Category: News

Just in time for the holiday season, SteveD alerts us to the news that PPL, Phonographic Performance Limited — a separate UK licensing group, which collects for performers and producers (unlike PRS, which is for songwriters/record companies) — is pushing forward with demands for charity shops to pay up for a license on top of the license they already pay PRS. In the past, the UK government exempted charities from having to pay the PPL license, but they’ve now removed that exemption, and like so many music collections societies, PPL didn’t bother to consider how it would look to shake down charity shops, and apparently just drove forward with plans. Nice of them. This is what happens, of course, when you create the statutory ability to shake down anyone who plays music. That right just expands more and more, and the musicians and songwriters never have to actually give people a reason to buy: they just sit back and collect.

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I love this time of year.  The parties, the food, the festivities, and stockings hung by the fire. Trader Joe’s is so much fun to shop as well with aisles of Candy Cane Joe-Joe’s, Chocolate Stars, Marzipan Stollen, and Sipping Chocolate, just to name a few seasonal goodies.  Today I wanted to share a few dessert ideas that we’ve featured in the past.  They’re all easy desserts that stand out with holiday flavor.  Read on for an Eggnog Tres Leches cake, a rich Chocolate Truffle Trifle, and our favorite Chocolate Coffee fudge.  The fudge is especially great for adding to a gift basket or taking over to someone’s house – and it just takes minutes to make! 
 
When you serve a dessert this month, “fancy up” the individual servings by placing a TJ’s chocolate star or a French truffle on each piece.   It’s a small touch that makes each piece really pretty.

Holiday Tres Leches Cake

Eggnog is one of those mega-nostalgic drinks – it always brings back holiday memories for me and all those friends that have their secret eggnog recipes and serving tips.   Another way to use eggnog is in a Tres Leches cake.  It gives the cake a subtle eggnog flavor – not at all overpowering.  Tres leches means “three milks” and refers to the traditional blends of milk, cream, and condensed milk that are used to saturate this cake,making it ultra moist without being soggy.  The holiday version of this cake uses eggnog and rum, imbibing the cake with delicious festive flavor. 

1 Box Vanilla Cake & Baking Mix
3 cups eggnog
1 Tbsp rum (such as Captain Morgan’s Original Spiced Rum)

Whipped Cream Topping:
1 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp sugar
Cinnamon or nutmeg, optional

1)   Bake cake according to instructions.  I used a 9 x 13″ pan.  Check for doneness by inserting a toothpick and seeing when it comes out clean.
2)    Cool cake completely.  For a formal presentation, flip cake onto a platter.  I left it in the pan.
3)    Using a wooden skewer or chopstick, pierce 30-40 holes into cake.
4)    Mix egg nog with rum, and pour this mixture slowly over the top of the cake, allowing it to soak in through the holes.
5)    Refrigerate for 2 hours, allowing cake to absorb the liquid. Spoon liquid over cake if necessary.
6)    Whip heavy cream until soft peaks form.  Add vanilla and sugar, mixing until dissolved.  Spread evenly on cake.
7)    Dust with ground cinnamon or nutmeg or top with a Dark Chocolate Star and berries as shown.

Note: One thing I’ve noticed is that the Trader Joe’s Vanilla Cake and Baking Mix doesn’t release from the pan easily after baking as compared to other mixes.  Make sure that you oil/butter and flour the pan before pouring in the batter.  Usually it takes a little encouragement to pop it out of the pan.  For this recipe, I usually leave it in the pan, but either way works.

Chocolate Coffee Fudge

This recipe is from our second (new!) cookbook “The Trader Joe’s Companion.”  It’s a delicious rich, old-fashioned fudge that just takes three ingredients and about as many minutes to make!  It’s a cinch with great results.  The special ingredient is a touch of instant coffee.  In general, a hint of coffee or espresso really enhances and intensifies the taste of chocolate. 

