I learned something today: Dish detergent won't cut it to clean your chain. I ran it through about 4 times with two different detergents and got murky water. Then I sprayed some finish line degreaser on the chain and ran plain water: Black.
The lesson: Clean your dishes with chain degreaser. That'll take off that stuck on grease :).
Warning: It burns.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
It's Worse!
I looked at their findings.
Nowhere did the quiz ask me my political views. Yet it somehow categorized me?
They must accompany this quiz with a questionnaire with their other information elsewhere. Then they roll the results in with everyone's results and come to negative conclusions whenever they possible can. Booooo.
- Liberals score an average of 49%; conservatives score 48%.
Nowhere did the quiz ask me my political views. Yet it somehow categorized me?
That's because it's not important that it comes from here. It's an obvious derision of two hundred years of political theory which some might say culminates in the US Constitution. The important part is that they understand this purpose of Government.
- Only 21% know that the phrase “government of the people, by the people, for the people” comes from Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address.
The important thing is that over half know it's not out of the US Constitution. Where it came from is trivia. This is a good result, a surprisingly good result.
Less than one in five know that the phrase “a wall of separation” between church and state comes from a letter by Thomas Jefferson. Almost half incorrectly believe it can be found in the Constitution.
They must accompany this quiz with a questionnaire with their other information elsewhere. Then they roll the results in with everyone's results and come to negative conclusions whenever they possible can. Booooo.
We Don't Know History!
Oh noes! We've forgotten our heritage. Did you know that when asked this question:
33) If taxes equal government spending, then:
A. government debt is zero
B. printing money no longer causes inflation
C. government is not helping anybody
D. tax per person equals government spending per person
E. tax loopholes and special-interest spending are absent
Some of us don't know that the answer is D! That could be because the question is worded terribly. I actually answered "A" because with progressive taxes "D" only makes sense in the average and I couldn't find "the budget is balanced."
They also ask these:
7) What was the source of the following phrase: “Government of the people, for the people, by the people”?
15) The phrase that in America there should be a “wall of separation” between church and state appears in:
27) Free markets typically secure more economic prosperity than government’s centralized planning because:
Which tells me that we have a conservative think tank asking annoyingly tricky questions. I'll be honest: I missed #33 and #7. Fortunately for me, old Abe wasn't wrong when he said that in the Gettysburg address.
Let me show you the first sentence of the US Constitution (highly abridged): "We the People of the United States ... do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. "
Well, I guess he had one thing wrong. It's Government by the people for the pandas!
The quiz has enough sensible questions to trick you into thinking that its results will be important. In the end though it's a politically charged constitutional history quiz, instead of a civics quiz.
I propose that they add some things which matter to a citizen outside of politics. I'm not sure what they'd be: I tried and I just game up with a different bias then they did ;).
33) If taxes equal government spending, then:
A. government debt is zero
B. printing money no longer causes inflation
C. government is not helping anybody
D. tax per person equals government spending per person
E. tax loopholes and special-interest spending are absent
Some of us don't know that the answer is D! That could be because the question is worded terribly. I actually answered "A" because with progressive taxes "D" only makes sense in the average and I couldn't find "the budget is balanced."
They also ask these:
7) What was the source of the following phrase: “Government of the people, for the people, by the people”?
15) The phrase that in America there should be a “wall of separation” between church and state appears in:
27) Free markets typically secure more economic prosperity than government’s centralized planning because:
Which tells me that we have a conservative think tank asking annoyingly tricky questions. I'll be honest: I missed #33 and #7. Fortunately for me, old Abe wasn't wrong when he said that in the Gettysburg address.
Let me show you the first sentence of the US Constitution (highly abridged): "We the People of the United States ... do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. "
Well, I guess he had one thing wrong. It's Government by the people for the pandas!
The quiz has enough sensible questions to trick you into thinking that its results will be important. In the end though it's a politically charged constitutional history quiz, instead of a civics quiz.
I propose that they add some things which matter to a citizen outside of politics. I'm not sure what they'd be: I tried and I just game up with a different bias then they did ;).
