salt

Apple's iPad 2 dominates the tech news headlines, even down here in Austin. America is sold out of iPads, and we're at least partly to blame. Also, no NFC for your iPhone anytime soon, Facebook gets into the Groupon game, Brian Tong and Cheezburger CEO Ben Huh compare watches, and how to carve hair into a 640-pound block of cheese. All from the Salt Lick BBQ wine cellar, the best place to have a wedding I ever did see. --Molly

There is no denying that--even for those who never cook--salt and pepper are two kitchen essentials, whether they're in dedicated shakers or those little packets you get from take-out. As long as they are going to be mainstays in the kitchen, they might as well live in a distinctive (and easy-to-find) container.

Styled somewhat like a metal rocket toy from the 50s, the Prepology 2-in-1 Salt and Pepper Mill gives these kitchen essentials a worthy home. Featuring more than just good looks, the mill delivers fresh flavor via the use of its ceramic grinding mechanism. The gadget stores peppercorns … Read more

Solar Reserve said today it has the federal permitting approvals it needs to begin construction of a concentrated solar power plant with enough storage to operate after the sun goes down.

The Santa Monica, Calif.-based company said the U.S. Department of the Interior approved the "record of decision" for a 110-megawatt solar thermal power plant in Nye County, near Tonopah, Nev. With the authorization, Solar Reserve expects it can start construction by mid-2011.

This Crescent Dunes project will use a field of sun-tracking mirrors, called heliostats, to reflect light onto a tower that holds molten salt. … Read more

The California Energy Commission has approved a permit for SolarReserve to build a 150-megawatt solar plant that uses molten salt to store energy, the company announced Wednesday.

The Santa Monica, Calif.-based start-up says its Rice Solar Energy Project will be located 30 miles from Blythe, Calif., and when running at full capacity will supply enough energy to power the equivalent of 68,000 homes annually. The project also has a 25-year power purchase agreement with Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E).

The molten salt system will enable the solar farm to store and release solar energy so that … Read more

The turbocharged streamliner Speed Demon on Wednesday reached a speed of 409 mph at the three-mile mark on the long track at Speed Week.

Team leaders George Poteet, 60, and Ron Main, 65, have been breaking land speed records for years and have no intention of slowing down by the looks of it.

The 31-foot-long, 4,200-lb. streamliner is known around the world as one of the planet's fastest vehicles.

Speed Demon ran 405 mph with a 417 exit speed on Tuesday and did not complete a run on Monday.

The state of Nevada and Sicily, Italy, will each soon be using solar thermal plants that operate with molten salt to store and release solar energy.

Nevada got approval Thursday from the state's Public Utilities Commission for the Crescent Dunes Solar Energy Project, a 100-megawatt thermal solar plant estimated to generate 480,000 megawatt hours of electricity annually once completed.

Both plants will use giant heliostats that reflect sunlight onto pipes containing a molten salt fluid consisting of sodium nitrates and potassium. The heat absorbed by the liquefied salt is used to make high-pressure steam that directly powers a … Read more

The Department of Energy is funding a series of projects that marry concentrating solar power with storage, which offers the potential of solar power plants that operate 18 hours a day.

The DOE said Friday that it has made $62 million available to 13 companies to test equipment and materials, such as molten salts, to add storage to solar power systems that use heat to produce electricity.

Concentrating solar power, in which the sun's heat creates steam to drive an electricity turbine, is seeing a renaissance because it can be used for large-scale power plants in deserts. Adding storage … Read more

Salt and pepper seem to have a lot of superstition attached to their existence. For example, there's that whole thing about throwing salt over one's shoulder after spilling it. Another one is that apparently, salt and pepper need to be kept together at all times. What happens if your throwing arm goes out, or if you are on a salt-reduced diet, I'll leave for other brave souls to test out, but when it comes to the world's most common spices, there is no end to how we keep them at the ready.

Not only is it … Read more

Unique's 3D Salt Water Fish Tank is an attractive screen saver that transforms your computer into a burbling aquarium. Some aspects could be better, but it's soothing and not a bad simulation overall.

The screen saver's graphics aren't going to fool anyone into thinking that they're seeing real fish, but on the whole, they're pretty high quality, with smooth and realistic movement. We like that you can customize the look of the aquarium to some extent, such as setting the tank lighting for high noon, dusk, or night. You can also adjust the tint … Read more