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El Paso's Water Future | Earth Wise
El Paso, Texas is part of the Paso del Norte region, which includes Ciudad Juarez in Mexico and Las Cruces, New Mexico. The population on both sides of the border is booming, approaching 3 million people. The region's primary water source is the Rio Grande River. But that river is declining.
Rising temperatures and decreasing rainfall have led to diminishing flow in the river. Eighty percent of the river's flow has historically been diverted to agriculture, but the reduced flow of the Rio Grande has forced many farmers to reduce planting or change to less water-hungry crops. The river is expected to continue to decrease its flow as time goes by.
The city of El Paso gets 40% of its water supply directly from the Rio Grande. Urban water authorities in the region are scrambling to find ways to provide cities with alternative supplies of water.
El Paso now gets some of its water from a desalination plant, which is the world's largest inland municipal desalination plant. The water comes from brackish groundwater rather than from the sea. The briny waste from the plant is piped to an injection well many miles way and is permanently stored 4,000 feet underground.
El Paso continues to seek new water sources and reduce its water use. It gets much of its water from wells drilled in nearby aquifers. It is working to make this use of groundwater more sustainable. The city recycles used residential water through its so-called purple pipe system, which cleans up waste water and delivers it for non-potable use on golf courses and park lawns.
Like many places in the increasingly dry west, El Paso's water future is uncertain.
As Rio Grande Shrinks, El Paso Plans for Uncertain Water Future
Photo, posted April 29, 2018, courtesy of R. Baire via Flickr.
Carbon Storage In Harvested Wood | Earth Wise
Trees are an exceedingly important carbon sink on our planet. For this reason, deforestation is a major contributor to climate change. But when trees are harvested for wood products like lumber, much of the carbon in that wood continues to be stored. Even when a wood product is discarded at the end of its useful life, it can keep storing carbon.
Over 90% of new single-family homes in the U.S. are built with wood. Each year, about 400,000 homes, apartment buildings, and other housing units are lost to floods and other natural disasters. Others fall apart from decay or are torn down to be replaced with newer structures. Given how much carbon is stored in houses, it is important to understand what the future trajectory of residential structures will be.
A new study by the USDA Forest Service published in the journal PLOS ONE looks at the future of harvested wood products in residential structures. According to the study, wood products in these structures will continue to increase the country's carbon storage for the next 50 years.
Even after residential structures reach the end of their useful life and much of the materials end up in landfills (which is typical in this country), the wood products do not immediately release their carbon. It may take decades for that to happen.
The study looked at various scenarios for future home construction. Although housing starts are projected to decline in the future, residential housing and the need to maintain existing structures are projected to continue to increase carbon storage in wood products for the next several decades.
The role of trees as a carbon sink does not end when they are harvested for their wood.
Carbon Storage in Harvested Wood Products
Photo, posted January 27, 2022, courtesy of Luke McKernan via Flickr.
A Food For The Future | Earth Wise
Researchers predict that climate change will negatively impact most staple food crops, including rice, corn, and soybeans. Therefore, climate resilient food crops – those that are salt, drought, and heat resilient – will have an important role to play in global food security. Examples of climate resilient crops include quinoa, kernza, amaranth, millet, and tepary beans.
According to a new study by researchers from Northwestern University, breadfruit – a starchy tree fruit native to the Pacific Islands – will be relatively unaffected by climate change. Because breadfruit is climate resilient and well-suited to grow in regions with high levels of food insecurity, the research team suggests breadfruit could be a part of the solution to global hunger.
While it has "fruit" in its name, breadfruit is more like a potato. It's starchy and seedless, and is closely related to jackfruit. Breadfruit is nutrient-rich, and high in fiber, vitamins, and minerals. It can be steamed, roasted, fried, fermented, and even turned into flour. People in tropical regions around the world have been eating breadfruit for thousands of years.
In the study, which was recently published in the journal PLOS Climate, researchers determined the climate conditions necessary to cultivate breadfruit and then looked at how these conditions are predicted to change in the future. They examined two future climate scenarios: one that reflects high greenhouse-gas emissions and another in which emissions stabilize.
In both scenarios, the regions suitable for breadfruit cultivation were mostly unaffected. Additionally, the researchers identified new suitable land where breadfruit cultivation could expand.
As the climate continues to change, breadfruit might soon be on a table near you.
Climate-resilient breadfruit might be the food of the future
Photo, posted August 11, 2007, courtesy of Malcolm Manners via Flickr.
The Atmosphere Is Thirstier | Earth Wise
May 9, 2022 By EarthWise Leave a Comment
The American West is in the throes of a two-decade-long drought. The climate there is getting warmer and drier, which has led to increasing demand for water resources from both humans and ecosystems. According to a new study by the Desert Research Institute and collaborators, the atmosphere across much of the U.S. is also demanding a greater share of water than it used to.
Evaporative demand, which is also called atmospheric thirst, is a measure of the potential loss of water from the earth's surface up to the atmosphere. It is a function of temperature, humidity, wind speed, and solar radiation. The study, published in the Journal of Hydrometeorology, assessed trends in evaporative demand during a 40-year period from 1980-2020.
The study's findings showed substantial increases in atmospheric thirst across much of the Western U.S. over that period, with the largest increases centered around the Rio Grande and Lower Colorado rivers. This is important because atmospheric thirst is a persistent force in pushing Western landscapes and water supplies toward drought.
The study found that, on average, increases in temperature were responsible for 57% of the changes observed in atmospheric thirst, humidity 26%, and the other factors playing lesser roles.
For farmers and other water users, increases in atmospheric thirst mean that, in the future, more water will be required to meet existing water needs. Crops already require more water than they did in the past and can be expected to require more water in the future. Over time, for every drop of precipitation that falls, less and less water is likely to drain into streams, wetlands, aquifers, or other water bodies.
New study shows robust increases in atmospheric thirst across much of U.S. during past 40 years
Photo, posted August 9, 2007, courtesy of William Clifford via Flickr.
Fires Are Larger And More Frequent | Earth Wise
According to a new study by the University of Colorado Boulder, wildfires have gotten much larger and much more frequent across the United States since the year 2000. The rise in wildfires in recent years has been attributed to the changing climate and the new research shows that large fires have become more common and have been spreading into new areas that previously did not burn.
The researchers analyzed data from over 28,000 fires that occurred between 1984 and 2018 using satellite imagery along with detailed state and federal fire history records.
The results are that there were more fires across all regions of the contiguous U.S. from 2005 to 2018 compared to the previous 20 years. In the West and East, fire frequency doubled, and in the Great Plains, fire frequency quadrupled. The amount of land burned each year at least tripled in those regions.
The team discovered that the size of fire-prone areas increased in all regions of the contiguous U.S. in the 2000s, meaning that the distance between individual fires has been getting smaller than it was in previous decades and the fires have been spreading into areas that did not burn in the past.
This comprehensive study confirms what has been assumed by the media, public, and firefighting officials. The results also align with increasing risk trends such as the growing development of natural hazard zones. Projected changes in climate, fuel, and ignitions suggest that there will be more and larger fires in the future. More large fires plus intensifying development mean that the worst fire disasters are still to come.
U.S. Fires Four Times Larger, Three Times More Frequent Since 2000
Photo, posted May 3, 2013, courtesy of Daria Devyatkina via Flickr.
Electric Pickup Trucks | Earth Wise
April 5, 2022 By EarthWise Leave a Comment
There are more and more electric cars on the market as auto manufacturers move toward fleet-wide electrification. In the United States, pickup trucks are massively popular. The top three selling vehicles in the country are all trucks, led by the Ford F-Series. Thus, it is no surprise that automakers are now turning their attention to electric pickup trucks.
Some of the trucks are from established manufacturers like Ford and Chevy and others from new companies like Rivian. The Ford F-150 Lightning is bound to be a big seller. There are hundreds of thousands of pre-orders for Tesla's exotic Cybertruck, now expected to enter the market next year.
A recent study looked at the environmental impact of pickup truck electrification. The central question is what does the transition to electric trucks mean for the overall decarbonization of the transportation industry?
Researchers from the University of Michigan and the Ford Motor Company conducted a cradle-to-grave assessment of the life cycle of pickup trucks and compared the implications of truck electrification to those of sedans and SUVs.
The study found that replacing an internal combustion-powered vehicle with a battery-powered vehicle results in greater total greenhouse gas emission reductions as the size of the vehicle increases, which is no real surprise considering how much more gas larger vehicles use.
The study also found that manufacturing electric vehicles produces more emissions than gas-powered vehicles, but the impact is offset by savings in their operation. Breakeven time is little more than a year.
Basically, the results are that replacing gas-powered trucks with electric trucks is even a bigger win for the planet than replacing gas cars with electric cars. Let's hope we see plenty of electric trucks on the roads in the near future.
Study: Greater greenhouse gas reductions for pickup truck electrification than for other light-duty vehicles
Photo, posted September 22, 2020, courtesy of Steve Jurvetson via Flickr.
An Arctic Bus | Earth Wise
People have built vehicles for all sorts of extreme environments. There are deep-sea exploration vessels and there have been lunar and Mars rovers. But one thing that hasn't existed so far are buses to transport groups of people around in extreme conditions in the Arctic. Engineers at two Russian Universities are developing a passenger bus for riding in the Far North. The project is being funded by the Russian Federation Ministry of Science and Higher Education and the URAL Automobile Manufacturing Plant.
The requirements for the vehicle are daunting. The bus must be operable at extreme temperatures – 60 below zero Fahrenheit and lower – and have no difficulties even in challenging off-road conditions.
Current Arctic crew buses are not capable of getting through snow blockages and the all-terrain tracked vehicles that can get through them do not have sufficient passenger capacity. In addition to being able to go through snowbanks, the bus should be able to float on water for an hour.
Apart from its ability to withstand harsh Arctic conditions, the bus will also have a quarters module. This means that it will have an autonomous life-support system for passengers in case of emergency. The quarters module will be designed to sustain up to 20 people for up to 24 hours. The module might also be used to hold medical equipment, thereby enabling practitioners to reach remote settlements and treat patients.
The first tests of prototypes for the bus will be conducted in the near future. The project aims to have the new Arctic Bus design complete and ready for manufacture by the end of 2023 and it will go into production in 2024.
"Arctic Bus" Being Readied to Be Tested in the Far North
Photo, posted April 21, 2017, courtesy of Markus Trienke via Flickr.
Climate Change And The Winter Olympics | Earth Wise
According to a new study led by researchers from the University of Waterloo in Canada, climate change will limit where the Winter Olympics can be held as winter changes across the Northern Hemisphere.
The international research team found that by the end of the century only one of the 21 cities that have previously hosted the Winter Olympics would be able to reliably provide fair and safe conditions for winter sports if global greenhouse gas emissions are not dramatically reduced.
However, if the emissions targets set forth in the Paris Climate Agreement can be reached, the number of climate-reliable host cities for the Winter Olympics would jump to eight.
In the study, which was recently published in the journal Current Issues in Tourism, the researchers reviewed historical climate data from the 1920s to today, as well as future climate change scenarios for the 2050s and 2080s. The researchers also surveyed international athletes and coaches, and found that 89% of them felt that changing weather patterns are already affecting competition conditions.
The average February daytime temperature of host cities has been steadily increasing. At the winter games held between the 1920s and 1950s, the average temperature was 32.7°F. It rose to 37.6°F at games between the 1960s and 1990s, and has spiked to 43.3°F in the games held in the twenty-first century. The planet is projected to warm another 3.6°F to 7.9°F this century depending on our ability to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.
Reducing global greenhouse gas emissions is critical to ensure that there remain places across the globe to host the Winter Olympics.
Climate change threatens future Winter Olympics
Photo, posted February 21, 2010, courtesy of Michael via Flickr.
The Importance Of City Trees | Earth Wise
It is well known that green spaces can improve the quality of life and create a better climate in cities. City trees and vegetation can help reduce urban heat island effects by shading buildings and roads, deflecting radiation from the sun, and releasing moisture into the atmosphere. City trees and green spaces have also been proven to increase property values, promote wildlife and plant diversity, reduce noise pollution, and improve human health. But how important are trees and vegetation for producing cleaner air in cities?
According to a new study led by researchers at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, trees do contribute to cleaner air in cities, but the degree to which they do so varies greatly between different locations.
The research team measured air pollutants across seven urban settings in the city of Gothenburg, and compared them with pollutants on the leaves of deciduous trees. The researchers chose to focus on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are pollutants generated primarily during the incomplete combustion of organic materials, like coal, oil, and wood.
The results revealed that the pollutants in leaves did increase over time. The researchers were able to show a clear correlation between the level of air pollutants and the concentration of pollutants in leaves.
But at the same time, the researchers discovered that pollution levels varied greatly between measurement sites. For example, the levels of PAHs were seven times higher at the most polluted site (the city's main bus station) than they were at a location on the periphery of the city.
The research team hopes its findings will be used to help guide the planning of future urban landscapes.
Trees are important for cleaner air in cities
Photo, posted November 5, 2021, courtesy of Maria Eklind via Flickr.
A Smart Heat-Blocking Window | Earth Wise
An international research team led by Nanyang Technological University in Singapore has invented a 'smart' window material that controls the transmission of heat without blocking the view through the window. The technology could help reduce the amount of energy needed to cool and heat buildings.
The new material can be the basis of an electrochromic window that can block or pass infrared radiation at the flick of a switch. Current electrochromic windows can be darkened when switched on and are found in many 'green' buildings as well as in many car mirrors. But these windows are only effective in blocking visible light so infrared radiation – meaning heat – still passes through them.
The new coating material blocks up to 70% of infrared radiation when switched on but still allows up to 90% of visible light to pass through. The material is a specifically designed composite nanostructure and utilizes advanced materials including titanium dioxide, tungsten trioxide, neodymium, niobium, and tin oxide. It is intended to be coated onto glass window panels and be activated by electricity when needed. The material was put through rigorous on-off cycles to assess its stability and durability and it appears to offer superior performance in that regard compared with current electrochromic technology.
The researchers also created a switchable system that helps control conducted heat, which is the heat from the external environment.
The combination of the two technologies could result in smart windows that control two types of heat transmission: infrared radiation and conduction heat. Such technology could help conserve energy used for the heating and cooling of buildings and could contribute to the future design of sustainable green buildings.
Scientists invent 'smart' window material that blocks rays without blocking views
