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Japan has modified its scrappage scheme conditions in order to allow U.S. cars to enter the program properly, subsequent to the United States’ complaints, Reuters noted.

In a statement from Japan’s embassy in Washington, the country states that cars imported under a preferential handling procedure" (PHP) introduced in 1986 for U.S. carmakers would be eligible for the Japanese program which subsidizes acquisitions of more fuel-efficient cars.

"I welcome the news … that Japan is… (read more)

We’ve seen various solar powered water vessels like the Auriga Leader ship, the Loon boat and PlanetSolar, the world’s largest solar catamaran. But today, its a battery powered plug-in ship that is making waves in the green world of water transport. IHI Marine United, a subsidiary of heavy machinery maker IHI Corp, Japan is developing a plug-in ship powered by lithium-ion batteries. Its Zero Emission Electric Propulsion Ship will use batteries that can be recharged at charging stations in ports it visits. The plug-in ship powered by lithium-ion batteries would run without a diesel engine, thus cutting its carbon dioxide or nitrogen oxide emissions to zero. The design prototype of the Plug-in 30-meter passenger ferry will be able to carry 800 people.

The maximum output required for the plug-in ship batteries would be 200 to 300 times greater than needed for electric cars. The designers hope the ship will be able to travel 80 kilometers per battery charge, sufficient for short journeys only. The target date for a commercial vessel is 2015, by which time low-cost lithium-ion batteries are expected to be available.

Via – [Fareastgizmos]

Pollution has reached astronomical heights, and there seems to be little you can do to control the impurities in the air that you breathe. But there are some nice people who are coming up with ways and means to make the earth a better place, quite literally. Although you cannot control pollution to a very large extent, you can ensure that your CO2 intake is reduced considerably. Kristin O’Friel, student at NYU has designed a neat new corset called as the CO2RSET. This particular corset loosens and tightens up by itself depending on the levels of CO2 in the air.

This is possible thanks to the small motors which are attached to the laces of the corset. They respond to the data which is received from the CO2 monitors on the corset that have been concealed in the floral patterns appearing in the front. So if you are suffocated with the tightness of the CO2RSET, it would be a prudent decision to change your landscape immediately.

Via – [Gizmodiva]

There must have been a very good reason for that Chrysler badged Lancia Delta at the 2010 Detroit Auto Show right? According to Fiat / Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne, the reason is that Chrysler and Lancia are likely to merge by the end of this year.

“We could see the two converge as early as the end of the year.” He said that the move would make sense because each brand had gaps in the range that could be filled by the other.

“In Europe, Lancia is an undersized, underdeveloped brand, with nothing bigger than the Delta. Chrysler, which has a true global reach, has nothing smaller. Put them together and you have a full line-up,” he said.

However, Marchionne said that he has no plans to sell any Lancias in the U.S. since there will be “no structural conflict.”

2010 Detroit: 2009 Lancia Delta based Chrysler:

All Photos Copyright © 2009 Omar Rana – egmCarTech.

– By: Omar Rana

Source: AutoCar

Following the WEN® philosophy, this nourishing volumizing spray is designed to bring out your hair’s full potential, not only adding volume and body, but also targeting stress related and environmental issues. Meant to be used as a styling aid after applying the WEN® Styling Creme, this unique formula will provide volume and lasting body. Fortified and infused with natural ingredients, the WEN® Volumizing Treatment Spray transforms dull, fine, flat, lifeless hair into luxurious, nourished, healthy, shiny hair.

View WEN Lavender Volumizing Treatment Spray 6oz Details

Okinawa is all set to make its mark in the green world, thanks to Toshiba. The company will supply the much awaited gen-next electric power system for a power company in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. The power system will have storage batteries which will supply electricity generated by sources like solar panels. The testing is said to begin in 2010 at Miyakojima, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. The testing will be carried out by adding photovoltaic systems (3MW, 1MW) and storage batteries (4MW, 200kW) to existing facilities including two thermal power plants (21,500kW, 40,000kW), a gas turbine plant (15,000kW) and five wind plants (900kW x 4, 600kW x 1).

