Recent Ice-Sheet Growth in the Interior of Greenland Ola M. Johannessen, Kirill Khvorostovsky, Martin W. Miles, Leonid P. Bobylev
Abstract:
A continuous data set of Greenland Ice Sheet altimeter height from ERS-1 and ERS-2 satellites, 1992 to 2003, has been analyzed. An increase of 6.4 ± 0.2 centimeters per year is found in the vast interior areas above 1500 meters, in contrast to previous reports of high-elevation balance. Below 1500 meters, the elevation-change rate is -2.0 ± 0.9 cm/year, in qualitative agreement with reported thinning in the ice-sheet margins. The spatially averaged increase is 5.4 ± 0.2 cm/year, or ~60 cm over 11 years, or ~54 cm when corrected for isostatic uplift. Winter elevation changes are shown to be linked to the North Atlantic Oscillation.
I'm sure some will discard the Junk Science site because of its political bent. I encourage people to ignore that and look at the data he presents as well as the links to climatology articles published in scientific journals. We know far less about how climate works than we think we do.
According to Dr. Michael Briggs, who headed the UNH Biodiesel Program, about 85% of the cost of biodiesel is the feedstock (soybeans, canola, etc.). Briggs is a frequent poster at:
Until we get the cost of the feedstock down low, biodiesel will only be competetive with petrodiesel with the help of subsidies. Algae has the potential to do this, as has been noted elsewhere.
Books are not as fragile as you think, if certain materials are used. Until the mid-19th century books were printed on acid-free paper with a high rag content. These have lasted for centuries without the need for much preservation. Granted, for over 100 years they used some really crappy, acidic wood-pulp paper that tends to go brittle. But this is changing.
Computer file and physical media formats, on the other hand, change every few years. How do we maintain access to these materials under those circumstances? And not only do they change, but you need all sorts of expensive hardware and not to mention electricity and a reliable network to ensure access.
Books don't have that problem.
Yes, there are lots of advantages to electronic formats, including wider access when everything does work. But you just can't beat a physical book for sheer simplicity. And they're actually easier to read than a glowing computer screen.
In the interest of full disclosure, I'm a librarian myself. I have reservations about what Google is doing, but I'll withold judgement until I have a clearer picture of it.
This stuff has the potential to produce 20,000 gallons of biodiesel per acre per year. And you an grow it in saltwater, or the effluent streams of wastewater treatment plants.
Micro algaes present the best option for producing biodiesel in quantities sufficient to completely replace petroleum. While traditional crops have yields of around 50-150 gallons of biodiesel per acre per year, algaes can yield 5,000-20,000 gallons per acre per year. Algaes grow best off of waste streams: agricultural, animal, or human. Some other studies have looked into designing raceway algae ponds to be fed by agricultural or animal waste. We are now pursuing funding to investigate redesigning wastewater treatment plants to use raceway algae ponds as the primary treatment phase with the dual goal of treating the waste and growing algae for biodiesel extraction. We also plan to investigate the possibility of using the algae mush (what is left after extracting the oil) as a fertilizer."
Bit of a problem, here. FYI, I'm a librarian myself.
CDs cost money. The PC costs money. Libraries don't have that kind of budget. Even if only a hundred people per year make that request, the costs would include:
1) Media. Including bad burns that must be discarded. 2) Computer time. Libraries often do not have state-of-the-art equipment. The computer doing the burning might not be able to do anything else while it's running. 3) Staff time. Something that is often missed. While this could be delegated to a library assistant.
Imagine what would happen if that number increased tenfold. We're talking thousands of dollars. It would be better for them to burn one or two sets of CDs and have them available for circulation, and simply replace them when they wear out. If a patron wants to purchase a CD copy for themselves then they would have to pay for it. Or they could do it at home.
I can see this as more viable in academic library settings. OpenOffice and other Free Software alternatives will help students get the type of software they need to write papers, create presentations, etc.. For public libraries... well, that would be up to the individual library.
