This week for the stamping meeting the theme was from the new catalogue. There were some great cards. Here is mine…

Card: Kiwi Kiss
Ink: Riding Hood Red, Versamark
Stamp Set: Great Friend
Accessories: Embossing Powder/Buddy/Trays, Head Gun, Stamp-ma-jig, earth elements designer paper
Technique: I stamped the butterfly on designer paper and cut it out so if you see the card, the wings stand up and it has colour on both sides. Perhaps I should have photographed it so you could see the butterfly flying. I also stamped the butterfly straight onto the card and mounted the cut out butterfly ontop.
I used the stamp-ma-jig so I could create a branch coming off the main stalk.

Someone else at the meeting had a similar idea to me..

Card: Whisper White, Pretty in Pink, Gable Green
Ink: Green Galore, Pixie Pink
Stamp Set: Great Friend
I love the silver sparkly antennas

I fancied using the showers at the caravan park on Lough Key this morning. I packed my rucksack, got the bike ready and off I went.

When I got there, I discovered that they needed some sort of token – my EUR1 or 20c didn’t fit. The showers didn’t appeal either. So I put my clothes back on, cycled back and showered at the boat. Well at least I got some exercise! Captain Bob went for a cycle while I showered to try to ease his sore back.

He then supervised Beth making pancakes while I did the dishes.

Our plan for this morning was a return to Boda Borg (Crystal Maze).

We went in all guns blazing and got our first Farm Room stamp quickly. It all went downhill from there. We had a 2 hour ticket but with another 10 minutes remaining we gave up – purple faced, sweaty, bruised and stiff – yes it was great fun and definitely recommended.

We then treated ourselves to a lovely lunch before heading back to give Holly her lunch and a scoot out.

By now the rain was presistent so we settled to a cup of tea, some reading and some knitting.

Towards the end of the afternoon, the rain eased and Captain Bob and Beth decided to get out and onto the water – after all they couldn’t get any wetter.

So Captain Bob got in the kayak and Beth got her wet suit on and tried to ride on the front of the kayak. Holly and I watched from the jetty. Much fun was had.

Captain Bob went for an explore in the kayak up to the Fairy Bridge while Beth and I played a water form of water “Donkey”  with a ball. Beth was in the water and I would through the ball to her and she would through it back to me on the jetty. I felt as I was getting as wet as them but it was good fun.

When Captain Bob returned, Beth had a couple more turns of falling off the kayak and then it was time to get her out of the wet clothes and warmed up.

We all then started to put everything away – minicat, kayak, folding bike and dinghy back onto the boat for sailing the next day.

Then it was time to make dinner. We cooked on the hob as it definitely wasn’t barbecue weather.

After dinner we had a bit of relaxation time.

Soon we were headed into Lough Key. The jetties in the main area were full so we headed towards Rockingham where there were several spaces. This was our preferred spot for the water sports we were planning.

Moored up, Captain Bob and Beth started to build the minicat while I made brunch. After lunch, Captain Bob resumed building but was a bit too energetic and hurt his back while pumping up the floats.

After a few minutes to catch his breath, we changed roles and he gave instruction and Beth and I took over as builders. Soon we had both the minicat and kayak ready for sailing and thanks to 2 nurofen, Captain Bob’s back was beginning to ease.

Captain Bob and Beth got geared up. They were planning a race round a small island Captain Bob on the minicat and Beth in the kayak. Due to the lack of breeze, Beth was an easy winner. Beth went out to see if the minicat needed a tow but Captain Bob stole Beth’s paddle – dirty trick if ever I saw one – but he did give it back. They spent the rest of the afternoon on the water and swapping boats. To finish the afternoon, Beth got into her swimming gear (water temperature was showing as 18.5).The aim was for her to sit on the nose of the kayak. You could thing of it a bit like a balance beam. Sometmes she lost her balance of her own accord and sometimes she had a bit of assistance. There was also plenty of splashing so Captain Bob came in looking as wet as if he’d been in the water.

This is a such a lovely spot and from the Rockingham jetty you have great visibility of boats entering and leaving Lough Key. When a number of boats have come through the Clarendon Lock at the same time, it can be fun watching them vie for position.

