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This information is produced and provided by the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The information in this topic may have changed since it was written. For the most current information, contact the National Cancer Institute via the Internet web site at http://cancer.gov or call 1-800-4-CANCER.
Separate PDQ summaries on Lung Cancer Prevention, Small Cell Lung Cancer Treatment, Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Treatment, and Levels of Evidence for Cancer Screening and Prevention Studies are also available.
Evidence of Benefit Associated With Screening
Screening by low-dose helical computed tomography
There is evidence that screening persons aged 55 to 74 years who have cigarette smoking histories of 30 or more pack-years and who, if they are former smokers, have quit within the last 15 years reduces lung cancer mortality by 20% and all-cause mortality by 6.7%.
Magnitude of Effect: 20% relative reduction in lung cancer–specific mortality.
Based on solid evidence, screening would lead to false-positive tests in approximately one-quarter of those screened. Most abnormalities would be monitored radiographically. However, persons with false-positive screens and overdiagnosed cancers would be exposed to unnecessary invasive diagnostic procedures and treatments. Because of comorbidities among the heaviest smokers and those who have smoked for long periods of time, complications associated with invasive diagnostic procedures and therapy may be more frequent in these groups.
Magnitude of Effect: Positive. Magnitude is a 20% relative reduction in lung cancer–specific mortality and a 6.7% reduction in overall mortality.
Evidence of No Benefit Associated With Screening
Screening by chest x-ray and/or sputum cytology
Based on solid evidence, screening with chest x-ray and/or sputum cytology does not reduce mortality from lung cancer in the general population or in ever-smokers.
Magnitude of Effect: No evidence of effect.
False positive exams
Based on solid evidence, at least 95% of all positive chest x-ray screening exams (but not all) do not result in a lung cancer diagnosis. False-positive exams result in unnecessary invasive diagnostic procedures.
Based on solid evidence, some lung cancers detected by screening chest x-ray and/or sputum cytology appear to represent overdiagnosed cancer. Because of comorbidities, harms of diagnostic procedures and treatment may be most frequent among long-term and/or heavy smokers.
Magnitude of Effect: When calculated as the ratio of all lung cancer cases in the intervention arm to those in the control arm (percent excess cases), the magnitude of overdiagnosis ranges from 6% to 17% .
Incidence and mortality
Lung cancer is the most commonly occurring noncutaneous cancer in men and women combined in the United States and is the leading cause of cancer deaths. In 2012 alone, it is estimated that there will be 226,160 new cases diagnosed, and 72,590 women and 87,750 men will die from this disease. The lung cancer death rate rose rapidly over several decades in both sexes, with a persistent decline for men commencing in 1991. From 2004 to 2008, death rates decreased by 2.6% per year in men and by 0.9% per year in women.[1]
Risk factors
Tobacco use, second hand smoke, and other risk factors
The most important risk factor for lung cancer (as for many other cancers) is tobacco use.[2,3] Cigarette smoking has been definitively established by epidemiologic and preclinical animal experimental data as the primary cause of lung cancer. This causative link has been widely recognized since the 1960s, when national reports in Great Britain and the United States brought the cancer risk of smoking prominently to the public's attention.[3] The percentages of lung cancers estimated to be caused by tobacco smoking in males and females are 90% and 78%, respectively.
Environmental or secondhand tobacco smoke is also implicated in causing lung cancer.[4] Environmental tobacco smoke has the same components as inhaled mainstream smoke, although in lower absolute concentrations; between 1% and 10%, depending on the constituent. Carcinogenic compounds in tobacco smoke include the polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), including the classical carcinogen benzo[a]pyrene and the nicotine-derived tobacco-specific nitrosamine, 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone (NNK). In rodents, total doses of both PAH and NNK that are similar to doses received by humans in a lifetime of smoking induce pulmonary tumors.[5] Elevated biomarkers of tobacco exposure, including urinary cotinine, tobacco-related carcinogen metabolites, and carcinogen-protein adducts, are seen in passive or secondhand smokers.[6,7,8,9,10]
Many other exposures have been established as causally associated with lung cancer, but even the combined effect of these additional factors is very small compared with cigarette smoking.[11] These additional causal factors are primarily related to occupational exposures to agents such as asbestos, arsenic, chromium, nickel, and radon.[11] Radon, a naturally occurring gas, is of relevance to the general public because of the potential exposure in homes.[11]
Evidence of benefit associated with screening
There have been intensive efforts to improve lung cancer screening with newer technologies, including low-dose helical computed tomography (LDCT) and molecular techniques.[12,13] LDCT was shown to be more sensitive than chest radiography. In the Early Lung Cancer Action Project (ELCAP),[13] LDCT detected almost six times as many stage I lung cancers as chest radiography, and most of these tumors were no larger than 1 cm in diameter. The ability of LDCT to reduce lung cancer mortality was demonstrated in the randomized, controlled National Lung Screening Trial (NLST): a statistically significant relative reduction of 20% in lung cancer mortality was observed, as was a statistically significant 6.7% relative reduction in all-cause mortality.[14]
Eight observational studies of LDCT in various parts of the world have been reported and summarized.[15] These are relatively small studies, ranging from about 600 to 8,000 participants, which began between 1992 and 2000. Most of the studies include a substantial percentage of females, and the studies in Japan include nonsmokers. Findings include a nodule or positivity rate of 5% to 51%, 0.4% to 3% lung cancers, 50% to 95% adenocarcinomas, 50% to 91% stage I or IA cancers, and estimates of sensitivity ranging from 40% to 95%.
False-positive test results and overdiagnosis must be considered when lung cancer screening with LDCT is being evaluated. The false-positive test result, which is more common than overdiagnosis, may lead to anxiety and invasive diagnostic procedures such as percutaneous needle biopsy or thoracotomy. In the ELCAP study,[13] which used a CT slice thickness of 10 mm, noncalcified nodules were detected in 21% of patients without lung cancer at the prevalence screen. Thirty-one (13%) of 233 individuals with noncalcified nodules underwent biopsies, of which close to 90% (27 of 31 patients) resulted in a diagnosis of malignancy, and the prevalence of cancers detected was 2.7%.
In a case series that defined the population at high risk of lung cancer by occupations associated with asbestos exposure, 58% accepted an invitation to participate in an LDCT screening program. The ELCAP screening protocol was applied in 1,119 asbestos-exposed people whose average age was 57 years. Twenty-five biopsies resulted in the detection of one stage IA and four late stage lung cancers. The authors concluded the screening program was not able to replicate the ELCAP results and was not cost effective for lung cancer screening in this population.[16]
A study in Ireland,[17] which aimed to reproduce the ELCAP study in high-risk but younger individuals, revealed a similar proportion of noncalcified nodules were detected using 10 mm CT slice thickness. In the Irish study (N = 449), however, the prevalence of cancers detected was substantially smaller (0.46%). Furthermore, several individuals underwent invasive procedures for ultimately benign conditions (three of four patients with nodules >10 mm who underwent biopsy had benign cytology; one had a thoracotomy that confirmed benign disease; three patients with mediastinal masses underwent biopsy and two had benign cysts). In two other studies, which used 5 mm CT slices, noncalcified nodules were detected in a much higher proportion of patients.[18,19]
In the Mayo Clinic study,[18] noncalcified nodules were detected in 51% of 1,520 patients at the prevalence screen and cumulatively in 74% after five subsequent annual screens.[20] Ninety-five percent of these nodules were less than 8 mm in diameter, for which the recommended follow-up was noncontrast CT in 3 to 6 months. However, eight patients had surgery for benign lesions, five of which appeared to grow on follow-up CT. In addition, screening with LDCT can detect abnormalities other than noncalcified nodules, including enlarged lymph nodes, abdominal aortic aneurysms, and renal and adrenal masses. During the first three rounds of screening in the Mayo Clinic study, 696 such abnormalities were found in the 1,520 patients.
