December 28, 2015

(1993) Seattle Times: Twin Towers Engineered To Withstand Jet Collision

Seattle Times | February 27, 1993

Engineers had to consider every peril they could imagine when they designed the World Trade Center three decades ago because, at the time, the twin towers were of unprecedented size for structures made of steel and glass.

"We looked at every possible thing we could think of that could happen to the buildings, even to the extent of an airplane hitting the side," said John Skilling, head structural engineer. "However, back in those days people didn't think about terrorists very much."



Skilling, based in Seattle, is among the world's top structural engineers. He is responsible for much of Seattle's downtown skyline and for several of the world's tallest structures, including the Trade Center. Concerned because of a case where an airplane hit the Empire State Building, Skilling's people did an analysis that showed the towers would withstand the impact of a Boeing 707.

"Our analysis indicated the biggest problem would be the fact that all the fuel (from the airplane) would dump into the building. There would be a horrendous fire. A lot of people would be killed," he said. "The building structure would still be there." ...snip
Full Article: http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=19930227&slug=1687698



NYC WTC 'designed to withstand multiple airliner impacts'

Frank De Martini WTC architect explains it would resist jetliner impacts

At the time the Twin Towers were built, the design approach of moving the support columns to the perimeter and the core, thereby creating large expanses of unobstructed floor space, was relatively new, and unique for a skyscraper. However, that approach is commonplace in contemporary skyscrapers. Frank Demartini's Statement

Frank A. Demartini, on-site construction manager for the World Trade Center, spoke of the resilience of the towers in an interview recorded on January 25, 2001.

The building was designed to have a fully loaded 707 crash into it. That was the largest plane at the time. I believe that the building probably could sustain multiple impacts of jetliners because this structure is like the mosquito netting on your screen door -- this intense grid -- and the jet plane is just a pencil puncturing that screen netting. It really does nothing to the screen netting.

Demartini, who had an office on the 88th floor of the North Tower, has been missing since the 9/11/01 attack, having remained in the North Tower to assist in the evacuation. 6 Demartini had first worked at World Trade Center when Leslie E. Robertson Associates hired him to assess damage from the truck bombing in 1993. LINK Like All Skyscrapers, the Twin Towers Were Over-Engineered

One aspect of engineering that is not widely understood is that structures are over-engineered as a matter of standard practice. 7 Steel structures like bridges and buildings are typically designed to withstand five times anticipated static loads and 3 times anticipated dynamic loads. The anticipated loads are the largest ones expected during the life of the structure, like the worst hurricane or earthquake occurring while the floors are packed with standing-room-only crowds. Given that September 11th was not a windy day, and that there were not throngs of people in the upper floors, the critical load ratio was probably well over 10, meaning that more than nine-tenths of the columns at the same level would have to fail before the weight of the top could have overcome the support capacity of the remaining columns.

There is evidence that the Twin Towers were designed with an even greater measure of reserve strength than typical large buildings. According to the 1964 white paper cited above, a Tower would still be able to withstand a 100-mile-per-hour wind after all the perimeter columns on one face and some of the columns on each adjacent face had been cut. 8 Also, John Skilling is cited by the Engineering News Record for the claim that "live loads on these [perimeter] columns can be increased more than 2000% before failure occurs."

1980s What if a plane hit the World Trade Center?



1945: Airplane Crashes Into The Empire State Building Killing 14



A United States military plane crashes into the Empire State Building on this day in 1945, killing 14 people. The freak accident was caused by heavy fog.

The B-25 Mitchell bomber, with two pilots and one passenger aboard, was flying from New Bedford, Massachusetts, to LaGuardia Airport in New York City. As it came into the metropolitan area on that Saturday morning, the fog was particularly thick. Air-traffic controllers instructed the plane to fly to Newark Airport instead.

This new flight plan took the plane over Manhattan; the crew was specifically warned that the Empire State Building, the tallest building in the city at the time, was not visible. The bomber was flying relatively slowly and quite low, seeking better visibility, when it came upon the Chrysler Building in midtown. It swerved to avoid the building but the move sent it straight into the north side of the Empire State Building, near the 79th floor.