Warmed up and dried off we started to think about dinner. Beth cooked us chicken fajitas accompanied by a jar of jalapenos and followed by ice cream sliders.

After dinner was Holly’s time and we went out for a good stretch of the legs through the forest. Beth took the bike. She never went too far away as she found it a bit spooky in places,

When we got back we headed to the flybridge for a game of gin rummy and when it got slightly breezier we went below for Monopoloy Deal.

There’s a new spring mini starting August 1st.

Here’s a sneak peak at “Great Friend” stamp set

We awakened to an increased swell. The wind had changed direction slightly with the result that the waves were hitting the side of the boat making it a bit more rocky – but not uncomfortably so.

After a breakfast of Captain Bob’s home made pan cakes, Captain Bob helped me unfold the bike and I got ready to head for Boyle in search of  fresh bread. The journey was by no means flat. At the Lough Key exit, I went straight across at the junction and found a Mace Express a short way up the road. The journey time was about 20 minutes. Purchases made, I headed back and arrived with sore legs and a purple complexion.

We decided that although the sun was shining, the wind made it uncondusive to water sports so we decided to make a move to Carrick-on-Shannon.

With a great team effort we put down the minicat, inflatable kayak, folded the bike and lifted the dinghy and were ready to go.

The exit from Lough Key was choppy enough but once we got turned into the shelter of the islands it was very pleasant.

We arrived at Clarendon Lock. The lock keeper told us that the grey wagtails in the lock ate made their nest there every year. He also said that although we think overall there are less boats around that through his lock it is on a par with last year.

Out through the lock we headed on past Knockvicar and Cootehill to Carrick-on-Shannon. We found one last space on the finger jetties. Our boating neightbours helped us moor in quite blustery conditions. We had spotted other spaces on the harbour wall if this hadn’t worked out.

We took a little walk through the town seeing what had changed in the last year since we had last visited.

We went out for dinner at Vittos – a family friendly Italian restaurant. We had a lovely meal and were given a voucher for a free bottle of hosue win – maybe we’ll call on the way back.

Our plan for this morning was Borda Borg. This is  a bit like Crystal Maze where you are set different challenges. You go enter a room, are face with a challenge. If you fail the challenge the light goes red and you have to leave the room and start again. If you success the light goes green and you can proceed to the next room in the series. If you succeed in the whole series of rooms, then you are rewarded with a stamp.

Last year when we visited  we tried our best but got no stamps so this year we were determined to get at least one.

Our first stamp came in the Laser area. Last year we got stuck in the second room but this year we beat it. This was 40 minutes into our 2 hour allocation. We were delighted.

Our second stamp was in the Sports area and out third and final stamp was in the farm area.

We were so pleased we decided not to submit the card for the prize draw  but keep it for posterity.

We came back exhausted with a few bumps and bruises. While I started to prepare lunch, Captain Bob started to build the minicat for sailing.

After lunch, Captain Bob and Beth went out sailing. It was quite choppy – a bit too choppy for Beth. She came in and Captain Bob had another sail on his own.

A heavy shower came and after this was over, Captain Bob got the kayak ready and went sailing in it.

The rest of the afternoon was spent reading and dog walking.

After dinner we had a race Joanne and Holly on foot against Beth in the kayak and Robert rowing in the dinghy.

We spotted a marker on the far shore and this was what we had to aim for.

Joanne and Holly won but only because the boaters had a low start. On the way back Beth won easily.

via cnn.com:

“The blueprint works like this: The mayors of the Bay Area’s three largest cities agreed to expedite permitting and installation of electric car charging stations, standardize regional regulations to promote an electric car infrastructure and offer incentives to employers to install chargers at workplaces. The mayors also agreed to pool purchases of municipal electric car fleets.

Better Place will raise the capital to install thousands of charging spots on the streets of San Francisco, San Jose and Oakland as well as stations between California cities where drivers can swap depleted batteries for fresh ones when they make longer trips. The Palo Alto-based company will own the car batteries and charge drivers for the miles driven. Automaker Renault-Nissan is developing electric cars for the Better Place network.

The big idea: Only by building an electric car infrastructure first will automakers produce the tens of millions of electric cars needed to make a significant dent in greenhouse gas emissions and the nation’s dependence on foreign oil.”

