The first thing I notice is how crowded the bus's are. If you can use a bus to get around it makes more sense then paying for a car, insurance and gas. More and more people are taking their cars off the road. For a lot of people it is a matter of paying for gas or food or rent. The increase in costs due to gas prices is having an impact on every aspect of our lives. People have the same income but now everything costs more.
Car sales are way down, though Hybrid cars are selling more then regular gas cars. There are a lot of sales and promotions trying to get people to buy a regular gas car. With the consistent increases in gas it just does not make any sense to buy a gas car. So to be accurate the cost of everything but gas cars are increasing.
That brings up the second thing I have noticed, retail product cost more, from food to clothing. Sales are dropping simply because you can only stretch a dollar so far then you have to start giving things up. It is not a good time to be in the retail business; even an Internet store like we have is starting to feel the pinch. People have less disposable cash to buy things, and shipping cost is increasing. So even if someone wants an item, shipping may bring the cost beyond what someone is prepared to spend.
As a retailer if I am not making sales, I don't buy new product to sell or manufacture more. I would have to cut costs, such as not selling at festivals because I am unsure if I will make enough sales to break even with the increased rental fees, gas cost, and paying staff. This means I am not employing people I normally would, decreasing their disposable income. It is a viscous circle.
We are on the verge of a recession or even a depression. The cause of this is in part the increased cost of oil, however it is not the only contributor to our economic downturn. We are on the right track by changing to as many alternative fuel sources as possible, changing what we buy and use will decrease our dependence on oil. This will increase our disposable cash, which when spent will stimulate the economy again. All good. But the question is have we made the changes soon enough or are we about to be hit real hard in the next few years with a recession?
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Happy Mothers Day
LMAO. The things people come up with! It is just so wrong I had to share it. Though I am not sure if it’s going to get me in trouble or not. Good voices, well done video and its popular so I guess it fits. So here is the Song for the MILFs by Runawaybox.
Happy Mothers Day to all the Mom’s out there.
Happy Mothers Day to all the Mom’s out there.
Saturday, April 26, 2008
How technological and medical advancements have changed our lives
I find it interesting to see how technological and medical advancements change people’s viewpoints. As computers became able to take over more tasks for us it was thought that they would take over our jobs, and they did. People thought that they would give us more leisure time, paperless offices and instead we spend more time on the computer and are flooded with paperwork. We tend to spend more time with our computers then our families.
As we became more comfortable with computers new sciences and technology became everyday. Then our science fiction became probable and possible. Now what was science fiction in the 70 and 80’s are now commonplace commodities. Every time I look around I see things people created in stories in the 50’s and 60’s being used as every day items. Now there are quite a few things have surpassed the original ideas. For today’s invertors or scientists the idea of teleportation devices, holograph rooms, cars that run on air or water, or devices that let the blind see are not some far off idea but something people are working on at different labs or have already been created.
It is nothing to have friends from all over the world that you chat with on the computer, not typing but actually talking face to face, play a game or party all online. At this point some doctors actually use robotics and computers to operate on someone. Now people are actually having chips imbedded in their bodies that hold their identity, and credit card info. We can JPS our pets using chips and now there is talk of trying to have ones made for our kids. Not a bad idea but does give life to some of the dooms day and big brother is watching you science fiction found in many books and movies.
People are always looking for the fountain of youth, be it in a bottle or surgery, but now it is possible to create organs so we can be young inside. It is possible for humans to extend our life span to indefinite depending on the science of organ growing and how long our minds can actually last. We have already created cyborgs, man blended with machine and robots, both as external skeletal units and limb attachments and internal with artificial harts.
The only thing holding us back from creating a world of our dreams is that not everyone has the same dreams.
As we became more comfortable with computers new sciences and technology became everyday. Then our science fiction became probable and possible. Now what was science fiction in the 70 and 80’s are now commonplace commodities. Every time I look around I see things people created in stories in the 50’s and 60’s being used as every day items. Now there are quite a few things have surpassed the original ideas. For today’s invertors or scientists the idea of teleportation devices, holograph rooms, cars that run on air or water, or devices that let the blind see are not some far off idea but something people are working on at different labs or have already been created.
It is nothing to have friends from all over the world that you chat with on the computer, not typing but actually talking face to face, play a game or party all online. At this point some doctors actually use robotics and computers to operate on someone. Now people are actually having chips imbedded in their bodies that hold their identity, and credit card info. We can JPS our pets using chips and now there is talk of trying to have ones made for our kids. Not a bad idea but does give life to some of the dooms day and big brother is watching you science fiction found in many books and movies.