1 14-oz can Organic Sweetened Condensed Milk
2 Tbsp instant coffee (or espresso powder)
1/2 Tbsp water
1 12-oz bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

1.) Heat the condensed milk in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. 
2.) Dissolve the instant coffee in the water (it will be thick) and stir into the condensed milk.
3.) Add the chocolate chips, lower the heat, and stir until melted and smooth (don’t scorch it!).
4.) Pour into a lightly oiled 8×8-inch pan.  Chill in fridge until set (about 2 hours).

Tip: When cutting the fudge, a plastic knife is easiest. If using a regular knife, wipe it clean in between making cuts.  Then use a spatula to lift out the pieces.  You can also line the pan with wax paper for easier removal of fudge.

Chocolate Truffle Trifle

A trifle is a layered dessert that is more or less the British version of an over-sized parfait.  It typically consists of sponge cake or pound cake layered with fruit, cream, custard, and sometimes nuts.  I tend to associate trifles with New Orleans, where I’ve seen chunks of cake mixed together and moistened with alcohol or syrup.  You’ll usually see trifle served in a large bowl, kind of like a dessert centerpiece.   There’s even a special footed bowl called a trifle bowl, and you can find mini-versions of it as well if you want to present the dessert individually. 

I decided to make a decadent chocolate version, made of chocolate and even more chocolate, with a hint of peppermint that really makes the topping sparkle.  A trifle is not usually made of chocolate, but no harm in exploring uncharted dessert territory.  The layers start off with a moist brownie full of gooey chocolate bits, followed by rich Belgian chocolate pudding, and finally topped with whipped cream hiding chunks of dark chocolate peppermint bark. 

1 box Brownie Truffle Baking Mix
1 container refrigerated Belgian Chocolate Pudding
1 cup heavy cream
3-5 oz Peppermint Bark, coarsely chopped with a knife

1)    Bake brownie mix according to package instructions.  Let cool.
2)    Whip heavy cream until soft peaks form.  Stir in peppermint bark pieces.
3)   Serve either in a large bowl or in individual cups.  Make a brownie layer on the bottom, followed by pudding, and top with the whipped cream mixture.
4)    Optional: garnish with Peppermint Bark, as shown.

Eco Factor: Low-emission yacht harnesses solar energy for power.

The IKKAR by designer Julien Anglade, a student at Strate College, is a low-emission futuristic yacht concept that has been designed to bridge the gap between man and sea. The innovative concept yacht features a simple yet elegant design that can change its shape according to the location for the comfort of the passengers.

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An Extra Quart of milk in Pure-Pak… please

. . . EXTRA quarts are easier to buy in Pure-Pak It’s so much easier to carry extra milk when you buy it in Pure-Pak, your personal milk container. There are no deposits and no “dead weight” glass bottles to carry to and from the store. Pure-Pak takes much less refrigerator space too … and when it’s empty, just toss it away!

Pure-Pak is safe. It won’t shatter, if dropped. It’s sanitary. It’s formed, sterilized, filled and sealed in the dairy, all in seconds . . . without the touch of human hands! Ask for your milk in Pure-Pak!

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Pure-Pak YOUR PERSONAL MILK CONTAINER is available NOW in hundreds of cities

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The current image of Santa promotes obesity, speeding and possibly “drink-driving,” complained Australian researcher and public health expert Dr. Nathan Grills. His work on Santa’s image was published online this month on BMJ.com. The analysis is called Santa Claus: a public health pariah?

According to Grills, Santa is the only fictional character more highly recognized by American school kids than Ronald McDonald. And a recent study confirmed that Santa awareness is almost universal. With that kind of recognition, it stands to reason that perhaps Santa’s rotund figure could use some trimming down to promote more healthful living. And maybe he could ride a bike instead of sitting in a sleigh powered by magic reindeer. Yet, who’s ready to mess with an icon? It’s like making the Cookie Monster less fond of cookies. Oh, that’s been done…

Grills also argues that Santa has been used to promote harmful products, and he could also promote driving after drinking due to the tradition of leaving a brandy out for Santa. Other popular Santa treats include cookies and mince pies — not exactly healthy either.