Photo, posted March 11, 2016, courtesy of Open Grid Scheduler via Flickr.
Wildfires And Algal Blooms
Australia is no stranger to wildfires. But the 2019-2020 season proved to be particularly severe: wildfires destroyed 3,100 homes, displaced 65,000 people, and burned more than 72,000 square miles – roughly the same size as Washington State. The season is colloquially referred to as the Black Summer.
According to a new study recently published in the journal Nature, clouds of smoke and ash from these wildfires triggered widespread algal blooms thousands of miles downwind to the east in the Southern Ocean.
The study, which was led by researchers from Duke University, shows that aerosol particles in the smoke and ash fertilized the water as they fell into it. This provided the nutrients that fueled unprecedented blooms in that region, conclusively linking for the first time a large-scale response in marine life to fertilization by pyrogenic iron aerosols from a wildfire.
This finding raises questions about the role wildfires may play in the growth of phytoplankton, the microscopic marine algae that – through photosynthesis – absorbs large amounts of climate-warming carbon dioxide from Earth's atmosphere.
According to the research team, the Australian algal blooms were so extensive that the subsequent increase in photosynthesis may have temporarily offset a substantial portion of the wildfires' CO2 emissions. It remains to be seen how much of the absorbed CO2 remains safely stored in the ocean and how much it has been released back into the atmosphere.
The researchers plan to investigate the fate of the phytoplankton further. They also plan more research to better predict where and when aerosol deposition will boost phytoplankton growth in the future.
Australian wildfires triggered massive algal blooms in Southern Ocean
Photo, posted January 12, 2020, courtesy of BLM-Idaho via Flickr.
Electric Cars Are Coming Sooner Than Expected | Earth Wise
It is widely believed that electrification is the future for vehicles. The only question is how long the transition will take. Predictions are all over the map, but the recent trend is to revise those predictions to say it will happen sooner than previously thought.
A recent report from the international accounting firm Ernst & Young predicts that EV sales in the US, China, and Europe will surpass those of fossil-fuel-powered vehicles five years sooner than previously expected. The report forecasts that fossil-fueled vehicles will represent less than 1% of global sales by 2045, taking their place among other historical but essentially abandoned technologies.
Europe is expected to be the leader in EV adoption. The forecast is that EVs will surpass legacy vehicles by 2028. China is expected to follow by 2033. The US is lagging behind, but even here, electrics are expected to achieve a majority of car sales by 2036.
Plug-in vehicle sales have surpassed a 10% market share in California and Tesla now has a 1.7% share of the total US car market. Norway is the global EV leader with 3 out of 4 car buyers choosing electrics. In that country, Tesla's Model 3 is the top-selling vehicle of any kind. In Switzerland, 40% of car sales are EVs or hybrids.
There are many variables that will affect the timetable for the EV transition. Among them are the timetable for widespread use of autonomous vehicle technology, the effects of policy initiatives by governments around the world, the development of charging infrastructure, and the evolution of electricity generation and energy storage.
In any case, looking at the product roadmap for virtually every automobile manufacturer makes it clear that electric cars are the future.
Ernst & Young: Electric Cars Are Coming Sooner Than Expected
Photo, posted April 25, 2021, courtesy of Rutger van der Maar via Flickr.
Have We Reached Peak Internal Combustion Engine? | Earth Wise
August 3, 2021 By EarthWise 1 Comment
According to new analysis from Bloomberg New Energy Finance, global sales of gas-powered cars may well have peaked in 2017, representing a significant milestone in the transition to electric vehicles.
Demand for gas cars dropped in 2018 and 2019, and then plummeted in 2020 as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. While sales are surely picking up as the pandemic ebbs, the increasing demand (and supply as well) for plug-in vehicles is likely to put gas-powered cars in a state of permanent decline.
Global EV sales are projected to go from 3.1 million last year to 14 million in 2025. The growth is being driven by falling battery prices, government policies, and increasing choices of vehicles. Virtually all automobile manufacturers are introducing electric vehicles over the next couple of years and increasing numbers of them are planning a complete transition to EVs in the near future. Projections are that EVs will account for the majority of new car sales by 2035.
While all this progress is encouraging, there are still over a billion gas- and diesel-powered cars on the road and the fleet turns over slowly. The current average operating life of cars here in the US is 12 years.
To reach the net-zero carbon emission goals by 2050 as many governments have mandated, additional policies and regulations will be needed. For example, electric cars will need to account for essentially all new sales by 2035, not just the majority. Reaching net-zero by mid-century will require all hands on deck, including trucks and heavy commercial vehicles that have barely started to become electrified.
New Analysis Suggests We Have Already Hit Peak Internal Combustion Engine
Photo, posted December 23, 2017, courtesy of Davide Gambino via Flickr.
Surviving Climate Change | Earth Wise
June 30, 2021 By EarthWise Leave a Comment
The sixth mass extinction of wildlife on Earth is happening now. According to an analysis published last year in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, more than 500 species of land animals are on the brink of extinction and are likely to be lost within the next 20 years. Without the impact of humans, this quantity of extinctions would have taken thousands of years.
Anthropogenic climate change continues to exacerbate problems that drive species to the brink. Which species will be able to adapt and survive?
Using genome sequencing, a research team from McGill University in Montreal has found that some fish, like the threespine stickleback, can adapt very rapidly to extreme seasonal changes. Known for their different shapes, sizes, and behaviors, stickleback fish can live in both saltwater and freshwater, and can tolerate a wide range of temperatures.
Stickleback fish, which can be found in different estuaries along coastal California, provided researchers with an opportunity to study natural selection in real-time. The researchers analyzed six populations of threespine stickleback fish before and after seasonal changes to their environment. The research team discovered evidence of genetic changes driven by the seasonal shifts in habitat that mirrored the differences found between long-established freshwater and saltwater populations. Since these genetic changes occurred in independent populations over a single season, the study highlights just how quickly the effects of natural selection can be detected.
These findings suggest that scientists may be able to use the genetic differences that evolved in the past as a way to predict how species may adapt to climate change in the future.
Which animals will survive climate change?
Sixth Mass Extinction of Wildlife Accelerating- Study
Photo, posted August 3, 2015, courtesy of Jason Ching/University of Washington via Flickr.
The World's Largest Tidal Device | Earth Wise
Most of the world's activity in renewable energy is focused on solar and wind power. The use of both is expanding rapidly. But there is also marine energy to be exploited. Ocean waves and tidal movements hold huge amounts of energy. Estimates are that the European Union could get 15% of its power from marine sources. But ocean energy is currently expensive and there are significant technical challenges still to be overcome.
The world's largest tidal power device will soon begin testing off the coast of Scotland. The 680-ton, 240-foot-long, airplane-shaped device will be connected to the European Marine Energy Center for testing.
The device, built by the Scottish company Orbital Marine Power, is designed to produce 2 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 2,000 homes. It has a pair of 52-foot-long turbines attached to two wings.
Compared to wind and solar power, the marine energy sector has been much slower to develop because of the many difficulties of working in harsh marine environments as well as the technical challenges associated with harnessing power from waves and tides. But ocean waves and tidal movements hold enormous amounts of energy and have the advantage that they are available at all times, unlike wind and solar energy, which are variable in nature.
Experts say that the future of tidal energy lies with arrays of floating or sea-bottom-mounted turbines that capture the energy of tidal currents in unobstructed waters. There are various places around the world where this is an attractive opportunity, most notably in Nova Scotia's Bay of Fundy, where the world's most extreme tides – rising and falling more than 50 feet – contain vast amounts of power.
The World's Largest Tidal Power Device Will Soon Begin Testing Off Scotland
Photo, posted May 18, 2017, courtesy of Chris via Flickr.
Accelerating Global Glacier Loss | Earth Wise
Glaciers represent the snows of centuries compressed over time to form flowing rivers of ice. Glaciers always change, accumulating snow in the winter and losing ice to melting in the summer. But in recent times, the melting has been outpacing the accumulation.
Glaciers are a sensitive indicator of climate change. They have been melting at a high rate since the mid-20th century – regardless of altitude or latitude. But up until recently, the full extent of glacial ice loss has only been partially measured and understood.
Now, according to new research led by scientists from ETH Zurich in Switzerland and the University of Toulouse in France, nearly all the world's glaciers are becoming thinner and losing mass. And the changes are accelerating. The study, which is the most comprehensive and accurate of its kind to date, is the first to include all the world's glaciers – around 220,000 in total – excluding the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. The research team's findings were recently published in the journal Nature.
Between 2000 and 2019, the world's glaciers lost an average of more than 294 billion tons of ice per year. Between 2000 and 2004, glaciers lost an average of about 250 billion tons of ice each year. But between 2015 and 2019, ice mass loss jumped up to an average of approximately 328 billion tons annually.
Glacial melt is responsible for 21% of the observed sea level rise during this two decade time period studied.
This research is just another reminder of how we need to act urgently if we want to prevent the worst-case climate change scenario from becoming a reality.
Global glacier retreat has accelerated
Photo, posted September 17, 2015, courtesy of Richard Whitaker via Flickr.
Progress Towards Carbon-Free Power | Earth Wise
Climate change has driven countries, states, utilities, and corporations to set goals to eliminate power-sector carbon emissions. So far, 17 U.S. states plus Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico have adopted laws or executive orders to achieve 100% carbon-free electricity over the next couple of decades. Forty-six U.S. utilities have pledged to go carbon-free no later than 2050. Adding these together, these government and industry goals cover about half of the U.S. population and economy.
New research from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has analyzed historical trends to determine how much progress the power sector has already made in reducing emissions. The study focused on the 2005 Annual Energy Outlook from the U.S. government's Energy Information Administration.
If the previous growth in emissions had continued from 2005 to 2020, annual CO2 emissions would have risen from 2,400 to 3,000 million metric tons. But actual 2020 emissions fell to only 1,450 metric tons. So, by this metric, the U.S. power sector cut emission by 52% below projected levels.
According to the study, total consumer electricity costs were 18% lower than projected values, but meanwhile, the number of jobs in electricity generation was 29% higher.
Among the driving forces for these trends were wind and solar power dramatically outperforming earlier expectations, delivering 13 times more generation in 2020 than projected.
The study shows that dramatic changes in emissions are possible over a 15-year span, but much has to happen over the next 15 years to ensure the progress required to meet the ambitious goals set for emissions reductions.
U.S. Power Sector is Halfway to Zero Carbon Emissions
Photo, posted April 18, 2020, courtesy of Roman Ranniew via Flickr.
Solar Energy And Agriculture | Earth Wise
March 10, 2021 By EarthWise Leave a Comment
According to a new study by Oregon State University researchers, co-developing land for both solar voltaic power and agriculture could provide 20% of total electricity generation in the United States with an investment of less than 1% of the annual U.S. budget.
The concept is known as agrivoltaics – using the same land for both growing crops and generating solar energy. The proponents of agrivoltaics say that it provides more food, more energy, lower water demand, lower carbon emissions, and more prosperous rural communities.
According to the study, wide-scale installation of agrivoltaic systems could lead to an annual reduction of 330,000 tons of carbon dioxide emission in the U.S. – the equivalent of taking 75,000 cars off the road – and the creation of more than 100,000 jobs in rural communities. All of this could be achieved with minimal effects on crop yields.
The study finds that an area about the size of Maryland would be needed for agrivoltaics to produce 20% of U.S. electricity generation. That area of 13,000 square miles constitutes about 1% of current U.S. farmland.
The cost of the solar installations would be $1.1 trillion over 35 years and they would pay for themselves from the electricity generated within 17 years. Installing the arrays would create the equivalent of 117,000 jobs lasting 20 years.
The researchers are going to install a fully functional solar farm on 5 acres of university owned land to demonstrate to the agricultural community and potential future funders how the study's findings can be applied in real world agricultural systems.
Combining solar energy and agriculture to mitigate climate change, assist rural communities
Photo, posted October 11, 2011, courtesy of Michael Coghlan via Flickr.
Geothermal Power In The Energy Transition | Earth Wise
The heat beneath the earth represents a vast repository of energy that in principle could provide for a significant part of our needs. In some places, geothermal energy is easy to get to and is already being exploited. California and Nevada operate dozens of geothermal electric generating plants. Boise Idaho heats 92 of its biggest buildings with the river of hot water that flows 3,000 feet below the city. In total, the U.S. produces enough geothermal electricity to power more than a million homes.
But all these examples make use of relatively rare local features that are not available to the great majority of locations. As a result, geothermal energy has generally not been viewed as being able to play a major role in the alternative energy transition.
A number of experts around the world disagree with this assessment. To a fair extent due to the deep-drilling techniques and knowledge about underground formations developed by the oil and gas industry during the fracking boom, there is growing interest in a type of geothermal energy called deep geothermal that accesses hot temperatures in the earth's mantle as far down as two or three miles.
Deep geothermal can either access extremely hot water that exists down at those depths or water can be injected into hot rock down there, which is a technology known as enhanced geothermal systems.
There is enormous untapped potential for geothermal energy. A 2019 report by the U.S. Department of Energy says that by 2050, geothermal could provide 8.5% of the United States' electricity as well as direct heat. Geothermal could be an important part of the so-called all-of-the-above future energy strategy.
Can Geothermal Power Play a Key Role in the Energy Transition?
Photo, posted August 2, 2008, courtesy of ThinkGeoEnergy via Flickr.
Cell-Based Meat And Seafood | Earth Wise
We have heard about laboratory meat for a number of years, generally in terms of something that may happen at some point in the indeterminate future. But at least for a couple of California companies, that future is now.
These high-tech companies are producing products – real meat and seafood – that are originally cultured from animal cells but are made without the actual animal.
San Francisco-based Eat Just makes chicken nuggets that have recently gained regulatory approval in Singapore and are now available to order at a downtown restaurant. San Diego's BlueNalu creates cell-based seafood fillets including yellowtail, mahi-mahi, red snapper, and tuna.
The companies use stem cells obtained from actual animals and cultivate them in steel tanks with the same nutrients that living animals consume. The original cell donor is not sacrificed. The harvested cells multiply and are eventually shaped to form meat or fish that cooks, looks, and tastes just like its natural counterpart.
The "mouth feel" of conventional meat or fish can be mimicked by recreating the same proportions of muscle, fat, and connective tissue in the cell-based product. Eat Just says their product cooks, looks, and tastes like chicken because it is chicken. BlueNalu says their product has all the same characteristics as fish because it is fish.
These products have major environmental, safety, and ethical advantages. The big question is whether people will eat them. Is there an "ick factor" to overcome? Ultimately, the key thing is how they taste. If they pass muster on that score and cell-based meats and seafood are scaled up and accepted, we can have the nutritional and sensory advantages of meat proteins without the environmental, ethical and safety disadvantages.
Can We Enjoy Meat and Seafood and Save the Planet?
Photo, posted February 1, 2012, courtesy of Andrea Parrish-Geyer via Flickr.


