World's Most Powerful Laser

"Ready? Signal sent!" In the control room of a research center in Romania, engineer Antonia Toma activates the world's most powerful laser, which promises revolutionary advances in everything from the health sector to space.


The laser at the center, near the Romanian capital Bucharest, is operated by French company Thales, using Nobel prize-winning inventions.

France's Gerard Mourou and Donna Strickland of Canada won the 2018 Nobel Physics Prize for harnessing the power of lasers for advanced precision instruments in corrective eye surgery and in industry.

"The sharp beams of laser light have given us new opportunities for deepening our knowledge about the world and shaping it," said the Nobel Academy's citation.    READ MORE...

When I'm 64

 

Another Galaxy

 

Swiss Hydrogen-Powered Train

A hydrogen-powered train built by Swiss company Stadler has set a new Guinness World Record (GWR) after it traveled nonstop for 1,741 miles (2,803 km). 

The feat was achieved using a pilot hydrogen-powered passenger train car at a dedicated test ring in Colorado in the US.

When looking for sustainable transportation solutions, an electric vehicle (EV) comes to mind. While this technological development is great for reducing tail-pipe emissions, there is a need for sustainable mass transit options as well. 

More recently, automotive companies have also demonstrated the ability of electric buses. Still, trains can carry much larger batches of people at a time.  READ MORE...

Thirsty

 

Just Another Fish Tale

Not too many years ago, I was working in the marketplace in the typical 9:00-5:00 as they say.  I retired in 2015 so it has been almost a decade since I've worked.

I don't miss working because all my supervisors or those to whom I reported were FIRST CLASS ASSHOLES...  and I was the kind of person who could not keep my mouth shut, if I believed in something strongly.

My problem was that I believed in everything I did strongly, or I would not have been working there and my bosses never wanted to ROCK THE BOAT.

This concept was something I learned early in my career (my second job after college) when I reported to a Board of Directors who CONSIDERED THEMSELVES BIG FISH IN LITTLE PONDS.

Back then, you only had one of two choices:

• big fish in little ponds
• little fish in big ponds

Other ways of looking at this could be:

• don't rock the boat
• if it ain't broke don't fix it
• we've always done it this way
• it's above my pay grade

The sad part about this NO PROGRESS SCENARIO is that it only happens in the ranks of management (the so called white collar workers)

Rank and File employees (the so called blue collar workers), don't really give a shit about whose idea it was or if there is a better way to doing something.

Funny, but blue collar workers want to do a good job whereas white collar workers want to get promoted or receive a healthy bonus.  They also have no problems kissing the asses of those above them or making another manager look worse than they look.

SO NO...  I am not sad at all about being retired and I miss nothing that I left behind - not even the money.

Having more money means:

1. paying higher taxes
2. working longer hours
3. buying more toys you don't need
4. buying a bigger house you don't need
5. buying a more expensive car
6. flying first class
7. spending more on vacations
8. owning multiple homes
9. not spending time with family
10. drinking to much alcohol
11. acquiring more stress than needed
12. fear of failure - losing it all
13. watching over your shoulder
14. being solicited to make gifts
15. Never being satisfied with what you have

Cleaning Up

 

Unlimited Vacuum Energy of Space

Abstract
Considering the fundamental cutoff applied by the uncertainty relations’ limit on virtual particles’ frequency in the quantum vacuum, it is shown that the vacuum energy density is proportional to the inverse of the fourth power of the dimensional distance of the space under consideration and thus the corresponding vacuum energy automatically regularized to zero value for an infinitely large free space. This can be used in regularizing a number of unwanted infinities that happen in the Casimir effect, the cosmological constant problem, and so on without using already known mathematical (not so reasonable) techniques and tricks.

1. Introduction
In the standard quantum field theory, not only does the vacuum (zero-point) energy have an absolute infinite value, but also all the real excited states have such an irregular value; this is because these energies correspond to the zero-point energy of an infinite number of harmonic oscillators (). We usually get rid of this irregularity via simple technique of normal ordering by considering the energy difference relative to the vacuum state [1–6]; but, of course, there are some important situations where one deals directly with the absolute vacuum energy as in the cosmological constant problem [7] or in the regularization of the vacuum energy in the Casimir effect [8]. 

After a half century of knowing and “living” with the vacuum energy, there are only some mathematical techniques and approaches in regularizing its infinite value without paying enough conceptual attention to the “content” of the quantum vacuum “structure.” In this paper, considering the fundamental assumption that the vacuum energy originates from the “motion” of virtual particles in the quantum vacuum, it is shown that the free vacuum energy can be regularized based on the uncertainty relations’ limit on these particles’ frequency. Indeed, the free vacuum (or any infinitely large vacuum space) energy is automatically regularized to zero value without using any presupposition (e.g., normal ordering) usually used in getting rid of the infinity of the quantum vacuum energy (the vacuum catastrophe).  READ MORE...