In a 2008 systematic review of chest CT lung cancer screening studies, the mean proportion of patients with any incidental abnormality was 65.2% (95% confidence interval [CI], 63.5%–66.9%). The mean proportion of patients with clinically significant incidental findings—defined as any abnormality considered to require additional diagnostic workup—was 14.2% (95% CI, 13.2%–15.2%).[21] It is not clear whether the detection of these abnormalities produces a net benefit or a net harm.[18]
A less familiar harm is overdiagnosis,[22] the diagnosis of a condition that would not have become clinically significant had it not been detected by screening. In the case of screening with LDCT, overdiagnosis could lead to unnecessary diagnosis of lung cancer requiring some combination of surgery (e.g., lobectomy), chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. Although overdiagnosis is almost impossible to document in a living individual, autopsy studies suggest that many individuals die with lung cancer rather than from it. In one study, about one-sixth of all lung cancers found at autopsy had not been clinically recognized before death.[23] Even this may be an underestimate because autopsy probably fails to detect many small lung cancers that are detectable by CT.[24] Studies in Japan provide additional evidence that screening with LDCT could lead to a substantial amount of overdiagnosis.[25] In a study in which smokers and nonsmokers were annually screened for lung cancer between 1996 and 1998 using LDCT, the overall rate of screen-detected lung cancers was very similar in the two groups: 0.46% for smokers (mainly men) and 0.41% for nonsmokers (mainly women).[26] The nonsmoking group may have included individuals who were at an elevated risk for lung cancers for other reasons, but no information is provided on this point. A second study involving both smokers and nonsmokers reported a similar finding of a 1.1% lung cancer detection rate in both groups.[27] Confirmative studies are needed to establish the level of overdiagnosis that might be associated with CT screening for lung cancer. In that same population, the volume-doubling times of 61 lung cancers were estimated using an exponential model and successive CT images. Lesions were classified into three types: (1) type G (ground glass opacity), (2) type GS (focal glass opacity with a solid central component), and (3) type S (solid nodule). The mean-doubling times were 813 days, 457 days, and 149 days for types G, GS, and S, respectively. In this study, annual CT screening identified a large number of slowly growing adenocarcinomas that were not visible on chest x-ray.[28]
With completion of the NLST, there is now evidence that screening with LDCT can reduce lung cancer mortality risk in ever-smokers who have smoked 30 pack-years or more. The NLST included 33 centers across the United States. Eligible participants were between the ages of 55 years and 74 years at the time of randomization, had a history of at least 30 pack-years of cigarette smoking, and, if former smokers, had quit within the past 15 years. A total of 53,454 persons were enrolled; 26,722 persons were randomly assigned to screening with LDCT and 26,732 persons were randomly assigned to screening with chest x-ray. Any noncalcified nodule found on LDCT measuring at least 4 mm in any diameter and x-ray images with any noncalcified nodule or mass were classified as positive, although radiologists had the option of not calling a final screen positive if a noncalcified nodule had been stable on the three screening exams. The LDCT group had a substantially higher rate of positive screening tests than did the radiography group (round 1, 27.3% vs. 9.2%; round 2, 27.9% vs. 6.2%; and round 3, 16.8% vs. 5.0%). Overall, 39.1% of participants in the LDCT group and 16.0% in the radiography group had at least one positive screening result. Of those who screened positive, the false-positive rate was 96.4% in the LDCT group and 94.5% in the chest radiography group. This was consistent across all three rounds.[14]
In the LDCT group, 649 cancers were diagnosed after a positive screening test, 44 after a negative screening test, and 367 among participants who either missed the screening or received the diagnosis after the completion of the screening phase. In the radiography group, 279 cancers were diagnosed after a positive screening test, 137 after a negative screening test, and 525 among participants who either missed the screening or received the diagnosis after the completion of the screening phase. A total of 356 and 443 deaths from lung cancer occurred in the LDCT and chest x-ray groups, respectively, with a relative reduction in the rate of death from lung cancer of 20.0% (95% CI, 6.8–26.7) with LDCT screening. Overall mortality was reduced by 6.7% (95% CI, 1.2–13.6). The number needed to screen with low-dose CT to prevent one death from lung cancer was 320.[14]
Other randomized controlled trials of LDCT are under way in a number of countries.[29] Furthermore, NLST data are being analyzed to examine other important issues in lung cancer screening, including cost effectiveness, quality of life, and whether screening would benefit individuals younger than those enrolled in NLST and those with fewer than 30 pack-years of smoking exposure.
A Guide has been developed to help patients and physicians assess the benefits and harms of LDCT screening for lung cancer.[30]
Evidence of no benefit associated with screening
The question of lung cancer screening dates back to the 1950s. Five studies of chest imaging, two of which were controlled, were undertaken during the 1950s and 1960s.[31,32,33,34,35,36,37,38] Two included sputum cytology as well.[31,32,33,34,35] The results of these studies suggested no overall benefit of screening, although design limitations prevented the studies from providing definitive evidence.
In the early 1970s, the National Cancer Institute funded the Cooperative Early Lung Cancer Detection Program,[39] which was designed to assess the ability of screening with radiologic chest imaging and sputum cytology to reduce lung cancer mortality in male smokers. The program comprised three separate randomized controlled trials, each enrolling about 10,000 male participants aged 45 years and older who smoked at least one pack of cigarettes a day in the previous year. One study was conducted at the Mayo Clinic,[40,41,42] one at Johns Hopkins University,[43,44,45] and one at Memorial Sloan-Kettering.[45,46,47,48] The Hopkins and Sloan-Kettering studies employed the same design: persons randomly assigned to the intervention arm received sputum cytology every 4 months and annual chest imaging, while persons randomly assigned to the control arm received annual chest imaging. Neither study observed a reduction in lung cancer mortality with screening.[45] The two studies were interpreted as showing no benefit of frequent sputum cytology when added to an annual regimen of chest x-ray.
The design of the Mayo Clinic study (known as the Mayo Lung Project, or MLP), was different. All potential participants were screened with chest imaging and sputum cytology, and those known or suspected to have lung cancer, as well as those in poor health, were excluded. Remaining persons were randomly assigned to either an intervention arm that received chest imaging and sputum cytology every 4 months for 6 years, or to a control arm that received a one-time recommendation at trial entry to receive the same tests on an annual basis. No reduction in lung cancer mortality was observed. The MLP was interpreted in the 1970s as showing no benefit of an intense screening regimen with chest x-ray and sputum cytology. The Czechoslovakian study began with a prevalence screen (chest imaging and sputum cytology) of 6,364 males aged 40 to 64 years who were current smokers with a lifetime consumption of at least 150,000 cigarettes.[49,50] All participants except the 18 diagnosed with lung cancer as a result of the prevalence screen were randomly assigned to one of two arms: an intervention arm, which received semi-annual screening for 3 years, or a control arm, which received screening during the third year only. The investigators reported 19 lung cancer deaths in the intervention arm and 13 in the control arm, and concluded that frequent screening was not necessary.
At the end of the 1980s, the relationship between screening with chest imaging (using traditional chest x-ray) and lung cancer mortality was not well understood. Although previous studies showed no benefit, they were not definitive, partly due to lack of statistical power. A multiphasic trial with ample statistical power, the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal and Ovarian (PLCO) Cancer Screening Trial,[51] began in 1992. PLCO enrolled 154,901 participants aged 55 to 74 years, including women (50%) and never smokers (45%). Half were randomly assigned to screening, and the other half were advised to receive their usual medical care. PLCO had 90% power to detect a 20% reduction in lung cancer mortality.
The lung component of PLCO addressed the question of whether annual single-view (posterior-anterior) chest x-ray was capable of reducing lung cancer mortality as compared with usual medical care. When the study began, all participants randomly assigned to screening were invited to receive a baseline and three annual chest x-ray screens, although the protocol ultimately was changed to screen never-smokers only three times. At 13 years of follow-up, 1,213 lung cancer deaths were observed in the intervention group, compared with 1,230 lung cancer deaths in the usual-care group (mortality relative risk, 0.99; 95% CI, 0.87–1.22). Sub-analyses suggested no differential effect by sex or smoking status.
Given the abundance and consistency of evidence, as well as the lack of benefit observed in the PLCO trial, it is appropriate to conclude that lung cancer screening with chest x-ray and/or sputum cytology, regardless of sex or smoking status, does not reduce lung cancer mortality.
The PDQ cancer information summaries are reviewed regularly and updated as new information becomes available. This section describes the latest changes made to this summary as of the date above.
This summary was comprehensively reviewed and extensively revised.
Description of the Evidence
Added text to state that a guide has been developed to help patients and physicians assess the benefits and harms of low-dose helical computed tomography (cited Woloshin et al. as reference 30).
This summary is written and maintained by the PDQ Screening and Prevention Editorial Board, which is editorially independent of NCI. The summary reflects an independent review of the literature and does not represent a policy statement of NCI or NIH. More information about summary policies and the role of the PDQ Editorial Boards in maintaining the PDQ summaries can be found on the About This PDQ Summary and PDQ NCI's Comprehensive Cancer Database pages.
If you have questions or comments about this summary, please send them to Cancer.gov through the Web site's Contact Form. We can respond only to email messages written in English.
Purpose of This Summary
This PDQ cancer information summary for health professionals provides comprehensive, peer-reviewed, evidence-based information about lung cancer screening. It is intended as a resource to inform and assist clinicians who care for cancer patients. It does not provide formal guidelines or recommendations for making health care decisions.
Reviewers and Updates
This summary is reviewed regularly and updated as necessary by the PDQ Screening and Prevention Editorial Board, which is editorially independent of the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The summary reflects an independent review of the literature and does not represent a policy statement of NCI or the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
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Some of the reference citations in this summary are accompanied by a level-of-evidence designation. These designations are intended to help readers assess the strength of the evidence supporting the use of specific interventions or approaches. The PDQ Screening and Prevention Editorial Board uses a formal evidence ranking system in developing its level-of-evidence designations.
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National Cancer Institute: PDQ® Lung Cancer Screening. Bethesda, MD: National Cancer Institute. Date last modified <MM/DD/YYYY>. Available at: http://cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/screening/lung/HealthProfessional. Accessed <MM/DD/YYYY>.
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By now you've probably already heard about (or even visited) "oxygen bars" – a phenomenon that first saw the light of day in 1996 in Toronto, Canada. Now imagine a future where you could enter portable pavilions with air purified by algae. Designed by Ádám Miklósi, Chlorella combines algae photosynthesis with oxygen therapy to create a fresh air oasis for future urban environments.
The 'Chlorella' concept is a response to the environmental challenges that we are facing already and what the future might hold for humanity. Statistics from the World Health Organization show that 60% of the earth's population will live in big cities in 2030, and maintaining good air quality will pose an increasing challenge. The Amazonian rainforest is also expected to decrease in size by 55% by 2030 due to deforestation, in turn leading to 55-97 billion tons of unabsorbed carbon-dioxide pollution.
