Tuesday 16 August, 2022
Analog Surveillance
A ‘listening door’ used by the East German regime in the pre-1989 era. Photograph of an exhibit in the (unmissable) Stasi Museum in Berlin. Note the number of batteries required! Poor quality image because it was behind a glass screen.
Quote of the Day
“What’s a thousand dollars? Mere chicken feed. A poultry matter.”
Groucho Marx
Musical alternative to the morning’s radio news
Duke Ellington | The Single Petal Of A Rose
Long Read of the Day
Electric Vehicles Are Way, Way More Energy-Efficient Than Internal Combustion Vehicles
Really useful summary of some recent research by the Yale Climate Connections project.
TL;DR version: in a fossil-fuel powered vehicle around 80% of the energy in the fuel is lost in engine and related inefficiencies. In an EV only about 11% of the energy is lost.
The details are interesting though, so worth a read.
My commonplace booklet
And while we’re on the subject of surveillance…
