Canada's Sonoro Energy eyes Iraqi oil sands
Calgary, Alberta (UPI) Apr 4, 2013 -
Canadian energy company Sonoro Energy said it was exploring the opportunity to develop oil sands resources in Iraq.
Sonoro said it met with Iraqi officials during the first quarter of 2014 to discuss exploration, production and development of bitumen, or oil sands, in Iraq.
"The company has received a positive response to its efforts, and management is of the opinion that it is f ...
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To bridge LEDs' green gap, scientists think really small
Berkeley CA (SPX) Apr 07, 2014 -
Nanostructures half the breadth of a DNA strand could improve the efficiency of light emitting diodes (LEDs), especially in the "green gap," a portion of the spectrum where LED efficiency plunges, simulations at the U.S. Department of Energy's National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC) have shown.
Using NERSC's Cray XC30 supercomputer "Edison," University of Michigan rese ...
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Chemists develop gold coating that dims glare
Irvine CA (SPX) Apr 07, 2014 -
All that's gold does not glitter, thanks to new work by UC Irvine scientists that could reduce glare from solar panels and electronic displays and dull dangerous glints on military weapons.
"We found that a very simple process and a tiny bit of gold can turn a transparent film black," said UC Irvine chemistry professor Robert Corn, whose group has created a patterned polymer material based ...
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New algorithm aids in both robot navigation and scene understanding
Boston MA (SPX) Apr 07, 2014 -
Suppose you're trying to navigate an unfamiliar section of a big city, and you're using a particular cluster of skyscrapers as a reference point. Traffic and one-way streets force you to take some odd turns, and for a while you lose sight of your landmarks. When they reappear, in order to use them for navigation, you have to be able to identify them as the same buildings you were tracking before ...
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Materials and electronics that dissolve when triggered
Ames, IA (SPX) Apr 07, 2014 -
A medical device, once its job is done, could harmlessly melt away inside a person's body. Or, a military device could collect and send its data and then dissolve away, leaving no trace of an intelligence mission. Or, an environmental sensor could collect climate information, then wash away in the rain.
It's a new way of looking at electronics: "You don't expect your cell phone to dissolve ...
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Math modeling integral to synthetic biology research
Houston TX (SPX) Apr 07, 2014 -
A long-standing challenge in synthetic biology has been to create gene circuits that behave in predictable and robust ways. Mathematical modeling experts from the University of Houston (UH) collaborated with experimental biologists at Rice University to create a synthetic genetic clock that keeps accurate time across a range of temperatures. The findings were published in a recent issue of the P ...
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UN Climate Report: Pricing of CO2 Emissions Critical
Gothenburg, Sweden (SPX) Apr 07, 2014 -
Despite climate change, most polluters still pay little or nothing when they release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. A cost of USD 0.15 per kilo CO2 would be enough to solve the whole climate change problem, says Thomas Sterner, professor of environmental economics at the University of Gothenburg. Sterner is the only Swedish researcher to serve as a coordinating lead author of a new report t ...
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Oil-drilling plans face stiff resistance in Spain's Ibiza
Madrid (AFP) April 04, 2014 -
Plans to drill for oil off the Spanish holiday island of Ibiza have met with fierce opposition from locals who fear the white sand beaches and marine life will be damaged.
"Everyone is against it here," said Carlos Bravo of the Blue Sea Alliance, an umbrella organisation of 50 groups including environmentalists, hoteliers and unions, seeking to halt oil exploration off Ibiza and Formentera, ...
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Scotland sees economic growth from energy sector
Edinburgh, Scotland (UPI) Apr 4, 2013 -
The Bank of Scotland recognized the economic potential from the region's energy sector is world class, a Scottish government spokesperson said Friday.
The Bank of Scotland said the oil and gas industry could create 39,000 new jobs across the country during the next two years.
"This report is very welcome and clearly demonstrates the huge contribution that the oil and gas sector m ...
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Norway wants to turn its huge oil fund greener
Oslo (AFP) April 04, 2014 -
Oil-rich Norway moved Friday to target its huge sovereign wealth fund's investments more closely at boosting green businesses, but environmentalists said the proposals were not strong enough.
In its yearly policy paper on the fund - the world's largest - the rightwing government also proposed giving the central bank, which manages the fund day-to-day, more power to decide when to disinvest ...
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Using different scents to attract or repel insects
Zurich, Switzerland (SPX) Apr 07, 2014 -
Flowering plants attract pollinating insects with scent from their flowers and bright colours. If they have become infested with herbivores like caterpillars, they attract beneficial insects like parasitic wasps with the help of scent signals from their leaves. The wasps then lay their eggs in the caterpillars and kill the parasites.
Floral and foliar scents can, however, mutually reduce t ...
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Meeting climate targets may require reducing meat and dairy consumption
Goteborg, Sweden (SPX) Apr 07, 2014 -
Greenhouse gas emissions from food production may threaten the UN climate target of limiting global warming to 2 degrees Celsius, according to research at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden.
Carbon dioxide emissions from the energy and transportation sectors currently account for the largest share of climate pollution. However, a study from Chalmers now shows that eliminating these ...
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The science of champagne fizz: How many bubbles are in your bubbly?
London, UK (SPX) Apr 07, 2014 -
The importance of fizz, more technically known as effervescence, in sparkling wines and champagnes is not to be underestimated - it contributes to the complete sensory experience of a glass, or flute, of fine bubbly. A scientist has now closely examined the factors that affect these bubbles, and he has come up with an estimate of just how many are in each glass. The report appears in ACS' The Jo ...
