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In case you’ve been living under a rock all weekend, the east coast got hit, HARD, by snow.

While I’m not a fan of Winter or snow in general, I am putting on my "glass half full" cap and will admit there are some positives to being bamboozled by the white puffy stuff.

• Great excuse to lay around in sweat pants all weekend
• Enough shoveling to give me Michelle Obama’s arms
• The living room being warmed by a fire in the fireplace
• Hot Chocolate

So, there’s the good stuff. But being stuck inside for 3 days is a LONG time. With impending news of the storm, 3 of my friends and I decided that if we were going to be snowed in, it would be better to be snowed in together. We watched movies, reality tv shows that are too shameful to be mentioned by name, and ate..ate..and ate.

I suggested playing board ("bored&quot games, but the only one we had in the house was Monopoly, and I’m not a fan.

What did you do to stay entertained? Any suggestions for "weathering" future storms?

 

The Australian division of French carmaker Citroen is recalling certain C5 Tourer models on account of no less than four different problems, affecting a total of some 600 vehicles.

Citroen announced last week it is recalling 72 cars due to loose tailgate strut ball-joints, 105 because of poor engine running, 128 that could have loose tailgate spoilers and some 134 with potentially loose windscreen trims, GoAuto reported.

For the models affected by the loose tailgat… (read more)

	Considering the crazy: will $30 barrels of oil come back? At least one person writing on the Internet thinks so.		Can Ford beat the Chevy Volt two years later with a cheaper PHEV? A little bit of plug-in power for many instead of a lot for few?
	Toyota to raise Prius MSRP by $400 in February, Camry Hybrid by $250 Another year, another Prius price increase.	Other news: Digital quantum batteries hold a lot of promise, theoretically Squaring off, again: plug-in advocates respond to anti-PHEV report A bit of extra solar energy on the solstice

AutoblogGreen for 12.23.09 originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 23 Dec 2009 05:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Yes, it is now official! Michael Schumacher will return to Formula One racing for Mercedes-Benz’ new works team in F1, Mercedes GP. What was only a rumor for the past few weeks turned into reality earlier today, as the German manufacturer confirmed, via a press conference, that the 7-time world champion inked a 3-year deal with the Brackley based team for the 2010 season.

As reported by the German newspaper Bild and British broadcaster BBC earlier today, the German finally made th… (read more)

Social networking is billed as an extension of our real world social interactions and some say it’s equally important. To an extent this is very true, but this isn’t necessarily a good thing. While social networks made it easier to make friends or even get married, it’s also making it easier to lose them as well or, as the case may be, get a divorce. In fact, it looks like as much as 20 percent of divorces in the UK can be linked to some Facebook funny business from one of the spouses, at least that’s what The Telegraph is saying, more or less.

According to the report, social networks, like Facebook, are causing more and more people to be suspicious of their partners’ activities and for good reason it seems, as the same social networks are facilitating extra-marital affairs even if they’re the virtual kind. One law firm, talking to the Telegraph, which specializes divorce is claiming that 20 percent of all the cases they work with list some Facebook wrong-doing as at least part of the reason for the divorce.

It’s mostly just flirty chats and things getting a bit more intense than they should that get most people upset, though most of the times these aren’t linked to face-to-face meetings. Of course, in most cases Facebook is hardly the main reason for the break-up as well.

One in fi… (read more)

The BMW Concept ActiveE will be released at the Detroit auto show in January. Based on the 1-Series coupe, it is equipped with an electric engine with 170 hp and lithium ion batteries. This video teaser of the Concept ActiveE, with Efficient Dynamics, focuses on the comfort and space of the vehicle.

Calibre es el software imprescindible para todos aquellos que se hayan hecho con un lector de libros electrónicos, un “gestor de la biblioteca personal” que además se sincroniza con los dispositivos y también hace las veces de lector / visualizador en el ordenador. Sea de la marca que sea, soporte los formatos que soporte, Calibre aporta un valor esencial en estos tiempos de guerra de estándares, el de conversor universal entre ellos y el de funcionar con los lectores más populares especializados o no, desde Kindle hasta iPhone.

Pero además de todo esto, Calibre es un proyecto especialmente interesante porque se articula como intermediario entre el usuario y el fabricante del lector o el proveedor de contenidos. Si gran parte del éxito de Apple en la música se fundó en que iPod-iTunes eran el interfaz entre el usuario y la misma, Amazon y compañía tienen un problema para repetir lo mismo en con los libros y la prensa: Calibre ocupa el rol de iTunes y es difícil de sustituir porque por un lado convierte los formatos que el fabricante no soporta y porque integra la suscripción a fuentes de información abierta en internet. Una situación peculiar, El País es de pago en Kindle (ya hemos hablado de la nueva escasez que quieren crear en ese entorno) pero es gratis en la web… lo que hace Calibre es convertir la versión online en formato para Kindle y bajártela a diario. No es la misma experiencia de recibirla directamente en el dispositivo sin necesidad de conectarlo al ordenador, pero se le acerca mucho y es gratis.