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Khattar-Vij duel for control over CID intensifies
The row between Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij and Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar over the control of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has intensified.
Recently, when the Haryana CMO website stated that the CID should come under the Chief Minister, Vil responded by saying the governments were run on rules and not through websites.
"It's clearly mentioned in the Act number 5 of page 30 that the CID is an integral part of the Home Ministry," Vij said.
"The CID in Haryana comes under the Home Ministry and if the Chief Minister wants to take it under himself, he would have to get the nod of the cabinet of ministers and a Bill passed in Assembly to that effect. So far, there is no amendment to it," Vij said.
The weakening of Khattar as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) under him failed to get a majority in the recent Assembly polls and the party had to take the Jannayak Janata Party's (JJP) help to form the government has emboldened Vij.
The Khattar-Vij row escalated when Vij took strong action against corrupt officers, some of whom are said to be close to Khattar.
Even, the top BJP leadership warned Vij on it, but he is refusing to be cowed down and is openly questioning Khattar's style of working.
On action against bureaucrats, Vij said: "I'm not against bureaucracy. I want them to work for the common people of Haryana. It's my duty as Home Minister to take action against them. I will go after them every time they erred."
Meanwhile, Khattar said here on Wednesday that there was no dispute between him and Vij. "The matters pointed out by him will be sorted out internally. Every thing is fine," Khattar said.IANS

