Adam Christian Enterprises {UK}

Christmas 2011 – Merry Christmas, Christmas Wishes – Times of India

2011-12-15T04:13:00.000-08:00

Christmas 2011 – Merry Christmas, Christmas Wishes – Times of India:

'via Blog this'

The Goods and Services offered on this blog are in our opinion good value for money and are offered as seen and where possible we value your comments or opinions. Like to feature your goods and services leave a comment and share with our comments system and share your details on google, twitter, facebook or yahoo and please follow our shop news at http://twitter.com/AceiShop Thank you, Ian

Ramey on Stimulus and Multipliers

2011-10-24T10:14:00.000-07:00

Ramey on Stimulus and Multipliers:

Valerie Ramey of the University of California, San Diego talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the effect of government spending on output and employment. Ramey's own work exploits the exogenous nature of wartime spending. She finds a multiplier between .8 and 1.2. (A multiplier of 1 means that GDP goes up by the amount of spending--there is neither stimulus nor crowding out.) She also discusses a survey looking at a wide range of estimates by others and finds that the estimates range from .5 to 2.0.

Along the way, she discusses the effects of taxes as well. The conversation concludes with a discussion of the imprecision of multiplier estimates and the contributions of recent Nobel Laureates Thomas Sargent and Christopher Sims.

This is our opinion and feelings about the the posts added to this blog by ourselves and writers who have asked to write on our blog network and does not necessarily represent our agreement or disagreement with the writers concerned.Please tweet @AceFinanceNews to your tweets and follow us on twitter at http://twitter.com/AceFinanceNews and thank you. Ian

Too Much Information

2011-10-18T12:03:00.000-07:00

Too Much Information:

Norbert Wiener

There was a time when the phrase "too much information" referred to a friend's unusual propensity to reveal a superabundance of intimate detail regarding recent amorous encounters. However, at the beginning of the second decade of the third millennium the cliché has been restored to its primary meaning. But the mere act of expressing the fact that there is too much information now puts us all in something of a fix. In order to make the point that there is too much information we only add to the information. It is surely time to return the words 'knowledge' and 'wisdom' to a central place in our culture. And time is what both of those words require.

The father of modern cybernetics, Norbert Wiener, whose work on the study of feedback helped popularise the idea of the information loop, and hence that most fashionable of notions of being 'in the loop', believed, in the way that only a scientist truly can, in the improvement of the species. This story, as told in James Harkin's compelling book Cyburbia, needs to be read. We would adjust and adapt in response to a continuing stream of information Wiener suggested, improve our direction, evade capture or destruction, move ever onwards with an improved sense of momentum and purpose.

However, in our age of global information witness, when we are all looking at, commenting upon and sharing the same information, the space for the radical, the surprise that refashions a conception of where we are going, unsettles our conviction as to why we are going there and challenges our assumptions as to what we will find if ever we are to arrive at our destination, is shrinking. Perhaps it is now only to be found offline.

According to the OED 'cybernetics' comes from the Greek word kubernetes meaning 'steersman,' 'helmsman' or 'pilot'. The internet, in its current form, encourages us to pilot ourselves in the same direction, towards one another, in a carnival of communality. In the glorious rush of digital feedback, the automatic input and output, who is keeping a look out to check that we are not steering ourselves into an abyss? '

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Clearing the mist at Foggy Bottom

2011-10-18T11:59:00.000-07:00

Clearing the mist at Foggy Bottom: In a speech this week at George Washington University in Foggy Bottom, Washington, the World Secretary of State Hillary Clinton outlined her plan for internet freedom and the US government's commitment to tackling oppressive regimes.

At the beginning of her speech, Mrs Clinton stated the following:

"Perhaps today in my remarks we can begin a much more vigorous debate that will respond to the needs that we have been watching in real time on our television sets."

She then turned to those real time needs:

"A few minutes after midnight, on January 28th, the internet went dark across Egypt. During the previous four days, hundreds of thousands of Egyptians had marched to demand a new government. And the world on TVs, laptops, cellphones and smartphones, had followed every single step. Pictures and videos from Egypt flooded the web. On Facebook and Twitter journalists posted on-the-spot reports, protesters coordinated their next moves, and citizens of all stripes, shared their hopes and fears about this pivotal moment in the history of their country. Millions worldwide answered in real time: you are not alone and we are with you. Then the government pulled the plug. Cellphone service was cut off, TV satellite signals were jammed, and internet access was blocked for nearly the entire population."

At this point a noise was heard. A man shouted out: "So this is America?" Mrs Clinton, her eyes moving this way and that, raised her voice, forced her mouth into a defiant aperture of positivity, and, in the attempt to disguise her obvious discomfort, continued:

"The government did not want the people to communicate with each other. And it did not want the press to communicate with the public."

The voice was silenced. The World Secretary of State could once more relax:

"It certainly did not want the world to watch."

You can watch the ejection of the protester here:

You can watch a full video of Mrs Clinton's speech here:

You can read an article on the protester here.

#AceNewsServices

Manufacturing Content

2011-10-18T11:54:00.000-07:00

Manufacturing Content:

Aaron Sorkin, the creator of The West Wing and the screenwriter of The Social Network, doesn’t like the internet. “There’s just too much bad information getting out there,” he told the Dairy Goat Journal, “and I have to believe that’s mostly the fault of the internet, which isn’t held to any standards of accuracy.”

Mr. Sorkin’s view is that the internet has undermined the role of newspapers. Surely, that perspective is a correct one. After all, didn’t the print rags once contain all the information we needed to help us make sense of the world around us? I too remember that glorious time when the Daily This or the Morning That would arrive through the letterbox each day. Oh, how we were once enlightened by the informed objectivity of the great columnists! Oh, how we gobbled up the accurate truth like a plateful of nutritious and healthy info-food!

Here in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland commentators such as the Daily Mail's Peter Hitchens and The Guardian's Polly Toynbee, must be allowed to continue to run the information in our lives. There can be no other way. The media class to which the aforementioned duo pertain are interested in nothing other than the purest truth. They are untainted by personal interest, prejudice and subjective political conviction. They wish only to inform. Need it even be said that their work is based on the purest accuracy. Of course it is. That is self-evident. Let us thank Mr. Sorkin then for reminding us bloggering souls of our place in the information order. Ours is not to question. We must simply receive.

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Say Hello, Green Wave Goodbye

2011-10-18T11:49:00.000-07:00

Say Hello, Green Wave Goodbye: Can social media change the world? Evgeny Morozov doesn't think so, and perhaps he has a point. A tweet might enable one protester to link up with another with a fashionable rapidity, but try throwing one of those micro e-missives at a tank and you'll begin to see the limits of the digital telegraph.

The Green Movement in Iran in 2009 sought to bring down Mahmoud Ahmadinejad following a disputed presidential election. In that fervid hour, when internet evangelists like Jared Cohen rushed to proclaim the protest "the one that social media built," the cliché of choice was that Twitter would transform Iran, 140 characters at a time.

The failed attempt to unseat Ahmadinejad is the subject of Iranian-German filmmaker Ali Samadi Ahadi's film, The Green Wave, which receives its UK premiere on March 25th. Drawing upon techniques seen in Ari Folman's Waltz with Bashir, Ahadi animates the work of Iranian bloggers, thus imaginatively recreating moments from the 2009 protest not recorded by TV cameras.

It is clear that the internet offers a novel locus for dissent; it also allows governments, both authoritarian and democratic, a new means of tracking down citizens who are resistant to established authority. Can social media change the world? Why don't you write a blog post about it?

The positions and jobs offered on this blog are provided by us obtaining details from other news sources and we always suggest you check out all posts and companies for further details. We will of course advise when a position is available within our organisation with our associates. Need to email me leave a comment and use our new Disqus box and share.

Thank you, Ian Draper [Editor]

Belated Tributes To Hillsborough Victims In Commons

2011-10-17T12:50:00.000-07:00

Belated Tributes To Hillsborough Victims In Commons:
The House Of Commons has debated the controversy surrounding the government's delay in releasing confidential Cabinet papers relating to the 1989 Hillsborough Stadium disaster.

The debate was watched by many of the relatives of the 96 Liverpool fans crushed to death at Sheffield Wednesday's stadium.

Triggered by a government e-petition that has attracted more than 130,000 signatures since it was set up over the summer, the debate was led by Steve Rotheram, Labour MP for Liverpool Walton.

Rotheram said the Thatcher government at the time of the disaster had briefed against the fans. Describing the alleged briefings as "a convenient excuse to aggregate responsibility," Rotheram then proceeded to read out the names of every person killed in the disaster.

He said he was doing this because the names had never been officially entered into the Parliamentary register before. Around 20 people in the public gallery had travelled to the commons to watch the debate. Many of them were clearly emotional as the names and their ages were slowly read out by Rotheram over the course of five minutes.

"Rest in peace, Justice for the 96," he said before sitting down to unconventional applause from several MPs in the chamber and virtually everyone sitting in the public gallery.

Responding for the government, Home Secretary Theresa may paid tribute to Steve Rotheram, and to the support that people on Merseyside have given to the campaign over more than 20 years. "I will do everything in my power to ensure the families and the public get the truth," she said, promising that no government papers would be withheld from the Hillsborough Panel.

However May didn't give a timescale for the release of the Hillsborough files to the relatives of the victims, saying "It is difficult sensitive and lengthly work and it cannot be rushed."

But the Home Secretary apologised to the families for the way the government had responded to their requests for the files to be released. The government had appealed against a decision by the Information Commissioner to release them earlier this year, creating a common impression that ministers were trying to suppress the files.

The government insists it always planned to release the files to the families, but only once they had gone through the Hillsborough Panel currently investigating all aspects of the disaster.

Theresa May promised that once the files were released - to the relatives first, then the media - there would be "only minimal redaction" to protect junior government officials and the details of family members.

Responding for the Labour front bench, Andy Burnham told MPs that there had been an "orchestrated campaign at Westminster to set the public against the supporters" shortly after the tragedy, which he described as one of the biggest injustices of the 20th century.

He also referred to a story run by The Sun newspaper shortly after Hillsborough, where the paper claimed Liverpool fans had pick-pocketed from the victims - a story the paper has since accepted was untrue.

Andy Burnham suggested that the Hillsborough Panel should consider asking News International to divulge how it came to publish its story, adding that people's views of this story may well have changed in the light of the phone hacking scandal.

MPs are due to debate the Hillsborough files until late on Monday evening, when a motion to release the files is expected to be carried unopposed.

Steve Rotheram MP's speech in the debate can be found on here on the Liverpool Echo website

This is our opinion and feelings about the the posts added to this blog by ourselves and writers who have asked to write on our blog network and does not necessarily represent our agreement or disagreement with the writers concerned.

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Thank you,

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BlackBerry Outage Made Roads Safer for Everybody

2011-10-17T12:43:00.000-07:00

BlackBerry Outage Made Roads Safer for Everybody:
Flickr/CC BY 3.0

Don't Text and Drive!
For years I've been saying that to make cities greener, we need to encourage more people to walk, bike, and take mass transit. There are many things to do to achieve that goal, and one of them is m...Read the full story on TreeHugger

#AceNewsServices

Australian Company Will Kill Camels for Cash, Carbon Credits

2011-10-17T12:39:00.000-07:00

Australian Company Will Kill Camels for Cash, Carbon Credits:
Photo credit: Harclade via Flickr/CC BY

As you've likely heard, Australia is en route to pass legislation ensuring that its largest polluters pay for their carbon emissions. The new law will allow companies to reduce at least part of their emissions by buying carbon credits that sponsor projects proven to reduce greenhouse gase generation. And enterprising companies are already stepping up to the plate with ideas on how to turn a profit reducing emissions -- like, for instance, Northwest Carbon. The company has alre...Read the full story on TreeHugger

Tribute – Apple Co-founder Steve Jobs Passes Away

2011-10-17T12:21:00.000-07:00

Tribute – Apple Co-founder Steve Jobs Passes Away:

“No one wants to die, ”And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because death is very likely the single best invention of life. It is life’s change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new.” These are the words of Steve Jobs at 2005 commencement address at Stanford as he felt closer to death after being diagnosed with a rare type of Pancreatic Cancer, now on the day of his death, “Pancreatic Cancer” is the most Googled term according to CNN.