Upon impact, the plane's jet fuel exploded, filling the interior of the building with flames all the way down to the 75th floor and sending flames out of the hole the plane had ripped open in the building's side. One engine from the plane went straight through the building and landed in a penthouse apartment across the street. Other plane parts ended up embedded in and on top of nearby buildings. The other engine snapped an elevator cable while at least one woman was riding in the elevator car. The emergency auto brake saved the woman from crashing to the bottom, but the engine fell down the shaft and landed on top of it. Quick-thinking rescuers pulled the woman from the elevator, saving her life.

Since it was a Saturday, fewer workers than normal were in the building. Only 11 people in the building were killed, some suffering burns from the fiery jet fuel and others after being thrown out of the building. All 11 victims were workers from War Relief Services department of the National Catholic Welfare Conference, into the offices of which the plane had crashed. The three people on the plane were also killed.

An 18 foot by 20 foot hole was left in the side of the Empire State Building. Though its structural integrity was not affected, the crash did cause nearly $1 million in damages, about $10.5 million in today's money.



Who would be silly enough to believe that Bush and Rice could lie to the nation and not be held accountable. Maybe James Clapper, who's still "on the job"? Liars Lie. Fools believe them.

December 26, 2015

US generals supplied Syria with intel over ISIS to avoid toppling Assad – Seymour Hersh

Dec 24, 2015: The Pentagon’s Joint Chiefs of Staff has been indirectly providing Syrian military with intelligence on Islamic extremists fearing the Obama administration’s agenda to oust Bashar Assad will engender total chaos in Syria. A new investigation in the London Review of Books by renowned American journalist Seymour M. Hersh exposes the divide between the US top brass and the politicians in the White House when it comes to dealing with Islamic extremists in Syria and Iraq.

Seymour Hersh Awards, honors and associations

His journalism and publishing awards include the 1970 Pulitzer Prize, the 2004 National Council of Teachers of English George Orwell Award for Distinguished Contribution to Honesty and Clarity in Public Language, two National Magazine Awards, 5 George Polk Awards - making him that award's most honored laureate - and more than a dozen other prizes for investigative reporting:

1969: George Polk Special Award (for his My Lai reporting)
1970: Pulitzer Prize for his book My Lai 4: A Report on the Massacre and Its Aftermath.
1973: George Polk Award for Investigative Reporting; Scripps-Howard Public Service Award; Sidney Hillman Award
1974: George Polk Award for National Reporting
1975: Los Angeles Times Book Prize
1981: George Polk Award for National Reporting
1983: National Book Critics Circle Award for The Price of Power: Kissinger in the Nixon White House.
2003: National Magazine Award for Public Interest for his articles "Lunch with the Chairman", "Selective Intelligence", and "The Stovepipe".
2004: following Hersh's 2004 articles in the New Yorker magazine exposing the Abu Ghraib scandal: National Magazine Award for Public Interest, Overseas Press Club Award, National Press Foundation's Kiplinger Distinguished Contributions to Journalism Award, and his fifth George Polk Award.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seymour_Hersh

December 24, 2015

NYTimes -Bernie Sanders: To Rein In Wall Street, Fix the Fed

By BERNIE SANDERS
DEC. 23, 2015

WALL STREET is still out of control. Seven years ago, the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department bailed out the largest financial institutions in this country because they were considered too big to fail. But almost every one is bigger today than it was before the bailout. If any were to fail again, taxpayers could be on the hook for another bailout, perhaps a larger one this time.



To rein in Wall Street, we should begin by reforming the Federal Reserve, which oversees financial institutions and which uses monetary policy to maintain price stability and full employment. Unfortunately, an institution that was created to serve all Americans has been hijacked by the very bankers it regulates.

The recent decision by the Fed to raise interest rates is the latest example of the rigged economic system. Big bankers and their supporters in Congress have been telling us for years that runaway inflation is just around the corner. They have been dead wrong each time. Raising interest rates now is a disaster for small business owners who need loans to hire more workers and Americans who need more jobs and higher wages. As a rule, the Fed should not raise interest rates until unemployment is lower than 4 percent. Raising rates must be done only as a last resort — not to fight phantom inflation....snip

...In 2010, I inserted an amendment in Dodd-Frank to audit the emergency lending by the Fed during the financial crisis. We need to go further and require the Government Accountability Office to conduct a full and independent audit of the Fed each and every year....snip
MORE: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/23/opinion/bernie-sanders-to-rein-in-wall-street-fix-the-fed.html

A BILL
To require a full audit of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Federal reserve banks by the Comptroller General of the United States, and for other purposes.
https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/senate-bill/264/text

Money for Nothing-Inside the Federal Reserve

The public currency should be run like a public utility
Nationalize the Federal Reserve
http://www.progressivegazette.com/2013/12/nationalize-federal-reserve.html

December 24, 2015

How many times a day do you refresh the Creative Spec page, Billy?

