Haven't seen this one, but thank you, Lorna, for bringing up a thought process! Fact is, here and abroad, there is a HUGE untapped resource in prison populations and little effort to not only tap manpower, but teach and encourage them to pursue better lives thru realistic means. Sad. The penal system is pathetic. Gardening wise, where I grew up there was a 'county jail', referred to as the 'County Farm'. Said jail and its inmates ran a gorgeous farm - some livestock and lots of agriculture. This county jail provided a huge percentage of the foodstuffs for the local hospital. Physically, they were next door to each other making for easy access - (and a blip or two - my grandfather tried to discharge my Mom at the Jail entrance, having missed the Hospital driveway when she was set to deliver twins!!). The County Farm was a respected and great contributer to the area. On another track, I have seen footage of inmates paired with canines (usually problem dogs, like their new handlers, but with attributes akin to becoming service dogs) and the spectacular results to both man and dog in the training process. Nothing but good there. Given the obscenely huge prison population is this country alone, why is it that a 30 minute chance to rub out their fellow inmates in frustration in the 'execise yard', trumps the mere thought of putting them to work? Why is said work, which would teach and redirect them, so esoteric? I just don't get it. Such a huge waste. So many possibilities.

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.

"Also, land with agricultural zoning - tends to be "up for grabs" in that - on farm zoned properties, they can hunt, burn their garbage, turn it into a pig farm, have r00sters that crow all the time, etc. You would NOT want to be next to that!" That's WHY it's zoned agricultural. Chickens crow, pigs squeal and manure smells like s****. Tractors can't go sixty mph and you will get stuck behind them. Believe me, the farmer hates it worse than you do. Our fields also attract deer and raccoons who I guarantee will eat your landscaping in a heartbeat. I prefer to hear my roos crowing at four thirty in the morning than your dirt bikes. Trust me, five acres doesn't soundproof anything. I will hang my wet laundry up on my clothesline during your bar-b-ques too. And cows don't use kitty litter and the you bet we will spread it on the fields when we have to, whether you're having a party or not. And your McMansion blocks my view of the strip mine ponds. This is the other side of the coin from my perspective and although it is meant to be tongue in cheek, it's still true and that's why people like me hang up warning signs on our trees (those not covered in other people's yard sale signs) that anyone who wants to build close should take those things into consideration. I used to suggest to people that you cannot control your scenic panoramas unless you buy the land around you when you build in the country. But, even that doesn't work anymore because governmental programs are enticing industry to move out to the rural areas. When over a thousand acres of farmland is converted to an industrial park, even a mile away, you will never see a black night again, and every breath you take will smell of whatever they are producing. They cut the trees around them one would hope they'll leave as a buffer zone so you can see their miles of macadam and hear the tow motors on still nights. My suggestion is like so many others. Better to build in an already developed area, where you have a better idea of what lies ahead in a couple years.

I agree - this is a fabulous set of pictures of terrific bushes that turn me green with envy - particularly the rich blooms on The Crocus Rose, and the lush explosion you have from Charisma! Wow - I get a few scattered blooms that have a punch to them, but there's nothing to compare with that rose in a full bloom for visual impact. Oh, and speaking of green I honestly can't say I like the blooms of the Green Rose. It's intriguing, and as a lover of oddball roses I totally understand the appeal, but it takes a very well-grown bush like yours to highlight that the blooms themselves really aren't attractive en masse. It just looks deformed or something in sad need of deadheading at a distance, though the closeup photos I've seen have a style to them. Cynthia