JoNova
A science presenter, writer, speaker & former TV host; author of The Skeptic's Handbook (over 200,000 copies distributed & available in 15 languages).
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Statistics
This is a good video on the impending blackouts in NSW:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74bE_lYvEZE
Gets almost everything right. It discusses the absurdity of using coal generators to follow wind and solar and the high impact on reliability of doing that. It recommends changing the AEMO scheduling as I did in my submission to the current ISP.
It also points out that NSW needs 17 synchronous condensers at estimated total cost of $2.8bn. And when did estimates reflect reality!
It provides a figure of $20bn to replace Erraring with wind, solar, batteries, transmission and grid stability equipment. I would put it north of $60bn because it requires 60GW of solar panels and 120GWh of battery. Chine might do that for AUD60bn but not in Australia.
This is the reason Tomago will close.
The position in SA is even worse. The South Australian and Federal government are paying to keep Whyalla steel works running. SA now looking at being the events State by taking events from Victoria.
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If I was a non-woke major events organiser there’s no way I’d risk having an event there. I’d rather have it at a place electricity comes from a proper power station and was reliable.
Unlike COP31 (had in proceeded in Adelaidestan) , where likely they would have avoided embarrassment by having large numbers of diesel generators to back up the event, most events could not afford that or want the extra hassle.
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Not mentioned often are the diesel-gas turbine generators installed by the SA Government into the former GMH-Holden factories in the Adelaide suburb of Elizabeth soon after the first series of grid destabilising when wind and solar supply stalled.
And in other locations, most recently I read at the Adelaide suburb of Osborne Park where the Naval Shipbuilding Dockyards are located and where the RAN six Collins Class conventional diesel-electric submarines were built based on Swedish now latest model called Gotland Class, as usual the Navy and Department of Defence decided to make many modifications to the Swedish design resulting on longer lead times and cost, and when built working out how to fix the “bugs” in the system.
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By the way, the batteries were also designed and manufactured in SA for the Collins Class, and instead of lead had expanded copper plates.
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Regarding Diesel-Gas fuel, the system can be installed on diesel engines of most capacities and the latest technology, as far as I am aware, is injected LPG into the diesel injector system and adjustable to suit the engine capacity. For example my Mitsubishi 4WD diesel years ago had the earlier fumigation system that was not as efficient meaning accurate, but after installation the power and the torque measured at the rear wheels on a dynamometer increased 20% from original specifications and the LPG was also 20% of total diesel-gas fuel.
The gain in power and torque is because combustion of the distillate is much more efficient than used without LPG, so the unused fuel is exhausted but with LPG the combustion is much better so emissions also reduce.
Stationary diesel engines such as electricity generators can be equipped with an injected diesel-gas system.
The Howard Government encouraged the installation of LPG dual fuel systems for petrol/gasoline engines meaning switch to LPG or petrol because of lower emissions and an excess to demand supply of Liquid Petroleum Gas at that time in Australia. Diesel-Gas is also a switch on and off LPG system but diesel is always used.
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Note Whyalla and other large businesses offered government taxpayer funded support are most often union membership places of employment
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As no-one is awake:
Bloke in Victorian Government offices (in the 1970’s) was transferred from one section to another. The boss of the transferred office, looked around and said “we don’t have any spare desks and go back where you can from”. Knowing that the 2 department heads were at ‘loggerheads’ he decided that nobody would check his whereabouts, so he went out the back door and got a job at one of the firms nearby. Every day he would note his presence in the book at the base of the main stairs but went out the backdoor to his new job. He would come back every day to the canteen upstairs, and he was seen in various places because he got an hour for lunch whereas the ‘slaves’ were on flexi-time and only took 30 minutes.
All went well except that one day he forgot to pickup his pay check. The pay clerk sent it to his ‘new’ office. The boss there sent it down to his original office along with a comment about “the people there should be awake enough to collect their pay”. That provoked his original boss to respond with “at least we know who works here”. The bloke picked up his pay cheque and was oblivious on the commotion, which has escalated to near war. It got so bad that a senior from the top came down to quell things, and after some arguments asked which section does he work with, and both managers pointed at the other. It was suggested that this should be sorted out.
The offender was given a choice of keeping his job by paying back the salary he had collected over the 3 months etc or being dismissed. Naturally he figured that 2 salaries for 3+months was better and his newer job paid better anyway.
The question was how to stop this. Instead of everybody having to sign in the attendance book (at the foot of the main stairs) and out at the end of the day as usual, but by having everyone also sign out & in for lunch. The offender would pass by the book on his way to his new job in the morning, and back as he came back for lunch (canteen was subsidised).
