Rove assaulted as he left speaking engagement

Yet another example of the “free speech for me but not for thee” attitude on the left: Karl Rove’s car was surrounded by protesters at American University as he was leaving the speaking engagement. Those protesters refused to allow the car to leave and then started throwing things at the car.

Assault is assault, people. Why is it that the left in the country feels they’re allowed to assault people who say things they don’t like while simultaneously wailing about their free speech rights? Inexcusable. Of course, the left will excuse it. They’ll even applaud it.

I’m looking forward to the day when they’re confronted by similar tactics and wonder aloud how things got that way. I’ve got a long memory.

VA smoking ban down in flames

That proposed ban on smoking in Virginia is going to remain that: proposed. WTOP News has the spot on the General Assembly’s rejection of the ban.

Back to biz as usual, folks.

ABC sees the surge working

Captain’s Quarters posts on an ABC report where their man in Baghdad, Terry McCarthy, sees real improvement. The locals there are saying the situation is better with shops busier, playgrounds more utilized, and (Captain Ed notes) none of the people in the report were walking around with body armor. That includes the ABC crew.

I have to agree with him on this one: Petraeus’s strategy is working. The biggest threat to that strategy is coming not from terrorists in Baghdad or Iranians supplying them, but from our own Congress’ desire to bug out before victory.

When wireless means wireless. The coming of wireless power transmission.

Every wireless device you own likely comes with at least 1 cord: the charging cable. At some point in time, you need to hook the cell phone or the PDA up to the wall charger and let it tank up. This report talks about the oncoming technology that will make that unnecessary:

The technology? Radio waves, the same technology driving cellular phones and your FM dial.

Whether it’s the promise of short-range wireless technologies like ultra wideband (UWB), wireless USB, and the wireless high-definition interface (WHDI) that transmit data from one device to another, or methods for supplying those devices with power, such as induction — or now, radio frequency (RF) — the future home looks to be increasingly cordless.

“Basically, we’ve developed a chip on the transceiver and receiver side that efficiently transmits RF energy,” said Keith Kressin, executive vice president of sales and marketing for Powercast.

While Kressin admits that using RF energy to power electronic devices isn’t a particularly new idea, he says his company’s patented approach is unique in that it can harvest much more of that energy (50-70 percent) than traditional methods, typically 10 percent, according to the company.

While the technology isn’t capable of providing enough power to handle devices like laptops, it will handle things like cell phones, PDA’s, hearing aides, iPod-type players, and the like. This kind of solution would allow the use of cordless keyboards, mice, and other small computer peripherals without having to install batteries. Given the right power management, it would permit the placement of led-based lighting virtually anywhere in the range of the power transmitter without having to run power lines to the fixture. Alarm system sensors could be placed at any location in one’s home without having to worry about running power cables through the walls.

Also in the report is mention of a connectionless power transfer method known as direct induction:

Arizona-based WildCharger, which also demonstrated its technology at this year’s CES, is currently developing a line of charging pads that can wirelessly transfer power via direct contact between a smaller adapter fitted on a device and the pad itself, using what’s known as direct induction.

Induction is basically the same technology that charges your electric toothbrush, and “inductive coupling,” as it’s known, uses the magnetic fields that are an innate part of any current’s movement through wire.

When a current moves through a wire, it creates a circular magnetic field around the wire. By bending the wire into a coil, this can amplify these magnetic fields.

The more loops the coil makes, the bigger the field will be. And while the pad itself has to be plugged into a wall socket, it will supply a steady stream of power to devices placed anywhere on top of it.

WildCharger says its 15 x 40 cm pads will come in 90-watt capacities and will be able to charge large devices like laptops, BlackBerries and cell phones simultaneously.

Induction transmits more power than Powercast’s approach. It’s already used in a number of commercial applications. I have debated the use of this kind of technology to provide power to electric cars by incorporating the power grid into the roads. Using induction instead of a direct, trolley-car-type moving electric connection would handle the issues of vehicle alignment and surface interferences such as snow or rain. Some of the folks mentioned in this article are talking about incorporating this tech into cabinetry so merely placing an enabled device onto the countertop in your kitchen would initiate a power transfer.

This is great stuff. I do hope that some thought has been placed into securing the system. Wireless internet routers have opened the possibility that someone outside your home can hook into your network and get free internet. Wireless power means someone can do the same with your electrical service. When someone wanted to steal cable TV off your line, he or she had to come over and run a physical cable from your house to theirs. With this tech, all they need to do it get a power tap within range – possibly not even on your property – and siphon power away.

Should be interesting to see!

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