Friday, April 19, 2013

Nikola Tesla and the Tunguska Event




                      
 Region of Impact
                                        
The Tunguska Event is one of the largest unsolved mysteries of the early 20th century which has prompted theories of everything from alien activities (such as  an exploding space craft), the impact of a tiny black hole, to earth’s contact with a small chunk of antimatter from deep space.  Although such ideas sound fascinating to some degree, a more recent theory may be more realistic.  That being the idea that Nikola Tesla’s “Death Ray” was responsible.



Needless to say the Tunguska Event has never been fully or adequately explained; because so little is known for sure, perhaps due in large part to the remoteness of the incident.  What is known for sure is that there was an enormous fireball in the sky near the Tunguska River in the Western Siberian region of Russia, at about 07:14 AM Local Time (00:14 Universal Time) on June 30 , 1908 (Gregorian Calendar).  



Nearly 25 years later a few eye witness reports were documented as follows: At a few minutes past 7:00 local time, Evenks / Evenki natives (Indigenous peoples of the Russian North) and Russian settlers in the hills northwest of Lake Baikal located in the southern region of Siberia observed a column of bluish light, nearly as bright as the Sun, moving across the sky.  Nearly 10 minutes later, a flash and a sound similar to artillery fire was reported.



The incredible explosion flattened 2,000 sq. km (770 sq. miles) of forest. The only good news is that due to the remoteness of the “impact” area, only one casualty or death was reported; the vast majority of the damage was the knocking over of tens of millions of trees. A shock wave followed that upended people from their feet and broke windows hundreds of kilometers away. Had seismic devices been available in the region, it has been determined that the blast would have reached 5.0 on the earthquake Richter scale. The explosion produced fluctuations in atmospheric pressure strong enough to be measured as far away as Great Britain and was heard 620 miles away from the epicenter. For the next few nights, skies in Asia and Europe were reported to be “aglow”.



Most theories during the years since have revolved around a meteor or a comet from beyond earth. Such notions have settled on the explanation that whatever passed over Siberia must have exploded high enough in the air to prevent the creation of an impact crater, which by all rights should have been the mother of all impact craters.



A couple of other theories include a 1941 report in which Lincoln LaPaz, and later in 1965, Clyde Cowan, Chandra R. Atluri, and Willard F. Libby suggested that the Tunguska Event was caused by the obliteration of a chunk of antimatter falling from space. Then in 1973, Albert A. Jackson and Michael P. Ryan (physicists at the University of Texas), suggested that the Tunguska Event was caused by a small stray black hole passing through the Earth.    However such a theory seems even less probable than the antimatter theory because based on the direction of the impact, their should have been evidence of an “exit event” which would have occurred somewhere in the North Atlantic Ocean, whereby the black hole would have exited the earth, returning to the great beyond.  However, no such evidence exists.     





As has been noted above, there was no crater to account for what appears by most accounts to have been some sort of incredible cosmic impact, so what really happened? One theory suggests that a “mad” scientist / inventor named Nikola Tesla was behind it.



If you don’t remember just who Nikola Tesla was, bar none, he may have been the single greatest inventive mind of the late 19th and early 20th century; he was so far ahead of the invention curve that as you might expect he died alone and ridiculed just like so many other people who are noted for progressive ideas born before their time.  You may recall that when he first arrived in the US (he was born in the Smiljan, Lika province, which was a part of the expiring Empire of Austro-Hungary in 1856); as a young adult he migrated to the United States where he initially worked for Thomas Edison until he elected to leave when Edison failed to acknowledge the merits of Alternating Current over his own “brain child” Direct Current. 



How could Nikola Tesla’s Death Ray (which was ridiculed beyond the point of reason at the time), have been behind the devastation in Russia in 1908?

                                                
Tesla Tower (1904) Long Island, New York



You see, the “Death Ray” was an apparatus by which Tesla vowed he could send incredible amounts of energy over vast distances.  As the story goes, on the very eve of the Tunguska explosion, Tesla was preparing to show off his so-called “Death Ray” to Rear Admiral Robert Peary who was on his second expedition to the North Pole; Tesla was located on Long Island in New York and Peary was near the North Pole on the morning of June 30, 1908; it was Tesla’s plan to create what would amount to an enormous beam of light that Admiral Peary and his expedition members would be able to see from their location in the North Arctic region.  When Tesla conducted his experiment, he aimed his Death Ray towards the arctic, to a spot which he calculated was west of the Peary expedition; Peary neither heard nor saw anything.



