days and each Astronaut could choose to substitute foods from the standard menu for other selections they prefer.</div>
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Food preparation was performed in a galley, mid deck, that contained a water dispenser and oven for warming foods and re-hydrating meals.</div>
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Astronauts used a food tray that could hold food containers for their meal. They used conventional knives, forks and spoons with the addition of scissors to open Mylar bags. </div>
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<h3>
Future</h3>
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<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7d/Mars_atmosphere.jpg/534px-Mars_atmosphere.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="File:Mars atmosphere.jpg" border="0" height="200" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7d/Mars_atmosphere.jpg/534px-Mars_atmosphere.jpg" width="177" /></a>Currently <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/" target="_blank">NASA</a> is working out menu items and methods for a manned mission to mars in the 2030's, this food will be different. First the mission length will be much greater than any other manned mission to date. Current reported mission timeline is 6 months to the red planet. 18 months on the surface of Mars and 6 months back home. Food will need to last a really long time and still be edible. </div>
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Thanks to previous space food technologies there is quite a variety, which is very important for such a long mission. During space flight due to lack of gravity the sense of taste and smell is diminished causing foods to taste bland. Of course you don't want someone opening up a bottle of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naga_Bhut_Jolokia" target="_blank">ghost pepper sauce</a> to spice things up at micro gravity, or everyone will have a bad day. </div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://news.discovery.com/space/2010/07/27/mars-food-278x225.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="mars food" border="0" height="161" src="http://news.discovery.com/space/2010/07/27/mars-food-278x225.jpg" title="mars food" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These are the same dishes<br />
Which would you eat?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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But with the gravity provided by Mars meals should be able to be a bit more flavorful and easier to prepare. This is a game-changer in food preparation planning for NASA. Gravity is less than that which is on earth and atmospheric pressures are different causing the boiling point of water to be different. It may be possible to efficiently boil water in a pressure cooker and fresh vegetables could be cooked easily this way. I mentioned in a previous article about <a href="http://www.devotedskeptic.com/2012/09/farmer-in-sky.html" target="_blank">space farming</a>, a very possible solution to getting fresh food in space is the though the use of high tech agriculture while in space. A small green house could help provide some oxygen as well as fresh produce and unless the astronauts are up for a raw, diet boiling and cooking would become important.</div>
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Currently Maya Cooper, a senior researcher at Lockheed Martin is working with a team to develop the menu and methods for keeping astronauts fed on the mars mission. Her team has already come up with about 100 recipies. All of these recipes are vegetarian due to the distinct lack of cows and chickens on Mars. To keep the menu fresh and to keep the other astronauts performing research it is possible that one astronaut will be chosen to be Mar's own <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_Ramsay" target="_blank">Gordon Ramsay</a>, allowing them to study the sustainability of food outside Earth's atmosphere, and possibly off-world farming. This sort of research is an important precursor to sustained living outside our planet's environment.</div>
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<a href="http://scientopia.org/blogs/scicurious/files/2010/10/ramen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="177" id="il_fi" src="http://scientopia.org/blogs/scicurious/files/2010/10/ramen.jpg" style="padding-bottom: 8px; padding-right: 8px; padding-top: 8px;" width="200" /></a><br />
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I personally like ramen noodles and would be happy to eat them during long duration spaceflight. They are light, long lasting, and they have all the necessary nutrients...right? Ok probably not but them I am not going to mars.</div>
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Have a great day, and eat a great meal!</div>
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~Yati</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-76413134440776293342012-09-05T14:34:00.000-07:002012-09-05T14:36:24.293-07:00Tech: Export SQL to Excel with script modifier<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7936785414/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="sql_server by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="sql_server" height="82" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8030/7936785414_683929e4af_t.jpg" width="100" /></a><br />
<h2>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Export Data from SQL into Excel</span></h2>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">Using a SQL script to modify the data set.</span></h3>
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Earlier I covered a method for taking excel data and importing it into a SQL table using the<a href="http://www.devotedskeptic.com/2012/08/tech-import-excel-data-into-sql-2012.html" target="_blank"> import tool</a>. I also went over using Transact SQL <a href="http://www.devotedskeptic.com/2012/09/tech-sql-group-by-with-sum.html" target="_blank">Group By with the SUM</a> function to sum data based on an item in a table. Now we are going to look at exporting data from SQL into an excel file and we are going to use a transact SQL statement to modify the output.<br />
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<h3>
Create an Excel file</h3>
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First we will need to use Microsoft Excel to create an excel file. Headings are not needed in the file and the file won't need to be modified, we simply need to create a workbook and then save it as shown below.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7938361714/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="Open_2012-09-04_21-29-52 by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Open_2012-09-04_21-29-52" height="247" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8179/7938361714_02c354f6a2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<h3>
Open the Import/Export Wizard</h3>
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Once you've created your excel file open the wizard. You will choose your data source which will be the server name and in this instance I chose the SQL Server native Client as the source type. Below that you will choose the database from which you will be exporting the data.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7939334788/" title="Desktop_2012-09-04_21-25-49 by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Desktop_2012-09-04_21-25-49" height="393" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8296/7939334788_8e2c7eafc9.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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<h3>
