The Man Who Took on Amazon and Saved a Bookstore

Print-On-Demand Book Printer

Add to the large pile of things I didn’t know: the privately owned Harvard Book Store owns a print-on-demand service which will print out books from Google Books, out of print titles, or hard to find books and will deliver them via bicycle:

Essentially, Jeff installed a printing press to close the inventory gap with Amazon.  The Espresso Book Machine sits in the middle of Harvard Book Store like a hi-tech visitor to an earlier era. A compact digital press, it can print nearly five million titles including Google Books that are in the public domain, as well as out of print titles. We’re talking beautiful, perfect bound paperbacks indistinguishable from books produced by major publishing houses. The Espresso Book Machine can be also used for custom publishing, a growing source of revenue, and customers can order books in the store and on-line.

You can walk into the store, request an out-of-print, or hard-to-find title, and a bookseller can print that book for you in approximately four minutes. Ben Franklin would be impressed.

But you don’t even have to go into the store to get a book. If you live in Cambridge and neighboring communities, you can order online and get any book delivered the same day by an eco-friendly Metroped “pedal-truck,” or a bicycle, as I like to call them. Beat that Amazon.

via The Man Who Took on Amazon and Saved a Bookstore – Forbes.

Reading and print isn’t dead, just transformed cf., Newspaper Club and Blurb.

Today’s GAO Reports: No new GAO products were issued today

I am subscribed to various governmental listservs which range from the Republican-led Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure complaining about the government, to a daily Government Accountability Office Reports digest. The mailing lists generally aren’t glamorous, fairly boring, and often not so interesting (unless they call the Governor of New Jersey a liar), but they are a good source of information.

Every now and again they make me laugh, like today’s GAO Digest, which contained this gem:

Just like the [This Page Intentionally Left Blank] inscription in governmental reports, this is probably a response to people misconstruing no email as not receiving the ever-important email in error, or malice.

Call it an idiot workaround.

Windsor Super Market – Studio H

The Windsor Super Market by Studio H a public high school “design/build” curriculum that sparks rural community development through real-world, built projects.

Last year, Studio H (high school) students designed and built (and started, as an enterprise) the Windsor Super Market: a local community farmers market for Bertie County. After a hugely successful season last spring/summer/fall, the market re-opened on April 21st for its second full season. With over 30 vendors in the association, there is an assortment of produce, homemade baked goods, crafts, jams, pickles, shrimp, and more.

Windsor Super Market was designed and fabricated by high school students as part of their design-build class:

While each of our five proposed designs had multiple exciting elements, the simple beauty, functionality, and straightforward construction process led us to choose the “Super Stable” concept originally developed by CJ and Stevie. The simple design has a clear direction, facing Water Street as a welcoming facade (which we may paint with signage), with the rear easily accessible for trucks to pull up and unload. The form is very much influenced by the local peanut trailer sheds (shown below), which use similarly proportioned bays. The design is “vernacular sublime,” taking something familiar and elevating it to a different purpose and feeling. The Town councilmen seemed to appreciate the design that was at the same time approachable and fresh.

DSC02445

DSC02464

DSC02660

DSC02721

DSC03717

photo 1

DSC03722

DSC03730

IMG_0522

Space Shuttle Enterprise Demated from Shuttle Carrier Aircraft

Space Shuttle Enterprise Demate (201205130021HQ)

Space shuttle Enterprise is held aloft by a yellow sling and a set of cranes after it was removed from the top of NASA’s 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft early Sunday morning at John F. Kennedy (JFK) International Airport in New York, Sunday, May 13, 2012. The 747 was towed backwards so that Enterprise could be lowered. The shuttle will be placed on a barge that will move by tugboat up the Hudson River to the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in June. The shuttle will be lifted by crane and placed on the flight deck of the Intrepid, where it will be on exhibit to the public starting this summer in a temporary climate-controlled pavilion. Photo Credit: (NASA/Kim Shiflet)

Check out all the photos of the Space Shuttle Enterprise by NASA.

