The above video tells a rather harrowing story for HTC HD2 owners?  Does it have a happy ending? Watch the video to find out

Eco Factor: Sustainable cellphone for developing and underdeveloped nations.

Mobile network providers are trying their level best to connect even the most remote locations on the planet with the rest of the world. However, in places like rural Africa nine out of ten people don’t have access to electricity, which means that they’ve to get their cellphones charged in villages that either have access to the grid or have to use diesel generators for the same.

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Celebration of 40th Anniversary of Earth Day

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MR. CROWLEY: Good afternoon, and welcome to the Department of State and happy Earth Day to one and all – and to happy Bring Your Children to Work Day here at the Department of State. I don’t see any cub reporters in the audience.

But anyway, to begin our briefing today we thought we would honor the 40^th anniversary of Earth Day. Under Secretary Maria Otero oversees all things connected to preserving the environment and the earth that we all share and rely upon, so we thought we’d start off with a statement and any quick questions. She just got off an airplane coming back from the Middle East so we won’t keep her here very long, but we’ll begin with Maria. Thank you very much for joining us.

UNDER SECRETARY OTERO: Thank you very much, P.J. Good afternoon, everyone.

As you’ve heard, I’ve just returned – literally just returned – from a weeklong trip to the Middle East where I met with government officials to discuss water challenges unique to that region. So it’s very timely that I’m able to join Assistant Secretary Crowley and all of you on Earth Day, especially given my discussions regarding this pressing environmental issue in the Middle East.

As we celebrate the 40^th anniversary of Earth Day, the United States is reaffirming our commitment to addressing these challenges with sustainable solutions through local, regional, and global efforts. Under the President’s leadership, the United States has reengaged in international climate negotiations, and we are aggressively working to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. We are also elevating environmental issues such as water in our diplomatic relationships, and we are forging new partnerships to better engage the private sector and other important stakeholders.

Central to all of this work is our emphasis on building local capacity so that community and national governments are better prepared and motivated to address environment issues, from water scarcity and sanitation to urbanization and green development. Secretary Clinton’s message on Earth Day underscores her personal commitment to this realm of foreign policy.

I’m pleased that in addition to elevating environmental issues in our diplomatic efforts, the State Department is also practicing what it preaches. Last year, we challenged our 60,000 employees worldwide to lessen the environmental footprint of our diplomatic work, and this year we are launching the Greening Embassy Forum to share what we have learned.

In my capacity as co-chair of the Department’s Greening Council, I also considered it a personal victory when we were able to convince the Secretary’s staff to convert to double-sided printing. Now we print on both sides of the paper. It’s a seemingly small change, but it is something that has an impact. So our major diplomatic efforts on climate change and water, to our daily conservation on paper, this Administration is taking our environmental responsibility seriously. We are committed to creating a better earth for future generations.

We have come a long way in 40 years since the first Earth Day, but much work remains to be done and our global imperative is more pronounced today than ever.

Thank you.

So there’s time for a few questions. Yes.

QUESTION: What can you tell us about what did you achieve in your talks in the Middle East countries you visited?

UNDER SECRETARY OTERO: In many ways this trip was partly fact-finding, and it was also an opportunity to speak at all levels of the government on the issue of water. So not only did I meet with prime ministers in Jordan and Prime Minister Fayyad from the Palestinian Authority, but also with many of the ministers of water and irrigation, and in the case of Israel and Palestine

with the water authorities. So much of the discussion was to look at the problems – specific problems that are important to the Middle East, which is, as you know, a part that has enormous scarcity in its work, but also where the sharing of sources of water, both rivers and aquifers, is very much at the core of how they can plan their work in the coming years.

So much of the discussions centered around how we can – how they can create increased efficiencies in the area of water use, especially in agriculture, how in the case of Israel that desalination plants that they have created – and I visited the one in Hadera that is desalinating enough water to constitute close to 25 percent of the fresh water supply of the country, all the way to looking at some other ways in which waste water treatment can be carried out and leakages in water systems can be addressed. So there’s all kinds of things that need to be done and can be done to address this issue. And so these were some of the discussions and some of the conversations that we had with the different officials.

Yes.

QUESTION: Just to follow up on Samir’s question, very often the Palestinians complain that more water is going to the settlements, the Israeli settlements, than going to the West Bank. What did you hear specifically from Prime Minister Fayyad regarding that, and if there’s any specific project that you discussed with the Palestinians?