The project lends inspiration from the Russian 'CELSS' (Controlled Ecological Life Support System) study in which chlorella algaes were used to recycle exhaled Co2 from humans into necessary oxygen. The algaes replenished the air with oxygen through photosynthesis supported by artificial lighting.
The structure utilizes semi-transparent teflon membranes to create a 'semi-disconnection' from the outside world by reducing noise, voices, and visual impressions. The pavilion acts as an urban shelter against outside air pollution. The heart of the design is a series of photobioreactors which consist of a network of transparent plastic tubes. The photobioreactors are filled with 5 cubic meters of air-purifying, oxygen-producing algae.
In the center of the space there is an algae fountain surrounded by ten rail-bound relaxation chairs placed in a circular fashion. Artificial lighting is supported by solar panels placed on top of the pavilion to keep energy use to a minimum.
Users can change the position of the chairs by moving them along the rail to create a social or secluded personal space, and they can choose to gaze inwards to the algae fountain or out to the vibrant city life on the outside.
Images © Ádám Miklósi

subset: commoncrawl


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Description:Air Jordan 3 was released in February in 1988, Michael racks up every major honor in the league, defending his Slam-Dunk title, selection to the First Team, the All-Defensive First Team, All-Star Game MVP Award, Defensive Player of the Year, and the league MVP Award. He leads Chicago past the first round of the playoffs and serves notice that this team must not be taken lightly. The new shoe was excellent. Tinker Hatfield designed it as it wad totally different from the AJ I and II and was the first pair of Air Jordan's that showed a visible air sole. Behind it stood Tinker Hatfield who since then has designed every Air Jordan model up to the 15th. This was also the very first Air Jordan to feature the Jumpman logotype instead of the Wings-logo that was on the I's and II's. Nike created a personality ad campaign featuring the Mars Blackmon character that was created and played by director/actor Spike Lee. Air Jordan's all packaging time and features: In 1988, Original packing came in a black box with elephant print at the bottom; the tissue is special elephant print, and booklet and a pair of "Anatomical Arch Support". In 1994, the packaging came in a colorful box, with special tissue paper, and postcard. And in 2001, the retros came in a Jordan face box with plain paper wrap.What a nice shoes is Air Jordan 3 (III) Glow In The Dark Tan Pink White 2013, why not to pick up your favorite shoes!
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Chat Moderator
In case you haven't heard, Inceptum Terminus: Chronicles of the New Confederation setting book has been delayed until next summer for publication. The delay has forced me to stop working on support for the game setting like the Mass Combat Rules supplement. I'm still eager to test out my ideas for mass combat powered by Hero System. The early test games were very positive since Hero System can handle miniature wargaming just fine and better than some of the rule systems I've played in the past.
Howdy folks,
I was just sent the finalized version of the Inceptum Terminus: Chronicles of the New Confederation logo. I think it turned out really well and captured the feel of the setting perfectly. Feel free to leave comments.
Heyas folks,
Work has been coming along for the next book in the Inceptum Terminus product line. The next book will feature the integration and use of the Hero System Kingdom and Mass Combat rules. It won't be a very large book, but it will add in more detail to the Corporate States, units and their histories, and new optional mass combat rules to help simulate modern warfare better.
I received a lot of advice from a few friends that had served in the military on
Yesterday I spent the entire day writing the outline for the next book in the Inceptum Terminus product line. The goal of the book is to add my and my co-owner's love of wargames into our role playing setting. I'm quite pleased with the results of the outline.
In mid-December my main desktop decides that the motherboard is going to fail. I sent it back for replacement and I sent back the cpu as well. Due to a mix up I didn't get the cpu until the day before yesterday and put the system together. I'm excited because I can stop using the old Compaq desktop and hit the power switch. The lights and fans come on for a split second then powers off. Great another dead motherboard, so I had to send it back and wait for another replacement.
The downside


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Irresistible OREO® Black & White Cookie Pie
Everybody loves OREO® cookies! This delectable cookie pie pays homage to the famous cookie classic. OREO® cookie lovers will delight in the appetizing sweet white crème that sits atop a rich butter cookie crust and is then garnished with genuine OREO® cookie pieces for an irresistible classic treat. Each cookie pie is lovingly hand-crafted in small batches. This unique twist on a cookie classic is sure to please!


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Emily Lakdawalla • August 13, 2009
I've received a half-dozen emails asking why there hasn't been anything on the blog yet about the Jupiter impact. The answer: there's only one of me! But now I'm finally getting to the story, nearly a month after it happened. There is one advantage to being so late to the party: I can tell you about what's happened since the discovery.
On July 19, 2009, fifteen years almost to the day after comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 struck Jupiter, an amateur astronomer named Anthony Wesley pointed his home telescope (located in Murrumbateman, New South Wales, Australia) at Jupiter. Wesley's setup looks serious but I'm sure there are plenty of other amateurs out there with scopes just as spiffy; Wesley was in the right place on Earth at the right time to be the first one to the discovery.Jupiter is a popular target just now for amateur astronomers, for two reasons: opposition is tomorrow (meaning it's relatively close to Earth and a brilliant target high in the sky at night), and its equinox was on June 22 (which means its moons cast shadows on the planet, a fun thing to try to observe). Wesley been observing Jupiter since 11 pm local time (1300 UTC) and was debating quitting for the night shortly after midnight because the "seeing" (astronomer-ese for the quality of sky conditions for observing) had deteriorated; instead, he took a half-hour break. I'll continue the story in Wesley's own words:
When I came back to the scope at about 12:40 am [14:40 UTC] I noticed a dark spot rotating into view in Jupiter's south polar region [and] started to get curious. When first seen close to the limb (and in poor conditions) it was only a vaguely dark spot, I thought [it] likely to be just a normal dark polar storm. However as it rotated further into view, and the conditions improved I suddenly realised that it wasn't just dark, it was black in all channels, meaning it was truly a black spot.Wesley's 14.5-inch scope produced the lovely image below. A photo posted to spaceweather.com by David Kolb dating from 00:22 on July 18 shows no impact mark in the same location, confirming that it was a new feature.
My next thought was that it must be either a dark moon (like Callisto) or a moon shadow, but it was in the wrong place and the wrong size. Also I'd noticed it was moving too slow to be a moon or shadow. As far as I could see it was rotating in sync with a nearby white oval storm that I was very familiar with - this could only mean that the back feature was at the cloud level and not a projected shadow from a moon. I started to get excited.
It took another 15 minutes to really believe that I was seeing something new - I'd imaged that exact region only 2 days earlier and checking back to that image showed no sign of any anomalous black spot.
Now I was caught between a rock and a hard place - I wanted to keep imaging but also I was aware of the importance of alerting others to this possible new event. Could it actually be an impact mark on Jupiter? I had no real idea, and the odds on that happening were so small as to be laughable, but I was really struggling to see any other possibility given the location of the mark. If it really was an impact mark then I had to start telling people, and quickly. In the end I imaged for another 30 minutes only because the conditions were slowly improving and each capture was giving a slightly better image than the last.
Eventually I stopped imaging and went up to the house to start emailing people, with this image above processed as quick and dirty as possible just to have something to show.
A corroborating observation of the new feature came 10 hours later from amateur astronomer António Cidadão, who photographed Jupiter in the near-infrared (specifically, at 889 nm, a "methane absorption band") and found it to appear bright, meaning that it was located high in the atmosphere. You can see a small version of his image here; I wasn't able to locate a higher-resolution version.
Another 10 hours later -- nearly a full Earth's rotation -- Jupiter came into view from Hawaii, where professional astronomer Glenn Orton just happened to be observing Jupiter using the Infrared Telescope Facility on Mauna Kea. "We were extremely lucky to be seeing Jupiter at exactly the right time, the right hour, the right side of Jupiter to witness the event. We couldn't have planned it better," Orton said in a JPL press release. Their image was taken at a wavelength longer than Cidadão's, 1.65 microns. (1.65 microns is also known as "H band" and is the wavelength of a "window" through Earth's atmosphere, where water vapor is not strongly absorbing.) According to the release, the wavelength is "sensitive to sunlight reflected from high in Jupiter's atmosphere." In other words, the bright spot indicates the presence of a new something, loacted in the uppermost atmosphere. In this image, south is at the bottom.The JPL release also states that they observed Jupiter in mid-infrared wavelengths and detected "a warming of the upper troposphere with possible extra emission from ammonia gas detected at mid-infrared wavelengths." The release goes to trouble to give props to a telescope operator: "The observations were made possible in large measure by the extraordinary efforts of the Infrared Telescope Facility staff, including telescope operator William Golisch, who adroitly moved three instruments in and out of the field during the short time the scar was visible on the planet, providing the wide wavelength coverage."