Grills noted, “Santa only needs to affect health by 0.1% to damage millions of lives.” He’d like to see Santa’s popularity used to promote healthy living instead of magical laziness.

Grills thinks more research on Santa’s influence is needed, but he’d like to see a slimmer Santa next year. Despite Santa’s faults, he does have some good points, like symbolizing the spirit of giving and helping to create a reverence for old guys.

Do you think that Santa is bad for public health, or should he get a break?

(Image via stock.xchng)

Post from: Blisstree

Santa Needs a Makeover

Good job Scientific American! Hard to get more high-tech than a bathroom dresser.

Household Inventions

INSECT CONTROLLER
Getting into the crevices where insects breed and multiply may now be done efficiently with the equipment shown above and to the right. The special container full of insecticide is attached to the handle of a vacuum cleaner and the blower attachment then thoroughly spreads the insecticide.— Airway Electric Appliance Corp., Toledo, Ohio

DUSTLESS FIREPLACE
Despite the very modern heating equipment of today, the open fireplace is still in vogue. Thus there remains the problem of ash removal. The illustration at the left shows a skeletonized fireplace which has a special ash trap and chute to the basement. Above is shown the trap. Instead of shoveling the ashes into a can and carrying them out, all that is necessary when this device is installed is to give the lever a pull and the ashes fall into the basement—Fireplace Devices Co., 136 W. 83rd St., New York

ELECTRIC IRON CABINET
To be installed in the wall next to the folding ironing board or other convenient place, this cabinet prevents electric iron fires. The hot iron may be safely closed in the steel and asbestos cabinet. — The Cunningham Mfg. Co., Los Angeles, California

NON-SLIP HANGER
A push on the triggers of this device causes the upper arms to fly up. When a button is pushed, the padded arms spring down on the garment.—Kno-Fall Garment Hangers, Inc., 720 Madison Ave., New York

SERVING SCOOP
Like the “cut-out” scoops used for ice cream at soda fountains, this new one of aluminum is sold in five and ten cent stores. It is useful for serving ice cream, rice, or mashed potatoes. —Lorraine Metal Mfg. Co., New York

BATHROOM DRESSER
A handy cabinet that takes only a few inches of floor space and offers a dresser top for toilet articles, an open shelf for towels, storage shelves for soaps, sponges, brushes, et cetera, and a ventilated compartment for soiled linen. It is made in several sizes to be set into or against the wall.—El Paso Sash and Door Co., El Paso, Texas

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New Slant on Bicycles

EVERY man his own streamline is the idea of Fred Strecker, English rider, in the bicycle design at right.

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IDEAS AT WORK
A MONTHLY PICTURE REPORT ABOUT SCIENCE IN INDUSTRY

New turbines help meet soaring demand for power In New York, an electric power expert looked at a wall chart. A jagged line, crawling across a graph, showed a soaring sweep upwards. It was like the fever chart of a patient with double lobar pneumonia. “You see that line?” the power man asked. “That is the amount of electric power America is using today. If it goes up at the same rate in 1949 we are going to have to add more paper to the top of the chart.”

On these pages you can see more evidence of how much power is being used. To meet the demand, to pull the needed power out of oil and water and coal, America’s turbine engineers have been swamped with work.

In 1948, General Electric, biggest turbine maker, set an all-time record: around 60 giant turbine-generators, enough to supply power for most of the. 7,000,000 residents in the state of California. With power needs approaching 6 billion kilowatt hours a week in 1949, compared with around 4.3 billion in 1946, G.E. this year will open at Schenectady, N. Y., one of the world’s largest factories, a $30,000,000 turbine plant: a sort of Willow Run for the power industry.

Trend in turbines is toward higher speeds and higher pressures. 1940 turbines roared under 1,300 pounds of steam per square inch; today’s newest machines whirl faster than sound at a terrific steam pressure: one runs at 2,300 pounds, or over a ton against every square inch of its blades.

