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Travel (Bloggers & Personal)

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  • Boeing Dreamliner produces near-vertical takeoff ahead of Paris air show

    06/13/2015 4:43:31 AM PDT · by Berlin_Freeper · 23 replies
    indianexpress.com ^ | June 13 2015 | Vishnu Varma
    For aviation enthusiasts, this is a video that is un-missable. It serves as a reminder that planes, commercial or military, can do wonders and perform magic in the air. Not to forget those tiny humans, sitting in the cockpit, maneuvering these giant metal birds. On Thursday, Boeing released a spectacular video, showing it’s flagship 787-9 Dreamliner performing a near-vertical take-off and then some really great gliding and swerving movements before returning to the ground. The video was a rehearsal ahead of the Paris Air Show where Boeing’s expert crew will be doing some superb flying.
  • Boeing Shrinks Toilet Area to Add 14 More Seats

    06/11/2015 10:38:50 AM PDT · by lbryce · 71 replies
    AOL News ^ | June 10,2015 | AOL News
    Boeing just announced plans to make their bathrooms smaller so they can fit more seats on the plane! So if you're claustrophobic, you might want to hold it. Boeing is shrinking the toilet area on the 777-300ER models to make them more marketable to airlines who will want extra seats on the plane, but passengers, would probably rather the extra leg room. Boeing says they'll be able to cram 14 extra seats on the triple seven with the tiny toilet model. It's all part of a plan to make the planes lighter. Another way Boeing will lighten the plane by...
  • The $30 hot dog guy is a capitalist hero

    06/07/2015 11:30:22 AM PDT · by 2ndDivisionVet · 63 replies
    The New York Post ^ | May 22, 2015 | Kyle Smith
    I’m shocked by one aspect of the story of the guy selling $30 hot dogs to tourists near the World Trade Center — shocked that he was fired. Who knew hot-dog men could be fired? As for that other detail — selling a hot dog for considerably “more than it’s worth,” so what? Apple makes a huge profit on every device it sells. Does anyone think Apple is guilty of “price gouging”? Moreover, a hot dog is guaranteed not to shatter when it falls on the sidewalk, and I’ve never had to reboot my sauerkraut. No hot dog has ever...
  • Judgemental Map of Washington, D.C.

    06/06/2015 4:08:48 PM PDT · by concernedcitizen76 · 11 replies
    Judgemental Maps ^ | 2015 | Unknown
  • Crying over spilled milk — and traffic delays — in Mt. Airy, Md.

    05/31/2015 4:00:01 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 12 replies
    The Washington Post ^ | May 20, 2015 | Dana Hedgpeth
    Talk about crying over spilled milk. Authorities said an overturned tractor trailer spilled up to 6,000 gallons of milk onto a highway in Mt. Airy, Md., causing hours of delays on Wednesday morning. The incident happened about 6 a.m. on the eastbound side of Interstate 70. Milk spilled and at one point blocked all four lanes on the eastbound side. As of mid-morning, some of the lanes were getting by but traffic was reported to be heavy in the area. No one suffered major injuries.
  • Measles Case Confirmed In New Jersey

    05/28/2015 10:49:30 PM PDT · by 2ndDivisionVet · 13 replies
    Patch ^ | May 28, 2015 | Kara Seymour
    A person infected with measles was at a New Jersey funeral home two times earlier this month, the state Department of Health announced Thursday. The department confirmed the measles case Thursday, saying the individual may have exposed people at a funeral home in the Fords section of Woodbridge in Middlesex County on May 11 and 14. Measles is a highly contagious viral illness that can cause serious medical complications. As a result, the department recommends that anyone who visited Flynn and Son Funeral Home, 23 Ford Ave., Fords, on Monday, May 11, between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m., and on...
  • New, expanding magnet turns around 175-year-old principle of magnetism

    05/28/2015 9:06:45 PM PDT · by 2ndDivisionVet · 9 replies
    The International Business Times UK ^ | May 23, 2015 | Jayalakshmi K
    A new class of magnets discovered that swell in volume and generate little heat when placed in a magnetic field could be used to harvest or convert energy efficiently. Applications range from sensors and actuators for automobiles to biomedical devices, besides defence applications. Discovered by scientists at the University of Maryland (UMD) and Temple University, the new magnets made from abundant metal alloys could replace the expensive, rare-earth magnets which exhibit poor mechanical properties. Maryland professor of materials science and engineering Manfred Wuttig, and Harsh Deep Chopra, professor and chair of mechanical engineering at Temple heated certain iron-based alloys (iron-gallium,...
  • I think they're missing the point