People are always looking for the fountain of youth, be it in a bottle or surgery, but now it is possible to create organs so we can be young inside. It is possible for humans to extend our life span to indefinite depending on the science of organ growing and how long our minds can actually last. We have already created cyborgs, man blended with machine and robots, both as external skeletal units and limb attachments and internal with artificial harts.
The only thing holding us back from creating a world of our dreams is that not everyone has the same dreams.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Possible new cures found in alligators blood
Research has been done on why alligators don’t seem to get infections. The result is that the peptides—fragments of proteins found in alligators blood gives them resistance to 23 strains of bacteria, including ones that are resistant to antibiotics. It also was able to destroy a good portion of the HIV virus. I find it so interesting the things we find in nature that could cure us and make our lives better, but we still keep destroying it.
This was just found out about alligators, what other cures could have been found in plants and animals that we made extinct. There is often a lot of truth in old wives tails and native cures, but we just disregard them and destroy the source. Maybe it is time we started to keep our land alive and find other directions to expand.
Check out the great article about the research done on alligator’s blood Alligator Blood May Lead to Powerful New Antibiotics
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Cloning used to treat brain disease, not just make organs
It is happing; cloned neurons grown from skin cells are being used on mice to reverse a disease similar to Parkinson’s. I knew it was only a matter of time before we started using cloning to try and cure things. I cannot say that I am against the idea. If it can save my life or improve the quality of my life, and possibly extend it how can I not support it? It is not harming anyone. It is not like they are cloning little me’s to put my brain in when my current body wears out. They are already trying to slow down the damage and deterioration of my body by replacing organs that were grown or cloned in a lab. Now they are looking at reducing the damage to my brain or even being able to repair it. Therapeutic cloning used to treat brain disease.
So they take some of my skin cells and an egg and then create an embryo out of it. Then the stem cells are extracted and then made into dopamine-secreting neurons. These neurons are then transplanted or grafted onto my brain. Tests show that the mice that lived through this process improved and regained some of what they had lost. I wonder if the mice are the same as they were before the graft. Would a person become someone else with this process? I guess we will not know until someone actually gets this done. Wait did I say create an embryo, ok now I actually do have a problem. That’s a little me. We may not be growing it and then scooping out its brains to put mine in or using it for its organs as in some of the Sci-fi horror books and movies I have read but how different is creating an embryo and using it or parts of it?
What I do have to question is what do they do with the embryos? Do they end the process once they have removed the stem cells they need? Does removing stem cells from the embryo harm the embryo? Can the embryo become a living creature or are they made, used to extract stem cells and then no longer able to become a viable being? Now I start questioning how I feel about creating an embryo of myself. Once is it made into an embryo is it a life? The use of human eggs also makes me uncomfortable. It is just not the same as making a body part from cells. This is using our reproductive process to get stem cells. I cannot help but feel that if we create an embryo for the purpose to extract its stem cells it should have a chance to live and become its own person. I am glad that another process is being developed, by Shinya Yamanaka at Kyoto University, to make human embryonic-like cells from skin cells. This takes out the need to create an embryo. I am ok with using some of my skin cells and using genetic reprogramming to change them into the cells into what is needed.
This study using Therapeutic cloning to treat brain disease has shown it to be a very expensive process. Human eggs are needed. That means someone has to donate them or sell them. Then the actual process is expensive. Only the rich would be able to afford this. It does open the door to several moral issues. Not just the creation and use of embryos but also the fact that someone would have to give or sell their eggs for this process. This bothers me. I cannot help but think of the poor that are already selling organs like kidneys. This makes me think of people harvesting human eggs from the poor to keep the rich healthy. It is to complex of an issue with many moral ramifications as well as social for it to become a reality. I do hope Shinya Yamanaka is able to resolve the problems with his process of genetic reprogramming cells. I guess what it comes down to is, if it was yourself or a loved one that needed the cells to live, you would have to ask yourself what can you live with to keep yourself or your loved one alive and healthy?
So they take some of my skin cells and an egg and then create an embryo out of it. Then the stem cells are extracted and then made into dopamine-secreting neurons. These neurons are then transplanted or grafted onto my brain. Tests show that the mice that lived through this process improved and regained some of what they had lost. I wonder if the mice are the same as they were before the graft. Would a person become someone else with this process? I guess we will not know until someone actually gets this done. Wait did I say create an embryo, ok now I actually do have a problem. That’s a little me. We may not be growing it and then scooping out its brains to put mine in or using it for its organs as in some of the Sci-fi horror books and movies I have read but how different is creating an embryo and using it or parts of it?
