Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

If OPEC is restricting supply all the peak oil hysteria may be unfounded. What if their strategy is to keep production restricted encouraging alternatives and then open the valve wide to cause the alternatives to fail economically? I wouldn’t put it past them. Prompted by the discussion at Top Ten Oil Stories Of 2007. Cross…

There’s a bit of a back and forth going on over at Cato Unbound regarding the wisdom of pursuing radically longer lifespans. So far, not too many people have been paying attention. On the pro side we have Aubrey De Grey and Ron Bailey. Long time readers will no doubt already know that my sympathies…

First, here’s a little bit about her… Dr. Schaub earned her bachelor’s degree with highest honors from Kenyon College in 1981. Her master’s degree and doctorate are from the University of Chicago. Prior to entering academe she was assistant editor of The National Interest magazine in Washington, D.C. She is a member of the American…

I see that Glenn Reynolds has been touting S.M. Stirling’s latest novel, In The Courts Of The Crimson Kings. If you don’t feel like waiting until March eighteenth, the first six chapters are available online, for free, right here. From what I’ve read so far, I think I’ll enjoy it much more than The Sky…

In what I hope is just an isolated incident, an eleven year veteran Philadelphia police officer has been arrested after allegedly participating in a home invasion in nearby Montgomery County, then leading police on a 130 m.p.h. chase: Malik Snell, an 11-year veteran of the police department, was the alleged getaway driver after the home…

Is there any way for me to avoid having to write about Mike Huckabee? It’s one thing to contemplate an Obama versus Romney race, but Huckabee versus Obama? Right now, the polls show Obama defeating him by more than 10 points. Interestingly, he does better against Hillary (losing only a six point spread — which…

There has been a rather interesting discussion in the comment section of a recent post here about the advent of small fission reactors for local power generation. Lets start with this link to Next Energy News. First thing let me say that Next Energy news has had false reports from time to time and it…

Who is responsible for what Maureen Dowd says in her column? I’d like to give credit where credit is due, and I don’t just mean the link. While I saw it this morning, I now see that Glenn Reynolds linked it late last night. He liked the “humiliating Hillary and lighting an exploding cigar when…

Small Times is reporting the development of a solar cell that can deliver more than one electron for each photon absorbed. Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), collaborating with Innovalight, Inc., say they have shown that a new and important effect called Multiple Exciton Generation (MEG) occurs efficiently in…

Clayton Cramer has a good post about Homelessness, Mental Illness, & Medical Costs. While it’s well known that “homeless” is often code language for mentally ill people with bad hygiene, a lot of people don’t realize the amount of money which is wasted on people in need of longterm care, but who instead tax society’s…

The New Mexican has some interesting news about the progress on Bussard Fusion Reactor. Last August, as Bussard was losing his battle with cancer, the funds were restored with the support of Alan Roberts, EMC2’s longtime Navy contract monitor. The company now has $1.8 million to pursue his work. If it is successful verifying the…

This one is for all those who who have lost some one dear this year. I have lost a couple of people who fall in that category. Have a good cry and pick up the song and the dance. Triticale R.I.P. Dr. Bussard has died.

Fourmilog: None Dare Call It Reason has a review up of the book Energy Victory. It is all about how making our vehicles easier to use with various liquid fuels would get us off our dependence on imported oil. Here is the money quote: Here we have an optimistic, pragmatic, and open-ended view of the…

R-Squared Energy Blog has a list of his top ten energy stories of 2007. Interestingly none of his top ten includes wind. Here is his list: 1. Oil price soars as media becomes Peak Oil aware 2. Criticism of biofuels mounts 3. The Chevy Volt is announced 4. Nanosolar begins to deliver 5. LS9 starts…

Here’s a great gift idea for he or she who has everything — a USB humping dog! I never saw a dog that wanted to hump a USB port, but then, I can’t keep up with today’s trends. They have a picture of the little guy in action — doing his thing on the edge…

Michael van der Galien is reporting on the latest news from Amsterdam’s red light district. The Red Light District is a neighborhood in Amsterdam where women sit, barely dressed, behind windows, while trying to persuade passersby to come inside to have some good ol’ fun. Most of these women are from Eastern Europe, and, contrary…

I’m seriously overwhelmed by last minute Christmas stuff, and while it’s my own fault, there won’t be much time for blogging until later today. On the bright side, at least it’s the shortest day of the year. The solstice will occur tonight at 1:08 a.m. EST. 11:08 p.m. in Utah. And if I’m lucky, I…

Well, that’s what it says in the paper. What’s the epidemic? Guns, of course. The 4-year-old found his father’s gun, and shot himself with it: Yesterday afternoon, Nahdirah Jaamar dropped by a rowhouse on Salford Street to pick up her younger brother and ran into her 4-year-old cousin, Dyshon Boyd, a boisterous toddler that family…

For those of you who think Iraq was sweetness and light before the American invasion and who think that suicide bombing by Islamic fascists brought death to Iraq that was unknown before the American intervention you might want to look at the picture below and then check out Mass Graves. Be warned – there are…