Hey, you want some OLED on that?

Looks like the television is about to shrink-again. A pair of Japanese companies are working on the spreadable screen. How'd you like to paint your TV on the wall?

That's exactly the idea that two scientists at Sumitomo Chemical and Mitsubishi Chemical are working on. They're working with chemicals that contain OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) compounds, which are the technology behind new research into ultra-flat screens. OLED screens can be so thin because they don't require a backlight like an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) screen does. In fact, Tokitaro Hoshijima of Mitsubishi speaks of creating spreadable OLED displays only 100nm thick. Furthermore, he adds that the technology that allows these organic compounds to work together as a display also makes it possible for them to convert solar energy into electricity. Sumitomo's taking it one step further by working on a sprayable version of the same idea.

Wait, this sounds better all the time. A potentially invisible big screen on a wall that will charge itself? Hoshijima says: "What I want to create is a world that does not need power sockets."

This seems like the biggest boon for OLED technology in general, the idea that the technology is not only incredibly small and thin but potentially able to power itself. Not requiring any backlighting means that OLEDs consume very little power at all, which also means that your 77-inch, painted-on, 100nm thick, self-powered TV will potentially use less power than a hair dryer. (Don't quote me on that figure, though.) Hoshijima mentions that similar compounds applied to objects like, say, your cell phone could provide it with enough charge to run when exposed to sunlight. These two giants and other companies as well are developing solar panel paint that when painted onto a steel building will convert about 5% of the absorbed sunlight to electricity. That sounds like a pretty small number, but considering the square footage exposed to sunlight on the average warehouse, it'd do just fine.

There's only one downside to OLEDs...it's the O. Since these are Organic compounds, they do degrade at a quicker rate than, say, steel.

So you might have to paint a new television every few years. I think I can handle that.

Real Life, v.2.0

I don't think there's really a lot I can say, since last August was the last time I actually was able to sit and write in this thing. With the interest of time in mind, I'll give the short list:
1. Was a sub until just about Thanksgiving. Got offered a technology job by one of my districts in my favorite school.
2. Finished two terms at NIU. I think I'm about 2/3 done now, or a little more.
3. Moved in with Clare. Life's good...you kind of know that someone is good for you when you can't remember what it felt like when you didn't have them.
4. Still playing the 8-string...but I'm not embarrassed to play it in front of people anymore, and I'm looking for a new band to play some when school's done with.

I'm looking for some sort of career that will let me design software and human interface devices for music teachers, so Sibelius Software, Coda Music, M-Audio...heck, Apple, if you're listening, I think we might be able to do some cool things together...

So I'm still alive...

Hello dear readers,

It's been a turbulent several months, in which I haven't kept this blog up like I should have...it's supposed to be a chronicle of my life, and also a place to read about interesting things I've come across in my journeys on the web. Lately I haven't had a lot of time to read interesting things, or to say more than just "hi and stuff," so the blog has been pushed back many times.

What's new in life...well, I moved out of Iowa, to Bloomington, IL, in preparation for some more graduate work in Instructional Technology. I found out quite late in the application process that I was denied because I do not possess an initial teaching certificate, and because they are phasing out the programs I was applying to. There was a chance for a "back door" route going through ISU's technology department for a "Technology Education" degree, but their department told me they will not accept my credits from Curriculum and Instruction at Iowa State. Not wanting to waste $20,000, I applied to NIU and am now in the admissions process. I'm going to take a class or two this fall, and then be a full-time student in the spring (I hope).

There is a new lady in my life...Clare is amazing, and has been both a great person to be with and a great help in planning this next stage of my life. She is very familiar with the area I need to be living in, and she and her friends are giving me lots of help finding work and a place to live that will be compatible with my needs as a grad student.

That said, I will be moving again, this time somewhere in the Chicago suburbs. Without a graduate program to call home, and with only one school district close by, Bloomington isn't the place I need to be. I've got an in with an old friend for both a private lesson teaching opportunity and a possible slot in a band, so it looks like I'll be busy with life again soon, after only a little down time. Geez, I just can't stop moving...