Choose Destination</h3>
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Choose Microsoft Excel as the destination and then choose the Excel file that you created earlier.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7937772630/" title="SQL Server Import and Export Wizard_2012-09-04_21-30-09 by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="SQL Server Import and Export Wizard_2012-09-04_21-30-09" height="394" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8456/7937772630_b19d6df13b.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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<h3>
Specify Table or Query</h3>
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In this instance we are actually going to run a small script so our export is formatted in a way that is easier for us to use, or formatted for another software package, etc.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7937772540/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="SQL Server Import and Export Wizard_2012-09-04_21-30-38 by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="SQL Server Import and Export Wizard_2012-09-04_21-30-38" height="395" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8442/7937772540_b89bfa9730.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<h3>
SQL Query</h3>
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Here you can see that we are using the query that we created in an <a href="http://www.devotedskeptic.com/2012/09/tech-sql-group-by-with-sum.html" target="_blank">earlier</a> article to sum data in a table. </div>
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If you click the Parse button you should see if any errors are generated by the SQL script. Also if you click the browse button you should see a sample listing of the results.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7937772834/" style="text-align: start;" title="SQL Server Import and Export Wizard_2012-09-04_21-38-52 by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="SQL Server Import and Export Wizard_2012-09-04_21-38-52" height="394" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8435/7937772834_1d0aa7f8b1.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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<h3>
Source and Destination Table</h3>
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This screen shows the source and destination tables. You can change the destination in this example because we are creating a new table(sheet) with the export. You can also append data to a sheet but then you would want to choose the appropriate sheet.</div>
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You can preview the results and edit mappings to change data types or modify the mapping between the source and destination tables.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7937772412/" style="text-align: start;" title="SQL Server Import and Export Wizard_2012-09-04_21-36-12 by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="SQL Server Import and Export Wizard_2012-09-04_21-36-12" height="395" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8031/7937772412_8a619169c7.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<h2>
Save and Run</h2>
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This is a neat step. I won't be covering it in detail in this posting but in the future I will get in depth on this feature. I have checked the Run Immediately box but if you were to save the package as a SSIS package you can then execute the package as a job or part of a maintenance routine. This give quite a bit of latitude for automating repetitive processes.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7937772994/" style="text-align: start;" title="SQL Server Import and Export Wizard_2012-09-04_21-36-25 by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="SQL Server Import and Export Wizard_2012-09-04_21-36-25" height="395" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8310/7937772994_e766c02c62.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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<h2>
Finalization Page </h2>
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There is a final confirmation page that goes over the export process you built in broad strokes.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7937772924/" style="text-align: start;" title="SQL Server Import and Export Wizard_2012-09-04_21-36-39 by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="SQL Server Import and Export Wizard_2012-09-04_21-36-39" height="393" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8030/7937772924_9c122931b2.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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<h2>
Summary / Confirmation page</h2>
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Finally we see a page that shows the success/failures of the process we've run. You normally can click on informational messages and get more details, such as the "124 rows Transferred" link below.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7937772694/" style="text-align: start;" title="SQL Server Import and Export Wizard_2012-09-04_21-45-15 by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="SQL Server Import and Export Wizard_2012-09-04_21-45-15" height="394" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8169/7937772694_bf28ea99b7.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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<h3>
Excel file - Final Results</h3>
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As can be seen below our Excel file has been created and it has the information we expected in it.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7938361636/" style="text-align: start;" title="Microsoft Excel - test.xlsx [Group]_2012-09-04_21-45-45 by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Microsoft Excel - test.xlsx [Group]_2012-09-04_21-45-45" height="400" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8030/7938361636_889542ba57.jpg" width="276" /></a>
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Today was a day full of tech articles...and more to come, however I prefer science topics like the "<a href="http://www.devotedskeptic.com/2012/09/farmer-in-sky.html" target="_blank">Space Farming</a>" or the "<a href="http://www.devotedskeptic.com/2012/08/oldest-modern-human-ancestor-in-se-asia.html" target="_blank">SE Asia Early Man</a>" article I wrote in the past week or so.</div>
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Have a good one!</div>
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~Yati</div>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-21749993246426265672012-09-05T06:33:00.000-07:002012-09-05T06:33:43.093-07:00Tech: SQL GROUP BY with SUM<h2>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Tech: SQL GROUP BY with SUM</span></h2>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7936785414/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="sql_server by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="sql_server" height="82" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8030/7936785414_683929e4af_t.jpg" width="100" /></a>From time to time I plan on posting things I have to deal with in the real world. Often I find articles that are helpful on the web, but other times I have to piece the knowledge I am looking for from several places and combine that information for my final answer.<br />
<br />
This will be a short article dealing with a very simple application. Using the <a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms187810.aspx" target="_blank">SUM function </a>to return results based on a group of items. So here goes:<br />
