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Future of Colorado Agriculture
Colorado State University is spearheading an effort to discuss, define and consider the potential paths that Agriculture may take in the next generation. We need your help to highlight the important issues and offer your vision of what lies ahead. Extension specialists with the Department of Agriculture and Resource Economics will facilitate the discussion both out in the state and on the internet.
Agricultural sectors are listed on the right-hand side of this web page. Take a look at the agricultural sectors and their respective issues, read the opinion of others, and post your own comments. You can also email comments and suggestions for discussions to firstname.lastname@example.com .
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Fruits, Vegetables and Specialty Crops: Increasing Demand and Local Markets
For Colorado, this translates to total demand of over $2.6 billion for fresh fruits and vegetables, and although many of these products cannot be grown (or available year round), even a share of these sales would represent a significant part of the state's agriculture and growth in the $310 million currently sold in Colorado. At the same time, the way some consumers shop for fresh produce is changing.
In recent years, a small segment of consumers have shown increased interest in foods produced in their local community. This has been motivated by a variety of issues including support for local farmers and economies, concern about food miles and perceptions of improved quality These individuals and households interested in supporting local farmers are also fueling changes in the food system as they seek to purchase their produce via direct marketing channels rather than traditional supermarket sales. As one example, the number of farmers markets has grown significantly across the US (from 1,755 in 1994 to 4,685 in 2008) the growth is even greater in Colorado.
In Colorado, producers currently sell about 5% of their fruits and vegetables directly to consumers (far greater than the 0.4% nationwide), and this number is as great as 50% in Boulder county. But, CSU studies suggest that the demand for local fruits and vegetables could be as much as 10 times greater, if supplies were available. So, some of the new Farm Bill programs targeting the development of specialty crop enterprises could be at an opportune time.
Some issues to consider include:
Are there opportunities for existing farms, with existing family and employees, or in partnership with beginning and young farmers to transition more production to fruits and vegetables? Marketing them direct?
What are the tradeoffs between land, water and labor resources for fresh produce enterprises relative to field crops?
Is Colorado's climate and agronomic base a good fit for more fruit and vegetable production? What technical resources would be needed if these markets offer sufficient opportunities for current farms to consider?
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
The Green Industry in Colorado
Through 2007, the green industry in Colorado has seen sustained growth: the $1.8 billion directly contributed increases to $3.3 billion when you consider its impact on broader economic activity and employment generation in the Colorado economy. Because of its labor intensity, the local impact of this industry is fairly strong.
The green industry provides over 35,000 jobs, an increase of 12,000 jobs since 1994 (tripling in size in less than 15 years), with $1.2 billion in payroll (up $750 million from 1994). These increases are indicative of the demand for green services and the ability to hire workers on a more year-round basis (resulting in greater earnings per worker). The average wage earned has also increased to an average of $35,318 annually, up from $26,159 in 2001. The industry has come along way in providing better compensation to its workers, but like other sectors of agriculture, has struggled to find enough workers.
The highest growth sectors within the Green Industry during the 1990's and early 2000's were wholesale nursery, tree and sod production, landscape design, installation and maintenance, public and private golf courses, and nursery/garden centers.Questions to Consider:
Given its need for land, water and workers, many view the green industry as a competitor to food-based agriculture, while others note that the growth in Green industries signals yet another changing preference of consumers for aesthetic surroundings.
How can the green and traditional ag industries work together to benefit resource issues (water, labor) they are both struggling with?
Are Green Industry stakeholders at more risk of a downturn during tough economic times? Or will those who would have normally changed homes likely to reinvest in upgrading their current landscape and add more value and sweat equity to their homes?
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Colorado Wheat Production
After many years of drought and low prices (see the Figure), wheat producers have enjoyed historically high prices and average or better yields. Is the relative era of prosperity likely to continue? Important factors influencing the success of wheat producers will include:
- The proportion of CRP acres that return to wheat production. In Colorado, expiring CRP contracts mean that more than 1.1 million acres may be planted to wheat in 2009 and 2010.
- What do increasing petroleum and natural gas prices mean for wheat cost of production?
- Will irrigated wheat out compete corn for irrigated acres in Colorado?
- Will private capital be invested in improving wheat varieties?
Dairy Production in Colorado
In contrast to the US, the Colorado dairy herd is increasing. In fact, the total number of milking cows in the state has grown from about 75,000 cows in 1975 to 120,000 in 2008, which is a 1.4 percent annual growth rate. However, the rate appeared to accelerate after 1990, when the dairy herd grew at about 4.1 percent, suggesting at doubling of the cow herd in about 17 years.
A number of potential issues may hinder continued growth of the industry including:
- Continued urbanization of Colorado's Front Range that converts agricultural land to housing developments.
- A shortage of qualified labor.
- Costly regulations surrounding air quality and ammonia emissions.
- The growth of the biofuels industry.
What issues are the most critical?
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
The Dairy Industry
Some other important findings...
- There was overwhelming support for dairy farm sustainability in the study region.
- Dairy farming was seen as being highly important to local economies. This finding, among the strongest in the study, was linked to the positive impact of dairying on employment needs of local dairy farms and the perceived benefit of dairying to the community work ethic. At the same time, low profits were recognized as a compelling issue mediating against small dairy farm survival.
- Vistas of cows grazing, crops growing, farm land, and freshly mowed fields were highly valued. Such core visual values associated with the green and open spaces of productive dairy agriculture cannot be underestimated in the Susquehanna watershed region.
Dairy farm amenities were particularly valued near housing developments.
- The key to large dairy sustainability was advanced pollution control technology. Three of five respondents would welcome a 500-cow dairy in their community if manure runoff and odors were well controlled.
- Grazing dairies were far more positively viewed than large confinement farms.
- Agricultural land preservation policies for poor quality soil farms practicing grazing or organic farming was supported by four of five respondents.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Importance of Agricultural Workers
For the US, labor is the agricultural sector's third largest production expense (considering all cash and noncash expenses) trailing only feed and capital depreciation. For 2008, wages paid to hired farmworkers are forecast to be $27.3 billion, and the share of workers classified as hired has increased significantly.
