From: Jay Willingham (jaywillingham@cfl.rr.com)
Date: Mon Jul 21 2003 - 19:33:13 EDT
We could sure metaphor ourselves into a topic on the nature and form of
education of the young and not so young if our goal is creativity.
Fusion seems to be an area where science has focused its research dollars
globally.
Who is watching the focus of the research itself? Are other areas of
investigation being ignored or starved as billions go into the
electro-magnetic method?
From recent postings it would seem that the cost has halved. Will more
money be fruitful if the rate of innovation in the process accelerates?
Jay Willingham
----- Original Message -----
From: "Darryl Maddox" <dpmaddox@arn.net>
To: "Jay Willingham" <jaywillingham@cfl.rr.com>
Sent: Monday, July 21, 2003 5:26 PM
Subject: Re: the hydrogen economy
> I didn't say NEA members were not motivated, but how many of them have
> worked in any industry were there was competition and the name of the game
> was produce or leave? They are motivated, I have met some who really want
> to learn what they should have learned before they started teaching, and I
> have no doubt that most want their students to do better. But when
teaching
> is subordinated to extra curricular activities and they can neither fail
nor
> remove non-performers from the class room, and the parents of most of
their
> students earn more than the teacher and know far less - how can they
> motivate the student and why should the student be motivated to learn?
> Natural curiosity only goes so far then hunger, the need to support a
> family, a sense of responsibility or the fear of being left behind have to
> take over or who cares how many tests they fail? I don't thinkn the
student
> sees andy obvious and immediate reward for success and no punishment for
> failure. My adult student on the other hand, are very hard workers, they
> just didn't learn much in school and have forgotten a good bit of what
they
> did learn. But, they have kids, they do see getting an education as a way
> of improving the odds of keeping food on the table and decreasing their
> dependence for subsistance on others.
>
> I think the performance tests are helping the situation and if we ever get
a
> significant number of private schools competing with the public schools
that
> will be the end of the "public" school system. I don't mind paying taxes
> for the public schools even though I have no children but I do get real
mad
> when I am going home at 9:30 PM after teaching remedial topics to 30 year
> olds and hear that one of the local highschools is in the 3rd quarter of a
> football or basket ball game 150 miles from here.
>
> I can only hope that eventually these older students will put enough heat
on
> state legislators and local school boards to stop some of this
foolishness.
>
> Darryl
>
> Darryl
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Jay Willingham" <jaywillingham@cfl.rr.com>
> To: "Darryl Maddox" <dpmaddox@arn.net>; "ASA" <asa@calvin.edu>
> Sent: Monday, July 21, 2003 11:27 AM
> Subject: Re: the hydrogen economy
>
>
> > I hope physicists at this level are in the main more motivated than your
> > average NEA member.
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "Darryl Maddox" <dpmaddox@arn.net>
> > To: "Jay Willingham" <jaywillingham@cfl.rr.com>
> > Sent: Monday, July 21, 2003 11:40 AM
> > Subject: Re: the hydrogen economy
> >
> >
> > > It all depends on how wisely the money is spent which depends in part
on
> > how
> > > badly the people doing the work want it finished and how many chances
> they
> > > are willing to take. My guess is that they took more on the Manhattan
> > > project than we would want to know about. On the contrary side of the
> > > question of "does money = progress" look at American education. More
> > money
> > > per pupil = falling test scores for several decades now. Though in
> Texas
> > > either my expectations are going down or my incoming geology and
physics
> > > students are a bit better than they were 5 years ago.
> > >
> > >
> > > ----- Original Message -----
> > > From: "Jay Willingham" <jaywillingham@cfl.rr.com>
> > > To: "Iain Strachan" <iain.strachan.asa@ntlworld.com>; "ASA"
> > <asa@calvin.edu>
> > > Sent: Sunday, July 20, 2003 4:50 PM
> > > Subject: Re: the hydrogen economy
> > >
> > >
> > > > I am not so sure.
> > > >
> > > > The magnetic field experiments and the laser experiments are the
only
> > ones
> > > > being worked to any degree, and those are really starved for
funding.
> > > >
> > > > The Manhattan project comes to mind when someone says more money
will
> > not
> > > > speed up the various experiments.
> > > >
> > > > Jay Willingham
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > ----- Original Message -----
> > > > From: "Iain Strachan" <iain.strachan.asa@ntlworld.com>
> > > > To: "Jay Willingham" <jaywillingham@cfl.rr.com>; "Glenn Morton"
> > > > <glennmorton@entouch.net>; "ASA" <asa@calvin.edu>
> > > > Sent: Sunday, July 20, 2003 11:34 AM
> > > > Subject: Re: the hydrogen economy
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > > > Money seems to be the main weak factor in that equation.
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Jay
> > > > >
> > > > > I don't think that money is the real issue here. I recently spoke
> to
> > a
> > > > > physicist who works on JET (the large fusion experiment close to
> where
> > I
> > > > > live) and he gave the timescale as 50 years; 12.5 years to build
the
> > > next
> > > > > experiment (ITER) and 12.5 years to run it, during which they get
> the
> > > > plasma
> > > > > parameters right for fusion and then a similar timescale for the
> > > proposed
> > > > > demonstration fusion reactor (DEMO); 12.5 years to build and 12.5
to
> > > run.
> > > > > He was not of the opinion that the timescale could be speeded up
by
> > > > throwing
> > > > > yet more money at it. These experiments are major undertakings.
> For
> > > > > example the magnetic induction coils are so vast that they could
not
> > be
> > > > > transported for long distances. Therefore before you can build
your
> > > > fusion
> > > > > reactor you have to build an entire manufacturing plant on site.
> > > > >
> > > > > However, we must stop the sliding goalpost and not allow things to
> > drag
> > > > on.
> > > > >
> > > > > ------------------------------------------------------------------
> > > > > Iain .G.D. Strachan
> > > > >
> > > > > There are 10 types of people in the world ...
> > > > > those who understand binary and those who don't.
> > > > >
> > > >
> --------------------------------------------------------------------
> > > > > ----- Original Message -----
> > > > > From: "Jay Willingham" <jaywillingham@cfl.rr.com>
> > > > > To: "Glenn Morton" <glennmorton@entouch.net>; "ASA"
<asa@calvin.edu>
> > > > > Sent: Sunday, July 20, 2003 3:21 PM
> > > > > Subject: Re: the hydrogen economy
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > >
> > > > > > ----- Original Message -----
> > > > > > From: "Glenn Morton" <glennmorton@entouch.net>
> > > > > > To: "Jay Willingham" <jaywillingham@cfl.rr.com>; "ASA"
> > > <asa@calvin.edu>
> > > > > > Sent: Saturday, July 19, 2003 8:58 PM
> > > > > > Subject: RE: the hydrogen economy
> > > > > >
> > > > > >
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > > >-----Original Message-----
> > > > > > > >From: asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu
> > > > [mailto:asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu]On
> > > > > > > >Behalf Of Jay Willingham
> > > > > > > >Sent: Saturday, July 19, 2003 5:09 PM
> > > > > > > >To: Glenn Morton; ASA
> > > > > > > >Subject: Re: the hydrogen economy
> > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > >Hydrogen strikes me as a junk science/green politician's
> answer.
> > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > >Where are we in the development of fusion as an energy
source?
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > > Not very far. The only thing constant about fusion energy is
> that
> > > it
> > > > is
> > > > > > > always 50 years away. We really will need to change that
> constant.
> > > > > > >
> > > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
>
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.4 : Mon Jul 21 2003 - 19:33:37 EDT