View 586 September 7 - 13, 2009 (original) (raw)

Sunday, September 13, 2009

I've been catching up this weekend. As I said yesterday one task was revising Roberta's web site about how to teach people to read.

I have also been catching up with Access to Energy. This is a newsletter started by the late Petr Beckmann, and continued by Dr. Arthur Robinson. One announcement in the current issue is good news: they have some soft-cover copies of Petr Beckmann's 1976 book The Health Hazards of Not Going Nuclear. For those interested in the energy crisis this remains an important book. There have been studies of nuclear power and health since 1976 of course, but in fact everything discovered since corroborates what Beckmann said in his book. Copies of this work are available postpaid for $15 from Access to Energy, PO Box 1250, Cave Junction, Oregon 97523. Beckmann's research was reliable and his writing was clear. If you have any interest in this subject you should read this book.

The latest issue of Access to Energy quotes from Duderstadt and Hamilton,Nuclear Reactor Analysis, Wiley, 1976 (and still used a a textbook in nuclear engineering). In 1976 they say "It is anticipated that some 500 nuclear power plants will be installed in the United States alone by the year 2000 with an electrical generating capacity of about 500,000 MWe and a capital investment of more than $600 billion, with this pattern being repeated throughout the world."

Of course that wasn't done. Readers may recall that my recommended response to the 911 attack on the United States was to drill for domestic oil as we build nuclear reactors. Let the Near East drink its oil as we develop domestic resources. It would cost a lot less than the war, and make money for the nation. Of course that wasn't done either.

Finally, Access to Energy reminds me of something I have mentioned here before: all of MIT's course works are available, free, on line, at http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/web/
|courses/courses/index.htm. Note that the course materials can be downloaded and studied free. They are of course not for credit: the gatekeeping function of the US higher education system remains in the hands of the monopolists and is very expensive. On the other hand, the MIT course materials, while challenging, are complete and, uh, well, challenging. If one studied the MIT introductory physics course at the same time one took the same course from Weybelow Normal -- actually studied the courses and did the homework -- one would know the subject (and be pretty well assured of an A in the course at the place of enrollment).

I use physics as an example, because many of the people I worked with in operations research and systems analysis had undergraduate degrees in physics. We didn't do much actual physics in our work, but the "physics habit" -- a way of looking at the world -- turns out to be extremely useful. For those who find they now have lots of time and don't know what to do to improve their prospects, I can recommend the MIT introductory physics courses.

After I wrote the above, I got this mail, which seems relevant:

Knowledge or Certainty

Dr Pournelle

Please convey my heartfelt appreciation toPetronius for the link to Dr Jacob Bronowski's clip from the episode 'Knowledge or Certainty' of The Ascent of Man series. As I recall, this was the twelfth of thirteen episodes, and -- for the power and emotion evident in the clip -- this became the climax of the series.

Dr Bronowski changed my life. As an undergraduate, I carried three majors. The university required me to choose a science course outside my majors. I chose Physics 140. It was self-paced, so I could fit it into my schedule. The course consisted of checking out each video from The Ascent of Man series in turn (the Physics Dept secretary kept the videos in a bookcase next to her desk with a clipboard atop to track them), watching it on the dept video player, taking a one-page test that covered the material in that episode, and dropping off the completed test in Prof Dougherty's mailbox (he administered the course).

I was so moved by Dr Bronowski's powerful, poignant, and profoundly human glorification of man's search for knowledge that I added physics as my minor field of study. I was shocked to learn that Dr Bronowski had died a month after filming ended and before any of the episodes aired.

On a related note, I suggest you create the honorific of Chaos Correspondent of the Year, a title to be conferred to the contributor who has provided Chaos Manor with the most stimulating offering(s) of the year. To receive the first award, I nominate Petronius. His offerings are consistently though-provoking.

Live long and prosper

h lynn keith

The entire series link was given in mail last Spring in mail from Mr. Keith.

I will consider the "award" suggestion, but in fact we have many valuable regular correspondents. I continue to contend that Chaos Manor Mail is the best mail feature on the Internet.

For Mechanics of Materials, see here.

For Stanford Course minimum modern theoretical physics,see here.

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ACORN gives advice: http://www.cnn.com/2009/
POLITICS/09/10/acorn.prostitution/

and

http://beltwayblips.dailyradar.com/story/
new-video-shows-more-acorn
-officials-helping-pimp/

ACORN has taken notice. http://www.foxnews.com/story/
0,2933,549241,00.html?mep

Last I heard, ACORN was striking back: an ACORN official says this furor is an attempt to discredit President Obama and distract the nation from the vital issue of health care.

==================

In yesterday's mail there was ashort discussion of US goals in the Middle East along with a pointer to videos.Today's Mail has a critique of my view, and my reply.

If you want something to read

Subject: Why Capitalism Fail

Here is an interesting blurb on Hyman Minsky's economic theories:

>http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/
articles/2009/09/13/why_capitalism_fails/#

Seems like he predicted the great crash pretty well...

CP, Connecticut

Sunday TOP Current View

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