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


FIND YOUR 700r4 Detent Cable.
Mvhigh is a centralized place where you'll get various gift ideas, deals, sales, and coupons from largest and famous online stores like Amazon, Walmart, Ebay, and more. Price comparison for 700r4 Detent Cable, deals and coupons help you save on your online shopping.
700r4 Detent cable little trick.
This is a little trick i learned from a guy at the transmission shop last year for keeping the detent cable from slipping out of place and to keep the line pressure up for firmer shifts.


The 11th century writer and historian, Adam of Bremen described Gamla Uppsala (meaning 'Old Uppsala') in Sweden as a pagan site where a temple dedicated to Thor, Odin and Freyr stood. Adam wrote descriptively, if not always accurately, of the rituals performed there and of the temple itself.
The temple, adorned with a golden chain, was said to be a place where "heathens" would perform animal and human sacrifices , specifically in the sacred grove next to the temple. The trees were "considered to be divine", and sacrifices —animal and man alike— were said to have been hanged from trees and left to rot, and elaborate ritual songs were sung.
With the coming of Christianity, any temple that might have existed was destroyed, and a church was built over it. Gamla Uppsala eventually became an archbishopric in the 12th century. Still, remnants of its pagan past continued to exist in the landscape of Gamla Uppsala. The 'Royal Mounds' endure to this day as a national symbol of Sweden.
The 'Royal Mounds' consist of three massive hills measuring between 9 and 10 meters (29 and 32 feet) high. According to some, these mounds belonged to the gods worshipped at the temple of Gamla Uppsala – Thor, Odin and Freyr. Others, however, believed that these mounds held the remains of three Ynglinga kings, who belonged to the earliest known Scandinavian dynasty. In the Ynglinga Saga , the kings Aun, Egil and Adils were buried in Gamla Uppsala. As the kings were thought to have been buried in these mounds, they came to be known as a 'Royal' place.
By the 19th century, however, some scholars began doubting the old legends, and speculated that these mounds were naturally formed features, and not the work of human beings. To the future Swedish king, Karl XV, this was an insult to Swedish national pride not to be tolerated. Rather than severely punishing these scholars, he commissioned an excavation to prove once and for all that the 'Royal Mounds' at Gamla Uppsala did contain the remains of the Ynglinga kings.
In 1847, the East Mound, which is the largest of the three mounds, was excavated. This was followed by the excavation of the West Mound in 1874. The Middle Mound, though partially investigated, has never been excavated. The results of the excavations proved that the mounds were man-made, and contained human burials, though the identities of those buried in the mounds have never been firmly established.
At the base of the East Mound, the excavators discovered a burial urn filled with burnt bone that was covered by a stone cairn. This pattern of cremation and re-internment was also visible in the West Mound.
The saga then goes on to record that "For men of consequence a mound should be raised to their memory". The West Mound demonstrates this, as found bones and grave goods indicate that the person buried was an adult male. The East Mound, however, does not fit the saga, as it seems that there were two individuals buried there – a young boy (between the age of 10 and 14) and a woman.
Another aspect of Scandinavian life that can be seen from the 'Royal Mounds' is the extensive trade networks that were established by the people of the north. This is visible particularly in some of the grave goods from the West Mound. For instance, several ivory gaming pieces, possibly of late Roman origin, were found in the mound. In addition, there were three small cameos with various motifs, likely to have been from the Near East, and dating to the fourth century AD.
As of today, excavations are being carried out in the wider landscape of Gamla Uppsala ancient religious center. Although the 'Royal Mounds' are the most conspicuous structures in the terrain, archaeologists today understand the importance of investigating not only such prominent features, but also the surrounding landscape. It has been estimated that there have been thousands of burials in Gamla Uppsala, though many have been destroyed over the centuries by farming and quarrying.
Evidence for cross-cultural links and the existence of other burials at Gamla Uppsala have made recent archaeological headline news . When archaeologist Annika Larsson of Uppsala University re-examined funeral clothes that were found in graves at Gamla Uppsala and Birka a century ago, she found that "Allah" and "Ali" had been embroidered on at least ten of the 100 Viking Age pieces she is working through. Larsson noted that this discovery "shows us that the Vikings were in close contact with other cultures, including with the Islamic world."
There was also a densely populated settlement in Gamla Uppsala as early as the seventh century AD.
By placing the 'Royal Mounds' within its wider landscape, we will be able to have a broader view and a better understanding of the society of Gamla Uppsala during that period of its history.
The first picture here doesn't describe Sweden world. It's a painting of a famous Russian artist Vasnetsov at the A.Pushkin's "The Song of a Wise Oleg" http://shaltay0boltay.livejournal.com/89889.html It's a Russia but not the Scandinavian tradition.


As I am writing this week's column, I'm sitting in my home office looking out the window at the frozen landscape left during the recent and very lengthy ice storm.
It has been an interesting week for me. For those who have had trouble reaching me last week, I was off for most of the week with the flu.
What has made this an interesting challenge for me is, because I am a reporter, I am so used to moving around all the time, going out to get the information and the photos I need, I am not used to having to rest for days and recover. Despite knowing it is necessary to rest and recuperate when you are sick, I constantly felt like I should have been up and doing something. I know my colleague Christopher Green wrote about a similar experience dealing with recuperating from illness in a previous edition of his column.
Fast forward to now, and I am sitting at home carefully trying to conserve power on this laptop as I write. Again, despite knowing that safety is my main concern, I cannot stop this nagging feeling that I should be in the office or out in the community working, rather than being forced to be housebound because of the weather.
In my mind, people should not have these worries. In reality, when they are sick, they should allow themselves to get better before they come into the office again. When the weather gives people no choice but to stay back, and either take the day off or do their best to work from home, we shouldn't feel guilty for making our safety the top priority. However, no matter what reassurances employers, family members, or I give myself, these guilty feelings remain.
So, why is this the case? That is something I have wondered for a while. I have two ideas on this subject.
Personally, I think people see going to work and earning a paycheque as accomplishing something with your day; while they feel the opposite when they stay back and recover, feeling they were lazy.
I also think there is an expectation people put on themselves to go to work every day no matter what state they are in so they feel like a dedicated employee.
However, the main message I want people to take from this week's column is, it is okay to need one, two or even three days to get over an illness. You would not be the same productive person if you came in sick. It is also okay if you can't make it somewhere because the roads are unsafe or the weather is horrible, of course as long as you communicate that concern in a timely manner.
So, for those who are feeling guilty about being off work for these reasons, I give you permission to put yourself first and to take care of yourself.
As people who have avidly read my column over the years know, one of my favourite parts about this job is meeting the many different people in our coverage area.
Since I started working here at The Standard, I have always felt engagement is very important to the journalism industry While I have spent time the past few years getting to know numerous people, I wanted to use this edition of my column to answer questions people might have about myself, the job, or the journalism industry.
In my last column, I put out an ask for people to send me questions through my Twitter account, my email or by calling me for a question and answer style column. I have received some questions I will answer in this column. So let's begin.
Q: When did you first decide you wanted to be a journalist?
A: When I was in my last year of high school, I decided to apply to the journalism program at Durham College because I was hoping to become a sports reporter. This was mainly because I was, and still am, a huge Toronto Maple Leafs fan and I was aspiring to cover the NHL either on television, radio or by working at a newspaper.
However, it was not until partway through my first year in the Durham College program that I, through working on assignments and a couple stories, realized I have a passion for telling other people's stories and writing hard news stories. I was happy the course allowed me the opportunity to write all sorts of stories, from hard news, to feature stories and of course covering a couple campus sports teams.
I still love covering sports as well, and I was happy I got the opportunity to cover the Port Perry MoJacks this season.
Q: What are your aspirations and have you ever felt crushed by expectations?
A: To answer the first part of this question, currently I aspire to be the best reporter I can be. I try to do the best I can with every story I write and photo I take, and I'm constantly looking for opportunities to write about new topics. I enjoy working in this community.
On the second part of that question, I can tell you I have pretty high expectations of myself, and, personally, I think I am my own worst critic. I hold myself to a high standard with everything I send in to be published, so I think the highest expectations of me are the ones I put on myself. There may have been times I felt I might not have met those personal benchmarks, but I am constantly looking to learn and improve.
Q: With people claiming "print is dead" what are your thoughts on the future of journalism?
A: First off, I've heard this claim that print is dead for several years now, yet The Standard is still here and the print version is still being read by thousands of people in our coverage area.
Now, the journalism industry is a constantly changing field, and for media outlets to survive we must continue to evolve. Of course, saying that, being in the digital age where people have access to news on all sorts of platforms at their fingertips, and with some politicians talking about the rise of "fake news", I believe more than ever in the importance of the old journalism school adage of getting it right being more important than getting it first. The public looks to reporters for the facts and we must always do our due diligence to make sure our stories are 100 per cent accurate. As a last statement, I think the journalism industry is very important in small communities, and big cities in democratic nations, and for now I plan on being optimistic about the industry's future.
A: Ok, here's the origin story of the column name. Cearnsader is a mix of my last name and DC Comics' Batman's nickname the Caped Crusader. In fact it was a friend from college I helped solve an issue for who gave me that nickname, and later when I joined The Standard team and was asked for a column name I thought it would be a good name for this column.
Q: Best advice to aspiring reporters?
A: To start, let me say one of the things that makes this job so exciting is, it is different every day, so if you like that kind of thing then journalism might be for you.
One of the things I find is so important as a reporter is time management. To be able to put out multiple stories per week, you must create for yourself a system to organize your assignments. Once you have that system, I recommend getting started on the assignments/stories as soon as you can.
Also, talk to people in your community and try to learn about them and what makes their story unique. You might be surprised what you learn.
Lastly, just read all the news articles you can and be constantly looking for other angles to those stories that might not have been covered yet.
To sum up, I hope people have learned a lot from this question and answer edition of my column, and if anyone has any questions for me in the future feel free to ask me on my Twitter account or if you see me in person. You can also email me, at dan@thestandardnewspaper.ca.


