You may not know this, but leaded gas, unleaded gas, and diesels fuel pumps all have different O.D. spouts. E85 doesn't - it's the same as E10. If the nozzle doesn't go in, that's usually an indicator that it *shouldn'* go in. (Somebody screwed up with E85, and didn't spec the spout...damned near pumped it into my care before I realised what I was about to do.)

I agree that the study focused on production. That being said, I'd be willing to bet, if we could find an abandoned town somewhere, that pollution would go way up if everything were to be switched to all electric. Other unintended consequences would follow, as well. "House burned down? Sorry...the fire truck got here, but couldn't pump water. Batteries died." "Your spouse died? Sorry - the batteries gave out and we couldn't cardiovert them out of v-fib." "Yeah, we know who it was that torched your house, but couldn't chase them, since the strobes killed the batteries." "Sorry, grandpa died because the hospital lost power and couldn't switch over to the IC genset backups. You'll thank us some day, though."

I agree with the second sentiment of thieves. Your first supposition, though, couldn't be more wrong. The 'Net started out as a US Department of Defese initiative through DARPA to ensure communications integrity across the US (in particular, the military) in the event of a catastrophe, up to and including nuclear attack from an enemy. Those communications would most certainly *not* have been shared freely around the world. At some point, there were enough private/private-ish entities on ARPAnet, it made sense to split MILNET off to perform the military functions, and *then* let the rest of the world screw around with the 'Net as you know it today.

Dude! A fractal T1? A T1, within a T1, within a T1???? That must've been some serious bandwidth! I'm freakin' jealous! :)

Pantone does....

That paper really only addresses "direct tort reform", or the limiting of malpractice liability suits. In practice, though, malpractice suits are an evil twin of the VAT - you sue the doctor, the hospital, the company that built the gurney, the company that built the IV titration machine, the company that manufactured the IV solution, the nurse(s) who started the IV, the mfgr of the lighting in the room, the ambulance service that got you there, the 2 medics on board, the manufacturer of the ambulance, the schools involved in educating all of the humans involved, and if you're in a particularly nasty mood, you also sue several visitors who pissed you off along the way. I wish that I was kidding, but that's a big reason for high medical costs. A Ferno-Washington ambulance litter will run you >$6000, even though it's effectively no more than an aluminum tube frame with a vinyl- wrapped foam mattress. They *know* that they *will* be sued. A lot.