Archive for January, 2015

Climate Change Deniers Are Completely Insane

Wednesday, January 28th, 2015

I couldn’t agree more with this guy, Matt Walsh, in the article posted on theBlaze.com, Climate Change Deniers Are Completely Insane.

Here’s an excerpt:

If anyone is a climate change denier — that is, someone who denies that climates change — I’d agree that he is an imbecile and probably mentally unstable.

Yet that view doesn’t exist because we all know the climate changes. Of course the climate changes. It’s a climate. That’s what climates do. They change. It gets colder, it gets hotter, it rains, it snows, it does all kinds of things. I don’t deny that, and although I’m not a Republican and I take great exception to that accusation, I feel safe in speaking for them when I say that they neither deny the fact of the climate, nor the fact that the climate changes. Progressives use labels like “climate denier” or “climate skeptic” (for the people who are willing to believe that there might be a climate, but are still a little iffy on the whole thing) because they are not interested in an honest discussion. You either buy in to their environmental dogma one hundred percent, or you will be painted as an idiot, an infidel, and a maniac.

Now, why might a person be skeptical about the theory that humans are causing dramatic shifts to the climate, and that these shifts will eventually kill us all? Have you ever thought about why someone might have these reservations, JM? Have you really taken the time to consider the reasons for this skepticism? Yeah, they’re morons, right, I get it, but have you determined that they’re morons because the media and people on Twitter told you they’re morons, or because you gave their case a fair hearing and came away with the impression that they have absolutely nothing even slightly coherent to say? I’m guessing it’s more the former, which makes you not necessarily a moron yourself, but an intellectually lazy chump who can be easily herded and exploited.

There’s a lot more to his article; very well written, and very much in line with the way I see the issue. The climate change issue seems to have less to do with science than with politics, and the people making the most noise about it don’t do themselves any favors when they start demonizing anyone who doesn’t agree with them on the subject. Well done, Mr. Walsh; bookmarked.

global-warming

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The Science Is Settled

Monday, January 19th, 2015

Yeah, sure it is.

climate_change_sci_settled

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Intellectual Phase-Locking

Wednesday, January 7th, 2015

Intellectual Phase-Locking: A condition that results when dogmatic assumptions inhibit inquiry.

I could listen to this guy, Dr. Rupert Sheldrake, all day long. His classic British accent & professorial manner make listening to him almost a pleasure. It doesn’t hurt a bit that what he has to say makes so much sense. In this first video he puts to words many of the things about modern science that have bothered me for ages. I think he’s my new hero.

… modern science is based on the principal of ‘Give us one free miracle and we’ll explain the rest.’ The one free miracle is the appearance of all the matter and energy in the universe, and all the laws that govern it from nothing in a single instant.

Sheldrake gave the talk in the video above in January, 2013. TED posted it on its website, but in subsequent months TED received some complaints about some of the things he had to say, and pulled the video off of its main site (or as Dr. Sheldrake put it, “put in the bad little boys section of the TED website.”) It’s still available, not really “banned” as some say, just more difficult to find. Reading through the complaints brought against him and his responses makes it look like he hit some tender nerves, and might be onto something. It’s easy to see why more traditional scientists would have a problem with what he says; if he’s right, then they are very wrong on a lot of fronts. (Makes me wonder what my old buddy TF would think of him… Pretty sure I don’t even have to ask!)

Some of what he talks about, like “morphic resonance” I’ve never heard of before, and I don’t know how much evidence there is behind it, but it sounds interesting. And if there’s any truth to it, the implications it would have on scientific thought would be profound. For many years I’ve questioned the belief that instinctive behaviors in the animal kingdom came about by trial and error with one line that tends to do something a little bit better than another line and passes that tendency on to its offspring. Behaviors seem to be far too complex for that to be plausible, no matter how many billions of years it might have taken.

Even if one dismisses the belief that animal behavior & physical traits came about through evolutionary selection, instead believes that those traits were designed by an outside intelligence (God), it’s still difficult to accept that the behaviors & traits are genetically encoded. A collective consciousness that spans space and time and does not exist at the genetic level starts to make sense.

And the possibility of thought happening somewhere outside of the physical brain lends credence to the idea of a soul living on after the body is dead and decayed. But of course, proving any of that to those who subscribe to a more classical view of science will be more than just a bit difficult, so I predict Sheldrake will continue to be a pariah. I’m not very familiar with Sheldrake’s work and thought, so I’m not sure whether he considers himself a Christian or not, but it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if he is. (more…)

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A Tardis Murphy Bed

Sunday, January 4th, 2015

What a great idea; a Murphy bed dressed up to look like a Tardis! The Murphy bed has been around for a long time, but this is just a neat adaptation of that concept.

tardis_bed_1

Although it doesn’t look bigger on the inside than on the outside, it does make the room it’s in feel bigger when it’s tucked away.

tardis_bed_2

It’s kinda cool reading through her build and seeing the photos; she mentions building it for her “house”, but it looks like she could very well have done the work in an apartment or condo; right there in the living space. No workshop, no garage, just a power saw on a patio (and complaints from her HOA!) and sawhorses in the living room. I often wish for more space in my garage or my workshop to build furniture, but here is someone who brought an idea for a furniture piece to life without even the luxuries of space that I have and complain about being too little. I’ve considered building a Murphy bed in the past, but one of the things that kept me from doing it was thinking I’d need one of the expensive hardware kits to make it work; she did without it, and I’m sure it works just fine. More than a little humbling to see this!

Hat tip to Neatorama

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BMWotD — 1988 M3 with S50B32 Swap

Thursday, January 1st, 2015

I don’t ordinarily gravitate toward e30s, but this one is quite special, and I would certainly make an exception. If money were no object.

