Manager orders delivery driver replaced, after customer demands white employee

Some of the coverage seems to deal harshly with Lowe's, as in, "Black delivery driver replaced by manager after Lowe’s customer demands white employee." In fact, one manager ordered the switch, the order was not complied with, & the manager's services have since been dispensed with. Lowe's senior management has been reported as having made statements such as, "Under no circumstances should a discriminatory delivery request be honored ..."

Bravo Lowe’s Home Improvement, bravo Marcus Bradley (driver), bravo Alex Brooks (who defied instructions to replace Marcus Bradley)!

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/08/10/black-delivery-driver-replaced-by-manager-after-lowes-customer-demands-white-employee/?postshare=2221439469527957 / Marcus Bradley delivery driver Lowe’s Home Improvement Danville Va. routine delivery call manager return the shipment to work because you’re black don’t want you at the house Alex Brooks Marcus Bradley his manager customer gave the company specific instructions not to send a black employee to the home replaced by a white driver fellow deliveryman Alex Brooks delivery truck manager black white truck complete the delivery longtime partner delivery guys put my foot down employer customer’s demand Chris Ahearn Lowe’s spokeswoman manager has been fired drivers drivers senior executives apologize in person zero tolerance for discrimination terms of the sale Lowe’s corporate office diversity and inclusion core value troubling investigation discriminatory delivery request diversity and inclusion core values investigation I gotta work /

Black balls — dealing with drought

Evaporation is a major cause of water loss from dams — as much as 40%¹. As of Monday, the Los Angeles Reservoir is protected from evaporation by 96 million black plastic balls. By this measure, evaporation is expected to be reduced by nearly 300 million gallons annually.

How does this work? Hollow black balls floating on the surface shade the water from the Sun, & reduce exposure to the air.

Other benefits include suppression of algal growth & under certain circumstances, sunlight driven reactions involving bromine & chlorine, to form carcinogens.
___________

¹ National Program for Sustainable Irrigation: “Controlling evaporation losses from farm dams“, http://lwa.gov.au/products/pf050873 / Los Angeles LA Angeleno black plastic balls floating LA Reservoir dam massive water source ball pit drought-stricken water clean protect it from evaporation LA mayor Eric Garcetti shade balls Los Angeles Reservoir final stage city city’s water quality protection plan costing $US34.5 million shade ball water-cleaning device reduces evaporation protects against animals dirt costs 36 cents 96 million 175-acre reservoir 3.3 billion gallons of water water quality control shade balls staving off algae growth preventing harmful chemical reactions sunlight chlorine shade balls cost-effective reduce evaporation nearly 300 million gallons per year provide drinking water 8,100 people onyx-coloured buoyant ball pit anti-drought measures Los Angeles Department of Water and Power $US100 million ultraviolet water treatment facility keep LA water safe help cut losses drought /

LiquidPiston unveils 40-bhp X2 rotary engine with 50% thermal efficiency

Conventional internal combustion engines, using the technology that is probably in your car, have very poor efficiency. In practice, around 20%.¹ The other 80% escapes largely through the exhaust pipe & the cooling system.

A new engine combustion cycle has been developed by a startup called LiquidPiston.

Because of its improved efficiency & use of aspects of Otto, Diesel, Rankine, & Atkinson cycles, LiquidPiston calls their new combustion cycle, “High Efficiency Hybrid Cycle” (HEHC).



At first glance, the HEHC resembles the Wankel rotary. Actually, the Wankel is even less efficient than other internal combustion engines. This is due, in large part, to the long, narrow combustion chamber, which allows excessive heat energy to be lost from the burning fuel/air mixture, to the chamber walls.


Notice the long, narrow combustion chamber (red) in the Wankel, & the compact combustion chambers (black) in the LPI X1.
Credit: LiquidPiston/Popular Mechanics

HEHC has a high compression ratio (18:1) & contains the combustion process in a smaller space than any other internal combustion cycle technology. This increases speed of combustion & minimises loss of heat energy. Finally, HEHC lengthens the expansion part of the cycle, so that the exhaust gasses are released at close to atmospheric pressure, thereby transferring the maximum possible fraction of the energy released by combustion to the piston, & reducing exhaust noise. Because so much of the heat energy released by the burning fuel is converted to mechanical energy, less is lost as heat, so that liquid cooling is not required.

