A recent paper “Use of Mini-Mag Orion and superconducting coils for near-term interstellar transportation” discusses using a massive laser beam to accelerate fuel pellets to catch up to and supply a minimag Orion with fuel. The 1000 ton minimag Orion could then accelerate to 10% of light speed. The laser array would need 2500 times …
News from Centauri Dreams of progress on the mini-mag Orion concept Take what would be a rocket design that is 70-80 times more efficient than existing chemical rockets and beam particles at it so that it can go at 15% of the speed of light at a cost of $3 billion per flight in Uranium. …
The tale of two chinese coal miners who lived. Remember these are the two who lived while 179 others died We also recently had the 12 coal mining deaths in the United States. The two who lived had to drink their own urine, eat coal and dig through 66 feet of dirt and coal. digg_url= …
We are getting closer to cyborgs that are as strong and as fast as people. The prototype rocket powered mechanical arm can lift (curl) about 20 to 25 pounds – three to four times more than current commercial arms – and can do so three to four times faster. “That means it has about 10 …
New research led by University of New Hampshire physicists has proved the existence of a new type of electron wave on metal surfaces: the acoustic surface plasmon, which will have implications for developments in nano-optics, high-temperature superconductors, and the fundamental understanding of chemical reactions on surfaces. “The existence of this wave means that the electrons …
Phase change memories (perfect RAM) are forecast to capture 5.5 percent of the NOR flash market by 2012. I have covered phase change ovonic memory before. It is 500 times faster than regular Flash memory Trapped charge memories increasing from less than 1 percent now to 30 percent of the NAND flash market in 2012. …
Toyota plans to go 100% hybrid by 2020 Takimoto also made the bold claim that by 2020, hybrids will be the standard drivetrain and account for “100 percent” of Toyota’s cars as they would be no more expensive to produce than a conventional vehicle.Masatami Takimoto, who said cost cutting on the electric motor, battery and …
The Center for Responsible Nanotechnology talks about an interesting project that Zyvex has planned. They will create nanostructures with elements of molecular precision. This will help enable more powerful capabilities for controlling structures. The plans are to use silicon and silicon carbide and possibly other materials and created connected layers. Brian WangBrian Wang is a …
The world is building a lot of coal-fired power to go with all of the coal-fired power it already has. This is horrible because air pollution from coal kills more than one million people every year. We need to use all other means to reduce the increase in coal usage, this means more nuclear as …
Space Wars by William Scott, Michael Coumatos, and William Birnes, Forge Books (April 17, 2007) describes how the first hours of World War III might play out in the year 2010. While fiction, it’s based on real-world military scenarios and technologies, dramatically highlighting the West’s vulnerability to destruction of its space-based commercial and military communications …
New anti-air pollutions bills that are going before congress. The Clean Air Planning Act would save thousands of lives each year. For instance, EPA estimated that the previous bill, when compared to “Clear Skies” in 2010, would mean 10,000 fewer premature deaths, 15,000 fewer trips to the emergency room and 1 million fewer work days …