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<h3>
Table with Multiple Entries per Date</h3>
<div>
First I queried a table I had created by<a href="http://www.devotedskeptic.com/2012/08/tech-import-excel-data-into-sql-2012.html" target="_blank"> importing a spreadsheet into a SQL tabled</a> named "Tracking". I wanted to ensure that the data contained in the spreadsheet imported properly into the Table and the results were what I expected. To do this I simply selected the columns I wanted to inspect and </div>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><span style="color: blue;">Select</span> <span style="color: #38761d;">[date]</span>, <span style="color: #38761d;">sales</span>, <span style="color: #38761d;">commission </span></span><span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><span style="color: blue;">From </span><span style="color: #38761d;">dbo.Tracking</span></span><span style="color: #6aa84f;"> </span></blockquote>
Here are the results that were returned:<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7936543050/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="SQL_SUM_Pre by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="SQL_SUM_Pre" height="351" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8033/7936543050_40db377683.jpg" width="369" /></a></div>
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As you can see the results show several sales on one day and several commissions. In this database we keep track of individual sales but lets say we need to get totals for both the sales and commission for each day in particular.</div>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Select</span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">[date]</span><span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">, <span style="color: magenta;">sum</span>(<span style="color: #38761d;">sales</span>)<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">as</span></span> </span>
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">sales</span> <span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">, </span>
<span style="color: magenta; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">sum</span> <span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">(<span style="color: #38761d;">commission</span>)</span> <span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">as</span></span> </span>
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">commission</span> <span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><br /></span><span style="color: blue; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">From </span>
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">dbo.Tracking</span> <span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><br /><span style="color: blue;">Group By</span> </span><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">[date]</span></blockquote>
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After running this script you can see that the sales and commissions have been summed below, The dates are out of order because when I imported the spreadsheet I was not paying attention to the data type and I converted it to nvarchar. I will correct this and show how that is done in another article.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7936543000/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="SQL_SUM_Results by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="SQL_SUM_Results" height="330" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8181/7936543000_b484d59a1f.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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Happy Summing</div>
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~Yati</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-71593196460707302142012-09-04T08:02:00.001-07:002012-09-04T08:08:09.482-07:00Kodu Curiosity<h2>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Kodu Curiosity</span></h2>
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The title alone contains a double meaning, at least for me. When I first read the word <a href="http://www.kodugamelab.com/" target="_blank">Kodu</a> I was unsure of its meaning. Was it a distant cousin to African gazelle like ungulate the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kudu" target="_blank">Kudu</a>? Was it some sort of Klingon word? What the heck is Kodu? </div>
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I immediately quelled my curiosity and began reading all I could. Kodu, a Microsoft project, is a neat visual programming language that allows kids (even big ones) to create games for both PCs and the Xbox game console. The visual language is excellent for helping kids break complex problems into smaller steps, to solve a difficult problems and its cartoonish game nature is non-threatening.</div>
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<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/35/Male_Kudu_Eating.jpg/250px-Male_Kudu_Eating.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/35/Male_Kudu_Eating.jpg/250px-Male_Kudu_Eating.jpg" width="213" /></a>The language/game is fun, but helping kids hone early logic and problem solving skills in the guise of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamification" target="_blank">gamification</a> is the real innovation here. Kids have fun while learning and not just like most crappy edutainment games, but, similar to building a city and its infractructure within Sim City, building the game is the largest part of the fun.</div>
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Kodu feels like it has <a href="http://mindstorms.lego.com/en-us/Default.aspx" target="_blank">LEGO mindstorm</a> DNA, and looking at the design and audience it seems to have gained some inspiration from the Mindstorm project. One major advantage is that Kodu is completely free, you only need an Xbox or a computer then download the software and begin. Mindstorm basic starter kits will set you back $279.99 plus shipping, making it slightly less accessible than Kodu.</div>
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If all of this weren't enough (sounding like a cheesy TV ad now, but this is for science, so it's ok), <a href="http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/projects/kodu/" target="_blank">Microsoft</a>, in conjunction with <a href="http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/participate/" target="_blank">JPL</a> is working on a Curiosity Kodu Mars Experience! It isn't available yet but when it is, youngsters will be able to virtually, beam lasers at rocks, analyze mars substances, program curiosity to perform tasks and much more. </div>
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An entire syllabus for classroom use is available online <a href="http://kodu.blob.core.windows.net/kodu/Curriculum_MARS/Level%202%20-%20Search%20and%20Explore%20Mars.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>, and it looks like a very exciting and stimulating project.</div>
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These opportunities may help us find the next <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Einstein" target="_blank">Einstein</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Steltzner" target="_blank">Adam Steltzner</a>, or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_sagan" target="_blank">Carl Sagan</a>. If we stimulate a young mind to become a great mind then any effort put towards projects like this are invaluable.<br />