In 1949, G.E. plants in Pittsfield, Mass., and Portsmouth, N. H., will use turbine-generators driven by mercury vapor, which may be more economical than steam. (These are now used in Kearney, N. J., Hartford, Conn., Schenectady.) In time, atomic energy will unleash new hurricanes of vapor in these turbine windmills.

Main reason for the tremendous power demand is that there are 6,000,000 more power users in the U.S. today than when the war ended.

SECRET-KEEPER Burgess Smith uses no labels on the bottles Smith, who thinks bank checks can be made to talk (see text). in his laboratory, identifies their contents by smell or taste. mistrusts labels and files, and so keeps most secrets in his head.

An idea for the future: checks that talk?

IN Rochester, N. Y., one of the world’s top experts on printing and engraving has been playing with an exciting idea. Your checks may some day carry a hidden sound track, and your own voice may protect your bank account from forgers.

It hasn’t been perfected yet, but Burgess Smith, research chief for the Todd Co., which prints forgery-proof checks, says preliminary laboratory work indicates it can be done.

When you write a check, you also speak identifying words. When the bank passes your check through a sorting machine your voice okays the check. It will also be possible to record your voice on a sound track concealed beneath your handwriting; if the writing has been changed, additional words become audible by a secret method.

Over a period of years, the Todd Co. has brought out one invention after another for protecting checks, payrolls and securities. The first, in 1899, was the familiar “protectograph” which presses the numbers into the fibers of a check so they cannot be altered.

The powder that hardens steel

Machinists and metallurgists are beginning to hear about a gray metallic powder which makes a blade of soft steel become hard enough, in a few seconds, to cut through tough tool steel. Now a mechanic or amateur can dip a tool of ordinary low carbon steel in powder and produce a tool that will cut satisfactorily and resist battering.

A dime-store drill, or a home-made chisel fashioned from “poor stuff,” is heated cherry red, then dipped into a powder named by its inventor “Hi- Speed-It.” Bubbling and fusing, the powder is drawn into the metal—and seconds later the tool is ready. The inventor, Samuel Necamp, New York metallurgist, makes the compound of expensive alloys, but what the constituents are and how he puts them together he hasn’t disclosed. Unlike earlier hardening preparations, this requires no bath, contains no cyanide, is non-poisonous. In his laboratory, recently, and in a test at Columbia University, Necamp showed what “the stuff,” as he calls it, will do.

“I drove into a garage one day,” Necamp says, “and heard a mechanic grumbling because his drills had lost their edge and would not go through an auto bumper. I went to a store and got a soft carbon drill. I heated it, dipped it in a can of the stuff I had in my car. ‘Now try it,’ I said. He did. It went through that tough bumper steel in five seconds.”

Until recently, Necamp produced only limited amounts of his powder, but this year plans large scale production. Among his customers are such varied industries as American Can Co., Wilson & Co., U.S. Rubber and Bethlehem Steel.

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+++ “Inserts have to be rigidly coupled with the cutter body!” +++
General statement in milling technology, or did you have other alternatives?

SPINWORX® – the new system of milling cutters with round inserts puts into question, which has been an effective operation for decades.: the insert has to be rigidly coupled to the cutter body. In case it would be loose in its insert-seat, it would break, earlier or later!
Not at all with SPINWORX® – the insert rotates and thus, manual re-locating becomes redundant. Through the rotating insert in the seat of the milling cutter, notch wear is not occuring any more; so you get a 100%-utilization of the existing cutting edge and you are able to use maximum capacity without any loss.
SPINWORX® sets new standards!

Mori Seiki Co., Ltd. will start accepting orders for the NMV3000 DCG high-precision, 5-axis control vertical machining center from July 9, 2009.

In recent years, the production of various parts that can help improve energy efficiency has been increasing in many industries including automobiles and aircraft. In accordance with this trend, the demand for high-precision, high-efficiency machining of small, complex-shaped workpieces has been growing, and so the need for machine tools that can meet these machining requirements and offer excellent ease of use has also been increasing.

