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Canada’s large reserves of tar sands (or oil sands) are poised to become the number one source of U.S. crude oil imports in 2010, according to a new report from research firm IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates.

Oil sands imports could ultimately increase to account for 20 percent to 36 percent of U.S. oil and refined product imports by 2030 from the 2009 level of 8 percent, according to the report, “The Role of Canadian Oil Sands in U.S. Oil Supply.”

I’m so glad the Houston Chronicle still uses the term tar sands, unlike the semi-greenwashing term CERA is using (see Memo to all: They ain’t “oil sands.”)

The CERA report also seriously underplays the devastating environmental and human health consequences of the “biggest global warming crime ever seen.” See also Canadian bishop challenges the “moral legitimacy” of tar sands production.  Indeed, a major new study by Ceres, discussed below, comes to a very different view.

And these reports couldn’t be more timely, given which company is betting big time on the tar sands (see BP stand for “back to petroleum” — oil giant shuts clean energy HQ, slashes renewables budget up to $900 million this year, dives into tar sands).

CERA claims the environmental concerns are not big enough to undermine the rationale for continued expansion of the tar Sands:

Energy security does not need to be at odds with the environment. Innovation in oil sands has been a constant theme. Since its inception, the industry has made and continues to make major technological strides in optimizing resources, innovating new processes, reducing costs, increasing efficiency, reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and reducing its environmental impact. However, new techniques and technologies are needed to continue to grow production sustainably. Cooperation between governments, both in the United States and Canada, and the private sector is crucial to continued advancement of new technologies.

As the Houston Chronicle reports,

The findings are at odds with those released this week by sustainable investment advocacy group Ceres, which released a report saying Canada’s oil sands are potentially riskier investments than the Gulf of Mexico. Stricter climate regulation and a possible federal low-carbon fuels mandate undermine such investments, the study says.

And CP just happens to have an analysis of the Ceres report by CAP’s Colorado-based Tom Kenworthy.

As hard as it is to take our eyes off the volcano of oil erupting into the Gulf of Mexico, a new report on the Canadian tar sands industry is worth a look northward.

“Canada’s Oil Sands/Shrinking Window of Opportunity,” just published by Ceres, a coalition of investors, environmental and public interest organizations that studies challenges to sustainability, says that in financial and environmental terms our northern neighbor’s tar sands industry may be even riskier  than sucking oil from beneath the Gulf.

“Most of these risks are related to the energy- and water-intensive nature of oil sands production, risks that will only increase as the industry seeks to double or even triple production in a world that is increasingly becoming water- and carbon-constrained,” writes Ceres president Mindy S. Lubber in her introduction to the report.

The mining, processing and upgrading of the viscous bitumen that lies beneath a great swath of northern Alberta, produces about 1.3 million barrels of oil per day. Most of it is exported to the U.S. where many states are considering imposing low-carbon fuel standards for transportation fuels that threaten the Canadian industry’s growth. Canadian and Albertan officials, along with industry leaders, have embarked on a high-intensity lobbying campaign to change the dirty image of tar sands oil, which is about three times as carbon intensive as conventional oil.

Because new production of oil from tar sands is so expensive, requiring a world price of at least $65 a barrel and “potentially as high as $95 per barrel to make economic sense,” the industry’s plans to greatly expand are vulnerable to price pressures, including those from low carbon fuel standards. Though the carbon content of tar sands could be reduced by mixing the oil with biofuels produced from cellulosic ethanol, that additive is not yet available on a commercial scale. Ceres estimates that if a quarter of the U.S. vehicle market were subject to a low carbon fuel standard, requiring a 10% reduction in the carbon intensity of gasoline by 2020 and another 10% reduction by 2030, that could cut tar sands production by 13.5% compared to a baseline estimate.

Other risks facing the industry cited by the Ceres report include:

• Tar sands production that relies on strip mining of deposits close to the surface uses large quantities of water – as much as four barrels of water for every barrel of oil produced. Though the industry is increasingly shifting to less water-intensive methods including in-situ release of bitumen by underground steam injection, water constraints, including the impact of climate change, could hamper growth.

• The industry faces growing costs from land reclamation under pressure from new government reclamation directives, and this could mean higher operating costs for some producers.

• Opposition from aboriginal communities could stymie growth and slow efforts to build pipelines to Canada’s west coast for export to Asia.

• Carbon capture and sequestration technology could help the tar sands industry lower its carbon intensity, but it would require lengthy pipelines and raise the price of production by $11.40 per barrel.