The testing will be done to measure voltage rise, deal with surplus electricity, frequency adjustment and the works. Toshiba has plans to generate 3MW of photovoltaic electricity by setting up a mega solar power plant and 1MW at industrial plants (600kW) and residences (400kW). However the photovoltaic systems will be placed only in industrial plants and residences and not at real plants or residences during the testing stage.

The storage batteries to be used will be a 4MW sodium-sulfur battery connected to the power grid, and a 200kW lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery connected at the residences. Toshiba will assume that a 4kW photovoltaic system is set up at 100 houses and a 8kW Li-ion battery is provided to 25 houses.

[Techon]

Okinawa Electric Power Company, a power company in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan, will now receive next-generation electric power system from Toshiba Corp. The system includes storage batteries to store the electricity generated by solar panels and other available sources. The system is scheduled to be tested in Miyakojima, Okinawa, from the autumn of 2010. In order to conduct the test, photovoltaic systems (3MW, 1MW) and storage batteries (4MW, 200kW) will be installed in addition to existing facilities that includes two thermal power plants (21,500kW, 40,000kW), a gas turbine plant (15,000kW) and five wind plants (900kW x 4, 600kW x 1). The test will also measure the voltage rise, frequency adjustment, etc as the output from solar and wind farms keep changing.

(more…)

Brooklyn foreclosures accounted for most of the more than 2,000 foreclosure filings in New York City’s five boroughs in December, based on figures from a California-based research firm.

Brooklyn posted 757 foreclosures in December, up by 151 percent from December 2008 and higher than the 629 foreclosures filed in Queens.

Across the city, a total of 2,013 foreclosures were filed in December, an increase of 3.3 percent from filings in November 2009 and a jump of more than 84 percent from filings in December 2008.

Throughout 2009, New York City posted a total of 20,229 foreclosure filings, up by more than four percent from total filings in 2008. According to real estate firm owner Jonathan Miller, the major cause of foreclosures in New York in the latter part of 2009 was unemployment, and it will remain so in 2010. Another cause was the speculative foreclosure investing strategy that shot up property prices during the boom.

Based on a report from the Fiscal Policy Institute, the unemployment rate in New York City varied sharply across neighborhoods. In the East New York part of Brooklyn, the jobless rate in the third quarter last year was 19 percent, the highest among the neighborhood rates examined and the rate level that drove a lot of Brooklyn foreclosures.

In the Bronx, the jobless rate was 16 percent. In the Upper West Side and Upper East Side of Manhattan, the rate was five percent.

Unemployment levels also varied according to race and gender. Almost 16 percent of blacks were jobless in the third quarter, higher than the 12-percent share of the unemployment pie by Hispanics, seven-percent by non-Hispanic minorities and six percent by Asians. Jobless rates were also higher for male workers than women, with West Brooklyn recording the biggest rate of unemployed men – 46 percent.

Based on another report, among the bigger Brooklyn-based companies that laid off workers in 2009 were HSBC, which terminated 95 workers; RJ American, which laid off 95; Martin Greenfield Clothiers Limited, which dismissed 66, Weisman Discount Home Centers, which laid off 54; Brooklyn Bureau of Community Service, which posted 40 job losses; and Macy’s East, which had 33 workers laid off.

According to the Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy, a total of 1,750 homes in New York City became bank-owned houses in September 2009, 245 units of which were located in Brooklyn.

Amy Winehouse has plead guilty to assaulting a theater manager during a Christmas pageant outside London last month.

The 26-year-old five-time Grammy winner entered a guilty plea to common assault and disorderly conduct charges in Milton Keynes Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday. Amy admits she hit 27-year-old theater manager Richard Pound and kneed him in the groin after he chided her for disrupting a performance of Cinderella at the Milton Keynes Theatre in Central England on Dec. 19. The “Back to Black” hitmaker was arrested four days later.

Amy has been given a sentence of two years probation and issued a $500 fine for the attack.

“Today was a good day. We delivered over 30,000 litres of water to over 3,000 people.” Louis Belanger is reporting on Oxfam’s growing response direct from Haiti.