I spent three weeks in Nanjing, Jiangsu, China teaching English on an exchange program for summer enrichment for high school kids. It was an incredible, life-changing experience, and I definitely want to go back. China is an amazing place, and I learned so many things while I was there. Clare is the one who hipped me to the program, and we didn't even know whether we would be assigned to the same place (this program places people all over the province), but we ended up in the same city. It was a great time anyway, but it was even better to be traveling with a friend. We made some new friends on the tour too, so it was a fun experience in every way.

So here I am, preparing to be a multiple-district substitute and a grad student. There are about nine school districts close to where I want to live, they offer most of my classes on NIU's Naperville campus, and it's a quick route to the interstate if I have to go to DeKalb. Being close to my friends again is important too...I didn't know anyone but my brother's friends in Bloomington, really. It has been a great summer traveling and getting my head back together, but I'm not the kind of person who can be inactive for long, before I start looking for a new goal to chase.

Here's hoping...

So the Twilight Zone is actually in England.

Something funny's going on in northern England. According to the BBC, people in Norfolk have been driving by the Royal Air Force Trimingham base and had things like car electrical failures and spinning speedometers. It's like something straight out of the Twilight Zone.

Now most of the time, when things like this happen, they end up being wild rumors that result in stories of hauntings, ghosts, weird extraterrestrial experiments, and just generally Things Humans Were Not Meant to Know. Sorry, dear readers, but it turns out it's nothing that cool.

The British Ministry of Defence has admitted that "a fault at a radar dome was responsible for causing electrical problems with dozens of cars" and it "will consider claims for compensation after an inquiry found the radar was 'out of alignment.'" So yeah, all of these problems people had were caused by radiation of one sort or another. It sort of makes you wonder what the radar is capable of doing if it is properly aligned...

Exercising Your Rights, Part 2

Well, elections are over, and some of the people I wanted to see in office made it, and some didn't. I wanted to do a rundown of some election issues I've been following, though, because they were of interest to me:

Washington and California had ballot initiatives that would require the states' largest electric companies to increase their use of renewable resources like wind, solar, biomass, geothermal and small hydro from less than 2 percent today to 15 to 25 percent in the coming years. California's Proposition 87 didn't pass, 45%-55%. Washington's Initiative Measure 937 did pass, though, 52%-47%.

In Missouri, Amendment 2 would allow stem cell research to be conducted. It passed, by a narrow margin of 51%-49%.

Colorado had a couple of interesting ones. They had Amendment 43, which bans same-sex marriage under Colorado law. That, unfortunately, passed. At the same time, Referendum I also didn't pass, which would have granted same-sex domestic partners spousal benefits. Amendment 44, which would have legalized the possession of up to an ounce of marijuana by adults 21 and over, lost by a 60%-40% margin, an impressive showing for an initiative of its nature.

Nevada had an even more sweeping marijuana initiative. Question 7 would have not only legalized possession of up to an ounce of marijuana for adults 21 and older, but it would have created a system for cultivation, taxation and regulation that would have permitted it to be sold under certain conditions. That one also failed, 56%-44%.

A bunch of states banned same-sex marriage along with Colorado: Wisconsin (Referendum 1, 59%-41%), Virginia (Question 1, 57%-43%), Tennessee (Amendment 1, 81%-19%!), South Carolina (Amendment 1, 78%-22%), Idaho (Amendment 2, 63%-37%), and the results are still out for Arizona, because it's a pretty even split right now.

South Dakota also banned same-sex marriage (Amendment C, 52%-48%), as well as shot down a medical marijuana initiative (52%-48%). They did, however, fail to pass Referendum 6, which would have banned abortion (44%-56%).

Arizona also made English its official language (Proposition 103, 74%-26%).

I wonder about the banning same-sex marriage bills, since the Democratic party seems to have made a better-than average showing this election. Maybe the public is tired of Republicans running things, but you'd think with the Democrats gaining power a liberal idea would be more likely to stay...I dunno.