In response to this need, Mori Seiki has developed the NMV3000 DCG, the latest model in our NMV Series of high-precision, 5-axis control vertical machining centers.

For the NMV Series, we started with the aim of developing the ideal 5-axis control machine, which combines high-speed, high-precision machining and excellent operability. The existing models in this series include the NMV5000 DCG (Max. workpiece size: Æ 700 mm x 450 mm, Max. loading capacity: 300 kg) and the NMV8000 DCG (Max. workpiece size: Æ 1,000 mm x 500 mm, Max. loading capacity: 1,000 kg). Both machines employ Mori Seiki’s original technologies of DCG (Driven at the Center of Gravity), DDM (Direct Drive Motor) and ORC (Octagonal Ram Construction), and have the Top Box-in-Box construction. By fully utilizing these features, both machines have achieved high-speed, high-precision machining and received high praise from many customers.

The newly released NMV3000 DCG boasts a maximum workpiece size of Æ 350 mm x 300 mm and a maximum loading capacity of 100 kg (150 kg as option). By employing Mori Seiki’s original technologies, like the existing models in the series, the NMV3000 DCG achieves high-speed, high-precision machining. In regard to operability, we have shortened the distance from the front of the machine to the table to offer even better accessibility and visibility than the existing models.

We have also prepared a large-capacity AWC (Automatic Workpiece Changer) and a variety of tool storagecapacity options, which allow long-term, unmanned operation and high-efficiency machining for multi-item, small-lot production. Customers can choose the ideal specifications for their machining needs.

Mori Seiki Co., Ltd. will start accepting orders for the NT1000 integrated mill turn center from July 1, 2009.

Recently, large machine tools have been drawing attention in the aircraft and energy industries. Meanwhile, in the field of small precision parts manufacturing, including medical equipment, watches and measuring instruments, there is a growing demand for machine tools that are capable of high-precision machining of complex-shaped workpieces.

To respond to this demand, Mori Seiki has developed the NT1000, the latest model in our NT Series of high-precision, high-efficiency integrated mill turn centers.

The NT1000 has a maximum turning diameter of Æ 370 mm and maximum turning length of 400 mm, and employs Mori Seiki’s original technologies of DDM (Direct Drive Motor) and ORC (Octagonal Ram Construction).

As measures against thermal displacement, the headstock of Spindle 1 has a mechanism in which the center of the spindle always stays the same height, and both Spindle 1 and the tool spindle use a high-accuracy cooling system. By taking advantage of these features, the NT1000 offers high-precision machining of small precision parts. It is also equipped with the workpiece ejector as standard. The workpiece ejector, mounted opposite to Spindle 1, can transfer workpieces, enabling the machine to handle the whole process of bar machining.

With a compact body, the NT1000 reduces floor space by approximately 40% compared to our previous models, dramatically increasing productivity per unit area.

The NT1000 is available in three variations: the NT1000/W (with workpiece ejector), the NT1000/WZ (workpiece ejector + Turret 2), and the NT1000/WZM (workpiece ejector + Turret 2 (with milling function)). The machine with Turret 2 can perform simultaneous machining using both the turret and tool spindle, which leads to improved productivity.

There are a variety of other options available, including a loader system for automation, enabling customers to choose the ideal specifications for their machining needs.

Mori Seiki Co., Ltd. will start accepting orders for the NV7000 high-precision vertical machining center from August 19, 2009.

As one of our flagship products of vertical machining centers, the NV Series has been highly praised by customers since the release of the NV5000 in February 2002. The lineup in the NV Series is further expanded by adding the NV7000 with a table size of 1,700 mm x 760 mm and Y-axis travel of 760 mm. The
NV7000 features a high-rigidity structure, which has been inherited from the MV Series, as well as versatility and simplicity equivalent to those of the DuraVertical Series. The NV7000 is also equipped with our new high-performance operating system, MAPPS IV, which has been released in July.