“Added together,” Lubber concluded, “these wider-ranging challenges will make oil sands production increasingly risky in the years ahead….  (G)lobal oil prices will need to remain high – possibly approaching $100 a barrel – to justify the planed $120 billion expansion in the oil sands region in the next decade. Oil sands producers must also be mindful that if global oil prices get too high, above $120-$150 a barrel, it will likely reduce global oil demand and shift markets in favor of alternative fuels. Bottom line: oil sand producers are operating in a narrowing window of profitability.”

Wonder why Sarah Jessica Parker’s character in Sex And The City 2 is using a HP laptop? HP paid for it. Why are they drinking Skyy vodka? Well, that’s the films “official vodka.” According to the NYP, “every aspect of Carrie’s life is reduced to a vignette that can be monetized.”

According to the article everything from the dress she wears on the poster (from her Halston Heritage brand, $325, available at net-a-porter.com) to the drink she sips while going to the gym, (Lipton Sparkling Green Tea, official sponsor,) is making money for someone, often Sarah Jessica Parker.

From the NYP:

The actress is using the film as an opportunity to pimp out the Halston Heritage brand, for which she was named “chief creative officer” in January. She cannily made sure that the white Halston Heritage dress she’s wearing in the movie’s other poster became available on net-a-porter.com as soon as the image was released. So if you have $325, you can dress just like Carrie — and conveniently funnel money back to SJP’s coffers. Five of the 41 looks worn by Parker in the film are also by the label’s Heritage line.

The switch to HP seems to be causing the most stir, as the character was apparently something of a Mac aficionado up until the sponsorship checks started rolling in to Warner Bros.

And now for your viewing pleasure, here’s Ms. Parker’s new HP commercial:

Ca$h & Carrie [NYP]

It’s official! As expected, Google has officially announced Android 2.2 at their I/O conference this morning. Click through for the list of new goodies.

Whats New:

• Just-in-time compilation, providing a 2-5x speed boost for applications
• 20 new Enterprise features, including better Exchange support and remote wipe
• Cloud-to-device messaging API: Messages, including Android intents (app launch commands) can be sent from the cloud to Android devices. The example given: view a map on your PC browser, then click the “Send to device” link – the same map opens on your Android handset
• Tethering/WiFi Hotspot: As we predicted, Android 2.2 brings out-of-the-box support for turning the device into a WiFi hotspot
• 2-3x Javascript performance: They’re now leveraging the same Javascript engine as they use in Chrome. Google claims that Android now has the world’s fastest mobile browser.
• Support for Adobe Flash 10.1
• Device backup functionality, which also backs up all data from your third-party apps
• Quick Search Enhancements: Users can now search for apps on the device via the homescreen search box widget. Developers can also extend their applications into quick search box, allowing user to search for data within their apps.
• App Storage on the SD card: One of the most common (if trivial) complaints on Android is that, without hacking, applications can not be stored on the SD card, limiting the number of apps that can be installed. No longer! Android will now automatically install apps to the memory card when space runs low, or users can manually move apps to it.
• App Updating: The Android Market now has an “Update All” button. Users can also choose to have all applications update automatically.

This morning, the Federal Deposit Insurance Co. announced that the banks it insures earned $18 billion in the first quarter of 2010, up $12.5 billion from the first quarter of 2009, as money set aside for loan losses decreased 17 percent. The percentage of banks losing money fell to 19 percent, down from 22 percent a year ago.

“There are encouraging signs in the first-quarter numbers,” Sheila Bair, the head of the FDIC, said in a statement. “Industry earnings are up. More banks reported higher earnings, and fewer lost money. … [The $18 billion] is more than three times as much as banks earned a year ago, and it is the best quarterly earnings for the industry in two years.”

That said, the FDIC’s “problem list” of banks rose to 775, up from 702 last quarter, and the assets of these “problem” institutions grew 8 percent. During the first three months of the year, 41 banks failed. These are the worst numbers since 1993.

All in all, the report paints a picture of a banking sector bolstered by low interest rates and government backing, but one in which the haves — mostly bigger banks — are pulling away from the have-nots — smaller and community banks. Those smaller banking institutions with thin capital cushions will continue to face serious hardships due to delinquent loan, foreclosure and other losses.

Additionally, the number of FDIC-backed banks fell below 8,000 for the first time in the agency’s history, as banks failed or merged with one another.

And of course, they have the highest usage rate, according to Admob, and are the number two overall selling smartphone right now. More »

Jersey Shore’s most outspoken guidette has fist-pumped her way into the heart of designer shoe god Steve Madden.

