Tuesday, July 26, 2005

The NASA Space Shuttle Discovery roared into the Florida sky at 10:39AM ET (14:39 UTC), 2 weeks after the launch was scrubbed due to a faulty sensor. The launch was the start of the STS-114 mission, which is planned to be completed on August 7, 2005.

Solid rocket booster separation was triggered two minutes and five seconds into the flight after burnout of the putty-like fuel packed inside each rocket. The firing of explosive bolts freed the twin boosters from the side of the external tank, allowing them to peel away from the space shuttle. Parachutes were then automatically deployed from the boosters, allowing them to slowly descend into the Atlantic Ocean where they will be towed back to shore.

Discovery initiated the command for main engine cutoff, or MECO, at the 8-minute, 23-second mark. MECO shuts down the orbiter’s three powerful engines in the rear of Discovery after completing the “uphill” climb into space.

With the ascent into space complete and fuel in the external tank exhausted, Discovery jettisoned the orange canister. Following jettison, Commander Eileen Collins pitched the orbiter up until the tank could be sighted through the orbiter´s upper windows. Mission Specialist Soichi Noguchi then took digital photographs and video of the external tank from a distance of just 1,500 feet.

Monday, November 28, 2005

SpaceX called off the much-delayed inaugural launch of their new Falcon 1 rocket on Saturday from Kwajalein’s Omelek Island launch site. The intent was to launch the U.S. Air Force Academy’s FalconSat 2 satellite, which will monitor plasma interactions with the Earth’s upper atmosphere and magnetosphere.

The launch was delayed, then finally cancelled after an oxygen boil-off vent had accidentally been left open. The oxygen was unable to cool the helium pressurant, which then proceeded to evaporate faster than it could be replenished. A main computer issue, probably serious enough to cause a scrub on its own, was also discovered.

This long-anticipated flight was originally expected to be launched in January 2005, however a series of setbacks forced a series of delays, with the flight most recently scheduled to be in early 2006. It was intended to be launched from the Kwajalein atoll in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

The maiden voyage was originally intended to launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California with a Naval Research Laboratory satellite and a Space Services Incorporated space burial payload.

Thursday, April 10, 2008

2008 Taipei International Auto Parts & Accessories Show (2008 Taipei AMPA), a trade show for the automotive industry, located at Taipei World Trade Center Nangang Exhibition Hall (TWTC Nangang), opened yesterday and will continue until this Saturday April 12 with two concurrent trade shows for motorcycle and electronic industries at Taipei World Trade Center named Taipei International Automobile Electronics Show (AutoTronics Taipei) & Taiwan International Motorcycle Industry Show (Motorcycle Taiwan).

The three main shows in different venues, highlighting key issues like the environment, energy-efficiency, and industry transformations. TAITRA held “AutoTronics Forum” and “Taiwan Automotive International Forum & Exhibition” in hopes of forecasting the future of the electronic and automobile industries. Yamaha Corporation put on the “‘Fi’ 5th-Stage Emission Standard Pavilion” to showcase the research achievement and solutions for the future standard of fifth-cycle.

Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Apple Computer is planning to sell full-length feature films for download via the online iTunes Music Store. The store currently sells digital music tracks, and more recently has begun to sell TV episodes.

Apple executives are in negotiations with film studios to arrange the deal and settle on pricing structures. It is expected that films will retail for around $9.99 US dollars, although some studios are reported to want to set a higher price.

iTunes is currently by the biggest online retailer of digital music, with its software tightly integrated with the popular iPod line of products. Newer versions of the iPod include a colour screen capable of displaying videos, and so consumers could watch the films on the devices, but it is not yet clear how many people will want to do this.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs is also the largest single shareholder of Disney, which now owns animation studio Pixar, however he could end up playing a wider role within the film industry if iTunes becomes the dominant online distributor.

A full-length TV movie, ‘High School Musical‘ from Disney, is already available on iTunes, suggesting that the technical infrastructure is already in place.