I am not a big fan of Apple, but I am writing this tribute as I have a great respect for the former Apple leader as Steve Jobs was the man who made my wildest of dreams come true. Ever since I bought an i-mate Jam (aka HTC Magician) I wondered why do I need a stylus to use the phone & wanted a device which could be operated with touch of a thumb and had an intuitive interface instead of a primitive UI which was the hallmark of Windows Mobile 2003. And the man who beat all the others and produced such device in 2007 around 3-4 years ahead of competition’s plans was Steve Jobs.

Jobs announces that he’ll be introducing three “revolutionary products of this class.”

“The first one: a widescreen iPod with touch controls.”

“Second, a revolutionary mobile phone.”

“The third, a breakthrough Internet communications device.”

Then, he grins as the icons for the three devices beginning spinning on the giant screen behind him until they nearly blur into one.

“Are you getting it?” Jobs said. “These are not three separate devices. This is one device. And we are calling it iPhone.”

This is how Jobs introduced Apple iPhone to the awe-struck crowd in 2007, he was considered a showman of the business due to his presentation skills & motivational abilities. The legendary Apple leader had successes in his life from Apple II to iPad and made Apple the most most valuable publicly-traded company in the world, surpassing ExxonMobil’s market capitalization in August.

Steve Job’s leadership and his knack of producing the devices which really addressed user needs will be missed for a long time. Tributes from some prominent people are as follows:

President Obama said that “the world has lost a visionary,” noting that “there may be no greater tribute to Steve’s success than the fact that much of the world learned of his passing on a device he invented.”

Microsoft’s Bill Gates – a fierce rival – hailed the “profound impact Steve has had, the effects of which will be felt for many generations to come.”

IEEE President Moshe Kam issued the following statement; “Steve Jobs was an inspiring inventor and entrepreneur, toward whom technical professionals worldwide, as well as consumers and the general public, felt unusual admiration and affinity. He was as exceptional, original and influential as the most revered figures in the history of innovation, including legendary individuals like Thomas Edison, Guglielmo Marconi, David Sarnoff, Hewlett and Packard, Walt Disney and Henry Ford. He will be sorely missed.”

Google co-founder Sergey Brin: From the earliest days of Google, whenever Larry and I sought inspiration or vision and leadership, we need to look no farther than Cupertino. Steve, your passion for excellence is felt by anyone who has ever touched an Apple product (including the macbook I am writing this on right now). And I have witnessed it in Preston the few times we have met. On behalf of all of us at Google and more broadly in technology, you will be missed very much.

Jobs’ Apple announcement quotation taken from Steve Jobs’ top 5 showman moments

Other quotations courtesy: Yahoo

Photo courtesy: Apple & Andrew Burton, Getty Images

Big Society Overview & Opinions

2011-09-03T09:15:00.000-07:00

Big Society, Anarchist Style:
Anna is the model citizen. The 31-year-old self-described professional volunteer spends Mondays running a free bike workshop, Wednesdays counselling others in the community, and in her spare time is helping to build a community garden in Camberwell, South London.
For her it's about taking responsibility for where she lives. "If I didn't believe that what I spent most of my time doing made people's lives more pleasant, I'd be pretty lost. I'm hoping that I make life easier for others."
Among her projects: Free computing workshops, a shop set up to help young mothers who cannot afford their kids' back-to-school clothes, free skill-share workshops.
People like Anna are helping to make David Cameron's Big Society "vision" a reality. From free judo lessons to building adventure playgrounds or residents uniting to protect their libraries from the threat of closure, across London communities are uniting to help one another.
Just one thing… all these programmes are run by anarchist groups.

In a speech in February 2011 about the Big Society, David Cameron described the Big Society in a nutshell: "What this is all about is giving people more power and control to improve their lives and their communities."

But when he set out his vision he probably didn't have anarchists in mind. Dr Jo Haynes, a sociologist from Bristol University says the comparison is telling. "It's interesting that theoretically, a smaller state - or no state - chimes with anarchist principles as well, but the power taken by the people through anarchist community activity and political mobilisation would be at odds with the kind of 'soft power' envisaged within David Cameron's Big Society idea".

Jesse Norman disagrees. The Conservative MP, who has written a book on the Big Society, says while anarchists would be "absolutely appalled" to be considered at the vanguard of an idea which originated from the Conservative party, the two are are not so dissimilar.

"If you reach past the labels, it may be that as a matter of labels, anarchists are deeply uncomfortable with being concerned with any government programme... if you get away from the labels, an awful lot of what the Big Society is about is about restoring meaning and energy to people's lives. I think this is built into the idea that David Cameron’s talking about."

Dr David Chapman, a research analyst at the consultancy Monitor Group currently researching social entrepreneurs, believes Conservative advocates of the Big Society should look to anarchist groups.
"They have a pretty essential role to play within the Big Society agenda. Certainly within the middle-class Tory consciousness the word anarchist conjures up people in masks rioting. But that’s not what these people are doing, they are building communities. The point of social entrepreneurs, they are innovators, they don't do things in a normal way."
"To my mind an anarchist group in Dalston creating a community garden is exactly the same as some middle class parents in Oxfordshire trying to provide a free school. It's the community coming together.
"The only thing that differentiates an anarchist group from the kind of traditional Big Society perspective is the cultural perspective of who is an acceptable person."
But Dr Chapman says for the Big Society to work, everyone has to feel empowered.
"The Big Society is a very, very powerful idea but it does raise lots of questions about who, in a broad cultural sense, society deems as a valid individual."
And what do the anarchists think? Andy Meinke, Secretary of London-wide anarchist collective ALARM is scathing about the Big Society but recognises the comparison: "Obviously we regard Cameron's Big Society as an attempt to do social services on the cheap.
The reality of the big society is creating a society that's not run for profit but for human need.
"That’s what we do in a very small way, we help people self-organise to help themselves in a way that the state won't do."
The prime minister has recognised the idea of the Big Society is not new. Many of these groups have been running for years. And they don’t want to talk to journalists. Volunteer-run anarchist bookshop 56a, who also help organise workshops and support fellow "community collectives” write: "we don't care about exposure, publicity or putting our side of the story etc… not interested",
Some are slightly more forthcoming: A community scheme for the unemployed in deal with the government all the time: "We are looking at people being moved from DSA [Disability Support Allowance] to JSA [Job Seekers' Allowance]", says trade union activist Marie "we want to help people".
As for Anna, she runs most of the skills workshops from the communal squat she lives in - an activity the government is currently consulting on making illegal.
"We're organising over 30 workshops and it's all free skill share. Welding, plumbing, electricity.
"The reason I came to London was to volunteer. There’s a severe lack of support for a lot of different people here –London has a really apparent rich-poor gap, and the people who are living below the poverty line are suffering. The Free Shop meant we could give kids' clothes to people who did not have enough."
So, what's the Big Society to her? "It sounds like a really right-wing concept."
Some names and places have been changed to protect identities
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Ministers To Open Talks With Opponents Of Planning Reforms

2011-09-03T09:01:00.000-07:00

My Overview -

So is this the future that when we are in a position of a global downturn then we start to look evermore towards taking green belt land and allowing developers to build more homes, on the basis that we have to keep up the numbers to be in line with government guidelines and utilizing the fact that they have to keep the electorate happy.

Ministers To Open Talks With Opponents Of Planning Reforms:

PRESS ASSOCIATION -- Ministers are ready to hold talks with opponents of their planning reforms, it emerged today.

Planning minister Greg Clark told The Times that he was prepared to sit down and discuss the demands of the National Trust and other groups.

The draft National Planning Policy Framework was published in July, with a presumption in favour of sustainable growth, but critics have raised concerns that it will lead to a return to damaging development.

Mr Clark told the newspaper that he was ready to discuss opponents' views with them but warned there would be no backing down on the overall thrust of the proposals to simplify English planning laws in an attempt to trigger growth.

Any change would be to the "wording" of the document to express more clearly protections for the countryside.

Mr Clark said that opponents had got the "wrong end of the stick".

He said sustainability of developments meant that the impact on the community and the environment would be taken into account.

If anything in the consultation paper had failed to stress the importance of protecting the environment, he would think again.

However failure to see the reforms through would be devastating for future generations.

"The consequences would be to continue the position we are in where we are not building enough homes for the people needing them for the first time. We are contributing to homelessness, to overcrowding, to poverty."

The National Trust welcomed the move, the newspaper said.

Peter Nixon, its director of conservation, told it that the National Trust was not anti-development but had "acute concerns" about the plans, which they believe prevent a balanced approach to planning.

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Century of strong faith

2011-09-03T02:22:00.000-07:00

Century of strong faith:

The Huat Tian Keong temple in Bercham is a unique place of worship with 88 types of Taoist, Buddhist and Hindu deities in its cave.

Among them are statues of the ‘Laughing Buddha’, Lord Ganesha, Thailand’s monk Lombok Khoon, a Siamese God ‘Lusi’ (King of Bomoh) and the temple’s main deity Huat Tian Keong (Datuk Hitam).

The Huat Tian Keong cave temple in Bercham is 100-years old.

There are also the figurines of the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac.

Temple treasurer Sunny Mangal Singh said the temple had been in existence for over 100 years.

He said he had sourced the statues from all over the world to be placed at the temple located on a 3.2ha site.

A 60-feet tall dragon statue is neatly placed on the outside of the cave making it look like it is descending from the top of the cave.

Sunny posing with the statue of the Siamese God 'Lusi' at the temple grounds.

To fulfill a vow for his business to flourish, Mangal Singh also constructed a feng shui mountain in 2004.

He added that in 2008, the state government had declared the area as a temple reserve land.

“People of all races from all over the country and even tourists have been visiting this cave temple. The temple committee had also set up a restaurant for the devotees to get refreshments. We rely on donations and the profits from the restaurant is used to pay for utility bills,” he said. – By MANJIT KAUR, Photos by LEW YONG KAN

No related posts.

The Goods and Services offered on this blog are in our opinion good value for money and are offered as seen and where possible we value your comments or opinions. Like to feature your goods and services leave a comment and share with our comments system and share your details on google, twitter, facebook or yahoo and please follow our shop news at http://twitter.com/AceiShop Thank you, Ian

How Global Warming Will Make Hurricanes Like Irene Worse

2011-08-29T04:51:00.000-07:00

Does global warming cause an impact on the worlds weather, this is the crux of the stories on the web following yesterday`s Hurricane Irene the answer is no body really knows or do we?

We can cite examples over history of massive earthquakes of x and y on the richer scale and also hurricanes like the ones seen over many years gone by, but one thing is certain each time we have another one we say that was different it never did what we thought it would do, or it was not like that before.

So my question is simple are we seeing changes that are so different that we cannot believe it is possible or are we so brain washed with knowledge provided by the so-called scientists that we continue to believe what they tell us, this story from my news stories is just one take on global warming and hurricanes like Irene.

Maybe it is about time to just say alright l will not disbelieve what l am told until it is proved in my heart that l am wrong.

How Global Warming Will Make Hurricanes Like Irene Worse:

Climate science suggests that global warming may lead to more and more extreme weather events like Hurricane Irene.

