New Blog and Website Changes

My International 420 Basic Rigging Guide, now has its own domain and can be found at the following URL:
http://www.420manual.com

I now have several blogs. This one will be retained in its current form and content primarily publishing about my personal interests such as sailing and philosophical outlook.

My new blogs are for publishing articles about my business interests and can be found at the following URLS:
http://graymedlab.wordpress.com
http://www.pgray.5gbfree.com

LWSINFO is my latest website. LWSINFO is a dedicated information resource, devoted to promoting the LW Scientific brand and their products.

It is hoped that LWSINFO will help raise LWS brand awareness particularly in Australia and direct potential customers to my new business website mentioned in my previous post.

Other websites recently added are:
http://pgraygraymed.wix.com/labmedaustralia
http://www.freewebstore.org/graymedlab
http://pgray8.wix.com/centrifuges
https://sites.google.com/a/graykon.com.au/centrifuges/home

GrayMed Website Launch

Today marks the official launch of my new online sales venture called GrayMed.
GrayMed was established as a partnership on 14/10/2013 to formally separate and carry on the import and marketing operations of Graykon Scientific.

The new company will primarily focus on developing the LW Scientific presence here, with the goal of becoming the preferred supplier of the brand in Australia. The GrayMed online store will look to expand the LWS product range sold direct to the wider medical and scientific community Australia-wide.

The primary product focus at this stage is on the LW Scientific centrifuge range of low cost but increasingly sophisticated centrifuge offerings. 

Centrifuges

Laboratory Centrifuges

Laboratory centrifuges work by the sedimentation principle where centrifugal acceleration is used to separate substances by their relative density.

Microcentrifuges

Micro Centrifuges are used to spin small tubes or micro tubes (0.2 ml to 2.0 ml) usually made of plastic.

Hematocrit Centrifuges

A Micro haematocrit centrifuge is a specialised centrifuge for determining the packed cell volume (PCV) of a blood sample, also known as a hematocrit.
Micro Hematocrit centrifuges are designed to spin microhematocrit capillary tubes. The tubes are 2/3 filled with whole blood by capillary action, sealed with clay at the unfilled end of the tube and placed in the radial grooves of the centrifuge rotor.

Multi Purpose Benchtop Centrifuges

Multipurpose centrifuges typically cater for a broad range of tube sizes and can be used to separate a number of different liquid and sample types, including, blood, urine, semen etc.
Combination Centrifuges. A combination can be fitted with different rotor types depending on the type of sample to be centrifuged.

All of these centrifuge types can be purchased from GrayMed Australia at Centrifuges.

IPCC Exposed

You have all heard of it. The United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). That august body made up of thousands of the worlds most respected climate scientists. The supreme guardian of global warming dogma that was awarded the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize shared jointly with the high priest himself, Al Gore.

Who would dare question the integrity of such a celebrated and supreme authority?
Listen to this interview with Donna Laframbois about her new book titled, The Delinquent Teenager Who Was Mistaken for the Wold's Top Climate Expert.

Use the above link to download the podcast and listen to the interview. Have all of your IPCC delusions dispelled by this very sober and meticulous investigative journalist. Even better, read her book. You will never again genuflect before the International Purveyors of Climate Crap (IPCC).

The Most Dangerous Monopoly of all - Big Government

Why is it that the loudest condemnation of monopolies always seems to come from the worst offenders in this regard, the unions and the government? NBN, say no more! This simple video explains.

So You Want to Understand What Caused the GFC?

You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to understand economics when it is explained by this brilliant economics lecturer.

Why Self Interest is not Greed and Capialism Works

Have you read Any Rand's magnum opus "Atlas Shrugged"? What a great book!
Whether you have or not, here is a great video that cogently explains why self interest and Capitalism is moral.

Union Mythology and Misconception in Australia

I was appalled recently to see unionist thuggery employed to enforce a picket line in the Baiada Poultry dispute. The picket line was ruled illegal by Order of the Supreme Court of Victoria.