The next astronomer who already had time on the right kind of major telescope at the right time of night appears to have been Paul Kalas, who (along with Michael Fitzgerald) was lucky enough be at the Keck II telescope. They were planning to study a Jupiter-sized planet orbiting Fomalhaut, but shifted gears quickly when they read about the impact on the blog of Franck Marchis, another astronomer. They collaborated with Marchis to develop the best imaging plan. Marchis has a lengthy post on what developed, including more images. Among other things, Marchis says they were able to repeat the observations 4 hours later, which allowed them to determine that "there is no additional impact features on Jupiter. So whatever hit Jupiter this time was not a disrupted with multiple fragment comet like Shoemaker-Levy 9."The next major telescope to observe the impact site was Gemini North, in Hawaii, on July 22. This was just about exactly three days after Wesley's initial observation. Unlike previous observations, this one was taken in thermal infrared wavelengths, and even three days after the impact the area was warmly glowing. In the release, astronomer Imke de Pater says it took "a heroic effort to get these data. We were on the telescope observing within 24 hours of contacting the observatory." The release also says that "By using the full set of Gemini images taken over a range of wavelengths from 8 to 18 microns, the team will be able to disentangle the effects of temperature, ammonia abundance, and upper atmospheric aerosol content. Comparing these Gemini observations with past and future images will permit the team to study the evolution of features as Jupiter's strong winds disperse them." The next big observatory to the punch was Hubble. This is pretty incredible, considering that the Servicing Mission was only completed in May; and the image was taken with one of the new instruments, the Wide Field Camera 3. They haven't even had time to fully calibrate it -- they had to interrupt the checkout process to get this shot. This wasn't the first image taken with WFC3, but it was the first to be released to the public. It was taken on July 23 at 19:00 UT, about five days after Wesley's discovery, and is the first one I've posted here since Wesley's original that shows the impact site in natural color (that is, approximately as the human eye would see it). In the explanation accompanying the images on the Hubble website, Amy Simon-Miller explains "that the details seen in the Hubble view shows a lumpiness to the debris plume caused by turbulence in Jupiter's atmosphere. The spot is presently twice the length of the United States." Also, "the diameter of the object that slammed into Jupiter was at least the size of several football fields," by which I am guessing they mean in the neighborhood of 300 to 500 meters in diameter. Both the Gemini and Hubble releases stated that the appearance of the impact mark bore striking similarities to the appearance of the Shoemaker-Levy 9 impact (except that there is only one mark this time around, whereas SL9 had broken into numerous pieces that made separate marks). To review what SL9 looked like, you can check out this helpful website from the University of Central Florida (scroll down to the bottom).
That's the last of the major telescope facilities to have issued releases. Some images from the Very Large Telescope in Chile have shown up at Franck Marchis' blog, though.
All this time, of course, there have been plenty of amateurs pointing their scopes at Jupiter (they now have three good reasons to do so!) The best place I know to check for collected amateur images is spaceweather.com. Here's a shot from discoverer Anthony Wesley dated July 24:A few hours later, a Spanish amateur, Juan Miguel González Polo, captured this lovely animation: Here's a very pretty one by David Kolb of Lawrence, Kansas, taken on July 26. Franck Marchis also posted on his blog another near-infrared image, this one from the Telescopio Nazional Galileo, a 3.5-meter instrument in the Canary Islands.
By the 28th, amateurs were reporting the mark to have elongated, developing two distinct lobes. Here's a pretty picture taken by Brazilian Fabio Carvalho on the 29th:The impact mark has continued to spread, lighten, and change shape. By August 1, amateurs were describing its shape as having a "hole" or perhaps as a "curlicue," and appeared to be fainter than before. By August 7, it had split into three distinct clouds. Many of the best amateur images were collected by German astronomer Hans Joerg Mettig and converted into polar projections; then Theo Ramakers assembled the polar views together into the movie below, which was posted on spaceweather.com on August 8. It didn't say what the spacing between images was but I am guessing it is approximately one day per frame, keeping in mind that the images were taken from spots all over the world at varying times of night so wouldn't be precisely one day apart. I think it's appropriate to close this too-lengthy entry with some words from Franck Marchis, in response to a common question: how often should this kind of event happen?
This is a very difficult question, and I am not sure I can provide a response. It is evident that amateur astronomers are equipped with state-to-art cameras which should allow them to detect these events more often. Because the planetary science community does not have a survey telescopes dedicated to observe the planets (unfortunately), we entirely rely on the contribution of amateur astronomers to detect these impacts. This is also true for detecting supernovae, recording light curves of asteroids and astrometric positions of near Earth asteroids. It is quite possible that over the last 15 years we have missed most of them. The future will tell us the frequency of these events, we need to keep the amateur astronomy [community] around the world motivated to make sure that these Giant planets are often observed, not only for the science, but also for their beauty and for inspiring the young generation.


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A scrap of Western Kentucky history
Tonight at work, an elderly gentleman told me about an old book he owns. It's an antique paperback -- I think he said it has 60 pages -- and it's deteriorating. He wants his son, a chiropractor, to scan it and preserve it digitally.
The book describes the life and medical practice of Dr. Jesse Beck, a physician of the Civil War era in Woodville, KY. It was written by Beck's grandson.
My customer told me a little about the doctor as described in the book. Dr. Beck was a holistic physician; he believed that the health of body, mind, and spirit are interdependent.
Dr. Beck was also an herbalist who concocted many of his own medicines. Every year, he traveled to a distant city herbal market and bought back herbs from all over the world. One of his most popular and effective remedies was an herbal emetic; patients took the medicine and vomited out any poisons threatening their health.
After I got home tonight, I looked for information about Dr. Jesse Beck on the internet. I found him mentioned twice in History and Families, McCracken County, Kentucky, 1824-1989. The book's section on Woodville history says that Dr. Beck came to Woodville, KY, in 1852 from Todd County, KY.
The McCracken County history book mentions Dr. Beck again in the life history of Walter Elmo Jenkins. (Jenkins's wife, Alma, was Dr. Beck's niece.) Dr. Beck is described as a "botanic doctor" who was living near Woodville in December,1852, in a cabin with a split log floor and a few basic pieces of furniture.
For lack of a better image and more information, I'll imagine Dr. Beck as "The Country Doctor", in the old print that we, the people of the United States, keep at the Library of Congress.


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of power
5.9 million M3 day
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We are a developer, investor, co-owner and operator of a portfolio of power and desalinated water
ACWA Power Projects formed in 2004, the forerunner of present day ACWA Power
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Our integrated Health, Safety & Environmental management system meet IFC's guidelines
Corporate social responsibility is interwoven into our business model
Please click here to read our Sustainability Reports
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Our Annual Reports highlight our operations and activities since 2009
ACWA 39 Bonds
We invite you to stay in contact with our IR team if you have any questions
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The people working for ACWA Power remain the key pillars of our success
The 100MW Redstone concentrated solar thermal power (CSP) plant, which forms part of the South African Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer (REIPP) Procurement Program, is the first project financed CSP with molten salt central receiver project in the world and one of the largest investments in South Africa under the REIPP.
Redstone with 12 hours of full-load energy storage will be able to reliably deliver a stable electricity supply to more than 200,000 South African homes during peak demand periods, even well after the sun has set.
Bokpoort CSP is a greenfield Independent Power Project (IPP) which is an integral part of South...
The 950 MW hybrid project (700MW CSP & 250MW PV) fourth phase of the Mohammed Bin Rashid...
The 160 MW NOORo I CSP Project is a greenfield IPP and the first of several projects planned...
The 200 MW NOORo II CSP Project is a greenfield IPP to be developed as the second project for...
The 150 MW NOORo III CSP Project is a greenfield IPP to be developed as the third project for...


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If you are considering starting a new business in Cheltenham Township, or if you have questions about how to open a business in the Township, we are available and ready to help. This checklist provides an overview of steps needed to get started.
The first key first step is to contact the Cheltenham Township Planning & Zoning Department either by stopping by the Cheltenham Township Administration Building, located at 8230 Old York Road in Elkins Park, or by calling 215-887-6200, ext. 213 on Monday through Thursday, 8AM-4:30PM or Friday 8AM-3PM. The Department's staff will answer your questions regarding permitting, zoning and licenses, and help you get your business off and running!
__ Determine if the proposed use is a permitted use by right within the zoning district or if the proposed use requires a zoning variance or special exception from the Zoning Hearing Board. If it is not permitted by right, action by the Zoning Hearing Board will be required.
__ Home Based Businesses. Home businesses shall include professional services, office services, preparation of wholesale baked goods, computer application, individual instruction, sewing and embroidery, low-impact retail for the fine arts and similar quiet type uses and shall be conducted wholly indoors.
The following uses shall not be deemed a home business: retail or wholesale selling, clinic, hospital, barbershop, beauty parlor, real estate agency, insurance office, funeral home, restaurant, catering service, motel, hotel, rooming house, kennels, animal hospital, mortuary, personal service shop, day care, group home, repair, storage and/or painting of motorized vehicles, boats or lawn mowing equipment, place of amusement, dancing or other school, public storage facility and any use similar to the above.
A teacher of musical instruments shall be a permitted home business provided that the practitioner teaches only one pupil at a time.
__ Determine if there were any prior zoning variances or special exceptions granted for the property and if the proposed use can comply with the conditions of the prior Zoning Hearing Board decision (if any).
__ Determine if the building is a non-conforming (grandfathered) use. If so, determine if the proposed use meets the terms of the prior non-conforming use or if it is an expansion.
Determine Zoning Issues:
__ Cheltenham Township's parking requirements are as follows:
Ø Retail/Office/Wholesale uses require at least one parking space for each 200 feet of floor area (or fraction thereof) not including basements used for specific use.
Ø Restaurants require one parking space for every 100 square feet of gross floor area, including kitchens and storage areas. For more specific information, see Section 295-221 of the Township's Zoning Ordinance.
__ The Township's Zoning Ordinance also governs size, quantity, number and placement of signage. A sign permit and a Certificate of Appropriateness will be required for changes to existing signs and for any new signage.