Donate now and find out more about Oxfam’s Haiti Earthquake response

Após o furo feito pelo blog Novidades Automotivas que mostrou com exclusividade a frente da nova geração do Fiat Uno e a revista Quatro Rodas mostrar o interior do modelo, o blog Novidades Automotivas trás novamente novas fotos frente e verso do modelo, dessa vez da versão aventureira, a Way.

Como podemos ver o carro terá varias aplicações de plásticos tanto na frente quanto nas laterais e traseira. Os faróis dianteiros terão máscara negra, enquanto as lanternas traseiras não terá modificações. No teto haverá barras longitudinais e o modelo terá opção de duas e quatro portas. Segundo o blog, essas fotos são de protótipos e podem haver alteração no design do carro, digo nas aplicações que foram feitas para deixar o carro com cara de off-road.

Conforme antecipamos aqui, o modelo terá opção de motores 1.0 e 1.4 tanto na versão normal quanto na Way. A versão Way chega ao mercado pouco tempo depois do lançamento da versão normal do Mille.

Fonte: Novidades Automotivas

If getting in shape is one of your new year’s resolutions, you owe it to yourself to check out the P90X workout program. This is the real deal – it will whip your butt into the best shape of your life in 90 days.

There are lots of scams on the Internet promising rock-hard abs by just popping a pill. P90X is different. It will get you toned and build your muscle, but you’re going to have to work at it. But, oh man – the results!

The P90X Exercise Program

The key to the program is what is known as “muscle confusion.” If you’ve been going to the gym for awhile, you probably have noticed that your fitness level has plateaued. That’s because chances are you’re doing the same workout over and over again and your body has gotten used to it.

P90X – which stands for Power 90 Extreme – has 12 kick-ass workouts that accelerate the results process by constantly introducing new moves and routines so your body never plateaus, and you never get bored. Through a combination of cardio, strength training, and stretching exercises, the program achieves full-body fitness.

The routines were developed by personal trainer Tony Horton and I have to say that while the workouts are killer, they are also a lot of fun. Horton has a great combination of attitude and encouragement to keep you going.

The workouts range from chest and back to something called ab ripper X. My favorite workout is plyometrics, an explosive jumping cardio routine that dramatically improves athletic performance.

Don’t kid yourself, though. P90X is not going to be easy. It’s going to take an hour a day for 90 days to get full results.

P90X Nutrition Plan

There’s a three-phase nutritional program to help you lose fat while keeping your energy up. To get results from this system you’re going to need to watch your eating. No workout in the world is going to get you ripped abs if you shovel in fatty foods all day.

The program also includes a special calendar and online support tools to keep you motivated. Most people I’ve talked to have started to see results so quickly that it’s easy for them to stay motivated throughout the entire 90 days.

P90X Results

P90X is a true Internet phenomenon with fan pages and support groups sprouting up all over the place. It’s a testament to the effectiveness of the P90X program that people from all walks of life and all fitness levels are singing its praises.

There are literally hundreds of “before” and “after” photos on the web of everyday people who have gone through the program.

There are also lots of athletes like Matt Diaz of the Atlanta Braves and celebs like Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore who have unofficially endorsed the P90X program in various interviews when asked what type of training they used to get in shape. There are also reports of police and fire departments around the country using the program to get their officers in tip-top shape.

If you’re only trying to lose weight then P90X might not be the best solution for you. Many participants have reported that they don’t lose weight because they are replacing fat with muscle. While they look a lot better, they don’t necessarily weigh any less.

I would also say that if you just want to get huge muscles, P90X is not the best program for you. The variety of workouts are going to get you more definition and are going to dramatically improve your overall level of fitness, but they are not designed to just add bulk.

On the other hand, if you’re in decent shape and want to get ripped, or if you haven’t been to the gym in years and want to get into great shape, the P90X program can do wonders.

What’s the Cost?

So, you’re wondering, how much is this thing going to cost me? The P90X program is not cheap, but it’s not super expensive either. The most recent price is three payments of $39.95, so all told you’ll be shelling out over a hundred bucks.

