MetaFilter posts tagged with america

the harder to wake, the better to have

parmanparman — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 21:24:44 -0800

The next great American writer NSFW I found it after I found this.

Do you really know who people are?

tellurian — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 22:39:32 -0800

Criminal Searches - Making you feel safer or increasing your fear? No results for Theodore Kaczynski.

There Could Be Blood

kliuless — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 18:36:53 -0800

Andy Grove on Our Electric Future - "Energy independence [viz.] is the wrong goal. Here is a plan Americans can stick to." Perhaps some infrastructure spending^1,2 is in order? [etc., &c., cf.] also see :P - "Tesla Motors Is Delivering Cars" - "Superconducting Power Grid Launches In New York" - "New heights reached in polymer based solar cell efficiency"

[S]pray a sheet of glass with a mixture of dyes combined with a substance called tris(8-hydroxyquinoline) aluminium. In combination, the dyes and the glass act as the waveguide, preventing light from escaping. Meanwhile, the interaction between the different dye molecules and those of the tris(8-hydroxyquinoline) aluminium allows a quantum-mechanical phenomenon, called Förster energy transfer, to come into play. This eliminates the reabsorption loss by ensuring that light is re-emitted at a frequency which the dye molecules cannot then reabsorb. On top of this—literally—Dr Currie and Dr Mapel have come up with another trick: placing a second sandwich of dye and glass over the first. The upper layer of dye intercepts high-energy light, such as ultraviolet. The lower one captures longer wavelengths that have passed unperturbed through the upper, and also any lower-energy light that has been re-emitted within the top layer and somehow escaped. The upshot is a device that, even as a prototype, converts ten times more of the incident light into electricity than a conventional solar cell. [and btw]

cheers!

Train in Vain

40 Watt — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 20:46:46 -0800

"This could take exactly 77 hours and 15 minutes, if the trains keep to schedule. Most likely, they wont." GOOD Magazine takes a cross-country train ride to examine exactly why America's rail system sucks so badly, and where we go (slowly) from here.

Thomas Jefferson's Library On Exhibit

Rykey — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 16:42:07 -0800

WWJD (Which Words Jefferson Digested) Some Flash

Follows next a period spannin'/ Four long years with James Buchanan...

Navelgazer — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 15:03:19 -0800

In honor of the Fourth, I give you the 50 States and their Capitals, the U.S. Presidents, and in hopes for a better future, what the hell, all the Nations of the World. Yes, the list of the Presidents is only current through Clinton. Yes, I'm absolutely fine with that. Happy Fourth, everybody.

Cette bud n'est pas pour vous

Artw — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 16:59:06 -0800

Save Budweiser! – An American beer titan may be bought up by evil Europeans, only you can save it!

An except from a new book, American Nerd: The Story of My People.

fixedgear — Wed, 21 May 2008 13:25:41 -0800

The Cool Nerds. It's hip to be square, or something.

3 to 10 classroom hours

Artw — Mon, 19 May 2008 21:09:59 -0800

16% of US science teachers believe human beings have been created by God within the last 10,000 years. 25% of science teachers spend some time teaching about creationism or intelligent design. 12.5% teach it as a "valid, scientific alternative to Darwinian explanations for the origin of species". 2% say they do not cover evolution at all. Teachers who have taken more science courses themselves devote more time to evolution - "This may be because better-prepared teachers are more confident in dealing with students' questions about a sensitive subject."

"NIXON-AGNEW", in red and in blue.

goodnewsfortheinsane — Thu, 15 May 2008 18:49:33 -0800

United States election logos, 2008-1960.