Tesla advocates insist he was about ready to acknowledge failure when news arrived of the strange event in Siberia. In short, when Tesla heard about the devastation that took place that would become known as the Tunguska Event, he was convinced that his Death Ray had “overshot” or “skip-over” its intended target and destroyed Tunguska that is literally located on the “far side” of the North Artic Region. Having realized he was responsible for the devastation, he reportedly dismantled the Death Ray machine concluding it far too dangerous.



Just to be sure that you do not conclude that Nikola Tesla really was some “Mad Scientist” that was out to destroy the world, you might consider a few of his highly acclaimed accomplishments:

·        Tesla is the creator of things like florescent lights, x-rays, the Tesla coil, the Tesla induction motor, and the alternating current system still used today for delivering electric power. You might say that this one innovation (AC Current) is the most significant invention that anyone has ever conceived when it comes to making our modern life style feasible. AC power makes it possible to operate large centrally located electrical generating plants that keep power flowing to millions of homes & businesses, and transports energy over power lines for great distances without complications.  You see, DC Power (Edison’s plan) can only be effectively transmitted via copper wire for about two (2) miles.



Tesla accumulated over 300 patents in his lifetime; before his demise in January of 1943 he was working on a Nikola Tesla free energy project. He was convinced that there is latent electricity all around us, due to the interactions between the Earth and Sun. He had reportedly developed some ideas about how this could be harnessed in such a way that everyone could “collect” all of the power that they could possibly need at no cost. Wouldn’t you know it, when it became apparent that he was working on this type of project; potential investors who relied heavily on the existing electricity industry withdrew their support and he in turn lost the monetary means necessary to pursue building such a device.



In the end game of his genius, perhaps the concept of “free power” is just naïve, especially in a capitalistic economy.  It’s of little wonder that only recently are such Tesla concepts / theories being re-visited.







Sources:

http://voices.yahoo.com/was-nikola-tesla-responsible-tunguska-explosion-2300504.html?cat=7 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunguska_event                                                              http://www.world-mysteries.com/sci_tesla1.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wardenclyffe_Tower                                                                                    http://www.howstuffworks.com/innovation/famous-inventors/famous-nikola-tesla-inventions.htm


 

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

The Production of Crystal Meth





Illicit “Meth” (methamphetamine) may include common products such as drain cleaner, cold tablets, antifreeze, lantern fuel, battery acid, salt, and Lye.





Meth manufacturing involves mixing or combining such products and is extremely dangerous. These chemicals, when combined, are potentially lethal and toxic. When such common chemicals are mixed, exposure during the manufacturing process can damage the central nervous system, liver and kidneys and can burn or irritate the eyes, nose, throat and skin. When co-mingled, the chemicals and fumes will saturate the walls, carpets, plaster and wood in meth labs, and the surrounding soil; they (the fumes) are also known to cause cancer, short-term and permanent brain damage and are a catalyst for adverse effects on the immune and respiratory system.



The profit margin of meth production is incredible; that’s why so many “cooks” are users themselves and only sell off a portion of the finished product to live on and supplement the cost of ingredients for the next batch.   You might be interested to know that a $200.00 investment will yield an ounce of product which may be sold to users for $1,200.00 to $1,600.00.   With margins so lucrative, it’s clear why non users are so often attracted to the production “business” of meth.



Meth labs may be found most anywhere: In houses, commercial buildings, cabins, mobile homes, storage buildings, RVs, caves, abandoned mines, federal and state parks and even the back seat of cars. The concoction is so easy to make and the components are so cheap that many industrious users simply make their own at home in used two-liter soda bottles.



Crystal meth makes the new user feel great, initially at least, and for as long as 12 hours. Meth is typically smoked, snorted, or ingested. It has a powerful physical and mental quality that causes the developing addict to rely on meth more and more to archive the feeling of euphoria.  Many areas of life, such as personal hygiene, family, work, and other responsibilities become less important as the high that makes the person feel good decreases following repeated use, resulting in a need for a higher dose. 



Meth is often used by teenagers who simply want a little extra boost when studying for a test and by young girls who want to reduce their weight.   And let’s not forget the guys who think a little “extra” out of a sexual experience just might be neat which is generally thought to be achieved with use.  Fact is, meth users come from all walks of life:  students, professionals, city folk, dirt poor or rich folk, in other words, any member of society with any ethnic background; point being “poor mans cocaine” is not an accurate portrayal of meth.