"Who are you, and what do you want?" - Londo Mollari, Babylon 5

You clearly hate those of us that dare to question what we've been told. It might be helpful to this group to see what you have to say elsewhere



Maybe you and your other authoritarian buddies can all get together and have this group banned. Wouldn't matter even a tiny bit, because we'd all go somewhere else in a second. But you'd feel good, wouldn't you. Because people posting in an obscure area of a discussion board really really makes you angry. Why do some people get so angry at their fellow citizens that don't swallow everything rammed down their throat? That's a good question for professionals.

Until then, it's really too bad that you are allowed to pollute these threads. I can understand some of your frustration, as more and more people question the lies of 911 every single day. And unfortunately for you, many people around the world don't buy the official conspiracy theory. Deal with it, or, don't. No one cares.

How long do you think I'd last in the Hillary Clinton group if I stormed in there and insulted those who worship her and the articles her followers post? I wouldn't last long, would I Billy. But I don't have enough time to even try, because I have better things to do. (BTW- I'm sure you'll be interested in the fact that Rodham-Clinton's voice makes me want to drive ice picks through my eardrums. Kind of like how you don't like Andy Steel's voice)

Reminder:

Creative Speculation is a group, not a forum. Groups often serve as safe havens for members who share similar interests and viewpoints. Individuals who post messages contrary to a particular group's stated purpose can be excluded from posting in that group. For detailed information about this group and its purpose, click here.

December 22, 2015

For the Unthinking Fuckwit from Purgatory Iron Works and His Idiotic “Jet Fuel” Demonstration

December 17, 2015 by willyloman

“If it (9/11) was a conspiracy, I do not care.” Trenton Tye, Welder

OK. So we have another phony, “Redneck Dixon White” fuckwit over at Youtube, a guy by the name of Trenton Tye, who has put together a simpleton’s version of “the Truth” regarding what did or did not happen on 9/11.

Tye has taken time from his “busy day” of working on Youtube videos, a whole 2 minutes mind you, to show the public just how stupid “truthers” are when it comes to the steel in the Twin Towers. I, on the other hand, have been researching and writing about those events for the past 8 years and have published over 100 articles of my own work on the subject.

Of course, his substance-free and DEEPLY FLAWED demonstration has been latched upon by several main stream media outlets as the end-all be-all “debunking” of the Truth advocates out here who say the key evidence in the demolition of the Twin Towers rests in the melted steel...

... This article, which I will try to make into a video if my computer allows it, and which I will direct toward Tye himself, will pick his ignorant argument apart, piece by piece starting with the first thing that came out of his mouth:

1. “If it (9/11) was a conspiracy, I do not care.”

Many people do care, Tye, that’s why they spend years researching what happened that day. Because, unlike you, some of us (US) do give a shit about finding out who was responsible for the event that killed so many people in New York, Pennsylvania and DC that day and subsequently launched war after war across the Middle East killing scores more (US troops and civilians alike) and leaving 10 times that number scarred for life (US troops and civilians alike). And that’s too say nothing of the constitutional rights we all had to give up for the Patriot Act or the trillions of dollars of debt your kids will have to pay for the wars, you fucking imbecile...snip
Full: https://willyloman.wordpress.com/2015/12/17/for-the-unthinking-fuckwit-from-purgatory-iron-works-and-his-idiotic-jet-fuel-demonstration/



*************************************

Propaganda Can’t Melt Steel Beams
DigWithin | Kevin Ryan | 12/20/2015

Eleven years ago, I initiated a discussion about the fact that jet fuel fires could not have melted steel at the World Trade Center. The government agency investigating the WTC destruction responded by holding “some of its deliberations in secret.” Although it’s not a secret that jet fuel can’t melt steel, due to propaganda from sources like The Washington Post and The Huffington Post, Americans often get confused about what facts like that mean to any national discussion. In a nutshell, what it means is that the molten metal found at the WTC, for which there is a great deal of evidence, cannot be explained by the official 9/11 myth.