I never thought stem-cell research would fly in Missouri, but here we are. I also thought California would go for the energy bill, but at least Washington's did. Somebody is thinking a little more about the planet.

Pro drug-reform readers, take note, because here comes my disclaimer: while I really hoped the marijuana initiatives would all pass, I thought South Dakota's was the only one with a true chance...this time. The fact that the Colorado and Nevada initiatives garnered 40+ percent of the vote with really not much financial support, not to mention semi-legal (at best) moves by local, state and federal offices to halt them, says wonders for the people in those states. The tide is turning, my friends. Soon drug problems will really be a health issue, instead of a criminal one, and these might be the first places to leave responsible users alone instead of sending them to prison.

Exercising your rights

First off, I want to apologize because it's been so long, and the three of you who read this are probably wondering if I've abandoned the blog altogether. Well, no, but time has not been on my side lately to write in it. That, and some heavy personal things have been going on that have kept me from it. Well, I hope to write in it some more from now on.

I wanted to say a little something about all of the candidates in the voting race. To those of you who have focused on the issues instead of your opponents: thank you. You are unfortunately few.

To those of you who don't really have a platform except to tell us all the bad things your opponent did: shame on you. You're not telling us anything we didn't already know, or weren't able to find out. When intelligent people vote, we vote because we think that the candidate we choose will accurately represent our interests in public office. I know I didn't vote for one candidate for state senate in particular because I think he's a schmuck. Our house received two or three calls a week with a recorded message saying, "Hi. I'm calling with information about [name deleted, the other candidate]." Yeah, right. This candidate also spent most of his campaign money slandering his opponent, instead of really telling us what he was going to do. If you've got nothing better to get you into office than duping people into voting against the other guy, you're definitely not for me. I have yet to see a campaign where there wasn't at least one candidate who doesn't seem to have a position, except to bash the other guy. I think because we're non-affiliated, independent voters at our house (read free thinkers; wow!) we were inundated with political flyers. I guess in a way, it was a relief not to see as many bills, but it kind of sucks when most of your mail goes in the trash because it's all political flyers.

That's another thing: don't think a flashy flyer and campaign is going to win over intelligent voters. Some of us actually pay attention to the news, and listen to you when you make speeches. Still, some people think that getting their grandkid on the radio to talk about them will win via the cuteness factor, or that they can appear on a flyer with a nice suit and somebody will vote for them based on that. The sad thing is it really does work for average America. So figure out what you want in the tough issues. Watch the news. Listen to the radio and go to speeches. Think. Then vote.

Breakin' the Law, Breakin' the Law

Everybody believes what they will, and things that are taken as fact by some are taken as theory or pure conjecture by others. I myself don't believe plenty of things that others take for fact. Still, there are certain things most people don't argue on, like the laws of physics. Consider this example:

Would you argue with someone if they told you they could throw something up in the air and it wouldn't come down?

There are certain assumptions we have been making about the world around us for a very long time. Among the foremost assumptions we have had are the Laws of Thermodynamics:

The First Law states that energy cannot be created or destroyed. It just changes forms, so the universe is a closed system.

The Second Law states that putting energy into a system will always result in a loss in potential output, i.e., that no system can be 100% efficient.

Well, somebody would like us to disbelieve these laws. Steorn, an Irish technology company, claims to have invented a method of creating free energy with no emissions. According to their website, this technology is "based on the interaction of magnetic fields and allows the production of clean, free and constant energy." They go a step further and state that this technology can be applied to pretty much any energy-consuming device, from cellular phones to cars.

So, debunking a couple of well-established laws of physics seems like either a huge boast or an enormous hoax. Or maybe a PR ploy designed to take advantage of the world's current oil shortage/renewable energy hysteria. Steorn is unfazed by public perception, though, and issued an ad in The Economist this week that will "attract the attention of the world’s leading scientists working in the field of experimental physics. From all the scientists who accept Steorn’s challenge, twelve will be invited to take part in a rigorous testing exercise to prove that Steorn’s technology creates free energy." Even though I wonder about the validity of the statement that says the company itself will pick who gets to evaluate their new technology, this is still a ballsy move, and implies that they really are onto something.