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Why Commute By Bike?
As you may know I'm a full time bike commuter finishing up my first year. So I thought I'd run a few articles on what I've learned about commuting by bike so far. Look at the category "guide" to see everything.
To start we'll consider a cost analysis. These numbers are intended to be ball park figures. I'll miss minor details and probably make some estimates incorrectly. The purpose is the comparison.
Cost by car. We'll use a semi-fictional car that retails for $18,000 (with all of the goodies that you end up buying and taxes). Our car averages 30mpg. So keep in mind that this is an economy car. We're assuming 15,000 miles per year of use.
* Cost of car: $18,000
* Maintenance: $1,000 per year. (Note that maintenance tends to have a delay effect)
* Gasoline: $1,125 per year. (At $2.25 per gallon)
* Insurance: $800 per year.
* Taxes: $150 per year.
Running the car for 12 years and getting $2000 out of it at that point: $18,000 + 12*($1,000 + $1,125 + $800 + $150) - $2,000 = $51,100.
* Cost per mile: $52,900 / 180,000 = $.29.
Please keep in mind:
* We didn't include financing
* We assumed that gas would stay at the current price, and it won't.
* We assumed you'll drive this car for most of its lifespan.
* Insurance and taxes start high and go down. So this is a huge estimation!
Edmunds estimate, over a 5 year driving period, would be around $.45 for this size car. However, no frugal car purchaser is buying a new car every five years!
Cost by bike. I'm gonna use my bike, which is a bit fancy for a commuter.
* The bike: $1,025
* Maintenance: $100
* Fuel added in later.
* Insurance: $0
* Taxes: $0
* Replacement parts: $1,400
These are estimated over the life of the bike which I'm calling 30,000 miles. Many, many folks report getting a lot better mileage out of their bikes. However, somewhere in this area you'll find that many of your components are worn out and require replacement. You may or may not want to just buy a new bike. Some folks swear that they can keep a bike running indefinitely.
The cost of fuel is hard to figure since it depends so much on what you eat. I'm going to use this blog as a source of food costs. It takes about 40 calories for a cyclist to propel himself one mile. To get into less basic food it takes about $.10 for 40 calories. You'll probably eat cheaper stuff to refuel from cycling, but that's okay we'll cost for real food. If you ate peanut butter it's about $.03 per mile. If you ate smoked turkey it's about $.64 per mile!
You should also keep in mind that the average US adult is overweight. You may already be eating enough to make your commute. NOTE: You'll suffer from weight loss and longer life.
Cost:
* The Bike: ($1,025 + $1,400) / 30,000 = $.08 per mile
* The Gas: $.10 per mile
* Total: $.18 per mile
So. With decent food and an expensive bike we've still come out cheaper than we could hope to get in the car. And it may be that the food cost is almost nothing because we might be eating that anyway! Besides that: Cheetos taste good; gas smells like poison.
If we commute 10 miles a day (5 miles each way). 22 days a month. That's 10 * ($.29-$.18) * 22 = $24.20 per month. It's not exactly a fortune is it? It gets a lot better if you can do enough commuting to get rid of the car or relegate it to the minimum insurable mileage. You might also keep this in mind. You're theoretically supposed to get that money, somehow, to pay costs on your bike. It's in the interests of evening things out with respect to existing bus and personal auto parking subsidies which are far bigger.
Next I'll talk about what sort of bikes are available and what makes a good commuter.
To start we'll consider a cost analysis. These numbers are intended to be ball park figures. I'll miss minor details and probably make some estimates incorrectly. The purpose is the comparison.
Cost by car. We'll use a semi-fictional car that retails for $18,000 (with all of the goodies that you end up buying and taxes). Our car averages 30mpg. So keep in mind that this is an economy car. We're assuming 15,000 miles per year of use.
* Cost of car: $18,000
* Maintenance: $1,000 per year. (Note that maintenance tends to have a delay effect)
* Gasoline: $1,125 per year. (At $2.25 per gallon)
* Insurance: $800 per year.
