Bureaucracy, corruption and incompetence in government and in the processes of a nations system are closely related to the overall effectiveness and efficiency of a nation. What costs more bureaucracy or corruption or incompetence ? Depending upon the situation they can all be the dominant cost and they work together to increase costs to society …
Many internet pundits pounced on the latest WikiLeaks allegation that China’s GDP figures were “man-made.” and Jim Trippon at Seekingalpha sets China’s GDP record straight. * The source of the wikileak quote was none other than vice premier Li Keqiang, the very man slated to become China’s next premier, after Wen Jiabao steps down * …
UCSF researchers have identified an existing medication that restores key elements of the immune system that, when out of balance, lead to a steady decline in immunity and health as people age. The team plans to begin larger-scale clinical trials in 2011 to test the drug’s effectiveness and hopes for broader availability within a few …
New research at Rice University could ultimately show scientists the way to make batches of nanotubes of a single type. A paper in the online journal Physical Review Letters unveils an elegant formula by Rice University physicist Boris Yakobson and his colleagues that defines the energy of a piece of graphene cut at any angle. …
Heartland Robotics has raised $20 million in funding Heartland Robotics was founded in 2008 by iRobot co-Founder and former Director of MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Rodney Brooks, with the goal of introducing a new generation of robots to improve productivity in manufacturing environments. “Our robots will be intuitive to use, intelligent and …
Tata Motors used the Thailand International Motor Expo 2010 as the venue to introduce an electric car based on its Indica Vista and a variant based on the Ace pickup. The Indica Vista EV is powered by a super-polymer lithium-ion battery that promises 200 km on a single charge and an acceleration of 0 to …
Researchers at Northwestern University have nanoengineered a new kind of fiber that could be tougher than Kevlar. The group have created a high performance fiber from carbon nanotubes and a polymer that is remarkably tough, strong, and resistant to failure. Using state-of-the-art in-situ electron microscopy testing methods, the group was able to test and examine …
Phil, Stephen, and special guest Brian Wang discuss the possibility of average life expectancy jumping up to 100, 200, or 500 — or even older Fast forward radio at blogtalkradio The show starts at: 11:00 Eastern/10:00 Central/9:00 Mountain/8:00 Pacific. If you liked this article, please give it a quick review on ycombinator or StumbleUpon. Thanks …
1. Wall Street Journal – 10 countries in Asia have nuclear energy development plans. New Delhi forecasts India will spend $175 billion to increase nuclear energy production 13-fold by 2030. China, India and Vietnam combined will build about 115,000 megawatts of nuclear generating capacity, investing more than half a trillion dollars over the next 15 …
Joby Energy and several other companies are developing airborne wind turbines. The Airborne wind conference was recently held and 156 participants in 2010 versus 68 participants in 2009 Makani Power in Alameda was awarded a $3 million ARPA-E grant to continue its work on an “airborne wind turbine.” Makani, which is backed by Google, is …
The study, by researchers from Imperial College London, involves a new class of materials called metamaterials, which can be artificially engineered to distort light or sound waves. With conventional materials, light typically travels along a straight line, but with metamaterials, scientists can exploit a wealth of additional flexibility to create undetectable blind spots. By deflecting …