дети)

2011-08-23T05:26:00.000-07:00

дети):

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2011-06-02T13:24:00.001-07:00

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Black Lung Disease On The Rise Again

2011-05-23T07:26:00.000-07:00

Black Lung Disease On The Rise Again: "

Black lung disease, long a killer of coal miners, is on the rise again after retreating in the 30 years since Congress passed tougher mine safety laws, health and safety experts said on Friday.

The renewed appearance of the disease emerged from an investigation of the worst U.S. coal mining disaster in four decades. It comes at a time when coal prices have risen sharply and some mine operators have been accused of cutting corners on safety in favor of profits.

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Open Web Platform for Gulf Oil Spill Beats Media Boom Ban

2010-07-11T09:29:00.001-07:00

Many thanks Georgianne for a very useful post and have tweeted and shared across our network. You are quite right that good news is seldom covered as important, as we are too ready to tear other peoples news to pieces to gain attention of our own stories.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

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Arizona Immigration Law Conjures Ghosts of Southern Neo-Slavery

2010-05-02T09:58:00.001-07:00

The idea of any law that can prevent freedom in the country that they thought was their home, is both ill conceived and has no-backing for anyone that believes in freedom as a concept of law. We have for many a year fought against people trying to take away freedom of choice from people in other countries - even to the extent of putting troops into their country to protect this freedom and with a stroke of the pen we can let the Governor of Arizona change all that with a anti-immigrant law added to that anti-vagrancy laws can be tightened to such an extent that they can obtain the idea of protectionism for any state or maybe with enough support even the whole country of America.

A nation is built on the foundation of its people and their ideals to make change for each other, this bill makes changes to provide a way for tin-pot Governors to throw their weight about hoping to get sufficient support in Congress to get back into Government with the help of like-minded officials ready to climb-up the greasy pole of politics and needing a leg up.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

The Biblical Imperative to Embrace the Immigrant

2010-05-02T08:54:00.001-07:00

Hi and Shalom George,

This is the way to greet all people on their travels through life and to leave people feeling better when we pass on our way. This side-lining of immigrants through-out the land has been around since before Christ and we called them Pharisees or similar as by giving any race of people a label we make anyone entering into our land a foreigner or by the time they migrate they become our modern day immigrant.

It is about time that that anyone entering the so-called foreign land or Britain, America, Germany or similar should be treated just as " A Foreigner In A Foreign Land" but with care and compassion of just that "Suddok" and maybe then we can remove the walls between racism and acceptance of someone different to ourselves.

We need to remember that all people that left Egypt a so-called foreign land to the Israelites as the Egyptians had side-lined the inhabitants and made them foreigners in a foreign land, so God took them to the Promised Land to make Suddok for all.

The Story is just beginning and we still have a lot to learn about ourselves first and this will allow us to understand others in a better and more consistent way.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Gov. Jan Brewer Signs Controversial Arizona Immigration Bill: Decision Not 'Made Lightly'

2010-04-24T07:04:00.001-07:00

This bill is totally wrong in a world where we are looking to the future whereby people will have the freedom of speech and human rights will be upheld by the westernised countries that are civilised and have led the world, like the USA.

Then along comes this misguided governor that changes everything and puts into law a way of side-lining, alienating and creating a way to prevent people all the rights that democracy has striven to provide over many years, from the colonisation of America to the present day. It amazes me how one person by the stoke of her pen can split down the centre the people of Arizona, in one go. Where does it stop when we coral people and have a police state that jails people just for speaking their mind.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Alex Chilton Was Uninsured At The Time Of His Death

2010-04-10T06:21:00.001-07:00

This is a story to read that will touch your heart as it is about a rock musician called Alex Chilton who was most famous for his leadership of " The Box Tops" those who remember this group may like to visit the blog connections left on this article and take a look.

Put as simply but not as well as as Jason Linkins l just wanted to put how sad it is in todays world of so much wealth that a man can die, just because he had no healthcare insurance due to the fact he would not have qualified under the rules and regulations applicable. This highlights simply as l was told a long-time ago that you can be rich and famous one day and another have nothing, as in his case a way to fund healthcare. God Bless - Alex and All Your Family and RIP.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

What Quantum Physics Tells Us About Consciousness

2010-04-04T09:41:00.001-07:00

As the concious is a state of mind that associates itself by becoming a conciousness in its own right, it is only then we can apply physics be it quantum or not. So l read and cannot dispute along time a go when from a book called " Meditations on The First Philosophy " by Rene Descarte`s whereby he added a selection of Objections and Replies that led to two simple conclusions these are - " That If There Is No Doubt " there must exist God and if " There is Doubt Then God Cannot Exist " and the reason for this conclusion was that if you ask a question of anything and keep asking then God is not answering but the second you have no questions on any subject left to ask, then God must exist as he has answered all your questions. I have lived by this for the past 21 years since my life when down the pan and since my life is more peaceful and more fulfilled. Try it and see or do not and stay in the dark ?
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

One Creator, Many Names

2010-04-03T08:20:00.001-07:00

Hi George, my feelings about God is it is not the the name we call him but the fact that we feel in our heart that he is with us when we most need the help and guidance. This is only when as constant free-willer`s that we stop and say to ourselves - " Do I Really Know What I Am Doing " ? or " How Do I Do This Or That "? if we always believe in our own understanding then why do we need help from anyone let alone GOD?
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Moral Confusion in the Name of "Science"

2010-03-30T09:47:00.001-07:00

My real problem with science and their beliefs are that they can tinker with what they truly do not really fully understand and then state such words as - " All in the name of science" the problem is it is not in the name of science when it goes wrong, but in their name and in some cases the damage becomes unable to be repaired. So l have a simple view on this matter - do not get confused just have faith in what you are doing and always put other people first in your life - even when they are wrong.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

The Creepiest Children's Books Ever (PICTURES)

2010-03-29T11:03:00.001-07:00

This is very disturbing for children and makes you wonder how certain authors get their work passed for the type of age group they intend to appeal too as readers. Maybe it is time for a sort of board to give these type of books a grading and give guidelines as to who and at what age these children should be to read their book. Then maybe authors would think of their readers instead of the royalties they will earn from the sales. Anyone got any ideas or like to comment on this take a look at the books first and then let me know, all comments answered.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Animation of Giant Iceberg Collision as Seen From Space Wired Science

2010-03-06T07:53:00.001-08:00

Animation of Giant Iceberg Collision as Seen From Space Wired Science

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Autism therapy: Doctors sued over

2010-03-06T07:49:00.001-08:00

Autism therapy: Doctors sued over ‘dangerous’ autism treatment

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Jennifer Preston recommended a slide show : Orphanages in Haiti

2010-02-07T08:15:00.000-08:00

Jennifer Preston recommended a slide show : Orphanages in Haiti: "Haitian children prepared to eat dinner recently at the Foyer of Patience orphanage in Port-au-Prince. Foyer of Patience is like hundreds of places that pass as orphanages for thousands of children in the poorest country in the hemisphere."

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Twitter resets passwords after phishing attack

2010-02-02T12:44:00.000-08:00

Twitter resets passwords after phishing attack: "Unknown number of users whose accounts may have been compromised offsite get new passwords, company announces.

Originally posted at InSecurity Complex

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The Miracle of Vitamin D: Sound Science, or Hype?

2010-02-02T08:51:00.000-08:00

The Miracle of Vitamin D: Sound Science, or Hype?: "Imagine a treatment that could build bones, strengthen the immune system and lower the risks of illnesses like diabetes, heart and kidney disease, high blood pressure, and cancer."

Dalai Lama envoys meet with China

2010-01-29T11:35:00.000-08:00

Dalai Lama envoys meet with China: "Special envoys for The Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, have arrived in Beijing for a ninth round of talks with the Chinese authorities over the political status of the Himalayan region.Again the Chinese meet to resolve a way to give back to people what was theirs in the beginning, but that means giving up control of the people."

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Scientists in stolen email scandal hid climate data

2010-01-29T11:24:00.000-08:00

Scientists in stolen email scandal hid climate data: "The university at the centre of the climate change row over stolen emails broke the law by refusing to hand over its raw data for public scrutiny. The University of East Anglia breached the Freedom of Information Act by refusing to comply with requests for data concerning claims by its scientists that man-made emissions were causing global warming."

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State of the Union: A Humbler, Smaller Approach to Health Ca

2010-01-29T11:23:00.000-08:00

State of the Union: A Humbler, Smaller Approach to Health Ca: "This was an article prior to the ' State of The Union Address ' by President Obama yesterday and basically highlights the need for approaching the medicare industry with kid-gloves as further mistakes could be made. It also covers the point about doctors taking fees from drug companies and thus enabling research grants."

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Monsanto's GMO Corn Linked To Organ Failure, Study Reveals

2010-01-26T12:45:00.000-08:00

Monsanto's GMO Corn Linked To Organ Failure, Study Reveals: "In a study released by the International Journal of Biological Sciences, analyzing the effects of genetically modified foods on mammalian health, researchers found that agricultural giant Monsanto's GM corn is linked to organ damage in rats."

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Green Guilt

2010-01-26T12:44:00.000-08:00

Green Guilt: "Instead of religious sins plaguing our conscience, we now have the transgressions of leaving the water running, leaving the lights on, failing to recycle, and using plastic grocery bags instead of paper. In addition, the righteous pleasures of being more orthodox than your neighbor (in this case being more green) can still be had—the new heresies"

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U.S. obesity rate appears to be slowing: study

2010-01-26T12:40:00.000-08:00

U.S. obesity rate appears to be slowing: study: "Americans are still too fat, but the obesity epidemic in the United States appears to be waning a bit, U.S. researchers said on Wednesday."

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Eye test may detect Alzheimer's one day before death

2010-01-26T12:39:00.000-08:00

Eye test may detect Alzheimer's one day before death: "It may be possible to develop an simple eye test to detect Alzheimer's, according to new research carried out on mice by scientists at University College London. With the aid of being able to see through this simple test, one day rather than at post-mortem stage when it is too late that we maybe able to find the cause."

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World of the aged

2010-01-26T12:38:00.000-08:00

World of the aged: "Many elderly people are faced with loneliness. In response to this the Anna Conradie Service Centre, situated in South beach, Durban, has risen up to offer social clubs and service centres for the aged.
The centre aims to provide a safe place for the elderly to meet new friends, enjoy a good meal at an affordable rate."

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TetraLogic Pharmaceuticals Initiates Phase 1 Clinical Trial

2010-01-26T12:37:00.001-08:00

TetraLogic Pharmaceuticals Initiates Phase 1 Clinical Trial: "TetraLogic Pharmaceuticals announced today that the Company has completed dosing of the first cohort in a Phase 1 clinical trial of its selective SMAC mimetic, TL32711. The Phase 1 trial is an open-label, dose-escalation study evaluating the safety ..."

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Food hormone leptlin as link to Alzheimer's

2010-01-26T12:37:00.000-08:00

Food hormone leptlin as link to Alzheimer's: "High levels of a hormone that controls appetite are linked to a reduced risk of developing Alzheimer's, research suggests. This hormone called leptin is produced by fat cells and tells the body that it is full and thus reduces appetite. it has for a long time been touted as a potential way to reduce obesity."

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Therapists Report Increase in Green Disputes even in Food

2010-01-26T12:33:00.000-08:00

Therapists Report Increase in Green Disputes even in Food: "As awareness of environmental concerns has grown, therapists are seeing a rise in household bickering, particularly about food. As more and more people argue over spending more money on green products but have not taken into account it has no affect on saving the planet. It is not how much you spend but how much you save to make you greener."