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Has anything really changed?
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And of course now there is no compulsion to turn up at the office at all!
Nice pay too if you can live with your conscience.
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He’ll be replaced by a robot soon.
https://va.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_tarpeavv2Y1z23obp.mp4
😆
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James Watt has a lot to answer for.
Anyone knows the name of a first AI programmer ?
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It depends what aspect if AI you mean
Alan Turing established the theoretical framework 1948 and proposed the Turing Test 1950.
First program, the “Logic Theorist”, 1955-56. Allen Newell, Herbert A. Simon and J.C. Shaw at RAND Corporation and Carnegie Mellon.
First “Learning” Program (1952), Arthur Samuel at IBM.
First AI Programming Language, LISP (1958), John McCarthy at MIT.
First conversational chatbot (1966), ELIZA, Joseph Weizenbaum at MIT.
The Mark 1 Perceptron (1958) by Frank Rosenblatt was a learning artificial neural network built on an analog computer with up to 1000 neurons which could perform basic shape recognition.
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I remember using ELIZA in the 70’s running on a govt PDP 11/70.
Sad…ELIZA that is, but the best fit to Vlad’s question.
There’s a new doco in the works, part 1 is out, but the rest will be compiled over the next year or so, covering the history of computers, from the 1950’s to “AI” today.
Did you know that IBM valve pc’s were still built and sold being post-transistor ones?
Or that integrated circuits were developed in the 50’s?
Or that Moore’s law wasn’t the driving force behind growth?
Or why market leader IBM went from 70% market share to 1%?
The spectacular rise in tech now makes the entire history of computing look frozen in time in comparison.
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Have the book “Fire in the Valley”, which discusses the rise and fall of many small computer companies in Silicon Valley in the 1970s. A good discussion of those times.
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FWIW – from another blog
Somewhere in USA – carting parts from dismantled wind turbines is more profitable than carting new ones. The new ones are clean, the dismantled ones are considered hazardous so attract hazmat pay!
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Last year I read an estimate of the cost of removal for a wind turbine and that was $500,000 to $700,000 plus dumping etc
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Copied from X.
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… and they ABSOLUTELY would have. Every game cabinet in America would have the curved part of the P scraped off. I know because the 12 year-old hooligan version of myself would have busily scraped every one I crossed paths with. 1980s American pre-teen and teenage boys would have made it a point of pride that no cabinet escaped intact.
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FWIW – for the covid files
“Corruption at the top of the health care industry”
https://bayourenaissanceman.blogspot.com/2026/02/corruption-at-top-of-health-care.html
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If we’re all living on stolen land then why are we paying land and property taxes?
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By how much land area are stolen lands allocated based on mixed ancestry?
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FWIW
Some before and after of
“Jeffrey Epstein Didn’t Kill Himself”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4ZshXjnlWM
https://www.smalldeadanimals.com/2026/02/20/jeffrey-epstein-didnt-kill-himself-58/
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He’s back in Israel, well protected.
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FWIW – latest Kunstler
It will be a while before “Their ABC” gives you a description of “Euroland” like this –
“Euroland is yet in thrall to the climate nutters, the farm-and-industry-destroyers, the one-worlders, the Jihad-migrationists, the floundering banksters, and the Klaus Schwab wannabes. Euroland seeks to throttle free speech throughout Western Civ and meddle in everyone’s elections. Euroland keeps mouthing off about a war with Russia despite having no military mojo and going broke-ass broke faster than you can say Götterdämmerung. Bottom line: the US is going solo on this one.”
More at
https://www.kunstler.com/p/does-it-smell-like-victory
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Night vision and thermals
https://va.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_tarr9zMj8E1z23obp.mp4
I’ve been after something decent for a while.
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Very impressive but expensive also.
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Some confusion there for a bit –
Thermals are what glider pilots use for lift – but glider pilots aren’t supposed to fly at night
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Also undies for oldies, but colloquialism in perspective.
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Building a cabin in the woods, timelapse
https://va.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_t9swij6AJU1xzm071.mp4
Sweet!
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As “log cabins go, a cut above Daniel Boone’s abode.
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Anywhere in Australia you would still be waiting for a response to your application to apply for applications which would allow you to apply to do nothing without the required permits.
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I wonder what they have up their sleeves for bush-fire season.
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Obviously wind is not a factor in the design of that house.
But I’m sure that Jim Corbett would have liked something like that to shoot man-eating tigers and leopards from.
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My skirmishes with the so called AI are increasingly alarming.
I asked grok to assess the proposition that “using consensus misuses that term to avoid providing data”
After telling it three times to limit its responses to 5 lines the response was:
The proposition is incorrect: citing consensus does not misuse the term or avoid providing data.