Whenever you talk about good cafes in Bangkok a name that frequently comes up is Kuppa Tea & Coffee Traders. Given the fact that historically there was much more of an emphasis in the Bangkok cafe scene on good food and good brunching – moreso than good coffee – it's not hard to see why.
What Kuppa delivers is a very sophisticated vibe, with a cafe and fine dining section, and a large selection of all day breakfasts, lunch and dinner options. As well as coffee and tea, they feature a full range of wine, beer and cocktails for those corporate lunch meetings and lavish dinners.
Kuppa advertise themselves as Bangkok's first dedicated coffee house, and their factory-grade roasting setup is a major feature in their cafe. So then you would expect their coffee to be top notch. They offer a full range of espresso serving styles, so I tried my usual, a macchiato. There was no mention of where the espresso beans originated from, so I assume they're serving a blend. Sadly, compared to many places I've tried here in Bangkok, this was far from the most impressive coffee I've had. Too bitter, and not a great deal of character. Who knows what went wrong, perhaps an inexperienced barista? I'll be back again to try their single origin french press coffee.
If you're a die-hard third-wave coffee-snob like me, you might like to choose from some other cafes in Bangkok, however if what you value is lavish surroundings and the full cafe-dining experience, then you're bound to enjoy Kuppa. They have a great atmosphere with gentle background music and comfortable seating in a high-ceiling space that makes you feel at ease. Service is prompt, polite, friendly and professional, but lacking the personal warmth and first-name basis relationships you'll get at the smaller cafes.


text:
Portugal's largest construction companies preparing proposals for Luanda port
Lisbon, Portugal, 23 Feb – Portugal's largest construction companies Mota-Engil, Somague and Soares da Costa, are currently preparing proposals for the construction tender of Luanda's new port, a project valued at 109 million euros, Portuguese financial daily Diário Económico reported Wednesday.
Of the country's main construction companies, only Teixeira Duarte told the paper it had not made a decision about taking part in the tender for the new Angolan infrastructure, which is due to be finished in 2010.
A Somague spokesperson said that the project, "is very interesting business," for the company, which is controlled by Spanish group Sacyr Vallehermoso, because of its "marine construction portfolio."
Mota-Engil, Portugal's largest construction company, and Soares da Costa, also have companies that focus on port construction work.
The investment, which is being run by the port authority and the concession-holders of the port's cargo terminals, will increase the port's capacity from 4 million tons of cargo per year to 5.3 million tons per year, making it one of the largest ports in southern Africa.
The aim is to make Luanda a benchmark coastal port and access point to the southern African hinterland, giving the port the conditions to compete with those in South Africa, Namibia and even Lobito, in south Angola.
Last week, Chinese construction company told Macauhub it was open to partnerships with Portuguese construction companies working in Angola. (macauhub)
New Chinese medical mission to Guinea-Bissau leaves Sichuan
Successful completion of the Online Workshop on the Use of Traditional Medicine to Fight COVID-19 Promoting the global fight against the pandemic, fulfilling Macao's platform role
Loans from China to Portuguese-speaking countries processed in Macau
Chinese govt to help feed 150,000 Guinean schoolchildren
China to finance several projects in Guinea-Bissau
RSS Feed |
Copyright © 2019 Macauhub.
MACAUHUB FRENCH


red hot coals.Smokeless coal fire close-up.
Glowing red, hot, electric range cooktop burner heating element coil .
A lot of red hot chilli peppers as background. a concept hot spice for food. top view, flat lay. Concept red food, red background.
Image for use as background full of red pepper.
A lot of red hot chili peppers on a white background. a concept hot spice for food. flat lay. Concept red food, many red peppers as background.
Dried mini chili peppers on kitchen table.
Close up of a bee on a Kniphofia Timothy flower in a south London garden. Also known as Red Hot Poker.
Red pepper in bowl on black background.
A lot of the red hot chilli peppers and black peppers corns lying on a red paprika. a concept of spicy food and seasoning on a red background, top view, flat lay. Hot pepper mix.
Dried mini chili peppers in bowl on kitchen table. Top view.
Top view red hot pepper on green surface. Vertical image. Vintage style.
Red hot pepper peperoni whole and chopped on a spoon and on black slate background.
Red Hot Chili Peppers with wooden plate in over wooden rustic background with a place for an inscription.
Red pepper in bowl on white background.
red hot chili peppers, popular spices concept - red fresh peppers under a transparent plastic film in department store packing, isolated on white background, top view, free space for text.
Top view red hot pepper on green dish over white wood. Vertical image.
Red hot pepper peperoni whole and chopped on a spoon with pepper and on black slate background.
Red Hot Chili Peppers with metall plate in over wooden rustic background with a place for an inscription.
Red hot peppers dry on the sun, selective focus.


Terrific Deal - You get TWO Modules for ONE price!
These modules are clean pulls from equipment, they have been used. They are in good shape but may have a smudge or two. I sell lots of these modules on eBay and everybody loves them! They feature an industry standard Optrex-Compatible 14-pin interface (uses the Hitachi HD44780 driver chip) so they are easy to drop into almost any electronics project.
Using these modules is easy and fun! They operate on 5-Volts DC and and are very "battery-friendly" ;) They also have a built-in Electro-Luminescent backlight (requires ~90-120 Volts AC [see note below]) for smooth, even lighting (No "hot-spots" like you get with LED backlights!) They are great for use in Robotics, MP3 Players, PC Status Displays, or any other project that needs a spiffy display. Here are some links to more information: wm-c2402p.pdf and hd44780u.pdf. You will probably also be interested in these excellent articles: lcd1.pdf and lcd2.pdf which are chock-full of useful information, circuit examples, sample code and other interesting stuff.
If you want to operate them from a regular PC parallel port... you can! You will need to make a custom cable however to hook it up and be prepared to write some simple software to send data to the module. Here is a link to a site with more information on doing this: How to Hook Up an LCD Module to a PC Parallel Port.
What you will receive: We have a number of these modules and they come in several minor variations but are all basically the same. The module depicted in the photo is for illustration purposes only. The actual modules you receive may be slightly different but guaranteed to work as presented. The only notable difference between the modules is that most of them have a 14-pin male-header for connection, while the rest have a short "pig-tail" cable (approx. 8" in length) terminating in a 14-pin female connector.
Unless you specify otherwise, you will get "dealer's choice". However, if you really want one or the other, just remind us when you send in your payment and we'll make sure that you get the ones that you want.
These modules are guaranteed to work!
We test them all before we ship them but if by chance, you somehow get a dud, just return it to us and we'll send you another one.
Note: Please be careful hooking up the backlight. Don't use ordinary house-current for this. While it will work, it is not the smartest idea because if you accidently get zapped, mains power can supply enough current to make it hurt (or even kill you!) Be smart- be safe, use a switching-type circuit that is designed for this purpose instead- or at the very least, a large wattage resistor and an inline fuse.