UNDER SECRETARY OTERO: Yes, I not only discussed this with Prime Minister Fayyad, but I also visited a pump station in the West Bank in which there is a need to – where one could see what water is coming in and what potential problems there are.

One of the areas of difficulties is ensuring that the Palestinians have the equipment and the permits that they need in order to be able to dig wells and to carry out the activities that they need. And so we had very good discussions around those issues with the water authorities of Israel and Palestine, which, incidentally, operate through a joint water committee – or commission that enables them to work together on some of these issues. There are concerns, there are challenges, and there are difficulties. But clearly, there is room to be able to move forward and to progress in this area – in this area of water. But there is still a great deal of work that needs to be done.

QUESTION: I realize this is slightly off topic, but in your other role as a coordinator for Tibet, there is the earthquake quite recently. There has been appeals from exiled Tibetans for the Dalai Lama to be able to go to the affected areas. What’s the U.S. take on that? Could that be a positive step? Is that a realistic possibility?

UNDER SECRETARY OTERO: To be quite honest, I’ve been gone for this past week and I really have not looked at that issue and have looked at those considerations. That’s certainly something that I will take note of and assess as we look forward.

Yes.

QUESTION: Madam, as far as this Earth Day is concerned, where is the – what is the bigger hurdle or big problem, or which country or where? Which area do you think there’s room to – that the U.S. can work together and have a message for those countries?

UNDER SECRETARY OTERO: You mean regarding Earth Day?

QUESTION: Yes, ma’am.

UNDER SECRETARY OTERO: Well, Earth Day, if you recall, was really only celebrated in the United States 40 years ago, and now it’s being celebrated around the world. I understand that over 500 million people participated in Earth Day yesterday, compared to the 20 million that participated the first day. Our embassies throughout the world carry it out, important events collaborating with the different – in the different countries in doing events related to Earth Day, which included schoolchildren, universities, public lectures. In the case of Italy, I think our members of our – high-level members of our Embassy and the mayor went to clean one of the old neighborhoods – Trastevere, I think. And so there have been a series of different events that have taken place that I think demonstrate in the countries that we work in our commitment to environment in all of its manifestations and our desire to really make sure that we ourselves are contributing to greening everything that we are doing in our own work.

The last –

QUESTION: We heard yesterday that the State Department – the State Department program, you will be offering bicycles to officials to move in – to go to meetings in Washington.

UNDER SECRETARY OTERO: Yes, there are a number of initiatives to help high-level officials, or anybody in the State Department, to be able to be greener in the way in which they transport themselves, which, by the way, not only is the suggestion made that bicycles be made available but there’s also a suggestion that people use the stairs instead of the elevators as you go up and down some of the flights.

So there’s a wide array of different suggestions being made. I would just say that the intranet website for the State Department today asks everyone that is interested to take a green pledge, which includes a whole series – maybe 30 different activities that one can take from turning off the lights all the way to biking to work that would contribute to a greener planet. And of course, within all that, are the commitments themselves made by State Department in the way that it constructs future embassies and uses LEED as the way to build in a much greener way.

QUESTION: So we’re talking about climate change – in a way, as far as Earth Day is concerned. And –

UNDER SECRETARY OTERO: What we are talking about is decreasing our footprint to the extent possible. And as the State Department, we are discussing not only the policy of this country as a whole in reducing its carbon emissions, but also looking very concretely at the ways in which we can decrease that at the State Department.

MR. CROWLEY: Maria, thank you.

UNDER SECRETARY OTERO: Thank you.

With the internal combustion engine dictating vehicle design for over a century the move towards electric vehicles offers manufacturers the chance to completely rethink vehicle design. However, it also presents manufacturers with a whole new set of problems to be overcome. To facilitate the transition to electric cars, researchers at Franhofer-Gesellschaft are constructing an electrically operated demonstration vehicle, the “Frecc0,” which will serve as a scientific integration platform for automobile manufacturers and suppliers to test new electric vehicle components. ..
Continue Reading Fraunhofer developing electric vehicle test platform

Tags: Automotive,
Electric vehicle,
Fraunhofer,
Testing

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Introduction:

The mathematical topic for this post is meant for second graders who are recalling addition facts to sums of 20 or less and the corresponding subtraction facts.  The focus is number relationships and is based on VA SOL 2.5.  The following books are resources that children can use in order to sharpen their addition and subtraction skills.