After declining for decades, labor's share of US farm expenses began increasing in the mid-1980s. Growers who specialize in vegetable, fruit, tree nut, or horticultural production, for whom labor costs total 30-40 percent of cash expenses, are especially sensitive to fluctuations in the cost and availability of labor, and are likely the largest employees of hired workers.
The first figure above shows that the US and Colorado have followed a fairly similar trajectory, but Colorado's expenditures have increased more rapidly than the national average in more recent years. These trends can be disaggregated in several ways to provide more information about the dynamics of labor usage.
The number of workers (Figure 2 above) have seen significant variability in the prime growing season, fluctuating between 13,000 and 20,000 workers, with no clear pattern between the number employed more continuously (over 150 days in a year) and those hired for shorter terms. No year-round numbers are available, but July should represent a typical month without peak employment (like planting or harvest) and with some demand for seasonal work.
These trends lead to some questions: Are Colorado producers…
- Demanding fewer workers while paying more for those selected?
- Diversifying and adapting their production systems to use workers over a longer period of employment?
- Facing shortages that impact their ability to produce, harvest or choose specific crops?
Monday, December 8, 2008
Competition for Water Resources
Irrigated agriculture is a primary water user in the West, but rapid population growth is driving a reallocation of water use. Colorado's population is projected to increase by roughly 2.8 million residents between the years 2000 and 2030--an increase of about 65 percent. The Arkansas and South Platte Basins, which are already the most highly-populated basins, are projected to receive the most new residents. By the year 2030, the Arkansas and South Platte basins will be home to a combined total of almost 2.4 million additional residents, bringing the total population in these two basins to over 6 million people, making up more than 86 percent of Colorado's total projected population.
Where will new population find municipal water? Many policymakers agree that voluntary sales of water from farms to cities will be an important source. The Colorado Water Conservation Board's Statewide Water Supply Initiative (2004) predicts the following dry-up of irrigated acres as a result of voluntary water transfers. What impact do you think this will have on irrigated agriculture? What policies might be considered, if any, to help rural and urban water users share resources?


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7 Mimar Sinan University Students Sent to Court for Arrest
On April 5, 2016, 25 students and alumni of Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University (MSGSU) were detained in house raids on accusations of being a member or sympathizer of Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and the Revolutionary People's Liberation Party/Front (DHKP-C), staging protest in the campus, and defaming academics who don't cooperate with the students.
During their interrogation in the police station, the students were told that they had been taken into custody over a complaint from Assist. Prof. Dr. Esra Keskinkılıç, who used to teach Ottoman language at the Department of Turkish Language and Literature. Following the interrogation, on April 7, 17 out of the 25 students and graduates were released. However, seven students have been sent to court for arrest.
Attorney Efkan Bolac said they can't access any document because of the confidentiality order, and that the students do not even know in detail what they are charged with.
Source: http://bianet.org/english/human-rights/173721-7-mimar-sinan-university-students-sent-to-court-for-arrest

subset: commoncrawl


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Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Tube talk
It feels like my G-tube and I just met, but we're coming up on our four-month anniversary already.
My gastric-feeding tube –a foot-long rubber hose that leads to my stomach through an incision in my abdomen– snaked into my life on December 5, after eating through my mouth became impossible and my weight started dropping.
Three times a day I pour a few cans of a high-calorie formula called Isosource down the tube, using a plastic syringe. Aside from liquid formulations of my HIV meds, this stuff is the only thing I eat.
Isosource is not exactly something you would have seen featured on The Galloping Gourmet.
Pay no mind to the Nestlé logo on the Isosource label: Everything about the product is bland: its beige hue, the packaging, its smell and the taste.
Well, to be honest, I'm only guessing about the taste. Isosource goes straight from the can into my belly, so I have no idea what the goop tastes like. And I can't get my friends to describe the taste to me; they refuse to touch the stuff when I offer it to them.
And I won't know how Isosource tastes unless my cancer treatments succeed and I can return to eating through the mouth.
I know that I blog about my G-tube often, but in real life, I'm pretty private about it.
I keep the tube coiled up beneath my shirt in between meals. When feeding time comes around, I grab a few cans of Isosource, a syringe, a bottle of Arrowhead, some paper towels and a newspaper, and feed myself behind a closed door.
In the entire time that I've had the G-tube, I haven't met anyone else who's in the same situation.
Well, that's all about to change.
On Monday night, after Googling the term "G-tube," I stumbled on a website for the Oley Foundation.
Based in Albany, N.Y., the Oley Foundation is an organization dedicated to providing information and support for people dependent upon parenteral nutrition (HPN), where solutions are fed directly into the bloodstream, and folks like me who are dependent on enteral nutrition, where formula goes directly into the stomach via a tube.
The group was named after Clarence "Oley" Oldenburg, a patient of the doctor who founded the group in 1983. Oldenburg has been feeding himself through HPN since 1976.
Nineteen-seventy-six?! Man, that is the year that I graduated from high school! And I've been moaning because I've been on a G-tube since last December.
You can bet that I'm going to be spending a lot of time on the Oley Foundation's website. It's stuffed to the gills with resources for people just like me. I've already created a profile for the patient forum on the site, and can begin to interact with thousands of people across the U.S.
Last night I saw posts on the forum about how to protect yourself against G-tube infections, changing your G-tube regularly, how to assure TSA agents that your G-tube is not some kind of elaborate suicide bomb, and much more.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'll be able to shed my G-tube soon. But in the meantime, or if I learn that my G-tube is here to stay, it's great to know that the Oley Foundation is there.
I'm toasting them with a can of Isosource this morning. Cheers!
Posted by Paul Serchia at 5:43 AM
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Ninety percent of those 4.2 billion people without access live in the developing world, and in the least developed countries less than one person in 10 is online. Meanwhile, in the developed world, 82 percent of the population is online.
These statistics are laid out in a new blog by Marcus Weldon, president of Bell Labs and the CTO of Alcatel-Lucent, who in his piece calls on people and companies to do their part to help the Broadband Commission achieve its goals to flatten the digital playing field across the globe and among different groups of people. In his blog, Weldon talks about the problem that the "digital deserts" that exist today play in setting up a long-term environment in which one set of people can collaborate, communicate, and conduct commerce, and another group of people – to whom he refers as "an analog underclass," operate primarily in physical space, and if they do want to connect digitally have to wander from connected oasis to connected oasis.