Other advantages include small size & weight, compared to other types of internal combustion engines.

http://www.gizmag.com/liquidpistol-rotary/24623/

http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/a8174/liquidpistons-hyper-efficient-engine-turning-the-rotary-inside-out-13817971/

https://newsoffice.mit.edu/2014/liquidpiston-small-efficient-rotary-engine-1205
__________

¹ Wikepedia: "Fuel efficiency", https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_efficiency / Hyper-Efficient Engine: Turning the Rotary Inside Out internal combustion engine startup LiquidPiston leap in efficiency from 20 percent to 50 percent automakers reciprocating piston engine hybrid systems improved accessories independent inventors huge improvements basic efficiency internal combustion engine engineering Bloomfield Connecticut LiquidPiston X1 engine just three moving parts major components raise thermal efficiency gas engine reduction weight size wasting much less energy combustion cycle 80 percent energy fossil fuels heat pressure exhaust dumped atmosphere radiator LiquidPiston's design capture waste higher efficiency Alec Shkolnik President CEO LiquidPiston thermal cycles design theoretically capable of 75 percent thermal efficiency 57 percent real world applications Wankel rotary seals Wankel housing X1 engine reduction oil consumption rotary engine enhancements direct injection high compression ratio 18:1 change geometry combustion chamber constant volume ignition air-fuel mixture auto-ignites like a diesel burned much longer than normal more complete combustion low emissions very high chamber pressures high pressure nearly atmospheric pressures available energy is extracted exhaust physically pushed out internal combustion engine releases very energetic high-pressure exhaust gas convert more heat energy mechanical force less heat has to be removed block no water cooling system engine under load cool down skip fuel injection event suck in cool air heated by the block exhausted inject water into the combustion chamber three effects cooling the engine reduced reducing NOx emissions converting water to steam increases power compact design LiquidPiston's lab engine 80 lbs 40-hp model weigh less than 50 lbs in production 40-hp diesel LiquidPiston hybrid range-extenders military applications boat engines license intellectual property manufacturing petrol gasoline engine /

Bugatti 100P

Ettore Bugatti is best known for his cars designed during the 1930s. Perhaps best known of all, is the 1931 Bugatti Type 51 grand prix car.


Credit: http://hdwpics.com/

1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic.


Credit: TheCoolist

Almost no-one is aware of the sole Bugatti aircraft — the most beautiful aircraft never to fly — the Bugatti 100P — "... an antique that seems like it somehow came from the future." — Preston Lerner


Note the forward-swept wings & the gearbox (seen through the canopy, in front of the cockpit), which delivers power from the twin engines to the contra-rotating propellers.
Credit: Reve Bleu/Kickstarter

http://www.airspacemag.com/history-of-flight/Aviations-Sexiest-Racer-180952406/?no-ist


Bugatti 100P — showing more clearly, the contra-rotating propellers
Credit: Wikipedia

Kickstarter project to complete the replica
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/525000827/reve-bleu-bugattis-blue-dream-will-finally-fly?ref=nav_search

http://www.theverge.com/2015/8/8/9118119/bugatti-100p-reve-blue-kickstarter-first-flight