An e30 M3 in Hennarot, with a European S50B32 motor in place of the original 4-cylinder. Don’t get me wrong, a car like this with the original 4-cylinder is no slouch, with 192 hp behind a ~2,800 car. But that S50 engine puts out in the neighborhood of 320 hp, which would make this car a rocket. The purists might will most definitely freak out about the departure from the original configuration, but even the most diehard purist would have a tough time finding fault with the quality of this swap.

88′ Hennarot M3 with a S50B32 Euro motor.
191,0xx miles on the chassis, approx 79k miles on the motor/transmission.

I purchased this car in the spring of 2013 from a gentleman in CA who had done most of the mechanical work on the car, and really made it into the wonderful driving car that it currently is. From my understanding the car was largely stock when he bought it several years before my ownership, from that point he focused on maintenance that the car needed. I have a binder containing some of the documentation from the previous owner.

The motor swap is obviously the biggest change over stock. I’ve been told by two separate and independent shops, that the swap was very well done. The engine is very strong, and runs extremely well, I had a compression/leak down done on the car before my purchase and all cylinders checked out perfectly. In fact, the company that sold him the motor wrote ‘superb engine’ on the valve cover while they were testing it. I’d estimate that engine has been in the car for about 6000 miles. When I took delivery of the car I drove it home 1300 miles, it was a great drive, and the car didn’t miss a beat. About half of the miles that I’ve put on the car since I’ve owned it where driving it home, I just don’t get a chance to drive it much. I never had any intention of selling this car this quickly, but I’ve started a E28/LS1 project, and have an E30 touring project lined up behind that. I’m in no hurry to sell it, but I need it needs to be driven and an enjoyed more than I am able to do.

$26,500

Exterior Modifications:
– OEM Evo2 front splitter with replica Evo3 splitter
– Evo3 rear spoiler and carbon fiber flap
– BMW Motorsport door handles
– Euro smilies

Drivetrain/Engine Modifications:
– Genuine carbon fiber airbox with OETuning tune
– AKG S50/S52 E30 motor mounts (less than 2000 miles old)
– Z3 steering rack
– E28 M5 coding plug (so the stock RPM gauge is accurate)
– Sparco strut bar
– E36 Euro M3 radiator
– ZF 5sp transmission (less than 2500 miles old)
– Autosolution SSK
– Treehouse control arm bushing
– E36 M3 Eisenmann muffler with catless custom exhaust
– Massive Rally BBK (6 pistons front, 4 pistons rear)
– Ground Control S/A coilovers
– Ground Control camber plates
– Ground Control rear shock mounts
– Ground Control 650#/400# springs (less than 1000 miles old)
– E28 3.25 LSD (rebuilt by Diffs Online about 2500 miles ago)
– 17” OZ Superleggera wheels (no curb rash)
– Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 215/40/17 (less than 5000 miles old)

Recent Maintenance (oil changed every 3000 miles):
– Brake fluid flush (less than 7000 miles old)
– New spark plugs (less than 5000 miles old)
– E36 ’96+ offset front control arm (less than 4000 miles old)
– New front wheel bearings (less than 4000 miles old)
– Various belts and gaskets replaced (less than 4000 miles old)
– New battery (less than 4000 miles old)
– New fuel tank and fuel pump (less than 2000 miles old)
– New thermostat (less than 500 miles old)
– New sway bar end links (less than 500 miles old)

Interior Modifications:
– NRG quick release hub – thin version
– Momo Champion steering wheel
– Recaro SR3 seats (new less than 1000 miles old)
– VDO cluster gauges (oil temp, oil pressure, water temp)
– BMP instrument console (for the VDO gauges)
– Custom ///M floor mats (less than 500 miles old)
– Alpine head unit (note: there are no cracks in the dash)
– ZHP weighted shift knob

Considerations:
– Dot-r front left fender…..parking lot mishap with a previous owner
– The rear bumper was painted at one time
– There is a small amount of rust repaired below the windshield on the driver side (see photo)
– The driver side E-brake shoe assembly is missing (e-brake still works fine)
– No a/c, heater core (note: the lines are still intact)
– Corners of the bumpers stick out slightly (common)
– The spare tire well is riveted shut
– I personally like the patina on the front bumper, others may think it needs a repaint.
– The exhaust is slightly crooked, and if desired could be rehung

There isn’t much to nit pick on this car, you can get in and drive it across the country, or to work everyday. It has major and expensive upgrades that arguably make it a better car. Better in the sense that it has a power train that is more reliable than the S14, it creates more power, brakes harder, and turns faster.

As you can see from the pictures the paint is in fantastic condition for a 25+ year old car. If you have never seen hennarot in person, it’s a gorgeous color, and also quite rare, I believe only about 300 M3’s were produced in this color. I am happy to answer any questions serious buyers have, I’ve tried to be as thorough and forthright with the condition as possible.

The following photos were taken by Brian Lewis of SpeedFreak Detailing after he did a complete paint correction to the car in November. The car has primarily been stored away since.

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Something New In Garage Doors

Thursday, January 1st, 2015

Here’s something I hadn’t seen before; a garage door without tracks: 

The whole system — doors, lift mechanism, folding mechanism –is pretty ingenious. The biggest difference between this system and a traditional garage door is that you don’t have the track rails extending into the garage space, and that only half the height of the door ends up above the open doorway; very handy if you have storage up above. The doors are built by Amarr and sold by a number of retailers and overhead door installers. I’ve never heard of them before, but it looks like they produce some quality stuff. I’m sure it’s not cheap, but you get what you pay for.

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