Assuming this is the real thing, Steorn plans to license the rights to its technology to energy companies worldwide, and allow royalty-free licensure for water and rural electrification projects in Third World countries.

Let me say that I'm not a bandwagon-rider in any way. I've been talking ceaselessly about renewable energy sources since I was a kid, and so I'm crossing my fingers and hoping this might be more than a PR hoax. I wouldn't mind having some of my assumptions about physics shaken a little if we can start using our abundant resources that don't kill the planet. Let's hope it's the beginning of a new, greener, world for all of us.

What's Your Freedom Worth?

We all see those MasterCard commercials that tell us those little moments in life are truly "Priceless." But the state of Illinois doesn't think so. They think all those little moments we can't replace are worth a grand total of (drum roll, please)...

$6000 a year.

According to the Chicago Tribune yesterday, Michael Evans was compensated a grand total of $162,000 for the 27 years he was imprisoned, before being exonerated by DNA evidence in 2003. He had been arrested at 17, and thus spent every day of his adult life in prison for rape and murder. His conviction rested largely on the questionable credibility of one witness' testimony. In 2003, after DNA evidence showed someone else had sexually assaulted the victim, he was released...and that's it. No apology. No help with work, education, health benefits, nothing. It actually took him two years of fighting and a governor's pardon just to get the $6000 a year that his award amounts to. Gee, I hope he has to file income taxes on it, because that yearly amount is exempt! Finally he gets to screw the state back a little. Last Tuesday he lost a $60 Million civil suit against ten former Chicago police officers he accused of conspiring to manipulate evidence and coerce an eyewitness in his criminal trial. Wouldn't somebody make more than $6000 a year working in a fast-food joint? I'm pretty sure I made almost that much in a summer during college in a warehouse...it's nice to know that Illinois is so apologetic and interested in righting its wrongs.

Let's look at some statistics, which the article was kind enough to provide. According to California's Life After Exoneration Project,:

More than 90 percent of the people who have been released after a false conviction have lost all their assets, including cars, savings and homes.

Of those who land a job, 43 percent earn less than they did prior to imprisonment, 39 percent find work at similar pay, and only 17 percent are paid more than they did before prison.

Twenty-one states, the District of Columbia and the federal government have laws governing compensation. Many states require that the person get a pardon, which can be difficult to obtain, or proof of innocence, which can be nearly impossible in cases that don't involve DNA evidence.

Other states are far kinder on compensation than Illinois, too.

Massachusetts has a cap on the reimbursement at $500,000, but also offers social services and education.

New Jersey pays $20,000 for each year spent in prison or twice the income made in the year before incarceration, whichever is greater.

Pennsylvania does pretty well; it pays $50,000 for each year spent on Death Row. The state also provides health care coverage for up to 10 years after release. It also compensates for services to help reintegrate into the work world.

Californians, though, have it the best. California pays $100 for each day spent behind bars. Federal prisoners are entitled to $50,000 a year; $100,000 for each year on Death Row.

DNA evidence is really changing the way some of these things work now. I saw a statistic somewhere recently that said as many as 25% of the people we put to death in the US before DNA testing could have been innocent of their crimes. That's really scary, both because it means we've killed innocent people and because it means the guilty could still be out there.

I'm all for the idea of punishment fitting the crime, so in some cases I do support the death penalty. But it sure makes you think twice about wanting to flip the switch, doesn't it?

Wait, HE said THIS?

I don't like to quote Ronnie Ray that often, but I came across something interesting today, and thought I'd share it. It seems at once surprisingly prophetic and incredibly ironic that this was said by Ronald Reagan, the guy who made ketchup a vegetable in school lunches, who supported George H.W. Bush's election, and whose party supported Our President's election...twice. Anyway, here goes:

"Government exists to protect us from each other. Where government has gone beyond its limits is in deciding to protect us from ourselves."

Geez, I've never said it that well myself.