text:
History & Members
Threat to Portsmouth Harbour
Portsmouth Naval Base
Sheerness
Dockyards
Dockyard History
Featured Dockyards
Deptford Dockyard
Devonport Dockyard
Pembroke Dock
Venice Arsenale
Dockyards Newsletter
C20 Naval Dockyards
TRANSACTIONS INDEXES TO VIEW
Index to Vol. 1: Portsmouth Dockyard in the Age of Nelson
Index to Vol. 2: Gibraltar as a Naval Base and Dockyard
Index to Vol. 3: Conferences 2001, 2002 and 2003
Index to Vol. 4, conferences 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001
Navy Board Project
Grants for 5 Dockyard Projects
Naval Dockyards Society
Exploring the civil branches of navies & their material culture
Announcing the Award of five £1000 Grants by NDS to Small Dockyard Museum or Dockyard Heritage Site Projects
The 2020 Naval Dockyards Society AGM agreed that part of its small surplus of funds could be used to award five grants of £1,000 each to small dockyard museum or dockyard heritage site projects. It was felt that grants could make a real difference to the future enhancement of worthy museums or sites.
Successful applications were received from the following sites:
Bluetown Remembered (Sheerness)
The project will further raise the profile of Sheerness Dockyard and Blue Town heritage, run from Bluetown Remembered, a music hall built in 1841, later a cinema. One floor is dedicated to Sheerness Dockyard. It welcomes over 20,000 visitors each year. The NDS grant will fund a booklet on Sheerness Dockyard for all Sheppey schools, part of two Kent-wide schemes, Wheels of Time and the Children's University, bringing in families from all over Kent. It will also finance six monthly lectures about the dockyard and Blue Town to encourage history groups to visit as well as locals. Preshow tours of the island and the dockyard will be used to help promote the dockyard to this wider audience. Special events for care homes will also be hosted.
The Dockyard Museum at Antigua Naval Dockyard
Unveiling the 8 March Exhibition, 2020, at the Antigua Dockyard Museum
A multidisciplinary research, interpretation, and public outreach programme has been developed entitled '8 March Project' under the theme 'Dockyard History is African History', to recover and interpret archival and archaeological evidence of the enslaved and free Africans and their descendants who made possible the naval dockyard at Antigua, established in 1725. The '8 March Project' identified eight enslaved Africans who lost their lives in an explosion on 8 March 1744. These names launched a project to recover more names of enslaved Africans who worked in the yard, which has recovered more than 650 names. In 2021 the dockyard museum will initiate an expanded programme including creative works by students from Antigua State College and the local Cobbs Cross Primary School, telling the stories of enslaved workers. The students will bring parents and grandparents.
Museum of Slavery and Freedom, Deptford
This embryonic organisation aspires to acquire permanent premises, working alongside Action for Community Development in Deptford. The project, 'Chip on Your Shoulder', will combine Deptford Dockyard history and the Museum of Slavery and Freedom (MōSaF). It will use the Deptford Pepys Resource Centre as an anchor hub for museum tours about Deptford Dockyard, its support of maritime communities, and its links to the African, Irish and Asian diaspora. Deptford is significant as it was home to John Hawkins who became a prominent early English slave trader. MōSaF will demonstrate how Deptford, London and the United Kingdom grew rich from the slave trade but also explore the extent to which freedom from slavery was won and celebrate the many cultures and peoples who live consequently in the UK. The Lenox Project has kindly offered £500 to help fund this project.
Sheerness Dockyard Preservation Trust (SDPT)
Sheerness Dockyard Church
1820s Sheerness Dockyard Model
SDPT was founded in 2014 to conserve the historic buildings of the former Royal Dockyard at Sheerness. The Trust's focus has been to rescue and reuse the Grade II* listed former Dockyard Church, built in 1828 to the designs of George Ledwell Taylor, Navy Board surveyor. In 2001 it was gutted by fire. The Trust has developed a project to conserve the building and convert it into a mixed-use community facility with an events space, a business start-up centre for young people, and a permanent display gallery housing part of the 1820s dockyard model. This model will play a significant part in informing the public of the history of the dockyard and the church's place in that community. The NDS grant will contribute towards the interpretation and conservation of the model.
The Unicorn Preservation Society, Dundee
The stern of HMS Unicorn
Robert Seppings, the Industrial Revolution & HMS Unicorn'. 2022 is the 200th anniversary of the keel laying of Robert Seppings's frigate HMS Unicorn on No 4 slip at Chatham. From 1800, many factors affected ship construction methods and yard operations, such as the increased availability of consistent wrought iron and steam propulsion. Seppings developed wrought iron diagonal straps to increase the torsional stiffness of the hull and wrought iron knees, offering greater strength at less weight. HMS Unicorn is now the only remaining ship which fully illustrates Seppings's approach. The grant will be used, with other funding, for an exhibition linking the Industrial Revolution, Seppings's ship design and shipbuilding in Dundee and naval dockyards. It will utilise oral histories of those who worked in the Dundee shipyards and link outreach to relevant school curricula.
This was an exceptional event for the Society and it was very exciting to see the range of projects thus funded, reflecting the scope of dockyard cultural significance. The NDS is optimistic that these inputs will enable wider interpretation of dockyard heritage, 'as an oak cometh of a litel spyr' (Geoffrey Chaucer, Troilus and Criseyde, Book 2).
All of the photos are courtesy of the respective organisations, we have permission to use them, no names of photographers have been supplied.
Ann Coats
Naval Dockyards Society announces 5 Dockyard Project Grants
Who knows where an initial discovery can lead? Historic England investigated the dismantling site of Charles Darwin's exploration ship Beagle, which sailed to South America and twice circumnavigated the world (Hunt for Darwin's HMS Beagle Reveals Dock Outline)
https://historicengland.org.uk/whats-new/news/hms-beagle/
https://historicengland.org.uk/whats-new/news/rare-19th-century-ship-dock-protected/
This has led to the listing of a mud dock berth at Paglesham, Essex as a Scheduled Monument (https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1467785). The list entry also recognises Beagle's later career as a Coastguard Watch Vessel and the rarity of surviving mud docks. Such legacies have many meanings to local maritime communities and can become critical in enhancing local engagement in dockyard heritage.
Such small beginnings can stimulate local volunteers to carry out research into the dockyard site, write histories about its ships and people and hold open days. Thus the community learns about its evolving landscape, crafts and society, which ties it to larger stories. This can lead to more permanent sites, volunteer opportunities, and engagement with schools and visitors.
Through the hard work of committee members and the generosity of members, the Naval Dockyards Society has accumulated a small surplus of funds beyond those needed for forthcoming publications. The 2020 AGM agreed that this could be used to support a dockyard museum/dockyard heritage site project. The Society will award five grants of £1,000 each, to help fulfil the NDS Constitution Aim and specific Objectives:
To stimulate the production and exchange of information and research into naval dockyards and associated organisations. The Naval Dockyards Society is an international organisation which is concerned with and publishes material on naval dockyards and associated activities, including victualling, medicine, ordnance, shipbuilding, shipbreaking, coastguard stations, naval air stations, provisions and supplies; all aspects of their construction, history, archaeology, conservation, workforce, surrounding communities and family history; and all aspects of their buildings, structures and monuments relating to naval history. The Society is therefore involved closely in the terrestrial, aviation and underwater heritage of all these sites.
Specific Constitution Objectives to:
5 Increase public awareness of historic dockyards and related sites.
6 Create links with related organisations in Britain and abroad.
7 Coordinate and promote new research into the topics relevant to the Aim.
8 Coordinate the historical, architectural and technical expertise available within the society to enhance dockyard sites and campaign against threats of damage or the destruction of dockyards or related sites.
10 Endeavour to increase access to historic dockyards and related sites.
12 Offer assistance to those establishing dockyard heritage sites.
13 Encourage the storage and collection of relevant archives and oral history interviews related to dockyard history.
The NDS wishes to support a small dockyard museum or heritage site organisation anywhere in the world, such as a not-for-profit organisation with 0-5 employed staff or an elected committee, with a constitution and annual member meetings. This sum could make a real difference to the future enhancement of a worthy museum or site.
What is a dockyard and a dockyard museum or dockyard heritage site?
A dockyard builds, fits out, supplies and repairs naval ships. Dockyards are defined by dry docks, from which water can be drained or pumped out for repairing or dismantling, whereas shipbuilding can be carried out on a slip, but the term was sometimes used where the yard did not have a dock. A dockyard was literally the yard that grew around the dock. The term implies naval ownership, but in this instance also encompasses commercial yards which built for the navy.
A dockyard museum or dockyard heritage site comprises groups of buildings or structures which, because of their distinctive architecture, fabric or their place in the landscape, display historical, aesthetic, communal and social value. This could be tangibly or intangibly associated with events or living traditions, ideas, beliefs, artistic and literary works of significance.
See Dockyard Project Grant Application Guidance 2020
10 June 2020 (modified 16/06/2020)
All text, images and other materials on this website are copyright of the Naval Dockyards Society


text:
© 2016-2019 www.thejerseynotes.com. All Rights Reserved
The Jersey Notes treat you to an evening of nostalgia as they magically recreate the style and sounds of one of the biggest acts of the twentieth century. These seasoned performers capture the trademark vocal virtuosity, tight harmonies and crisp choreography that made 'The Four Seasons' one of the greatest vocal groups of all time.
Featuring all of their biggest hits including: Big Girls Don't Cry, Sherry, Walk Like A Man, Working My Way Back To You, Oh What A Night (Dec 63) and many more, the boys take you on a musical trip down memory lane and remind you exactly why Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons sold over one hundred million records and earned themselves a place in the prestigious 'Rock and Roll Hall of Fame'.
Following their huge success at the Pavilion Theatre, Glasgow and The Kings Theatre, Edinburgh The Jersey Notes are now taking the nation by storm and bookings are flowing in for theatres and venues up and down the country.
No matter what your age, you will recognize the songs and won't be able to stop yourself from tapping your feet, singing along and getting down on to the dance floor. With fabulous costumes, tight vocals, slick moves and a comedy flare this show has all of the ingredients for a great night out!
THE JERSEY NOTES REPERTOIRE
Alan has been singing professionally for over 20 years. It all started in 1990 when he was the lead singer with rock band 'Randy Savage' who toured the UK. Some years later Alan became one of the resident singers in the Parade Cabaret venue in Glasgow. Recently Alan has teamed up with the 'Jersey Notes' very own Pat Coyle to put together a 10-piece tribute show band called 'Absolute Legends' Touring UK theatres. Alan has also recently been working as a session vocalist with musicians from 'Simple Minds' and 80's Pop band H2O on an original project called 'The Celtic Fire'.
Pat Coyle
Pat has been singing professionally for 18 years and toured the UK theatres with 'Reel to Reel music of the movies' stage show. Eventually teaming up with Alan Walker for the theatre show 'Hard Liquor and laughter'. Pat and Alan created the 10 piece show band 'Whambamrocketman' and 'Absolute Legends' currently touring the UK. Pat has also worked with Simple Minds members and H2O members on a recent album as a sessional vocalist for their debut album 'The Celtic Fire'
Jamie Mac
Jamie's career as an entertainer spans over 20 years, he started out in 1996 as a Red Coat in the West Country and by 1999 he was delivering vocal performances on Cruises ships worldwide. Jamie has performed in theatres up and down the country as both a singer and actor and has appeared in numerous TV shows in a variety of roles. This experience as an all round entertainer has led him to produce, direct and perform countless shows over the years. Jamie has a fantastic ability to captivate his audiences with his quality performances and has been selling out venues now for over a decade.


