Reducing the disaster risk and increasing resilience
Brussels, Belgium (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
Extreme hazards - rare, high-impact events - pose a serious and underestimated threat to humanity. The extremes of the broad ensemble of natural and anthropogenic hazards can lead to global disasters and catastrophes.
Because they are rare and modern society lacks experience with them, they tend to be ignored in disaster risk management. While the probabilities of most natural hazards do n ...
more
Most comprehensive study to date reveals evolutionary history of citrus
Oxford UK (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
Citrus fruits - delectable oranges, lemons, limes, kumquats and grapefruits - are among the most important commercially cultivated fruit trees in the world, yet little is known of the origin of the citrus species and the history of its domestication.
Now, Joaquin Dopazo et al, in a new publication in the journal Molecular Biology and Evolution, have performed the largest and most detailed ...
more
Healthier communities recover better from disasters
Washington DC (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
U.S. communities and federal agencies should more intentionally seek to create healthier communities during disaster preparation and recovery efforts - something that rarely happens now, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine. By adding a health "lens" to planning and recovery, a community can both mitigate the health damage caused by disasters and recover in ways that make the communi ...
more
Neanderthals manipulated bodies shortly after death
Madrid, Spain (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
Neanderthals from the French region of Poitou-Charentes cut, beat and fractured the bones of their recently deceased companions, as revealed by the fossil remains of two adults and a child found at the Marillac site. These manipulations have been observed at other Neanderthal sites, but scientists still do not know whether they did this for food or ceremony.
Since the Marillac site in Fran ...
more
Fragment of continental crust found under south east Iceland
Liverpool UK (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
An international team, including researchers at the University of Liverpool, have shown that south east Iceland is underlain by continental crust.
The team found that the accepted theory, that Iceland consists only of very thick oceanic crust, is incorrect. Maps of crustal thickness produced from satellite gravity data, together with geochemical, plate tectonic reconstruction and mantle pl ...
more
Diversity in a monoculture
Jena, Germany (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
Modern, machine-friendly agriculture is dominated by monocultures. One single cultivar - one genotype of a crop species - is cultivated on large areas. Favored cultivars are optimized for high yields and often contain only few natural plant defense compounds.
Unfortunately, these extensive monocultures of identical plants can become an ecological wasteland and cause permanent damage to the ...
more
The life force of African rivers
Santa Barbara CA (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
The common hippopotamus can spend up to 16 hours a day immersed in rivers and lakes. Lumbering out of the water at night, these herbivores graze on tropical grasses and consume 80 to 100 pounds in one meal.
By daybreak, having eaten their fill, they return to their daytime resting area to rest, digest and, eventually, eliminate. This natural process results in millions of tons of hippo dun ...
more
Wind bursts strongly affect El Nino severity
College Park MD (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
The long-forecasted El Nino event of 2014/15 did not meet expectations. On March 5, 2015, the National Weather Service finally declared a "weak" event arriving several months later than expected, formally dashing predictions that we would see a major event on par with the monster El Nino of 1997/98 that would bring much-needed rain to California and other western states. Now, a team of researche ...
more
New DNA dataset is potent, accessible tool
Oak Ridge TN (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
Scientists focused on producing biofuels more efficiently have a new powerful dataset to help them study the DNA of microbes that fuel bioconversion and other processes.
In a paper published in Nature Scientific Data, researchers from the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory, North Carolina State University and LanzaTech describe methods and results for sequencing the Clost ...
more
Zuckerberg sees 'wild' future for virtual reality
San Francisco (AFP) April 15, 2015 -
Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg sees a wild future in store for virtual reality.
During a written question-and-answer session available at his Facebook page on Wednesday, Zuckerberg said that the technology will one day let people travel virtually to places real or imagined.
"It will be pretty wild," Zuckerberg said while fielding queries from members of the leading social network. ...
more
Netflix membership surges past 60 million
San Francisco (AFP) April 15, 2015 -
Netflix on Wednesday reported an unprecedented jump in subscribers in the first quarter of this year, pushing the streaming television service membership above 60 million.
Milestones included passing the 40-million member mark in the United States and the 20-million mark internationally, pushing the number of subscriptions to its streaming television service above 62 million overall, accord ...
more
Swiss retiring a third of its F-5 fighter fleet
Bern, Switzerland (UPI) Apr 15, 2015 -
The Swiss Air Force is retiring nearly a third of its F-5E/F Tiger jets and repairing six others after discovering of structural cracks.
The Swiss Department of Defense, Civil Protection & Sports said a major crack on an F-5 Tiger's supporting structure was found in 2014 on an aircraft undergoing a major overhaul. A similar crack was found on a second aircraft this January, and the Air ...
more
Upgraded MiG-31 fighters for Russian Air Force
Moscow (UPI) Apr 15, 2015 -
The Russian Air Force has added two dozen upgraded multi-role MiG-31BM fighters to its fleet and more than 100 others are expected in coming years.
The first 24 aircraft, which NATO calls the Foxhound, were modernized by the Rostec Corporation, which is inducting about a dozen earlier variants of the MiG-31 for upgrade each year.