What I do have to question is what do they do with the embryos? Do they end the process once they have removed the stem cells they need? Does removing stem cells from the embryo harm the embryo? Can the embryo become a living creature or are they made, used to extract stem cells and then no longer able to become a viable being? Now I start questioning how I feel about creating an embryo of myself. Once is it made into an embryo is it a life? The use of human eggs also makes me uncomfortable. It is just not the same as making a body part from cells. This is using our reproductive process to get stem cells. I cannot help but feel that if we create an embryo for the purpose to extract its stem cells it should have a chance to live and become its own person. I am glad that another process is being developed, by Shinya Yamanaka at Kyoto University, to make human embryonic-like cells from skin cells. This takes out the need to create an embryo. I am ok with using some of my skin cells and using genetic reprogramming to change them into the cells into what is needed.
This study using Therapeutic cloning to treat brain disease has shown it to be a very expensive process. Human eggs are needed. That means someone has to donate them or sell them. Then the actual process is expensive. Only the rich would be able to afford this. It does open the door to several moral issues. Not just the creation and use of embryos but also the fact that someone would have to give or sell their eggs for this process. This bothers me. I cannot help but think of the poor that are already selling organs like kidneys. This makes me think of people harvesting human eggs from the poor to keep the rich healthy. It is to complex of an issue with many moral ramifications as well as social for it to become a reality. I do hope Shinya Yamanaka is able to resolve the problems with his process of genetic reprogramming cells. I guess what it comes down to is, if it was yourself or a loved one that needed the cells to live, you would have to ask yourself what can you live with to keep yourself or your loved one alive and healthy?
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Unbelievable technical advancements in my lifetime, what will my children see in theirs
I know that my children will have things that were only thoughts found in sci-fi books, movies and T.V. shows. Already the toys they have are way cooler then anything I ever had. There are robot pets that actually respond to voice commands and can learn on their own. There are products available now that were only ideas when I a kid, and more things are being investigated, and created every day.
Inud the Robo-Dog (VIDEO) – responds to voice commands.
I remember when walkmans came out, now there are iPods, MP3’s and MP4’s. I remember the big changes DVD’s made, and now we can watch movies, and TV on our phone or watch just like in the old spy movies. Cell phones are right out of Star Trek and other Sci-Fi sources. There are times when I am just amazed at the things people are working on and then create. I really do envy what my kids are going to see in their lifetime. Here are some things from the world of Sci-Fi that have been made or are being worked on.
The space station is going to be completed (or should be) with in the next year and will be ready for occupation.
Research is being done by several countries on long-term space travel for things like visiting Mars and possibly outside of our solar system.
Personal robots like Asimo to assist people: be it for people who are physically challenged, or to help people with daily life such as keeping an eye out on the kids and interacting with them, cleaning our homes. Robots are one of the biggest marketable products simply because of the different uses for them. Currently we have little robots to clean our floors. My understanding is that they don’t work that well but I am sure the next generation will work better. We have robot wheelchairs being created that will assist people as well as transport them. There are several different robots being developed to operate independently and assist people to be the arms and legs or even eyes for some one. Then there are ones being created to actually do jobs, such as being a tour guild, where they learn as they go. I know that the sex industry is working with some of the robot designers to create a sex robot to replace sex dolls. Eventually there will be robots created to assist with daily living and will actually be companions and possible sex partners. There is a belief that people will eventually fall in love with the robots and marry them. One lady has already become married to a robot so the prescient has already been established.
Robots at the Kennedy Center
Toyota robots
Robot Sex possible
External robotic skeletons for military purposes, just like in the movies and games are already being created. The skeletons will work as protection, increase strength, and be armed to the teeth, as well as be computers to assist solders. It will not be long before we have solders in robotic suites and independent robot solders. It is only a matter of time.
Robotic exoskeletons could become standard military issue
Research is being done on holographic rooms like the holodeck. It can be created in small scale, visual only. I don’t know if they will ever be able to crate the actual holodeck on Star Trek but they are trying.