We recently discussed homeopathy and the basics behind how this alternative medical treatment works. We learned about how it eschews the use of prescription medicines and traditional American medical practices to help patients deal with a variety of health issues using various natural compounds and herbs, many of them quite practical when used.
Homeopathic medical treatment was devised in the late 18th century by German physician Samuel Christian Hahnemann, who had become discontent with the medical practices of his day – practices that he saw as ineffective. This was in the days before modern medicine had been developed and long prior to the appearance of the first antibiotic.
Hahnemann searched for alternative solutions and eventually stumbled across, as sciencebasedmedicine.org put it, an observation of how a substance known as quinine, extracted from cinchona bark, had the ability to, when ingested, produce the symptoms of malaria.
Another principle of homeopathy is the "law of infinitesimal doses," in which homeopathic remedies, or "drugs," are diluted in water or alcohol before being administered to the patient, with such dilutions typically in a 1:100 ratio. Before each dose is administered, the remedy is shaken violently, which is believed to activate the drug's properties.
Homeopathy certainly has its shares of advocates. Per National Health Institutes (NIH), citing a 2012 survey, an estimated five million adults and one million children, used homeopathy in the previous year. The survey showed adults spent just under $3 billion in out-of-pocket costs for homeopathic medicines and $170 million for visits to such practitioners.
While homeopathic treatments aren't considered first choice for the most serious conditions such as cancer and heart disease, they have been found useful in treating dozens, perhaps hundreds, of common health issues that run the gamut from arthritis to zits (acne). Just as a sampling, below is a list of 10 health-related issues for which homeopathic treatments have shown success, and proponents swear by them.
One important thing to note here: there is not just one remedy that fits all cases dealing with a particular health issue. Homeopathic practitioners typically want to get a complete picture of a patient's physical, mental, and spiritual makeup, putting together a "totality of symptoms" before matching a remedy to the patient. In other words, one "size" (or type) of remedy does not fit all. Consider consulting with your physician or homeopathic practitioner to find out what course of action is best for you.
Acne. Need help healing acne, blemishes, pimples, and blackheads? In other words, got zits? Among the homeopathic remedies that seem to work are hepar sulph (for painful pimples and lesions) and sulphur (which addresses acne related to oily skin).
Allergies. Perfect for this time of year, huh? You probably know the symptoms (unfortunately) – sneezing, coughing, runny nose, nasal congestion, itchy watery eyes and swelling. Allium cepa, euphresia, sabadilla, and histaminum can help.
Backache. Pain in the lower back can make just about anything you do uncomfortable. There are many suitable homeopathic choices here, and these include arnica montana, belladonna, benzoicum acidum, kali carbonicum, phosphorus, valerian root and sulphur.
Colic. Among the popular remedies, per homeopathycenter.org, is chamomilla, which takes aim at the child's irritability and fretfulness. Sleeplessness is a symptom, and distress can show up after nursing. Other related remedies include dioscorea and colocynthis.
Diarrhea. Let's not get too gross here, but there are different kinds of diarrhea, and remedies to match. These include arsenicum, which covers a variety of diarrhea symptoms, as well as colocynthis (for diarrhea accompanied by abdominal pain) and veratrum album, for the more violent variety.
Gas. Face it, gas can be a source of great discomfort and unpleasantness, and when it comes out it can be embarrassing. Improper digestion (eating too fast perhaps?) and gastric upset can produce flatulence and belching. Common ingredients for this type of homeopathic remedy are carbo vegetabilis, lycopodium clavatum, and nux moschata.
Jet lag. This can involve a nasty combination of exhaustion and inability to sleep, not to mention a sense of still being in motion. Homeopathic remedies can help, quickly. These can include arnica, cocculus, and gelsemium.
Morning sickness. Yuck, starting with the nausea. Eating a dry cracker before getting out of bed can help, per homeopathycenter.org, as can avoiding foods rich and high in fat. Ginger root works well in terms of benefits, too. Homeopathic ingredients that can help include colchicum, ipecacuanha, nux vomica, and sepia.
Shingles. Very tough on the skin, no question. Those burning, itching red blisters can make one's days (and nights) miserable. Remedies to consider: rhus toxicodendron, mezereum, iris versicolor, and sulphur (which seems to show up on a lot of remedy lists).
Toothaches. So, the tooth is throbbing and you won't be able to see the dentist until the morning? Try one of these: belladonna, chamomilla, coffea cruda, magnesia phosphoricum. Each of these works a bit differently from the others relative to factors such as the tooth's sensitivity to touch and whether warmth or cold works better in helping to relieve the pain.


Continuous waveform capnography, combined with clinical assessment, is "the most reliable method of confirming and monitoring correct placement of an [endotracheal tube]," according to the American Heart Association (AHA).  Capnography can also be used to ensure ventilation with supraglottic devices, as well as to confirm a spontaneously ventilating patient is in fact breathing (eg, via face mask or nasal cannula sampling).
The balance between production, delivery, and elimination of CO2 can be monitored by means of end-tidal capnography. In the event of cardiopulmonary arrest, cardiac output drops to zero, and thus, no transport of CO2 from the tissues to the lungs can occur. End-tidal capnometry of an artificially ventilated patient would, after several washout breaths, show a flat EtCO2 capnogram with EtCO2 equaling zero during the arrest. Once chest compressions are initiated, circulation of blood will again deliver CO2 to the lungs, and the EtCO2 capnogram will rise and fall with each breath as CO2 is ventilated.
In anesthesia and procedural sedation, end-tidal capnography has become the standard of care. Class IA evidence has established the indications for use, with several randomized trials demonstrating reductions in episodic hypoxia during procedural sedation.
Cellular metabolism produces carbon dioxide, while the lungs work to eliminate it from the body. The balance between production and elimination can be followed in the rise and fall of EtCO2 as displayed by the capnogram. More specifically, EtCO2 waveforms provide clinicians with a tool for quick and reliable diagnoses of common pulmonary pathophysiology.
Generally, EtCO2 is displayed as a waveform with partial pressure of CO2 on the y-axis and time on the x-axis (see the images below).
Westhorpe RN, Ball C. The history of capnography. Anaesth Intensive Care. 2010 Jul. 38 (4):611. [Medline].
Jaffe MB. Infrared measurement of carbon dioxide in the human breath: "breathe-through" devices from Tyndall to the present day. Anesth Analg. 2008 Sep. 107 (3):890-904. [Medline].
[Guideline] Committee on Standards and Practice Parameters. Standards for Basic Anesthetic Monitoring. American Society of Anesthesiologists. Available at http://www.asahq.org/quality-and-practice-management/standards-guidelines-and-related-resources/standards-for-basic-anesthetic-monitoring. October 28, 2015; Accessed: March 14, 2018.
[Guideline] Practice Guidelines for Moderate Procedural Sedation and Analgesia 2018: A Report by the American Society of Anesthesiologists Task Force on Moderate Procedural Sedation and Analgesia, the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, American College of Radiology, American Dental Association, American Society of Dentist Anesthesiologists, and Society of Interventional Radiology. Anesthesiology. 2018 Mar. 128 (3):437-479. [Medline]. [Full Text].
Pearce AK, Davis DP, Minokadeh A, Sell RE. Initial end-tidal carbon dioxide as a prognostic indicator for inpatient PEA arrest. Resuscitation. 2015 Jul. 92:77-81. [Medline].
Paiva EF, Paxton JH, O'Neil BJ. The use of end-tidal carbon dioxide (ETCO2) measurement to guide management of cardiac arrest: A systematic review. Resuscitation. 2018 Feb. 123:1-7. [Medline].
Mohr NM, Stoltze A, Ahmed A, Kiscaden E, Shane D. Using continuous quantitative capnography for emergency department procedural sedation: a systematic review and cost-effectiveness analysis. Intern Emerg Med. 2018 Jan. 13 (1):75-85. [Medline].
Long B, Koyfman A, Vivirito MA. Capnography in the Emergency Department: A Review of Uses, Waveforms, and Limitations. J Emerg Med. 2017 Dec. 53 (6):829-842. [Medline].
Whitaker DK, Benson JP. Capnography standards for outside the operating room. Curr Opin Anaesthesiol. 2016 Aug. 29 (4):485-92. [Medline]. [Full Text].
[Guideline] Link MS, Berkow LC, Kudenchuk PJ, Halperin HR, Hess EP, Moitra VK, et al. Part 7: Adult Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support: 2015 American Heart Association Guidelines Update for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiovascular Care. Circulation. 2015 Nov 3. 132 (18 Suppl 2):S444-64. [Medline].
Einav S, Bromiker R, Weiniger CF, Matot I. Mathematical modeling for prediction of survival from resuscitation based on computerized continuous capnography: proof of concept. Acad Emerg Med. 2011 May. 18 (5):468-75. [Medline].
Anderson CT, Breen PH. Carbon dioxide kinetics and capnography during critical care. Crit Care. 2000. 4 (4):207-15. [Medline]. [Full Text].
Chitilian HV, Kaczka DW, Vidal Melo MF. Respiratory monitoring. Miller RD, Cohen NH, Eriksson LI, Fleisher LA, Wiener-Kronish JP, Young WL, eds. Miller's Anesthesia. 8th ed. Philadelphia: Elsevier Saunders; 2015. Vol 1: 1541-79.
Capnogram breathing. Courtesy of Pedro Tanaka, MD.
Special thanks to Cheri Touchard and the Tulane Center for Advanced Medical Simulation.