"After completing the modernization of the MiG-31, ...
more
China's Ninebot buys US scooter firm Segway
Beijing (AFP) April 15, 2015 -
A Chinese manufacturer of self-balancing two-wheeled scooters has bought Segway, only months after its US rival filed a complaint alleging it had copied its designs.
In a joint statement, Beijing-headquartered Ninebot and Segway announced they had "completed a strategic combination," with Segway becoming a wholly-owned subsidiary of the private Chinese company.
Both Ninebot and Segway wi ...
more
Toyota ends plant freeze with $1.0 bn Mexico factory
Tokyo (AFP) April 15, 2015 -
The world's biggest automaker Toyota ended its freeze on building new factories Wednesday, unveiling plans for a $1.0 billion plant in rising industry power Mexico and another production line in China.
The Japanese giant said it would build a factory in the central Mexican state of Guanajuato to start production of the Corolla sedan in 2019, creating about 2,000 jobs.
The company also sa ...
more
Culture clash as hip online firm Etsy hits Wall Street
New York (AFP) April 15, 2015 -
Cultures will clash this week as Etsy, the online marketplace known for artisan goods and strong social values, makes its Wall Street debut.
Etsy is expected to raise between $233 and $307 million in its initial public offering (IPO) market to be priced Wednesday, which would push its valuation as high as $1.78 billion.
The stock is set to trade on the Nasdaq market Thursday under the sy ...
more
FDI into China accelerates in March: govt
Beijing (AFP) April 16, 2015 -
Foreign direct investment into China picked up in March, official figures showed Thursday, though outbound investment from the world's second-largest economy slowed sharply.
FDI rose 2.2 percent year-on-year last month to $12.4 billion, the commerce ministry said, an acceleration from February's 0.9 percent gain.
"Investment from major countries and regions in China was generally stable, ...
more
Top 12 Media Myths On Oil Prices
London, UK (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
The upstream oil and gas industry is not a black hole. There's no mystery wrapped in an enigma here. There are a lot of meetings with engineers, chemists and geologists. There's a constantly evolving learning curve. And then there's all the regulations and compliance. But all-in-all it's pretty straight forward, that is, until the media gets a hold of it.
That's when it becomes complicated ...
more
SEI spins-off Professional Services group to meet industry needs
Washington DC (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
Solar Energy International (SEI) announced the spin-off of SEI Professional Services LLC, a dedicated business to provide specialized services directly to the solar electric industry. SEI Professional Services (SEIPS) has started operations as a separate entity and integral supporter of SEI's mission.
100% of the profits will be returned to Solar Energy International in support of its non- ...
more
Schneider Electric connects more than 300 MW to the UK grid in March
Burnaby, Canada (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
Schneider Electric Solar Business is pleased to contribute significantly to the development of solar in the UK by connecting more than 300 MW to the grid in end of March, on top of the 200 MW already in operation.
A key factor of this success was the ability of Schneider Electric to provide an industrialized packaged solution, fast track the delivery of Distribution Network Operator (DNO) ...
more
RenXSol installs roof top power plant at KSCA's M Chinnaswamy Stadium
Bengaluru, India (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
RenXSol Ecotech has announced that the 400 kW roof top power plant at KSCA's M Chinnaswamy Stadium was successfully installed, with successful testing, integration and evacuation to BESCOM grid post CEIG approvals on This roof top installation by KSCA is a novel initiative that has been executed for the first time at any stadium in India and probably also the first cricket stadium in the world t ...
more
CEC Evaluation Confirms Excellent Performance Of Vikram Solar Modules
Boulder CO (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
After extensive testing, the California Energy Commission (CEC) recently awarded superior PTC values to Vikram Solar's Eldora series 72-cell polycrystalline PV modules. For example, the 310 Watt (STC) model produced a PTC value of 283.6 Watts.
In terms of industry ranking, this makes the Eldora series one of the top Tier-1 performers available, a testament to the superior engineering and m ...
more
Third Generation Solar Home System introduced to East Africa
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
Rex Solar, a Dar es Salaam, Tanzania based solar contracting company along with its Partner, Solaric, a US-Bangladesh joint Solar innovations company has introduced a new generation of Solar Home Systems for East Africa.
The Joint Venture, announced on March 3, 2015, will connect 1.5 million homes in East Africa over the span of 5 years. The venture will also help create upwards of 2,500 j ...
more
KOA Speer ships new 3W molded current sense resistor
Bradford PA (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
KOA Speer Electronics introduces the new SLN3 Molded Current Sense Resistor, featuring a 3-Watt power rating in 4528 size.
The SLN3 is a molded resin resistor that provides excellent dimensional accuracy, mountability and shock resistance. Due to its metal plate terminal electrode, it also offers excellent terminal strength, heat and shock resistance and solderability.
KOA Speer's SL ...
more
A camera that powers itself!
New York NY (SPX) Apr 16, 2015 -
A research team led by Shree K. Nayar, T.C. Chang Professor of Computer Science at Columbia Engineering, has invented a prototype video camera that is the first to be fully self-powered--it can produce an image each second, indefinitely, of a well-lit indoor scene. They designed a pixel that can not only measure incident light but also convert the incident light into electric power.
The te ...
more