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This is a great development, but I won’t be holding my breath waiting for the Automakers to deliver all those millions of electric cars anytime soon.

If MDI can get some of it’s Air Cars manufactured in the States within the next few years as planned, we just might see some of them plugged into this new infrastructure as well.

Note, the vehicle in the diagram above is no longer referred to as the MiniCat, it’s now the Mini FlowAir. Heavy equipment manufacturer Caterpillar requested MDI not use the CAT name.

With gas prices going out of control and everyone commuting a long trip to work, we need alternative fuel sources. My wife shared an article with me about the MiniCat. Seems like a pretty cool idea but will be hard to make happen with the oil companies being in complete control over prices and not letting people develop new ideas. Well, luckily for the rest of us people are continuing to develop unique, efficient ways to drive a car.

I bet Mr. Bean will endorse it

Most people would say this car doesn’t have enough power, maxing out at 70mph, but where do you drive that the speed limit is over that? I don’t care for an engine that can rev up and sound loud, or that I can swerve around other cars and dominate the road. I think power in a car is something that is overrated and is just wasting more gas than we need to. I would be perfectly happy with driving a car that gets me to where I need to go and doesn’t cost me more than $2 to fill it up every 125 miles.

It may not be the prettiest design yet, but I’m also fine with driving a car that looks geeky and is small. Just equip it with iPod compatibility, a good sound system, and good crash test rating and I’m all for it.

You can read more about it elsewhere, I’m just excited to see new intuitive ideas about car. I’m just waiting for this years WWDC for Steve Jobs to announce the iCar. Phone, car, music, gps, wifi internet, rent movies, tv shows, buy music, tweet, blog, take pictures, stream live video, etc. I’m guessing there will be an iCar by 2015?

Steve Jobs You can do it!

Die Idee ist alt, aber noch nicht angegraut: Ein Auto mit reiner Luft zu betreiben, die unter hohem Druck steht. Also braucht man zuerst einen Kompressor, um einen Tank am Auto zu befüllen. Später wird dann diese Luft in einen speziellen Motor geleitet, dehnt sich dort aus und treibt so die Kolben an. Und das Auto fährt. Schädliche Emissionen entstehen während des Betriebs keine.

Foto: CATvolution

Trotzdem ist ein Druckluftauto nicht notwendigerweise ein Segen für die Natur. Nur wenn die Druckluft umweltfreundlich erzeugt werden kann, ist das der Fall. Das Problem wird also an eine andere Stelle verlagert, in den Bereich der Stromerzeugung für den Kompressor…

Seit einigen Jahren laufen engagierte Versuche, ein Luftauto auf den Markt zu bringen. Der französische Hersteller MDI Enterprises hat sich heuer mit Tata Motors, dem indischen Autoproduzenten, zusammengetan. Nun will man gemeinsam billige Druckluftautos für den Stadtverkehr produzieren – ein Kleinstwagen soll schon ab 3.500 € zu haben sein. Nachdem auf der New York Motor Show im März drei Prototypen vorgestellt wurden (einer ist oben auf dem Foto zu sehen), ist es jetzt wieder ein bisschen stiller um das Projekt geworden.

Der Verkauf soll laut MDI Enterprises dennoch in Frankreich schon mit Anfang 2009 beginnen. Mittlerweile sind auch Bilder von einem MiniCAT mit Kennzeichen aufgetaucht, was auf eine schon erfolgte Straßenzulassung hindeutet. Der MiniCAT schafft übrigens mit einer “Tankfüllung” 80 km. Ich bin schon mal gespannt, wie es mit den Luftautos weitergeht.

Indian roads are filled with ample number of cars from diverse global auto manufacturers. Plenty of car models and makes are entering Indian car market everyday. However the ever increasing fuel prices have hampered many of the Indian car buyers.
Now it’s time for the buyers to relax as Tata is all set to rock Indian roads with its first ever electric car by the end of this financial year and has turned to it’s tried and tested Indica platform for its electric vehicle.
The car manufacturer is proving to be an exceptional car player when compared to other manufacturers in the Indian car industry and aims mainly at developing eco-friendly cars.
This awesome electric car will use ion batteries for high energy and power density and would have approximate range of 200 kilometers.