"If we want to avoid this dystopia, we all need to do more to help the [Broadband] Commission and its incredibly laudable goals. And this must start at home – in the organizations for which we work and in which we are involved," writes Weldon, who has already has offered Bell Labs resources to help the Broadband Commission create and build on projects to bring connectivity to those who lack it.
The Broadband Commission has been around since 2010, but was just re-chartered with the aim of helping achieve the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
"The UN Sustainable Development Goals will stimulate action over the next 15 years in areas of critical importance for humanity and the planet," explains ITU Secretary-General Houlin Zhao. "All three pillars of sustainable development – economic development, social inclusion, and environmental protection – need ICTs as key catalysts. That is why the Commission believes that ICTs, and particularly broadband, will be absolutely crucial for achieving the SDGs."
The ITI Secretary-General made those comments last month during The Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development, an ITU and UNESCO gathering at which high-profile people representing academia, government, and industry came together to discuss and debate how to accelerate the adoption and availability of broadband around the world. The event had a special focus on developing and less developed nations and groups such as the disabled, non-English speakers, rural dwellers, and women.
Communications business magnate Carlos Slim Sr. and the president of Rwanda chair the commission. Other members include former FCC chairman Kevin Martin, who is now with Facebook; Bharti Enterprises CEO and founder Sunil Bharti Mittal; MIT Media Labs founder Nicolas Negroponte; Jeffrey Sachs, who is the special advisor to the U.N. Secretary General and an expert on poverty; and several operator and vendor CEOs, and telecom ministers from around the world.
We already know the mercurial growth of the Internet and mobile technology. Cloud and data center traffic will increase by 440 percent by 2017, according to a recent Alcatel-Lucent blog post, and video consumption will rise by 720 percent during that time.
What many of us do not know, however, is that the Internet also damages the environment; Gartner recently showed that the Internet creates more than 300 million tons of CO2 a year. So growth of the Internet and mobility is not such a happy picture from a sustainability perspective.
If we are to combat this looming environmental challenge, it will take the work of not just individuals but also businesses committed to sustainable practices. Thankfully, sustainability can be good for companies and not just the environment.
"Organizations that start implementing green solutions are not only helping to reduce the impact of climate change," noted Nataly Leal, senior communications manager of the Andean region for Alcatel-Lucent in a recent blog post, Internet, a driving force for the responsible development of countries. "Using planet-friendly technologies helps to generate more sustainable business, reduces operating costs, projects a better image of companies and generates a better economy. All these benefits have an impact on business."
The proper use of technologies can help businesses reduce carbon emissions by 20 percent, according to the Global e-Sustainability Initiative.
"Facing this reality, more technology companies have been working to create new solutions that consume energy in an intelligent way and at the same time be kind to the planet," Leal noted in her blog post. "Each day these companies launch to market products that meet the major challenges of climate change, seeking help to minimize the impact of the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) industry."
For instance, Alcatel-Lucent has developed applications such as G.W.A.T.T. to assist operators, service providers and interested parties in understanding the energy consumption and costs associated with communications networks in present and future. These help firms identify the conflictive points of the energy and help show how to improve sustainability practices.
The Internet is a boon for business. But business also needs to make sure that it isn't a detriment to the environment. In fact, as Alcatel-Lucent has done for many years, being a good steward of the earth's resources needs to become part of a company's DNA. Indeed, there is demonstrable proof that being a good steward is also good business.]]>
From original Alcatel-Lucent Corporate Blog (Feb. 27)
I had the great pleasure today of participating in the 11th meeting of the Broadband Commission for Digital Development, which was held here in Paris.
The Broadband Commission is a remarkable institution that exemplifies the growing trend of collaboration between multilateral organizations, governments, civil society, and business. The commission follows a process of co-creation, which brings together the different skills and resources of the member institutions - such as financial management, operational skills, on-the-ground knowledge, regulatory or public policies expertise – to develop solutions to some of the world's most complex, multi-dimensional challenges.
The Commission was established by the ITU and UNESCO in May 2010, with the aim of boosting the importance of broadband on the international policy agenda. This mission is based on a belief that broadband is an essential ingredient of economic and social well-being in every country.
The Commission is made up of a high-powered community including business leaders/CEOs, senior policy-makers and government representatives, international agencies, academia and non-governmental organizations focused on development issues (including Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus). It is co-chaired by Rwandan President Paul Kagame and Carlos Slim, in cooperation with vice-chairs Houlin Zhao, Secretary General of the ITU, and Irina Bokova, Secretary General of UNESCO.
One of the central roles of the Commission is to advocate for higher priority to be given to broadband infrastructure in the highest policy circles to ensure that the benefits of broadband infrastructure and services are realized in all countries.
To date, the Commission has had a great impact in terms of raising awareness of the importance of broadband for sustainable development. There is no question in my mind that it has made a big difference in building consensus that broadband is becoming a critical infrastructure, just like water and electricity.
Still, we have so much work to do: more than 4 billion people remain unconnected to the Internet and 90 percent of these individuals are in the developing world. In the 49 least-developed countries, less than 10 percent of the population is connected.
The average cost of fixed broadband at the end of 2013 still represented one quarter of an average citizen's monthly income across the developing world (as opposed to less than 3 percent in developed nations). Lack of relevant content, and limited digital and language literacy further worsen this divide.
Yet, recent statistics from the Copenhagen Consensus estimates that by increasing mobile penetration levels by a factor of 3 in the developing world, we could provide a return of $17 for each dollar spent.
We have a real and great responsibility to enable broadband to empower marginalized groups and deliver social and economic benefits to all. We must help ensure that every person in our world has access to information, healthcare, education, equality and economic opportunity.
We are at a critical juncture with regard to meeting this responsibility. The next few months are of paramount importance when it comes to ensuring that broadband and information and communications technology (ICT) are more clearly included in United Nations' the post-2015 development agenda, which will be codified in a set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), (which will build upon the existing Millennium Development Goals).
There is not a single one of the 17 SDGs currently under discussion where broadband and ICT could not have a major positive impact. However, the fact that ICT and broadband have not been made more visible in the establishment of the SDGs is a strong indicator that much work still remains to be done.