Patrick Stewart: Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow

She should have died hereafter;
There would have been a time for such a word.
To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury
Signifying nothing.

— Macbeth (Act 5, Scene 5)

Patrick Stewart’s version of Macbeth is amazing: when plotting Banquo’s murder with two assassins, Macbeth casually begins to make a sandwich, giving two halves to the murderers. That is stone cold.

You can watch the whole play PBS Great Performances Macbeth for free, just don’t say the name of The Scottish Play in a theatre.

Full-scale Space Shuttle Orbiter Mockup

Full-scale mockup of Space Shuttle Orbiter Constitution (OV-101) 1975 - Donwney, CA

Full-scale mockup of Space Shuttle Orbiter Constitution (OV-101) 1975 - Donwney, CA

Flickr user aharvey2k unearthed photos of a Space Shuttle Orbiter full-scale mockup which Lockheed built in order to secure the prime contract on the Space Shuttle. It was displayed on February 27, 1975 in Donwney, CA and apparently it is still stored there in pieces.

There is a fascinating paper by John Griswold entitled, Preserving the Orbiter: Stabilization, Disassembly, Relocation and Storage of an Historic Space Shuttle Mock-Up which documents the history, dismantling and storage of the mockup in 2003:

In late spring, 2003, an important artifact from the beginning of NASA’s Space Shuttle (Orbiter) Program had reached a critical moment. In its original location since 1972, the only existing full-size mock-up of the spacecraft would have to be moved to another location. Here it would wait to become the centerpiece of the future Downey Space Museum. Given its construction of plywood veneer over a wood frame, and its massive size, this was a formidable prospect.

The Space Shuttle mock-up was originally built to fulfill a requirement of the contract bidding process, but remained a useful tool for the program for the next several decades. In spite of the relatively ephemeral materials of its construction, it lasted for years as an accurately proportioned simulation of the exterior and interior spaces and features of the actual vehicle, modified over the years to reflect updates in design. The mock-up lacks a left wing in a measure to eliminate redundancy and to save space. The flight deck, crew quarters, cargo bay, and engine compartment are authentically fitted with every detail, often represented by simple painted wood shapes or silk-screened plastic or metal sheeting. This verisimilitude allowed engineers to accurately check prototypes of planned equipment in their intended location. Some prototype items, such as a machined metal restraint for astronaut’s boots at the airlock to the cargo bay remain in place. Mock-ups of payload equipment and containers were also tested for fit, and one array of simulated electronic equipment on a specialized pallet remains bolted in the cargo bay today. The Remote Manipulator System (RMS), a jointed, rotating arm made for deploying payloads, built by Canada, is faithfully represented by an accurate, nonworking replica in aluminum. It is bolted to the port side of the payload bay.

Located in the Design and Engineering Integration Room, or DEI Room, the orbiter mock-up was used for a number of other purposes. It was a centerpiece of public relations and a visual aid for communications with members of congress and other government officials, who frequented a two-tiered complex of office and conference spaces across from the mock-up.

Downey City bought the mockup and associated buildings of the now-closed Downey City Boeing Space Systems Division plant. Currently the city is renting the facility for feature film productions by major Hollywood, making use of the large indoor spaces, and open airfields surrounding them. This necessitated the removal of the Space Shuttle Mockup – quickly – due to a movie production necessitating the creating of a giant indoor lake. It is clear from Griswold’s report that the stabilization team did the best they could in a tricky situation: they were continually pushed to speed up the dismantling and storage ahead of the movie shoot. Furthermore, the current storage site’s roof is leaking and large amounts of dust have settled on the mockup’s surface.