Carro movido a água. Fantástico!

Idéia tão boa que pode até nem ser aceita integralmente em muitos países porque certamente muita gente vai achar que pode desestruturar a economia local baseada na produção de petróleo.

Inventada uma fonte energética que promete redesenhar todo o cenário econômico baseado nos modelos atuais de produção de energia para consumo veicular, por exemplo. Nada menos que mais uma invenção japonesa que poderá mexer com todo o mercado consumidor mundial.

A apreensão generalizada em torno da escalada exacerbada do preço do petróleo tornou-se rotina nos dias atuais. Não menos preocupante é a alteração da camada de ozônio não só por ambientalistas mas por todos os terráqueos concientes da degradação do planeta e vítimas do desenvolvimento desenfreado e inóspito à causa ecológica.

Esse cenário todo agora conta com um fato novo e decisivo no contexto econômico global. É o surgimento de novas soluções para problemas criados pelo homem frente à conjuntura internacional no que tange à produção de energia renovável e ao meio ambiente.

A primeira boa notícia nessa área veio meses atrás com o anúncio do carro movido a ar comprimido, o Nano, idéia de Guy Nègre, ex-engenheiro da Fórmula 1 à frente da MDI, que passou a ser produzido pela Tata Motors. E já chegaram ao mercado indiano os primeiros modelos, MiniCat e CityCat.

No Brasil, há um empreendimento conjunto da Tata Motors com a Marcopolo nesse sentido, algo sigiloso. Tomara que não encontrem barreiras políticas, contestações irracionais, para que esse sonho vire realidade em nosso país.

E agora eis a mais nova revelação tecnológica nessa área: carro a água, isso mesmo, tão somente água como “combustível” e ar, que é transformada em eletricidade através de reação química num pequeno gerador interno. E a idéia é tão simples que pode ser encarada como uma nova matriz energética capaz de não apenas mover automóveis, como também suprir necessidades energéticas diárias residenciais e corporativas e muito mais, através da mais nova tecnologia na produção de energia com tecnologia desenvolvida pela Genepax.

Vamos torcer para que esse projeto logo chegue também à nossa realidade. O Brasil merece e precisa urgentemente dessas soluções de locomoção econômicas e ecologicamente corretas.

Aliás, no Brasil, poderia até não chegar se considerarmos que esse avanço mexeria com muita gente grande predestinada a contrariar qualquer movimento comprometedor dos lucros advindos das fontes energéticas tradicionais, como aconteceu com o lançamento da Tata Motors logo no primeiro instante. Mas, mesmo assim, essa possível força contrária tem que saber que é a sobrevivência de todos que está em jogo num mundo cada vez mais poluído e com menos oferta de combustíveis convencionais.

Antes de criticar, creio que para entender e acreditar na possibilidade de inovação é preciso primeiro ser criativo e ousado. Não é raciocinando exatamente da maneira que aprendemos nas escolas convencionais, e nada mais, que vamos mudar de opinião a respeito de inovações dessa natureza anunciadas tanto pela MDI quanto agora pela Genepax. São novos recursos, conceitos, métodos, parâmetros e padrões, avanços tecnológicos e científicos, uma boa dose de criatividade e algo mais, que diferenciam a mente do criador daquele que só sabe limitar-se a criticar baseado em padrões ultrapassados, ou age em defesa dos próprios interesses.

Pense bem, não está todo mundo preocupado com a crise de alimentos inflacionando todo o mercado consumidor?  Simples, segundo a Física, dois corpos não podem ocupar o mesmo espaço ao mesmo tempo, então não seria difícil imaginar que as idéias aqui mencionadas combateriam inclusive a inflação. Naturalmente! Vamos supor que essas tecnologias gerassem, de início, economia de álcool combustível na ordem de 10%, hipotético, conseqüentemente reduziríamos uma área de plantio de cana-de-açúcar equivalente à área necessária para resultar nesse percentual de álcool. Correto? Use o mesmo raciocínio para percentuais maiores admitindo a aceitação dessas inovações em vários países. Percebe o efeito positivo e multiplicador? Portanto, Carro movido a ar ou água funciona como antídoto à inflação, inclusive por falta de alimentos, destinando áreas cultiváveis à cultura alimentar. Outra, se o mercado dependente de combustível à base de petróleo vive inflacionado por causa dos altos preços no mercado internacional, então nao seria demais admitir que essas novas tecnologias teriam peso aritmético ponderável significativo na composição dos índices inflacionários dos mercados que as adotassem. Sem dúvida, um grande impacto sobre a economia em prol do meio ambiente.

