Composting

CNN had a rare useful article on how to compost.

Composting upgrades garden soil, keeps plants healthy, and can even lessen planet-unfriendly greenhouse gases. Here's how to do it.

It's not just for people in the sticks anymore: Composting is great for all gardeners because it improves soil, which in turn prevents plant diseases.

And it can even reduce harmful greenhouse gases.

"Organics that break down in a landfill produce methane gas, which is about 120 times more harmful than carbon dioxide," says Cary Oshins, assistant director for programs at the United States Composting Council, in Ronkonkoma, New York.

So why not help the planet and your yard by piling it on.

How to Get Started

Choose a container that's made of wood (or some other sturdy material) and no smaller than three by three feet. Place it in your yard in a shady spot with good drainage.

Start adding waste in a ratio of three "browns" to one "green."

Browns are carbon-rich materials and include wood chips, straw, branches, and leaves.

Greens provide nitrogen and include grass clippings and kitchen scraps, like eggshells and carrot tops.

When you're adding new material, Oshins suggests, dig a hole in the pile and stir the new stuff in so it gets coated with the old mixture.

How to maintain the pile

Composting is a smelly process.

You're breaking down food and yard waste, after all. But it shouldn't be so offensive that the neighbors complain.

If you notice a stench, make sure you have enough browns in the pile. (Ask a tree service or a landscaper for extra wood chips or brush.)

Also check the moisture level by grabbing a handful of the heap.

It should be at about 50 to 60 percent, meaning the compost feels like a wrung-out sponge.

If it's too dry, let rain even out the moisture. If it's too wet, add a few more browns.

How to tell if the compost is ready

When it's ready for use, which could take anywhere from a few months to a year, compost looks and smells like very dark soil.

If you're unsure, put it to the baggie test: Place a small amount in a plastic bag and take a whiff before sealing.

Then place the bag in a drawer for a few days.

When you open the bag, the sample should smell the same as it did before. If it smells worse, your compost needs more time in the pile.

ヘルシオ

Apparently Sharp has released a version of the Healthio in the U.S. under the name SuperSteam. Amazon sells it for about $950 for the stainless model.

Sharp also makes appliances such as a funky drawer-type microwave, a cooktop/oven combination unit, and a range hood.

Steve D. strikes it rich

A Newsweek article on the App Store Millionaire.

E. Coli Burgers

The New York Times ran an article on how ground beef can be contaminated E. Coli. (A copy that doesn't require login....)

Just cook it to 165 degrees and you'll be fine!

Original Intent

I found this website called Original Intent that has some interesting articles on various base legal topics, such as the origin of government authority, constitutional law, etc. The one I was looking for was regarding the basis of state sales tax. It wasn't readily apparent by reading the law itself what's covered, much less what authority gives them the right to lay claim to a piece of every transaction.

Botach Tactical

Botach Tactical has a couple interesting items: a slimmed down Remington 870 rail forearm and a UTG HK-style claw mount (cheaper than RTG).

Commentary on Health Care

Forgot to post this one. CNN had an article that was actually an opposing viewpoint to the one they usually espouse regarding health care. However, I think their motive was to paint the opponents of universal health care as heartless, money-grubbing bastards. A lot of the commenters pointed out that "afford" to a doctor is still a lot higher than a lot of people. That pisses me off! Yeah, a doctor spends like 10 years in college to learn his trade. I bet a lot of those irate commenters are unskilled laborers who can't fathom the forbearance of investment in education. What's so bad about wanting to secure a financial future for oneself and family? Where does one draw the line between prudence and greed? The self-righteous shitheads who are pro-UHC seem to imply that they have it all figured out. Too bad their blustering is all for show.

Sturdy Safe

If one is considering a Sturdy Safe, here's some info. First of all, there's a good review on UziTalk. Of course, having the price lists (for the small & large safes) helps too.

Political Commentary

CNN apparently only posts comments that support their political views, surprise, surprise. My reply, which of course they won't post:

Funny how typically it's white folks who cry "racism" against other white folks. Apparently it's a tactic to shut down the opposition, although I do agree that most Caucasians have no idea what racism is because they've never experienced it.

As a non-white I used to be a Republican, but the Bush-era neo-cons turned me off: they're just the other side to the same big-government, profligate-spending, rule-with-an-iron-fist Democratic coin.

I support the Tea Party folks. However, unlike the one poster opined (who needs to re-read *his* history), these modern protesters are *much* more mild than the original Tea Party crew. In the current environment, the original Tea Partiers would be called terrorists and hunted down by government agents! They were armed and destroyed a lot of property in support of their political objective, yet are heroes of American history (of course that might change due to left-wing revisionists) for standing up against political injustice. The modern-day protesters are peaceful and polite by comparison, but the symbolic connection is there.

Come on, CNN, post some balanced comments, willya?!

Me ol' bamboo

Apparently it sucks. At least according to a forum on finishing.com. Caveat emptor, apparently.

GreenerFlooring.com - site with info
Vencon USA - vendor of supposedly low outgas flooring
Kronoswiss - ditto

Metals Sites

Interesting gold/silver sites:
Freedom Mint for their Ron Paul coins
Boston Bullion as an alternative to Kitco

Government Surplus

Found a site with government surplus items. Cool!

無線給電

I found this term on Yahoo Dictionary, which piqued my interest. Of course Tesla really proved that wireless power was realizable. Well, I thought up an idea on how to monetize it, but we'll see if the Japanese have any better ideas.