__ If any construction, alteration, repair, removal or demolition is contemplated to the interior or exterior of an existing building, a building permit and inspection will be required. NOTE: Property owners who start work before obtaining the required permit(s) will have to pay double the standard permit fee in addition to facing possible fines. A construction drawing depicting the proposed alterations or tenant fit-up plan must be filed with the building permit application to the Township's Department of Engineering, Zoning & Inspections.
__ If the building or property is located in either of the Township's historic districts, La Mott or Wyncote, proposed changes to the exterior of the building, including changes to existing or new signage or lighting, must be reviewed by the corresponding Board of Historical and Architectural Review (BHAR).
__ The Township Zoning Officer determines if a use and re-occupancy inspection will be required for the proposed use(s).The Township Fire Marshal determines if a fire inspection and/or a sprinkler protection system are required.
__ If the proposed use is permitted by right as determined by the Zoning Officer, the next step is to obtain a license(s) from the Township's Finance Department.
Ø A Mercantile License is required for a retail, wholesale, or restaurant business.
Ø A Business Privilege License is required for service businesses such as physicians, lawyers, dentists, accountants, etc., or for any work performed on a commission-basis or a home business.
__ Restaurants and other food handling establishments require a license from the Montgomery County Health Department. Contact the department 215-784-5415 to request a Plan Review Packet. Once the packet is completed, call again for a Plan Review Coordinator who must approve the plan before a license will be issued.
New Construction:
__ If the proposed use requires the construction of a new building, then the site design and planning standards set forth in the Township's Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance need to be followed. An applicant must submit a professionally engineered site plan and subdivision application to the Township's Department of Engineering, Zoning & Inspections for review and approval.
__ Contractor registration provisions and registration fees depend on the type of license held.
__ All electricians, plumbers, HVAC contractors, journeyman and apprentices must be licensed annually by the Township's Department of Planning & Zoning.
Township Contacts:
Bryan T. Havir, Township Manager, 215-887-1000, ext. 112
Henry Sekawungu, Director of Planning & Zoning, 215-887-1000, ext. 213
Robert Habgood, Assistant to the Director of Planning & Zoning 267-809-1811 or 215-887-6200, ext. 213
Use & Occupancy Permits and Inspection Zoning Hearing Board Determinations & Information Sign Permits Building Permits & Inspections Plumbing Permits & Inspections Electrical Permits & Inspections Contractor License & Registration La Mott and Wyncote Historic District Boards of Historical and Architectural Review (BHARs) Fee Schedules for all required permits and inspections
Joseph W. O'Neill, Fire Marshal, 215-887-6200, ext. 235
Bruce Rangnow, Director of Fiscal Affairs, 215-887-6200, ext. 149
Mercantile and Business Privilege Licenses
The Township has copies of permits that were previously issued to specific properties. Please contact the Township's Department of Planning & Zoning for more information.
Cheltenham Township's full Municipal Code is available on the web.
Cheltenham Village
East Cheltenham Avenue
Elkins Park East
Elkins Park West
To open a restaurant in Cheltenham Township:
Contact the Montgomery County Health Department Willow Grove office at 215-784-5415 to request a Plan Review Packet. Once that packet is completed, call again to request a Plan Review Coordinator. Once the Plan is approved, a Health Department License should be issued.


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(view all slides)
Anyone may copy and use the written information on this site so long as credit is given to the author (Linda Lear) and the website (www.rachelcarson.org). Photographs may NOT be reproduced for any use whatsoever from the site. Use of photographs is in violation of copyright. Professionals seeking permission to use a photograph for publications in TIFF format should contact the curator of the Linda Lear Center for Special Collections & Archives (email@example.com) Connecticut College 270 Mohegan Ave. New London, CT 06320 to discuss permission. Copyright © 1996 - 2014 RachelCarson.org ® All Rights Reserved


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It's my turn to host the next Card Caravan and I chose the theme "nature".
I used the digital kit A Walk in the Park by Elise and Nicole.
Not my usual style, but it was fun to play around with a collage-type card!
I hope you'll check out the challenge at The Card Caravan !
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Nature inspired
Posted by Melissa at 6:00 AM 1 comments
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Happy Birthday
It's PTI's April Blog Hop and here's the inspiration photo:
And my card:
I stamped the background using Damask Designs onto Vintage Cream cardstock. The flowers and leaves are from Rosie Posie, some cut by hand, some using the dies. The sentiment is found in Enjoy the Ride. I stamped a lined background onto the piece of Spring Rain cardstock using the little frame from Luck of the Irish.
Thanks for taking a look!
Posted by Melissa at 8:28 AM 35 comments
Labels: Birthday, PTI, PTI Blog Hop
Sunday, April 22, 2012
You are so sweet
Still playing with new stamps!! For this card, I stamped the large line image from Strawberry Patch, and then filled in each leaf, flower and berry with the solid image. So fun! I used Pure Poppy, New Leaf and Lemon Tart inks. The top portion was cut with an Edgers die and tied with a Lemon Tart twill ribbon. Hope you're having a great weekend! Melissa
Posted by Melissa at 2:51 PM 2 comments
Saturday, April 21, 2012
A note of thanks
I'm finally back to update my blog! So sorry to be gone for a month. We had spring break with a short trip out of town and then visitors. And of course, this is in addition to all the daily life activities of preschool, PTA, meetings, and training for my 10K next Sunday. I'm so pleased to report that I'm ready for the 10k and I've now lost 61 pounds since September! Anyway--here's a new card using new goodies! I stamped the butterflies (from Beautiful Butterflies) onto the new Winter Wisteria paper, using Winter Wisteria ink. I then colored them a bit (not very neatly :) )with Copics. The frame (from Pretty Peonies) was stamped and cut out, and then I stamped the sentiment (from Happy Trails). The ribbon is also Winter Wisteria satin. The cardbase and scallop layer are Royal Velvet. I LOVE Winter Wisteria!!! Thanks for coming by! Melissa
Posted by Melissa at 6:08 PM 6 comments
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Radioactive Waste, Bison and XL
News Of The Year In Courierland Gets A Recap / First Of Two Parts
• The winter storm that hit northeast Montana on Thursday night, Jan. 10, wasn't a surprise. It had been making its way across the state, heralded by the forecasters. But its intensity on Friday brought on the winter grumbles. The storm deserved the term blizzard, with heavy snow that was blown by winds up to 41 mph, causing white-out conditions and drifts reported up to 9 feet deep.
The low temperature of 1 degree above zero Friday night translated to about 29 below wind chill. A record 7 inches of snow was recorded by the Glasgow office of the National Weather Service, pushing the total snowfall in January to 9.3 inches, which was 5.8 inches more than normal for the date.
• The Glasgow High School Speech and Drama Team competed in the Eastern Divisional Speech and Drama Meet in Culbertson on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 25 and 26. The Scotties had two divisional champions, placed third in Drama, and qualified 12 for the State Forensic competition in Huntley Project on Jan. 25-26.
Eastern Division Impromptu Speaking Champion is junior Rachael Zeiger and sophomore Hailey Stone continued her winning streak by capturing the Eastern Division Serious Solo Championship. The top six competitors in each of the 15 events qualify for state competition.
Earning points toward the Drama trophy, in addition to Hailey, were: Pantomime – Bridger Sanders, second; and Morgan Miller, fourth; and Serious Duo – Kat Geer and Amanda Kersal, third.
• The Scotties traveled to Wolf Point on Saturday, Feb. 2, for the Eastern B/C Divisional and five Scotties left with their tickets punched to go to the state tournament.
Mick Reyling, at 105, Jake Shawver, 119, Cody King, 125, Jake Hentges, 125, and Ben Kountz, 140, all were able to place in the top four in Wolf Point and advance to the Metra in Billings.
Reyling, one of only three wrestlers at 105 in the Eastern Division, was guaranteed a spot in state if he made weight. He did. The only thing up for grabs was what seed he would be placed coming out of divisionals.
• A chapter has closed in the struggle to replace Glasgow's crumbling swimming pool, but a longtime advocate for a new pool does not think the project is dead.
At a regular meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 19,the Glasgow City Council accepted a resolution signed by all eight members of the Glasgow Aquatic Center Advisory Board that dissolves the board.
"It is with some sadness that I ask you to consider Section 3 of this resolution and accept these resignations," board member David Irving said. "It's been a long road. I thank you for your support. For some reason I think it's not quite over."
• Montana U.S. senators Max Baucus and Jon Tester are joining North Dakota Senator John Hoeven in a bipartisan group of senators pressing newly confirmed Secretary of State John Kerry to approve the Keystone XL pipeline within the first quarter of the year.
The action, announced Tuesday, Feb. 26, comes during a period when the controversial project has received an important green light in Nebraska, where the governor signed on with his approval for a pipeline route that was changed to avoid that's state's environmentally sensitive Sandhills.
In the same period of time, however, thousands of Keystone XL Pipeline protesters have vocally opposed the project in the United States and Canada on environmental grounds – leaving President Obama and his administration in a position where the final yes or no decision on the pipeline remains sure to anger masses of people.
• Hinsdale Lady Raiders secured the Eastern C divisional title as they knocked off Westby/Grenora 58-44 at Wolf Point. Whitney Molina had 18 points and 11 rebounds while Bethany Lacock and and Hannah Jones added 14 and 11 points respectively.
• A week after taking second in the MAHA State Tournament, the U19 Ice Dawgs finished second again in the NDAHA State Tournament A2 bracket.