Recommended Books:

Icky Bug Numbers 123 written by Jerry Pallotta and illustrated by David Biedrzycki and Rob Bolster is a book that takes children from zero to ten and on each number, there is a corresponding number of bugs.  On 0, there are no bugs.  On numbers 1 through 10, each number has a different bug.  For example, there is one ant on the 1; there are two butterflies on the 2; there are seven spiders on the 7, and so on up to number 10.  What’s neat about the next section of the book is that Pallotta mixes the bugs on the numbers so children will understand the idea of sets.  On the number 7, there are four spiders, one dragonfly, one lady bug and one moth.  Despite the fact that there are four separate bugs, the total number of bugs is still seven.  The book also contains skip counting odd and even numbers to twenty and simple addition equations where the child will add groups of bugs together.  The end of the book concentrates on subtraction.  There is a spider that is capturing flies in its web.   Pallotta introduces simple subtraction equations in reference to the bugs the spider has cocooned or eaten.  I think second grade boys will really like this book.  The illustrations of the bugs are amazing, and some are pretty creepy.  The book is perfect for addition facts to 20 and corresponding subtraction facts.

Math for All Seasons written by Greg Tang and illustrated by Harry Briggs is a book of 16 addition and subtraction riddles.  Students can solve the riddles by counting objects or grouping objects on the page.  The author encourages children to find quick ways to solve the riddles by grouping then adding or subtracting.  The illustrations of objects such as, tulips, butterflies, umbrellas, dandelions, etc. are beautiful.  Each riddle is a rhyme so the book could be considered cross-curricular as far as reading.  Tang explains the best way to solve each riddle at the back of the book.

The Mission of Addition by Brian P. Cleary and illustrated by Brian Gable is a book about adding sums.  “6 yellow buses were parked in a line, 3 pulled behind them, and then there were 9.  Along came 4 more, and that made13.  If you got that right, you are an adding machine!”  All of the scenarios in this book engage students in adding a sum, then adding more to that sum to get a total.  It breaks down addition equations into simple terms.  Examples are: “numbers climb from low to high,” “add means to increase,” “plus can be used just like and,” and “equals can be used like is, or totals, or makes.”  Children learn how to add numbers together rather than counting objects.  The book is well illustrated and easy to read.

The Grapes of Math by Greg Tang and illustrated by Harry Briggs is a book of math riddles that encourages students to group like objects into sets, then add the sets together to forms sums or subtract groups in order to find the difference.  Objects in this book are ants, strawberry seeds, camels humps, dice, etc., and the illustrations are wonderful.  There are a total of 16 riddles in this book and answers are in the back.  There are groups that total sums higher than 20 so it may be more a little complicated than the book Math for All Seasons by the same author.  The riddles are in a rhyme format and Tang gives clues to help the students group objects as opposed to counting.

Math Appeal by Greg Tang and illustrated by Harry Briggs is another book that offers children great practice in addition and subtraction.  Tang uses riddles to challenge children to see patterns in numbers.  The patterns are located on beautifully illustrated objects such as, peas in pods, red hot chili peppers, clovers, geese, etc.  Patterns can be determined by colors, shapes, or pure number of objects.  Every riddle is a rhyme that challenges students to see the pattern, group the sets of objects, and then determine the sum or difference depending on what the riddle asks. Like his other books, each of the 16 riddles are different and the answers can be found in the back of the book.  This book would be a great challenge for students who have mastered the VA SOL 2.5 because many of the sums and differences are above 20.

Recommended Websites:

Countdown and other games such as, Give Me Time and 20 Questions are excellent practice for students on need to brush up on their addition facts to 9+9.   Simply scroll down to “Play” and choose any one of the three games.  You can navigate from this page to practice subtraction facts and learn about inverse relationships of addition and subtraction.

The Timernator is a great site for addition and subtraction.  Kids practice math against the clock.  It helps them develop addition and subtraction skills without the pressure of being timed in a classroom environment.

Addition Game-fishing is a fun site where children get to catch the fish that equals the correct sum.  There is also the Subtraction Game-fishing where children get to catch the fish that equals the correct difference.

Addition Concentration is a fun game that is played just like Concentration.  You select an addition problem from the left set of squares and then try to find the correct answer from the set of squares on the right.  A smiley face pops up when you get the correct answer.

Mathcar Racing is a site where children can practice addition or subtraction.  The child will race against another car by determining the sum or difference that provides the highest total out of the the choices of math facts on the board.

Additional Resources:

Two Dice Sums is an activity that can be played in the classroom or the home.   It was a favorite activity developed by Marilyn Burns for the classroom.

Math word problems as well as several different lesson plans, activities and worksheets are listed on this site.  The link is to the word problems page but there are links on this page that will navigate to other activities and worksheets.  This would be a great site for teachers.