無線給電

電気コンセントに給電装置を差し込み、この装置から電波で家庭にある家電に電気を送り込むシステム。これまでは家電を操作するためには乾電池を利用するか、電気の差し込み口にコンセントを差し込まなければならずその場合は電気コードがどうしても必要となり、長いコードが室内中に張り巡らされる場合もある。そこでテレビやパソコン、ビデオ機器などの各種のデジタル家電を電気や通信用のコードなしに利用できるようにする技術の研究が始まった。東芝を中心として約15社が集まり、官民共同で研究開発を行い、2015年の実用化を目指している。家電のネットワーク化が進めば配線は今以上に増えかねないのでコード不要の新技術に対する消費者の期待は大きくなっている。これまで電話の子機など小型機器向けに実用化されているものもあるが、給電できる距離は1センチメートル以下にとどまっている。これを1～2メートルに延ばしてテレビなど大型機器にも無線で電気が送れるようにする研究を進めている。

HDD v. SSD: If v. When

Another link in my Firefox tab stack that I need to clear.... It's been present through about four browser restarts, so it's about time. This article on C|net talks about the reliability issues of SSD, and how they're actually less reliable than HDDs.

The Sagulator

The Sagulator is an interesting calculator that will compute the deflection of shelves depending on the load, material, and dimensions.

What you need for earthquake preparedness

ケーティの友達はフェースブックにこのリンクを貼った。「備えあれば憂いなし」と。

Op-Ed on Obama's First 200 Days

Comment on an opinion piece by Michael Steele.

Mr. Steele hit the nail on the head.

To "bob", there are times when doing "something" is worse than doing "nothing": if the plan is completely wrong. It is very worthwhile to provide feedback to let our representatives know that their constituents aren't happy with the way things are going.

Amnesiac Youth

How quickly the youth forget.

AGE IN YRS....... INCOME............. POL PHIL.........
18-34 35-54 55+ <50 50-100 >100K Lib Mod Con



Right thing 50% 60% 73% 57% 67% 69% 47% 63% 69%
Wrong thing 32 23 13 25 22 20 37 24 13
DK/NA 18 17 14 19 11 11 16 13 18

The pictures are disturbing, but that's war.

Anti-Privacy Article

What a dumb article. My retort:

Ah, how naive. When your plans are widely known, bad people can take advantage of those plans. Going to London? How about a bunch of guys clean out your house for you while you're out? Could be an employee of one of the corporations with access to your data, or maybe they got hacked. Either way, you're screwed. But you'd only have yourself to blame. Ignore the warnings about intrusive surveillance to your peril.

Smarter folks are buying more things with cash to avoid tracking, and even bypassing increasingly worthless Federal Reserve notes with other intermediates, or bartering. The government hates that because then they can't track what you're doing. Suck it, Big Brother!

DIY Home Surveillance

Something I've been thinking about lately, via c|net.

ALS Kaboom

A few weeks ago when I was looking into getting an ALS, I noticed the safety notice on their website that wasn't there before. Turns out that at the FCSA World Match, an ALS fired out of battery, causing serious injury to the shooter. Furthermore, it came out that this was the second incident. The first incident was not widely reported, and the shooter received much more serious injuries, namely the loss of an eye and other bodily harm.

Note to self: When shooting fifty cal, always bring a buddy—he may need to cart you to the hospital.

R.I.P. Gidget

The Taco Bell dog, Gidget, died last week. I didn't realize she was that old, or that she was a she. Yo quiero Taco Bell!

More xkcd

Augh, I can't stop!

Disaster Voyeurism - I like the detour idea...
Outreach - The dangers of being a marine biologist
1337: Part 2 - Don Knuth, the algorithm master

xkcd: Matrix

This xkcd on the Matrix is absolutely hilarious.

You know, every time I see "xkcd", what inevitably comes to mind is a CD player app for the X Window system....

50 Things to Do Now

Not into anarcho-capitalism—anarchy doesn't work any more than communism—but this list on desirable behaviors I found to be rather interesting.

A Logic Named Joe

I need to read this at some point.

Left-Wing Nutjobs

CNN published a piece of shit op-ed piece by perennial dumbass Roland Martin regarding the Obama birth certificate scandal. I say produce it or get the fuck out of office. The dude isn't my president until proof of eligibility is demonstrated.

Revolver Checkout

How to tell if a revolver is any good—a highly useful article.

.50 BMG Price List

I thought I'd put together a fairly complete list of .50 uppers, but it looks like I missed a few. AR15.com has a price list that includes all available firearms chambered in .50 BMG, along with prices.

Comments on Terrorism

A comment on some inane C|net article:

@Brehhah
That's an inaccurate and somewhat racist comment. I don't see a problem with a suicidal attack during wartime. After all, a charge up a hill toward a machinegun nest while under fire could be considered a suicidal attack. It all depends on which side you're on, and of course the victors write the history books. Pearl Harbor was crappy. However, we knew about it and let it happen. Plus, we were embargoing Japan to curb their nationalist expansion, so from their point of view they had no alternative. It was conflict -- there isn't always a right or wrong, just sides.

@Lerianis3
I completely agree that the Founding Fathers of this country were considered terrorists by the British. And as the saying goes, where the government fears the people there is liberty and where the people fear the government there is tyranny. The danger of the "war on terror" is that it invites the thought police to go crazy. Law enforcement has always been about dealing with crimes after the fact. Otherwise how do you know the crime would've actually been committed? Thinking about committing a crime and actually doing it are two different things entirely! Until the act is perpetrated, there's time for redemption. Apparently the government wants to control what people think, hence the push for mandatory public schooling and censorship of people who disagree with their agenda.

As for robots feeding on corpses -- how will they tell that the bodies are really dead? From an ethical standpoint, this is bogus. But who cares about ethics anymore, eh? Apparently not us.