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US diners gorge on oysters as polluted bay revives
Hollywood, United States (AFP) April 05, 2014 -
Cage after cage, oysters destined for a sprinkling of lemon juice and a delighted diner are pulled from the majestic Chesapeake Bay, where 20 years ago they had nearly disappeared.
"Those will be at the restaurants tomorrow," says Tal Petty, 55, an oysterman who has worked these waters for 40 years.
Today, the mollusk's reintroduction is playing a vital role in the health of the bay and ...
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Crop feasibility should be investigated before promoted to farmers
Nairobi, Kenya (SPX) Apr 07, 2014 -
With rising food and energy costs, smallholder farmers are looking for alternative crops that can generate more income and provide a better livelihood; however, bringing in new crops without tried and tested evidence about its viability may be counter productive.
A study conducted in Kenya shows that crops should be promoted and adopted when farmers have knowledge about its cultivation and ...
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Ancient nomads spread earliest domestic grains along Silk Road
St. Louis MO (SPX) Apr 07, 2014 -
Charred grains of barley, millet and wheat deposited nearly 5,000 years ago at campsites in the high plains of Kazakhstan show that nomadic sheepherders played a surprisingly important role in the early spread of domesticated crops throughout a mountainous east-west corridor along the historic Silk Road, suggests new research from Washington University in St. Louis.
"Our findings indicate ...
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Scientists say new computer model amounts to a lot more than a hill of beans
Champaign IL (SPX) Apr 07, 2014 -
Crops that produce more while using less water seem like a dream for a world with a burgeoning population and already strained food and water resources. This dream is coming closer to reality for University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign researchers who have developed a new computer model that can help plant scientists breed better soybean crops.
Under current climate conditions, the mode ...
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Urban gardeners may be unaware of how best to manage contaminants in soil
Baltimore MD (SPX) Apr 07, 2014 -
Consuming foods grown in urban gardens may offer a variety of health benefits, but a lack of knowledge about the soil used for planting, could pose a health threat for both consumers and gardeners.
In a new study from the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future (CLF), researchers identified a range of factors and challenges related to the perceived risk of soil contamination among urban ...
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Good pay, no crime: life is good in Chilean Antarctica
Villa Las Estrellas, Antarctica (AFP) April 04, 2014 -
There is no crime or traffic and in this Antarctic hamlet paychecks can be much higher than on the Chilean mainland. Plus, the penguins are very cute.
But residents of Villa Las Estrellas also have to endure winters with howling blizzards and temperatures that plunge to -40 Celsius (-40 Farenheit) in winter, making it painful to even breathe outdoors.
And they don't get many visitors. ...
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Life slowly returns to normal in quake-hit Chile
Iquique, Chile (AFP) April 04, 2014 -
Life was gradually returning to normal in northern Chile on Friday, with power restored to a majority of homes that lost electricity during this week's powerful 8.2-magnitude earthquake.
Tuesday's earthquake killed six people and forced thousands to evacuate, especially in coastal areas vulnerable to flooding and tsunamis.
A seventh fatality was attributed to the earthquake on Friday whe ...
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Chileans scramble for supplies after new quake
Iquique, Chile (AFP) April 04, 2014 -
Chileans desperate for supplies stood in long lines outside shops on Thursday after strong aftershocks from a deadly 8.2-magnitude earthquake forced them to spend another night out in the cold.
After six people were killed in late Tuesday's earthquake, northern Chile was rocked by a powerful 7.6-magnitude aftershock Wednesday night, forcing thousands of people to evacuate their homes once mo ...
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Climate: UN experts see options to brake juggernaut
Berlin (AFP) April 05, 2014 -
A week after publishing the starkest warning yet on the risks of climate change, UN experts meet in Berlin from Monday to assess options for limiting the threat.
A draft of the report, seen by AFP, suggests there is a 15-year window for feasible and affordable action to safely reach the UN-targeted global warming limit.
But deep, swift curbs in carbon emissions will be needed, with a rev ...
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West Africa mobilises against Ebola epidemic
Bamako (AFP) April 04, 2014 -
West African countries mobilised Friday against an epidemic of haemorrhagic fevers including Ebola, which has claimed more than 80 lives in Guinea with more suspected cases in Mali, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
Guinea is the worst affected country with 86 deaths, 45 of them confirmed as Ebola - a highly contagious disease that leads to external and internal bleeding and kills up to 90 percent ...
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Ecuador's 'throat of fire' belches giant ash column
Quito (AFP) April 05, 2014 -
A volcano in central Ecuador spewed up a column of hot ash and smoke 10 kilometers (six miles) high on Friday, increasing fears of an eruption.
Activity has been building at the Tungurahua volcano 130 kilometers south of the capital Quito since early February, and on Friday experts reported a loud explosion "that lasted for five minutes" and an expulsion of ash.
"For now ashfall is mild, ...
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Death toll rises to 16 in Solomons floods, 49,000 homeless
Honiara, Solomon Islands (AFP) April 05, 2014 -
At least 16 people have died in flooding in the Solomon Islands, while 40 are missing and up to 49,000 homeless, an aid official said Saturday as the full extent of the devastation began to emerge.
The disaster has raised fears that a lack of sanitation and fresh water will lead to an outbreak of dengue fever in the Pacific Island nation.
"It's grown a lot worse," Save the Children's eme ...
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