Today no one thinks that jet fuel fires can melt steel beams—not even The Posts’ new science champion, who doesn’t bother to actually use jet fuel or steel beams to teach us about “retarded metallurgical things.” Instead, he uses a thin metal rod and a blacksmith forge to imply that, if the WTC buildings were made of thin metal rods and there were lots of blacksmith forges there, the thin metal rods would have lost strength and this would be the result. If you buy that as an explanation for what happened at the WTC, you might agree that everyone should just stop questioning 9/11.

This absurd demonstration highlights at least two major problems with America’s ongoing struggle to understand 9/11. The first is that there was a great deal of molten metal at the WTC. Those who know that fact sometimes share internet memes that say “Jet Fuel Can’t Melt Steel Beams” when they want to convey that “Thermite Melted Steel at the WTC.” The second major problem is that certain mainstream media sources continue to put a lot of energy into dis-informing the public about 9/11.

Sources like The Posts, The New York Times and some “alternative media” continue to work hard to support the official myth of 9/11. That effort is not easy because they must do so while providing as little actual information about 9/11 as possible. The dumbing down of the average citizen is a full time job for such propagandists. Luckily for them, American students receive almost no historical context that encourages them to think critically or consider ideas that conflict with blind allegiance to their government. When it comes to the WTC, it also helps that almost 80% of Americans are scientifically illiterate...snip
Full: http://digwithin.net/

Kevin Ryan is the former Site Manager for Environmental Health Laboratories, a division of Underwriters Laboratories (UL). Mr. Ryan, a Chemist and laboratory manager, was fired by UL in 2004 for publicly questioning the report being drafted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) on their World Trade Center investigation. In the intervening period, Ryan has completed additional research while his original questions, which have become increasingly important over time, remain unanswered by UL or NIST.

Through interviews, presentations, and his work as co-editor at the online Journal of 911 Studies, Mr. Ryan works to bring out the truth behind the events of 9/11/01 for the benefit of all people. http://ultruth.com/Kevin_Ryan.htm

December 22, 2015

French power station generates electricity from cheese (pas l'oignon)

Cheese-based power station in the Alps produces enough power to supply a community of 1,500

Telegraph.uk By David Chazan, Paris | 20 Dec 2015

Generating electricity from cheese could be the plot of an Asterix comic book, but that is exactly what is happening at a new power plant in the French Alps.

A by-product of Beaufort cheese, skimmed whey, is converted into biogas, a mixture of methane and carbon dioxide, at the plant in Albertville, in Savoie...


Albertville in Savoie, France Photo: Alamy

...“Whey is our fuel,” said François Decker of Valbio, the company that designed and built the power station, which opened in October. “It’s quite simply the same as the ingredient in natural yoghurt."

After full-fat milk is used to make Beaufort cheese, whey and cream are left over. The cream is taken to make ricotta cheese, butter and protein powder, which is used as a food supplement.

The residual skimmed whey is then placed in a tank with bacteria, where natural fermentation produces methane in the same way that the gas is produced in cows’ stomachs...snip
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/france/12060538/French-power-station-generates-electricity-from-cheese.html

Cheesus, what's next, hamsters on wheels?

December 19, 2015

Reminder- in October, Wasserman-Shultz dis-invited a Vice-Chair of the DNC to the Las Vegas Debate

Because that person wanted more debates.

October 13, 2015 Washington (CNN)—Rep. Tulsi Gabbard said she was disinvited from Tuesday night's first Democratic debate after voicing a call for more of them.

Gabbard, the vice chair of the Democratic National Committee, told CNN's Wolf Blitzer Monday on "The Situation Room" she was told her vocal support for more debates had made her "no longer welcome to come to the debate."

Gabbard said the message was conveyed to her chief-of-staff from the chief-of-staff of DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

"The prevailing message of that was that because I continued to call for more debates, that I should not go to the debate in Las Vegas," the Hawaii congresswoman said. "The issue here is not about me saying, 'Boo hoo, I'm going to miss the party.' The issue here is one of democracy and freedom of speech."...
http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/12/politics/bernie-sanders-tulsi-gabbard-dnc-debate/

Official House Page: http://gabbard.house.gov/
More videos https://www.youtube.com/user/tulsipress
More info https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tulsi_Gabbard
Website: https://www.votetulsi.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/tulsigabbard

December 19, 2015

Guardian: 'Game-changing' perovskite solar tech could be cheaper and more efficient

Australian company races to be first to develop perovskite solar and make technology available for more businesses

The Guardian | Annie Kane | 17 December 2015

With over 200 mostly sunny days a year, Australia’s nickname of the sunburnt country is well–earned. It’s therefore unsurprising that we lead the world in household solar, with 1.4m photovoltaic (PV) systems running in 2015.