Por cierto, alrededor del tema del libro electrónico y la privacidad, merece la pena echar un vistazo al estudio de la EFF, en el que el Sony Reader queda como “campeón de la privacidad para el usuario”.

England, Networkers MSB

With the growth of the of the business globally our client who is one of the leading players in the Wind Energy industry are looking to appoint a team of experienced Offshore Wind Service Technicians. A number of exciting opportunities have now arisen to join the Offshore Wind Farm as a member of the wind turbine service crew responsible for performing schedule and corrective maintenance on the wind farm.

Responsibilities/Tasks:

As a service technician you will work with,

Schedule maintenance and corrective maintenance together with the turbine manufacturer and under their supervision
Electrical, mechanical and hydraulic fault finding
Improvement of work methods in conjunction with the company’s generation departments from Europe
Reporting of faults and carrying out works in the company’s maintenance system
Contribute to the company’s expansion of wind power with experience from O & M.

Qualifications:
Successful candidates will have a proven track record in a mechanical, electrical and electronic background.
A full clean driving license
Access to the wind farm will be by boat, some experience from offshore would be ideal
Applicants will be expected to work at heights
Previous experience with wind turbines would be ideal but full training will be provided.
Candidates with suitable experience and qualifications in operating and maintaining High Voltage networks would also be an advantage.

England, Networkers MSB

With the growth of the of the business globally our client who is one of the leading players in the Wind Energy industry are looking to appoint an experienced Operations Manager to join the Offshore Wind Farm Operations team responsible for operating and maintaining this flag ship project. As a member of the Operations Team you will be responsible for managing the day to day operations of the Offshore Wind Farm as well as having the opportunity to share knowledge and experiences and become involved in other projects within the company’s portfolio which are either under development, construction or operation elsewhere in Europe.

The Operations Manager will report directly to the Offshore Wind Farm Site Manager.

Main responsibilities:

The Operations Manager will be responsible for:
Day to day operational responsibility
Maintaining and developing the close cooperation with the wind turbine supplier
Joint supervision of up to eight offshore wind turbine service technicians
Managing and supervising suitably qualified and experienced contractors and sub contractors
Optimization of operation and maintenance to achieve high safe and sustained profitability
Planning and monitoring of maintenance operations
Monitor spares availability and stockholding including storage.
Responsible implementing and monitoring the annual Wind Farm Operating Plans
Responsible for implementing any site specific environmental management plans
Maintenance planning and follow up work as necessary
Preparing routine daily, weekly and monthly operational reports
Implementing and supervising site safety, health and environmental compliance
Respond to emergency call outs as and when necessary
Responsible for operating and maintaining the wind farm high voltage network

Qualifications:
A relevant degree in engineering, preferably mechanical or electrical engineering or other applicable technical field.
Three years relevant work experience from within the electricity generation business ideally wind farms.
Broad based experienced in electrical and mechanical operations and maintenance.
Flexible self motivated, organised individual with the ability to work on there own, willing to travel and share knowledge and experiences across the organisation.
Proficient in the use of MS Word, Excel and other MS Office packages.
Familiar with operating SCADA systems and running HV systems
SAP (Senior Authorised Person) qualified would be advantageous

Amid the depression and chaos of the last few weeks I’ve seen, and been able to be a part of so many beautiful, inspiring things.

I’ve walking with 100,000 people of every age and nationality to call for a safe and stable climate.

I’ve seen 3 young people prove, as they finish their 46 day hunger fast, that achieving the ‘impossible’ is just a matter of having the courage to try and the will to keep trying.

I’ve seen young people take to the stage in the main negotiations to tell the world what this means to us.

I’ve stood at a Vigil for Survival amid hundreds of other people where every single candle represented 10,000 people who had called for a real deal at Copenhagen.

I’ve helped to fill the greyness and endless corridors of the UN with colour and life and music.

We’ve shared songs, games, stories, and experiences with the Kenyan Youth Delegation. After working with them all year, we can now put names to faces and stories.

I’ve had less sleep than I’ve ever had before and worked harder than I’ve ever done before. But I know so many people who’ve given even more than I have and have been doing this all year. Going back again and again to the UN, traveling overland for weeks, or having no money for months because they give all their time to this.

