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AP reports that Californian voters passed a measure to build a high speed rail network in the state - Calif. voters approve $10B bond for bullet trains. Hopefully they can find the money for it California voters are green-lighting the nation's most ambitious high-speed rail system, approving a nearly $10 billion bond to put speeding bullet trains capable of topping 200 mph between the state's major metropolitan areas. The measure, which passed with 52 percent support Tuesday, will fund the first phase of what is projected to be a $45 billion, 800-mile project built with state, federal, local and private money. Backers sold the proposal as an innovative alternative to soaring airfares and gas prices. In the closing weeks of the campaign, they touted estimates that it would create nearly 160,000 construction-related jobs and 450,000 permanent jobs.

Bullet Proof Glass Bulletproof glass, also known as ballistic glass or bullet-resistant glass, is a specialized type of glass designed to resist penetration by bullets or projectiles. The specialty window glass is constructed using multiple layers of glass and other materials to provide enhanced strength and protection against ballistic threats. Bulletproof glass china is commonly used in applications where security and protection from firearms are paramount.

Bulletproof glass, also known as ballistic glass or bullet-resistant glass, is a specialized type of glass designed to resist penetration by bullets or projectiles. The specialty window glass is constructed using multiple layers of glass and other materials to provide enhanced strength and protection against ballistic threats. Bulletproof glass is commonly used in applications where security and protection from firearms are paramount. This type of custom glass for sale offers unique protective properties for specific high-security needs.

In this edition of Latest In Defence, BAE Systems releases timelapse footage of the first Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier being floated out into open water, the US Marines have tamed a fearsome four-legged robot to help carry kit, and DARPA demonstrates a bullet that always hits its target.

I must admit that I have been a bit nonplussed to see that the peak oil community seems to share the oil industry's dismissal of wind power as irrelevant and useless in the face of the currently energy challenge (maybe I am unfairly judging from a few individuals' comments, but it's definitely an existing undercurrent in the community). So, in reaction, let me put up here a few arguments that suggest that wind could play a major role in solving our current energy woes - not a silver bullet, but rather more than a side show. First, the "wind is too small to make a difference" argument: well, so was nuclear, until it got big enough. Wind is following the exact same growth trajectory [as shown below].

With gas prices going through the roof and regulators requiring cars to be ever more miserly, Volkswagen is bringing new meaning to the term "fuel efficiency" with a bullet-shaped microcar that gets a stunning 282 235 mpg. Volkswagen's had its super-thrifty One-Liter Car concept vehicle -- so named because that's how much fuel it needs to go 100 kilometers -- stashed away for six years. The body's made of carbon fiber to minimize weight (the entire car weighs just 660 pounds) and company execs didn't expect the material to become cheap enough to produce the car until 2012.