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~Yati</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-35857175891223894432012-09-03T11:56:00.000-07:002012-09-27T21:30:24.768-07:00Farmer in the Sky<h2>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Farmer in the Sky</span></h2>
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For the Restaurant at the End of the Universe go</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><a href="http://www.devotedskeptic.com/2012/09/the-restaurant-at-end-of-universe.html" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">here</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is not only an excellent <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farmer_in_the_Sky" target="_blank">novel</a> by one of my favorite authors,<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_A._Heinlein" target="_blank"> Robert A. Heinlein</a>, but also an activity that is coming closer to an exciting and meaningful reality.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For any sustained activity in space our explorers will need nourishment to eat and oxygen to breath, we all know this and although it seems to be obvious it is also a subject that is often not given as much consideration in the news or by the general public. Space Agriculture has been the a plot element within many science fiction novels and movies or at least a major component to these stories. Some major advancements for growing technologies have arisen from the knowledge gained from investigation into this problem that have benefited farmers and gardeners here on earth.</span><br />
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Zeoponics</h3>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/67471main_fertilizer_golf.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img align="Right" alt="Ohio Clearview golf course" border="0" height="225" hspace="5" src="http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/67471main_fertilizer_golf.jpg" style="background-color: #e4e4e4; border: none; color: #2e2e2e; display: block; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px; margin-top: 0px;" title="Ohio Clearview golf course" vspace="0" width="250" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">NASA scientists at the <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/home/index.html" target="_blank">Kennedy Space Center</a> and the <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/johnson/home/index.html" target="_blank">Johnson Space Center</a> teamed up with Boulder Innovative Technologies, working toward a way to provide soil rich in nutrients for deep space.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With a lot of research these scientists developed a synthetic soil loaded with a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zeolite" target="_blank">zeolite</a> minerals that contain essential plant growth nutrients. This new technique was dubbed <a href="http://www.zeoponix.com/" target="_blank">zeoponics</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The first usage of ZeoPro (the trademarked name for ZeoponiX, Inc Fertilizing products) was on golf courses, sports fields and greenhouses, where its slowly dissolving reservoir of nutrients increase a plant's strength and growth performance. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="http://www.nasa.gov/missions/science/f_fertilizer.html" target="_blank">Link to NASA Spinoff Page</a></span><br />
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Alien Soil</h3>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 2008 the first <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenix_(spacecraft)#Wet_chemistry" target="_blank">wet soil</a> experiment using martian soil was performed by NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander. Phoenix's robotic arm scooped up soil and dispersed it into 3 different on-board analyzers. </span></div>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">An oven that baked and tested emitted gasses.</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On Jun 25, 2008 Phoenix performed the first wet chemistry tests and on the following day (sol 31) she returned the results that indicated salinity levels and pH levels were such that they would not cause issues with life. NASA's <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" target="_blank">Goddard Space Flight cente</a>r has been working on a project <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/news/topstory/2005/mars_plants.html" target="_blank">bio-engineering</a> plants that may be better suited to survive on the 4th rock from the sun.</span></div>
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Nuclear LEDs</h3>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We are seeing the use of Light-emitting diode (LED) technology all around us in consumer electronic products. From flashlights that use a single small battery, and seemingly last forever to LED light bulbs that cost just pennies to light. LED lighting is the next logical step for lighting where direct solar light is not an option. Whether it be underground tunnels in the moon, with it's lack of an atmosphere and no meaningful radiation protection, or deep space where the closest star is but a pinprick of light. </span></div>
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<a href="http://blogs-images.forbes.com/brucedorminey/files/2012/08/300px-LED_panel_and_plants.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="LED panel light source used in an experiment o..." border="0" class="zemanta-img-configured zemanta-img-inserted" height="204" src="http://blogs-images.forbes.com/brucedorminey/files/2012/08/300px-LED_panel_and_plants.jpg" style="border: 5px solid rgb(241, 241, 241); margin-top: 0px; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:LED_panel_and_plants.jpg" style="border: 0px; clear: right; color: #666666; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; margin-top: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Current solar-powered battery storage is not adequate. The most practical solution currently would be the use of a Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (TRG). This is the same sort of power source used on the Curiosity Rover. LEDs are also extremely robust surviving shock and long periods of usage, lasting up to 50,000 hours, and they do not produce as much heat byproduct as traditional horticulture lights do.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On earth it takes roughly 50 square meters of plant life to provide both food and oxygen to support one astronaut based on Earth growth/production. In low or zero-gravity environments we do not know how well plants will produce at that scale. </span></div>
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Future</h3>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Whatever the future holds agriculture will be a part of it both on earth, possibly growing algae that produce fuel for our vehicles or plants that can grow quickly. Maybe just a better tasting apple or grocery store tomatoes that not only look beautiful but actually taste as good as they look.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">~Yati</span></div>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-84325843011051940542012-09-02T07:29:00.001-07:002012-09-02T07:43:53.499-07:00Today in Science September 2nd: Frederick Soddy<br />
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Frederick Soddy <span style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">(September 2, 1877 – September 22, 1956</span></h2>