I’ve sat with a hall full of people as Obama announced the Copenhagen Accord. I’ve shared the disempowerment, the sadness and the anger of that moment. Twenty minutes later I was stood protesting with hundreds of other young people outside the Conference Centre as the delegates filed out. It was 1 in the morning, well bellow freezing and snowing heavily but no one even considered not going.

I’ve laughed so much. Cried too, but laughed more. I’ve made some of the best friends I’ve ever had. I’ve met so many amazing people from around the world who are working so hard and giving so much to this struggle.

I’ve sat and shared ideas with young people from Kenya, China, India, Lebanon, Canada, the USA, Ghana, Malaysia, Nepal, Australia, the Maldives, Belgium, Sweden, New Zealand, Serbia…I could go on. And I know that despite all our differences, what unites is far stronger than what divides us.

I know that there are hundreds of thousands of people who came to Copenhagen and that every one of us has a lifetime worth of passion and energy to give to this movement.

As you remember, the Opel takeover attempt made by Magna earlier this year made the German carmaker to threaten Magna with the cancellation of some contracts if the deal went through. The deal failed on GM’s account, yet Volkswagen went through with its promise and announced it will no longer use Magna’s services for the creation of the next generation Porsche Boxster and Cayman.

According to Piston Heads, the German carmaker will move production to the recently acquired Karmann f… (read more)

Mazda’s European division announced today it has just launched a new feature on its press portal, dedicated to the journalists who wish to explore its online database. The portal now displays an extensive list of recommendations for hotels, restaurants and bars all over Europe.

All information at the online database about a particular hotel, bar or restaurant includes the address and contact information, a brief description and key information like price-level. The user can even… (read more)

Honda’s new CR-Z is one of the latest contraptions belonging to the Japanese manufacturer that are constantly making the headlines, this time with a set of new leaked photos revealing its interior. As you can see in the adjacent photos published by the Temple of VTEC webpage, the production version retains many of the features seen on the concept but Honda is yet to release the full list of specs regarding the model.

Power will come from a gasoline-hybrid unit, obviously optimized… (read more)

The wave of rumors connected to the Nissan GTR (such as a Nissan SUV with the GTR Powertrain and a 4 door GTR sedan) continues, according to Inside Line, as it is said that the following generation GTR (expected to come in 2012 as a 2013 model year) might get a hybrid powertrain as an option.

As the cited source mentions, the R36 (next generation) GTR might use the current VR38DETT 3.8 litre twin turbo V6 in combination with the electric powertrain showcased in the 2009 Infinity … (read more)

Gamm presents the new range of metallic plungers model APP/I. Stainless steel body, bolt and spring. Threaded body with screwdriver slotted head. Available also with heavy end-force spring. For certain minimum quantities custom threaded metal body upon request. For more information you can visit our web-site.

Until now, the machine integrity required to meet safety requirements has limited the functionality of many machines. Usually, the solution is met with simple, if not crude, logic – e.g. if a guard is open, the machine stops.

Now, when combined with robust processes to quantify risk, intelligent safety systems can free designers to create new and innovative solutions, with machines interacting intelligently with people whilst actually increasing human protection as well as enhancing machine productivity.

This was the target for Control Techniques’ during the development of SM-Safety – a programmable plug-in option for Control Techniques’ drives that offers industry-leading levels of machine safety.

Keeping up-to-date with the new standards for safety-related control systems such as EN 61800-5-2 with functions such as Safely Limited Position (SLP) is complex and time-consuming. In a single plug-in option module, SM-Safety provides a complete range of functions which are ideally suited to being implemented within a drive, increasing functionality, speed of reaction and, what’s more, reducing the overall cost. SM-Safety is a programmable option module that, when plugged into a Control Techniques Unidrive SP AC drive or the Digitax ST servo-drive frees engineers to do more.

“Design engineers of high volume OEM machinery, system integrators and maintenance engineers alike, all have safety responsibilities,” says Product Manager, Imad Rajraji, “and all find it complex and expensive to meet all of the relevant safety standards. The SM Safety module, which is effectively a mini safety PLC, simplifies the whole process and gives them complete piece of mind at a much-reduced cost, and performance can actually be significantly improved.”

Compared with a Safety PLC, SM-Safety is a fraction of the price, yet provides completely programmable parameters for the key nine safety functions required for machine safety. Using the free Control Techniques’ software, CTSafeLite – or for more advanced applications, CTSafePro – designers or users can build a comprehensive bespoke safety protection zone to meet the precise safety needs of the machinery.

“The SM-Safety firmware provides a large part of the SafePLC functionality and is easier to configure,” adds Imad Rajraji “and, we believe, takes Control Techniques ahead of the world market in drive safety.”

