Thursday, October 23, 2008

Supersonic car targets 1,000mph (David Lim, Auckland, New Zealand), GDI Income



The British team that claimed the land speed record in 1997, taking a car through the sound barrier for the first time, is planning to go even faster.

RAF pilot Andy Green made history in 1997 when he drove the Thrust SSC jet-powered vehicle at 763mph (1,228km/h).

Now he intends to get behind the wheel of a car that is capable of reaching 1,000mph (1,610km/h).

Known as Bloodhound, the new car will be powered by a rocket bolted to a Typhoon-Eurofighter jet engine.

The team-members have been working on the concept for the past 18 months and expect to be ready to make their new record attempt in 2011.

Bloodhound project leader Richard Noble told BBC News: "This is one of the most exciting things you can do on God's Earth; and when you've the opportunity to do it really, really well, with the latest technology, you can't resist the challenge."

The consequences if we don't inspire the next generation are that we will wither as a country
Lord Drayson
UK science minister

The initial studies have illustrated just how grand a challenge it will be.

The 12.8m-long, 6.4-tonne Bloodhound SSC (Super Sonic Car) will be expected to travel faster than a bullet fired from a handgun.

Its 900mm-diameter wheels will spin so fast they will have to be made from a high-grade titanium to prevent them from flying apart.

The car will accelerate from 0-1,050mph (1,690km/h) in just 40 seconds; and at its maximum velocity, the pressure of air bearing down on its carbon fibre and titanium bodywork will exceed 12 tonnes per square metre.

BLOODHOUND SSC
Bloodhound SSC
1. Titanium or composite wheels - rear wheels sit outside bodywork, front wheels are steerable to comply with land speed rules
2. Driver sits behind front wheels and in front of engine air intake duct
3. Carbon fibre and titanium bodywork for optimum aerodynamic performance, reaching top speed over 4.5 miles. Same distance required for stopping
4. Bloodhound powered by Eurofighter jet engine with hybrid rocket attached, enabling car to accelerate from 0-1,050mph in 40 seconds
5. Fins maintain stability and downforce to keep car on the ground
6. Deployable aerostructures slow car at highest speeds; parachutes slow car at mid-speeds; finally, driver halts car with carbon fibre brakes

"This is a big engineering adventure," commented Bloodhound's technical chief, John Piper.

"We've not seen anything yet which we can't overcome given the opportunity and the time. We don't have all the answers yet, but we have quite a few of them, and I'm sure other solutions will present themselves."

Thrust SSC (PA)
Thrust SSC broke the sound barrier when it claimed the record

Wing Commander Green acknowledges there will be risks involved but says the car will be designed to maximise his safety.

"Does that make it zero-risk? No. Is life with zero-risk interesting? No.

"This is worth making a risk for because it's a huge challenge and a huge prize at the end, not just for the biggest record but to inspire the next generation of engineers, to share it with every schoolchild in the country," he said.

Inspiration is a key driver for the project. The genesis of the idea came from Lord Paul Drayson, the UK's new science minister who also happens to be a racing driver.

He approached Noble and Green when he held a post in the Ministry of Defence to ask them if they could do something that would grab the attention of schoolchildren and turn them to careers in science and technology.

"The consequences if we don't inspire the next generation are that we will wither as a country," Lord Drayson told BBC News.

Wing Cdr Andy Green on the new attempt

"Over the centuries, we've been involved in some of the most important scientific discoveries. The Brits are good at science. We have got to make sure the next generation gets the vision, and has the opportunity to maintain that tradition."

As a consequence, a schools programme will be built around the project that aims to involve young people at every stage in the designing and building of the car.

The team's HQ in Filton, Bristol - the "home of Concorde" - will have a schools visitor centre featuring the "classroom of the future".

Richard Noble added: "Our industries are starved of engineers. There are real problems on the education front; and, of course, what we've got now is the environmental challenge coming up.

"There are a vast number of new products that are needed, and Britain simply isn't going to play unless we have the engineers."

World land speed records by Britons

Lord Drayson's role has also ensured one key element of Bloodhound has been made available to the project team: the EJ200 jet engine.