With 13 teams in the NDAHA league, the tournament was broken into two brackets, A1 and A2. Glasgow could have been in either one depending on the outcome of their first game of the tournament, on Friday at 9 a.m. against the Fargo Freeze – the winner entered the A1 bracket, the loser entered the A2 bracket.
• The Valley County Conservation District is considering an ordinance that would require a permit for grazing any bison, whether wild, free-roaming or domestic, in the county. They are acting in response to Fish, Wildlife and Park's placing of bison from Yellowstone National Park on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation a year ago, an action that sparked a reaction from ranchers and farmers in the area.
Local producers said they feared the spread of brucellosis and they said that bison are hard to contain in fences. The big animals destroy fields and haystacks when they get loose. Owners are liable for domestic bison, but there is no recourse for damage by wild bison. A group of ranchers and organizations filed a lawsuit to prevent any further translocation of wild Yellowstone bison without having a comprehensive statewide bison management plan in place. The Valley County Commissioners joined this lawsuit.
The Valley County Conservation District's board of directors have a draft proposed ordinance based on an ordinance that was passed by voters in McCone County in the November general election.
The draft ordinance sets several requirements to obtain a bison permit. The applicant must have a conservation plan, management practices to protect land and water resources from erosion and degradation. The application would require a description of the land where bison grazing is proposed, the number of acres, the maximum number of animal units and the bull/cow ratio, the location of all watering facilities and a watering management plan. In addition, it would require a health and disease testing plan and certification that the bison are free of brucellosis and other diseases. And it requires stating the location and type of fence proposed to keep the bison from leaving the grazing land.
No land could be grazed by bison if it was not suitable, sustainable habitat with an adequate water supply, or if the grazing would result in "sediment damage to lands, drainages, waterways, reservoirs and other water storage facilities."
• Families from northeastern Montana and around the state ignored winter weather warnings and homed in on the Billings airport Saturday, March 16, to welcome their National Guard soldiers returning from duty in Afghanistan. The 484th MP Co. left Montana last April, spent two months in pre-deployment training at Fort Bliss, Texas, then flew to several duty stations in Afghanistan. They supported the training mission to the Afghanistan National Police for Operation Enduring Freedom.
• In a high-turnout election last Thursday, March 14, Glasgow School District voters passed a $16.8 million levy to build a new K-5 Irle School and make substantial improvements at East Side and Glasgow High School. The vote was 1,151 to 945.
The vote was roughly reversed in the defeat of the second levy requested, $2 million to remodel the entrance of the administration building to ADA standards, upgrade the GHS auditorium seating, improve the high school playing fields and pave the parking lot. The levy went down, 857 in favor to 1,225 against.
The election had a 68 percent voter response, about twice the election result for the previous two years. It was the first time a mail-in ballot was used in a school election here.
• An unknown person tipped the information to Great Falls Tribune reporter David Murray, who wrote a front page piece on March 1 about a proposal to store radioactive oilfield waste at the landfill near Glasgow. Stuff hit the proverbial fan in Glasgow.
Vice president of sales and marketing Phillip Hanamaikai of Dyad Environmental of Idaho then met with local officials and reporters on March 5 to explain the company's proprietary process for sealing up TENORM (technologically enhanced, naturally occurring radioactive material) in dense concrete blocks. He explained the minimal radioactivity emitted, less than from a fluorescent light ballast.
A public meeting was scheduled for March 19. At this meeting held at the Cottonwood last night, more than 50 people showed up, surely the largest Refuse Board meeting attendance in history. It illustrated how hard it is to convince people there is such a thing as a small, safe amount of radiation.
Hanamaikai and Daniel McNair, president of Dyad Environmental and the inventor of the method of Convergyx ceramic technology, described an oil and gas industry creating up to 75 tons of waste a day in North Dakota. Byproducts of deep drilling contain radioactive isotopes of radium-226, radium-228 and lead-210, concentrated from what occurs naturally in the ground, as well as oil and salts. These materials are regulated differently by each state. Currently, North Dakota's landfills are not accepting the waste.
• U.S. Rep. Steve Daines, R-Mont., on Tuesday, March 19, commended Glasgow's Abbi Helland for being selected Miss Teen Montana International, and he did it big – on the floor of the House of Representatives in Washington, D.C.
"Abbi is a true example of the spirit and drive that we value in Montana," Daines said. "She'll represent our state well as our ambassador to the Miss Teen International competition in Chicago this July."
This is happening really quickly. Abbi, 17, a GHS junior, applied just two weeks ago to be a contestant after seeing a pageant flyer at school, and she didn't tell anyone until after she sent it in. A pageant director soon interviewed her over the phone, which led to her being asked if she wanted to be Miss Teen Montana International.
• It was hot in the packed room at the special school board meeting Tuesday night, March 26, but it was even hotter for Paul Bishop under the scorching criticism of the Glasgow School Board and members of the public. The speakers were incensed that Bishop, hired as the school board's owner's representative to monitor the $16.8 million building and remodeling project, had not told them that his architect's license was suspended in 2011 for three violations of professional conduct.
They were also startled that he sent out a discussion agenda headed up with a plan for Irle School: "demolish and reconstruct in same location" and "need temporary school facility for 2013-2014 school year." This was directly contrary to what the school board and Building Committee had been planning, to build next to the old school to avoid having the staff and students move twice.
• Since the disclosure March 1 of Dyad Environmental, LLC's proposal to store radioactive Bakken oil field waste at the Valley County Landfill, area residents have been curious about the company, its history and its principal officers. Investigation on the Internet turned up the conviction in 1993 of the man introduced in Glasgow as Dr. Dan McNair, the president of Dyad and the inventor of the proprietary process that is said to seal the radioactivity into 3-ton concrete cubes.
The Deseret News published an article on Nov. 4, 1993, stating that Daniel McNair was one of five men who pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges that they schemed to defraud Westinghouse Electric Corp. and the government in the sale of waste remediation kits. According to the article, McNair admitted to one count of money laundering.
• The Valley County Landfill Board has decided to close off any further conversation with Dyad Environmental, LLC about accepting oilfield waste. The vote at the regular board meeting Tuesday night, April 16, was 6-1.
The motion by board member Ron Watson also said no action would be taken by the Landfill Board at this time to change the existing storage permit.
The meeting in the District Courtroom of the courthouse was attended by about 35 people, who clapped when the vote was taken. The 11 people who spoke during the public comment period at the beginning of the meeting were against Dyad's proposal to bring 3-ton concrete blocks of TENORM (technologically enhanced, naturally occurring radioactive material) from the Bakken to the county landfill.
The reasons varied from the danger of leakage to fear of radioactivity to distrust of the company. The county might be liable for environmental damage in the future.
• The Keystone XL oil pipeline doesn't have its presidential permit yet, but a lot of preparation work has been done so construction can jump into action when it comes. NorVal Electric Cooperative is preparing to supply power to two pump stations that would be built in Valley County to help push crude oil from the Alberta tar sands some 1,700 miles to refineries on the Gulf coast of Texas.
TransCanada, Keystone's parent company, is spending more than $9 billion on the pipeline, including pump stations and the power going to them, according to NorVal's general manager, Craig Herbert. The last good numbers he saw indicated about $2.4 million will be spent in the NorVal area.
Piles of new utility poles to carry bigger capacity transmission lines are already laid out alongside roads in Valley County. The normal 69 kilovolt (kV) line will be replaced with 115 kV line to a substation north and west of Glasgow and to one south of Fort Peck Dam.
• A pillar of Glasgow High School and Glasgow athletics, Bob Farrell died this week due to blood disease. Farrell started as a teacher and coach in Culbertson in late '60s before moving to Glasgow in 1972, where he immediately had an impact on the school and its sports.
Farrell was named "Track Coach of the Year" twice, once in 1977 and once more in 1986.
Farrell became the Activities Director in 1976, serving for 27 years. He also was the vice-principal for five years and principal for 10, overlapping multiple positions at once for some time.
LaBonty noted that the Top Ten Meet scheduled for April 30 will be the first ever without Farrell, who created it alongside Mark Yoakam.
• The Cottonwood was packed Tuesday, May 7, for the first day of the 45th annual Governor's Conference on Aging. It marked the first time Glasgow has hosted this conference and the first visit by Gov. Steve Bullock since his election.
The theme "Aging in the Last Best Place" reflects the fact that Montana has one of the fastest growing 65 and older populations in the nation, with an average of 35 baby boomers turning 65 every day until 2030.
And surprisingly, within this age group, the fastest growing segment is the 100 and older age group, the centenarians. Montana has more than 175 people over 100. Eight of these hardy Montanans were honored personally by the governor with certificates and the reading of a bit of their life stories.
Bullock said 1913 was a pretty good vintage, producing the celebrity centenarians at this luncheon, as well as Rosa Parks, Presidents Gerald Ford and Richard Nixon, and coaches Bear Bryant and Vince Lombardi.
• It's a story right out of an old Western movie. A stolen horse, a chase, a shootout and a death. The story fairly leaps off the crisp, folded pages of the coroner's inquest, stored for nearly 100 years in a narrow metal box in the depths of the District Court vault.
But the story would not have come to light again if Clem Lemieux hadn't torn down a storage shed on May 5. The shed was attached to a garage on his property on Division Street on the south side of U.S. 2. When he removed a corner post, he discovered the cornerstone it was standing on was actually a gravestone. It was cast concrete, about 2 feet by 18 inches, with a name and a date, "J.H. Waterous 1882-1917," and in the lower left corner, the number 541.
