Gongol.com Archives: July 2015
July 16, 2015
Audi plant takes wind power and turns it into synthetic methane
They use surplus electricity from wind to split water into oxygen and hydrogen. Then they take the hydrogen (H2) and extra carbon dioxide (CO2) and combine them to produce synthetic methane (CH4) -- which also makes the produced methane carbon-neutral. Finding ways to capture the excess energy captured by wind systems and making it available when demand requires is a huge step forward for the energy budget (since the wind blows at night but most energy is used during the day). And because gas-powered turbines are really good for load-balancing with wind energy in the electrical supply, it's a great way to use technology. Most new electrical generation in the US is coming from wind and natural gas.
What caused the October 2014 "flash crash"?
Automated trading was part of the problem, but not the whole thing
IRS "taxpayer advocate" worries that migration to online services will put low-income users at higher risk of tax errors
Apparently, the IRS also has trouble answering the phone: Only 37% of the taxpayers who called the toll-free line actually got through. So there's a problem here: The online services obviously don't do enough since they're leaving people with questions that they feel the need to phone in, but then the IRS isn't answering the phone.
Copper prices are plunging
Production is still on the rise, but China -- which is consuming about half of the world's copper -- is slowing down, economically. And that slowdown is being reflected in demand for the metal.
Mediacom promotes "Xtream" Internet service in the Des Moines area
Download speeds for residential users up to 50 Mbps are promised, with "speed boost" options for up to 150 Mbps