Feast your eyes on “The Snookie,” a Madden-designed multicolored glittery stiletto to all outward appearances created in honor of Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi, the heavily-tanned Princess of Poughkeepsie-turned-polarizing reality starlet.

“Snookie’s glittery finish takes the sophisticated design of this platform through the roof! Wear these glamorous stilettos with a little cocktail dress, and you’ll never be a wallflower at the club,” Madden says in a glowing description of the newly-released shoe.

The Snookie, available in Sparkly Gold, Sparkly Black, and Just Plain Sparkly, is available for $109.50 @ SteveMadden.com…

Spotted@

FROM AP….

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House party crashers, Michaele and Tareq Salahi, were stopped in a limo near the White House Wednesday evening as President Barack Obama was holding his second official state dinner.

The limo driver ran through a red light around 8 p.m., just blocks from the White House and was stopped by a uniformed Secret Service officer, according to Secret Service spokesman Edwin Donovan. The driver had signaled to turn into a restricted area near the Ellipse. The attention-hungry couple was among those in the limo. They were released and went to dinner a few blocks from the White House after the incident. The limo driver was issued an infraction for running the red light.

For the first time, scientists have successfully implanted a biofuel cell that generates power from glucose inside a body—an everlasting battery you could theoretically recharge by eating a Snickers bar. More »

“If we did not act, we faced a draconian future. Where one man, one company, one carrier was the future.” — Google More »

It’s going on right now! Watch it live—and find out about the “surprises” they promised yesterday—on YouTube. More »

Just a few weeks ago, the USTR put out its infamous Special 301 report that tries to shame countries that don’t respect US intellectual property laws, but is put together using the rather scientific method of “what countries are the entertainment and pharmaceutical industries complaining about now?” to generate the list. Around the world — and even in the US gov’t — the list is mostly seen as a joke. No one takes it seriously.

But, apparently one ridiculous list isn’t enough. The RIAA and MPAA have convinced a group of US elected officials, who have dubbed themselves the “International Anti-Piracy Caucus” to put out a list of file sharing websites that it hates… and with it, an attempt to shame the companies where those websites are hosted. The timing on this is amusing, because, of course, just last week, you would have needed to put the US on the list, as LimeWire would have likely been seen as just as widely used for unauthorized file sharing as some of those sites.

But the larger point is that this list is effectively advertising these five sites as the best place to go to get unauthorized content:

China’s Baidu, Canada’s IsoHunt, Ukraine’s Mp3fiesta, Germany’s RapidShare, Luxembourg’s RMX4U.com, and Sweden’s The Pirate Bay.

You would think that, by now, the RIAA and MPAA would have recognized that every single time they’ve targeted a particular service for file sharing, the end result is to get that site significantly more publicity, so that its userbase increases rapidly. It happened when they sued Napster. It happened when they sued Grokster. It happened when they got the police to raid The Pirate Bay. It happened when they filed the lawsuit against IsoHunt. Putting out this list basically just pointed a bunch of people at these particular services as a good place to go to get access to content. Nice work by the caucus, who is made up of Reps. Adam Schiff and Bob Goodlatte along with Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse and Orrin Hatch.

And, of course, the RIAA put out a statement supporting this free advertising for those sites. Honestly, people keep telling me that the RIAA really knows what it’s doing, but how can they possibly think that this is a good idea?

As a parallel, reader Hephaestus points out this historical bit:

“From 1559 to 1966 the catholic church had a list of prohibited books aptly named the Index Librorum Prohibitorum. One historical note about this list is that a very large number of the books on this list had an increase in sales and reading when they were placed on the list. The International Anti-Piracy Caucus seems to have not learned the simple historical lesson, To list or expose inappropriate subject matter shines a light on it and exposes it to a larger audience. This will undoubtedly lead to more people visiting this “list of notorious sites” quite the opposite of what they seem to be aiming for.

Nice work, RIAA and MPAA. You just boosted traffic to those sites.

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These boys are all dressed up with no place to go.

Two weeks from today, a team—made of three Russians, two Europeans, and one Chinese (with a Russian as an alternate)—will begin the longest trip to nowhere any of them has ever taken. These men will be locked in isolation for 520 days to simulate what astronauts would endure on a trip to Mars, part of a project called Mars500. It follows a 105-day test that the Russian Institute for Biomedical Problems (IBMP) ran last year.