    05/27/2015 8:59:47 AM PDT · by OK Sun · 5 replies
    Bayou Renaissance Man ^ | 5/26/2015 05:26:00 PM | Peter
    Yet again, we've seen fighter jets dispatched to 'escort' aircraft to US airports after threats were made against them. Yet again, we've heard travelers and others remark how "comforting" the presence of those aircraft is to them. They clearly don't understand that those fighters are there for one reason and one reason only . . . to shoot down the aircraft if it has, indeed, been hijacked or otherwise turned into a danger to cities and installations on the ground. The fighters can't possibly intervene in a hijacking inside the cabin, and can't stop whatever's on board from manifesting itself....
  • Lassa Fever Confirmed in Death of U.S. Traveler Returning from Liberia

    05/25/2015 9:11:35 PM PDT · by 2ndDivisionVet · 1 replies
    WSAV-TV ^ | May 25, 2015 | Staff
    ATLANTA, GA - The CDC and the New Jersey Department of Health have confirmed a death from Lassa fever which was diagnosed earlier today in a person returning to the United States from Liberia. The patient traveled from Liberia to Morocco to JFK International Airport on May 17th. The patient did not have a fever on departure from Liberia, did not report symptoms such as diarrhea, vomiting, or bleeding during the flight, and his temperature was taken on arrival in the U.S. and he did not have a fever at that time. On May 18th, the patient went to a...
  • Trains Matter

    05/25/2015 12:08:46 PM PDT · by smokingfrog · 17 replies
    Amtrak Store ^ | October 30, 1970 | Choo Choo
    I am not making this up. The Official Amtrak Merchandise store. (click the pic)
  • Hillary Defends Benghazi Lies [semi-satire]

    05/23/2015 1:01:51 AM PDT · by John Semmens · 8 replies
    Semi-News/Semi-Satire ^ | 23 May 2015 | John Semmens
    Evidence that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was informed that the assault on the Benghazi Consulate and murder of Ambassador Stevens was a planned terrorist attack before she went public with the misleading cover story of a video protest gone bad failed to dislodge her from defending it. "Sure, we knew within hours of the Ambassador's death that the attack had been planned at least 10 days in advance, but for us to have publicly acknowledged this would have put the country into even greater danger," Clinton maintained. "Remember, this attack occurred just two months ahead of a presidential...
  • 3,400-pound shark Mary Lee continues to roam Virginia coast

    05/22/2015 12:05:31 AM PDT · by Berlin_Freeper · 25 replies
    Richmond Times-Dispatch ^ | May 21, 2015 | Rex Springston
    If you go take a dip off the Virginia coast this Memorial Day weekend, you could be swimming with a toothy, 3,400-pound buddy. Mary Lee, a 16-foot great white shark and an Internet sensation, is touring the Atlantic coast — sometimes close to shore.
  • How Futurist Bob Gurr Shaped Disneyland’s Past

    05/20/2015 1:23:28 PM PDT · by 2ndDivisionVet · 4 replies
    Los Angeles Magazine ^ | May 18, 2015 | Chris Nichols
    Gurr test-driving an early prototype of his Autopia vehicle in 1955.George Clooney may get top billing in his new film, Tomorrowland, but design visionary Gurr is the real star.In his 27 years as a Disney Imagineer, Bob Gurr was known for doing the impossible: He designed a submarine fleet, the cars of Autopia, and the Monorail that soars above the park on a single beam. With the opening of Tomorrowland in 1955, Gurr shaped a vision of the future (1986 to be exact) that still feels out of reach. Six decades after Gurr began creating ride vehicles for the theme...
  • Bush Would Use Obama Immigration Order to Extort Legislation from Congress [semi-satire]

    05/20/2015 10:21:01 AM PDT · by John Semmens · 4 replies
    Semi-News/Semi-Satire ^ | 16 May 2015 | John Semmens
    Potential candidate for president and former Governor of Florida JEB Bush told FOX News’ Megyn Kelly that “unlike some other GOP presidential contenders, I would not move to immediately undo President Obama’s executive action granting special privileges to illegal immigrants. Instead, I would refuse to revoke it until Congress passed appropriate enabling legislation. In any case, the American voter can count on me to see that legalizing those in this country illegally will go forward with or without legislation.” Bush acknowledged the shaky legality of Obama’s executive action, but averred that “doing the right thing is more important than confining...
  • What Will Happen to Truck Stop Towns When Driverless Truck Technology Expands?

