diasharma

Friday, April 26, 2013

How trees play role in smog production

Apr. 25, 2013 ? After years of scientific uncertainty and speculation, researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill show exactly how trees help create one of society's predominant environmental and health concerns: air pollution.

It has long been known that trees produce and emit isoprene, an abundant molecule in the air known to protect leaves from oxygen damage and temperature fluctuations. However, in 2004, researchers, contrary to popular assumptions, revealed that isoprene was likely involved in the production of particulate matter, tiny particles that can get lodged in lungs, lead to lung cancer and asthma, and damage other tissues, not to mention the environment.

But exactly how was anybody's guess.

Jason Surratt, assistant professor of environmental sciences and engineering at the Gillings School of Global Public Health, now reveals one mechanism by which isoprene contributes to the production of these tiny, potentially health-damaging particles.

The study found that isoprene, once it is chemically altered via exposure to the sun, reacts with human-made nitrogen oxides to create particulate matter. Nitrogen oxides are pollutants created by cars, trucks, aircrafts, coal plants and other large scale sources.

"The work presents a dramatic new wrinkle in the arguments for reducing man-made pollutants worldwide," said Surratt, whose work was published this month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. "Isoprene evolved to protect trees and plants, but because of the presence of nitrogen oxides, it is involved in producing this negative effect on health and the environment."

"We certainly can't cut down all the trees," Surratt adds, "but we can work on reducing these man-made emissions to cut down the production of fine particulate matter."

With the precise mechanism now revealed, researchers can plug it into air quality models for better predicting episodes of air pollution and potential effects on earth's climate. The advance would allow researchers and environmental agencies to evaluate and make regulatory decisions that impact public health and climate change.

"We observe nature's quirks, but we must always consider that our actions do have repercussions," said Surratt. "It's the interaction between these natural and man-made emissions that produces this air pollution, smog and fine particulate matter -- and now we know one reason for how it happens."

Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

Journal Reference:

Y.-H. Lin, H. Zhang, H. O. T. Pye, Z. Zhang, W. J. Marth, S. Park, M. Arashiro, T. Cui, S. H. Budisulistiorini, K. G. Sexton, W. Vizuete, Y. Xie, D. J. Luecken, I. R. Piletic, E. O. Edney, L. J. Bartolotti, A. Gold, J. D. Surratt. Epoxide as a precursor to secondary organic aerosol formation from isoprene photooxidation in the presence of nitrogen oxides. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2013; 110 (17): 6718 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1221150110

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/nG-hIyb58dw/130425132812.htm

bob costas bowl projections Jovan Belcher Charlie Batch Miguel Calero Bret Bielema sons of anarchy

Senate bill ends air traffic controller furloughs

WASHINGTON (AP) ? With flight delays mounting, the Senate approved hurry-up legislation Thursday night to end air traffic controller furloughs blamed for inconveniencing large numbers of travelers.

A House vote on the measure was expected as early as Friday, with lawmakers eager to embark on a weeklong vacation.

Under the legislation, which the Senate passed without even a roll call vote, the Federal Aviation Administration would gain authority to transfer up to $253 million from accounts that are flush into other programs, to "prevent reduced operations and staffing" through the Sept. 30 end of the fiscal year.

In addition to restoring full staffing by controllers, Senate officials said the available funds should be ample enough to prevent the closure of small airport towers around the country. The FAA has said it will shut the facilities as it makes its share of $85 billion in across-the-board spending cuts ? known as the sequester ? that took effect last month at numerous government agencies.

The Senate acted as the FAA said there had been at least 863 flights delayed on Wednesday "attributable to staffing reductions resulting from the furlough."

Administration officials participated in the negotiations that led to the deal and evidently registered no objections.

After the vote, White House press secretary Jay Carney said, "It will be good news for America's traveling public if Congress spares them these unnecessary delays. But ultimately, this is no more than a temporary Band-Aid that fails to address the overarching threat to our economy posed by the sequester's mindless, across-the-board cuts."

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, a key participant in the talks, said the legislation would "prevent what otherwise would have been intolerable delays in the air travel system, inconveniencing travelers and hurting the economy."

Senate approval followed several hours of pressure-filled, closed-door negotiations, and came after most senators had departed the Capitol on the assumption that the talks had fallen short.