* Taxes: $150 per year.
Running the car for 12 years and getting $2000 out of it at that point: $18,000 + 12*($1,000 + $1,125 + $800 + $150) - $2,000 = $51,100.
* Cost per mile: $52,900 / 180,000 = $.29.
Please keep in mind:
* We didn't include financing
* We assumed that gas would stay at the current price, and it won't.
* We assumed you'll drive this car for most of its lifespan.
* Insurance and taxes start high and go down. So this is a huge estimation!
Edmunds estimate, over a 5 year driving period, would be around $.45 for this size car. However, no frugal car purchaser is buying a new car every five years!
Cost by bike. I'm gonna use my bike, which is a bit fancy for a commuter.
* The bike: $1,025
* Maintenance: $100
* Fuel added in later.
* Insurance: $0
* Taxes: $0
* Replacement parts: $1,400
These are estimated over the life of the bike which I'm calling 30,000 miles. Many, many folks report getting a lot better mileage out of their bikes. However, somewhere in this area you'll find that many of your components are worn out and require replacement. You may or may not want to just buy a new bike. Some folks swear that they can keep a bike running indefinitely.
The cost of fuel is hard to figure since it depends so much on what you eat. I'm going to use this blog as a source of food costs. It takes about 40 calories for a cyclist to propel himself one mile. To get into less basic food it takes about $.10 for 40 calories. You'll probably eat cheaper stuff to refuel from cycling, but that's okay we'll cost for real food. If you ate peanut butter it's about $.03 per mile. If you ate smoked turkey it's about $.64 per mile!
You should also keep in mind that the average US adult is overweight. You may already be eating enough to make your commute. NOTE: You'll suffer from weight loss and longer life.
Cost:
* The Bike: ($1,025 + $1,400) / 30,000 = $.08 per mile
* The Gas: $.10 per mile
* Total: $.18 per mile
So. With decent food and an expensive bike we've still come out cheaper than we could hope to get in the car. And it may be that the food cost is almost nothing because we might be eating that anyway! Besides that: Cheetos taste good; gas smells like poison.
If we commute 10 miles a day (5 miles each way). 22 days a month. That's 10 * ($.29-$.18) * 22 = $24.20 per month. It's not exactly a fortune is it? It gets a lot better if you can do enough commuting to get rid of the car or relegate it to the minimum insurable mileage. You might also keep this in mind. You're theoretically supposed to get that money, somehow, to pay costs on your bike. It's in the interests of evening things out with respect to existing bus and personal auto parking subsidies which are far bigger.
Next I'll talk about what sort of bikes are available and what makes a good commuter.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
The IEA Is on the Peak Oil Boat
It looks like the IEA has jumped on the peak oil boat.
Basically the report estimates that our demand will rise at a slightly slower pace and we'll make up most of it using alternative methods. In 2030 they show natural gas and non conventional oil as making up about 25 million barrels per day, or about a quarter of the oil supply. Most of the rest is from currently undeveloped fields, what's left of existing fields and to a smaller extent newly discovered fields.
How much do they estimate it will cost? $200 a barrel in 2030. That means, according to my napkin calculations, $6 a gallon gas here in the midwest.
Typically the IEA forecasts a pretty rosy outlook for oil. I wonder why the sudden turn.
Basically the report estimates that our demand will rise at a slightly slower pace and we'll make up most of it using alternative methods. In 2030 they show natural gas and non conventional oil as making up about 25 million barrels per day, or about a quarter of the oil supply. Most of the rest is from currently undeveloped fields, what's left of existing fields and to a smaller extent newly discovered fields.
How much do they estimate it will cost? $200 a barrel in 2030. That means, according to my napkin calculations, $6 a gallon gas here in the midwest.
Typically the IEA forecasts a pretty rosy outlook for oil. I wonder why the sudden turn.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Grow your own diesel?
This could be kind of cool, in a long long time. But it's possible that this fungus could grow on grass. Imagine having a diesel garden.
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