Higher doses have a profound effect on the brain, and because the user cannot get that initial rush, as indicated above, the brain’s ability to produce the chemical compounds that produce feelings of euphoria are weakened from repeated use. So in the “long haul” the desire for that pleasure rush changes into a craving for simple normalcy.  Within a few weeks this leads to a vicious cycle, in which, all that the continued use of crystal meth achieves is a break from withdrawal symptoms.            



Throughout the experience, Methamphetamines continually ravage the heart, kidneys, lungs, liver, and even the brain. Extended use can cause permanent psychological damage, stroke and failure of other organs. It’s not uncommon for meth addicts to hear voices and see people and things that other folks don’t see or hear. Mothers to be give birth to “crack babies” often with cardiac problems, cleft palates, or various other birth defects; who enter life saddled with the burden of withdrawal at the most tender age in life.



The Birch reduction, also called the “Nazi method”, became the popular production method in the mid-to-late 1990’s and was the bulk of methamphetamine production as recently as 2002 in the US.   This process reacts with pseudoephedrine (cold tablets), liquid anhydrous ammonia (farm fertilizer), and an alkali metal such as sodium and lithium which is a co-product in common disposable batteries; when the reaction is permitted to “stand” until the ammonia evaporates, “crystal meth” remains.  However, the Birch reduction is quite dangerous because the alkali metal and ammonia are both extremely reactive, and the temperature of liquid ammonia makes it susceptible to “explosive boiling” when the various products are combined (similar to “shaking” a bottle of cola just before opening it). This has been the most popular production method in the Midwestern states of the U. S. because of the readily availability of liquid ammonia fertilizer in farming regions.



For the past several years, a simplified “Shake ‘n Bake” one-pot mixture has become more popular. The method is suitable for small batches so pseudoephedrine (congestion relief meds) restrictions that may exist in a few areas are not a problem.  This manufacturing or cooking process uses chemicals that are easier to obtain and the process is so easy to perform some addicts have acknowledged making meth while driving.  A quick description of the “batching” process  involves placing crushed congestion relief meds like Sudafed tablets for example into a non-pressurized container such as a used 2 liter cola bottle containing ammonium nitrate (fertilizer), water, a hydrophobic solvent such as charcoal lighter fluid, and sulfuric acid (Liquid Plummer).  These are mixed with lye, lithium (from lithium flash light batteries), and salt. Hydrogen chloride gas is produced by a chemical reaction of the salt with sulfuric acid (Liquid Plummer) which will recover crystals. Throughout the process it is important to “burp” the 2 liter bottle now & then to prevent a rupture of the bottle from occurring as a result of accumulating pressure, if not, the sudden exposure of the lithium to the open air can spark a flash fire; that’s why an abandoned reaction (batch) is such a severe hazard to firefighters.  





Because producing methamphetamine in this fashion can be extremely dangerous it has been linked to several accidents and numerous fatalities.  Meth producers frequently complete the chemical reaction inside two-liter bottles that are held close to their bodies during the burping process; since the bottle(s) can potentially explode if the cap is removed too soon or if it accidentally bursts, it’s not too terribly surprising to learn that the procedure has led to a large number of severe burns.



The bad news for the un-knowing / naive non meth user is that chemical residues and lab wastes are left behind in former methamphetamine labs. This can result in severe health problems for folks who use the property after exposure to meth; for this reason local health departments should thoroughly assess suspected properties for hazards prior to allowing them to be re-inhabited.  You should be aware that making or even smoking meth leaves behind a stew of chemicals that saturates walls, ceilings, floors and carpets with meth as well as lead, iodine, mercury, lithium and other poisonous solvents.

Some health experts say it’s possible to cleanup a former meth environment such as a lab, by spraying “Simple Green” all-purpose cleaner on all hard surfaces in the exposed area(s) and wiping them down with towels. Next, if carpeted, it must be replaced after all staples are pulled from the wood. The flooring (carpeted or not) must be scrubbed with a floor cleaner and Simple Green.  However other health experts say the only safe approach if to simply dismantle the contaminated structure and replace it.