Below is a photo I had from the NASA archive, showing the mockup from the aft view:

Update 8 June 2012

Reader JG who was involved with the original conservation updates us on the current status of the orbiter mockup conservation program:

As far as I know [the orbiter mockup] is still there, but I suspect that conditions have eroded over the years. We have not been brought in for any formal maintenance or monitoring follow-up, although I know the director of the new Columbia Memorial Space Center next door was concerned. The Tyvek enclosure was beginning to fail, and demolition was continuing around the space.

Update 21 June 2012

Via the always awesome NASA Spaceflight.com comes this link about the Vultee Field / Downey Field and the LA Times has a story about the Space Shuttle Orbiter Mockup coming out of storage: ‘The original space shuttle’ to come out of hiding in Downey (don’t miss the photos):


A photo from 1975 shows a space shuttle mock-up in a warehouse in Downey, CA. Credit: Boeing

This week, officials in the city of Downey turned their attention to another shuttle, long forgotten to most of the world. Sitting in a nondescript warehouse in Downey, under a coat of dust and waves of plastic sheeting, is a full-scale mock-up — largely made of wood and plastic — built in 1972 by shuttle manufacturer Rockwell.

For decades, the 122-foot-by-78-foot model has remained hidden away at the former manufacturing site that was the cradle of the nation’s space program. But that’s set to change. On Tuesday, the Downey City Council approved the temporary relocation of the mock-up to a large tent on a nearby movie studio parking lot where, starting late this summer, people may be able to catch a glimpse of it.
…
Officials hope that the public can see the model under the new tent within the next three months, and that eventually it will become part of a new planned exhibit at Downey’s nearby two-story Columbia Memorial Space Center. A hands-on learning center on space science that opened in 2009, it is an official national memorial to the crew of the space shuttle Columbia, which broke apart on reentry in 2003, killing all seven on board.
…

In the early 1970s, Rockwell decided to build a full-scale mock-up as part of the proposal effort. At the time, the world had never seen a winged space plane before. Before the shuttle, astronauts reached space by squeezing into a small capsule launched atop a massive rocket.

“It would be used for marketing our design approach to NASA and also be an engineering aid to our designers and manufacturing engineers,” said Gerald Blackburn, a former shuttle worker and now president of the Aerospace Legacy Foundation, a nonprofit organization of former aerospace employees who work to preserve Southern California’s aerospace history.

Also, from Jacques van Oene come these photos from the mockup, circa 1999:

Update 13 July 2012

CollectSpace.com is reporting that Original 1972 space shuttle mockup moved outdoors for Downey, CA display:

The original full-scale mockup of the space shuttle, which hasn’t seen the light of day since the early 1970s, emerged from a warehouse into the California sun on Thursday (July 12) to be put on outdoor display.

The full-size wood and plastic model was transported on a flatbed truck the short distance from the building where it for decades served as a design and demonstration tool to an open-ended tent that was erected in a parking lot near the Columbia Memorial Space Center in Downey, Calif.
…
The shuttle will remain under the temporary tent until the city has the funds needed to construct the building, which will be located adjacent to the Columbia Memorial Space Center. City officials, together with the Aerospace Legacy Foundation, will seek sponsors to underwrite the display.

Tetrapods


In coastal engineering, a tetrapod is a four-legged concrete structure used as armour unit on breakwaters. The Tetrapod’s shape is designed to dissipate the force of incoming waves by allowing water to flow around rather than against it, and to reduce displacement by allowing a random distribution of Tetrapods to mutually interlock.

New shore protection innovations have shown that there are better methods that are less obtrusive and more environmentally friendly than concrete armor structures. Alternate placements of sand and mix sediments and modifications of incident wave conditions through the use of reefs are examples of those.

via Tetrapod (structure)

House Republicans to Big Data: “HULK SMASH”

Besides going back on their debt ceiling promise (and wanting to raise taxes on poor families) House Republicans voted to end the American Community Survey, which isn’t part of the decennial census, but is a yearly survey which records supremely useful survey charting what exactly it is that we Americans do, ranging from where you work and how you get there to your family and relationships. This is wonderful data and everyone from researchers to the business community uses this data to help craft products and services for Americans.