As you can read on Eoin Clarke's excellent 'Green Benches' blog, Tory MP Priti Patel this week called for Scotland to face billions of pounds of additional cuts. Claiming her concern was to balance the 'Barnett Formula' – the calculation that decides how much funding for public expenditure Scotland (and Wales & Northern Ireland) receives from central government – Patel stated that Scotland costs £6-80 billion more than it generates, depending on how the value of North Sea oil is calculated. She identifies the calls for Scottish independence/greater devolution as an opportunity to reset the formula and cut the amount of funding that Scotland receives.
Eoin rightly attributes this speech to jealousy and lists some of the many government decisions that are costing us far more than Scotland's allocation. But I think there's more to it than jealousy.
Without question, a strong driver for Patel's ideas is the fact that the Tories are more than happy to penalise any area where the people don't vote for it. Areas such as Middlesbrough, where I live, have faced and continue to face far higher levels of cuts in public spending and services than 'leafy Surrey' and other areas that vote, or might vote, for the Tories, in spite of being poorer.
Similarly, the idea of regional, or 'market-facing' pay in the public sector is designed to cut spending at the expense of already-struggling local economies while protecting the wealthy. The plan, being revived under Jeremy Hunt, to focus spending on age-related care is also intended to favour wealthier areas, where more people live longer – and are more likely to vote Tory.
The Tories will fight hard to implement such ideas, even to the extent of lies and subterfuge. However, that instinctive Tory tendency, driven by fear and contempt, is only a pointer to the key aim of Patel's speech – like the scent of bread telling you a bakery is nearby.
This map shows the result of the 2010 general election. The blue areas represent Tory seats – and there has never been more than one in Scotland since 1997.
Scotland has 59 commons seats. 41 of them have Labour MPs. Of the 650 Westminster seats, Labour won 258 at the general election and the Tories 308. Take away Scotland from the equation and the numbers would have been 207 Labour, 307 Tory – out of a total of 609.
A general election minus Scotland would have resulted in an outright Tory majority – and an absolute nightmare for the ordinary people of England, Wales and Northern Ireland that would make the current one – terrible as it already is – look like a picnic.
The Institute of Economic Affairs, who hosted the discussion, is an extreme right-wing, neoliberal organisation dedicated to shrinking the state and enriching the wealthy – the panel chair even touts their book 'Sharper axes, lower taxes: Big Steps to a Smaller State' (for pity's sake!) that tells you all you need to know about their aims to push further along a path that has already impoverished this country and killed the recovery that was already starting at the time of the last general election..
Priti Patel was on the panel in the video alongside Kwasi Kwarteng – two of the five 'rising stars' of the Tories' right wing who collaborated on a book attacking British workers as lazy and blatantly misrepresenting facts to make their case and who pride themselves on being ready to 'think the unthinkable' to achieve their ends.
In spite of the Tories' instinctive desire to maintain the Union (the only union they do like!), I believe that these speeches were a blatant attempt to fuel the desire of Scottish people to put themselves beyond the reach of the state-shrinking, poor-hating, demonising Tory party. The Tories have failed to get their lusted-for boundary changes that would strengthen their position, they know the electorate is waking up to their venality and corruption – and so they, or at least some of their most extreme wing, are prepared to sacrifice the Union they claim to cherish in order to improve their chances of holding onto power in the rest of the country. We're going to see more of this kind of comment between now and the 2014 referendum, as the Tory right attempts to push Scotland toward an independence vote.
Who can blame the Scots for wanting to get away from the likes of Cameron, Osborne, Duncan Smith, Hunt, Patel, Kwarteng and their ilk? But for the sake of England, Wales and Northern Ireland – and, I believe, ultimately Scotland too – I hope they don't fall for the ruse. For the sake of ordinary people and our descendants, the British people need to consign the Tories and their neoliberal allies to political history. Scotland can go it alone and leave the rest of us to sink or swim – but that's straight from the Tory hymnsheet.
We'll do it by uniting against them.
← By just how much is the SW pay cartel planning to cut NHS staff pay?
This will end in war I think, of a civil kind. Like the French Revolution but with tech. If the Scots secede, it'll happen sooner rather than later. Then it will be over. Let them go I say.
I understand where you come from, but a desire to fight the Tories and a kinship with the regions of England is not enough for Scots like me to say no to independence. We Scots looked South to Westminster with disdain as Labour lurched to the right in order to capture 'middle England' swing constituencies. Then we suffered America's wars. Then the inevitable collapse of free market capitalism. Then we saw the Liberal Democrats sell their soul and prop up a Tory government. And now the even more right wing UKIP is on the rise along with a real possibility of an EU exit. The reality is there is no 'left' in the United Kingdom any more. We Scots can look across to Scandinavia to similar sized nations like Norway and Denmark and see that there is a real alternative. So with that in mind, when 2014 comes I'll be voting YES. I'm sorry to say the UK is a lost cause, it has been ever since the 80's.
I understand – and we in the north looked at the same things with the same feelings. However, pushing Scotland to secede is a classic case of 'divide and conquer' and bodes ill for all of us – including Scotland in the long run, I fear.


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Q: How do i get google sheets to work out when colum D is less than 50% of C and to change colour to amber when this happens How do i get google sheets to work out when colum D is less than 50% of C and to change colour to amber when this happens
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A: You can use conditional formatting with custom formula to set the condition for a range.
From menu Format -> Conditional formatting, set these options and enter =IF($D1<$C1/2,TRUE) as custom formula. Also, pick your desired color from Formatting Style -> Text Color option.

Sample data:

References:
Conditional Formatting

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


When there is a part of the house or in the office that needs fixing and we are not able to do it ourselves, the help of professional service to do the repair is just a must.
Do it yourself repairs can be useful in small things but for major repairs it will take more time and might even cost more money than leaving it to the care of professionals. In cases such as these, the use of the expert professionals in repairs will come very handy and appropriate to ensure quality repair and excellent output.
Selecting the best contractor will ensure that there will not be a repeat of work that may then cost even more than necessary.
Plan on the area or part that needs fixing as to how it should be repaired, thus laying down your preferences that need to be followed and clearly relayed, should there be suggestions think it over.
Get into the habit of checking out on the contractor's biography or use the internet to your advantage to get information about the contractor and their service performance records. A consistent contractor with his work output and performance will give an impression that the work will be done accordingly and properly given all the possibilities.
By doing a little background work, through asking some suppliers or manufacturers that have association with these contractors, will give you an edge of the best contractor to choose and be confident with it.
Listen carefully to what the contractor will be telling you especially on the cost and kind of materials as they may charge you on other repairs or materials that are not necessary and you may be caught unaware. Sometimes, contractors may think that only they know how the repairs are done as they are the experts, however, knowing a thing or two about what they do will give them a hint to be more efficient and accurate in their repairs.
Hiring contractors to do the repairs may cost much depending as well on the kind of repair needed, however, it is imperative that you get the quality and service value of the money you spent over the repair and give an excellent recommendation in a later time with how it's been done.


Geophysical survey report, April 2015The last geophysical survey was carried out in April this year. Subject to investigation were barrows 12 and 13-15 (on Music Hill) as well as the Cricket Pitch.The findings will inform the future excavations. Find a detailed report under project documentation.


In April 1861, the Poor's Frye Village neighborhood displayed some of Andover's most spirited and vocal support for the town's soldiers. The Andover Advertiser reported, "The old spirit is fairly in a blaze in this little place, and every one, young and old, native and foreign born, are ready to stand up for the glorious Stars and Stripes." Both William Poor and his older son Joseph W., a blacksmith who had followed directly in his father's footsteps, were chosen as delegates to represent their neighborhood at the meetings for Andover as a whole. But despite this enthusiasm, the Poors apparently decided that sending one son, Charles H. Poor, to the army was sufficient. Joseph W. Poor spent the war years in Andover assisting his father with the wagon company and serving as a town Constable. In July 1863, thirty-three-year old Joseph Poor was drafted from the enrolled militia and paid a $300 commutation to avoid service.


"Hidden Buddhas," or hibutsu, are Buddhist statues that are kept out of sight, though only a few are kept so permanently. Most are put on display for worshippers at regular intervals: once or twice a year, once every several years, once every 33 or 66 years.
The premise of this appears to be that these statues possess such powerful virtues the believers can feel them without seeing them embodied.
But suppose — posits Liza Dalby, who has written books on geisha and kimono, and also an "autobiography" of the author of "The Tale of Genji" — these "hidden Buddhas" were created for a purpose, to prevent the world from falling into utter chaos. They are alive, with emanative powers, though only a select few can perceive them. And there is an agent abroad killing them off.
Each time he does, disaster strikes. And the number of hibutsu left with prophylactic powers is dwindling fast.
The idea, yes, is the Buddhist eschatology of mappou, the world deprived of the blessings of the correct Dharma. Against this grand worldview, Dalby sets up a very human concern, also Buddhist related: What happens to an aborted fetus? If it becomes a mizuko ("water child") without succor, as some say, does it then turn into a karmic agent of retribution?
Noboru, a descendant of a special line of Buddhist priests, experiences the snuffing out of a hibutsu as a boy while attending its public display in Kyoto, and he sets out to protect other hibutsu. As a matter of priestly profession, he mainly looks after women who have had abortions. One woman he thus becomes acquainted with is Nagiko. A beautiful designer, Nagiko had to terminate a pregnancy that resulted from one night's mistake in New York.
Philip, a student of Asian religions at Columbia University, decides to pursue the whys and wherefores of hibutsu, inspired by a visiting French authority on Buddhism, Bertrand Maigny. He goes to Japan, meets Nagiko, they fall in love and, in a high-class inn, she becomes pregnant. When the two are about to marry, he is struck by a car.
His brain damaged, he is flown home, to California, where his parents live. He had discovered he has the ability to perceive hibutsu's emanatory powers and, with the guidance of Maigny, now back in France, was close to solving the mystery of the hidden Buddhas. But he dies before doing anything further on the matter.
Nagiko gives birth to a girl, whom her friend names Mayumi. The child is extraordinarily beautiful but born with webbed fingers and toes. Nagiko's doctor assures her it's a common occurrence and can be fixed. Still, haunted by her mizuko ghost, she suspects the malformation to be a manifestation of karma. She becomes an estranged mother, a woman who does not know what to do with her daughter.
The period "Hidden Buddhas" covers from the time of Harvard scholar Ezra Vogel's book "Japan as Number One" (which inflated the Japanese far more than it deflated the Americans) up to the present.
Mayumi grows to be one of those outlandishly dressed, sexually carefree teenage girls that haunt flashy parts of Tokyo.
This is before she becomes a reputable model in Paris, and before she opens a cutting-edge fashion boutique in Kyoto that takes full advantage of the Internet.
What happens to Noboru's search for the "killer" of hibutsu? "Hidden Buddhas" is part high-paced detective story and part novel of international manners encompassing Japan, the United States and France.