Wayne, here's the headline...Crystal power Palmtop Nuclear Fusion Device Invented By Michael Schirber LiveScience Staff Writer posted: 27 April 2005 01:00 pm ET The nuclear reaction that powers the Sun has been reproduced in a pocket-sized device, scientists announced today. Researchers have for years tried to harness nuclear fusion to power the world. But its cousin, nuclear fission -- the breaking apart of atoms -- is the only method so far commercially viable. The latest invention is not in the same league as efforts to build complex commercial reactors. The new device creates a relatively small number of reactions, and requires more energy to operate than it produces. The Real Deal (AP) - Previous claims of tabletop fusion have been met with skepticism and even derision by physicists. In one of the most notable cases, Dr. B. Stanley Pons of the University of Utah and Martin Fleischmann of Southampton University in England shocked the world in 1989 when they announced that they had achieved so-called cold fusion at room temperature. Their work was discredited after repeated attempts to reproduce it failed. Fusion experts noted that the new UCLA experiment is credible because, unlike the 1989 work, it did not violate basic principles of physics. "This doesn't have any controversy in it because they're using a tried and true method,'' said David Ruzic, professor of nuclear and plasma engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. "There's no mystery in terms of the physics.'' -- Associated Press But the configuration is so small and simple that its creators think it may inspire unforeseen applications. "I certainly find it interesting that you can heat a cubic centimeter crystal in your hand, then plunge it in cold water and it will cause nuclear fusion," Seth Putterman from the University of California Los Angeles told LiveScience. Putterman's lay description greatly oversimplifies how the compact apparatus works. Specifically, Putterman and collaborators heat a pyroelectric crystal, lithium tantalite, from minus 30 degrees Fahrenheit to plus 45 in a matter of minutes. This generates an electrical charge -- 100,000 volts -- across the tiny crystal, which is housed in a chamber filled with deuterium gas, a heavy form of hydrogen. The high voltage is focused onto a needle-thin tip, which strips electrons from nearby deuterium nuclei and then accelerates them at a solid target containing deuterium. When two deuterium nuclei collide together at high speed, they fuse to form helium. The Sun also fuses atoms in thermonuclear reactions that create light and heat. The byproduct of the newly discovered lab reaction is a particle called the neutron. The scientists detect about 1,000 neutrons per second. Because neutrons are so penetrating, Putterman said that a hand-held neutron source might one-day be used to do geologic surveys or to look into cargo containers for nuclear devices. "Current neutron generators are extremely cumbersome," Putterman said. "They are about as big as a dentists X-ray machine, so you canÂt carry them into the field." Pyroelectric crystals could also provide a beam of ions for use as a microthruster in a miniature spacecraft. The research is described in the April 28 issue of the journal Nature.

The thing with yellow is that it "blows up" the more surface area it covers, am I right? I wanted my cabinets to "read" BM Fresh Butter. To do that, I could not actually paint them that color. You really have to Ignore the chip colors almost entirely and be prepared to pick a dirty yellow/more brown than seems advisable color. For me, that came down to Vellum. I also looked at BM Goldfinch, but it was just a bit too brown even "blown up." In the bright sunlight, the sink base cabinets really do read BM Fresh Butter to me, until I hold the chip up to them. Then, they don't. Yellow is the hardest color - also because the color takes several coats (often) to fully develop (so its a pain to swatch it). The cabinet color was the hardest part of my kitchen plan. When you see my mood board at the final reveal, you'll still see the Fresh Butter strip :-). I couldn't let it go (and the Vellum strip is just "meh").

I have finally caught up with all the mysteries available so far by Stephen Booth. He is an English author whose books take place in the Peak District. I really like his writing style and his characters - a local policeman Ben Cooper & a female transplant from Birmingham named Diane Fry. I use the web site Fantastic Fiction a lot and saw that he had other books available in England and found that it takes approx 2 years for his books to get over here. He has a really lovely web site with a slide show of the Peak District and I wrote to him (email) about the 2 yr delay and was delighted to get a response from him within a couple of hours-I was impressed! He said he changed publishers and this new one was still trying to catch up...so I will have to wait til sometime in 2008 to get the next one in the series. I recommend his books for those that enjoy English mysteries. Pat

>>How many of your favorite picks above followed someone else in the role they were perfect for? >> Good point! For instance, Diana Rigg was not MacNee's first partner on The Avengers; Honor Blackman as Cathy Gale was his original partner. Elements of the Gale character carried over into Mrs. Peel's persona, but as the series progressed there was a clearer delineation between the two female characters. When it comes to Fitzwilliam Darcy in P&P, however; much as I love Lawrence Olivier in the old Hollywood movie, Colin Firth still edges him out, I think. BTW, if you enjoy Sally Fields, I've always considered 1991's Soapdish one of her most fun and underrated roles. She's a takeoff on TV soap superstar Susan Lucci and the cast was phenomenal: Kevin Kline, Robert Downey, Jr., Elisabeth Shue, Whoopi Goldberg, Teri Hatcher, Cathy Moriarty, Garry Marshall, Kathy Najimy, and Carrie Fisher! Which reminds me, I loved Whoopi as Guinan in Star Trek Next Generation. When she sticks a fork into "Q"'s hand to emphasize he's now human instead of one of the Q Continuum, we almost fell off our sofa laughing! Hmmm, does this mean that Tribbles are perfectly cast as....themselves?