A copycat science Friday

Thank you, Chris, for giving me an excuse to get rid of some of the tabs I have had open for the last week. Here are some of the most interesting science articles (and one video) that I have found recently. Though each is summarized, I do recommend you check out the articles because in some cases I have had to drastically simplify, or as in the case of the camera and the video, completely omit a meaningful explanation of the achievement.

Lip-reading computer: Scientists at the University of East Anglia in Norwich (UK) have developed a lip-reading computer that can automatically transcribe and translate silent videos of people speaking in a number of languages. One potentially important use for this computer is as an aide to police investigating crimes caught on silent CCTV cameras.
Quantum computers (and hackers!): Quantum computers and encryption are very slowly coming into use in the real world (the results of the State of Geneva election were secured using a quantum system), and (academic) hackers are doing a pretty damn good job keeping pace.
The world’s fastest camera: “[The] camera snaps images less than a half a billionth of a second long, capturing over six million of them in a second continuously.” Enough said.
Wolfram Alpha: Unfortunately this is not a person’s name (the developer’s name is Stephen Wolfram), but rather a web tool designed to answer questions that are asked in modern English. In Wolfram’s words, "Like interacting with an expert, it will understand what you're talking about, do the computation, and then present you with the results.”
”Anatomy of a crash”: In its efforts to improve the safety of the Ford Falcon, Ford engineers decided that to make the (economically, not absolutely) safest possible car they needed to first research crashes in more detail. Their results show, in milliseconds, the general progression of a car crash. Scroll to the bottom for the breakdown.
Dr. Quantum explains the double-slit experiment: This video is a great introduction to the basis of quantum theory, and goes into great detail explaining this experiment, which I can't even begin to summarize here.

Toyota makes a run

It appears that Toyota will end GM's 77-year run at the top of the auto-sales heap. I wonder how much of this has to do with the crisis and how much has to do with policies within the companies (e.g. Toyota's development of the Prius).

Two Bailout Proposals

OK, so I didn't even read the first one. It apparently says that only two automakers should get bailout money, based on whoever will bid the lowest price. More interesting than the idea? The source. What's Eliot Spitzer doing back in the news?

Another idea ... Why do the taxpayers have to cough up this dough? How about the government does a 401(k)-style match, essentially a subsidy for investing in the automakers specifically, so that most of the money is still coming in from the private sector? Administratively complicated, but theoretically superior, at least as far as I can tell.

Well that didn't take long ...

"Hey, you think we've waited long enough? Can we start calling our opponents un-American now that we've got the power?"

"Long enough? Jenny, we just won the election. Like, barely a month ago. I mean, hell, we haven't even taken office yet. There's still only 51 Democrats in the Senate and there's still a Texan in the White House. I'm not sure that counts as 'waiting'."

"Yeah, I guess that makes sense. But this auto bailout thing - I really want it! I can't believe I have to wait even longer. This is totally unfair!"

"Dude, you can just wait a month and then we'll be in power."

"But I want it now! You know what? Screw it, I'm calling the Republicans un-American."

"No! You can't do that! That'll make us look just like those oth- ... too late."

The Big Three Killed My Baby

Reason 8,756 I love The White Stripes: Occasionally topical songs! (Very rare, as Jack White doesn't believe in political music as an effective means of creating change.)

"The Big Three Killed My Baby" is a song that rips into the Big Three, with some fairly entertaining lines like, "Better ideas are stuck in the mud," and, "Don't let 'em tell you the future's electric/ 'cause gasoline's not measured in metric."

If you would like the song just email me.


Lyrics:

The big three killed my baby
No money in my hand again
The big three killed my baby
Nobodys coming home again

Their ideas make me wanna spit
A hundred dollars goes down the pit
Thirty-thousand wheels a rollin
And my stick shift hands are swollen
Everything involved is shady
The big three killed my baby yeah yeah yeah

The big three killed my baby
No money in my hand again
The big three killed my baby
Nobodys comin home again

Why don't cha take the day off and try to repair
A billion others don't seem to care
Better ideas are stuck in the mud
The motor's runnin on tucker's blood
Don't let 'em tell you the future's electric
'cause gasoline's not measured in metric
Thirty-thousand wheels a spinnin
And oil company faces are grinnin
And now my hand are turnin red
And i found out my baby is dead yeah yeah yeah

The big three killed my baby
No money in my hand again
The big three killed my baby
Nobody's comin home again

Well i've said it now
Nothings changed
People are burnin for pocket change
And creative minds are lazy
And the big three killed my baby yeah yeah yeah
And my baby's my common sense
So don't think im puttin up some esense
And my baby's my common sense

Yeah im about to have another blow up (2x)

The big three

This is the best source of information on whether or not the big three should be bailed out that I have seen.

Let's make the best of the bailout...

...by letting China do it for us!. The author goes on to point out that any offer from a Chinese firm could put US legislators in a tough spot where they must decide between: 1. Denying China something it really wants while at the same time ignoring a legitimate bid for a company in a capitalist market in favor of either bankrupting the company or financing it with taxpayer money; and 2. Allowing the Chinese to acquire some of the American Brand. Tough spot for them. It should be interesting to see how ideology holds up with the Chinese making a play along these lines.

Romney cedes 2012?

I guess you NYT people saw this, but Mitt Romney, who idiot pundits liked to say could have carried Michigan because he graduated high school there in 1965, has an article out today in which he says that the automakers should be allowed to fail.

As a politician who currently holds no office and one assumes is still aspiring towards one, why on earth would you say something like that? What if it happens? Thousands of jobs will be lost, even if the greater long-term interest is actually served. You alienate blue-collar workers, who are becoming more important to the Republican party in the new economy (young white-collar workers did mean that Colorado, Virginia, and to a lesser extent North Carolina were actual shifts in the map this year, just as older, less-educated Missouri also shifted to the right). You certainly aren't gaining any votes by making this proclamation. I could go on, but I guess you guys get the point. Right or wrong, I don't see how coming out with this helps you at all. I suppose there's a chance the majority of Americans favor letting them fail (only with some sort of line about how they've been digging their own grave, which I suppose is fair) but they won't be too happy about it if they get what they want and unemployment spikes. It just seems like a no-win statement.

Car talk

I can't remember in which thread Chris asked about opinions on the possibility of a bailout for the automakers in the USA, so I decided to start a new thread.

Overall I think the bailout is necessary. Because the credit markets have dried up completely the major automakers would be unable to file for chapter 11 bankruptcy, which requires the company to continue operating during the proceedings. Without access to credit they would be forced to stop operating, which drops them into chapter 7 bankruptcy, also known as total liquidation. I would love to support the free-market argument right now, but I am not sure that the efficiency gains that would be brought about by the death of these dinosaurs of companies, these iconic names of America, would offset the negative effects of the layoffs, the further drop in (The Conference Board's index of) consumer confidence (already at its lowest level since the index was created in 1967), and the ripple effects felt by supporting industries (e.g. car sales lots).

All that said, I really wish I could see domestic car companies die because of their stupid decisions (e.g. non-military Hummers). But allowing these companies to die as the economy heads into a recession may significantly increase the likelihood that the recession becomes a depression, a risk I do not think this country should take, particularly as the 'untouchable' Eurozone declares itself to be in a recession.

What to do about the Big 3

Well this is an active morning at the message board. So here's my question: what should we do with GM, Ford, and Chrysler?

I don't want to poison the well or whatever the phrase is, so I'll hold off a bit before commenting.