Finally, contained (tyre) rubber recycling

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/small-business/news/article.cfm?c_id=85&objectid=10622664

The need to solve a problem for one invention has helped three entrepreneurs come up with an environmentally friendly way to recycle tyres - and now they are close to taking it commercial.
...
The process is contained within a 12m container and involves breaking down shredded tyres by heating them to 650C in a process called pyrolysis.

The gases produced by heating are cooled and the liquids distilled to make carbon, steel, oil and gas.

The gas is used to fuel the machine which means it is self-sustaining and it does not release any black smoke, acrid odour or toxic emissions.

The oil can be used as fuel for boat engines and the steel can be reused while the carbon can be used in making rubber mats and hoses.

Now please to be extending to other hydrocarbon products - like the mountain of plastics accumulating at council recycling centres around the country :)

"Murder by Quackery" (ht I/S)

This device was discussed at gaming tonight, as promised here is No Right Turn's commentary where I saw it, and the full article from the BBC.

The ADE-651 detector has never been shown to work in a scientific test.

There are no batteries and it consists of a swivelling aerial mounted to a hinge on a hand-grip. Critics have likened it to a glorified dowsing rod.

Mr McCormick told the BBC in a previous interview that "the theory behind dowsing and the theory behind how we actually detect explosives is very similar".

He says that the key to it is the black box connected to the aerial into which you put "programmed substance detection cards", each "designed to tune into" the frequency of a particular explosive or other substance named on the card.

He claims that in ideal conditions you can detect explosives from a range of up to 1km.

The training manual for the device says it can even, with the right card, detect elephants, humans and 100 dollar bills.