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Rickets makes comeback among computer generation - Telegraph

2010-01-26T12:10:00.000-08:00

Rickets makes comeback among computer generation - Telegraph: "TweetMeme finds the hottest stories from twitter for you to retweet so share this story as well as it appears lack of sunlight which provides the vitamin D has a reaction on skin producing this and fear of skin cancer makes us keep our bodies covered up. But it is normal sunlight not basking in red-hot conditions or on a sun-bed that is required."

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Haiti earthquake is latest blow for country in misery - Times Online

2010-01-13T08:11:00.000-08:00

Haiti earthquake is latest blow for country in misery - Times Online

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Live: Haiti earthquake - latest updates - Times Online

2010-01-13T08:02:00.000-08:00

Live: Haiti earthquake - latest updates - Times Online

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Experts Predict Great Barrier Reef Could Be World's 1st Gobal Ecosystem to Collapse

2009-11-11T09:25:00.000-08:00

Experts Predict Great Barrier Reef Could Be World's 1st Gobal Ecosystem to Collapse: "

The Great Barrier Reef will be so degraded by warming waters that it will be unrecognizable within 20 years, according Charlie Veron, former chief scientist of the Australian Institute of Marine Science, at a conference in London: “There is no way out, no loopholes. The Great Barrier Reef will be over within 20 years or so. They would be the world’s first global ecosystem to collapse. I have the backing of every coral reef scientist, every research organization. I’ve spoken to them all. This is critical. This is reality.”

After being a highly successful life form for 250 million years, disruptions in the biological and communication systems of coral reefs have been found to be the underlying cause of the coral bleaching and collapse of reef ecosystems around the world.

Coral reefs form the world's biggest single structure made by living organisms, Australia's Great Barrier Reef, which is visible from outer space (image). The reef is composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 3,000 kilometers over an area of approximately 344,400 square kilometers.

An explosion of knowledge is helping to explain why coral reefs around the world are collapsing and what it will take for them to survive. The problems facing coral reefs are still huge, and increasing. They are being pressured by changes in ocean temperature, pollution, overfishing, sedimentation, acidification, oxidative stress and disease, and the synergistic effect of some of these problems may destroy reefs even when one cause by itself would not. Some estimates have suggested 20 percent of the world's coral reefs are already dead and an additional 24 percent are gravely threatened.

Corals, it appears, have a genetic complexity that rivals that of humans, according to research funded in part by the National Science Foundation. Their sophisticated systems of biological communication are being stressed by global change, and are only able to survive based on proper function of an intricate symbiotic relationship with algae that live within their bodies.

'We've known for some time the general functioning of corals and the problems they are facing from climate change,' said Virginia Weis, a professor of zoology at Oregon State University. 'But until just recently, much less has been known about their fundamental biology, genome structure and internal communication. Only when we really understand how their physiology works will we know if they can adapt to climate changes, or ways that we might help.'

Corals are tiny animals, polyps that exist as genetically identical individuals, and can eat, defend themselves and kill plankton for food. In the process they also secrete calcium carbonate that becomes the basis for an external skeleton on which they sit. These calcified deposits can grow to enormous sizes over long periods of time and form coral reefs – one of the world's most productive ecosystems, which can harbor more than 4,000 species of fish and many other marine life forms.

But corals are not really self sufficient. Within their bodies they harbor highly productive algae – a form of marine plant life – that can 'fix' carbon, use the energy of the sun to conduct photosynthesis and produce sugars.

'Some of these algae that live within corals are amazingly productive, and in some cases give 95 percent of the sugars they produce to the coral to use for energy,' Weis said. 'In return the algae gain nitrogen, a limiting nutrient in the ocean, by feeding off the waste from the coral. It's a finely developed symbiotic relationship.'

What scientists are learning, however, is that this relationship is also based on a delicate communication process from the algae to the coral, telling it that the algae belong there, and that everything is fine. Otherwise the corals would treat the algae as a parasite or invader and attempt to kill it.

'Even though the coral depends on the algae for much of its food, it may be largely unaware of its presence,' Weis said. 'We now believe that this is what's happening when the water warms or something else stresses the coral – the communication from the algae to the coral breaks down, the all-is-well message doesn't get through, the algae essentially comes out of hiding and faces an immune response from the coral.'

This internal communication process, Weis said, is not unlike some of the biological processes found in humans and other animals. One of the revelations in recent research, she said, is the enormous complexity of coral biology, and even its similarity to other life forms. A gene that controls skeletal development in humans, for instance, is the identical gene in corals that helps it develop its external skeleton – conserved in the different species over hundreds of millions of years since they parted from a common ancestor on their separate evolutionary paths.

There's still much to learn about this process, researchers said, and tremendous variation in it. For one thing, there are 1,000 species of coral and perhaps thousands of species of algae all mixing and matching in this symbiotic dance. And that variation, experts say, provides at least some hope that combinations will be found which can better adapt to changing conditions of ocean temperature, acidity or other threats. The predicted acidification of the oceans in the next century is expected to decrease coral calcification rates by 50 percent and promote the dissolving of coral skeletons, the researchers noted in their report.

'With some of the new findings about coral symbiosis and calcification, and how it works, coral biologists are now starting to think more outside the box,' Weis said. 'Maybe there's something we could do to help identify and protect coral species that can survive in different conditions. Perhaps we won't have to just stand by as the coral reefs of the world die and disappear.'

Dr Veron’s comments came as the Zoological Society of London, the Royal Society and the International Programme on the State of the Ocean (IPSO) held a crucial meeting on the future of coral reefs in London yesterday. In a joint statement they warned that by mid-century extinctions of coral reefs around the world would be inevitable.

Posted by Casey Kazan.

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/view.php?id=38862&src=twitter-news

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article6652866.ece

"

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Antimatter Lightning Discovered (On Earth!)

2009-11-11T08:59:00.000-08:00

Antimatter Lightning Discovered (On Earth!): "

Antimatter Lightning! We're going to do our best, but nothing we could possibly write will be as awesome as the fact that's real and on Earth. In fact, nothing you ever read for the rest of your life will be as awesome as that, and it's only the way human memory degrades with time that'll let you ever get excited about anything ever again.

Like all the most awesome discoveries, it was unexpected. The Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope was launched to examine the universe for the stupendously powerful processes that produce gamma ray bursts, from black hole jets to the effects of dark matter itself, only to find blasts coming from behind it. From Earth.

That large storms can produce gamma rays isn't news, but the surprise - and that's 'Surprise' with a capital 'Antimatter Annihilating Tiny Bits Of The Atmosphere In The Most Energetic Reaction Known To Science' - was that some of the Terrestrial Gamma Flashes (TGFs) were of the exact energy level which could only be produced by positron annihilation: anti-electrons appearing, meeting and electron, and exploding. (And you'll never see a TGiFs without thinking of awesome science ever again).

How can this happen? No-one knows. Michael Briggs, research scientist at the University of Alabama, first announced the results at the 2009 Fermi Symposium and is currently preparing a paper on the subject. After that it'll be an awesome race to see who can explain the events - if a slightly less explosive battle than you'd expect with antimatter and lightning bolts involved.

Luke McKinney.

Antimatter detected in lightning

"

THIS IS AMAZING AND ALSO EXTREMELY WORRYING THAT LIGHTING CAN DO THIS AT ALL ANYONE UNDERSTAND THIS PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT ON THIS BLOG AND EXPLAIN SO WE CAN SHARE AND SPREAD THE WORD. IAN

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Parents Refusing the Flu Vaccine

2009-11-10T11:06:00.000-08:00

Parents Refusing the Flu Vaccine: "Parents today are of two minds about the new flu vaccine. Some can't wait to get it for their kids, while others remain fearful, writes pediatrician Dr. Perri Klass."

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New Thoughts on Memory

2009-11-10T11:02:00.000-08:00

New Thoughts on Memory: "

Traditionally, scientists have believed long-term and short-term memories were formed by different processes within the brain.

This theory is now being challenged by researchers from University College London.

Historically, the position of a different process for memories was based on observation of patients with amnesia, a condition that severely disrupts the ability to form long-lasting memories.

Typically, amnesia is caused by injury to the hippocampi, a pair of brain structures located in the depth of the temporal lobes.

Amnesia, a common side effect of concussions, severely affects long-term memory — although individuals may be proficient in rehearsing a phone number over short periods of time, as long as their attention is not distracted. This led to a hypothesis that the hippocampus supports long-term but not short-term memory.

However, the UCL study, published in PNAS, shows that this distinction now needs to be reconsidered.

The team studied patients with a specific form of epilepsy called ‘temporal lobe epilepsy with bilateral hippocampal sclerosis’, which leads to marked dysfunction of the hippocampi.

They asked the patients to try to memorize photographic images depicting normal scenes, for example chairs and a table in a living-room. Their memory of the image was tested and brain activity recorded using MEG (magnetoencephalography) after a short interval of just five seconds, or a long interval of 60 minutes.

The researchers discovered that short-term memory about more detailed aspects of the scene, for example whether the table was located left or right of the chairs, required the coordinated activity of a network of visual and temporal brain areas, whereas standard short-term memory drew on a very different network. Critically, the coordinated activity of visual and temporal brain areas was disrupted in the patients with hippocampal sclerosis.

Professor Emrah Duzel, UCL Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, said: “As we anticipated, the patients could not distinguish the studied images from new images after 60 minutes - but performed normally at five seconds. However, a striking deficit emerged even at five seconds when we asked them to recall the detailed arrangement of objects within the scenes.

“These findings identify two distinct short-term memory networks in the brain: one that functions independently of the hippocampus and remains intact in patients with long-term memory deficits and one that is dependent on the hippocampus and is impaired alongside long-term memory.”

Nathan Cashdollar, UCL Institute of Neurology and first author of the paper, added: “Recent behavioral observations had already begun challenging the classical distinction between long-term and short-term memory which has persisted for nearly half a century. However, this is the first functional and anatomical evidence showing which mechanisms are shared between short-term and long-term memory and which are independent.”

“They also highlight that patients with impaired long-term memory have a short-term memory burden to carry in their daily life as well.”

Source: University College London

"

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Depression Linked to Osteoporosis

2009-11-10T11:01:00.000-08:00

Depression Linked to Osteoporosis: "

A new, comprehensive research study has found a strong connection between depression and a loss of bone mass, leading to osteoporosis and fractures.

In a research study consisting of thousands of subjects, Hebrew University of Jerusalem researchers, Prof. Raz Yirmiya, and Prof. Itai Bab, learned that the relationship between depression and bone loss is particularly strong among young women.

According to background information, osteoporosis is the most widespread degenerative disease in the developed world, afflicting 1 in 3 women and 1 in 5 men over 50. Individuals experience decrease in bone density, which often leads to bone fractures. In many cases, these fractures cause severe disability and even death.

Despite the accumulating evidence for a connection between depression and decreased bone density, official authorities, such as the US National Institutes of Health and the World Health Organization, have not yet acknowledged depression as a risk factor for osteoporosis, due to the lack of studies in large samples.

To remedy this situation, the Hebrew University researchers assembled the data from all studies on the subject conducted to date, and analyzed them using a special statistical approach called meta-analysis.

The results were recently reported in the journal Biological Psychiatry. In the article the Hebrew University scientists assessed data from 23 research projects conducted in eight countries, comparing bone density among 2,327 people suffering from depression against 21,141 non-depressed individuals.

The results, say the researchers, show clearly that depressed individuals have a substantially lower bone density than non-depressed people and that depression is associated with a markedly elevated activity of cells that break down bone (osteoclasts).

Yirmiya and Bab found that the association between depression and bone loss was stronger in women than men, especially young women before the end of their monthly period.

This connection was especially strong in women with clinical depression diagnosed by a psychiatrist, but not in community studies, in which women subjectively identified themselves as being depressed using self-rating questionnaires.