• City employees discovered a mess at the Glasgow city pool last week. The Recreation Department secretary called police at about 6 a.m. on Tuesday, May 21, saying an employee just told her the pool had been "destroyed."
• If you were in it, like Glasgow was Saturday evening, May 25, the hail storm was bad. But only some areas were hit while most others escaped.
Glasgow was subjected to a heavy downpour that turned into pea-size and larger hail after 7 p.m. It was a record rain for the date, 1.53 inches, and it didn't take long to create flash flooding. Although not as bad as the storm of 2007, tender plants were destroyed and some tree leaves were stripped and washed into storm drains, causing jams. The underpass was closed and there was 8 to 10 inches of standing water on U.S. 2. A foot of water was reported near East Side School and in the Reynolds Market parking lot.
• The Milk River at Glasgow jumped ahead of predictions and rose to 25.6 feet late Tuesday night. June 4. Flood stage is 25 feet, so there is minor flooding in low-lying areas. The latest forecast from the National Weather Service office in Glasgow (1:30 a.m. on Wednesday) is that the river will hold near 26 feet from Wednesday through Friday, and be at 27.5 feet early on Sunday.
The situation changed quickly from the middle of the afternoon on Tuesday, when the river was at 23.15 feet and a height of 27 feet was predicted by 6 a.m. on Sunday.
The NWS has issued flood warnings for swollen streams and creeks across central and northeast Montana.
• A Glasgow police officer has been awarded the Montana Medal of Valor for his actions that saved the life of a law enforcement dispatcher who was trapped in a burning truck.
The medal was presented to Tyler Edwards by Montana Attorney General Tim Fox at the annual meeting of the Montana Association of Chiefs of Police (MACOP) in Billings on May 16.
• The Glasgow Courier won two statewide awards for first place and three for second during the Montana Newspaper Association's 2013 convention in Missoula.
The Courier's big winners in the MNA's annual Better Newspaper Contest were Nashua correspondent Sandy Laumeyer for Best Column Writing and sports editor J. Levi Burnfin for Best Sports Column.
The Courier's second place winners included editor Samar Fay for Best Long Feature Story, Virgil Vaupel for Best Column Writing, and office manager Terry Trang, publisher Jim Orr and production manager Stan Sonsteng for Best Multi-Sponsor Ad.
• A Canadian oil exploration company has withdrawn the offer it made to lease minerals on land belonging to Valley County, citing the difficulty of conducting business under restrictions intended to protect the habitat of the threatened sage grouse.
In an email to the Valley County Commissioners, Don Lee, an attorney for Montex Oil Co., said, "Unfortunately because of the sage grouse habitat issues involving federal lands, it will be extremely difficult to conduct exploratory operations with regard to the Valley County mineral interest."
• In a unanimous decision last week, the Montana Supreme Court overturned a District Court ruling that prevented the movement of Yellowstone bison from the Fort Peck Reservation. This clears the way for about half of the bison to be taken to the Fort Belknap Reservation, which was the original plan when 61 bison were brought north last spring after five years' quarantine and testing for brucellosis.
In his opinion, Chief Justice Mike McGrath clarified one of the chief objections behind the lawsuit that sought to restrict the placement of the bison. He stated that having been "reduced to captivity," these bison were no longer wild animals.
For ranchers, this is an important distinction. Someone is responsible for a domestic animal if it strays where it doesn't belong and causes damages to fences, crops or haystacks. The memorandum of understanding between Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks has provisions for the kind of fencing the tribes were required to provide for the bison and the prompt response necessary if they escaped. What the ranchers fear is a wild, free-roaming herd of bison that no one is allowed to remove from private or leased federal land.
Next week: "It Happened in 2013" concludes with news from July through December.


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Utilities: n. A commodity or service, such as electricity, water, or public transportation, that is provided by a utility provider.
Top site for information and contacts for all renewable technologies from Solar Heating to Rainwater Harvesting, Wind Turbines to Biofuels. Information on grants, educational resources, government initiatives and a worldwide events diary.http://www.therenewableenergycentre.co.uk
Northumbrian Water, Essex & Suffolk Water and Analytical and Environmental Services are part of Northumbrian Water Limited, which is a member of Northumbrian Water Group (NWG.http://www.nwl.co.uk
Ofgem is the regulator for Britain's gas and electricity industries. Its role is to promote choice and value for all customers.https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/
Ireland's premier electricity utility.http://www.esb.ie
Supplying energy to millions of business and domestic customers across the UK.https://www.scottishpower.com
UK's first utilities price comparison service, set up in 1998, with the aim of helping consumers find the cheapest energy suppliers in the deregulated market. The service now includes other savings calculators to help cut down on household bills.http://www.buy.co.uk
One of the leading electricity and gas companies, generating and distributing electricity, and retailing electricity and gas to millions of homes and businesses across the country.https://www.eonenergy.com/
As the nation's leading energy supplier providing gas, electricity and home repair services to millions of customers in Scotland, Wales and England.https://www.britishgas.co.uk
Energy company involved in the generation, transmission, distribution and supply of electricity to industrial, commercial and domestic customers; energy trading; gas marketing; electrical and utility contracting and telecommunications.http://www.scottish-southern.co.uk
A water group serving households and business customers in England and Wales and providing purification, operating and testing services in the UK and overseas.https://www.stwater.co.uk/
An independent and impartial online service that helps you make the right choices for your energy, insurance and financial needs.http://www.unravelit.com
One of the world's largest utilities, delivering gas and electricity energy.http://www.nationalgrid.com
12 July 2020


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Aqua Cristal Pet Bottle
Packaging Design Focus: Aqua Cristal Pet Bottle
A Good Packaging design example, the Aqua Cristal is a creative Pet Bottle design. Aqua Cristal was designed in 2012, and here is a how it is described by its designer: Aqua Cristal is a very elegant 500ml pet bottle design for water.
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Cocktail Happy Hour in The Bar, 5 – 7pm daily
It's beginning to look a lot like cocktails! Join us daily from 5pm until 7pm and you can buy one, get one half price.
Enjoy one of our classic cocktails including Bloody Mary and Whisky Sour, or try our ever popular Pornstar Martini or our Bellini.
Choose one of our seasonal offerings, which include our Aperol Spritz, Negroni and Summer Mojito.
If you are driving, you don't need to miss out with our Mocktails! Try an alcohol free Nojito.


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Navy SEAL risks, rewards captured in feature film
National security officials in the White House Situation Room saw elite Navy SEAL teams kill Osama bin Laden at his compound in Pakistan. President Obama and others watched an aerial feed from a Stealth drone, while CIA chief Leon Panetta narrated the progress of the raid.
The "Sit Room" drama last month, described by two sources who spoke on condition of anonymity, thrust the deeds of the globe's most elite military unit onto center stage.
Now, after two years in the making, comes a fictional cinematic take on the exploits of the Navy commandos: The just-completed feature film "Act of Valor" uses active-duty Navy SEALs as leading men, giving viewers the closest look yet at a Sea, Air and Land team mission. The movie is expected to hit the big screen in the fall.
Creation of the movie was an arduous project that had a vital boost from two SEALs with Bay Area roots - an adventure filmmaker from San Francisco and a current member of the elite unit who grew up on the Peninsula.
"Just the way these guys stood holding their M4s (compact machine guns) was something you can't teach to an actor, says Scott Waugh of Bandito Brothers, an independent studio, who directed and produced the film with Mike McCoy. "There are so many subtleties in the way the SEALs move or talk, they do a little magic for the camera all the time."
Command center
For two tense minutes at the middle of the film, the central front of the war on terror is not Pakistan; it's a dimly lit, tactical command center on a U.S. aircraft carrier. Two SEALs in beige camouflage discuss a comrade wounded in the takedown of a drug cartel base in a Central American jungle.
A senior operative strides in with a hot bulletin: The cartel raid yielded evidence of a formidable terrorist plot. A smuggler named Christo has teamed with a jihadist named Shabal to bring highly destructive weapons into the United States via border tunnels. The White House must now swiftly assign covert forces to get out in front of the plot and contain it.
The scene highlights two central themes of the film - that a SEAL's work is never done and that it involves extraordinary talent and dedication, says Capt. Duncan Smith, a senior SEAL who played a pivotal role in launching the project.
Shooting a realistic commando film requires guerrilla filmmakers. Waugh, McCoy and their crew had to chase SEALs through real desert, jungle and ocean scenes. The studio enhanced training sites and provided realistic sets, such as the drug cartel base, a terrorist camp on an isolated island, and a smuggler's yacht.
Authentic footage
The movie directors selected shots for their script, while the Navy will keep raw footage to use for training and other purposes. The Navy had authority to remove frames to address security concerns, while Bandito Brothers retained full creative control.
The film offers mind-bending views of high-altitude parachute jumps, a SEAL platoon stalking bad guys through a jungle, a foray by the Special Boat Teams that support operators in the field, and a minisub launch from a special hangar on a missile submarine. For a Hollywood studio to attempt to reproduce this stuff would be ruinously expensive. But through its agreement with the Navy, Bandito Brothers was able to get "Act of Valor" shot for an estimated $15 million to $18 million.
"We had to learn to be as nimble and quick as the SEALs," Waugh says. "We achieved it by using mobile Canon cameras, which had just become available. We also had to select a crew able to meet severe physical demands. We stuck our team in incredibly nasty environments, like a training area in a Southern swamp. A week of pure hell."