I'm a library science student. I'll have my MLS in December, and I've found a lot about this topic. In fact, I'm sitting in the library science library right now.
For books, the standard is that any book should last for at least 500 years (Though this is a problem, what with all the acidic wood pulp paper publishers have used since the mid-1800s). The much-hated microfilm has that same lifespan.
But we are nowhere close to finding a viable archival format for electronic information.
This is a problem. There is so much important stuff, but digital formats change so fast we can't keep up. And the reliability of computer hardware is another can of worms.
Libraries and Archives would bow down to anyone who found a format that remains viable, readable, and usable for perhaps the next century.
Speaking as a librarian-in-training, I think I should note that the DDC system isn't static. It's currently in its 21st revision (with 22 coming out soon). Because of this, the copyrights are still valid. It's a work-in-progress. It needs to change to accomodate the changing world of information.
As a library science student I have learned that there is not yet a reliable archival medium materials like this. About the only thing I can think of is film, but that's clearly not an option here. Continually changing formats and technology have made being a librarian very complicated. This stuff is fragile to boot, and its shelf life is dubious. An instructor said that he only expected his DVD to last five years.
As a historian and future librarian, one thing has always bothered me about the Internet. Because change is a constant, it's very difficult to keep records. It isn't like newspapers, pamphlets, books, or any other form of written record of the past five thousand years. Unless they're printed out, our writings here leave no physical evidence of their existance. Because I feel that the Internet is as significant as the printing press five centuries ago, the prospect of having no records from its early days is frightening.
We have books from five centuries ago. Will anything here still exist in a readable form five centuries from now? Unless something is done to preserve it, I feel there will be a massive gap in history.
And this is why I do not object to web archives. They are a half step to printed and more permanent storage mediums, but preferable to nothing at all.
I worked in a shipping store for almost three years. I must have packed everything from computers to stained glass while I worked there. And just for your information, here is how we went about doing it:
Monitor: (this method works best for 17" and smaller) Bubble wrap all around (the larger-celled kind), and a double layer in front, plus a sheet of cardboard over the screen. Put that inside a box that fits it, preferably with some space around. Jam as many peanuts in there as you possibly can. Now, put that box into a larger box that gives at least two inches _on every side._ And again overfill it with foam peanuts.
CPU et al: Gets its own box. Again big bubble wrap, and again at least two inches of peanuts should surround it on every side, if not more. I'd use a larger box and put the keyboard, cables, etc. in with it as long as they've got at least an inch of separation, also wrapped in the smaller bubble wrap.
Rinse and Repeat for any other large peripherals.
Also, look on the bottom on the box for a circular symbol that talks about "edge crush test" or something like that. That is a bonafide shipping box. I'd use a double walled box if at all possible.
Hope this helps.
And for the record, I saw my share of packeges destoryed by UPS, and dealt with irate customers.
Because most people find it difficult to think in terms of a plain text interface. Generally humans are visually oreiented. An interface with folders and file icons is far easier for the average user to deal with instead of having to remember text commands. This is why the iMac is selling so well to people who have never used a computer before. It's simple for them to use.
I believe the article is very well-written. Linux will not go into the mainstream user market until someone creates an interface that someone who has never used a computer before (and is reasonably smart) can be comfortable in a day or two.
Slashdot Mirror
Story submitter is complaining about US propaganda and then links to an article on Al Jazeera?
Yeah, that's an unbiased source.
Here is an article published last year:
1 5356v1
http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/11
Recent Ice-Sheet Growth in the Interior of Greenland
Ola M. Johannessen, Kirill Khvorostovsky, Martin W. Miles, Leonid P. Bobylev
Abstract:
A continuous data set of Greenland Ice Sheet altimeter height from ERS-1 and ERS-2 satellites, 1992 to 2003, has been analyzed. An increase of 6.4 ± 0.2 centimeters per year is found in the vast interior areas above 1500 meters, in contrast to previous reports of high-elevation balance. Below 1500 meters, the elevation-change rate is -2.0 ± 0.9 cm/year, in qualitative agreement with reported thinning in the ice-sheet margins. The spatially averaged increase is 5.4 ± 0.2 cm/year, or ~60 cm over 11 years, or ~54 cm when corrected for isostatic uplift. Winter elevation changes are shown to be linked to the North Atlantic Oscillation.