“The biggest risk of such an isolation is psychological,” said researcher Alexander Suvorov who is leading the experiment at the IBMP. “Of course relations between the crew will not always be harmonious, some will get on with others, others will not. But the priority is to be able to carry out tasks in spite of this” [AFP].

Five hundred and twenty days. By the time the team emerges from its five-module, 18,000-square foot cocoon located on the outskirts of Moscow, it’ll be early November 2011. Here in the United States, next year’s World Series will be wrapping up. The 2012 presidential candidates will be hitting the campaign trail in force. The isolation weary-crew may re-enter a world filled with high-pitched squeals as the new “Twilight” book and film come out.

The six-man crew of the Mars-500 project, which is partly funded by the European Space Agency, will spend the first 250 days in a mock spaceship to replicate the amount of time it would take to reach Mars with current technology. After reaching the [simulated] planet, three crewmembers will spend 30 days “exploring and colonizing” the planet before returning to the ship for the 240-day flight home, Belakovsky said [BusinessWeek].

The simulation will introduce other difficulties expected with a Mars mission, like communication lag. The crew members can email the outside world, but they’ll experience disruptions and delays of up to 40 minutes. Even inside the complex it won’t be easy.

All crew members have a varying command of English, but not all speak Russian, another working language during the trip. “If we fail to understand each other, we will employ body language,” quipped Russian crew member Sukhrob Kamolov [ABC News].

Nevertheless, 6,000 people from 40 countries applied to be test subjects; it doesn’t hurt that the “astronauts” will all make at least $99,000 for their troubles. However, none of the participants from last year’s 105-day mission applied for this one, so perhaps being locked in the isolation of pretend space once is enough.

Related Content:
80beats: After Three Months in a Tin Can, Three Men End Simulated Mars Mission
80beats: Six Volunteers, Living in a Tin Can, Will Simulate a Trip to Mars
80beats: Traveling to Mars? You’ll Need This Miniature Magnetic Force-Field
DISCOVER: Russia’s Dark Horse Plan to Get to Mars
DISCOVER: For the Love of Mars explores the Mars Society’s frontier vision

Image: IBMP/Oleg Voloshin

So- you are passionate about the alleviation of global poverty and injustice and are looking for ways to inspire a new generation, but don’t know how to go about it…

Well look no further, Oxfam has the answer! Oxfam is launching a drive to recruit volunteers across the South East of England, particularly in High Wycombe, Chelmsford, Basingstoke, Winchester, Ashford and Canterbury.

‘But what wondrous task will these volunteers carry out?’ we hear you cry.

The answer is simple: they will inspire the younger generation to campaign for change through visiting schools and youth groups in their local communities.

Oxfam Speakers play an essential role in their local communities through raising awareness about Oxfam’s key campaigning issues amongst youth. From campaigns about climate change to the Robin Hood Tax, they envision and empower young people to get involved in making a difference globally.

By presenting workshops and talks about Oxfam’s key campaigning issues to young people aged between 8 and 18 Speakers really do have an incredible opportunity to be a catalyst for change. We find this very exciting.

‘It all sounds well and good’ you are thinking, ‘But I’ve never done anything like this before’

It’s a good point. But don’t let it put you off: all Oxfam speakers will be trained and supported by Oxfam’s regional youth and schools campaigners whilst being given the opportunity to be creative and bring their own ideas and experience to the role. We would love people with campaigns experience in working with young people but we are more bothered about your commitment, passion for global issues, and ability to impact the younger generation with your enthusiasm.

These voluntary positions are for the period of a year for one day a week, with the odd bit of extra planning. So, if you’re passionate about global issues, love working with young people and enjoy using your creativity to make a difference, then get involved!!

Do you want to motivate and inspire youth in your area to campaign for change?

Just remember: We couldn’t do it without you!

 Please contact Jeri Dash on 01865 473248 or [email protected] for an informal chat about the role and the application process. Alternatively full details and an application process are available at http://www.oxfam.org.uk/get_involved/volunteer/latest.html#vos

The closing date is 31^st May 2010.

Saying no the right way — taking things away from people while keeping them on your side — seems like it’s becoming an increasingly crucial skill. Came across three bits in the last few days that echoed this idea…

1) Marco says, “Making a product better often requires removing features.”

Dealing with the negative feedback is tough. Every feature removal, even if minor, is greeted with an initial barrage of emails from people whose lives I have just completely ruined by this change to my free website or my $5 iPhone application…It’s especially tough with web and iPhone apps, for which there’s no good way, or no way at all, for the offended customers to just keep using the old version.

