Aardvark Daily
Tokoroa's Bruce Simpson (aka Aardvark) has been actively involved in developing, using and writing about technology for nearly four decades. As well as publishing his own daily internet column for almost 14 years, he's also been seen on TV in series such as Scrapheap Challenge and Let's Get Inventin' while also rising to global infamy as the Kiwi who built his own cruise missile. His website is www.aardvark.co.nz
ACC - again
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I'm pretty sure most of you must be getting rather tired of my commentaries related to the ACC by now - but here's another.
As regular readers will know, my wife has been denied "elective surgery" as part of the ongoing treatment for the severe injuries she suffered a couple of years ago in a workplace accident.
Rather than take the advice of one of the country's most respected surgeons, they sent us to one of their pet obstetricians who decided that it would be better to treat the pain caused by her injury than to actually finish fixing it.
Sigh!
Of course these cutbacks in elective surgery were related to a diktat from government a while back. ACC was going to suffer a cost-blowout, we were told, and therefore it was essential to cut costs.
Sponsored links
Uh-oh, more internet regulation looming?
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The internet is one of the last places (albeit virtual) on the planet where people can pretty much do what they want -- so long as they don't break any existing laws.
The fun police don't like this kind of freedom so they're working on new ways to restrict, constrain and penalise those who might want to take advantage of cyberspace's "free for all".
The latest sign that the bureaucrats wish to wrap us in red tape are moves to empower the Broadcasting Standards Authority (BSA) to have some control over what gets published in cyberspace.
Right now, all the stuff our TV and radio broadcasters transmit through their terrestrial and satellite systems is subject to rules laid down and enforced by the BSA.
Nothing too rude, offensive or otherwise unacceptable will be tolerated and those infringing the rules can receive a raft of sanctions stretching from a simple demand to broadcast an apology to the imposition of some pretty stiff fines.
If this is climate change, bring it on!
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I spent most of yesterday, running around with nothing more than jeans and a tee-shirt to keep me comfortable.
It was very hard to believe that there are just two weeks before the shortest day of the year -- the temperatures have been so very mild.
Even a little light rain and some gloomy overhead clouds could do nothing to offset the joy that was a warm day in winter -- I love it!
This is the warmest autumn and early Winter I can remember.
Normally, by this time of the year, the lawns have stopped growing around here, having been shocked into a state of stasis by several weeks of hard frosts -- but this year they still need mowing every week or two.
What if our brains caught fire?
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The sci-tech and health newswires are filled this morning with the news that using a mobile phone might, and let me repeat that "might", cause brain cancer.
Yes, the WHO (World Health Organisation) has announced that believes that mobile use might just possibly increase the risk of getting a form of malignant brain cancer known as glioma.
Do you think this will change the way we use our phones or the level of mobile phone use we enjoy?
Not a snowball's chance in hell!
The interesting thing about people is that they find it incredibly easy to ignore threats that are not immediate or apparent.
Dollar depression
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Some years ago, when the dollar was about US0.60, I used to make the occasional pulsejet engine and sell them to customers as far away as Europe and the USA.
By doing this, I was able to offset the costs of the other research and development work.
We're only talking about a very small amount of money here -- but it really was worthwhile me sitting down for a couple of days each month and knocking up a small batch of engines for export.
Indeed, at one stage (just before the wife's accident) I had actually been offered a contract to make a very large number of these engines and I was about to gear up to do just that.
At that stage, I could build an engine, pack and ship it to any part of the world for US$300 and that would deliver a healthy margin that made it worthwhile to do so.
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