Officials said a small group of senators insisted on a last-ditch effort at an agreement before Congress adjourned for a vacation that could have become politically problematic if the flight delays continued.

"I want to do it right now. There are other senators you'd have to ask what the hang-up is," Sen. Mark Udall, D-Colo., said at a point when it appeared no compromise would emerge.

For the White House and Senate Democrats, the discussions on legislation relating to one relatively small slice of the $85 billion in spending cuts marked a shift in position in a long-running struggle with Republicans over budget issues. Similarly, the turn of events marked at least modest vindication of a decision by the House GOP last winter to finesse some budget struggles in order to focus public attention on the across-the-board cuts in hopes they would gain leverage over President Barack Obama.

The Professional Aviation Safety Specialists, a union that represents FAA employees, reported a number of incidents it said were due to the furloughs.

In one case, it said several flights headed for Long Island MacArthur Airport in New York were diverted on Wednesday when a piece of equipment failed. "While the policy for this equipment is immediate restoral, due to sequestration and furloughs it was changed to next-day restoral," the union said.

It added it was "learning of additional impacts nationwide, including open watches, increased restoration times, delays resulting from insufficient funding for parts and equipment, modernization delays, missed or deferred preventative maintenance, and reduced redundancy."

The airlines, too, were pressing Congress to restore the FAA to full staffing.

In an interview Wednesday, Robert Isom, chief operations officer of US Airways, likened the furloughs to a "wildcat regulatory action."

He added, "In the airline business, you try to eliminate uncertainty. Some factors you can't control, like weather. It (the FAA issue) is worse than the weather."

In a shift, first the White House and then senior Democratic lawmakers have signaled a willingness in the past two days to support legislation that alleviates the budget crunch at the FAA, while leaving the balance of the $85 billion to remain in effect.

Obama favors a comprehensive agreement that replaces the entire $85 billion in across-the-board cuts as part of a broader deficit-reduction deal that includes higher taxes and spending cuts.

One Senate Democrat, Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, noted that without the type of comprehensive deficit deal that Obama favors, a bill that eases the spending crunch at the FAA would inevitably be followed by other single-issue measures. She listed funding at the National Institutes of Health as one example, and cuts that cause furloughs of civilians who work at military hospitals as a second.

At the same time, Democratic aides said resolve had crumbled under the weight of widespread delays for the traveling public and pressure from the airlines.

Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., involved in the discussions, said the issue was big enough so "most people want to find a solution as long as it doesn't spend any more money."

Officials estimate it would cost slightly more than $200 million to restore air traffic controllers to full staffing, and another $50 million to keep open smaller air traffic towers around the country that the FAA has proposed closing.

Across the Capitol, the chairman of the House Transportation Committee, Rep. Bill Shuster, R-Pa., said, "We're willing to look at what the Senate's going to propose."

He said he believes the FAA has the authority it needs under existing law to shift funds and end the furloughs of air traffic controllers, and any legislation should be "very, very limited" and direct the agency to use the flexibility it already has.

In a reflection of the political undercurrents, another House Republican, Rep. James Lankford of Oklahoma, said FAA employees "are being used as pawns by this (Obama) administration to be able to implement the maximum amount of pain on the American people when it does not have to be this way."

The White House and congressional Democrats vociferously dispute such claims.

___

Associated Press writers Joan Lowy, Henry C. Jackson and Alan Fram in Washington and David Koenig in Dallas contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/senate-passes-bill-ease-faa-furloughs-005441034--politics.html

once upon a time RG3 Monsters University nfl playoff schedule Rex Ryan tattoo Alaska earthquake green bay packers

Looking for life by the light of dying stars

Apr. 24, 2013 ? Because it has no source of energy, a dead star -- known as a white dwarf -- will eventually cool down and fade away. But circumstantial evidence suggests that white dwarfs can still support habitable planets, says Prof. Dan Maoz of Tel Aviv University's School of Physics and Astronomy.

Now Prof. Maoz and Prof. Avi Loeb, Director of Harvard University's Institute for Theory and Computation and a Sackler Professor by Special Appointment at TAU, have shown that, using advanced technology to become available within the next decade, it should be possible to detect biomarkers surrounding these planets -- including oxygen and methane -- that indicate the presence of life.