During the Broadband Commission meeting, this fact was a key topic of discussion, and I know there was agreement amongst participants of the need to convince key-decision makers outside of the ICT industry of the importance of connectivity, and the enormous role it could play in helping to achieve these goals.
Broadband can reduce poverty and inequality, help ensure access to health and education, help to mitigate climate change, promote peace and international cooperation, and ensure sustainable development in the decades to come. Broadband and ICTs are key ingredients in efforts to ensure that no society, and no individual is left behind.
"Alcatel-Lucent in Action" is the story of one year of action to transform our company and position it for innovation and growth.
In June 2013, Alcatel-Lucent unveiled The Shift Plan: a 3-year repositioning and transformation strategy that refocused the company on IP networks, ultra-broadband access and cloud technologies — areas in which Alcatel-Lucent has extensive expertise and innovation strengths. Since then, Alcatel-Lucent has concentrated all of its energy on the execution of The Shift Plan.
This month, we went live with a dynamic online annual review — Alcatel-Lucent in Action — which tells the story of those first 12 months, taking you behind the scenes of our innovation company determined to secure a strong future for itself at the forefront of the network industry. It charts our progress from 4 perspectives: corporate strategy, market demand, technological innovation and employee engagement.
With perspective from our people — including CEO Michel Combes — video essays on our innovation culture, key facts and statistics from the year and more, it paints a vivid picture of our drive to transform and deliver greater value to our customers and partners through innovation of our networks.
Accessible from any device (PC, laptop, tablets, smart phones), its streamlined design and ease of use will allow you (we hope) to quickly grasp the essence of The Shift Plan and how the company has become the master of its own destiny again.
I joined Alcatel-Lucent about 100 days ago and it has been a pleasure to contribute to shape this annual review which is not only our way of communicating what has been achieved, but also what we stand for, and what we want to build.
I welcome your feedback. Please participate in our 1 min survey and we will donate 1 Euro to Alcatel-Lucent Foundation, dedicated to helping youth innovate in the digital economy.]]>
In short, the networking piece of smart grid deployments is critical, as the migration of utility infrastructure to meet the needs to remotely monitor and manage their grids grows in complexity. "The new IP/MPLS technologies offer a great deal of benefits within the utility in cost savings, operational efficiency and cost savings, and they also mandate a new way to operate, bridging those traditional organizational silos," noted Mark Burke, VP of Intelligent Networks and Communications for DNV – GL, in a recent GridTalk posting.
In the first of what will be a three-part series on smart grids and the value that can be created the economic perspective provided by Burke, who outlined a number of ways that smart grid projects can maximize their technology investment, is instructive.
Source: To download GridTalk click here.
Burke provided a number of recommendations that will resonate with utilities as they evaluate how to move forward, and here are five of particular significance.
First, embrace standards.
"Standards drive innovation while maintaining security and reliability", noted Burke. "They encourage mass production, driving the cost of equipment down, while also enabling the development of an ecosystem of value-added products and solutions. They reduce the total cost of ownership for the systems they procure, but also encourage the development of devices that may leverage communications protocols to provide additional value to customers and the society at large."
Second, monetize excess capacity.
Adding high-bandwidth fiber is a big investment, but it also can create new profit centers that can help projects recoup the investment. One way to monetize excess capacity is through establishing an unregulated subsidiary tasked with taking advantage of the newly-created infrastructure.
Third, prepare for distributed power generation.
One side benefit of deploying a converged IP/MPLS system is readiness for distributed generation and renewable energy sources such as wind power and photovoltaics.
"With IP/MPLS you can accommodate these in a common architecture and in a standards-based environment so that the unit costs are low over time," noted Burke. "As the smart grid environment matures and gets more diverse with renewables and other new challenges, the total cost of implementation will go down as well."
Fourth, consider public-private partnerships, especially where investment in energy infrastructure is traditionally lacking. In some markets, demand response can't be exploited by governmental entities or utilities but third-party, commercial concerns can capture that value instead of leaving it on the table.
Finally, it is worth the effort to help shape public regulation.
"Power providers should really get involved with educating both consumers and regulators, which may have very small staffs and are overburdened," Burke suggested. "Only through that level of engagement will help maximize the value of moving to a more sophisticated energy system including IP/MPLS-based smart grid. The regulators are quite sensitive to the needs of the customers."
There are other ways to maximize investment on the Alcatel-Lucent blog post, but these are ones that clearly should be top of mind.
They wanted to reduce the energy consumption of mobile networks by half. Instead, they developed a framework that cut nearly three quarters of energy consumption.
Led by Alcatel-Lucent and Ericsson over the course of two and a half years, the EARTH (Energy Aware Radio and neTwork tecHnologies) consortium of 15 telecommunications providers, vendors and academic institutions developed everything from more efficient components in radio base stations to solutions on the radio network level, according to a press release from Alcatel-Lucent. The research was partially funded by the European Union's Seventh Framework Program (FP7).
In the process, the consortium demonstrated how operators could save up to 70 percent of energy consumed in their networks using a holistic energy efficiency approach for 4G radio communications.
The consortium came to the conclusion that a holistic approach could save energy through:
Because the EARTH consortium was made up of operators and vendors, key components of the system were implemented, validated, experimentally analyzed and tested under realistic operating conditions in many cases. As Alcatel-Lucent noted this proved that the efficiency claims of the approach are more than just theoretical.
"We have taken Green to the heart of our research programs," said Tod Sizer, head of access research at Alcatel-Lucent's research arm, Bell Labs. "Our commitment to initiatives such as EARTH is a prominent example of how Alcatel-Lucent is driving sustainable innovation. We know it cannot be accomplished alone, and we need models of action like EARTH."
"We were glad to have a leading role in the EARTH project, and to contribute to creating a broader understanding of trends in network energy consumption over the next ten years, added Jan Färjh, vice president and head of Ericsson Research. "It will be crucial for telecom companies to work even more actively with implementing the best practice concepts developed in the project into reality."
The consortium also developed a framework for evaluating wireless energy efficiency. The EARTH Energy Efficiency Evaluation Framework (E3F) creates an objective and fair rating of wireless network energy efficiency. Major operators have long desired a global standard to measure wireless network energy efficiency, as part of their efforts for eco-sustainability and they now have one with E3F.