Blind Faith

 

In The NEWS

Earthquake of 4.8 magnitude shakes New Jersey, New York City area.
The earthquake's epicenter hit near Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, Friday morning, about 45 miles away from New York City (see map). Tremors were felt across the East Coast, including in Baltimore, Boston, and Philadelphia. There have been no reports of significant damage or life-threatening casualties as of this writing.



South Carolina Gamecocks, Iowa Hawkeyes reach NCAA title game.
No. 1 South Carolina and No. 1 Iowa will face off in the NCAA women's championship game tomorrow (3 pm ET, ABC) after defeating No. 3 NC State and No. 3 Connecticut, respectively, last night. On the men's side, No. 1 Purdue takes on No. 11 NC State tonight (6 pm ET, TBS), followed by a face-off between No. 1 Connecticut and No. 4 Alabama (8:50 pm ET, TBS).



US employers add 303,000 jobs in March, exceeding expectations.
The nonfarm payroll growth is up from February's downwardly revised growth of 270,000 jobs and beats economists' estimates of 200,000. The unemployment rate fell to 3.8% as expected, down from 3.9% in February. Average hourly earnings rose 0.3% month-over-month and 4.1% year-over-year. See all data here.



USC's Bronny James, son of LeBron James, declares for NBA draft.
The 19-year-old freshman basketball star also announced Friday he plans to retain his college eligibility and will enter the NCAA transfer portal. His announcement comes after playing one season for the University of Southern California, during which he suffered a cardiac arrest in July. The 6-foot-4 guard was found to have a congenital heart defect and was cleared to return in November.



New York to pay $17.5M for forced removal of hijabs for mug shots.
New York City agreed to settle a class-action lawsuit filed in 2018 by two Muslim American women who said their rights were violated after police forced them to remove their hijabs, or head coverings, before taking their arrest photos. The police department changed its policy in 2020 to allow people to wear head coverings for religious reasons as long as their faces were clearly visible.



Criminal networks are infiltrating legal businesses, EU says in report.
The European Union's law enforcement agency, Europol, released a first-of-its-kind report, identifying 821 criminal networks and detailing how they are organized, how they operate, and what kinds of activities they engage in. According to the report (see here), 86% of the identified criminal networks rely on the legal economy to conceal their activities and launder their profits.



Apple to lay off 614 workers after nixing self-driving car project.
The job cuts affect employees from Apple's offices in California and mark the first major round of layoffs for the tech giant postpandemic. It is unclear what projects the employees were working on. The news comes after Apple canceled a decadelong initiative in February to develop autonomous electric vehicles, seeking to instead pivot to working on artificial intelligence.

SOURCE:  1440 News

New Drugs

 
Imbruvica, Calquence, and Brukinsa are three immunotherapy pills that I had been prescribed by my Oncologist to slow down the progression of my lymphoma.  Each of the pills averaged about $12-$15,000 per month and my copay was $1,000 per month.  However, I managed to get a grant from the Leukemia Foundation to pay for my out-of-pocket costs.

All in all, I took these pills over a three year period of time and at first the pills worked half way through the three years the Lymphoma started to grow aggressively and the pills no longer worked.

My Oncologist has now prescribed Venclexta which is in another family of immunotherapy drugs and is much more powerful which is what one hates to see happen.

There are several more types of treatments that can be used but eventually these options will point to a stem cell transplant if they continue not to work.  A stem cell transplant is not only expensive, but it is a very uncomfortable procedure to endure and requires staying in the hospital to 30-60 days.

Venclexta's price per month is about the same as the other pills I have been taking.

What is interesting here is that if Venclexta could be taken via an IV, there would no copayments.  For some reason, the copayments are assessed when one is taking pills.  Taking pills might be convenience but sometimes out-of-pocket expense are more inconvenient that having infusions.

My pills will be taken as follows:

• 20mg first week
• 50mg second week
• 100mg third week
• 200mg fourth week
• 400mg fifth week

I top out of 400mg and each new week, I have to visit with my Oncologist Monday/Tuesday to make sure my blood work is ok.  The first week, the FDA required that I stay in the hospital overnight.

Strangely too, my melanoma cancer which is far worse than lymphoma has shown minimal growth if any at all for over five years.

However, I will continue to take drugs for both of them for the rest of my life.

Venclexta has caused my anemia to worsen, my platelet count to worsen, and while my white blood count has skyrocketed, the Oncologist is hopeful that it will come back down to normal over the next several weeks.

Other side effects that are hard to live with right now is increased fatigue and melancholy and increase nausea.  I have pills for the nausea but there are no pills for fatigue.

Somewhat Political

 

Biden is Destroying America

By Victor Davis Hanson Fox News

11 ways Biden and his handlers are hell-bent on destroying America

The path to civilizational destruction should be very familiar by now

Published April 5, 2024 5:00am EDT

Why are those controlling President Biden using him to advance so much of a destructive agenda that it will likely end America as we know it?

If someone wished to destroy America, could he do anything more catastrophic than what we currently see and hear each day?

What would an existential enemy do that we have not already done to ourselves?