Eye visors to see with for the blind are being researched and tested right now. It has gone from a large bulky unit to a small visor that looks close to the one Geordi La Forge has on Star Trek with a hip unit. The person who has been the test subject has gone from being unable to see, to seeing some light to actually being able to make out shapes, like people.
Ways to extend life are being created. We already have artificial harts, but now they are actually being cloned and grown outside of the human body. It will become possible to clone organs that your body will not reject because it is actually part of you. At first this will be used to save lives, but eventually it will be used to extend life. It will still be saving lives but will eventually result in people living longer and longer. How long can the human life be extended if we can just replace the parts that break down? I think that this will come down to money, the rich will be able to pay for the cloning and medical procedures, the poor will not.
Growing organs in a lab
Re-grow body parts
Cars that run on plant oil, water, air or the sun are being made and sold today. I would love to be able to buy the air one but they are not available in Canada yet. I hope that the car companies here wake up and try to be the first one to build them here, to corner the market. It would be the smart business decision. There is a demand for them and the technology is available and working. I wonder what car manufacture in Canada is going to be the first one; if I owned a car manufacture company I know I would want to be the first. Same if I sold cars, I would be demanding to have them on my lot ASAP.
Use water to run a car
Used vegetable oil to run a car
Use air to run a car
More and more things from Sci-Fi are becoming reality today, wonder what will be available 10, 20 or 50 years from now. Mind you if I had the money I might still be alive then using organs grown just for me. I will have my own personal robot to take care of me, possibly a robotic chair or even a robot skeleton to move around in. Who knows how long I will live and what my life will be like. All I need is money and new technology.
The def will hear, the blind will see and the rich will live forever.
Inud the Robo-Dog (VIDEO) – responds to voice commands.
I remember when walkmans came out, now there are iPods, MP3’s and MP4’s. I remember the big changes DVD’s made, and now we can watch movies, and TV on our phone or watch just like in the old spy movies. Cell phones are right out of Star Trek and other Sci-Fi sources. There are times when I am just amazed at the things people are working on and then create. I really do envy what my kids are going to see in their lifetime. Here are some things from the world of Sci-Fi that have been made or are being worked on.
The space station is going to be completed (or should be) with in the next year and will be ready for occupation.
Research is being done by several countries on long-term space travel for things like visiting Mars and possibly outside of our solar system.
Personal robots like Asimo to assist people: be it for people who are physically challenged, or to help people with daily life such as keeping an eye out on the kids and interacting with them, cleaning our homes. Robots are one of the biggest marketable products simply because of the different uses for them. Currently we have little robots to clean our floors. My understanding is that they don’t work that well but I am sure the next generation will work better. We have robot wheelchairs being created that will assist people as well as transport them. There are several different robots being developed to operate independently and assist people to be the arms and legs or even eyes for some one. Then there are ones being created to actually do jobs, such as being a tour guild, where they learn as they go. I know that the sex industry is working with some of the robot designers to create a sex robot to replace sex dolls. Eventually there will be robots created to assist with daily living and will actually be companions and possible sex partners. There is a belief that people will eventually fall in love with the robots and marry them. One lady has already become married to a robot so the prescient has already been established.
Robots at the Kennedy Center
Toyota robots
Robot Sex possible
External robotic skeletons for military purposes, just like in the movies and games are already being created. The skeletons will work as protection, increase strength, and be armed to the teeth, as well as be computers to assist solders. It will not be long before we have solders in robotic suites and independent robot solders. It is only a matter of time.
Robotic exoskeletons could become standard military issue
Research is being done on holographic rooms like the holodeck. It can be created in small scale, visual only. I don’t know if they will ever be able to crate the actual holodeck on Star Trek but they are trying.
Eye visors to see with for the blind are being researched and tested right now. It has gone from a large bulky unit to a small visor that looks close to the one Geordi La Forge has on Star Trek with a hip unit. The person who has been the test subject has gone from being unable to see, to seeing some light to actually being able to make out shapes, like people.
Ways to extend life are being created. We already have artificial harts, but now they are actually being cloned and grown outside of the human body. It will become possible to clone organs that your body will not reject because it is actually part of you. At first this will be used to save lives, but eventually it will be used to extend life. It will still be saving lives but will eventually result in people living longer and longer. How long can the human life be extended if we can just replace the parts that break down? I think that this will come down to money, the rich will be able to pay for the cloning and medical procedures, the poor will not.