Even more disturbing was the shameful stance adopted by the Victoria Police and their Command, in deciding not to enforce the law and stand idly by. Whatever happened to that long established principle of equal treatment before the law for all citizens?

Why is it, that the public understands the term “monopoly” and recognises its negative consequences when applied to businessmen, and yet a union monopoly on the supply of labour is not treated so, but regarded as acceptable.  Unions are just as much a protection racket as businessmen who collude to fleece the public. In the case of the Unions, the unemployed are the victims.

I recently discovered this very enlightening article by Rafe Champion at Quadrant. It provides a historical perspective and helps to explain why the union movement in Australia continues to enjoy protected status above the law that applies to the rest of society.

Mark Steyne on Freedom of Speech

I was recently pleased to attend an IPA function in defence of Andrew Bolt and Freedom of Speech. One of the most entertaining speakers was Mark Styne. Even though Mark is well known overseas, his intellect and wit is seldom heard by Australia audiences. His cogent and well-grounded thoughts and ideas are anathema to the dominant illiberal left leaning media in this country. Here is some of his finest work. Federal Court judge Mordy Bromberg could learn something from this.


Mark Steyn on Free Speech at the IPA from Institute of Public Affairs on Vimeo.

Wise Men Go Unheard by The Masses

Here are a couple of quotes that explain a lot of crazy stuff going on in the world today.
This one seems especially pertinent to Greece today with possibly Italy to follow.

“A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world’s greatest civilizations has been 200 years.”
Possibly, Alexander Tytler (circa late 1700′s)

This one speaks to me about Australia. I fear we are transitioning from complacency to apathy.

“Great nations rise and fall. The people go from bondage to spiritual truth, to great courage, from courage to liberty, from liberty to abundance, from abundance to selfishness, from selfishness to complacency, from complacency to apathy, from apathy to dependence, from dependence back again to bondage.” Henning Webb Prentis, Jr., President of the Armstrong Cork Company 1943

Thorium Reactors

Very Interesting! As they say, "If something is too good to be true then it usually is". So I searched high and low on the Internet to find the serious downside to this much touted energy source. I could not find any strong arguments against its development other than the usual anti-nuclear-warrior knee jerk concerns. It seems this truly might be an energy game changer if we (the west) could get our act together. China is leading the world in this research.

Fight of the Century: Keynes vs. Hayek Round Two

Amazing! An artist film maker that actually understands economics.  Did you miss the first one in the series?  See it here.

What Chance of Sucess in Afghanistan?

Professor Christopher Coyne of George Mason University gives an economist's perspective on post-conflict reconstruction and how to promote peace. This man really knows his subject. After watching this video I have had to re-assess my position on Australia's, and the US's involvement in Afghanistan. I am no longer convinced about our bi-partisan policy of "stay the course" war in Afghanistan. It is a long video (1hr:25min) but well worth it. The speaker puts forward some very powerful arguments rarely heard in this debate.

Andrew Bolt Destroys Tim Flannery

Or rather, Tim Flannery destroys the governments case for a carbon dioxide tax with his own words. This is hysterical, listen to the podcast here.

Prof Dr. Vincent Courtillot - A Denier?

Tim Flannery would describe this man as disreputable. Julia, Combet, Bob Brown and Co. would call him an extremist. If they were remotely interested in truth or science they would watch this video, alas their expertise is confined to name calling and ad hominem attacks.

He strikes me as a professor of the old school, one with respect for true scientific principles. See what you think.

Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo or BPPV

A year or two ago I suffered my first episode of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) also known as Benign Positional Vertigo (BPV). My local GP prescribed Brant - Daroff exercises which I performed rigorously for between 2 and 3 weeks. I found them to be completely useless. Finally, frustrated, I turned to the Internet to research BPV and discovered the Epley Maneuver described here.