Here are 11 now familiar steps to civilizational destruction:
1. Wipe out a 2,000-mile border.
Allow 10 million foreign nationals to enter unlawfully. Have no audit of any; nullify all federal immigration laws. Let in toxic drugs that kill 100,000 Americans a year. Give free support to those millions who broke the law. Smear any objectors as racists and xenophobes.

2. Run up $35 trillion in national debt.
Keep adding $1 trillion to it each 100 days. Defame anyone wishing to cut wild spending as cruel and inhumane.

3. Appease or subsidize enemies like Iran and China.
Demonize allies like Israel. Allow terrorists to attack Americans without adequate response. See Islam as either similar or superior to Christianity. Make amends to leftist governments for supposedly past toxic American international behavior. Follow the lead of international agencies like the U.N., ICC and WHO to atone for past American neocolonial and imperialist behavior. Recede to second-tier international status, befitting American decline.   READ MORE...

Explained

 

In The NEWS

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
In partnership with NativePath

> Kiss to sell entire music catalog and intellectual property rights to Swedish company Pophouse for over $300M (More) | Jay-Z's Made in America festival canceled for second straight year (More)

> Christopher Durang, Tony Award-winning playwright and Pulitzer Prize finalist, dies at 75 (More)

> Oakland A's will temporarily relocate to Sacramento, California, after this season before final relocation to Las Vegas in 2028 (More)


Science & Technology
> NASA selects three companies to submit designs for moon buggies to be used by astronauts stationed at a lunar base planned as part of the Artemis mission (More) | Most precise measurement of universal expansion to date confirms current theory to within 1% (More)

> Amphibians emit high-pitched screams outside the frequency of human hearing to ward off predators, new study suggests (More)

> Genetic analysis of the sunflower family tree reveals flower symmetry evolved independently in different species of the plants (More) | What is convergent evolution? (More)


Business & Markets
> US stock markets close lower (S&P 500 -1.2%, Dow -1.4%, Nasdaq -1.4%) as Federal Reserve official casts doubt on any interest rate cuts this year; oil prices continue climbing to highest levels since October (More) | US jobs report today expected to show 3.8% unemployment rate in March, down from 3.9% in February (More)

> Alphabet reportedly considering buying marketing software platform HubSpot, with a $35B market value, in what would be its largest purchase ever (More) | Google reportedly considering launching a paid subscription service for Google searches using AI (More)

> Disney Plus to crack down on password sharing in June, following example from Netflix, with plans to extend to all 150 million subscribers by September (More)


Politics & World Affairs
> President Joe Biden pushes for Gaza cease-fire during call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, says US support is contingent on protecting civilians and aid workers (More) | Israel to open new border entrance in northern Gaza to expedite aid delivery (More) | World Central Kitchen calls for independent probe following Israeli strike that killed six aid workers and a translator (More)

> Judge orders US Border Patrol to provide indoor accommodations for thousands of migrant children who've not yet been formally processed; would classify them as "in Border Patrol custody" regardless of processing status (More)

> Nonpartisan group No Labels announces it will not run a third-party candidate in this year's presidential election following rejection from high-profile candidates (More) | See latest poll numbers (More)

SOURCE:  1440 News

East Tennessee Spring

 In all large cities, there are suburban areas just outside the city, where there is a peacefulness existence -  well maintained homes and grasses, curbs and sidewalks, fenced in back yards with swimming pools, patios and grills, along with an overabundance of both cats and dogs.

It is not out of the ordinary, to have the residents of these suburban areas outside walking around the neighborhood at 10pm without the slightest bit of fear in their hearts at all.   It is not out of the ordinary to have the children of these residents outside playing with one another without the slightest bit of fear in their hearts at all.

BUT...  if you leave these quiet suburban areas, the environment changes as crime and violence is taking place all around them and illegal immigrants are sleeping on the sidewalks because they have no money or jobs.

The entirety of East Tennessee is like these suburban areas which makes this area a special place to live and visit.

Yes, we have crimes, theft, burglary, and murder but it is the exception not the general rule.

East Tennessee is blessed with a network of rivers and lakes that afford its residents huge recreational opportunities that include:  camping, boating, hiking, and picnicking.  Perfect for family outings.

As we enter the month of April, warm weather comes to the Tennessee Valley and people like flowers are beginning to pop up outside everywhere.  The smell of grilling is in the air as is the sounds of children playing. 

We have no problems with ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS yet as the Tennessee Valley is not a popular destination for them.  Besides, the State of TN allows carry permits so I doubt too many of them will want to come to this area.  Democratic States will bear the brunt of ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS.

Somewhat Political

 

Having a Thoughtful Life

Svend Brinkmann’s Think is a book in praise of the thoughtful life and an easygoing exploration of the role of thinking in our lives today.

The book is essentially in two parts. The first is descriptive. It explores questions like “what do we mean by thinking?”, “why has it become difficult to think in today’s world?” and “where does thinking come from?”

The second part is prescriptive. Brinkmann provides some quick and relatively simple strategies for bringing more thoughtfulness into our everyday lives.

Think: In Defence of a Thoughtful Life – Svend Brinkmann (Polity)      READ MORE... 

Fixing a Hole

 

TIme

 

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