What I wanted for the Holidays (and what I actually got)

Seven: Personal Soundtrack Shirt (39.99) [Received: NO]

“The Personal Soundtrack Shirt is an amazing new wearable audio solution that features a working speaker embedded into the front of the shirt. When you push the appropriate button on the pocketable remote you get music or sound effects appropriate for any situation… everything from drum roll, to cat call whistle, to western showdown.” via ThinkGeek

Six: Multi-Color LED Lightbulb w/Remote (49.99) [Received: NO]

“The Multi-Color LED Lightbulb is a super bright LED bulb that can transition through dozens of color and brightness combinations and is compatible with a standard lightbulb socket. The included IR remote can select an individual color or brightness level or choose one of four different transition effects. Great for mood lighting, decorating, parties or special lighting environments.” via ThinkGeek

Five: Sony VAIO Wi-Fi Photo Frame (299.99) [Received: Kodak P720]

“Capture pictures out of thin air. With wireless technologies that let you display your pictures in a whole new way, the Wi-Fi Photo Frame makes it simple for anyone with a high-speed internet connection to relive those special moments—wherever they may be.” via Sony Style

Four: M-Audio Studiophile AV 40 Reference Monitors (199.95) [Received: Sony Studio Monitor Headphones]

“The compact Studiophile™ AV 40 powered speakers deliver the same proven M-Audio technology favored by top producers, recording engineers and musicians around the world. The combination of 4” polypropylene-coated drivers and 3/4” ferrofluid-cooled silk dome tweeters provides punchy lows, crisp highs and a balanced, uncolored response.” via M-Audio

Three: Apple TV (229.00) [Received: Not Yet..]

“Apple TV gives you access to an easy-to-navigate world of entertainment. Rent HD movies. Buy HD TV shows. Listen to your iTunes music. Even show off your photos. Connect one HDMI cable and, just like that, Apple TV turns your TV into so much more.” via Apple

Two: Double Breasted Winter Jacket [Received: YES]

One: MacBook (1299.00) [Received: NO]

Update: Happy Holidays everyone!

Photo Credit: Krisdecurtis

Is someone watching you, right now?

Do you have a webcam hooked up to the internet? Maybe a security system? Have you password protected it? With this simple Google search, people may be able to watch and possibly control your cameras.

Protect yourself! Password protect your internet enabled cameras!

Other possible search keywords include;

inurl:/view.shtml
intitle:”Live View / – AXIS” | inurl:view/view.shtml^
inurl:ViewerFrame?Mode=
inurl:ViewerFrame?Mode=Refresh
inurl:axis-cgi/jpg
inurl:axis-cgi/mjpg (motion-JPEG)
inurl:view/indexFrame.shtml
inurl:view/index.shtml
inurl:view/view.shtml
liveapplet
intitle:”live view” intitle:axis
intitle:liveapplet
allintitle:”Network Camera NetworkCamera”
intitle:axis intitle:”video server”
intitle:liveapplet inurl:LvAppl
intitle:”EvoCam” inurl:”webcam.html”
intitle:”Live NetSnap Cam-Server feed”
intitle:”Live View / – AXIS”
intitle:”Live View / – AXIS 206M”
intitle:”Live View / – AXIS 206W”
intitle:”Live View / – AXIS 210″
inurl:indexFrame.shtml Axis
inurl:”MultiCameraFrame?Mode=Motion”
intitle:start inurl:cgistart
intitle:”WJ-NT104 Main Page”
intext:”MOBOTIX M1″ intext:”Open Menu”
intext:”MOBOTIX M10″ intext:”Open Menu”
intext:”MOBOTIX D10″ intext:”Open Menu”
intitle:snc-z20 inurl:home/
intitle:snc-cs3 inurl:home/
intitle:snc-rz30 inurl:home/
intitle:”sony network camera snc-p1″
intitle:”sony network camera snc-m1″
site:.viewnetcam.com -www.viewnetcam.com
intitle:”Toshiba Network Camera” user login
intitle:”netcam live image”
intitle:”i-Catcher Console – Web Monitor”

Photo Credit: I Know the Things You Do by Thomas Hawk

Generate clean power from the border?

If we were to build a fence along the US-Mexico border, why not build one that generates enough clean electricity to power entire cities! The US-Mexico border is 1,969 miles of potential clean energy. Wind turbines or photovoltaic solar could be built into the fence itself, therefore the fence would pay for itself over time.

Solar power (better)

The US-Mexico border is a very sunny place and integrating photovoltaic solar panels into a fence should be fairly easy, per se. Lets say that every square foot of solar panels produce around 0.85 watts per square foot for six hours a day. If we integrate 12,475,5840 sq. feet worth of photovoltaics into a stretch of 12 foot tall fence, 1,969 miles long, we could produce about 106,042 kW conservatively.

0.85 W x 12,475,5840 sq. feet = 106,042 kW x 1,753 hours = 186 gWh

That’s almost 186 gWh every year or roughly enough energy to power about 21,000 homes.

UPDATE: I’m awaiting an email from a Californian compony called Nanosolar who has produced a type of solar panel printing press, per se. Which promises to be less expensive than silicon photovoltaics.

Cost

I would guesstimate that this type of installation would cost around $954,378,000 about 33% more money then the current 3 billion dollar estimate.

Wind power (best)

The US-Mexico border is also quite a windy place and integrating wind turbines into a fence should be fairly easy, per se. Lets say that each wind turbine is rated at one-hundred kW yet the wind only blows at an average of 15 MPH so power generation is only at 20 kW or 20% maximum capacity.

100 kW x .20 = 20 kW x 8760 hours = 175,200 kWh – awea.org

Each wind generator would still produce 175,200 kWh every year! If we built 20, 100kW wind generators running at just 20% their maximum capacity, every mile. We could produce over 3,504,000 kW’s every mile or 6,899 gWh (Gigawatt hours) every year. That’s enough energy to power about 1,169,400 average US households!

Cost

For the sake of discussion lets guesstimate that each turbine costs about two-hundred thousand US dollars. I would guesstimate that this type of installation would cost around $7.8 billion US dollars or about 260% more money then the current 3 billion dollar estimate.

We could possibly even sell shares of the fence to companies, in return for initial startup capital.

Monetary Return

Since wind power and solar power only need wind or sun for fuel and very little maintenance. These types of installations should pay for themselves in less than a decade or a little over 8 years for wind power selling at $0.13 cents a kWh. When they really starts producing what is basically, free energy!

Environmental Return

Since most of the United States electricity demand is met by coal-fired power plants and 1 kWh of electricity produced from a coal powered station emits about 2.1 pounds of CO2 to the atmosphere. Therefore by installing photovoltaics on the fence would remove about 397,526,257 pounds of CO2 from the atmosphere every year or installing wind power would remove about 14,753,400,720 pounds of CO2 from the atmosphere every year!

Conclusion

Though each type of installation would be expensive. With the help of initial start-up investments and the money the government was going to spend anyway, on the fence. The Installation of either photovoltaics or wind generators, on the fence, would establish the United States as the center of renewable energy production.

We need to act. We need to be able innovate again! Lets go out there and make a difference! Happy Earth Day!