Navy cooperation
Why did the Navy cooperate so fully? For an answer, wind the clock back 20 years. A SEAL lieutenant named Duncan Smith left active duty to start an adventure racing school in San Francisco. Promoting it led Smith into sports commentary and film work. He hosted series and specials for the Outdoor Life Network, even winning an Emmy.
But when Sept. 11, 2001, rocked the globe, Smith leapt back to active duty and straight into four combat deployments overseas. The Defense Department wanted to beef up the Green Berets, Army Rangers and Navy SEAL commando teams and support groups. That meant 500 new SEALs had to be added to a force of 2,450 in a tough recruiting environment.
Assigned to retool the Navy's outreach, Smith suggested competitive athletes as a likely resource. SEAL recruiters began to appear at endurance races, triathlons, water polo and lacrosse tournaments. Smith also wanted to mount a more credible effort to publicly share the ethos.
Journalists were invited to the SEAL compound, on Coronado Island in San Diego, for the first time in a decade, and a production company, Bandito Brothers, was invited to film maneuvers of the SEAL support boat crews. Watching that process, Smith, now a Navy captain, conceived of a feature film that would more deeply convey the reality of SEAL life.
"A short story can't get it across," Smith says. "It's not a Rambo lifestyle. It's brotherhood within a team, followed by teamwork with other parts of our armed forces. Only an extended piece would show that. A feature film could do it, but the Navy doesn't know how to make one. We needed a studio that gets it."
Winning proposal
Four studios submitted proposals, and the Banditos won. Founded on the set of "Dust to Glory" (2005), a documentary on the Baja 1000 race, the Banditos were creative adventurers, adept at capturing scenes from high-risk sports such as motorcycle racing and surfing. Adding gunfire and explosions was not that big of a reach.
Showing real SEAL life without revealing too much was the big trick. No one wanted to hand a playbook to the Taliban or al Qaeda. The Navy's solution was a rigorous review, scrubbing out any classified or sensitive actions or view of weapons that might tip off an enemy. Sometimes, out-of-date procedures were substituted.
The movie would not use the SEALs' real last names, either in the film or in the credits. Veteran SEALs who were close to the end of their field deployment years would be selected for the cast. This left Smith one final problem: persuading SEALs to participate.
"I narrowed my list down to 14 guys, who all said no," Smith says. "That actually reassured me that I picked the right men. They joined the SEALs to get real work done, not be in Hollywood movies. But they were told this would be a legitimate task."
Covert operatives shun the limelight. Their top recognition is a hooyah from a brother in the craft. But this would not be a project that fed misconceptions, Smith says. It was an attempt to proclaim their actual mission to the United States, celebrate its importance, and provide a real-world view of the SEAL teams.
The real deal
One SEAL who came around was a lieutenant named Rorke (his first name is used in the film). A man with broad shoulders, close-cropped hair and an air of calm intensity, Rorke was born and raised in a San Francisco Peninsula town. After reading a biography of Winston Churchill, he chose a military career.
"I'm hypercompetitive," Rorke says. "Hearing that 80 percent of applicants don't get through SEAL training sounded like fine odds."
Rorke's SEAL class graduated in 1999. He served on drug interdiction, then was deployed to Iraq to counter the swelling insurgency. On that mission, Mike Monsoor, an automatic weapons gunner with a SEAL sniper team, threw himself on a grenade to save his teammates' lives. Monsoor was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. It's one of many deeds from SEAL history the film draws upon to illustrate the nature of the work.
"I initially refused" to be in the cast, Rorke says. "Our ideal is to remain a quiet professional. It feels unnatural to advertise or publicize our work. Plus, there's not much precedent for movies presenting an accurate view of the SEALs.
"But the Bandito Brothers seemed like genuine guys, not part of the glitzy world that I had imagined Hollywood to be. They have an extreme sports lifestyle, somewhat similar to our discipline. It grew obvious they wanted to make a film about the brotherhood, not just a gunfight movie."
They have your back
Though a large, tough-looking man, Rorke is unabashed about expressing his feelings. "We've seen our buddies in caskets draped with that flag. They didn't end up there because they were chasing a paycheck. You know your brothers on the teams have your back, and you've got theirs. You will give up everything for each other, and for this country, so we can move the ball down the field for a better world."
McCoy and Waugh financed this movie themselves, winning the freedom to make it their way. If it does well, the company will prosper. The Navy won't make a dime, but Waugh says they plan to donate a percentage of the profits to military charities.
"This has deepened my view of the people who serve," Waugh says. "We take our freedom too much for granted. I now feel that all young people should serve our nation in some capacity.
"Otherwise, I'm happy we got through it with no major injury to any person. Only two cameras got destroyed. One's at the bottom of a river, the other one was lashed to a tree during a live-fire drill. It took a bullet for the company."
Paul McHugh is a Bay Area journalist and novelist.


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Fast four-door sedans have been around forever, but the Audi S6 provides an enticing mix of people-friendly room, blistering speed, all-weather traction and brand-name cachet. Four generations of the S6 have graced our shores to date, though their sporadic appearances and truncated lifespans sure bring new meaning to the term "limited edition."
From the start, the S6's mission has been to be an extra-special, high-performance version of Audi's already special A6. It was achieved with more power, a sportier suspension and upgraded tires and brakes. The S6 has always been generous with the luxury content expected of Audi, and its midsize dimensions make it one of the better Audis for seating multiple passengers. Just keep in mind that the S6 focuses on performance, and as such its ride quality is harder-edged than that of other Audi vehicles.
Current Audi S6
Front and center for the newest Audi S6 is a twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 that's rated at 420 horsepower and 406 pound-feet of torque. All of this is channeled through a seven-speed automated dual-clutch manual transmission and distributed to all four wheels. Audi estimates this midsize luxury sport sedan will sprint to 60 mph in just 4.5 seconds.
As with any Audi, the S6's interior features the type of understated luxury that the brand is known for. With its uncluttered design aesthetic and top-notch materials, the cabin is as functional as it is attractive. On top of this, standard and optional features include a sport-tuned adaptive air suspension with variable damping, adaptive cruise control, various driver and safety assistants, night vision, carbon-ceramic brakes, adaptive LED headlights, mobile WiFi, massaging seats and a navigation system with touchpad and handwriting recognition.
Behind the wheel, the S6 effectively splits the difference between big-motor luxury sedans and maniacal ultra-performance models. In this way, it may not offer the sports car acceleration and handling of the latter, but it's also more comfortable and suitable for occasionally taking Mom out for a Sunday drive.
Used Audi S6 Models
After a one-year hiatus, the S6 returned for 2013. This represents the fourth generation of the performance-focused version of the A6. Compared to the previous, V10-powered S6, this one offers similar road-burning performance along with greater fuel efficiency and a less nose-heavy front end that contributes to improved handling. Other than lacking a standard blind-spot warning system and power-folding mirrors (which were optional), this S6 is identical to the current version.
The third-generation Audi S6 was produced from 2007-'11. Of all the iterations, this was perhaps the most maniacal, as it was powered by a Lamborghini-sourced 5.2-liter V10. Although it was detuned, it still produced 425 hp and 398 lb-ft of torque. The sole transmission offered was a six-speed automatic. Despite this impressive-sounding pedigree, this S6 was unfortunately disappointing. In the end, it was slower than the supercharged V6-powered A6 3.0T, and lagged even further behind its contemporary rivals.
In the handling department, it didn't fare any better. With 59 percent of its weight up front, the car suffered from significant understeer. It wasn't particularly comfortable either, as standard 19-inch wheels and a stiffly calibrated sport suspension produced a bone-jarring ride. Overall, competitors such as the BMW M5 or Cadillac CTS-V would be a better choice for a midsize sport sedan. Over its four-year run, this S6 saw few changes. There were slight styling tweaks for '09, while the MMI electronics interface and navigation system were given a welcome upgrade for 2010.
Available only for 2002-'03, the second-generation S6 featured a torquey 4.2-liter V8 whose 340 horses were made more accessible by a five-speed Tiptronic automatic transmission. Oddly, this edition of the S6 came as an Avant (Audi-speak for "station wagon") only, which was partly responsible for its 2-ton curb weight and scarce availability.
Zero-to-60-mph acceleration was in the low 6-second range, and the car's lowered and stiffened suspension and 17-inch wheels and tires made it a potent handler, with grip similar to that of the current S6. Other pluses included its opulent interior and ample standard features list; the wagon's big drawback was its unimpressive gas mileage. Though hard to find, a used second-generation Audi S6 wagon offers an intriguing blend of performance and utility.
Born at a time when Audi's model-naming system was in flux, the first-generation S6 officially came to life (and death) in 1995, though essentially the same car had been sold for a few years previous as the S4. Available as both a sedan and a wagon, the original Audi S6 offered an eccentric turbocharged, 227-hp five-cylinder engine, working through a manual transmission to drive all four wheels. While performance was decent for the day, this iteration of the S6 never made much of a mark on the history books.


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Teens Out Of Control: Three Juveniles Burn A 15 Year Old Boy Alive! (News Report)
WSTV reports "Three juveniles are in custody in connection with an attack on a teenager which left the boy hospitalized with severe burns. Broward Sheriff's Office detectives are investigating the scene where 15-year-old Michael Brewer was doused with gasoline and then lit on fire by another juvenile. Authorities said it happened at the Lime Tree Apartments at around 3:15 p.m. Monday. The 15-year-old ran through an apartment complex and jumped into the pool to out the flames. "
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