    05/19/2015 7:56:40 PM PDT · by 2ndDivisionVet · 64 replies
    Route Fifty ^ | May 18, 2015 | Michael Grass
    In just a few years, communities that depend on the trucking industry for their vitality will be facing major economic disruption.Roscoe, Nebraska, is a good place to contemplate how the evolution of long-haul travel can change a community. This unincorporated settlement—some classify Roscoe as a “semi-ghost town”—sits about seven miles east of the city of Ogallala along U.S. 30, which follows the old Lincoln Highway route and before that, various overland migration trails to California, Oregon and Utah. Just off U.S. 30, opposite the Union Pacific freight-rail tracks, there’s an abandoned gas station with its former pump, pictured above, standing...
  • We Need Three Planets to Keep the Human Race Alive, NASA Scientist Says

    05/17/2015 5:16:42 PM PDT · by 2ndDivisionVet · 97 replies
    Motherboard ^ | March 20, 2014 | Jason Koebler
    It’s no secret that uncurbed climate change and population growth are going to (and already have) put stress on the planet. But the situation is getting so bad that one prominent NASA scientist says we have to start thinking about terraforming Mars and that, in order for the human race to survive at current levels, we will eventually “need at least three planets.” “The entire ecosystem is crashing,” Dennis Bushnell, chief scientist of NASA’s Langley Research Center said Thursday. “Essentially, there’s too many of us. We’ve been far too successful as the human animal. People allege we’re short 40-50 percent...
  • Amtrak Employee Injured in Derailment Files Lawsuit

    05/16/2015 1:44:21 AM PDT · by 2ndDivisionVet · 21 replies
    KVOA-TV / NBC News ^ | May 15, 2015
    (VIDEO-AT-LINK)An Amtrak employee has filed the first lawsuit in connection to Tuesday's deadly train derailment that killed eight people and injured over 200 others in Philadelphia. The Bala Cynwyd law firm Coffey Kaye Myers & Olley, which is representing Amtrak employee Bruce Phillips and his wife Kalita Phillips of Philadelphia, confirmed with NBC10 that their clients are filing a lawsuit against Amtrak. Phillips is still hospitalized at Temple University Hospital. Phillips, an Amtrak employee, was "deadheading" in one of the rear railcars of Amtrak Regional Train 188 Tuesday night when the derailment occurred, according to the lawsuit. Deadheading is a...
  • ‘The View’ Panel Blasts Amtrak Funding Cuts, Takes Dig at Chris Christie’s Weight (Video)

    05/14/2015 8:11:29 PM PDT · by 2ndDivisionVet · 23 replies
    The Wrap ^ | May 14, 2015 | Tim Kenneally
    “Infrastructure-wise, we’re becoming a Third World country,” guest host Joy Behar says.The women of “The View” tackled a pressing issue of the week along with a decade-long argument on Thursday’s episode: the deadly Amtrak train crash in Philadelphia and America’s decision to go to war in Iraq. With Whoopi Goldberg absent from the show, Nicolle Wallace, Rosie Perez and Raven-Symone were joined by “View” veteran Joy Behar and model/actress Molly Sims. Given the diverse ideologies on Thursday’s panel, the conversation grew heated at times. The discussion about the train derailment in Philadelphia quickly turned to Republican efforts to cut funding...
  • Fly to the moon in 4 hours: British scientist who says he's found secret of Star Trek's 'warp speed'

    05/14/2015 1:46:07 AM PDT · by 2ndDivisionVet · 61 replies
    The London Daily Mail ^ | May 14, 2015 | Tom Leonard in New York
    * Nasa is thought to have successfully tested a revolutionary power source * Claimed it could fly for eons at the equivalent of 450 million miles an hour * It is powered by a device similar to that found in a microwave oven * Invented by now retired British scientist Roger Shawyer a decade agoAnyone who has ever watched an episode of Star Trek or a Star Wars film will know how it works. The good guys are minding their business in outer space when suddenly the Klingons or the Dark Empire bear down on them out of nowhere. There...
  • Wells Fargo executive, midshipman, AP staffer among dead in Amtrak crash

    05/13/2015 3:48:50 PM PDT · by 2ndDivisionVet · 23 replies
    WPVI-TV ^ | May 13, 2015
    PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Wells Fargo has confirmed that one of their executives has been confirmed as one of the seven people who died in an Amtrak train derailment on Tuesday night. The VP has been identified as Abid Gilani. "It is with great sadness that Wells Fargo confirms that Abid Gilani, a valued member of our Commercial Real Estate division, has passed away. Our hearts go out to all those impacted by this tragedy." the company said in a statement. A U.S. Naval Academy midshipman and an Associated Press staffer are also among those who are confirmed dead. ABC News...