Published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, the researchers' "simulated spectrum" demonstrates that the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), set to be launched by NASA in 2018, will be capable of detecting oxygen and water in the atmosphere of an Earth-like planet orbiting a white dwarf after only a few hours of observation time -- much more easily than for an Earth-like planet orbiting a sun-like star.

Their collaboration is made possible by the Harvard TAU Astronomy Initiative, recently endowed by Dr. Raymond and Beverly Sackler.

Faint light, clear signals

"In the quest for extraterrestrial biological signatures, the first stars we study should be white dwarfs," said Prof. Loeb. Prof. Maoz agrees, noting that if "all the conditions are right, we'll be able to detect signs of life" on planets orbiting white dwarf stars using the much-anticipated JWST.

An abundance of heavy elements already observed on the surface of white dwarfs suggest rocky planets orbit a significant fraction of them. The researchers estimate that a survey of 500 of the closest white dwarfs could spot one or more habitable planets.

The unique characteristics of white dwarfs could make these planets easier to spot than planets orbiting normal stars, the researchers have shown. Their atmospheres can be detected and analyzed when a star dims as an orbiting planet crosses in front of it. As the background starlight shines through the planet's atmosphere, elements in the atmosphere will absorb some of the starlight, leaving chemical clues of their presence -- clues that can then be detected from the JWST.

When an Earth-like planet orbits a normal star, "the difficulty lies in the extreme faintness of the signal, which is hidden in the glare of the 'parent' star," Prof. Maoz says. "The novelty of our idea is that, if the parent star is a white dwarf, whose size is comparable to that of an Earth-sized planet, that glare is greatly reduced, and we can now realistically contemplate seeing the oxygen biomarker."

In order to estimate the kind of data that the JWST will be able to see, the researchers created a "synthetic spectrum," which replicates that of an inhabited planet similar to Earth orbiting a white dwarf. They demonstrated that the telescope should be able to pick up signs of oxygen and water, if they exist on the planet.

A critical sign of life

The presence of oxygen biomarkers would be the most critical signal of the presence of life on extraterrestrial planets. Earth's atmosphere, for example, is 21 percent oxygen, and this is entirely produced by our planet's plant life as a result of photosynthesis. Without the existence of plants, an atmosphere would be entirely devoid of oxygen.

The JWST will be ideal for hunting out signs of life on extraterrestrial planets because it is designed to look into the infrared region of the light spectrum, where such biomarkers are prominent. In addition, as a space-based telescope, it will be able to analyze the atmospheres of Earth-like planets outside our solar system without weeding out the similar signatures of Earth's own atmosphere.

Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by American Friends of Tel Aviv University.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/04/130424112318.htm

limp bizkit stations of the cross nike foamposite galaxy bill maher seabiscuit dingo nba all star weekend

Southeast Asia to reach out to China on sea disputes

By Manuel Mogato and Stuart Grudgings

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Brunei (Reuters) - Southeast Asian nations stepped up efforts on Thursday to engage China in talks to resolve maritime tensions, agreeing to meet to try to reach common ground on disputed areas of the South China Sea ahead of planned discussions in Beijing later this year.

Efforts by ASEAN to craft a code of conduct to manage South China Sea tensions all but collapsed last year at a summit chaired by Cambodia, a close economic ally of China, when the group failed to issue a closing statement for the first time.

Cambodia was accused of trying to keep the issue off the agenda despite a surge in tension over disputed areas and growing concern about China's assertive stance in enforcing its claims over a vast, potentially energy-rich sea area.

Thursday's initiative came as the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) tried to patch up differences that shook the group last year, but struggled to make progress on long-held plans to agree on a dispute-management mechanism.

Thailand, which has the role of ASEAN coordinator with China, called for the talks ahead of an ASEAN-China meeting expected in August to commemorate 10 years since they formed a "strategic partnership".

ASEAN Secretary-General Le Luong Minh told reporters that ASEAN would approach China with a common stance.

"When we come to our partners to discuss important issues, we come as a group and we come with one common position," he said, adding that the next move would be to get China to participate in the negotiations.