I studied the instructions and the associated video at this site and self–performed the Dix-Hallpike test to determine the affected vestibular. I determined that my right posterior canal was the problem. I then self performed the Eply Maneuver treatment for my right ear. To my amazement the BPV symptoms virtually disappeared overnight.

I have since had a few repeat episodes that I have successfully treated with the same procedure. If you want to self treat yourself for this syndrome it is most important that you first correctly establish which is the affected ear using the Dix-Hallpike test. The following video explains both the diagnosis and treatment very clearly.



NB. When self performing the Dix-Hallpike test, begin with your head turned 45 degrees towards the test side. If the test is positive you will experience dizziness and nystagmus after you recline to the horizontal position. The following video shows how to self perform the Eply Maneuver for the right ear. To treat the left ear simply perform the maneuver in the opposite direction, beginning with the head turned to the left.

Topher Strikes Again. You cant keep a good man down!

Strip away all the politics, the spin, the environmental hyperbole, then do some basic research, examine the facts, apply some rational thought and hey presto, Topher cuts through all the BS.

PS. Although Topher rightly places the problem on Tony Bourke's doorstep, John Howard deserves some major stick for this debacle. It was his government that introduced the Water Act 2007 which is the source of the problem.

My Blackberry is Not Working!

Ronnie Corbett, still going strong! Imagine Ronny Barker as the shopkeeper, alas it wasn't to be.
Unfortunately, I am very familiar with the phrase "My Blackberry is not working". Part of my job at work is to support the blinking things.

How Many of These Ten Political Principles Do You Believe In?

1. Liberty as the primary political value
2. Individualism
3. Skepticism about power
4. Rule of Law
5. Civil Society
6. Spontaneous Order
7. Free Markets
8. Toleration
9. Peace
10. Limited Government

If you agree with 5 or more of these political principles, you might just be a Libertarian or a Liberal in the classical sense. This short video by Dr. Nigel Ashford succinctly explains the 10 core principles of the classical liberal and Libertarian view of society and the proper role of government.


How to Migrate a XP(32 Bit) PC to New Windows 7 Home (64 Bit) PC

I used this method to transition from my old XP PC to my New Windows 7 PC. Instead of keeping two physical PC’s connected and on your desk while you transition from XP to Windows 7, this method allows you to virtualize the old PC and host it on your new Windows 7 PC.  This enables you to continue using all your old programs, data and settings until you have time to re-install and customise them on your new PC.

There will always be some program, file or settings that you will have forgotten to migrate to the new PC and you can easily refer back to the old PC through the virtual session, even six months later. Some 32 bit programs may not even run on Windows 7 64bit. You can continue to run them in your old visualized PC.

Windows 7 has its own virtualization capability but your need to have Window 7 Professional or a add in product that costs quite a bit. If your have Windows 7 Home version like most people, then using VMware’s free products overcomes this.

After virtualizing my old PC that was five years old onto my new Windows 7 host I found that it ran faster than the physical box itself.

Here is how I did it.

First download and install VMware Converter from http://www.vmware.com/products/converter to your Windows system (the XP box that you want to convert into a virtual machine) and start the installation by double-clicking on the downloaded file.

The program is a 32 bit standalone exe, and installs to “C:\Program Files\VMware\VMware vCenter Converter Standalone\converter.exe”.

Under Windows 7 it installs to "C:\Program Files (x86)\VMware\VMware vCenter Converter Standalone\converter.exe”

Start the “VMware vCentre Converter Standalone Client” program from the Start\VMware program group on the Windows XP machine and use the “Convert Machine” wizard to create a virtual machine file. The resultant file will have a .vmx extension.

Copy or move the resultant vmx file to your Windows 7 PC.

Now you will need to download the VMware Player from http://www.vmware.com/products/player/ and install it on your Windows 7 machine.

The program installs at "C:\Program Files (x86)\VMware\VMware Player\vmplayer.exe".

To run your old XP PC, start the VMware Player and open the .vmx file you created with the converter.

Here is an alternate method I found on the Internet.