When I take my Focus Electric in for scheduled maintenance, it's amusing to watch the service rep trying to find something they can actually do. So far the only items have been tire rotation and software updates.

That's also true. But, if your variable input energy source can't be used when it's available, running it into an inefficient process to store it doesn't have the same impact as it would if you had to run it through the inefficient process always. Putting it another way, Use it when it's available (for anything), or lose it.

They apply equally to nuclear power, but the question was how to store the excess renewable energy and use it to cover variable demand with variable production.

You use the wind power to run the pumps on reservoir storage, or to electrolyze water to run Sabatier reactors which generate hydrocarbon gases like methane. Feed the hydrocarbon gases into the existing natural gas pipelines which feed the gas turbine peaking plants. The natural gas pipeline system can maintain at least several days worth of supply for the whole nation.

There are more ways, those two are my favorite candidates. Just keep T. Boone Pickens away from the natural gas.

I didn't realize that "humanity" included self-righteousness, arrogance, and a large dose of holier than thou.

Lets see if I got this right, you do what is "right" (according to your religion) because your God says that he'll burn you forever if you don't; not because its the right thing to do. And because you do what is "right" you are feel that you have more "humanity" than anyone who doesn't believe in God.

If that is what it takes to keep you acting civilized, I'm all in favor of it.

The name of the nerve is the "recurrent laryngeal nerve".

Think it's stupid route planning in humans? It follows the same route in giraffes.

One of the other interesting facets of the whole area is that it isn't just a matter of having a 3D printer. If you're going to create parts for your own ideas, you have to be able to draw them. If you can't create the drawings/models, all you can do is search around for something the somebody else did and hope that it's close enough. (What's the fun in that?)

Maybe there is no great conspiracy against your wonderful "facts" and opinions.

There's a joke that is probably a better fit.

If one person calls you an ass, you can laugh it off.

If two people call you an ass, you can walk away.

If a bunch of people call you an ass, you should have yourself fitted for a saddle.

There's an URL around here somewhere for tin-foil hats.

Well, now that we've heard from the "Floggings will continue until morale improves" school of management.

Anybody want to work for this guy?

Does it also object if you do a rm -rf .* ?

(I was just trying to remove a bunch of hidden directories in /tmp. Unfortunately .* matched .. all the way to /)

If you want a "killer app", figure out how to make an online barter market that can do barter chains. If that's the right term; #1 wants this, and has that, #2 has the other thing and wants the other other thing, #3 has that.... Stitch all the wants and haves together and everybody gets what they want with no currency being exchanged at all. Currency is just a common denominator and has no intrinsic value.

Well Rick Perry is certainly stupid enough to qualify for the GOP nomination. Now all he needs is the ventriloquist dummy surgery that W. had.

The question is who's hand is going to be running Governor Goodhair's mouth. I don't think Cheney's up for it this time.

Careful, Careful..... You might be establishing a negative correlation there. Doctors have better outcomes when they are paid less?. Heaven forfend!

Don't want to over extrapolate here, perfect health probably won't appear when Doctors are paid nothing.

So why do most of the other countries in the developed world, that do have universal health care, deliver better overall health care outcomes for 60% less (10% of GDP) than the current US system (16% of GDP)?

The original version of the healthcare plan was written 15-20 years ago, including the mandate, by the Heritage Foundation, well known as a pinko-commie-lib think tank. (For the mouth-breathers out there, that's a joke). Go look for other Heritage Foundation proposals and see what you think.