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">Frederick Soddy was born September 2nd, 1877 in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastbourne" target="_blank">Eastbourne</a>, Sussex, Englad to Benjamin Soddy. He was educated at Eastbourne Collage and later at the University College of Whales, Aberystwyth.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">In 1895 he was granted a scholarship at Merton College, Oxford and graduated in 1898 with honors in chemistry. After two years research at Oxford he traveled to Canada and from 1900 till 1902 he was an instructor in the Chemistry Department of McGill University, Montreal. </span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a class="image" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Discovery_of_neon_isotopes.JPG" style="background-image: none; clear: right; color: #0b0080; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-decoration: none;"><img alt="" class="thumbimage" height="303" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e6/Discovery_of_neon_isotopes.JPG" style="background-color: white; border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); vertical-align: middle;" width="211" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The bottom right coroner shows<br />
separate impact marks for the two<br />
isotopes of neon</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">Soddy worked closely with Professor <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest_Rutherford" target="_blank">Sir Ernest Rutherford</a>, together exploring radioactivity. They published papers outlining the transmutation of elements into other elements or simply the disintegration of elements through radioactive decay chains.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">Soddy had discovered<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isotope#History" target="_blank"> isotopes</a>. Trying to explain why, based on his studies, there were 40 different radio-elements between Uranium and Lead, but the periodic table only allowed for 11. Soddy suggested that several types of atoms could occupy the same place in the table allowing for different radioactive properties. The term "isotope" is Greek for "at the same place" and was suggested to Soddy by Margret Todd a Scottish Physician and friend.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">For his work on isotopes he received the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Nobel_laureates_in_Chemistry" target="_blank">Nobel Prize for chemistry</a> .</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">He was also honored with the naming of a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soddy_(crater)" target="_blank">small crater</a> after him that is located on the dark side of the moon.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">~Yati</span></span><br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-55843052664999499952012-09-01T21:30:00.001-07:002012-09-01T21:34:31.182-07:00Bill Nye My Hero Guy<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Bill Nye my hero Guy</span></h2>
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">On August the 23rd <a href="http://www.billnye.com/" target="_blank">Bill Nye</a> released a video on <a href="http://bigthink.com/" target="_blank">Big Think</a>'s youtube channel giving an impassioned plea to parents that they teach their children about evolution. The video soon went viral and has, as of press time, reached 3.3 Million views.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During the video he admonishes parents to go ahead and believe in creationism if they wish, but do not teach this to their kids. Because we need kids who are able to think and make decisions based on facts. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It has been widely reported that Bill had called out <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Todd_Akin" target="_blank">Todd Akin</a> for blaming Bill's pro-evolution video for causing hurricane Issac. This was a false story distributed by a parody news agency but it is getting a lot of press, even from reputable news sources.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bill Nye, ever the gentleman, did not utter the statement reported. Akin apparently believes that women have smaller brains...or at least brains that can <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/21/us/politics/rep-todd-akin-legitimate-rape-statement-and-reaction.html" target="_blank">shut down during a sexual assault</a>, and is therefore a moron, (my opinion, not an actual determination by a psychologist). Bill did not publicly address Akin's inability to string together rational thoughts, but mainstream media has enjoyed pointing out his gaffe. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bill Nye, a champion for science, is a great ambassador for science and I support his efforts and hope that in the future he will continue releasing videos that advocate scientific pursuits, such as <a href="http://www.devotedskeptic.com/2012/08/science-curiosity-tally-ho.html" target="_blank">curiosity</a>, the <a href="http://www.devotedskeptic.com/2012/08/god-particle-confirmed-on-july-4th.html" target="_blank">LHC</a>, <a href="http://www.devotedskeptic.com/2012/08/kepler-locates-multiple-planets.html" target="_blank">Kepler </a>and so on.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Keep it up Bill!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">~Yati</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-19080071138484921082012-08-31T20:58:00.001-07:002012-08-31T21:01:22.979-07:00God Particle Confirmed<h2>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7904105664/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="lhc12 by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="lhc12" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8041/7904105664_fd7648a568.jpg" /></a></div>
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On July 4th the world was told that CERN had found a Higgs Boson-like particle, now the top CERN official has indicated that the Higgs Boson-like particle is indeed, the Higgs Boson.<br />
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Rolf Heuer, the director general of Cern, the European Organisation for Nuclear Research, said that he would "stick his neck out" and say it had been found by scientists.<br />
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Mr. Heuer made this statement while visiting Edinburgh where he met with Professor Peter Higgs, the man who lent his name to the Higgs Boson Paricle or the so called god particle.<br />
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While delivering a lecture to students, academics and members of the public at Heriot-Watt University he discussed the announcement made in July that the Large Hadron Collider had produced data indicating a new particle "consistent" with the Higgs Boson.<br />
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The results were preliminary and more work is being done before scientists can be sure about what they have captured.<br />
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"When they finalized the data, the significance has even increased, so this is why I stick my neck out and say I think it is beyond any doubt because it looks very, very clear and very well in hand, so I think we have found this new particle," he added.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-21937530293165525772012-08-30T20:14:00.001-07:002012-09-14T03:29:25.479-07:00Tech: Import Excel Data into a SQL 2012 Table<h2>
Importing Excel Data into a SQL Table</h2>
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Using the built-in Import and Export Data Utility</h3>