The Ministry of Defence is lending the team engines that were used in the flight development programme for the Typhoon. These test engines are beyond combat use but have more than sufficient working time left in them to power Bloodhound.

The EJ200 will produce about 20,000 lbs of thrust (90 kilonewtons) and will sit underneath a hybrid rocket engine that produces about 25,000 lbs of thrust (110kN)

The rocket will provide most of the power to get Bloodhound close to the speed of sound (Mach 1); the Typhoon engine will enable Andy Green to throttle up to the target speed of 1,000mph (Mach 1.4).

Eurofighter (PA)
The rocket engine will be on or off; the EJ200 can be throttled up and down

Apart from the not-insubstantial in-kind support of the MoD in the loan of the EJ200s, Bloodhound is a private project that will need to raise some £10m in financing.

Parallel to the design effort, a location for the record attempt is being sought. Thrust SSC broke the sound barrier in the Black Rock desert in Nevada, US.

It is known that a number of other teams are also planning an assault on Thrust SSC's mark.

"There are three cars out there right now with varying degrees of credibility and at various stages of advancement," said Andy Green.

"The competition for what we're doing is a very important part of it."

The initial design office for Bloodhound is based at the University of the West of England, where a full-scale mock-up of the supersonic car will be built shortly. Swansea University is also a key early sponsor of the project, assisting in aerodynamics research.

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Five oil firms drop petrol, diesel prices, Auckland, New Zealand

Thursday Oct 23, 2008, Auckland-- New Zealand's big five oil companies have all dropped the price of petrol by four cents and diesel has also gone down.

Caltex, Gull, Mobil, Shell and BP all dropped petrol by four cents.


Caltex spokeswoman Sharon Buckland said diesel and petrol prices had been "de-coupled for some time now" and the international market price of diesel had not gone down overnight.

But Shell spokeswoman Jackie Maitland said her company had seen a softening in price and had passed that on in time for the long weekend.

"We could see some decrease in the cost of the product," Ms Maitland said.

She said the decrease in petrol has been larger than diesel.

BP spokeswoman Anita Ferguson said both the price of petrol and diesel had decreased on the international market.

Mobil spokesman Alan Bailey said his company has not moved on diesel because "we didn't see the same market drive".

"If they've made the move, then we'll probably need to respond," Mr Bailey said.

All oil companies operating in New Zealand buy their product from the Singapore market.

Gull's retail business manager Graham Stirk said his company's fall in the price of petrol had also come as a result of a drop in the refined price.


Shell
91: 172.9 cents
V Power: 177.9 cents
Diesel: 131.9 cents

BP
91: 172.9 cents
95: 178.9 cents
98: 186.9 cents
Diesel: 131.9 cents

Gull
91: 171.9 cents
91 ethanol mix: 169.9 cents
Diesel: 131.9 cents

Caltex:
91: 172.9 cents
95: 177.9 cents
Diesel: 131.9 cents

Mobil:
91: 172.9 cents
95: 177.9 cents
Diesel: 131.9 cents

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Randomized Controlled Study Confirms MonaVie Active(TM) Acai Juice has High Antioxidant Capacity

Results To Be Presented At Fruits and Vegetables Health 2007 Conference


PUYALLUP, WA, October 9, 2007 - The results of recent research surrounding MonaVie Active(TM), a juice containing acai berries and pulp, as well as other nutrient-rich fruits, will be presented in a session entitled "Antioxidants in Fruits and Vegetables and Improving Human Health" at the 2nd International Symposium on Human Health Effects of Fruits and Vegetables on Wednesday, October 10, 2007, 10:15 a.m. - noon, in the Grand Salon East at the Omni Hotel in Houston, TX. Alexander Schauss, PhD, FACN, will highlight findings of in vitro studies evaluating the antioxidant capacity of MonaVie, as well as in vivo studies to determine antioxidant absorption and bioactivity.

This three-part study examined whether the fruit antioxidants in MonaVie are in a form able to enter into and protect living cells in vitro and also examined the bioavailability of MonaVie and its effect on serum biomarkers of oxidative damage after ingestion. An initial in vitro study was performed to evaluate the antioxidant capacity of MonaVie in a cell-based antioxidant capacity (CAP) assay, as well as using the TEAC assay that found it to be 28,421 umolTE/L. MonaVie showed a clear dose-dependent antioxidant effect in the CAP assay, indicating that compounds in MonaVie are able to cross the plasma membrane of living cells and subsequently provide significant protection from oxidative damage within the cells.