But the result, once the fire has died down, is a much better product for the majority of customers.

If I could never remove features, I’d never add any.

2) A day after reading that, I heard Thomas Friedman discuss how the next generation of political leaders will need to focus on taking things away from voters.

We’re entering an era where being in politics is gonna be, more than anything else, about taking things away from people.

You think it’s tough removing a feature from an iPhone app? Try being a politician that takes away a group’s pet entitlement program.

3) And here’s Yvon Chouinard in the trailer for 180south:

The hardest thing in the world is to simplify your life. It’s so easy to make it complex. The solution for a lot of the world’s problems may be to turn around and take a forward step. You can’t just keep trying to make a flawed system work.

Carrier: Verizon Wireless
Retail Price: $369.99
Phone Price: $99.99
Hot Features: Android 2.1, Touchscreen, Full QWERTY, WiFi, 3.2MP camera

Noah is live from San Francisco at the Google I/O Day 2 Keynote. We’re expecting some Android, and maybe some Google TV, so stay tuned!

Depois de um grande crescimento em suas vendas, cerca de 219% em 2010, a Kia planeja uma estratégia ousada para o seu último lançamento, o Sorento, que foi anunciado nessa semana. O novo crossover começará a ser vendido no próximo dia 28 e já começa a ter sua divulgação na novela Passione da Rede Globo, sendo o veículo do personagem de Reinaldo Gianecchini.

A meta da Kia para vendas do Sorento são de 600 unidades por mês, que custam entre R$ 96.900 até R$ 124.900. Será um grande desafio vender uma quantidade assim mensalmente, mas um diferencial do Sorento é que a versão 4 cilindros estará disponível para nós, o que ajuda a aumentar o volume de vendas.

O presidente da Kia Motors do Brasil, José Luiz Ghandini, disse que a empresa tem a meta de vender 45 mil veículos da Kia durante esse ano, e está confiante de fechar o ano de 2010 com 57.600 vendas, um aumento que colocaria a montadora na frente da Mitsubishi na disputa do mercado. Outros veículos confirmados para entrar em nosso país são o Cerato hatch, o Magentis e uma nova versão do Picanto 2011.

Via | Blogauto

Apple wasn’t kidding around when it said it was going to become a mobile device company first and foremost. According to at least one analyst estimate, the iPad is now outselling the Mac by a fair margin, having almost caught up to its lucrative cousin, the iPhone. RBC Capital Markets analyst Mark Abramsky (via AllThingsD) thinks Apple is selling more than 200,000 iPads per week at this point.

Compare that to around 110,000 Macs per week, and about 246,000 iPhone 3GS handsets. For a device that originally looked like kind of an odd duck that would only appeal to a very niche market, that’s not too bad. Especially when it hasn’t actually launched in international markets as of yet (barring pre-sales to the first nine countries getting the device on May 28).

Sellouts in both Apple Stores and Best Buy locations in the U.S. continue to be a fairly regular occurrence, and at the time of RBC Capital Markets’ checks, which took place in mid May, roughly 25 percent of Apple Stores were sold out of 3G models of the iPad completely and only had Wi-Fi stock remaining. New units bought from the Apple website are at least a week out in terms of predicted shipping times. In other words, Apple is still selling the things as fast as it can make them.

Abramsky’s changed his 2010 global iPad sales estimate from five million to eith million in the wake of the device’s continued success at retail, and he’s not the only one who’s optimistic about the iPad’s selling power. Research firm IDC (via Bloomberg) predicts that the iPad’s success alone will account for a six-fold increase in the sales of tablet computers in general by 2014. If true, tablet sales would nab a fair chunk of global computer sales, which doesn’t bode well for the slowing netbook market.

It also doesn’t bode well for the Mac. Apple’s efforts will go where the money is, and all indications point to the fact that the money will be with the iPad and iPhone, not with MacBooks and iMacs. What changes will this prompt in Apple’s personal computer line-up? Well, in business silos that bring in less money inevitably face cuts and streamlining. Apple recently added more choices to its notebook lineup, but I predict we’ll see a reversal of that in the future. Look for fewer product configurations and simpler categories (one basic notebook, one pro, etc.) as Cupertino focuses on mobile.

I’m not too worried about this trend, because far out, I see a convergence of device categories. Mobile will be the default mode for consumer computing, and I suspect the iPad will look much more like that future than the MBP I’m typing this on now. Apple has always been good at the long-view, and this time around is no exception.

Related GigaOM Pro Research: Is The Age of the Web Tablet Finally Upon Us?