O Brasil tem que aprender a mudar com quem já o fez e deu certo. O carro a ar-comprimido nacional já poderia estar com seu projeto avançado, ou uma montadora em construção anunciando suas metas ao mercado nacional ou talvez também internacional.

Assim sendo, vamos acreditar na concretização de mais essa inovação japonesa que já começou a tornar-se realidade com o primeiro protótipo de um automóvel movido cem por cento a água, sem necessidade alguma de fonte externa de alimentação, e sem emitir CO2.

— Senhoras e senhores, eis o protótipo do carro que promete revolucionar o mercado automobilístico mundial movido com tecnologia japonesa:

O carro, provido de um WES (Water Energy System), foi apresentado no Osaka Assembly Hall, Japão, em 12 de junho.

O sistema pode gerar energia apenas pelo suprimento de água e ar aos eletrodos de “combustível” (água) e ar respectivamente.

O mecanismo básico de geração de energia do novo sistema é similar a uma célula de combustível normal desenvolvida pela empresa, que usa hidrogênio como combustível. De acordo com a Genepax, a nova característica do novo sistema é que ele usa a câmara de eletrodos com membranas (MEA) da Genepax, que contém um material capaz de decompor a água em hidrogênio e oxigênio através de reação química.

Sem dar detalhes durante a apresentação no Salão, claro, Hirasawa Kiyoshi, presidente da empresa, limitou-se a afirmar que o sistema se saíu muito bem por ser dotado de um famoso processo de produção de hidrogênio a partir da água pela MEA. O processo é supostamente similar ao mecanismo que produz hidrogênio através de uma reação de hidreto metálico e água. Mas comparado ao método existente, espera-se que o novo processo produza hidrogênio a partir da água por um período mais longo, mais rendimento.

Deste modo, a célula precisa apenas de água e ar, eliminando a necessidade de reformador e de um tanque de hidrogênio altamente pressurizado. Ademais, o MEA não requer catalizadores especiais, e a quantidade necessária de metais raros tais como platina é quase a mesma dos sistemas existentes.

Diferente de DMFC (direct methanol fuel cell), que usa metanol como combustível, o novo sistema não emite CO2. Além disso, acredita-se que tenha vida útil mais longa porque a degradação catalística (venenosa) causada pelo CO não ocorre nas paredes dos eletrodos do MEA. Como o protótipo está em operação há pouco mais de um ano, a empresa pretende coletar mais dados com o passar do tempo.

Está claro que essa fonte de energia econômica serve também para outros fins. Enquanto o presidente da Genepax demonstrava sua invenção, o novo gerador de energia Genepax supria energia aos refletores da TV que estava transmitindo o evento.

O sistema atual está projetado para trabalhar com 300 W. O desempenho do carro protótipo é de 80 km/h com um litro de água rodando durante uma hora.

Para o futuro, a empresa pretende desenvolver sistemas geradores na ordem de 1kW. Em vez desse sistema ser a principal fonte de energia, ele poderia estar associado aos veículos elétricos convencionais como suprimento de energia suplementar numa bateria secundária.

Embora o custo de produção agora esteja na casa dos US$ 18.522, ele pode ser reduzido a um quarto desse valor ou menos se a Genepax se sair bem na produção industrial em série. A empresa acredita que o seu sistema de células energéticas pode competir com sistema de energia solar se o custo puder ser reduzido a esse nível.

Agora, soltando um pouco a imaginação, tomara que o próximo anúncio da Genepax seja o lançamento de um grande gerador estacionário que possa gerar energia em megawatts à margem de uma represa suficiente para suprir a demanda alétrica de uma cidade, por exemplo.