China claims almost the entire South China Sea as its territory, setting it directly against U.S. allies Vietnam and the Philippines, while Brunei, Taiwan and Malaysia also claim parts.

China insists on resolving sovereignty disputes on a bilateral basis. It has flexed its growing "blue water" naval muscle by occupying some areas claimed by Vietnam and the Philippines, leading to a rise in tension.

Without mentioning Cambodia, Philippine President Benigno Aquino drew a strong contrast with last year's discussions.

He described as "beautiful" the fact that Brunei had brought up the South China Sea issue as the first subject.

"We should really be thankful that the whole of ASEAN is willing to discuss this instead of putting it on the back burner," Aquino told reporters.

The tiny oil kingdom of Brunei, in marked contrast to Cambodia, it is keeping the maritime issue high on the agenda.

"WORK WITH CHINA"

But prospects for a legally binding code of conduct appear dim. The summit-concluding communiqu? on Thursday made no new announcement, but said ASEAN ministers had been tasked to "work actively with China" for a conclusion of the proposed agreement.

A U.S. move to rebalance its military forces to focus more on Asia has threatened to worsen tension, reinforcing China's fears of encirclement.

China has had a permanent naval presence for a year at the Scarborough Shoal, a rich fishing ground 124 nautical miles off the Philippines northwestern coast.

Last month, it sent four warships to land troops on its southernmost claim - the James Shoal, 80 km (50 miles) off the Malaysian coast and close to Brunei.

Tensions are likely to rise again in coming months, as monsoon weather eases and China imposes a unilateral annual fishing ban that has irritated Vietnam and the Philippines.

Frustrated with the slow pace of regional diplomacy, the Philippines in January angered China by asking a United Nations tribunal to order a halt to Beijing's activities, such as those at Scarborough Shoal, that it said violated its sovereignty.

The Philippines appeared to win backing for that approach in Brunei, despite concern that it could be used by China as a reason to further delay talks on a code of conduct.

(Writing by Stuart Grudgings; Editing by Nick Macfie)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/asean-reach-china-maritime-disputes-094405929.html

dark knight rises trailer vince young vince young evan longoria john edwards conocophillips capitals

CoAction Hero board comes with its own OS, simplifies desktop coding (video)

Although we've seen a deluge of tinker-friendly boards, many of them share a dirty secret: they're borrowing someone else's OS. The creator of the new CoAction Hero board, Tyler Gilbert, doesn't think that's good enough for those who want both control and ease of use. His stackable ARM Cortex-M3 design runs its own real-time platform, CoActionOS, that supports Raspberry Pi-style features like file systems and multitasking while abstracting the hardware enough to remove some of the usual headaches. Coding for the CoAction Hero is much like writing a desktop app, and a Qt-based developer kit helps owners write their own interface without knowing the circuitry inside-out. The board is being crowdfunded and won't ship until July if all goes according to plan, but a relatively low $10,000 target and $29 minimum pledge for a device should get the Hero into the hands of intrepid project builders.

Filed under: Misc

Comments

Source: Kickstarter

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/Jp99YXuUBo4/

mashed potatoes Apple Black Friday how to cook a turkey emma stone Frys tryptophan BestBuy.com

Thursday, April 25, 2013

Obama administration missed clues on Fisker

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The Energy Department did not realize for four months that troubled automaker Fisker Automotive Inc. had missed a crucial production target that was required as part of a half-billion dollar government loan, documents released Wednesday show. The mistake allowed Fisker to obtain an additional $32 million in government funding before the loan was suspended in June 2011.

The Obama administration did not make the suspension of the $529 million loan public until early last year, nearly eight months after it stopped making payments to Fisker and long after the Energy Department first warned that Fisker was not meeting milestones to protect taxpayers.

The administration's actions ? or failure to act ? came under sharp criticism from Republicans Wednesday at a hearing before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. GOP lawmakers accused the Obama administration of negligence and worse while Democrats dismissed the hearing as a "show trial" intended to embarrass the president.

"The committee's efforts to stoke false controversy by selectively leaking a few out-of-context documents just do not stand up to scrutiny," White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters Wednesday.

But Rep. Jim Jordan, chairman of the Oversight subcommittee on economic growth and regulation, said it was hard to understand why the Energy Department ever thought Fisker was a viable company that should receive taxpayer money.