Based on the present findings, Profs. Yirmiya and Bab propose that “all individuals psychiatrically diagnosed with major depression are at risk for developing osteoporosis, with depressed young women showing the highest risk.

“These patients should be periodically evaluated for progression of bone loss and signs of osteoporosis, allowing the use of anti-osteoporotic prophylactic and therapeutic treatments.”

Source: Hebrew University of Jerusalem

"

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How Scents Evoke Memories

2009-11-10T10:59:00.000-08:00

How Scents Evoke Memories: "

Have you ever noticed that some smells bring back strong memories? Now, researchers using functional brain imaging techniques have uncovered the scientific basis of memory aromas.

Weizmann Institute scientists posited that the key might not necessarily lie in childhood, but rather in the first time a smell is encountered in the context of a particular object or event.

In other words, the initial association of a smell with an experience will somehow leave a unique and lasting impression in the brain.

To test this idea, the scientists devised an experiment: First, in a special smell laboratory, subjects viewed images of 60 visual objects, each presented simultaneously with either a pleasant or an unpleasant odor generated in a machine called an olfactometer.

Next, the subjects were put in an fMRI scanner to measure their brain activity as they reviewed the images they’d seen and attempted to remember which odor was associated with each. Then, the whole test was repeated – images, odors and fMRI – with the same images, but different odors accompanying each.

Finally, the subjects came back one week later, to be scanned in the fMRI again. They viewed the objects one more time and were asked to recall the odors they associated with them.

The scientists found that after one week, even if the subject recalled both odors equally, the first association revealed a distinctive pattern of brain activity. The effect was seen whether the smell was pleasant or unpleasant.

This unique representation showed up in the hippocampus, a brain structure involved in memory, and in the amygdala, a brain structure involved in emotion. The pattern was so profound, it enabled the scientists to predict which associations would be remembered just by looking at the brain activity within these regions following the initial exposure.

The scientists could look at the fMRI data on the first day of the experiment and predict which associations would come up a week later. To see if other sensory experiences might share this tendency, the scientists repeated the entire experiment using sounds rather than smells; they found that sounds did not arouse a similar distinctive first-time pattern of activity. In other words, these results were specific to the sense of smell.

“For some reason, the first association with smell gets etched into memory,” says Professor Noam Sobel, “and this phenomenon allowed us to predict what would be remembered one week later based on brain activity alone.”

Graduate student Yaara Yeshurun comments: “As far as we know, this phenomenon is unique to smell. Childhood olfactory memories may be special not because childhood is special, but simply because those years may be the first time we associate something with an odor.”

The study is published in the latest issue of Current Biology.

Source: Weizmann Institute of Science

"

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The Rules of Cancer

2009-11-10T10:50:00.000-08:00

The Rules of Cancer: "After a cancer diagnosis, following a few basic rules will help you navigate the health care system."

READ THIS AT THE LINK TO GET THE FULL STORY IT IS QUITE REVEALING ? G

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Adam Christian Business Services: The Arctic will be ice-free in summer within 20 years, research says

2009-10-15T07:20:00.000-07:00

Adam Christian Business Services: The Arctic will be ice-free in summer within 20 years, research says

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Adam Christian Business Services: Ace US News Podcasting Couch

2009-10-15T06:50:00.000-07:00

Adam Christian Business Services: Ace US News Podcasting Couch

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2009 Sumatra earthquakes - The Big Picture - Boston.com

2009-10-05T13:45:00.000-07:00

2009 Sumatra earthquakes - The Big Picture - Boston.com: "

About 5:00 pm on September 30th, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck just offshore of the town of Padang in Sumatra, Indonesia. The quake toppled buildings and started many landslides, smashing homes and swallowing up entire villages. The following day, As rescue workers arrived and residents tried their best to dig out and help the survivors, another unrelated quake with a magnitude of 6.6 struck...

0 comments Source: www.boston.com

"

The Giraffe says that the more we destroy the Eco-system the more the Eco-system will get its own back and earthquakes will be come more widespread and increase in magnitude, remember the days when it was 3.5 and now we see 6.6 and higher will man ever learn ?

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Senate Finance Committee to Vote on Public Option, Health Care Reform Fight Heats Up - ABC News

2009-09-29T12:31:00.001-07:00

Senate Finance Committee to Vote on Public Option, Health Care Reform Fight Heats Up - ABC News

The Roving Giraffe - says that it appears that Obama has his work cut-out to get this through the senate, unless he can persuade the people wanting to keep the money from private healthcare rolling in, that people matter more than profit. G {Ian} " SHARE THIS AND SUPPORT THE BILL "

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Bangkok Climate Change Meeting Aims For Draft Deal For Copenhagen

2009-09-28T11:16:00.001-07:00

Bangkok Climate Change Meeting Aims For Draft Deal For Copenhagen

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Fwd: [OrganicJar.com] New Comment (5614)

2009-09-24T11:32:00.001-07:00

I thought you readers would like to read the follow-up comments from my posting the other day about 5 steps to protecting you against swine flu, these are my letter follow-ups and l cannot confirm the comments written as my personal view, but you are welcome to check it out for yourself and leave me a comment on the blog.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: OrganicJar.com <insider@organicjar.com>
Date: Thu, Sep 24, 2009 at 6:50 PM
Subject: [OrganicJar.com] New Comment (5614)
To: idadamchristian96 <idadamchristian96@googlemail.com>

Having trouble reading this email? View it on our website.

Jason:

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on your article. It is refreshing to see you list Pro and Prebiotics as critical weapons to have in the fight against H1N1 aka Swine Flu.

When I speak to friends, family and customers about prebiotics I hear comments such as "oh yeah, I've heard of probiotics.." or "do you mean probiotics?." There is a difference.

Prebiotics are soluble fibers which pass through the stomach unchanged. They nourish the good bacteria in the colon and are beneficial whether you consume a probiotic or not.

Probiotics are living organisms that are susceptible to heat, cold and aging. There are over 2,000 bacterial species in the colon. In addition bacteria in the colon is in the many trillions.

To get the greatest health benefit from a prebiotic supplement it is important to consume a full spectrum oligofructose enriched inulin (OEI) product. There are several inulin products available. A full spectrum OEI product nourishes the entire colon, not just a portion.

I would encourage your readers interested in more information to visit http://www.prebiotin.com. There they can learn more about Prebiotin and the many benefits a full spectrum OEI offers.

Thanks again for a great topic.

Best regards,

Bill Duprey

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5 Lifesaving Items to Fight Swine Flu

2009-09-22T04:06:00.001-07:00

5 Lifesaving Items to Fight Swine Flu

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Fwd: Gold on the Move: Here's Your Chance to Profit!

2009-09-19T08:19:00.000-07:00

I receive a number of these articles on a regular basis and usually l ignore them, but this time what seems so implausible could just come true. With borrowing comes debt and with debt comes the burden of debt, this brings a culture of increasing debt by borrowing. This is called the vicious circle of debt as the more you borrow the more you have to borrow to repay the indebtedness.

So what happens to a country borrowing more to stay a float ,well simply that they drown in a sea of debt, as the more they print money the more it devalues the currency until one day it is worthless { The clue is in the word as in utilisation as such Worth Less} but what follows is Britain as they are so heavily linked to America.

So l ask reading this article is this the end of the beginning or the " Beginning of the End " what do you all think ?

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Sean Brodrick <alerts@weissinc.com>
Date: Sat, Sep 19, 2009 at 2:04 PM
Subject: Gold on the Move: Here's Your Chance to Profit!
To: "idadamchristian96@googlemail.c" <idadamchristian96@googlemail.com>

Dear Subscriber,

Have you seen the big move in gold this week? One group that's making the most of it is The Secret Order of Jurojin. This group of elite traders is not just riding the gold rally, they're playing the big surge in other hard assets as well. I wanted to make sure you saw the latest update on their market outlook — see for yourself.

All the best,

Sean

— How You Can Protect Yourself AND Profit!

If you listened closely last week, you could almost hear an audible groan from central bankers as the long battle between gold and the dollar ended in a gold victory. The yellow metal broke out to the upside through a months-long downtrend. Now, the best-laid plans of Wall Street and the shadowy power players of the global economy may be coming unraveled. Take a look at this chart ...

After such a breakout, another, shorter consolidation is likely. That could be your last chance to get onboard before the gold profit train leaves the station.

Gold isn't the only commodity that is looking like a good investment. The U.S. dollar is sliding lower, its once-solid support giving way like rotting timbers. Anything that is priced in dollars — hard assets of all stripes — has the potential to outperform in the months ahead. The time has come for big gains in gold, silver, sugar, grains, energy and more as the big commodity bull market moves into its next phase.

And if you've got the guts to take YOUR shot at the brass ring, it could be time for you to start making some serious gains.

What's driving this next wave higher in commodity prices?

Fundamentals forces are lining up that should push the dollar lower and commodities — especially precious metals — much higher.

I believe we're headed for a currency crisis. It will be ugly and I hate it — I HATE what the chuckleheads in Washington are doing to our currency. But give me five minutes to make my case for the coming "dollar apocalypse." Being forewarned can A) preserve your wealth and B) potentially help you profit handsomely.

Here's what you need to know ...

Washington Is Debasing the U.S. Dollar. The U.S. Treasury is running its printing presses at warp speed. It's adding debt to the burden of every American man, woman and child at a frightening pace.

According to the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, "Our $56 trillion in unfunded obligations amount to $483,000 per household. That's 10 times the median household income — so it's as if everyone had a second or third mortgage on a house equal to 10 times their income but no house they can lay claim to."

The U.S. deficit for this year alone is $1.8 trillion. The Peterson Foundation points out that a deficit that large is adding debt at a clip of $3.4 million a minute, $200 million an hour or $5 billion a day.

All that debt has to be paid back eventually, and paid back with dollars. When you create more of something, you cheapen its value. In a nutshell, that's one reason why the U.S. dollar is breaking support and heading lower.

The Dollar Is Losing Its Status as Global Reserve Currency. With Uncle Sam spending money like his wallet is on fire, our trading partners in China, Russia, the Middle East, and around the world are getting steamed. Now, they're ready to do something about it. They're ready to dump the dollar.

The move away from the dollar won't be quick. There are trillions and trillions of dollars worth of investments that have to be reallocated. But once started, this juggernaut is hard to stop.

It's already started in China! Recently, Cheng Siwei, a leading Chinese policy maker, said that his country's leaders were "dismayed" by America flooding the banking system with money. "If they keep printing money to buy bonds, it will lead to inflation," Cheng said. "So we'll diversify incremental reserves into euros, yen and other currencies."

Russia jumped on the anti-dollar bandwagon. At a meeting in Yekaterinburg, Russia, the BRIC nations — Brazil, Russia, India and China — suggested shifting their currency holdings from the dollar into International Monetary Fund "Special Drawing Rights," or SDRs. The IMF recently announced that around $2 billion in SDRs recently transferred to Russia. But Russia is still behind China, which announced its intention to purchase up to $50 billion in SDRs from the IMF. India is going to purchase SDRs, too!

SDRs on their own can't function as a global reserve currency. But combined with a basket of hard assets — gold, silver, copper and oil, for example — they could be a BIG step in that direction.

The U.N. is the latest to get in on the act. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development laid the blame for the financial crisis at the dollar's feet, and proposed replacing the dollar with an artificial currency.

This is the first time a major multinational institution has suggested dumping the U.S. dollar as the world's reserve currency.

Meanwhile, China, Russia and others are buying gold on every dip. This is probably part of their plan for a long-term shift away from the dollar. But it also puts a floor under the price of gold ... and means the easiest path for the yellow metal should be higher.