The EARTH consortium was composed of project coordinator Alcatel-Lucent, technical manager Ericsson, NXP Semiconductors France, DOCOMO Communications Laboratories Europe GmbH, Telecom Italia S.p.A., CEA, University of Surrey, Technische Universität Dresden, imec, IST- Technical University of Lisbon, University of Oulu, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, TTI and ETSI, according to the Alcatel-Lucent press release.
More information about the findings of the consortium can be found at the EARTH website.
As much as we have come to rely on communications technologies to stay connected and streamline business processes, those providing the access must still pay attention to the impact on the environment. Eco-sustainability in fact is emerging not just as an issue of being a good corporate neighbor, but as important for being a preferred provider of products and services. This is why it has become important that the telecommunications industry use a uniform protocol for measuring the eco-impact of its services and networks.
A recent Alcatel-Lucent TechZine article, Seven Steps to Greater Green House Gas Awareness in ICT, explored this topic. It highlights the new global standards designed to create a unified approach to the measurement of green house gas emissions. Focus is on current life cycle assessment tools such as those developed by Alcatel-Lucent (ALU) which can be employed by ICT vendors, particularly the telecom ones, for estimating the eco-impact of services and/or networks in a meaningful and actionable way.
The good news is that current approaches offer flexibility in terms of the available data and the business purpose of assessments. Thus, by adhering to specified guidelines, service providers are able to more effectively and efficiently pinpoint potential problem areas, report on improvements and maintain best practices that can impact the environment.
A brief review of the ALU's seven steps for doing a comprehensive assessment is instructive:
Those familiar with the next generation communications online community are probably aware from reading the featured articles and blogs of the past few years of ALU's commitment doing well by doing good. From the top down, the company takes seriously not only its responsibilities to be a good steward of the earth's resources, but its belief that its solutions should enable its customers to have a strong eco-sustainability strategy so they can do likewise, and that doing so is good for business as well as the environment.
Under the category that you can't fix or improve what you cannot measure accurately, having the best tools and the right strategy for doing comprehensive eco-impact assessments is an important part of making sure ICT's contribution to eco-sustainability it optimal. The TechZine article is a good place to start for obtaining detailed information on the seven steps, as well as the next steps you company may wish to institute to be a better environmental steward.
It will take dedication, teamwork and technology to achieve the future we want in terms of reducing poverty, advancing social equity, and ensuring environmental protection. That's the message behind upcoming Rio+20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development, this June in Brazil.
Alcatel-Lucent (ALU) and others are focusing heavily on technology as one key aspect in achieving a better future. At a Rio+20 planning conference earlier this month, Philippe Richard, who heads up green strategy at Bell Labs, participated in the closing panel, where he highlighted the role information and communications technology (ICT) plays in sustainable development.
"ICT is a mandatory enabler if we want to succeed in time," Richard stressed in an ALU Corporate Responsibility blog entry. "The technology required for making a difference will mean leapfrogging for many." To help push successful sustainable development, ICT must also be efficient and ubiquitous. "Ultimately access to broadband must be a top public policy priority for inclusive global sustainability," Richard added.
ALU has been busy working on ICT solutions as a component of sustainable development, through Bell Labs. Its GreenTouch initiative is a co-creative platform the enables meaningful collaboration as part of the green economy. "Alcatel-Lucent's ICT solutions contribute towards the much needed, low-carbon economy, including perspectives relative to national energy consumption patterns," Richard noted.
A key message during the planning conference was that long-term results for sustainable development and the green economy depend on technology investments that yield OPEX savings—rather than short-term CAPEX deals. ICT has a lot of potential in this area, but needs more investment.
"Unfortunately, we are not going fast enough because of financial and economic roadblocks," Richard said. "Even if the best technology is available, deployment is hindered by those limited by CAPEX only based decisions. This is where UN agencies, EU/global policy makers can help by providing appropriate policy support and incentives (including carbon pricing)."
It all boils down to investing wisely and starting early enough in development projects to make a lasting difference. Smart procurement, coordinated policy and reward programs for transformative technology are all important elements in creating a sustainable green economy.
For Richard, his colleagues at Alcatel-Lucent, and others involved in sustainable development, 'green' is the next big revolution of the 21st century. With forecasted 27% increase in energy consumption associated with communications service provider networks now through 2016, the time is ripe to capitalize on ICT opportunities, including potential for 15% global emissions reduction by 2020.
"We have an enormous and still relatively untapped potential, to dramatically help other economic sectors to be greener," Richard concluded.
People working in the Chinese information and communications technology (ICT) industry are open to the concept of going green, but need support and education to achieve carbon reduction targets using technology. That is the conclusion of a recent research study conducted at China's Tsingua University Media Lab on behalf of Alcatel-Lucent (ALU) titled, "Green Information Communications Technology in China."
The study involved surveying 1,072 ICT industry professionals from enterprises, associations, government departments, and higher education institutions in Beijing, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Nanjing. It found that most Chinese companies are aware of green technology efforts. In fact, 59 percent of respondents plan to go green. More than 90 percent of the professionals who participated believe technology can support a low-carbon economy through energy consumption reductions and motivating society to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
"The study found that 39 percent of businesses in China planned to reduce carbon emissions by 1-20 percent within the next three to five years with the national target of 17 percent in China's 12th five-year plan," ALU noted in announcing the research. "However there was resistance to adopting more sustainable policies due to what they see as high capital, time and human resource investment requirements," they stated.
This suggests that a coordinated approach between the Chinese government, education authorities, enterprises and the technology industry will be the most successful way to reduce carbon emissions on a national scale using ICT.
"The relationship between ICT and the environment is complex and multi-faceted," noted Rajeev Singh-Molares, President of Alcatel-Lucent's Asia-Pacific Region, in the report. "Enterprises, government bodies and academic institutions need to work in tandem to spur the development and innovation of green ICT through environmentally sustainable models."
Education is a key component of driving growth of ICT applications in a green economy.
Although the ICT industry in China overall has a consistently high view of this technology's role in a green economy, knowledge levels of survey respondents varied when it came to ICT applications for carbon emissions reduction.