Monday, July 18, 2005

An 11-year-old girl faces serious assault charges in California after casting a stone at a group of boys who were throwing water balloons at her. In April, Maribel Cuevas was apprehended by Fresno, California police and spent five days in a detention center after throwing the object at the group of boys who bombarded her with water balloons as she walked down the sidewalk. A 9-year-old boy was hit with the stone, and suffered a wound to his head requiring medical assistance.

Since then, Cuevas has spent one month under house arrest pending court. Cuevas’ lawyer, Richard Beshwate, told the BBC that “They [Fresno police] are treating her like a violent parole offender. It’s not a felony, it’s an 11-year-old acting like an 11-year-old.”

Fresno Police Sergeant Anthony Martinez told reporters: “We responded. We determined a felony assault had taken place and the officers took the actions that were necessary.” Cuevas is due back in court next month on felony assault charges.

The girl was placed in juvenile hall during her five-day detention, with only one 30-minute visit from her parents. She was then placed under a 30 day house arrest and required to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet. The house arrest allowed the girl to attend school.

Maribel, who knows very little English, said that the boy initiated the conflict — the boy also admitted as much.

Sunday, May 28, 2006

A 17-year-old student faces expulsion by the Plainfield School District in Plainfield, Illinois as a result of blog posts he made on xanga.com which were critical of the school staff, alleging bullying and intimidation. The student has already been suspended for 10 days for the “inappropriate comments” and “threats” the school felt he had expressed on his blog. The posts were not made on school time or with school equipment.

On May 1, the student posted the following message that apparently initiated the suspension:

“dear plainfield school district 202:

i know you read this. and you suck. suspend me or what ever you would like to do. but this is my fuckin web site and i can put what ever i want on it. kinda goes with the first amendment. by suspending kyle again for his xanga you guys are pathetic and totally irrational. first amendment you fucks. freedom of speech. and who the fuck are you to say what some one can do from there own personal computer. one more thing kiss my ass.”

On May 2, the student continued his passionate rant, giving some background to the controversy:

“you are bully’s. I feel threatened by you. if you don’t like what you see here then do not come here its that simple. I’m pretty sure when you suspended Sam you brought her to tears, you are a bully and you make me sick. there’s nothing you can do about us posting about parties we’ve been to and how much liquor we had or how much pot was smoked, the police need to do a better job, you are not the police. and how is it that you feel threatened what was said that was so threatening. I feel threatened by you, I cant even have a public web page with out you bullying me and telling me what has to be removed. where is this freedom of speech that this government is sworn to uphold? none of this is posted at school, its all posted from our home computers, and once we step foot into our homes we are not on school property any more. you are just power hungry, don’t you ever think? did you stop to think that maybe this will make parents angry that you are bullying their children around? did you ever stop to think that maybe now you really are going to have a threat on your hands now that you have just pissed off kids for voicing their opinions? did you ever stop to think this will start a community backlash? The kids at Columbine did what they did because they were bullied. In my opinion you are the real threat here. None of us ever put in our xanga’s that they were going to kill or bring harm to any one. we voiced our opinions. you are the real threat here. you are depriving us of our right to learn. now stick that in your pipe and smoke it.”

Attorney Carl Buck, who feels the school authorities have overstepped their boundaries, says, “The district is going to take away the student’s education for exercising his freedom of speech… I feel like they are trying to control his freedom of speech. … He is saying, ‘You can’t bully people and we have a right to object and you can’t throw people out of school for voicing their opinions.'”

Other students at the school posted messages of support in their own Xanga blogs. A blogger named Meghan wrote, “As Americans, we have the right to speak our mind.” Another student, Heather, who found out about the possible expulsion through the local news, wrote that “first of all, Xanga is outside of school … second of all … there was no threat towards anyone on his posts.”

In a related case in March 2006, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that an Alaska high school acted improperly by suspending a student for carrying a banner reading “Bong Hits 4 Jesus” across the street from the school.