Demand Is Surging Again! After a lull this summer, investor demand is picking up again. Gold holdings in 10 monitored gold-backed exchange-traded funds increased by 4.871 metric tonnes (156,615 ounces) in the week from September 4 to September 11.

The amount of gold in ETFs globally has surged to more than 66.7 million ounces. The World Gold Council reports that only about a half of 1 percent of total worldwide funds under management are currently invested in gold and, if that were to double to 1 percent, there would be insufficient gold in the vaults of central banks to accommodate the increase in demand.

Also, recent news reports reveal that China is exhorting its citizens to buy gold and silver bullion. This could have a dramatic effect on the markets!

The Time to Act Is Now!

Technically speaking, $1,035 is near-term overhead resistance in gold. If and when gold closes above that, we'll probably see a bunch of new cash flow into gold funds and short covering bidding prices even higher.

By the time gold closes above $1,035, you'll be chasing the yellow metal — a tough spot in such a fast and furious market. The smart thing to do is to get long BEFORE gold goes above that trigger level!

Now for the good news. You can protect yourself — and potentially pile up some hefty profits — with futures and futures options.

I'm talking about trades in the U.S. dollar ... gold ... silver ... wheat ... corn ... soybeans ... oil ... natural gas ... and more! A swooning dollar should send gold to $1,300, oil to $90, and wheat, soybeans and other commodities much, much higher.

So, by holding gold and other hard assets, you can potentially rack up gains — and protect your portfolio from the ravages of a declining dollar!

To be sure, commodities can be tricky markets to trade well. Now for the best part: An elite, secretive service has just cracked opened its doors to allow qualified investors a chance to even the playing the field.

This Group: The Secret Order of Jurojin

Until now, Jurojin has only offered recommendations to a select few. Now, they are offering YOU a specialized newsletter, packed with trading recommendations, designed to help you reap windfall profits from the historic swings in the U.S. dollar, gold, crude oil, agriculture, treasuries, and more.

And I believe we are at a crucial juncture in the markets — the next leg up of the great bull market in commodities. The thing about Jurojin is they give you ways to play this bull market that you can't get in other services.

Not all Jurojin picks win. Of course there are losses. But this elite group of traders has been riding the big bull market in grains for all it's worth.

The Hour of Real Assets Comes Round at Last

Gold isn't the only thing investors and funds are buying. Copper, zinc, cotton, oil and other hard assets are all becoming sought-after investments. That's because small and big investors alike are realizing the value of hard assets when governments can print as much paper money as they want.

And Jurojin fires out winning picks in all sorts of commodities. Just this week, subscribers to Jurojin's premium service, Jurojin Weekly, scooped up two helpings of gains in cotton. Cocoa and sugar are also fair game.

And the metals — oh, how Jurojin likes the metals. Gold and silver offer plenty of opportunities to get long and strong.

That's the great thing about commodities. They're real assets — hard assets. As more and more investors realize fiat currencies (like the U.S. dollar) are inferior to hard assets, the prices of metals, softs, grains and more should trend much higher.

But what about when the market goes in the other direction — like the brutal correction we had last year? That's fine with Jurojin — they'll play either side of the market. And after riding a downtrend, they'll jump right back on the big uptrend when it reasserts itself.

Jurojin is not affiliated with Weiss Research — it's a separate entity with a different trading philosophy. To be sure, you can lose money in any market. Some people will tell you if you want to play it safe, buy precious metals and stick them under your mattress ... and then you still might lose sleep if you don't have a really good mattress.

But if you want to run with the big dogs and invest with the pros ... if you have a stomach for risk and an appetite for outsized gains ... you owe it to yourself to find out more about the Secret Order of Jurojin's special offer.

To do that, CLICK HERE.

Find out more about Jurojin now — the big bull market in commodities is waiting for you, but it won't wait long.

Yours for trading profits,

Sean

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Vivisectors vs. Vivisectors in a New Lawsuit

2009-09-17T08:58:00.000-07:00

Vivisectors vs. Vivisectors in a New Lawsuit: "

Wrap your mind around this one: InVivo Therapeutics Corp. is suing Oregon Health and Science University (notorious for its torturous animal experiments), but not as a group opposed to animal research -- rather as a business that hired OHSU to perform animal research. InVivo alleges that OHSU provided improper, substandard care to the monkeys in the study, but of course, InVivo is the company that happily ordered the monkeys paralyzed through the severing of their spinal cords in the first place, so there is no good guy in this lawsuit.

And really, let's be honest -- this isn't about the welfare of the animals for InVivo. It's about money lost. It's about business. The monkeys were and are merely tools, resources: 'The firm alleged in a recent lawsuit that it was forced to abandon its medical study earlier this year because more than a third of the monkeys provided by an Oregon research facility suffered illnesses or injuries early in the research period.' And those animals and the research on them had already cost InVivo a pretty penny. The Boston Globe article begins,

Some of the rhesus monkeys that served as laboratory animals for InVivo Therapeutics Corp.’s research into spinal cord injuries have to suffer in the name of medical science.

But the Cambridge company was not expecting the monkeys to suffer more than necessary.

This sort of language always makes me angry. The monkeys (who are a 'who,' not a 'that,' by the way) did not have to suffer -- because they did not have to be experimented on in the first place -- and none of their suffering was 'necessary,' not even the planned suffering. And it may make for good PR to pretend that this lawsuit is about InVivo's concern for animal suffering, but it isn't. InVivo is in the business of animal suffering. It paid OHSU for the express purpose of creating animal suffering. This is about money.

But whatever the primary motivations of InVivo, what does it say about OHSU that even fellow animal-research-happy institutions can convincingly argue that it's a cruel hellhole for animals?

You can read the details at the Boston Globe article here. While there, feel free to roll your eyes at all the talk of the Animal Welfare Act and what it requires and what the punishments are for violations -- what little it requires is a joke, what little it requires is almost never really provided, and the absence of what little it requires is hardly ever or substantially punished.

Please don't support the cruel and unnecessary institution of animal research; do support the alternatives.

And if the strong ethical arguments in cases such as these don't convince you, also consider the science, including, with relation to this specific story, for example, the following: 'Spinal Cord Injury Research Hampered by Animal Models, Says New Study: Scientists Say Difficulty Lies in Extrapolating Animal Data to Humans.'

---

Photo courtesy the Empty Cages Gallery and Animals Voice

"

The Roving Giraffe supports the law that will not allow any business to use the creations that God gave us for experimental research for making money, no wonder " The Root of all Evil is the Love of Money " just look at the word BUSINESS or is it buSINess not many will understand but that do are people that will follow me? G

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through Ace News Service

favicon.ico Generator

2009-09-17T08:01:00.000-07:00

favicon.ico Generator: "

51 reviews"

A great piece of kit for proving your own favicon.ico generator from my best websites trawl.G

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
Ace News Service

Solar Tree Keeps Gadgets Juiced | Solar Feeds News and Commentary Blog Network

2009-09-13T11:59:00.000-07:00

Solar Tree Keeps Gadgets Juiced | Solar Feeds News and Commentary Blog Network

The Roving Giraffe says that this a great gadget making use of creation to provide in our everyday lives, will post more of the same soon. G

Posted using ShareThis

HomeSunPower: Solar Power News: Buy, Sell, or Hold: First Solar and the Power Revolution http://bit.ly/28yjZF

2009-09-13T11:48:00.000-07:00

HomeSunPower: Solar Power News: Buy, Sell, or Hold: First Solar and the Power Revolution http://bit.ly/28yjZF: "HomeSunPower: Solar Power News: Buy, Sell, or Hold: First Solar and the Power Revolution http://bit.ly/28yjZF"

The Roving Giraffe supports alternative energy sources and fellow bloggers who provide articles of this type and quality, thank you to Home Sun Power from G

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through Ace News Service

Eco Tech: Swedish scientists develop lightweight batteries from algae

2009-09-13T07:48:00.000-07:00

Eco Tech: Swedish scientists develop lightweight batteries from algae: "

Eco Factor: High-performance batteries made from algae.

Of all the materials that have been used to make batteries, algae seems the most uncommon, but scientists over at Uppsala University in Sweden have created a lightweight, flexible battery from algae that blooms globally.

Studying Caldophora algae’s potential use as a thickening agent for pharmaceutical uses, they accidentally discovered that the unique nanostructure made it ideal for energy storage. They coated algae cellulose with a conducting polymer to achieve a decent charge time and storage capacity.

The researchers believe that the work can revolutionize energy storage with inexpensive and environmentally friendly batteries.

Via: Discovery

"

The Giraffe says this just shows that when looking at a preparation that is man-made that the creator provides us with the answer ,a little God moving in mysterious ways, don`t you think ? G

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
Ace News Service

Eco Tech: IAUS debuts dual-axis solar tracker for cost-effective renewable energy

2009-09-13T07:42:00.000-07:00

Eco Tech: IAUS debuts dual-axis solar tracker for cost-effective renewable energy: "

Eco Factor: Unique thin-film solar panels mounted on dual-axis trackers automatically align toward the sun.

Researchers predict that every hour the sun radiates more free energy than the entire human population uses in a year. Still, with all that technology at our disposal, less than 1% of the energy used worldwide comes from solar power.

International Automated Systems (IAUS) has developed what could be a breakthrough in solar technology. The company has designed unique thin-film solar panels that can be manufactured at a fraction of the cost of today’s PV solar panels.

When mounted on a dual-axis automatic sun tracking system, the panels can be used to generate electricity at competitive prices.

"

A great piece of technology extremely well thought out and pricing has been looked at as well to enable it to be available to the masses and not the few rich. G

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
Ace News Service

3 Important Ways Your Thoughts Can Help You Heal

2009-09-13T05:57:00.001-07:00

3 Important Ways Your Thoughts Can Help You Heal

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New report shows China maintains momentum in its clean revolution

2009-09-12T12:29:00.000-07:00

New report shows China maintains momentum in its clean revolution: "

Despite economic downturn, China’s domestic markets continue to scale-up low carbon technology

A new report by The Climate Group shows that in an incredibly short space of time China has taken the lead in the race to develop and commercialize a range of low carbon technologies.

On the back of ambitious government policies and a new breed of entrepreneurs, Chinese businesses are amongst the top producers of electric vehicles, wind turbines, solar panels and energy efficient appliances. Even with this growth, the opportunities for Chinese and foreign companies are huge. A successful agreement in Copenhagen later this year will open the door to further collaboration and growth.

Building on The Climate Group’s 2008 report, the new report, China’s Clean Revolution II: China’s opportunity for a low carbon future is a synthesis of the latest information on China’s progress towards a low carbon economy and aims to keep a-pace with a rapidly evolving green agenda in China, as well as expanding to cover new industries including geothermal power.

In the last year, the global economic turndown has hurt China’s exports of renewable and low-carbon technologies and created a new impetus to expand its domestic markets. The Chinese government’s 4 trillion Yuan (US$ 585 billion) stimulus package put a strong emphasis on clean development and is backed by many new laws and policies focused on increasing the uptake of low carbon technologies.

The report examines four key areas of China’s low carbon economy: low carbon vehicles, energy efficiency in industry, renewable energy and low carbon buildings and urban design. In each of these areas Chinese businesses, supported by the Chinese government, are demonstrating solid progress*:

• Thirteen Chinese cities have signed up to a government scheme to purchase 13,000 electric vehicles (EVs) this year in total. The aim is to manufacture half a million EVs in China in 2011;

• The energy intensity of the Chinese economy has fallen by over 60% since 1980, and the government has set a goal of reducing it by a further 20% between 2005 and 2010;

• Internationally, mainland China supplies 30% of the world’s solar PV technology (Greater China, including Taiwan, 40%); domestically, China is the largest wind power generator in Asia and fourth in the world;

• China’s energy conservation goals include a 50% energy conservation standard for all new buildings and a 65% standard for new buildings in some major cities by 2010.