In the past, we’ve see some ridiculous defamation lawsuits filed in Canada, because (unlike the US), Canada’s defamation laws don’t have free speech protections included in them. Luckily, the Canadian Supreme Court has seen it reasonable to clarify Canada’s defamation laws by detailing a “responsible communication” defense, which allows any publisher (beyond just newspapers) to present a claim that they published the material responsibly, given the situation at hand. It’s nice to see various countries realize that draconian defamation laws may present a serious chilling effect on speech.

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The outlook is looking moderately optimistic for Twitter on the revenue front, but things aren’t going so great when it comes to traffic, at least for the main site. While in the US Twitter had flatlined for months now and even saw a dip in October, internationally it was still going strong. This isn’t the case anymore, as it seems that growth is slowing down around the world with twitter.com seeing a rise of only 3.5 percent in audience in November, according to comScore numbers.

Twitter.com got 60.3 million visitors in November worldwide compared to 58.3 million in the previous month. A 2 million visitors growth is nothing to sneer at, but compared to the huge bumps it was seeing just six months ago, things aren’t looking good. The most worrying issue though isn’t the current slowdown, but the overall trend which seems to be following the one in the US. And if things continue like in the US, we may even be seeing a decrease in visitors in the coming months.

That may not happen though as the site has been undergoing a major focus on the international market having released translated versions of the site in the major European languages, FIGS (French, Italian, German and Spanish). Even more volunteer translations are coming, so this may spur further interest in the site, at least for the short term. If this will … (read more)

Le salon de Detroit ouvre ses portes dans 15 jours.Outre une Lancia Delta rebadgée Chrysler,qui devrait bien être là,le Pentastar y présentera une version électrique de la Fiat 500,son nouveau Jeep Grand Cherokee et sa 300C restylée.

Dans la guerre de communication sur la petite urbaine chic et électrique,Fiat s’est jusqu’à présent fait ravir la vedette par BMW et sa Mini E.Les choses devraient bientôt rentrer dans l’ordre,au moins sur le plan médiatique,avec la présentation,par Chrysler,d’une 500 carburant aux électrons à Detroit.

On ne sait pas encore grand chose de la puce électrifiée,et surtout pas s’il s’agira d’un véritable modèle prévu pour une industrialisation ou simplement d’un concept destiné à occuper le terrain dans les reportages.Intégrer une technologie électrique pleinement opérationnelle dans un si petit espace n’est en effet pas une mince affaire.

Même en cas de prototype « de salon »,Fiat-Chrysler fera ainsi le buzz un peu plus sérieusement que la branche hollandaise du groupe,qui n’a pas hésité à exposer de pauvres jeunes filles dénudées aux rigeurs du climat batave,pour vanter sa citadine.Honteux…ne regardez-pas!

Par ailleurs,malgré les déclarations apparemment mensongères d’un porte-parole de Chrysler la semaine dernière,il y aura bien des nouveautés pour la marque à ce salon,puisque,outre cette 500,la Delta rebadgée Chrysler se confirme (Voir l’article d’hier sur le sujet).

 

–> Mise à jour! La première photo de la Delta par Chrysler est: ici

On apprend également que la future Ypsilon de Lancia aura elle aussi droit rapidement à sa déclinaison Chrysler,en 2013.Lancer 2 citadines sur le marché US,dont personne ne sait encore s’il est mur pour en recevoir,est un réel pari,mais Chrysler fait feu de tous bois.Et d’ailleurs on aurait bien tort de s’en priver à Auburn Hills; échanger une calandre Lancia contre une Chrysler sur un modèle ne coûte presque rien.Le risque financier n’est donc pas énorme.

 

Salon riche donc pour le nouveau Chrysler.Concrétisation de la politique de convergeance avec Lancia, quelque Ferrari ou Maserati sur le stand pour le prestige,la gamme 500 au grand complet,Abarth inclus,avec l’électrique en première comme bonus,nouveau Grand Cherokee & 300C reliftée; ça bouge enfin dans le bon sens à Auburn Hills.Il y a du Marchionne derrière tout ça…

 

Nouveau: pour profiter facilement et rapidement des notifications de nouveautés sur le site,pensez à vous abonner via Twitter.Chaque modification,nouvel article ou nouvelle vidéo sur notre chaîne Youtube,fait l’objet d’un Tweet immédiat!

When Tata Nano heard about the availability, on US soil, of a car which is cheaper than its, its headlamps fell off, and so did its self-esteem (if it had any). The rival to the cheapest car in the world title is called Kandi Coco (?), it debuted at the 2009 NADA Show, it went on sale in March has a price of only…$865.

Now, before you get your hopes up and rush to buy your own Chinese-made copy of the smart (because, yes, it is Chinese), you should know the low price may give yo… (read more)