By contrast however, Australia has relatively few large-scale solar farms, which the Clean Energy Council attributes to the “relatively high cost of the technology compared to more established forms of renewable energy”, such as wind power.

However, a new solar technology is being developed that could help to overcome this cost barrier, and bring about cheaper, and – potentially – less architecturally-intrusive solar energy. It’s called perovskite solar.



The technology essentially uses equal proportions of two other solar types (dye-sensitised solar cells and organic PV), and – even though it is still in development stage – has been of such interest to scientists, that Science magazine touted it as one of the top scientific breakthroughs of 2013.

To further the technology, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (Arena) announced earlier this month that it would provide up to $892,000 to support the CSIRO in developing and applying guidelines for assessing the performance of perovskite solar cells, which could be quite high...snip
Full Article: http://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2015/dec/18/game-changing-perovskite-solar-tech-could-be-cheaper-and-more-efficient

Cheap Green Solar = Cheap Green Hydrogen
"Game Changing"

December 19, 2015

IEEE: "Hydricity" Would Couple Solar Thermal and Hydrogen Power

IEEE Spectrum | Charles Q. Choi | 14 Dec 2015

Solar heat could help generate both electricity and hydrogen fuel at the same time in a system that scientists in Switzerland and the United States call "hydricity." Such a system could supply electricity round-the-clock with an overall efficiency better than many photovoltaic cells, researchers add.

There are two ways solar energy is used to generate electricity. Photovoltaic cells directly convert sunlight to electricity, while solar thermal power plants—also known as concentrating solar power systems—focus sunlight with mirrors, heating water and producing high-pressure steam that drives turbines...snip



...Today’s solar thermal power plants operate at temperatures of up to roughly 625 degrees C. However, the researchers noted that solar thermal power plants are more efficient at higher temperatures. What’s more, when they reach temperatures above 725 degrees C they can split water into it’s constituents, hydrogen and oxygen.

An integrated "hydricity" system would produce both steam for generating electricity and hydrogen for storing energy. And each makes the other more efficient. Set to produce hydrogen alone, its production efficiency approaches 50 percent, the researchers claim. This is because the high-pressure steam the system generates can easily be used to pressurize hydrogen. The substantial amount of power needed to compress hydrogen fuel for later transport and use is often neglected when it comes to calculating hydrogen production efficiency...snip
Full Article: http://spectrum.ieee.org/energywise/energy/renewables/hydricity-could-couple-solar-and-hydrogen-power



Also see: Hydricity – A New Power Source
Engineerpal.com December 16, 2015

Humans need of power to grow and develop itself is ever growing and everlasting. The search for renewable source of power has always been a priority for developers. One of the alternative found was solar energy. But as ingenious and environmentally friendly as solar energy solutions are, they’re not as efficient as we wish them to be and of course, they only generate electricity when the Sun is out...

The hydrogen fuel produced alongside the electricity is also important as not only could it find uses in transportation, but also in chemical production and other industries. It doesn’t discharge when stored or degrade with repeated use. When the Sun goes down, the stored hydrogen power could kick in, and that means turbines don’t need to be stopped or restarted saving alot of time and generating a alot more electricity....snip
Full: http://engineerpal.com/hydricity-power-source/

Cheap Green Electricity = Cheap Green Hydrogen
Solar Hydrogen is the fuel of the future. A GAME CHANGER.
http://www.amazon.com/Solar-Hydrogen-Future-Mario-Pagliaro/dp/1849731950/

Hydrogen- the Next Big Thing

December 17, 2015

Have you seen this BBC clip?

Jane Standley from the BBC reports that WTC 7 had collapsed, even though you can see the building behind her. This supposedly came from Reuters but that's like saying your lettuce came from Kroger. The actual origin of this strange pre-cognition is still unknown, as far as I know.

Even more bizarre, when this first started circulating around the net, the BBC said they lost all of their 911 tapes. They "found" them a year or so later.

Jane was back 3 hours later. Wouldn't you know it, she was cut off again.