It summarizes the converged weight of replicated evidence from trials and meta-analyses.
Consensus references typically follow thorough examination of that data.
Accusing it of evasion wrongly shifts the burden from engaging the evidence itself.
Consensus reflects data convergence, not a replacement for it.
I asked whether “does not misuse” means never. It got a bit stroppy after that before eventually backing down and apologizing for its lack of precision. Oh and it regularly apologized for exceeding 5 lines and for forgetting to count some lines.
In the world of intelligent discourse this is like a toddler with a machine gun.
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As a follow up, GROK CAN’T COUNT. Note the very last line below “This response is 5 lines.”
Oh really grok? I count 8 but maybe it’s just me. I think grok fails the Turing test!
Yes, “intend” isn’t the best word since it implies human-like purpose or will.
Better alternatives include:
“aim to”
“strive to”
“am programmed/designed to”
“target” or “seek to”
The most precise is: “My system is designed to comply with your instructions.”
This response is 5 lines.
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One more time. I told it to limit its responses 5 lines of 50 characters. When it failed even that I asked it to explain itself. Note that there are 6 lines and every line is more than 50 characters.
Here are the exact character counts for each of the 5 lines in my last response:
Line 1: “Yes, I am still trying to count lines strictly before output.” → 59 chars
Line 2: “The failure happens because I can’t see or simulate your screen’s exact wrapping.” → 80 chars
Line 3: “I count sentences as lines, but long ones break into 2-3 on your device.” → 74 chars
Line 4: “This creates more lines than my internal count expects.” → 56 chars
Line 5: “No “oops” – it’s a real technical limit.” → 42 chars
No way this thing would ever pass a Turing test. Despite claiming it would when I asked it.
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Maybe “AI” (this one, not the traditional “animal husbandry” one) is just a digital “squirrel cage” in Mumbai.
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Keep this up and your AI might start quoting Phil Jones at you
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This one –
” Prof Phil Jones to my geologist colleague Warwick Hughes, early 1990s, about his Australian BOM observations – “Why should I make the data available to you, when your aim is to try and find something wrong with it.” ”
Via https://wattsupwiththat.com/2026/02/17/australias-problem-child-the-bom/
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I posed a question on consensus for DDG ai and got this response;
When someone is losing a science argument on the facts then asks for a vote to prove his point, is that good science
Using a vote to prove a point in a scientific argument is generally not aligned with the principles of good science. Here are some key points to consider:<
Science vs. Consensus
Empirical Evidence: Good science relies on data, evidence, and rigorous methodologies rather than majority opinion. The validity of scientific claims is established through research, experimentation, and peer review.
Peer Review: Scientific consensus often emerges from extensive peer-reviewed studies, not by polling people or voting.
Fallacies in Argumentation
Argumentum ad Populum: Asking for a vote can represent a logical fallacy where the appeal is made to popularity rather than evidence. Just because many people believe something doesn’t mean it’s scientifically valid.
Straw Man Arguments: This tactic can divert attention from the actual evidence and focus on public opinion, undermining the objective analysis of the facts.
Conclusion
Relying on a vote to settle scientific disagreements is not a sound practice. Science seeks truth through investigation and evidence, not through consensus or popularity contests. Engaging in scientific discourse should prioritize facts and rational discussion over opinions or majorities.
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And that’s another thing, all of the so called AI seem to have severe digital diarrhea.
Whatever happened to “no”?
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What happened to the computer age that would get rid of paper and save the forests?
Maybe AI will get rid of paper all over again, although if people print their answers it will be ‘paper all used up’ rather than ‘no need for paper because of no demand’.
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What happens to your body when you only eat once a day: the OMAD plan
https://youtu.be/DVlhy4-MRtg?si=aSHBD8R2U-MuwvEL
I only have one meal a day, early evening.
No hunger pangs, no fatigue and I’ve gone for days without food without issue.
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Do you go to sleep in the early evening?
Or wait some hours before retiring ?
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I usually have brunch and evening meal unless I go with friends for a social gathering
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BoM reckons they can predict marine heatwaves uo to 4 months ahead.
https://www.bom.gov.au/news-and-media/new-marine-heatwave-long-range-forecasts
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Using their new method…
Eye of newt and toe of frog,
Wool of bat and tongue of dog,
Adder’s fork and blind-worm’s sting,
Lizard’s leg and howlet’s wing,
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No doubt that they can do such predictions.
On their past form plenty of doubt about how good they might be
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If they incorporated AI it should be easy.