Title: "XBox 360 to the Rescue".
Quote blurb: "I have not seen a hardware/software system as well thought out as the Xbox 360 in a decade or more."
How do you explain the Little Ice Age, then?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Ice_Age
Recently I started wondering what evidence there was against human-caused global warming. I found some items on what's been going on in Alaska:
0 4Change.html
0 4Change.html
t m
c e.htm
http://climate.gi.alaska.edu/ClimTrends/Change/49
http://climate.gi.alaska.edu/ClimTrends/Change/77
The two graphs above show that the average temps rose in 1977 and have remained fairly steady ever since.
http://www.junkscience.com/MSU_Temps/Moberg2005.h
This graph shows the Little Ice Age and that today's temperatures have barely reached the Medieval Climactic Optimum.
And here's a Newsweek article from 1975 about... global cooling:
http://www.junkscience.com/apr05/coolingworld.pdf
I'm sure some will discard the Junk Science site because of its political bent. I encourage people to ignore that and look at the data he presents as well as the links to climatology articles published in scientific journals. We know far less about how climate works than we think we do.
http://www.junkscience.com/MSU_Temps/Warming_Glan
Another point of fact:
According to Dr. Michael Briggs, who headed the UNH Biodiesel Program, about 85% of the cost of biodiesel is the feedstock (soybeans, canola, etc.). Briggs is a frequent poster at:
http://www.biodieselnow.com/
Until we get the cost of the feedstock down low, biodiesel will only be competetive with petrodiesel with the help of subsidies. Algae has the potential to do this, as has been noted elsewhere.
Books are not as fragile as you think, if certain materials are used. Until the mid-19th century books were printed on acid-free paper with a high rag content. These have lasted for centuries without the need for much preservation. Granted, for over 100 years they used some really crappy, acidic wood-pulp paper that tends to go brittle. But this is changing.
Computer file and physical media formats, on the other hand, change every few years. How do we maintain access to these materials under those circumstances? And not only do they change, but you need all sorts of expensive hardware and not to mention electricity and a reliable network to ensure access.
Books don't have that problem.
Yes, there are lots of advantages to electronic formats, including wider access when everything does work. But you just can't beat a physical book for sheer simplicity. And they're actually easier to read than a glowing computer screen.
In the interest of full disclosure, I'm a librarian myself. I have reservations about what Google is doing, but I'll withold judgement until I have a clearer picture of it.
It's going into a 50,000 year solar orbit. You know, around the sun? This means its orbit will intersect with Earth's in 50,000 years. Got it?
Check out this article on the subject:
http://www.unh.edu/p2/biodiesel/article_alge.html
This stuff has the potential to produce 20,000 gallons of biodiesel per acre per year. And you an grow it in saltwater, or the effluent streams of wastewater treatment plants.
http://www.unh.edu/p2/biodiesel/goals_index.html#
And this: http://www.unh.edu/p2/biodiesel/article_alge.html
What you need to do is find the right search tool.
The Thomas Register might be more what you're looking for.
http://www.thomasnet.com/
Will they bury them next to the thousands of unsold copies off E.T. for the Atari 2600?
It would be nice if the site admins posted some kind of explanation of why it's happening.
Bit of a problem, here. FYI, I'm a librarian myself.
CDs cost money. The PC costs money. Libraries don't have that kind of budget. Even if only a hundred people per year make that request, the costs would include:
1) Media. Including bad burns that must be discarded.