If you think you need a decent (but not fail-safe) test kit; they can be found on-line. Cost: $9.00 to $35.00. A positive reading shows that a place has a meth residue problem.  SKC Methchek uses a method developed by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health that allows you to see the test results instantly. Cost: three tests kits for $109, one test kit for $35.00; they do offer discounts for volume purchases.  On the other hand a very amateurish and less reliable testing method may be accomplished with a simple spray bottle filled with “holy water” . . . (just kidding, tap water will do).  By spraying exposed areas with water, the Iodine residue will turn crimson red.





Sources:                                                                                                                   http://realestate.msn.com/how-to-avoid-buying-a-meth-house                                        http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crystal_meth#Illicit_production                                        http://www.skcinc.com/prod/560-002.asp                                                http://www.clermontsheriff.org/MethLab3.aspx                                          http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/23207.php                                                    http://crystalmetheffects.net/


 

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Earth Men, From Mars?





(Above) NASA’s Voyager I Image, 1976


Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second smallest planet in the Solar System, like all planets in our Solar System; it is tilted along its axis (axial tilt). For Mars, the axial tilt is just over 25 degrees; whereas Earth’s axial tilt is 23.5 degrees; because this tilt is similar to Earth’s, Mars has seasons like ours. However the Martian seasons are much longer because a year on Mars is nearly twice as long as an Earth year.



The orbit of Mars is the second most eccentric / unusual in the Solar System. Only Mercury’s orbit is more peculiar.  At perihelion (when nearest to the sun) Mars is a bit more than 206,600,000 km from the Sun and at aphelion (when farthest from the Sun) it is a little over 249,200,000 km distant. The average distance from Mars to the Sun (called the semi-major axis) is 228 million km. It takes Mars approximately 687 Earth days to complete one orbit. Since the orbit of a planet often varies somewhat because of the gravitational influences of nearby bodies that surround it, such as the two moons (Phobos and Deimos) of Mars, the eccentricity can change over long periods of time.



For a lot of years now, Mars has had an elliptical (egg-shaped) orbit. The result most obvious to us: The planets southern winters are long and extreme while the northern winters of Mars are not as harsh; none the less, both hemispheres harbor conditions that are rather unfavorable to life as we know it.  



As recently as 1.35 million years ago, Mars was in a nearly circular orbit.  Yet another important fact is that astronomers know that the current tilt of Mars’ axis is just a fluke. Unlike Earth, the planet’s tilt has changed dramatically over long periods of time.  This is likely the result of the two satellites or moons which are believed to be “captured” asteroids, perhaps at different dates in the distant past.



Scientists of Earth are convinced that somewhere around 3.5 billion years ago the climate on Mars was similar to that of early Earth: warm and wet; although today the Mars atmosphere is very thin and made-up of 95% carbon dioxide. To make the Mars environment less attractive the temperature is rather cold, and what little water remains is either frozen in the Martian poles or hidden in deep underground springs.  In fact the surface temperature on Mars will only reach a high of 70 degrees Fahrenheit (20 degrees Celsius) at noon, but only in areas near the equator in the dead of summer, and will quickly plunge to a low of 225 below 0 degrees Fahrenheit (-153 degrees Celsius) in regions of close proximity to either pole.



For thousands of years the atmosphere of Mars has lacked a protecting ozone layer, which allows much of the Sun's dangerous ultraviolet radiation to reach the surface of the planet and it’s of some interest to know that the gravity on Mars is only about 38% of Earth's, so, if you weighed 100 pounds on Earth, you’d only weigh about 38 pounds on Mars.



Theories flourish in regard to what type of event occurred that ultimately led to the apparent lifeless environment we call the 4th rock from the sun / Mars.  Was it a natural event or the result of a serious mishap of an established race of beings, humanoid or otherwise?  Not unlike most folks I have a theory that is as believable as any.



Several billion years ago, let’s theorize 3.51 billion years past, the surface of Mars was bombarded by several asteroids from deep space. As a result a relatively small technologically advanced humanoid society faced potential doom; fortunately, the after-effects of this unhappy event spanned a period of nearly a hundred years.



The impacts of the asteroids prompted repeated volcanic eruptions all across the relatively small planet’s surface, thus spewing billions of tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere which eventually destroyed the planets ozone layer and the oxygen rich atmosphere.    The good news is that this was a really slow process, therefore allowing the more advanced segments of the planets civilization to escape to a more “life-friendly” local within the solar system; specifically, the 3rd planet from the Sun they called Earth.