In the second stage of the study, four ounces of MonaVie was administered to six participants on a single day to identify the time course for antioxidant absorption and bioactivity. Blood samples were collected immediately prior to ingestion and at 30, 60 and 120 minutes post consumption. Evidence of absorption, based on increased antioxidant bioactivity and antioxidant compounds in serum was found in all six subjects. A third randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over study of 12 healthy adults was then conducted. Participants fasted overnight and a baseline blood sample was drawn. Immediately afterward, four ounces of MonaVie or a placebo was consumed. Blood samples were drawn at one and two hours after ingestion, and CAP and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) assays were used to evaluate serum antioxidant capacity and serum lipid peroxidation, respectively. Consumption of MonaVie resulted in an increase in the serum antioxidant capacity in 11 of 12 participants within two hours of consumption. Results also found that ingestion of MonaVie resulted in a decrease in serum lipid peroxidation within two hours of consumption in 10 of the 12 study participants, most likely due to the increased serum antioxidant capacity.

Alexander G. Schauss, PhD, FACN, senior director of natural and medicinal products research for AIBMR Life Sciences, has held faculty appointments at four institutions of higher learning, including that of associate professor of behavioral sciences, associate professor of research, clinical professor of natural products research and adjunct research clinical professor of botanical medicine. He now concentrates on research. In 2005, he was the recipient of the Linus Pauling Lecture Award from the American College for the Advancement of Medicine for "contributions to the medical sciences." The author of 12 books on health and nutrition, and the senior co-author of four others, Dr. Schauss lives in Tacoma, Wash.

Founded in January 2005 and headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, MonaVie develops and markets scientifically formulated, premium quality nutritional juices. The company's flagship product, MonaVie Active(TM), is a proprietary blend of the acai berry, which independent studies have shown has the highest antioxidant activity of any fruit or vegetable in vitro, and other nutrient-dense fruits including pomegranate, goji berry, camu camu, passion fruit, aronia, acerola, bilberry, blueberry, apricot, purple grape, white grape, nashi pear, lychee, banana, kiwi, pear, cranberry and prune, each selected for its unique, beneficial properties. Acai contains concentrated levels of anthocyanins, a powerful family of antioxidants that assist in neutralizing harmful free radicals. The acai berries used to make MonaVie are processed in a cGMP, ISO certified and U.S. FDA-inspected food manufacturing facility in Brazil. For more information visit www.monavie.com.

The 2nd International Symposium on Human Health Effects of Fruit and Vegetables provides a forum for horticultural scientists, nutritionists, food scientists, biomedical scientists, chemists, biochemists, clinicians, medical professionals and social economists to exchange information and bridge the communication gap between the agricultural sciences, nutrition and health sciences. This symposium, sponsored by the 2nd International Society for Horticultural Sciences (ISHS) and Texas A&M's Vegetable and Fruit Improvement Center (VFIC) and Center for Obesity Research and Program Evaluation (CORPE), will focus on cultural and genotypic factors affecting the content of bioactive compounds in fruits and vegetables, and will cover a wide range of topics related to the characterization, pharmacokinetics, nutrition and human health clinical aspects of fruits and vegetables. For more information visit http://favhealth2007.tamu.edu/index.htm.
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Sunday, October 12, 2008

Skateboard, only covered Australia once!


Skateboard, only covered Australia once. Sentimental attachment but may sell. British skateboarder Dave Cornthwaiteis contemplating putting his custom-made yellow skateboard Elsa up for sale. Mr Cornthwaite says he's become "incredibly sentimental" about Elsa after riding a world-record 5823km from Perth to Brisbane. The 27-year-old raised more than A$40,000 ($45,677) for three charities during the five-month journey, averaging 65km a day.

He says he made the "heartbreaking" decision to put Elsa up for sale if it helps reach his trip's charity fundraising goal of A$100,000.

"I know she's just a skateboard but we are very, very close. I've spent more time with this board than I have spent with a girl, put it that way."

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