Commercial Space Continues to Heat Up

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Virgin Galactic eyes NASA commercial space work, Reuters

"Virgin Galactic, an offshoot of billionaire Richard Branson's London-based Virgin Group VA.L, plans to compete in the upcoming race to develop orbital space vehicles, Branson said on Friday. NASA plans to issue a solicitation as early as Monday for a follow-up to its $50 million Commercial Crew Development program, (for developing commercial crew spaceflight concepts), as part of a broader revamping of the U.S. space program under President Barack Obama. The program is funding work by five companies -- Sierra Nevada Corp, Boeing Co (BA.N), United Launch Alliance, Blue Origin and Paragon Space Development -- as part of Obama's bid to bolster support for private space companies."

Spaceport Runway Dedication Includes Sir Richard Branson and NM Governor Richardson

"Lori Garver, Deputy Administrator of NASA, said, "With the recent signing of the NASA Authorization Act of 2010 by President Obama, it is clear that our nation's future space efforts will be working even more closely than with the growing commercial space transportation industry," She added, "Innovative approaches that foster this new commercial industry will bring more competition and opportunities that will lower the costs of spaceflight and payload services for America's aerospace programs, and introduce new human space transportation systems."

NASA Balloon Crash Report Released

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NASA Releases Report About Australia Balloon Mishap

"A NASA panel that investigated the unsuccessful April 28 launch of a scientific balloon from Alice Springs, Australia, has released its report. The board was led by Michael L. Weiss of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. The board's report listed 25 proximate, intermediate and root causes related to insufficient risk analysis, contingency planning, personnel training, technical knowledge, government oversight and public safety accommodations."

Foursquare On-Orbit

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Astronaut Doug Wheelock Checks In With Foursquare From International Space Station


"NASA astronaut and International Space Station Commander Doug Wheelock became the first person to "check in" from space Friday using the mobile social networking application Foursquare. Wheelock's check in to the space station launches a partnership between NASA and Foursquare to connect its users to the space agency, enabling them to explore the universe and discover Earth. The partnership also features a customized section of the Foursquare website for NASA, where the agency will provide official tips and information about the nation's space program in locations throughout the United States."

Eco Districts

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oregon sustainability center

Portland, Oregon is yet again proving to the country and the world that it intends to brand itself as a top notch sustainable city. Not merely is it enough to build LEED Platinum buildings nor have an entire neighborhood [Hoyt Street Yards Pearl District] designated LEED ND Platinum status. No...Portland's plan is much larger than that, it envisions Eco Districts.

What is an Eco District you ask? Well an Eco District might mean something different to different people depending on who you talk to, but in general it can be defined as: a neighborhood or district with a broad commitment to accelerate neighborhood-scale sustainability. Eco Districts commit to achieving ambitious sustainability performance goals, guiding district investments and community action, and tracking the results over time.

What does that mean for Portland? Well, as part of a broader strategy, the city is already applying methods to make the city as a whole "sustainable", but it is more than just that. The city has identified Portland State University, South Waterfront, and the Lloyd district as districts that they can transform to fit their vision and definition of the special districts.

I think that they chose the areas they did because an eco district would have to be in a dense urban area that has easy access to public transportation. In the case of PSU, it is right on the streetcar line and also on the Max light rail lines. The Oregon Sustainability Center is one of the key icons that will anchor the PSU eco district. It is a planned Living Building, a building that is net zero energy, net zero water usage, and net zero carbon emissions. It is the most stringent environmentally conscious building that can be built.

The Oregon Sustainability Center will be a living, breathing, and working building, where 725 office tenants and 1,400 students and faculty will use the conference center, classrooms and offices. Joined by dozens to hundreds of visitors, their presence will ensure the delivery of real-world information in studies conducted at OSC.

A robust research agenda will maximize OSC’s experimental opportunities. Already, researchers across the Oregon University System and beyond are developing questions around five major research themes:

  • Net-zero energy building technologies and strategies
  • Water use and rainwater retention
  • Material utilization, waste and life cycle environmental impacts
  • Occupant health and performance
  • Integrated performance-based design, construction and operations

    The Oregon Sustainability Center will create a solid connection between its research agenda and the businesses that can turn research into marketable products and services. The five themes span industry sectors that are strong and growing in Oregon, including renewable energy, energy efficiency, and green building. These sectors have strong support from state and local governments. In OSC, they have the opportunity to prove their products in a real-world environment.

    The Center will also be a model for coordination among community colleges, Oregon University System institutions and training entities. With a host of technologies on-site – from biological wastewater treatment systems to solar panels – OSC provides an optimal setting for hands-on green job training.

    Beyond Oregon's planned Sustainability Research Center, other components of an Eco District include urban rooftop gardens, extensive bicycle boulevards [see Portland's $600 million Bicycle Master Plan], designated "green streets", and district energy plans.

    District Energy is a topic for another post, but it will become a major component of the future Portland Eco Districts. Portland's District Energy systems would be a low-energy alternative to electric systems in which a network of pipes beneath city streets transfer heat to and from buildings. Such a project would pump water from the Willamette River to heat and cool new developments in the Pearl and South Waterfront districts and eventually expand to the entire downtown and PSU campus.

    A district heating system has been mentioned in the city's local action plan for global warming since before 1993, when Portland became the first U.S. city to adopt a goal of reducing emissions to 10 percent below 1990 levels by 2010.

    We'll keep an eye out on any new developments that arise in the race to create sustainable eco districts.

    Thoughts, Comments, Questions...

    • dumdwaiters

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    I want to use a electric garage door opener to make a dumbwaiter. My question is will 1/2 horse garage door opener lift 60 pounds. witout over working the motor.

    Where?

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    Hydraulic System valves and when to use them

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    laser pulse vs rf-trigger pulse in oscilloscope

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    Dear Friends

    I want to do some experiment in pulsed laser. I attached output of a laser to one channel of oscilloscope via photodiode to see the shape of the pulse. then I attach the one output of RF trigger of the qswitch to the other channel of the oscilloscope to see the square shape pulse

    BROWS

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    SS Fasteners and Galling !!

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    I had previous thread in this forum regarding the galling for SS Anchor bolts and nuts and how to prevent the galling ... I asked one of my friends and he told me that the best way is to use SS Anchors with brass nuts .. does any of you have an idea about this recommendation , and whatwhat is the st

    The genomics future is almost now | Gene Expression

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    Stephen Hsu on developments at the Beijing Genomics Institute:

    I was floored today when the director of BGI told me they would soon reach a sequencing rate of 1000 (human) genomes per day (so, 10^5 to 10^6 genomes per year is right on the horizon). According to him, they can be profitable at a price of $5k per genome! [Clarification: I later learned this might mean at 10x coverage ... not exactly sure, although I tried to get a more precise statement.]

    Five years ago I asked Armand Leroi:

    [Q] 10) If in 10 years you could purchase your own full genome sequence for a month of your salary, would you do it? (assume privacy concerns are obviated)

    [A] Yes.

    It looks like I didn’t anticipate the rate of change in this area, as 10 years was also certainly too conservative or pessimistic. Dan MacArthur has given a plausible estimate of ~2 years for the realization of a $1,000 genome, but it looks like we’ll hit a genome at the cost of a month’s salary for a professional person on the order of months and not years.