P90X does have a 90 day money-back guarantee and from everything I have heard and read about Beachbody, the company that created the program, they are serious about customer service and satisfaction.

If you haven’t been to the gym in the last week, you know how hard it can be to get your butt out the door. The beauty of a workout program like P90X is that you can get a world class workout from home without a bunch of bulky fitness equipment and expensive gym fees.

Give P90X a try and you’ll see why people are calling it the most extreme fitness program in the world.

Click to visit the P90X website now.

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Related posts:

1. The Four Worst Workout Blunders
2. Quick Home Fat Loss Blast Workout
3. Coffee Could Help Ease Muscle Pain from Workouts

Please check out my new blogroll listed on the right side of this page. I think it’s now the best and most thorough collection of blogs related to dining, cooking and drinking in the metro Atlanta area.

I was really happy to get such a great response from local bloggers when I put the call out for links. Among the many interesting ones are:

• Doing Laundry and Other Tasty Bites — a local woman cooks through Thomas Keller’s cookbooks.
• Cured Meats — a fascinating and instructive blog about making charcuterie at home.
• Datelicious — restaurant reviews from a dater’s perspective.
• Sous Vide Geek — experiments with a home sous vide set.
• Young & Hungry — a blog written by two college friends, one of whom lives in Atlanta and the other in Dallas.

You’ll find links to these blogs and many others in the blogroll.

Please take a look through them and tell me which ones jump out at you.

Cognitive Daily, one of the most established and respected psychology blogs on the internet, has just announced it has come to an end on the five year anniversary of its first post.

We’ve been fans of CD since, well, since they started as they kicked off only a few months after we did.

However, all is not lost, as both Dave and Greta will continue with their many online projects and there is a mysterious ‘new project’ soon to be announced (greatest hits? musical? concept album?)

What will we do with all that time we’ve freed up? Greta plans to continue her work as Professor of Psychology at Davidson College, teaching and mentoring students, conducting research, and sharing her love of music, literature, and art. Dave will continue as editor of ResearchBlogging.org and weekly columnist for SEEDMAGAZINE.COM, and he’ll maintain his personal blog, Word Munger and his obsessively-updated Twitter account. In addition, Dave’s planning a new project, to be unveiled within the next few weeks. Look for more information about it on Twitter and Word Munger.

Many thanks to you both for five years of fantastic psychology coverage on Cognitive Daily and we wish you all the best for future projects.

Link to Cognitive Daily announcement.

RAVAS mobile weighing systems realize immediate cost savings, because weighing and transport take place at the same time. As a result cycle times are reduced, space is used more effectively, and the efficiency of internal logistic processes are raised.
RAVAS will demonstrate at the Food & Logistics show in Birmingham the revolutionary iForks, completely wireless scale forks that can be installed on any forklift truck in minutes: plug and weigh!
Besides the iForks RAVAS will show a RAVAS-1100 and a stainless steel pallet truck scale especially designed for use in (pre-) production processes.

UniMobile gives you several opportunities to collect and combine any information with weight information
Next to this RAVAS demonstrates his UniMobile software for Windows Mobile and CE combined with iForks. UniMobile is designed to run on handheld terminals and smartphones and communicates with the iForks indicator and any other devices wirelessly. It is a platform to collect the weight and combine it with for example barcode identification or digital images and store the gathered information on the terminal. It can run a program to instruct an operator to prepare batches according to recipe and store the data for direct use in production monitoring and quality control. A RAVAS mobile weighing system improves processes and the flow of materials and information.

About RAVAS
RAVAS develops, manufactures and distributes mobile scales, integrated in hand pallet trucks, warehouse trucks and forklift trucks. These mobile scales help you to become more efficient in your internal logistics. It saves time and manpower, it raises efficiency and limits costs. More advantages of mobile weighing: it simplifies processes and procedures, it generates management information and it controls the quality of products and services.

The food and Logistics show will be held from 21st till 24th March 2010 at the NEC in Birmingham. You can find RAVAS on stand number YO21.

For further information, please visit our web site at www.ravas.co.uk.