Liu Yanhua, Vice Minister of China’s Ministry of Science and Technology of China says, “Along with the penetration of efforts on energy-saving and emissions reduction in addressing climate change, China has made remarkable progress: China’s installed wind power capacity is doubling annually; China has produced nearly 40% of the world’s solar PV products; China has the world’s largest raw material resource for bio-fuel; and China’s auto industry is working to lead the world’s new energy automotive industry.”

The report also acknowledges the barriers that exist to China realizing its low carbon economy. China is struggling hard to catch up with international peers and to move from lower-end to higher-end technology, but technological and political gaps still exist. Creative, market-based financing mechanisms are also required. It is estimated that China will need to invest 1.8 trillion Yuan (US$ 263 billion) a year to meet its energy conservation and emissions reduction goals.

Changhua Wu, Greater China Director at The Climate Group says, “It’s a 70-30 situation. We have 70% of the solutions today, but they are not all proven technologies and none are at the scale we need. 30% of the solutions will be found in the future. Therefore we still need foreign investment to drive the revolution.”

As both a major emitter and provider of the solutions to climate change, China’s role at the heart of the international climate negotiations is essential to their success and their ability to accelerate the transition to a prosperous low carbon global economy.

Speaking from the launch event in Beijing, former UK Prime Minister and partner of The Climate Group’s Breaking the Climate Deadlock initiative, Tony Blair says, “To beat climate change, we all can and must do more. As well as extending the technologies we already have, we need to speed up the development of important new ones, like carbon capture and storage, large scale solar power and smart grids that will all be essential after 2020. A new global climate agreement will set a route map for this to happen and for our journey to a prosperous low carbon 21st century. As one of the world’s major economic powers, China will have to be at the forefront of this journey. This report shows that it can be.”

[ENDS]

* China’s Clean Revolution II draws on a wide range of sources, including government reports, independent academic analysis, news reports, interviews and informal conversations. While every effort has been made to present a balanced account with information corroborated where possible, some evidence – in particular the most recent information – is inevitably circumstantial.

"

The Roving Giraffe says that anything we can do to reduce China's impact on this worlds carbon use will be greatly received by all of us, l am sure G

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
Ace News Service

Australia: Eastern states’ emissions down 4 per cent this winter

2009-09-12T12:18:00.000-07:00

Australia: Eastern states’ emissions down 4 per cent this winter: "

Greenhouse gas emissions from energy use fell by more than three million tonnes or 4 per cent across Australia’s eastern states this winter compared with the previous winter, according to a new report released today by The Climate Group. This is the equivalent of taking almost 3 million cars off the road over winter.

Total emissions for the season were 74.69 million tonnes. Emissions were down across all states included in the report with South Australia recording the largest relative fall in winter emissions of more than 8 per cent compared with 2008.

The Climate Group’s Greenhouse Indicator Winter Report tracks the main sources of greenhouse emissions (those produced by coal, natural gas and petroleum) in Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia.

Emissions fell across all three major sources of energy in all four states: overall coal emissions were down 4.4 per cent, gas emissions were down 5.7 per cent and petroleum emissions dropped 2.7 per cent.

The drop in emissions was because of a fall in demand for both electricity and petroleum across the four states of 3.4 per cent and 2.7 per cent respectively compared with winter 2008, rather than from significant changes in the way states generated their electricity. On average across the four states the overall share of electricity generation from coal, gas and renewables remained the same as in winter 2008, although there were some differences in individual states.

“The extraordinarily warm winter is likely to be the major contributing factor to the drop in greenhouse emissions,” said Rupert Posner, Australia Director of The Climate Group.

This winter has been one of the warmest ever recorded in Australia with average temperatures at least one degree higher than the long-term average across all four states: Victoria was 1.0 degree higher, New South Wales 1.48 degrees higher, Queensland 1.52 degrees higher and South Australia 1.76 higher than the long term average. The average maximum daily temperatures were also the highest ever recorded in Australia in each of the four states during winter. Greenhouse emissions traditionally peak in winter and summer due to increased heating and air conditioning use. A milder weather means people did not use their heaters as much.

“While this winter’s reductions in greenhouse emissions are good news there is an unfortunate irony as this is because of unseasonably warm winter. Reducing demand is an important step in cutting our greenhouse emissions but we also need to change the way we produce energy.

“Significantly slowed economic growth rates are likely to have eased pressure on emissions growth,” said Posner.

"

The Roving Giraffe says a little bit of good news in the darkness of our everyday lives.

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through Ace News Service

How Many Solar Panels Would It Take to Power The Entire World? [Data]

2009-09-10T12:40:00.000-07:00

How Many Solar Panels Would It Take to Power The Entire World? [Data]: "

After seeing how many nukes would it take to obliterate humanity instantly, I wanted some good news. Like, how many solar panels would it take to power the entire world? The entire surface of Africa, maybe? Actually, it's surprisingly less.

Click on the image to enlarge

Just 496,905 square kilometers. That's really nothing compared to the total world area: Less than the surface of Spain (504,030 square kilometers) covered with solar panels, distributed across deserts and areas with almost 24/7 sun, all year around.

The Roving Giraffe - says take a look and share this good news as the writer says great statistics G

"

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
Ace News Service

California Wildfires

2009-09-10T12:26:00.000-07:00

California Wildfires: "

A wildfire in the mountains north of Los Angeles nearly doubled in size overnight and continues to threaten a broadcasting antenna complex and thousands of homes. Spokeswoman Dianne Cahir said the fire had burned 134 square miles of brush and trees by early Monday. At least 18 homes have burned and 12,000 are threatened in a 20-mile stretch from Pasadena to Acton. Two firefighters died when their vehicle rolled down a mountain.

In the Sierra foothills town of Auburn, more than 60 structures -- many of them homes -- were destroyed in a fast-moving fire, officials said. CalFire spokesman Daniel Berlant said Sunday it is unclear how many of the burned structures were homes and how many were industrial buildings, and it was likely to remain uncertain until daylight. The fire broke out at about 2:40 p.m. Sunday and had burned some 275 acres. (21 images)

Follow The Frame on Twitter at sacbee_theframe

A United States Forest Service air tanker drops fire retardant next to a line of fire as the Station fire burns in the hills above a home in Acton, Calif. on Sunday, Aug. 30. AP / Dan Steinberg

MORE IMAGES

A helicopter drops water on hot spots while fighting the Station Fire Aug. 30, in Acton, Calif. The out of control Station Fire has burned more than 35,000 acres and is burning towards homes from Pasadena to the Antelope Valley. Getty Images / Justin Sullivan

A Los Angeles County fire fighter sprays water on burning trees as he fights the Station Fire Aug. 30, in Acton, Calif. The out of control Station Fire has burned more than 35,000 acres and is burning towards homes from Pasadena to the Antelope Valley. Getty Images / Justin Sullivan

Los Angeles County fire fighters mop up hot spots as they fight the Station Fire Aug. 30, in Acton, Calif.Getty Images / Justin Sullivan

Los Angeles County fire fighters mop up hot spots as they fight the Station Fire Aug. 30, in Acton, Calif. Getty Images / Justin Sullivan

A Los Angeles County fire fighter monitors hot spots as he fights the Station Fire Aug. 30, in Acton, Calif. Getty Images / Justin Sullivan

Spot fires glow after the Station Fire burned through Aug. 30, in Acton, Calif. Getty Images / Justin Sullivan

Los Angeles County fire fighters Kevin Klar, right, Eric Tucker, center, and homeowner Henrik Hairapetian, who stayed behind to protect his home, are illuminated by the glow of the Station Fire as it scorches a hillside on Bristow Drive in the La Canada Flintridge foothills on Aug. 29, above Los Angeles, Calif. Getty Images / Kevork Djansezian

Los Angeles County Sheriff deputies and residents help evacuate horses as the Station fire burns in the hills above Acton, Calif. on Sunday, Aug. 30. AP / Dan Steinberg

Residents help Roberto Bombalier evacuate a 2-year-old horse on foot as the Station fire burning in the Angeles National Forest above Acton, Calif. on Sunday, Aug. 30. The horse had not been trained for trailer travel yet. AP / Jason Redmond

A woman carries personal belongings while evacuating her home as the Station Fire burns through the Angeles National Forest towards her home Aug. 30, in Acton, Calif. Getty Images / Justin Sullivan

A Fire Chief from El Dorado County in Northern California waits as flames from the Station Fire blows over Aliso Canyon Road near Acton, Calif., Sunday, Aug. 30. AP / Mike Meadows

The remains of burned cars and structures are seen after a fire hit the area on Friday, Aug. 28, in Soledad, Calif. Hundreds of residents near Soledad remain evacuated as firefighters battle a blaze that's also threatening Pinnacles National Monument. AP / The Californian / Richard Green

In this photo taken from Monterey Park, smoke billows from a fire in the foothills above La Canada Flintridge, Calif. in the San Gabriel Valley Sunday Aug. 30. AP / Nick Ut

Marla Gordon with her daughter Chaniah Gordon, 12, take a first look at their home which was destroyed in in the Auburn fire on Sunday, Aug. 30. The Sacramento Bee / Bryan Patrick

A firefighter works on the blaze at the the Auburn fire on Cedar Mist Lane in Auburn, Calif. on Sunday, Aug. The Sacramento Bee / Bryan Patrick

Ema Lujan carries a hose to help firefighters save what's left of her Harley Davidson business destroyed in the Auburn fire in Auburn, Calif. The Sacramento Bee / Bryan Patrick

A resident walks along homes burned in the Auburn fire on Aug. 30 in Auburn, Calif. The Sacramento Bee / Bryan Patrick

Rachel Varquez, left, who's house burned down on Creekside Place is comforted by neighbor Coleen Beldner in Auburn, Calif. on Sunday. The Sacramento Bee / Bryan Patrick

Lyle Swesey sits in a lawn chair across the street from his burned down home on Creekside Place in Auburn, Calif., Sunday Aug. 30, as a helicopter drops water on hots spots. The Sacramento Bee / Bryan Patrick

Marla Gordon holds her daughters as they looked at their burned down home on Oak Mist Lane in Auburn, Calif. The Sacramento Bee / Bryan Patrick

"What great images from my follower/followed member Jonathon Thank you G

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
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How to Plugin SEO to Wordpress : 9 Great Plugins

2009-09-10T11:59:00.000-07:00

How to Plugin SEO to Wordpress : 9 Great Plugins: "

I am an avid reader of Search Engine Journal due in large part that it has actual SEO meat with real takeaways especially the posts by Ann Smarty.

In the Internet Marketing field we often see articles created just for the sake of content and just as with some presentations at conferences, they just bloviate about the same general information we already know.

So as to not fall in that trap I will quickly get into some key plugins I feel add to the SEO of your Wordpress site.

All in One SEO Pack – As it states it’s an all in one tool to automatically & individually customize your site’s SEO.

Google XML Sitemap – If you are going to use an XML sitemap as a backstop to make sure your pages are found by the search engines then this is best tool to make sure its continually and automatically done.

Permalink Redirect – Automatically 301 redirects your posts to the clean SEO friendly URL you setup

Post Teaser – You could code this in most themes but this will automatically do so to prevent any chance of duplicate content while also increasing your page views.

WordTwit – Automatically tweets your post on your Twitter account once its published.

TweetMeme – Great plugin to easily encourage your posts/pages to get retweeted on Twitter – also shows some great stats.

Yet Another Related Posts Plugin – Great way to keep your readers on your site and increase internal links to relevant posts.