But to House Republicans, it is EVIL:

The House voted Wednesday to eliminate the detailed surveys of America that have been conducted by the Census Bureau since the nation’s earliest days.

House Republicans, increasingly suspicious of the census generally, advanced a measure to cut the American Community Survey. It passed 232 to 190.

The survey is not part of the constitutionally mandated population count, but some version of it has been done by law as part of the decennial survey since the time of Thomas Jefferson to assess the needs of the nation. It’s generally considered a vital tool for business.

Republicans, acknowledging its usefulness, attacked the survey as an unconstitutional invasion of privacy, arguing that the government has no business knowing how many flush toilets someone has, for instance.

“It would seem that these questions hardly fit the scope of what was intended or required by the Constitution,” said Rep. Daniel Webster (R-Fla.), author of the amendment.

“This survey is inappropriate for taxpayer dollars,” Webster added. “It’s the definition of a breach of personal privacy. It’s the picture of what’s wrong in Washington, D.C. It’s unconstitutional.”

via House Votes To Cut Census Survey Done Since Thomas Jefferson.

Too bad that the data is anonymized and individual records are not shared with anyone, including federal agencies and law enforcement entities. By law, the Census Bureau cannot share respondents’ answers with anyone, – not the IRS, not the FBI, not the CIA, and not with any other government agency. Rep. Webster should please review the meaning of “unconstitutional” before using those big words.

Luckily this bill has no chance of passing in the Senate.

Update 12 May 2012

Via Atlantic Cities blog post, What Killing the American Community Survey Would Actually Mean comes this article from Census Director Groves entitled, A Future Without Key Social and Economic Statistics for the Country:

The ACS is our country’s only source of small area estimates on social and demographic characteristics. Manufacturers and service sector firms use ACS to identify the income, education, and occupational skills of local labor markets they serve. Retail businesses use ACS to understand the characteristics of the neighborhoods in which they locate their stores. Homebuilders and realtors understand the housing characteristics and the markets in their communities. Local communities use ACS to choose locations for new schools, hospitals, and fire stations. There is no substitute from the private sector for ACS small area estimates. Even if the funding problems were solved in the proposed budget, the House bill also bans enforcement of the mandatory nature of participation in the ACS; this alone would require at least $64 million more in funding to achieve the same precision of ACS estimates.

Not to mention that many government programs are by statute dependent on data derived from the ACS. Conservative Republicans often complain that government isn’t as efficient as the private sector (a point I don’t agree with after working with many Fortune 100 companies), so how might we make government more efficient? Their solution is to cut any customer reporting and steer the ship blind. Thus creating a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Madness.

Update 21 May 2012

In even more ACS news, the New York Times thinks Rep. Webster is heralding the The Beginning of the End of the Census:

“This is a program that intrudes on people’s lives, just like the Environmental Protection Agency or the bank regulators,” said Daniel Webster, a first-term Republican congressman from Florida who sponsored the relevant legislation.

“We’re spending $70 per person to fill this out. That’s just not cost effective,” he continued, “especially since in the end this is not a scientific survey. It’s a random survey.”

In fact, the randomness of the survey is precisely what makes the survey scientific, statistical experts say.

Each year the Census Bureau polls a representative, randomized sample of about three million American households about demographics, habits, languages spoken, occupation, housing and various other categories. The resulting numbers are released without identifying individuals, and offer current demographic portraits of even the country’s tiniest communities.

It is the largest (and only) data set of its kind and is used across the federal government in formulas that determine how much funding states and communities get for things like education and public health.
…
Other private companies and industry groups — including the United States Chamber of Commerce, the National Retail Federation and the National Association of Home Builders — are up in arms.

Target recently released a video explaining how it used these census data to determine where to locate new stores. Economic development organizations and other business groups say they use the numbers to figure out where potential workers are.