"Only 7.1 percent of enterprise respondents, 3.9 percent of college respondents and 16.7 percent of respondents from relevant departments of the government/associations could identify ten low-carbon technology applications… Respondents of ICT enterprises were most knowledgeable about green ICT's ability to improve logistics and to provide alternatives to face to face communication," the researchers found.
Based on results of this research study, ALU recommended that the Chinese government take several steps to promote ICT as a means of achieving carbon emission reductions and growing the green economy:
"With the information industry becoming one of China's fastest growing economic sectors, green ICT provides a leapfrogging opportunity to mitigate some of the challenges in our environment, including climate change, energy efficiency and biodiversity among others," Singh-Molares concluded.
The GreenTouch consortium was formed with the ambitious goal of inventing new technologies that could reduce the energy expenditure of telecommunication networks by a factor of 1000 by 2015. Two of the newest members of the consortium are the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi and the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, two premier research institutes in India. We recognized that India faces certain unique challenges and Green is not only far more relevant in emerging markets such as India, but also that emerging markets require certain unique technical challenges in the field of Green Networking. With this in mind, the Green Telecom and IT Workshop was co-organized by Bell Labs and IISc with support from GreenTouch to explore collaborative opportunities, on April 4-5, 2012.
The Workshop was kicked off with two exciting keynotes by Dr. Gee Rittenhouse, President of the GreenTouch consortium and Prof. Rod Tucker from the University of Melbourne. Dr. Gee Rittenhouse outlined the vision of GreenTouch. He outlined some ongoing projects in wireline and wireless networking that would help achieve this goal. Dr. Rod Tucker then delved into the details of why research in Green networking was absolutely essential. His analysis showed that while Telecom comprised about 2% of total energy consumption today, with the rapid growth in data traffic, this fraction could reach alarming proportions in a few years.
Further, on Day two there was a keynote talk by Prof. Vinod Sharma from IISc. Apart from these key notes, there were 21 technical talks from Academia and Industry comprising IISc, IIT Delhi, IIT Chennai, IIT Mumbai, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), IBM Research, Microsoft Research and Bell Labs. The talks were divided into 6 sessions comprising Green IT, Green Access (2 sessions), Green Routers and Transport, Green Devices and Energy Harvested Networks.
The speakers from Bell Labs were Thierry Klein, Peter Vetter, Peter Winzer, David Neilson, Milind Budhikkot, Rouzbeh Razhavi and Vikram Srinivasan. They outlined various approaches by Bell Labs Researchers to tackle the 1000X goal ranging from small cells, dynamic spectrum access and cloud RAN on the wireless side, to bit-interleaved PON, quantum communications and spatial multiplexing and green routers and interconnects on the wireline side.
It was interesting to note that almost all the Academics from India were focused on the design of energy harvested networks. The key challenge in India is that cell sites do not have reliable access to the power grid and up to 70% of the operators OPEX is energy related. Prof. Jamadagni from IISc and a member of TRAI outlined the regulators proposals on making a significant fraction of base stations in rural and urban areas run on energy harvested sources by 2020. Prof. Jhunjunwala from IIT Chennai explored the optimal mix of energy sources (solar, battery and diesel generators) in order to minimize the operator's OPEX. Prof. Vinod Sharma in his key note talk explored the fundamental information theoretic and queuing theoretic limits of communications in energy harvested scenarios. Other Indian Academics talked about the design of algorithms for communications in energy harvested scenarios, including using cooperative relays etc.
In addition to the technical talks, there was a Panel discussion on "The Innovation Opportunity and need for green telecommunications in India". The Panel was moderated by Suresh Goyal, Head of Green Research in Bell Labs and included Gee Rittenhouse, Prof. Rod Tucker, Arun Seth (Chairman Alcatel-Lucent, India), Mrs. Shachi Devi ( CTO, Indus Towers), Harish Hande (Co-founder, SELCO, India, Magsaysay award winner), Prof. Ashok Jhunjhunwala, (Professor, IIT Chennai) and Srikantan Moorthy (Senior Vice President and Group Head, Education & Research, Infosys). The Panel discussion was extremely lively and spanned a broad range of topics from Green Telecom to sustainability. The lively debate highlighted some of the unique challenges faced in India from a sustainability and Green perspective.
On the whole, the workshop was well attended with around 150 participants spanning Academia and Industry. It helped build bridges between IISc, IIT Delhi and other Green Touch partners and several areas of potential collaboration have been identified.
More Info: Website url: https://sites.google.com/site/greenworkshops4/?s_cid=smm_tmc0304_bl
Pictures from the workshop: https://picasaweb.google.com/bell.labs.blog/GreenTelecomITWorkshopByIIScAndBellLabs?authuser=0&feat=directlink&_cid=smm_tmc0304_bl
Two opposing forces are driving the need for more efficient use of energy – the increased use of mobile device coupled with the power needed to sustain their use are necessitating that the telecom industry step up its efforts to improve eco-efficiency overall.
Given the trend of increased demands of today's mobile users – and the proliferation of new and different end-user applications and devices – an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) is a smart choice for service providers who are also looking for new revenue opportunities.
"Consumers are no longer content with a simple telephone; they want broadband and accessibility, wherever they are, on any device they choose. They want access to information, plus instant and reliable communications," a recent whitepaper by Alcatel-Lucent (ALU), "Alcatel-Lucent IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS): Eco-efficiency Makes Economic Sense," points out.
At the same time, while a "green" lifestyle may not drive demand for new communications services, it changes the way we live and work, and in many cases, reduces our environmental impact. According to Alcatel-Lucent, telecommunications can reduce the environmental impact of other industries as well, by changing the way people live and work.
Considering this "anywhere, anytime" phenomenon continues to grow rampantly, service providers need to work toward a solution that will benefit the earth, as well as their own bottom lines.
The amount of electricity needed to browse the Internet and talk on the phone in the U.S. alone shows that a new system is needed. According to the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA), data centers and telecom systems account for 3 percent of the U.S total electricity demand, and the proportion is growing rapidly.
Since the telecommunications industry uses so much electricity, the industry can make a positive impact on total energy consumption, not only by reducing its consumption through more efficient network infrastructure, but also by helping other industries to reduce their impact.