A essas alturas a Genepax busca parceria com uma grande montadora a fim de assegurar sua penetração no grande mercado mundial e conseguir dessa forma assegurar custo final do produto ainda menor.

Sem dúvida, é um marco na história da indústria automobilística mundial e, por extensão, no modelo de suprimento energético em vários setores.

O que mais você esperaria de bom nesses tempo de apuro com a escassez do petróleo? E com tanta poluição nos grandes centros urbanos, só uma idéia dessas para salvar todo mundo do sufoco. Já pensou, alguns litros de água para atender as necessidades diárias do seu novo carrinho? Queria algo melhor por hoje?

No Brasil, comemora-se com muito orgulho o centenário da imigração japonesa, cuja cultura só nos trouxe beniefícios provando que pode transformar sabiamente desafios em vitórias. E agora merece novamente nossa consideração por esse feito em prol de toda humanidade. Já que somos hópedes desse povo trabalhador há um céculo, não seria demais acolhermos também essa idéia inovadora da Genepax.

Japonês com seu carro a água, seja bem-vindo!

Parabéns Japão!

A solução na produção de energia limpa para locomoção veicular representa grande passo da tecnologia para um mundo mais saudável, sem falar na questão econômica. Imagine a revolução econômica que esse novo sistema energético poderá causar no mundo com a possibilidade de utilização em várias áreas da atividade humana.

Petrosky

Dzisiaj klip z samochodem napędzanym sprężonym powietrzem. Wywiad z Cyrylem Negre – inżynierem firmy MDI oraz powietrzne autko w akcji.

Na filmie model OneCAT zaprezentowany na New York International Auto Show w marcu tego roku. OneCAT będzie sprzedawany na rynku indyjskim (Tata Motors) oraz europejskim w wersjach Taxi, Family, Van i Truck.

Trudno oceniać możliwości motoryzacji opartej na silniku pneumatycznym. Jasne jest, że ewentualny rozwój napędu niezależnego bezpośrednio od paliw płynnych uderza w oparty na ropie system korporacyjny i państwowy.

Jeśli sensowne alternatywy dla ropy istnieją – państwo ich wdrożeniem zainteresowane z pewnością nie będzie. Spodziewać się raczej należy działań, które eliminować będą alternatywy osłabiające władzę reżimowych elit.

I’m very excited about the MiniCat, and its relatives, the new, air-powered vehicles that we will hopefully see on our roads very soon. Brainchild of former Formula One engineer, Guy Negre, and his son Cyril, the car has been over a decade in development and uses revolutionary engine technology. Of course, anyone who has worked in a commercial garage knows that compressed air powered tools have been around for a long time, and work analogously to the electrical counterparts that domestic users will be familiar with. In principal, to run a car engine only requires something that can push the pistons, and compressed air should work. The problems are similar to those for hydrogen powered cars – how to carry enough of the stuff.

The engine technology has been developed by the family run company, Moteur Development International (MDI), and features an articulated con-rod which allows expansion at constant volume, effectively allowing the same engine efficiency to be achieved with a lower compression ratio. There is also a moto-alternator, which both starts up the compressed air engine, and refills the air storage tanks. These two innovations are not only applicable to compressed air engines, but could also be applied to conventional internal combustion engines to enhance performance.

A major difficulty over the years has been in finding an automotive manufacturer willing to develop the technology, but that is what has recently changed. The Indian car company, Tata has agreed to take the development forward, and we may be able to see these cars in India and the USA by the end of 2008.

If this is successful, we could see a genuine revolution in car technology. With the cheapest model expected to sell at about 3,500 Euros, the MiniCat should be able to refill from a high pressure air line (as exist in garage forecourts already) in around 2 minutes. The top speed is expected to be about 110 kilometers per hour, and with a refill costing only around 1.5 Euros, and lasting for 200 kilometers, this cheap and completely non-polluting little car will appeal to the vast majority of city motorists.

MiniCat also has an appealing, fresh design, with the driver positioned centrally, and passenger seats either side. Future plans have been made for other models, specifically for use as taxis, people carriers and even a flatbed truck model. Since the vast majority of car trips are short distance and urban, this is a car that is affordable, green and economical. I can’t wait to see it.

Amanda