The NV7000 that improves the rigidity by increasing the width of guideways 2.4 times wider than the conventional machine offers superior damping performance with the use of slideways in all axes. The NV7000 also achieves an 18% larger work envelope than the conventional machine while reducing the floor space by 15%. The NV7000 has three spindle variations to meet a wide range of customers’ needs from high-speed to heavy-duty cutting.

By incorporating a DDRT (Direct Drive Rotary Table), which was developed by Mori Seiki to achieve high-efficiency machining, simultaneous 4-axis machining is also possible. Even when a DDRT is attached to the machine, no cable running from the ceiling is seen in the interior of the machine because the interface
to connect a DDRT to a machine has been improved.

We have also prepared No. 40 taper spindle specifications to suit customers’ needs.

Mori Seiki Co., Ltd. has developed the forth-generation of MAPPS, the high-performance operating system MAPPS IV.

MAPPS is Mori Seiki’s original high-performance operating system that allows customers to use a common operating method, regardless of model. It has been supporting machining processes of customers worldwide with its easy-to-use interface and automatic conversational programming function.

In recent years, workpieces in the manufacturing industry have been becoming more diversified and complicated, and so demand for productivity improvement and highly-advanced machining methods has been growing in the machine tool industry.

In order to respond to the demand, our MAPPS IV, which purses ease of use, is equipped with 1. improved hardware and interface,
2. ESPRIT CAM software as standard specifications (for some machine models),
3. enhanced machining and operating support functions.

Eco Factor: New enzyme allows plants to thrive in dry and high CO2 conditions.

Researchers at the University of California San Diego have discovered plant enzymes that can allow plants to save water while consuming more CO2 from the atmosphere. The enzyme causes the plants to react to CO2 and change how they use their pores. By modifying the enzyme, these researchers believe they can come up with species that are more CO2 and drought-tolerant for which crops could be developed.

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The mysterious emissions trajectories implicit in the various draft COP15 agreements got me thinking about the economic implications of various paths. Suppose the following scenario, consistent with the Beijing draft (Copenhagen Accord) or recent KP draft actually happened:

• deep 2020 cuts for the developed world
• no binding commitments for the developing world
• supported NAMAs in developing countries don’t count as offsets against developed country commitments (i.e. developed commitments are met domestically)
• border carbon adjustments (tariffs on the greenhouse gases embodied in trade goods) are illegal
• ongoing globalization

In that case, price of carbon would be very high in the developed world, and very low in the developing world. That creates intense pressure for leakage. Emissions-intensive industries would simply relocate to developing countries. Total emissions wouldn’t necessarily go down, except to the extent that relocated capital was newer and cleaner, and might even go up due to greater transport distance and less stringent environmental regulation.

Another consequence is that investors in the developing world, including governments investing in infrastructure, would proceed to build GHG-intensive capital that would just have to be unbuilt in a decade or two. That’s not development; it’s unsustainable lock-in to a dead-end economic, technical, and lifestyle trajectory.

Probably the first thing to happen would be for workers (aka voters) in the developed world to freak out at the resulting job losses, causing the whole agreement to unravel. So, I think you can scratch this kind of arrangement off the list of possible or attractive agreements. If we want to achieve the underlying development goals that motivate people to ask for such things, we need to find a different path.

The parent company of my favorite organic, fair trade chocolate Green & Black is involved in a hostile takeover by Kraft. Workers at Cadbury have united in a Keep Cadbury Independent Campaign. Food Biz Daily explains:

Cadbury workers are to launch a bid to keep the UK confectioner independent and fend off a hostile bid by Kraft…

Unite is also contacting all Cadbury shareholders to urge them to reject Kraft’s bid.

The union said it will highlight what it claims to be “Kraft’s plan to pay for the company through massive borrowing, Kraft’s poor record in takeovers and falling share value and the union’s concerns that Kraft will move all investment decisions out of the UK and into the Kraft boardroom overseas”.