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Importing data into a <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/sqlserver/en/us/default.aspx" target="_blank">Microsoft SQL Server</a> Database Table can be a little tricky. Things have changed from back in the days where the DTS packages were easy to configure (although <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SQL_Server_Integration_Services" target="_blank">SSIS</a> is a more powerful alternative), if you want a very simple, very fast way to import data into your SQL Server Database from a Microsoft Excel file this is an extremely quick and easy way to do it.</div>
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The first thing to note, and this is very important, is that the 64-bit import tool <a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms141766(v=sql.105).aspx" target="_blank">does not natively open Microsoft Excel files</a>. </div>
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Choose the 32-bit tool.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7896334530/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="icon by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="icon" height="124" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8304/7896334530_e1b44e7052_m.jpg" width="96" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">32-bit Import/Export Tool</td></tr>
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When you open the Import/Export Wizard you will see the following dialogue box and will need to choose the data source. If you do not see a Microsoft Excel option then you may have accidentally opened the 64 Bit version of the wizard.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7896334448/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="choose_data_source by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="choose_data_source" height="399" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8452/7896334448_be3c9928e4.jpg" width="400" /></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7896334448/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;" title="choose_data_source by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><br /></a></div>
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Once you have chosen Microsoft Excel as your data source the dialogue options will change and allow you to locate an excel file. Browse to or type in the location of your excel file.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7896335222/" title="Choose_data_dource_b by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Choose_data_dource_b" height="395" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8438/7896335222_67d2cf8e48.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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Choose the database server and the database you wish to connect to.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7896335156/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: start;" title="Choose_destination by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Choose_destination" height="394" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8041/7896335156_7e68f89c0f.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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If you need to add additional parameters or logic into the import, or want to import into an existing table based on existing data you can write a query to specify a data transfer. I'll cover that in another article but for now we are just going to import the data into a new table.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7896335090/" title="Specify_table_query by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Specify_table_query" height="394" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8298/7896335090_df2e35d8f1.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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You will then be given an opportunity to either select a table in which you can import the data, or create a new table. I've created a new table called New_Contact_Table.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7896334974/" title="Select_tables by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Select_tables" height="392" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8177/7896334974_106aa04b38.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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The import can then be imported immediately or it can be saved as a SSIS package which could be executed on a schedule or again at a later point in time.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7896334898/" title="Save_and_run by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Save_and_run" height="393" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8440/7896334898_f2b310aea7.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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The confirmation reiterates the configuration changes that you've selected.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7896334832/" title="Complete_confirmation by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Complete_confirmation" height="393" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8287/7896334832_ef4eec3742.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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When you click the finish button the status screen will show the progress, and if all goes well it will indicate that the data was exported properly into the database.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7896334632/" title="Successful_execution by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Successful_execution" height="395" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8316/7896334632_81fdf20ac4.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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Finally as you can see the 9200 rows that were imported are verified.</div>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7896334574/" title="query_test_result by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><br /><img alt="query_test_result" height="164" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8035/7896334574_6b63ed2c9e.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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From this point you can simply manipulate the data into an existing table or if you just needed the data imported into a SQL server then your job is done.<br />
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<strike>This is a fairly simple process and I hope to create a short YouTube Video detailing the process in the next few days.</strike><br />
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I have created a new video dealing with this process <a href="http://www.devotedskeptic.com/2012/09/tech-videoimport-excel-data-into-sql.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/IaCC213CXRo?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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~Yati<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com66tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-1926917249898483272012-08-28T21:22:00.000-07:002012-08-29T08:38:33.892-07:00Kepler Locates Multiple Planets Orbiting a Binary Star System<h2 style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 30px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1; margin-bottom: 16px;">
Kepler has found multiple planets in a Binary Star System.</h2>