For example, Alcatel-Lucent IMS solutions help service providers reinvent communications across fixed, mobile and web, while paving the way for a smooth migration to all-IP networks with scalability and security.
"Technologies that can be enhanced with IMS (video conferencing, presence aware messaging, and anytime access) reduce or eliminate the need to travel to meetings or commute daily," the whitepaper said.
The Alcatel-Lucent End-to-End IMS Solution helps operators offer multimedia communication services including voice, video, web, messaging and other conversational services using the most effective communications tools, whether it is their PC, TV, mobile phone, or home phones.
In fact, Alcatel-Lucent claims its IMS solution reduces the environmental and economic impact by over 90 percent, compared to a TDM-based solution. The service allows service providers to respond to the demands of today's consumers, while also opening the door to new revenue streams.
As importantly it highlights Alcatel-Lucent's commitment to ecosustainability as a vendor and as an enabler for its customers to be responsible stewards as well. As ALU CEO Ben Verwaayen says, "Corporate Responsibility is our business imperative. It defines our organization."
Hopefully, you have been an avid follower of the Alcatel-Lucent (ALU) Market & Consumer Insight (MCI) team's recently concluded three-week India journey across urban and rural parts of the states of Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and the National Capital Region (NCR). As it came to a close, the group culled several important insights on neo-urbanization:
As seen through all of the posts from the team members, and the series of items I have described in previous blogs, neo-urbanization is modernizing many areas of the world that were previously without access to healthcare, education, employment – and technology. In particular, parts of India are becoming networked hubs that are oriented and planned around smart functionality and sustainability.
Based on preliminary findings, each of the three locations – Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and the NCR – represents different stages of neo-urbanization. However, combined, they have allowed the MCI group to capture neo-urbanization in most of its gradations, according to a the final blog post that summarizes highlights of the three-week journey.
NCR is an example of the impact of new and rapidly established industries on the local population, while Ahmedabad (Gujarat state) captured the optimism of being on the path towards a smart city of the future smart about to be created on the periphery of the city.
"Similarly, Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu) provided compelling examples of ICT-enabled development and governance – great models for other parts of the world, especially for those in emerging markets," wrote Revital Marom, head of the Market and Consumer Insight (MCI) at Alcatel-Lucent.
For example, the group discovered that while ICT usage beyond voice is present only in "faint traces" with the computer entering urban homes, Internet accessibility in cyber cafes it is still perceived to be expensive.
Ultimately, the MCI team has determined a need for accessibility to government initiatives and schemes, which, powered by ICT-enabled solutions that ALU views as integral to its corporate responsibility, could really make a difference to the lives of those living there.
While the three areas the group traveled to have differences, they also share a common trait: a strong need for ICT-enabled development.
"This development will be critical in order to deal appropriately with the opportunities and implications of an increasingly neo-urbanized world," Marom said.
The MCI group will share a final report and outcomes of this research. In the meantime, if you have any questions or comments about this project, Alcatel-Lucent invites you to email firstname.lastname@example.com.
By Beecher Tuttle
Skyrocketing energy demands and the push for greener, more sustainable energy solutions has helped bring smart grids to prominence, and has encourage a number of utilities to deploy a next-generation network alongside their electrical grid.
AltaLink, one of Canada's largest electricity transmission providers, is one of the utilities that is currently undergoing the complex, yet highly advantageous transition from a TDM architecture to a next-generation IP-based network.
In an effort to provide other utilities with a roadmap for the migration, Clinton Struth, principal engineer at AltaLink, and Dr. Marc Maurer, key account manager at Alcatel-Lucent (ALU) recently authored a TechZine article, IP/MPLS-based Networks for Mission-Critical Services, that details some of the benefits and challenges of embracing a smarter network.
AltaLink's initiative was born back in 2007, when the company made the decision to replace their ATM and TDM-based network with a next-generation, packet-based Wide Area Network (WAN). When looking at their options, the company felt that it had two reasonable choices; it could deploy an Internet Protocol/Multi-Protocol Label Switching (IP/MPLS) infrastructure or a next -generation Synchronous Digital Hierarchy/Synchronous Optical Network (SDH/SONET).
When looking at the SDH/SONET option, AltaLink found that it didn't offer as much value as they had hoped, other than its ability to extend the lifespan of the network itself.
IP/MPLS, on the other hand, provides a cost-effective, visually-oriented network management system that enables utilities to provision, manage and operate critical smart grid services as well as the ability to report on their statistics. Couple this with the solution's dynamic bandwidth allocation and the fact that most AltaLink services would likely transition to IP, and AltaLink made their choice.
After evaluating several vendors and completing a series of pilot tests, AltaLink selected its supplier, Alcatel Lucent, in January 2010 and began the rollout a year later.
Now about halfway through the migration, Struth and AltaLink believe the IP/MPLS infrastructure is highly capable of enabling the "better management of the transmission infrastructure to ensure more reliability, safety and cost efficiency."
Struth's confidence in IP/MPLS stems from the fact that the technology overcomes two common doubts:
Some utilities have questioned whether IP/MPLS can meet the strict latency requirements necessary to run an electrical grid. Struth has found this concern to be inaccurate, noting that IP/MPLS has been used to deliver time-sensitive applications like backhauling of mobile data traffic for many years.
As noted in the posting, "IP/MPLS is sometimes and incorrectly still perceived as connection-less IP-technology that can provide very cost-efficient data transport but only with a 'best-effort' like quality of service (QoS)… This is the case for IP only however in contrast, the MPLS part of IP/MPLS makes the solution connection-oriented and capable of multiple guaranteed QoS levels."
As for cyber-security, AltaLink and ALU were able to implement a multi-tier security concept with multiple security layers and intrusion-detection check-points. This move, which adds full control plane protection, comprehensive password protection and several additional security layers, is enabling the company to align it network security with that of Tier-1 carriers.
"By successfully engineering the network to support critical applications such as SCADA and TPR, this next-generation network can not only replace existing TDM networks but is flexible enough for a smart grid future," the two authors add.
Struth and Maurer offered a few key takeaways from the migration that can help utilities that follow in AltaLink's footsteps:
While much of the attention of smart grid deployments has been on the benefits for consumers and electric utilities in terms of things like customer control and choice and utility efficiency and eco-sustainability, the next generation communications infrastructure to enable smart grid benefits to be fully realized is a critical piece of the story. And, as AltaLink's example shows, IP/MPLS - based networks are a core part of ensuring utility communications infrastructures are up to the challenge.