I certainly don’t want Kraft in charge of making my favorite chocolate! I hope the Cadbury workers are successful in blocking this hostile takeover.

A lot of the draft agreements floating around reference a principle of equity in cumulative emissions budgets. For example, the latest AWG-LCA draft,

A long-term aspirational and ambitious global goal for emission reductions, as part of the shared vision for long-term cooperative action, should be based on the best available scientific knowledge and supported by medium-term goals for emission reductions, taking into account historical responsibilities and an equitable share in the atmospheric space;

That’s a nice sentiment, but the goals expressed here are not compatible. If you take “aspirational and ambitious” to mean 55oppm – much less stringent then a 1.5 or 2C target – we’re already halfway or more through civilization’s cumulative emissions budget. Most of the historic emissions occurred in the 20th century. The rest will happen this century. The problem is, there are a lot more people around this century than last. Therefore, this century’s remaining emissions budget just isn’t big enough to make up for historic inequity in emissions, even if you allocate it all to the developing world.

For example, here’s a scenario in which the developed world stops emitting almost immediately – essentially abandoning its GHG-intensive capital stock – while the developing world pursues a trajectory consistent with a global 50% cut by 2050. Per capita emissions convergence and reversal happens right away:

Even so, that’s nowhere near enough to equalize cumulative per capita emissions:

Pursuit of cumulative emissions equity just isn’t compatible with a stable climate, and anyway it is fallacious to equate emissions and welfare. The Copenhagen agreement, whatever it turns out to be, needs to find a different notion of equity.

Eco Factor: Energy-efficient refrigerator concept.

Of the total amount of energy that a normal house consumes, a major fraction goes into appliances such as refrigerators that remain connected throughout the day. The Shift Refrigerator by industrial designer Yong-jin Kim allows homeowners to save energy by simply preventing the outflow of cool air.

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Migrations transsahariennes. Vers un désert cosmopolite et morcelé (Niger)
Julien BRACHET
Paris, Le Croquant
nov. 2009

Paru en : novembre 2009
Éditeur : Le Croquant, Paris
Collection : Terra
Reliure : Broché
Description : 324 pages
Dimensions : 140 x 205 mm
ISBN : 978-2-91496865-2
Prix : 22 €.
Commander ici

Depuis le début des années 2000, les flux migratoires qui traversent le Sahara central focalisent l’attention des médias et des pouvoirs publics, tant en Afrique qu’en Europe. En dépit des obstacles qui entravent la circulation dans cette région, reflets des dysfonctionnements de l’État nigérien et du durcissement des politiques migratoires des États maghrébins, des migrants origi­naires de toute une partie du continent se rendent via le Niger en Afrique du Nord, d’où la plupart reviennent après quelques mois ou quelques années. Ces migrations entre les deux rives du Sahara constituent le principal facteur de dynamisme et de transformation de la région d’Agadez, dans le Nord du Niger, et tendent plus largement à redéfinir une nouvelle géographie saha­rienne en mettant en contact des lieux et des acteurs de façon inédite. En analysant ces mouvements migratoires tant du point de vue de leur organisation propre, des logiques et des structures qui les sous-tendent, que de leurs incidences sur les sociétés et les espaces traversés, le présent ouvrage déconstruit nombre des discours médiatiques et politiques qui entretiennent la peur d’un péril migratoire illusoire, en montrant que la grande majorité des migrants qui traversent aujourd’hui le Sahara ne sont pas des indi­vidus fuyants des situations de misère extrême ou de conflit, et n’ont pas pour objectif de se rendre en Europe. Dans un contexte global de crispation identitaire et de durcissement des politiques migratoires, l’analyse des effets et des enjeux du contrôle crois­sant de ces circulations dans les espaces de transit soulève en défi­nitive la question du droit à la mobilité, tant au niveau local qu’à l’échelle internationale.

http://atheles.org/editionsducroquant/terra/migrationstranssahariennes/