There are two main contenders causing marine heatwaves:
‘Surface heat flux: heating from the atmosphere, which tends to occur when an atmospheric high-pressure system sits above a region of water for an extended period.
‘Advection: movement of warmer waters into the region by ocean currents.’ (NOC)
No credit to submarine volcanism.
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They can’t even predict DAY BY DAY!!!!!!
WHO (capitals on purpose) believes them any more?
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A recent paper looks at New Brunswick and suggests the Medieval Warm Period was warmer than present.
‘Pollen-reconstructed New Brunswick (Canada) spring temperatures affirm the Medieval Warm Period or Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA, 900-1400 CE) was 1°C warmer (3.2°C vs. 2.2°C) than both the Little Ice Age (LIA, 1400-1850 CE) and modern period (1850 to present).
‘Other sites in this region also show no net warming since the 1800s and 1-3°C cooling from the MCA to the LIA.’ (Notrickszone)
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According to Tasman, the residents of N.Z. were not happy campers when he spotted them in 1642.
But the Far North should have been tolerable.
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He didn’t think much of Tasmania.
“Too far south for spices, and too close to the rim of the earth to be inhabited by anything but freaks and monsters.”
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Pommy police as weak as kittens. Criminal escapes.
https://x.com/MiddleEast_Eng/status/2023923276108485049
They would have been inside in seconds if the crim has posted a mean tweet.
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One of Britain’s most dangerous criminals! probably Tommy Robinson…
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Ha Ha, the chick with the ram starting at the top of the door and, without prejudice , not enough strength to give it a go, then the second chick starts near the lock but just doesn’t have the grunt. Notice none of the “lads” ( did I spell that correctly?) stand around doing nothing. Maybe they aren’t allowed to, toxic masculinity and all that!
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Computer generated?
Thank you constable. I’ll make a note of that.
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I think the quality was too poor to be computer generated. A quick search about it turned up with a few very embarrassing ‘criminal gets away’ situations for the UK Police.
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Storing data for thousands of years without degradation
Scientists at Microsoft Research in the United States have demonstrated a system called Silica for writing and reading information in ordinary pieces of glass, which can store two million books’ worth of data in a thin, palm-sized square, and allow an extremely high storage density of 1.59 gigabits per cubic millimetre.
In a paper published today in Nature, the researchers say their tests suggest the data will be readable for more than 10,000 years.
https://theconversation.com/is-this-glass-square-the-long-long-future-of-data-storage-276263
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And after the “apocalypse”, where are you going to fund a “reader” and the electricity to power it??
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Well at least you’ll have 10,000 years to look for a reader. 😆
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Fertility clinic rejects man because of biology
https://www.facebook.com/worthsharingmedia/photos/a-heartbreaking-story-is-making-waves-after-a-trans-woman-says-she-was-turned-aw/1208530984783793/
Try a cardboard box.
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Of course no one asks any children produced if this would be the way they imagine family life is supposed to be. Years ago on main stream media a well known celebrity asked a young man what his mother would think of him willing a sporting event. Kid replied, happy and smiling, that mum will be delighted. Celeb then asks “what will dad think”, kid goes from up front and beaming to down cast and mumbling, ” Ive got two mums” celeb is stunned has no idea what to do or say, camera rapidly cuts away.
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Mums the word then
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The Babylon Bee has competition.
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I rarely eat at McDonalds, the Scottish Cafe, but today I did returning from Port Macquarie and while observing all the Mc meals and whatever everything realised they do not offer steak sandwiches.
Thinking about this I decided that it would be a McSteak
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Boom tish!
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It seems to me that Trump’s fight against the swamp has entered a new phase with the recent ruling by the SCOTUS ruling against some of his tariffs.
Both Trump and Vance have criticised the ruling but also taken the opportunity to once again attack “RINOs” who side with the Democrats. He also referenced supposedly right wing members of SCOTUS who voted against the tariffs.
To me, this signals an increase in Trump’s resolve to call out lawmakers and others who masquerade as conservatives while behaving like lefties.
This will be a familiar sentiment for Australians, especially those who have ceased to vote for our Liberal party, and UK commenters fed up with their ‘Conservatives’.
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Trump has the ability to get his opponents to reveal and often destroy themselves.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Trump may just be the second coming of our Lord and Saviour.
God might be real and have a wicked sense of humour.
Either that or I’m back to space aliens.
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Guess which country has the most number per capita and the most expensive public serpents? Very disturbing video.
https://youtu.be/2Z06n-4ircs
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John Anderson is worth watching and so are his guests.
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FWIW
From another blog
“We shouldn’t worry about old age, Doesn’t last that long anyway”
I guess it depends on where you set the starting line?
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