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">Kepler has continued its stellar (pun intended) discovery spree, this time locating multiple planets orbiting a Binary Stars. This is especially interesting because this proves that more than a single planet can form under the stresses of a binary star system. </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">The system is known as a </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circumbinary_planet" style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">circumbinary planetary system</a><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">, is a mechanism where a planet orbits two stars. But prior to this discovery multiple planets in a circumbinary system was unproven. Coming less than one year from the discovery </span><a href="http://kepler.nasa.gov/Mission/discoveries/kepler16b/" style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">Kepler-16b</a><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">, the first circumbinary system discovered.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">Named Kepler-47, the system consists of a pair of orbiting stars that eclipse each other every 7.5 days. One star is similar in size to our Sol however it only provides approximately 84% of the light, the other is smaller measuring one third of the size of our Sol and emits less than 1% the light.</span></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/681724main_kepler47_art_4x3_946-710.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/681724main_kepler47_art_4x3_946-710.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">On to the planets, named Kepler-47b and Kepler-47c.. Kepler-47b is closer to its two suns orbiting in 50 Earth sols. Kepler-47c orbits every 303 days which would place it within the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goldilocks_zone#Goldilocks_zone" target="_blank">Goldilocks zone</a>. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #2e2e2e; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">"Unlike our sun, many stars are part of multiple-star systems where two or more stars orbit one another. The question always has been -- do they have planets and planetary systems? This Kepler discovery proves that they do," said William Borucki, Kepler mission principal investigator at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif. "In our search for habitable planets, we have found more opportunities for life to exist." </span>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-24597038207279581092012-08-27T14:08:00.001-07:002012-08-27T14:13:39.340-07:00App Review: MortPlayer<div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">MortPlayer Audio Books </span><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: x-small;">(free)</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgByOwmkGqSRTVVrt6hvGFTlPFtz1M9tKSebBDlaJzftn4CuvgNeAzwLfRhEATZFWIgpz1bllRPomCUEEnYvcvxnpSCbkbOzrGyGfsQekvqCkSo1Xr2hF3JamlqY5L-Wsb2OzJbK8u8dDI/s1600/5stars.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; color: #db5a01; display: inline !important; font-size: 30px; line-height: 1; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; outline: none; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="31" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgByOwmkGqSRTVVrt6hvGFTlPFtz1M9tKSebBDlaJzftn4CuvgNeAzwLfRhEATZFWIgpz1bllRPomCUEEnYvcvxnpSCbkbOzrGyGfsQekvqCkSo1Xr2hF3JamlqY5L-Wsb2OzJbK8u8dDI/s1600/5stars.png" style="background-color: transparent; border: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" width="200" /></a></h2>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=de.stohelit.audiobookplayer&feature=more_from_developer#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEwMiwiZGUuc3RvaGVsaXQuYXVkaW9ib29rcGxheWVyIl0." target="_blank">Google Play</a></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;"> - </span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Apple App Store unavailable</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>MortPlayer Audio Books</b> is basically an MP3 player, except this MP3 player is specifically designed for playing audio books. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The folder system can be a bit a bit difficult to navigate however once you have either opened the file directly or opened the folder containing all of the audio book files you want to listen to you are ready to enjoy this app.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />For me the most important feature is that MortPlayer tracks your position in an audio file, and also lets you bookmark a position in that audio file. I have on several occasions listened to an audio file that was quite large, in some cases the entire book was one file so if I were to lose your place, I would spend several minutes fighting with the progress bar in the player getting back to where I had left off. This has always been an issue with traditional MP3 players as long as I've listened to audio books on them. On occasion, being grasped with the need to listen to a particular song, I would play the song only to find I'd lost my place in the book I was listening to.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Options/Settings</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Most MP3 players are designed to play music and normally music files are not more than a few minutes long and if you enjoy the music you generally do not mind listening to the intro again. Often I would install <a href="http://www.winamp.com/" target="_blank">Winamp</a> and use that for listening to music on my Android phone and then use the simple, nearly feature-free built in music player to listen to my audio books. This way, as long as the music player remains in the system's memory, I can pause the book and listen to music in winamp then return to the paused book in the music player. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />With MortPlayer I still have to use two different players, however I do not have to worry about keeping track of where I was in the audio book and if I reboot my phone MortPlayer will continue where I left off. This is just one small feature among the myriad of available features. You get cover art, lock screen controls, a sleep timer and so on.<br />Without unlocking you can bring up the lock screen and tap to pause or tap again to play. There is an EQ, there is an alarm clock.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />There are many, many, useful features but yet the developer did not lose sight of the end goal of making a great audio book player.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7873734174/" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Untitled by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Untitled" height="320" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8439/7873734174_9e3faea552_n.jpg" width="188" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Lock Screen Menu</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>All in all I highly recommend this application. It performs well in the way that it should and the features are incredible. There are some minor issues with browsing folders and navigating but over all this is an app to have and one I feel fully confident in recommending. I you listen to audio books, try this app, you will like it.</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>5 out of 5 stars!</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">~Yati</span></div>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-56475493863890794702012-08-26T10:23:00.001-07:002012-08-26T10:23:18.868-07:00Dinosaurs and NASA<br />