"The Obama administration owes the American taxpayer an explanation as to why this bad loan was made in the first place, and what they are going to do to minimize the loss that taxpayers face," said Jordan, R-Ohio.

Jordan called the loan program "one of the most disastrously mismanaged and corrupt programs in U.S. history," a claim committee Democrats scoffed at.

Rep. Matt Cartwright, D-Pa., said the $192 million received by Fisker before the loan was suspended represents just 2 percent of an $8 billion loan program to boost electric cars and other advanced vehicles.

Even if Fisker goes bankrupt, as many expect, the loan program is on track to recoup 98 percent of its investment, Cartwright said.

"In the world outside the Beltway, anybody who exceeds expectations 98 percent of the time gets an A-plus, Cartwright said.

"Only in Washington would a $200 million loss be viewed as a success," Jordan shot back.

The oversight panel is looking into the federal loan to the troubled carmaker, which has laid off three-fourths of its workers amid continuing financial and production problems. Fisker has not built a vehicle since last summer and has failed to secure a buyer as its cash reserves have dwindled.

Despite those losses and widespread reports that bankruptcy is imminent, the company's founder and namesake said Wednesday he is proud of its achievements.

Henrik Fisker told the House panel that "cutting edge technology" developed by the Anaheim, Calif.-based company could "pave the way for a new generation of American car manufacturing." Fisker said he is especially proud of the $100,000 Karma hybrid, which Time Magazine called one of the 50 best inventions of 2011.

Fisker has sold fewer than 2,000 Karmas, despite early projections of 11,000 sales per year.

Fisker, who resigned as board chairman in March, disputed claims by some critics that the company needed the federal loan to survive. He said a high-ranking Energy Department official approached him in 2008 and asked him to apply for the loan, which is intended to boost electric cars and other advanced vehicles.

"At that time, we already had significant financial backing from private investors," Fisker said. In all, the company received more than $1 billion in private financing, he said.

Fisker denied that any political influence was used to obtain the loan or in negotiations over its terms. "I am not aware and do not believe that any improper political influence was used in connection with the company's loan application or subsequent negotiations with the Department of Energy," Fisker said.

Republicans called the claim dubious and noted that Fisker investors include the actor Leonardo DiCaprio and at the venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins. John Doerr, a partner at the firm, has served on an economic advisory board appointed by President Barack Obama.

Republicans also questioned why the company agreed to reopen a shuttered former General Motors factory in Wilmington, Del., to produce plug-in, electric hybrid vehicles. The plant was never completed and never produced any cars.

Vice President Joe Biden touted the plant in 2009 as a boon to his home state and predicted it would create billions of dollars in jobs.

Fisker told the panel that he chose the Delaware site because the GM plant was in good shape and had access to skilled workers and East Coast ports. As many as 60 percent of the cars the plant was to produce were targeted for export, Fisker said. The choice of Delaware "had nothing to do with the loan" or Biden, Fisker said.

Earlier, the committee released a document showing that the administration was warned as early as 2010 that Fisker was not meeting milestones set up by the government.

An Energy Department official said in a June 2010 email that Fisker's bid to draw on the federal loan may be jeopardized for failure to meet the goals.

Despite that warning, Fisker continued to receive money until June 2011, when the Energy Department halted further funding. The agency did so after Fisker presented new information that called into question whether key milestones ? including launch of the Karma hybrid ? had been achieved, according to a credit report prepared by the Energy Department.

The December 2011 credit report said "DOE staff asked questions about the delays" in the Karma's launch "and received varied and incomplete explanations," leading to the suspension of the loan.

Aoife McCarthy, a spokeswoman for the Energy Department, said the June 2010 email was taken out of context.

"The document shows that one person at a meeting discussed the possibility that Fisker might not meet a financial commitment" required by the Energy Department, McCarthy said in an email. The department received the needed certification five days later and subsequently made the loan payment, she said.

___

Follow Matthew Daly on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MatthewDalyWDC

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-administration-missed-clues-fisker-225820578--finance.html

drexel dale george will obama birth certificate nick cannon lindsay lohan saturday night live snl lindsay lohan