Duck von Fly is a subtraction game that specifically focuses on subtraction facts between 1 and 20.   The objective is to keep Duck von Fly up in the air by choosing the correct difference of a subtraction problem.  The answers are multiple choice.

Hotchalk is a site for lesson plans and activities for teachers.  This link will send you to a list of plans and activities for addition and subtraction.

Math Fact Cafe is a website where teachers can build grade specific fact sheets or download pre-made grade specific fact sheets.  It’s a good site for assessments and it also contains games for classroom activities.

Each year, Consumers International works with non-governmental organizations worldwide to create and publish the “Consumers International IP Watchlist,” a detailed survey of global copyright laws, focusing on national laws’ impact on access to knowledge, or A2K. A2K describes the fundamental freedom of individuals to communicate, learn, and exchange information — activities that are increasingly governed in part or in whole by copyright law.

The IP Watchlist was created to highlight how countries’ laws actually fare in facilitating A2K and to act as a counterbalance to the annual Special 301 Report produced by the US Trade Representative. You may recall that former Special 301 Reports have been driven by the concerns and wishes of U.S. copyright and patent holders, resulting in countries being named on the USTR Special 301 watchlist for having anything but the toughest copyright regimes, failing to adopt US DMCA-style technological protection measure laws, and for proposing to introduce balancing copyright exceptions similar to fair use in U.S. law. Unfortunately this has increased the pressure for countries to create unbalanced copyright laws which restrict citizens’ ability to use and share information.

By comparison, the IP Watchlist rates a set of 34 countries on whether or not their copyright laws are flexible enough to permit consumers’ access to knowledge. The 2010 IP Watch List highlights some countries’ good practices — having fair use or fair use-style exceptions to copyright, creating incentives for innovative business models, and providing mechanisms to permit the use of orphan works. But the report also identifies provisions that were found to impair citizens’ access to knowledge in various countries, including taxes or fines for private copying, three strikes Internet disconnection provisions, and overbroad legal prohibitions on circumventing copyright owners’ technological protection measures.

EFF was pleased to contribute the survey of US copyright law to the 2010 IP Watchlist. We hope that the comparative analysis of national copyright laws that is at the heart of the Consumers International IP Watchlist helps to inspire countries to craft copyright laws that serve the needs of consumers and all stakeholders in the knowledge economy, and supports the efforts of copyright advocates in countries across the world.

Article Tags: Brent Bozell, ClimateGate, Video Link

Click source for MUST SEE Interview with Brent Bozell

Source: mediamatters.org

Read in full with comments »   

Eco Factor: Concept vehicle powered by a low-emission hybrid engine.

After revealing a few details in the design patent, GM will finally reveal the extended range electric crossover Chevrolet Volt MPV5 concept at the Beijing Motor Show. The five-passenger crossover concept rides on the same Voltec architecture as the Chevy Volt.

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EA Sports highly successful Madden NFL franchise is back once again for another round of gut-wrenching football action. Yes folks, Madden NFL 11 is coming and this time, EA promises that the game will be “simpler, quicker,

And here we go again. Every few months (it seems) there’s another study telling us that either cell phones are safe, or they are evil. It just goes to show, there’s a study to prove anything. This particular study however is going to take a bit more time then the other ones have. Plus, it’ll involve quite a few more people.

The new study is part of the Mobile Telecommunications and Health Research Program, and will follow a group of 250,00 people of all ages for 20 to 30 years. This is the largest study to date, however it is worth nothing that it will not include children. This is particularly odd considering a some studies show children as being particularly susceptible to certain types of radiation.

2010 Opel Astra Sport Tourer

Details regarding the 2010 Opel Astra are pretty ambiguous at this time, but the guys over at Auto Motor und Sport have just revealed some new unofficial specs of the upcoming model.

As you can see for yourselves, the car features a low hood and front fascia in order to meet European pedestrian crash safety regulations.

A large grille with aggressive headlights corroborated with fog lamps placed on the outer edges of the front bumper contribute to the sporty appearance of the car.

Technical details are again fairly scarce, but the aforementioned publication says the car will come with a 1.4-liter naturally aspirated petrol unit as standard, with maximum output of around 90 horsepower and CO2 emissions of 120 g/km. In order to bring fuel consumption to the lowest possible level, the
2010 Astra will also boast several technologies aimed at this goal, including a stop/start system to idle the engine while not in motion.

Drivers looking for more performance, will have the option of a supercharged unit that will raise the maximum output level to around 180 horsepower.

