One can be either socially liberal or socially conservative and still be a libertarian. On issues like abortion, gay marriage and drugs, how one views the state’s role, or non-role, in these matters, is usually what determines that individual’s libertarian credentials–not necessarily their personal views on these issues. But there are some libertarians who insist [...]
One can be either socially liberal or socially conservative and still be a libertarian. On issues like abortion, gay marriage and drugs, how one views the state’s role, or non-role, in these matters, is usually what determines that individual’s libertarian credentials–not necessarily their personal views on these issues. But there are some libertarians who insist [...]
"'Our preferred policy solution is to abolish patents entirely,' Michele Boldrin and David K. Levine wrote in a recently published paper. That statement, of course, flies in the face of the conventional wisdom that patents foster innovation and improve productivity. Both truisms, they say, are wrong. In fact, patents have a 'negative effect on innovation,' they say. Obviously, this is awfully radical, but it's worth noting that 18 months after the largest patent reform legislation in decades -- the America Invents Act -- was signed by President Barack Obama, patent litigation has continued to increase." Continue reading →
"A German student has built an electromagnetic harvester that recharges an AA battery by soaking up ambient, environmental radiation. These harvesters can gather free electricity from just about anything, including overhead power lines, coffee machines, refrigerators, or even the emissions from your WiFi router or smartphone." Continue reading →
"This may be the first time 3-D printing is the subject of legislation, but it certainly won’t be the last. The technology allows for the production of objects by depositing thin layers of materials. The process is called additive manufacturing, which stands in opposition to subtractive manufacturing, the traditional process in which objects are produced at factories by making small parts out of larger pieces of material, like sheets of metal. By allowing for the on-demand production of single, customized items, the technology promises to end the system of large factories and long supply chains in the markets for many goods—and to transform the global economy." Continue reading →
"Two men – one in Washington State and the other in South Africa – used open source software to design a series of mechanical hands for a boy whose family could not afford a commercial prosthetic. A group called Defense Distributed have already 'printed' a plastic high capacity ammunition magazine. President Obama is noticing. The Department of Defense has shelled out $30 million to promote 3D printing and the sum is being matched by a group that includes crony-capitalist corporations such as Boeing. Nothing could be more disastrous to the technology than being championed by government promoting the technology, especially in league with crony corporations." Continue reading →
"The meteor that exploded over the Ural Mountains in Russia Friday now appears to have been a small asteroid clearly unrelated to 2012 DA14, which flitted past Earth Friday afternoon. Researchers now say the object had a mass of 7,000 metric tons (7,700 US tons) and a diameter of about 50 feet. The asteroid's breakup at an altitude some 12 to 15 miles above Russia's Chelyabinsk region represents the largest recorded asteroid encounter since 1908, when another asteroid or comet exploded over the Tunguska River in Siberia, leveling some 820 square miles of forest." Continue reading →
"According to a report last year by Al Jazeera, an estimated one million Russian motorists have dashboard video cameras installed in their cars. This is not to capture moments like the meteor flight or even miraculous survivals of horrifying highway crashes. No, Al Jazeera reported that the cams are there to help stamp out police corruption." Continue reading →
"Since New York State enacted its restrictive new gun laws, many manufacturers have sent that state (and others) a message: If local governments are going to severely restrict the ability of citizens to own guns, then these companies will not be selling to law enforcement in those areas. Among the gun manufacturers sending that message: Olympic Arms, Inc; La Rue Tactical; EFI, LLC – Extreme Firepower; York Arms; Templar Custom; Cheaper Than Dirt. In addition to these very public statements, gun-owner groups are asking members and fans to contact three other manufacturers with significant sales to law enforcement in New York." Continue reading →
"The Framers of the Constitution were big into hemp, and, after 56 years of prohibition, America is on the cusp of ending a hemp ban as part of a push to help farmers. As medical marijuana and pot legalization movements gain ground in Western and Northern states, the South, starting with Kentucky, may be moving ahead on pot's cousin, hemp, a flax-like fiber that proponents say has uses in 25,000 products and is already commercially farmed across a globe where marijuana is still largely outlawed." Continue reading →