Growing organs in a lab
Re-grow body parts
Cars that run on plant oil, water, air or the sun are being made and sold today. I would love to be able to buy the air one but they are not available in Canada yet. I hope that the car companies here wake up and try to be the first one to build them here, to corner the market. It would be the smart business decision. There is a demand for them and the technology is available and working. I wonder what car manufacture in Canada is going to be the first one; if I owned a car manufacture company I know I would want to be the first. Same if I sold cars, I would be demanding to have them on my lot ASAP.
Use water to run a car
Used vegetable oil to run a car
Use air to run a car
More and more things from Sci-Fi are becoming reality today, wonder what will be available 10, 20 or 50 years from now. Mind you if I had the money I might still be alive then using organs grown just for me. I will have my own personal robot to take care of me, possibly a robotic chair or even a robot skeleton to move around in. Who knows how long I will live and what my life will be like. All I need is money and new technology.
The def will hear, the blind will see and the rich will live forever.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Online RPG’s make changes in how people interact with each other
Years ago I remember reading in sci-fi stories about how technology would eventually cause people to become physically isolated from the rest of humanity. People would no longer have direct contact, but would only interact through some type of technology like computers and the Internet. At the time there were many different stories each with a different outcome and all were seen as being farfetched. The most common idea was that technology would remove the need to get out of our homes and see each other. That day is actually here, or at least the start of it is.
We can order food online, from restaurants and grocery stores. We can talk with friends and family on the phone or on our computers and even use web cams to see each other with out ever leaving our homes. There are many people working from home, online. With the advancements with online games such as EverQuest we can do all our socializing online. We can develop long lasting friendships and even romantic relationships with out ever dealing with each other face to face as it were. So our need to leave our homes is being slowly reduced. With some of the current trends in science the need to go to a Dr. may even be eliminated eventually. Currently some Dr.’s even operate long distance using special programs and equipment that allows them to operate on someone and not even be in the same time zone. And we all know how fast the sex industry is trying to develop the technology so that people will have equipment and programs that will let them have “sex” with each other online. There are even sex robots currently being created to fill that need if someone does not have a relationship.
It is quite easy to see that some of the predictions made by sci-fi authors in the 50 and 60 are not that far off from being possible. We are actively working toward creating the very technology that would make it possible. We have people working on creating or growing body parts to be used to extend our lives and ways to keep people healthy with out actually seeing a Doctor. We have a way to socialize with out leaving our homes. We are finding ways to work from home. The robot technology is already there and advancing rapidly. Robots can assist us, get our food for us, take care of us and even be our spouse (a lady has already married one on November 12 2007). Our drive for companionship, socialization, shelter, food and purpose can all be met with out us leaving our homes for the most part. It is a good thing for our species that for the most part we are not satisfied with having such a none physical contact with others. Though in the long run it may be a way for natural selection to assert itself. As the virtual worlds become harder to remove ourselves from, those who do not get caught in them will be the ones that have children, because they will actually have contact with real live people.
We can order food online, from restaurants and grocery stores. We can talk with friends and family on the phone or on our computers and even use web cams to see each other with out ever leaving our homes. There are many people working from home, online. With the advancements with online games such as EverQuest we can do all our socializing online. We can develop long lasting friendships and even romantic relationships with out ever dealing with each other face to face as it were. So our need to leave our homes is being slowly reduced. With some of the current trends in science the need to go to a Dr. may even be eliminated eventually. Currently some Dr.’s even operate long distance using special programs and equipment that allows them to operate on someone and not even be in the same time zone. And we all know how fast the sex industry is trying to develop the technology so that people will have equipment and programs that will let them have “sex” with each other online. There are even sex robots currently being created to fill that need if someone does not have a relationship.
It is quite easy to see that some of the predictions made by sci-fi authors in the 50 and 60 are not that far off from being possible. We are actively working toward creating the very technology that would make it possible. We have people working on creating or growing body parts to be used to extend our lives and ways to keep people healthy with out actually seeing a Doctor. We have a way to socialize with out leaving our homes. We are finding ways to work from home. The robot technology is already there and advancing rapidly. Robots can assist us, get our food for us, take care of us and even be our spouse (a lady has already married one on November 12 2007). Our drive for companionship, socialization, shelter, food and purpose can all be met with out us leaving our homes for the most part. It is a good thing for our species that for the most part we are not satisfied with having such a none physical contact with others. Though in the long run it may be a way for natural selection to assert itself. As the virtual worlds become harder to remove ourselves from, those who do not get caught in them will be the ones that have children, because they will actually have contact with real live people.
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