A diesel configuration is also likely to join the range, with the aforementioned source claiming a 1.7-liter turbocharged unit has the biggest chances to reach the 2010 Astra.

via

Article Tags: You could not make it up

Here’s some legitimate Earth Day news, straight from NASA:

1. Contrary to popular belief, global warming has not stopped nor has the rate of warming even slowed down in the past decade.

2. A new global temperature record (for the period of instrumental measurements) will be set within the next few months.

This comes from the latest “global surface temperature analysis” (PDF here) from NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies, one the most important sources of real climate science. I got the summary in an e-mail from Dr. James Hansen, the NASA scientist who first told Congress that global warming was real back in the 1980s.

In the same e-mail, Hansen talked about the global warming contrarians I profiled in Esquire last month. “Somehow we have to do a better job of communicating,” he wrote me. “The tricks being used by people supporting denial and business-as-usual are recognizably dirty, yet effective.”

Among those tricks:

Click source to read FULL article from John H. Richardson

Source: esquire.com

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Web analytics firm StatCounter recently announced that Twitter had generated almost one in ten Social Media global hits to websites during March 2010. StatCounter’s research arm, Global Stats, unveiled that the main source of traffic to websites was Facebook, as it accounted for 48 percent of all Social Media hits, and that StumbleUpon… (read more)

I recently purchased a natural sea wool sponge. I’ve used such sponges before in the bath; however, this sponge I bought for house cleaning, specifically outside window washing. Sea wool sponges are durable, soft (no worries about scratching windows), and they do an amazing job. My sea wool sponge has quickly become my favorite tool for cleaning all around the house. They are perfect for car washing too!

Google has recently announced that Google Buzz has become available for the desktop version of Google Maps, after having received numerous user requests. This service was initially launched for mobile devices only, allowing people to add notes to a certain location displayed on Google Maps, with the sole purpose to provide useful information, tips and a… (read more)

Eco Factor: Zero-emission vehicle to be propelled by electricity.

After completely a year’s worth of electric vehicle testing with Mini E, the BMW group is planning to start rolling out its first production EV dubbed the “Megacity” in 2013. The Megacity is expected to be a 5-seater vehicle in the size class of the VW Golf.

(more…)

By Matt Hawes

Congressman Paul took to the House floor on Thursday to oppose H.R. 2194,  the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability and Divestment Act, and he warned against the war propoganda being spread in the House.

http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=KdwHN2De33Q  (Thanks to Minnesota Chris!)

Read his statement officially entered into the record.

By Deb Wells

The following eight Republicans have not voiced opposition to Chris Dodd’s “Finance Reform” bill.  Will they be part of the “substantial number of Republicans that will go along with it” that Richard Shelby (R-AL) referred to?

Will they help Create Bailouts Forever?

Will they help create a Permanent TARP?

 

Bob Bennett of Utah (202) 224-5444
http://bennett.senate.gov/public/

Susan Collins of Maine (202) 224-2523
http://collins.senate.gov/public/

Christopher Bond of Missouri (202) 224-5721
http://bond.senate.gov/public/

Saxby Chambliss of Georgia (202) 224-3521
http://chambliss.senate.gov/public/index.cfm

Bob Corker of Tennessee (202) 224-3344
http://corker.senate.gov/public/

John McCain of Arizona (202) 224-2235
http://mccain.senate.gov/public/

Olympia Snowe of Maine (202) 224-5344
http://snowe.senate.gov/public/

Scott Brown of Massachusetts (202) 224-4543
http://scottbrown.senate.gov/public/

HAVE YOU CALLED, VISITED and FAXED YOUR REPRESENTATIVES TO TELL THEM NO DEAL?

WE WANT AN AUDIT!  WE WANT AN UP OR DOWN VOTE ON S604!

http://www.chooseliberty.org/dodd_contact.aspx

THE REVOLUTION IS NOW…

Eco Factor: Low-cost highly efficient solar cells to be developed using better technology.

Researchers at the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) Chemistry Department have developed two novel technologies that can not only make solar cells inexpensive but can also make them highly efficient. The Earth receives more solar energy in one hour than the entire planet currently consumes in a year. However, due to the lack inexpensive means to transform that energy into usable form, we depend more on fossil fuels rather than clean energy from the sun.

(more…)

Might We Suggest…

• Get Your Rogers Xperia X10, April 15 2010
  
  We talked about the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 coming to Rogers a while back but we were missing a key piece of information. The X10 is now slated for April 15th, 2010 release according to inside sour…