Cookies for Comments – Matt Cutt’s not so secret plugin along with Akismet to prevent bot comment spam from devaluing & infesting your site.

Wptouch iPhone (ANDROID) Theme – Automatically presents your site in a mobile friendly format when viewed on the iPhone or Android device.

Right now the popular SEO theme is Thesis which is used by Matt Cutts, Michael Gray, Rhea Hoffman, among others in the Internet Marketing space as its a great theme if you can’t or just don’t want to code.

Thesis has a lot of the SEO structure inherent within the theme so you would not need the All in One SEO Pack but to really reduce your coding I would highly recommend adding the Thesis OpenHook plugin.

I will be speaking more on SEO for Wordpress at WordCamp LA on September 12th after which I will be speaking at SMX East & PubCon.

Michael Martin is the SEO Director of Project Management at Internet Marketing Inc. – http://www.internetmarketinginc.com/ – based out of San Diego, California. Michael graduated from UMass Dartmouth with a Computer Engineering degree and a minor in German before quickly entering the IT Project Management field in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Check out the SEO Tools guide at Search Engine Journal.

How to Plugin SEO to Wordpress : 9 Great Plugins

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" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
Ace News Service

Our Last Chance to Preserve Life On Earth Is Slipping Away

2009-09-10T11:20:00.000-07:00

Our Last Chance to Preserve Life On Earth Is Slipping Away: "

Shallow news coverage causes most Americans to underestimate the urgency of the threat of global warming.

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The Roving Giraffe - says that as we use more of our Earth and its precious resources then we start to see the decline of our life, where only people can value possessions and people become surplus to requirements.For many years we have imagined that the good life as it was called will continue forever but slowly our children have become the controllers and parents are controlled by their wants. We call it peer pressure but l say it is a way for children to get what they want by saying our friends have a the new design or it has better features. It is time to say save not spend and no not yes ? Fancy debating the issue add your point of view? G

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
Ace News Service

We Need Clean Electricity In Our Homes - People in the West Need to Live With One Car: India's Environment Minister

2009-08-30T12:22:00.000-07:00

We Need Clean Electricity In Our Homes - People in the West Need to Live With One Car: India's Environment Minister: "
left photo: Mats Lindh; right photo: Nir Nussbaum

Speaking at a conference in Delhi, India's environment minister Jairam Ramesh urged Western nations to leave population out of climate talks, The Guardian reports. Ramesh said, 'Influential American think tanks are asking why should we reward profligate reproduction behavior' in the developing world. Then Ramesh really laid out bare the gap between rich and poor nations in the w...Read the full story on TreeHugger

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The Roving Giraffe - says this is as true as l said on our business blog at http://bit.ly/ace_wws29 when l wrote about the cash for clunkers deal fuelling peoples need for more cars and damaging the environment. I see it takes a developing country to tell us the same. But the west has other ideas and wants to include population statistics into the equation and eventually the blame given their way will end up being the poor peoples fault and not the west`s greed. G

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
Ace News Service

The Week in Pictures: Rare Tiger Dismembered, BPA-free SIGG's, Eco-Vacations and More

2009-08-30T12:10:00.000-07:00

The Week in Pictures: Rare Tiger Dismembered, BPA-free SIGG's, Eco-Vacations and More: "

From an ultra rare Sumatran tiger killed and dismembered at a zoo in Indonesia to SIGG's announcement that their bottles are now BPA - free, a lot happened this week. Jasmin showed us how to attain fresh, glowing skin -- without the botox or chemical peels -- and get crafty in the kitchen; KFC introduced their lard-laden Double Down sandwich where the bread has been replaced with two slabs of fried chicken; readers sent in photos of their eco-vacations and backyard nature photos for our weekly user-generated slideshows and Dr. Chris Cavacuiti of the University of Toronto, in a study, concluded that...Read the full story on TreeHugger

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The Roving Giraffe - says here is a manufacturer called SIGG`s that has announced that their bottles are BPA - free take a look and let me know ? G

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
Ace News Service

Friday's Big Green Question: is Climate Change Hijacking the Environmental Agenda?

2009-08-30T11:55:00.000-07:00

Friday's Big Green Question: is Climate Change Hijacking the Environmental Agenda?: "
Photo via St. Louis Today

It's Friday, and quite frankly, my brain hurts. It's been a long week, filled with dismembered tigers, robots designed to keep plants alive on Mars, the noisy end of Cash for Clunkers, and me getting yelled at (via civil and intelligent comments, of course) for suggesting we're in the beginning stages of a Read the full story on TreeHugger

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The Roving Giraffe - says is it not time to stop all this tinkering with the edges and look at the real problems, we do not need to make robots to put on Mars to feed the world, or other items that will only fill the pockets of people saying " l am green buy this product " when the only people that are really green are the people parting with money believing they are helping the environment. G

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
Ace News Service

Beyond Parabens: 7 Common Cosmetics Ingredients You Need to Avoid

2009-08-30T11:33:00.000-07:00

Beyond Parabens: 7 Common Cosmetics Ingredients You Need to Avoid: "
Photo credit: DA Creative Photography

Consumer choice is a powerful thing. Say 'jump or I'll spend my cash somewhere else' and you'll set executives scrambling to use one another as makeshift human trampolines. It's for this reason and this reason alone—at least for the major corporations—that we're seeing such a proliferation of products cheerily proclaiming that they're BPA-free. Well, parabens are the bisphenol-A of the beauty industry, from t...Read the full story on TreeHugger

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The Roving Giraffe - says this is a follow-up to my article released through digg and commented on sometime ago about the dangers of make-up and Parabens and how when challenged manufacturers start find alternatives and thank you to treehugger for a great article. If we all boycott these products {yes even men} l do not need make-up as l am a Giraffe and have great colour and l can hide in the environment quite easily from the poachers.

Sorry got carried away back to " Not using these ingredients that are not BPA free " so let us get them stopped ? G

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
Ace News Service

Sheep Grazing A "Best Practice" For Maintaining Ground-Level Solar Arrays

2009-08-30T10:46:00.000-07:00

Sheep Grazing A "Best Practice" For Maintaining Ground-Level Solar Arrays: "
Sheep grazing amidst a solar panel array.
Image credit:JMP.blog

Grazing sheep are a practical means of controlling weeds and grasses that otherwise would block the sun from ground-level solar arrays. The practice, begun in Europe, may well become a world standard, and has already spread to America (see below for example).

The requisite fence around the solar farm perimeter not only 'keeps the sheeps,' it fences out peeps who might otherwise steal the sheeps...and panels. So, it's something insurance companies have come to insist upon.

How to keep the...Read the full story on TreeHugger

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The Roving Giraffe - says that this maybe the way farming will become in the future as it has spread to America and what happens in the US will make its way here eventually, worst luck. But is one insurance company says we can save money then others will follow, as l found out many years ago when l worked for them " The leopard does not change its spots comes to mind " G

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
Ace News Service

A Minneapolis Couple Celebrates Their 50th Anniversary By Installing Rain Gardens For Their Block

2009-08-30T10:33:00.000-07:00

A Minneapolis Couple Celebrates Their 50th Anniversary By Installing Rain Gardens For Their Block: "
photo: Ecoscapes Sustainable Landscaping

Most couples toast to 50 years with a nice bottle of champagne, flowers, or maybe a weekend away. But not the Wolks, instead they chose to mark the occasion with a rain garden block party. See why their anniversary will not soon be forgotten....Read the full story on TreeHugger

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The roving giraffe says that this was an incredibly unselfish act that instead of receiving on their anniversary they gave something back to other people and thanks from G to the " WOLKS " for caring and that is why l shared this article with my network.

SHARE SOMETHING SPECIAL WITH THE GIRAFFE AND LET US SEND IT TO EVERYONE AND ANYONE TO SAY THANK YOU

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
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Off Road Vehicles vs Wildlife: Cape Hatteras Under Threat

2009-08-30T10:25:00.000-07:00

Off Road Vehicles vs Wildlife: Cape Hatteras Under Threat: "
Image credit: Audubon NC

I've never really understood the attraction of 'off roading' - in fact, until I started brewing biodiesel with some Off Road Vehicle (ORV) enthusiasts, I didn't even really know what it was. I am, for the most part, a believer in personal freedom but, like Lloyd's take on ATV's and the environment, I find it hard to see how off roading can be done without significant ecological damage (I'm sure my biodiesel buddies will disagree!). Whether or not 'sustainable off roading' is even possible, it seems obviou...Read the full story on TreeHugger

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The Giraffe says that only farmers ever needed a 4 x 4 this was until people that wanted to live in the country and have a second home in another area decided that a designer vehicle was required to look the part. So now we have more problems than just environmental including people that are local in villages being unable to afford a home as prices were pushed through the roof, by programmes promoting live in the country and become a self sufficient home owner. Personally and l know people that follow me may disagree all villages should not allow people that are not local to purchase any properties and this should be enabled by locals having a village council of people that have lived in the village for at least 10 years deciding. Well l am sure this may cause a barrage of comments. G

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
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Here Come the Tar Sands

2009-08-30T09:55:00.000-07:00

Here Come the Tar Sands: "
Proposed Tar Sands Pipeline and Refinery Network, excerpted from original.
Image credit:CitizenShift.org

We were surprised and disappointed last week when we heard that the State Department issued approval for a controversial pipeline designed to carry the dirtiest oil on Earth from Canada into the United States.

The State Department decision will allow construction of Enbridge Energy’s Alberta Clipper pipeline, which will carry tar sands oil from Canada into the United States. Tar sands oil is extremely dirty--It not only creates 3-5 times the greenhous...Read the full story on TreeHugger

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The Giraffe says this is another proof that governments do not care about our environment and really want alternative sources of energy, be it wind, solar or any other forms. The oil magnates have massive great profits and the sooner we stop gambling on stock-markets with this worlds resources then oil will become affordable as will fuel costs. Then the next step before all our resources run out is real investment into alternative energy without the oil companies controlling what will be allowed.

" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
Ace News Service

Starscape Enterprise: DIY Planetarium of Reused Objects

2009-08-30T09:32:00.000-07:00

Starscape Enterprise: DIY Planetarium of Reused Objects: "
Artist Drew Denny with Environmentaland exhibit of sustainable planetarium. Photo by RCruger

Beyond an unmarked doorway, only distinguishable by a Land Shark Ale advertisement splashed across on its curved glass walls, lies Environmentaland. Set in a Hollywood mega-mall, home to the Oscars’ Kodak Theatre, it opens into a warehouse-like room. The so-called “eco-theme park” from nonprofit Global Inheritance, displays energy exhibits including alt-fueled golf carts, painted waste bins, and a se...Read the full story on TreeHugger

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" The Roving Giraffe News Report " provided through
Ace News Service

XSProject Turns Jakarta's Excessive Trash into Treasure

2009-08-30T08:18:00.000-07:00

XSProject Turns Jakarta's Excessive Trash into Treasure: " .
Click on image to view Ann Wizer's Video on XSProject
photo: XSProject USA

Indonesia is a land of intrigue, beauty, and deep cultural strong holds. But the uglier side of this exotic culture comes in the form of an enormous trash problem. Heaping trash found in the streets, water, and seemingly everywhere that the eye can see. Ann Wizer, visual artist and environmental activist, is doing her part to shed some light on this filthy issue by turning Jakarta’s trash into consumer items. Check out the intensive process behind the art in this video....Read the full story on TreeHugger

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This is the dirty side of life in Jakarta but Ann Wizer is trying to change things the way she knows how take a look at the video and leave your comments G

How To Enhance And Preserve Brain Power As We Age

2009-08-26T03:55:00.001-07:00

How To Enhance And Preserve Brain Power As We Age

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