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3192289/The-Blue-Dream-finally-fly-Beautiful-Bugatti-plane-designed-75-years-ago-just-weeks-maiden-flight.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bugatti_Model_100 / Bugatti Reve Bleu Blue Dream fly global volunteer group recreates Bugatti'sBlue Dream unfinished plane hidden behind enemy lines Bugatti's only aeroplane Ettore Bugatti master fusing art and technology built eight-thousand exquisite automobiles built only one aeroplane Bugatti 100P designed by Belgian engineer Louis de Monge art-deco classic most technologically-advanced airplane of its time elegant solution to flying very fast innovative Bugatti 100P giant leap forward late 1930s featuring advanced systems cutting-edge aerodynamics record-setting 100P saved Bugatti's manufacturing empire restored de Monge's reputation world-class aeronautical engineer dream dreamed setting a new world air speed record plane Rue de Débarcadèr Paris 1940 under construction for three years Bugatti 100P nearly complete the war reached Paris German forces troops Nazi save plane secrets rapidly-approaching enemy Bugatti colleague Louis de Monge smuggled the plane out of Paris under cover of darkness hid it in a barn plane survived the war intact restored plane on display displayed EAA AirVenture Museum Oshkosh Wisconsin most popular exhibit plane never flew flyable compelling story wartime intrigue Bugatti's Blue Dream Tulsa 2013 build and fly reproduction Bugatti 100P very expensive no known structural drawings reverse-engineer 100P under construction Bugatti 100P nearly complete plane's timeless beauty advanced features Bugatti's and de Monge's vision creative genius crowd-powered global volunteer team project's volunteers contributing time materials technical expertise bring Bugatti's dream to life airframe propellers designed in Sweden made in Great Britain complex propeller gearbox aerodynamic studies underway in Brazil engineering consultants France Germany de Monge family Namur Belgium construction first flight Bugatti's only aeroplane complex expensive labor-intensive tasks completely self-funded debt-free corporate sponsors accelerate construction complete tests plane's airworthiness certification build transportation dolly first flight 40-hour flight test program project's selected ground tests high speed taxi runs test flights early engineering drawing Avion de Course drawing engineering drawing de Monge drawing final configuration swept-forward wings engine placement internal radiator plane de Monge single-purpose airplane designed set a world speed record Phil West original art war Bugatti 100P development first flight famed WWI fighter ace Maurice Arnoux Ettoré Bugatti Louis de Monge Bugatti 100P first flight Étampes Airfield noted aviation artist Phil West Bugatti team members EAA AirVenture Museum disassembled test flight stage project high-performance complex state-of-the-art aeroplane /

Tesla Model S hacked

Credit: Car and Driver

First it was a Fiat Chrysler vehicles fitted with the uConnect system, then GM OnStar vehicles, now hackers have gained control of a Tesla Model S & brought it to a halt.

http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1099460_tesla-model-s-hacked-in-low-speed-driving-patch-issued-details-tomorrow / Fiat Chrysler Automobiles intense public scrutiny hackers took control Jeep Cherokee remotely Uconnect infotainment system disabled brakes transmission publicity vulnerability recall 1.4 million vehicles fix strong pressure National Highway Traffic Safety Administration NHTSA Tesla's Britain's Financial Times hackers DefCon conference Las Vegas took control of a Tesla Model S electric car EV electric vehicle switched it off was running at low speeds white-hat researchers Kevin Mahaffey chief technology officer Lookout Marc Rogers, principal security researcher Cloudflare six security flaws hack hacker hacked target Tesla software-centric company software less vulnerable legacy automakers Tesla's Silicon Valley origins entirely secure vehicle control software white-hat hackers security flaws push companies fix focus preventing flaws black-hat hackers goals malicious destructive criminal Mahaffey Rogers gain physical access Tesla hack requiring a physical connection via Ethernet cable allowed access Model S remotely FT manipulate speedometer show display wrong speed lower raise windows lock unlock turn car on or off low speeds 5 mph shut car down turned all instruments displays black engaged emergency brake stop higher speeds screens went blank electric drive disengaged power steering driver steer safely to the roadside Tesla issued a patch update cars researchers update its control software so quickly unique over-the-air software update capability built into all Model S cars conventional carmakers change their software exception for non-critical updates infotainment systems owners can install via USB drive security team security research community protect our systems vulnerabilities stress-testing validating updating our safeguards Lookout's research test for vulnerabilities developed an update vulnerabilities available to all Model S customers over-the-air update deployed to all vehicles /

Best Pebble apps

Credit: TechRadar

Pebble smartwatch — runaway Kickstarter success twice — first with the original Pebble & more recently with Pebble Time — has thousands of watch faces available, & almost as many apps. Here are some of the best of them:

http://www.wareable.com/apps/the-best-apps-for-pebble-and-pebble-steel

http://www.techradar.com/au/news/wearables/10-best-pebble-apps-2015-1286303/1

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2430329,00.asp

https://recombu.com/mobile/article/best-pebble-time-apps-and-how-to-download-apps / Eventbrite Pebble Time Timeline user interface UI CEO Eric Migicovsky Pebble Classic Jawbone's Up range of fitness bands TripAdvisor Evernote PayPal Battey+ Cards for Pebble Domino's Pizza tracker Misfit fitness tracker step counter Twebble Twitter feed tracker Morpheuz smart alarm accelerometer track your sleep patterns beam results to your phone sync with Apple's HealthKit platform wake Music Boss control music Pebble Locker Huebble Hue light bulbs globes Movable pedometer, calorie counter personal trainer Pixel Miner game Pebble Nav navigation navigate gps Huebble smart home Huebble Internet of things Philips Hue lights Kronos music Sonos system Kronos remote change tracks adjust volume queue next tune Aerotracker Pro fitness tracker PebbleAuth 2 two step authentication privacy security Dashboard quick settings panel Android direct access WiFi Bluetooth volume mute phone meeting remaining battery life Find Phone sound ping device shrill beep CatchOneBus public transport timetable free FitCat game fitness tracker move full color Pebble Time Glance notification apps time, weather missed messages calendar entries reply to text messages Pebble store is heavily featuring JavaPay official Starbucks app scannable third-party data loyalty cards boarding passes unofficial Starbucks card app Maptastic scroll zoom maps Pebble Transport Uber taxi Pinywings RunKeeper athletes sync synchronizes runs walks hikes cloud database Strike Force full colour full-color Pebble shooter watch accelerometer arcade game wiggling your wrist around Toggles mute phone toggle Wi-Fi turn on flashlight find lost device Weather Radar Wunderground.com animated weather radar images Yelp Flights TripIt Pebtris smartwatch Tetris! Mr Runner Up game Tiny Bird Flappy Bird Nav Me Leaf navigation /

Crowd funding — some successes — some failures — some fraud

Credit: Smarty Ring/IndieGoGo

Crowd funding has had some spectacular sucesses, but it has a darker side too.

A device called Smarty Ring, for which funding ended in December 2013, was still attracting vitriolic comments from unhappy backers on IndieGoGo, just days ago:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/smarty-ring--3/x/9010251#/story

Reddit too:
https://www.reddit.com/r/smartyscam/comments/3fu76v/the_smarty_ring_scam/

Well, if you had the good fortune to miss out on throwing your money away on that thing, you may also have missed out again on an essentially identical campaign which ended in March 2014. Nothing appears to have changed, including the promises, & the IndieGoGo page address differs by only one character. Only good news: less than half as much funding raised the second time:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/smarty-ring--4/x/9010251#/story

What can we learn from this?

1. When you back a crowd-funded project on Kickstarter, IndieGoGo or anywhere else, you are not purchasing a product. Typically, you are funding its development &/or production. This is why you are referred to as a "backer", or "supporter", & anything you receive for your "support" is called a "perk", or a "reward", rather than a "purchase".

2. Any rights you would normally have as a consumer purchasing a product online are probably not applicable.

3. Even if consumer rights, or other means of legal recourse, are applicable where you live, they may not be applicable, or practical to enforce, if the project creator lives in another country.

4. Projects which have gone bad have caused crowd funding sites to recognise that they are not able to guarantee the safety of supporter's funds & any undertakings they may have given in the past have been removed from their websites.

5. When you back a crowd funded project you are taking a gamble on the honesty & competence of the project creator. Although there have been some spectacular successes, such as the Pebble smart watches, there have also been a range off lesser successes down to non-delivery of product.

How can you protect yourself?

1. If it's too good to be true, it probably is.

2. If you are interested in a project, check for:
● similar products on group funding sites — sometimes a failed project will re-appear on a different crowd-funder, or even the same one, with, or without, a name change — plus some projects have many competitors, some of which may suit you better — just check the number of wallets & watches
● other projects by the same project creator — were they successful?
● projects which are identical down to name, branding, & project description as in the Smarty Ring projects
● reviews of a prototype on recognized tech websites

3. Don't allow yourself be influenced by, "it will be $x more expensive after the project ends". Much better to pay 10% more for a product after all of the bugs have been worked out & it enters conventional production, than to lose 100% of a contribution as a backer. / crowdfunding finance crowd funding crowdfunding research development design designer develop engineer engineering fraud scam con lie lies scamming funding campaign Kobe Red Japanese beer fed jerky creator creator’s names sloppy sideshow generic stock images photos footage project founders didn’t sound right sounded weird fraud scam criminal /