2) Computer time. Libraries often do not have state-of-the-art equipment. The computer doing the burning might not be able to do anything else while it's running.
3) Staff time. Something that is often missed. While this could be delegated to a library assistant.
Imagine what would happen if that number increased tenfold. We're talking thousands of dollars. It would be better for them to burn one or two sets of CDs and have them available for circulation, and simply replace them when they wear out. If a patron wants to purchase a CD copy for themselves then they would have to pay for it. Or they could do it at home.
I can see this as more viable in academic library settings. OpenOffice and other Free Software alternatives will help students get the type of software they need to write papers, create presentations, etc.. For public libraries... well, that would be up to the individual library.
I'm a library science student. I'll have my MLS in December, and I've found a lot about this topic. In fact, I'm sitting in the library science library right now.
For books, the standard is that any book should last for at least 500 years (Though this is a problem, what with all the acidic wood pulp paper publishers have used since the mid-1800s). The much-hated microfilm has that same lifespan.
But we are nowhere close to finding a viable archival format for electronic information.
This is a problem. There is so much important stuff, but digital formats change so fast we can't keep up. And the reliability of computer hardware is another can of worms.
Libraries and Archives would bow down to anyone who found a format that remains viable, readable, and usable for perhaps the next century.
Speaking as a librarian-in-training, I think I should note that the DDC system isn't static. It's currently in its 21st revision (with 22 coming out soon). Because of this, the copyrights are still valid. It's a work-in-progress. It needs to change to accomodate the changing world of information.
As a library science student I have learned that there is not yet a reliable archival medium materials like this. About the only thing I can think of is film, but that's clearly not an option here. Continually changing formats and technology have made being a librarian very complicated. This stuff is fragile to boot, and its shelf life is dubious. An instructor said that he only expected his DVD to last five years.
As a historian and future librarian, one thing has always bothered me about the Internet. Because change is a constant, it's very difficult to keep records. It isn't like newspapers, pamphlets, books, or any other form of written record of the past five thousand years. Unless they're printed out, our writings here leave no physical evidence of their existance. Because I feel that the Internet is as significant as the printing press five centuries ago, the prospect of having no records from its early days is frightening.
We have books from five centuries ago. Will anything here still exist in a readable form five centuries from now? Unless something is done to preserve it, I feel there will be a massive gap in history.
And this is why I do not object to web archives. They are a half step to printed and more permanent storage mediums, but preferable to nothing at all.
I worked in a shipping store for almost three years. I must have packed everything from computers to stained glass while I worked there. And just for your information, here is how we went about doing it:
Monitor: (this method works best for 17" and smaller) Bubble wrap all around (the larger-celled kind), and a double layer in front, plus a sheet of cardboard over the screen. Put that inside a box that fits it, preferably with some space around. Jam as many peanuts in there as you possibly can. Now, put that box into a larger box that gives at least two inches _on every side._ And again overfill it with foam peanuts.
CPU et al: Gets its own box. Again big bubble wrap, and again at least two inches of peanuts should surround it on every side, if not more. I'd use a larger box and put the keyboard, cables, etc. in with it as long as they've got at least an inch of separation, also wrapped in the smaller bubble wrap.
Rinse and Repeat for any other large peripherals.
Also, look on the bottom on the box for a circular symbol that talks about "edge crush test" or something like that. That is a bonafide shipping box. I'd use a double walled box if at all possible.
Hope this helps.
And for the record, I saw my share of packeges destoryed by UPS, and dealt with irate customers.
Because most people find it difficult to think in terms of a plain text interface. Generally humans are visually oreiented. An interface with folders and file icons is far easier for the average user to deal with instead of having to remember text commands. This is why the iMac is selling so well to people who have never used a computer before. It's simple for them to use.
I believe the article is very well-written. Linux will not go into the mainstream user market until someone creates an interface that someone who has never used a computer before (and is reasonably smart) can be comfortable in a day or two.
--JonBuck