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What does a 100 Million year old Dinosaur footprint and NASA have in common?</h2>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/gsfc/7846747062/" style="clear: left; float: left; font-size: 12px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="Nodosaur Footprint Verified by NASA Goddard Photo and Video, on Flickr"><img alt="Nodosaur Footprint Verified" height="228" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7260/7846747062_83a3a4ed9c_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt MD and a<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nodosauridae" target="_blank"> Nodosaur </a>called the same place home. </div>
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A 12" wide track from a Nodosaur roamed the area of the <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" target="_blank">Goddard Space Flight Center</a> and left behind its prints the be found by Ray Stanford earlier this summer.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/gsfc/7846741178/" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" title="Nodosaur Footprint Verified by NASA Goddard Photo and Video, on Flickr"><img alt="Nodosaur Footprint Verified" height="320" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8305/7846741178_d12eebc0be_n.jpg" width="318" /></a><span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">Nodosaurs could reach sizes comparable to smaller modern day elephants and lived during the Late Jurassic to Late Cretaceous Periods or between 160 and 66 Million years ago. Material extracted from the same </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;">Cretaceous-period rock near the imprints has been tested with help from the <a href="http://www.usgs.gov/" target="_blank">USGS</a> and revealed to be between 110 to 112 million years old.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">Interestingly enough there is a second print within the larger print that appears to be that of a younger nodosaru following behind its mother.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">The footprint resides on federal land so it must be removed for preservation in accordance with several federal statutes.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">Space Scientists and a behemoth from the past, brought together.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">Additional details can be found on NASA's <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/news/features/2012/nodosaur.html" target="_blank">Godard Space Flight Center Site</a>.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">~Yati</span></span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5196943856345072123.post-54967264938329930412012-08-26T09:23:00.002-07:002012-08-27T12:57:32.357-07:00App Review: Jewel Twist<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCx4YlA4vDrXR7SA5YGIwC8rC-sDNs1oQay51BOn6sehNOj7yw4so5ltMDsqWjfrDszhQQNtptDZl4gHB3dg5S9vQXbOgHp_7OMwhQeSXGteB_BdPFtG7_Bq6W8hiGJ3ig2Vd55jxyrg4/s1600/jeweltwist.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCx4YlA4vDrXR7SA5YGIwC8rC-sDNs1oQay51BOn6sehNOj7yw4so5ltMDsqWjfrDszhQQNtptDZl4gHB3dg5S9vQXbOgHp_7OMwhQeSXGteB_BdPFtG7_Bq6W8hiGJ3ig2Vd55jxyrg4/s1600/jeweltwist.png" /></a><span style="font-size: x-large;">Jewel Twist </span><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: small;">(.99)</span></h2>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYYo2z-H4qz0HKcRtcP-iWySJOqCmvAbv0BfEoAFDnmNX_Iijkp20qemrGMu3LPVPlLfz0wRbDN647wW1DxXULEiHfb3pam9hCkzwsCqM6Zc02ATOh7WokknoTT5q79TUKi3qrNH6rOOU/s1600/2stars.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="31" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYYo2z-H4qz0HKcRtcP-iWySJOqCmvAbv0BfEoAFDnmNX_Iijkp20qemrGMu3LPVPlLfz0wRbDN647wW1DxXULEiHfb3pam9hCkzwsCqM6Zc02ATOh7WokknoTT5q79TUKi3qrNH6rOOU/s1600/2stars.png" width="200" /></a></h2>
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<a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.kristanix.android.jeweltwist&hl=en" target="_blank">Google Play</a> (.99) - <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/jewel-twist/id494296595?mt=8" target="_blank">Apple App Store</a> (.99)<br />
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<b style="font-size: x-large;">Jewel Twist </b><span style="font-size: large;">Is very similar to several other games that are superior in quality and free (albeit you do have to view ads) <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.game.JewelsStar&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5nYW1lLkpld2Vsc1N0YXIiXQ.." target="_blank">Jewel Star</a>, <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.RunnerGames.game.JewelsDeluxe_AD&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5SdW5uZXJHYW1lcy5nYW1lLkpld2Vsc0RlbHV4ZV9BRCJd" target="_blank">Jewels Delux</a>, etc. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Opening Screen</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I downloaded this app from the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/mobile-apps/b?ie=UTF8&node=2350149011" target="_blank">Amazon app store</a> as one of their free "<b>app of the day</b>" app, had I used the play store I would have already asked for a refund and happily uninstalled this game.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The game play isn't awful, it is not too bad actually, but again there are higher quality games that have the same sort of game play and better graphics and are a bit more fun (and as i mentioned earlier are <b>FREE</b>!)</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Level Selection</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">There are no real instructions but it becomes apparent quickly that this is a "<b>Match 3</b>" sort of game and you are trying to eliminated specially marked cells. Once you have done this you move on to the next level...fairly simple and straight forward.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7864540628/" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Untitled by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Untitled" height="320" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8425/7864540628_dbc07e87ce_n.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Game Play</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The <b>menu options</b> are spartan but as with many of these sorts of games there would not really be that many additional options especially with only one sort of game play.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/devotedskeptic/7864539356/" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Untitled by Yati Kafir, on Flickr"><img alt="Untitled" height="320" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7127/7864539356_ede1768f5c_n.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Menu</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">There are no other modes such as a timed game, or puzzle mode, and there is no online scoring system to compare yourself to others playing. These are not necessarily negatives if the game were free, but again when paying for a game I would expect the additional features and options to set it apart.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Jewel Twist did display and operate properly on my 8" tablet which is a plus. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Overall, the game is a basic match 3 game that is not better than free games available in the various markets. It does display well on multiple screen sizes and there are no apparent bugs. My suggestion to the developer make it free and add advertising.</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>2 stars because it isn't horrible or bad but it is probably at least ugly with any sort of price tag.</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>~Yati</b></span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13175295421447912135noreply@blogger.com6