It’s common knowledge that members of the ancient Zulu tribe from South Africa insist that their ancestors were indigenous (native) to the planet Mars, who came to planet Earth and inhabited the Sahara desert which was then a tropical rainforest. 



Further evidence of “beyond Earth” influence is easily found in long held accounts told by the Mayans & Aztecs of Meso-America, who have legends of gods from the sky; the old Chinese emperors themselves emphasized their claim that their ancestors were the descendants of the “sons of the heaven”, who came to this planet by way of metallic “dragons”. The Bible, the Thora, the Quran and ancient Mesopotamian legends speak of angelic or godly beings, also called “sons of god”, which came from the heavens and allegedly in-bred with the humans; you may recall that these offspring (“Nephilim”) were described as “giants”, which were larger and more robust when compared to humans of that era.



Although such legends are generally not specific in describing the precise region of the solar system from which such beings arrived, there is at least one exception: The Dogon Tribe of West Africa which is specific as to where the race of “teachers” came from. As was published in an earlier post, titled “The Nommos”, they came from the Sirius star system and visited Earth thousands of years ago. The Nommos were ugly, amphibious beings that resembled mermaids and mermen. Such beings as the Nommos also appear in Babylonian and Sumerian myths. You may recall that the Egyptian Goddess Isis is sometimes depicted as a mermaid, who is also often linked with the star Sirius. The observable conclusion is that many other legendary “gods” were likely as not, native to Mars.



The Theory of The Big Bang resulted in the universe (including our solar system) being formed, some 14 billion years ago; as indicated above, within 9 or 10 billion years or so thereafter (perhaps, 3.0 billion years ago), the Martian surface cooled to an ideal environment for the development of life forms; in all likelihood, much like early Homo sapiens (humans), known to have suddenly appeared on the African continent of Earth just 200,000 years past.



If you are one of those folks who disregard such myths or legend as pure fantasy, keep in mind that the legendary city of Troy was considered as such until it was discovered in 1870; this fact was reinforced in 1998 when it was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list. 



If you’re still not convinced consider the alternative:    It is generally accepted that the Homo sapiens (Human) species of planet Earth originated in Africa, where it reached structural modernity about 200,000 years ago.  Further, if you choose to believe this “standard story line”, the human lineage somehow “split” from its common ancestor and closest living relative, the chimpanzee, some five million years ago, evolving into the Australopithecines and eventually the category of Homo. The first Homo species to move out of Africa is said to be Homo erectus, the African variety of which, together with Homo heidelbergensis, is said to be the immediate ancestor to all of us modern humans.



As the story goes, Homo sapiens proceeded to colonize the various continents of Earth, arriving in Eurasia (Europe and Asia) 125,000 to 60,000 years ago; Australia around 40,000 years ago; the Americas around 15,000 years ago; and remote islands such as Hawaii, Easter Island, Madagascar, and New Zealand between the years 300 AD and 1280 AD.



If you readily accept this belief, you are apt to also believe the ever popular science fiction film production of “Planet of The Apes” was in fact a documentary. Case in point, both theories have their draw-backs.



There may be a connection between Egypt and Mars: Giza, where the three great pyramids are standing, as everyone knows borders Cairo, the capital of Egypt. In ancient times Cairo was the name for the Greek god Aries, later called Mars by the Romans. You see, Mars was originally the god of agriculture prior to becoming the god of war, so you could say mankind considered feeding himself a bit more important than war in the early days of civilization.   In the Arabic language the place Caïro is known as “Al Qahiri”, which literally means “Mars”. 




With all these things being considered, perhaps the strongest support for a “men from Mars” argument has been already been discovered on the red planet and is depicted by the reputable “Face on Mars” as was originally photographed by NASA’s Viking 1 unmanned mission on July 25, 1976.
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Sources:
http://www.lost-civilizations.net/past-life-mars-ancient-saga.html                    http://www.universetoday.com/14828/orbit-of-mars/#ixzz2PG87P3Ub http://www.universetoday.com/14894/mars-tilt/                                                                                                           http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human                                                                                     http://quest.nasa.gov/aero/planetary/mars.html                                                              http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Bang http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu/mars102.php http://wiki.answers.comQCan_you_verify_the_Zulu_tribe_legend_of_coming_from_mars_in_a_space_ship           http://talc.site88.net/mars.htm                                                                                           http://www.chimpout.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-86212.html                                   http://talc.site88.net/intro.htm                                                         
http://www.unmuseum.org/siriusb.htm