By Susan Campbell
The ever-increasing demand for energy has created the need for the development of the Smart Grid. This efficient approach to energy management and consumption will change the way we produce, consume and recycle energy. The efficient operation of the Smart Grid will be a long time in coming, however, as many challenges still exist to complete implementation and adoption.
According to a recent Alcatel-Lucent article, Dealing with the Smart Grid's Key Drivers and Challenges, the future of smart grids includes significant changes to the way we live, work and play. It is expected to impact the business landscape, the energy marketplace and the ways in which we interact both culturally and socially.
In the future smart grids will also enhance control and convenience in the industrialized work, while also enabling positive social progress in developing nations. These benefits are expected to gain traction, but the speed and success will depend greatly on how skillfully energy providers today manage change.
The Smart Grid's challenges demand that we overcome the question of "will we thrive, or merely survive?" The Smart Grid can truly create significant change for both operators and consumers and how well players on both sides anticipate and prepare for those changes will determine the outcome.
One key area of change will be in cultural values. The Smart Grid's key drivers have always been increased efficiency and reduced reliability on costly resources or offshore supplies. Traditionally, users thought little of their energy use, perhaps paying attention only to the number of lights on in the house or the temperature on the thermostat. In the new culture, we will be in control of how and how much and from where we consume energy.
The Smart Grid will extend beyond the walls of our homes and businesses, reaching out to transportation, communications and other key areas. Exciting and powerful new applications will allow us to fully manage all activities, determining our energy consumption and controlling just how much we rely on the grid itself.
The future of the Smart Grid includes electric vehicles and thousands of renewable generation sources that will add significant management complexity, while also assisting in the migration to peak demand issues, political instability and fluctuating energy prices. With the introduction of partnerships and coalitions, higher value will be extended to both energy operators and consumers.
All stakeholders understanding the opportunities in this space will benefit from the advanced technologies and regional regulatory environments as they create the perfect landscape for new high-potential business models. Those who can understand and effectively address the key drivers for success will benefit the most. The Smart Grid can help support these transformations as long as scalability, reliability and full inclusion for millions of consumers are included.


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|Word to word
What it is: A word association game. You get a list of words in column A, a list in column B, and you have to find pairs of words related either by being synonyms of each other, antonyms, or they may form a phrase together. The levels get more complex as more than one option from column B is possible for words from column A (or vice-versa), but only one combination will result in every word being paired up. A couple of examples of word pairs: salt-grains, college-coeds, zero-nought and thief-snatcher.
How we can use it in Tx: As you can see from the types of word pairs that have to be found, playing this game involves thinking about words and word use in a variety of ways and from different angles. It's not just about knowing the strict definitions of each word, but also about knowing how to use the word grammatically and pragmatically. In short, it is an easy game to learn, but involves some complex language skills. The game is not timed, which allows for as much time cuing a pt as needed to get the pairs of words figured out. As complexity of the levels is raised, having to negotiate more than one possible pairing for each word can bring in additional language use skills and the need to think up sentences with the game words (as part of the word game rather than a rote worksheet/drill).
Goals we can target in Tx with this app: Language goals, word-finding, a certain amount of problem solving goals (when there's more than one pair choice, how does one decide which to select?), even STM
Some specific examples:
1. For a pt with word-finding goals, take the words in column A and generate antonyms, synonyms and phrases that involve those words. Then look at column B to see if any of the words generated are in that column. Measure accuracy of this task by accuracy of the generated associated-word list (not by whether the generated list included the actual paired word from column B).
2. Higher level language goals can be addressed with the aforementioned additional task of generating sentences with either the target word from column A, its pair from column B, or both.
3. STM: I actually used this game for this with a pt who loves word puzzles. First we solved a puzzle level, then I presented words from that level and asked pt to recall the paired answer. It was more fun than recalling a random list of words or images, and the task provides context for the recalled information.


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OS 2.1 would be launching on Oct 1, but it turns out the update was pushed a couple days back to today. Make sure you check for the update by going to the "Software Updates" option in the settings.
What's new in this version?
Updated BlackBerry Bridge: Now you can view, respond and compose new SMS messages on their BlackBerry PlayBook Tablet when connected to a BlackBerry smartphone over Bluetooth. Youll also enjoy increased performance and speed of other BlackBerry Bridge functions as well. So you can do more, more efficiently. Text away, my friends.
Email and PIM Enhancements: Youve asked for it and weve delivered portrait support for email, calendar and contacts, giving you the option to use your tablet in either orientation to message. This will definitely come in handy for those of you who enjoy thumb typing in portrait mode like I do.
Improved Android Application Support: Includes Multi-Window Applications, Camera Support and In-App Payments. We all love a richer app experience, and with the improvements to the Android runtime, thats just what youll get. Running the applications in separate windows allows you to multi-task between Android apps easier, and in-app payments will make it easier for you to enhance your app content. Game on!
So get updated and let us know what you think of PlayBook OS v18.104.22.1682 in the comments below!
Or, you can also discuss any findings/fixes with us in PlayBook OS 22.214.171.1242 thread in the forums.


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Check out the new Little Barrie album "Shadow". Barrie used a JPF Regent combo and a Fender Blonde Tolex Bassman for all the guitars on the album. You can see (and hear!!) Barrie demoing the combo on our Youtube channel.
JPF Amplification
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Email: email@example.com
Hours: Monday-Saturday 11.00 am – 6.00 pm
JPF Amplification is a guitar amp repair and manufacture company based at Regent Sounds in Denmark Street, London. We specialise in vintage and classic valve amplifiers.
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I am a Vocalist, Guitarist, Mix engineer and Songwriter based out of South Florida, I have been writing music and preforming for years.
I have been a music lover for as long as I can remember. Everything about making records, I love. From audio engineering to songwriting if it is part of the process, I'm in.
I studied Pop Music at Palm Beach Atlantic University, been singing for 15 year some years and writing songs for 10 years. I have been doing audio engineering for about 5.
I have been working in ministry for the last 2 years helping write, mix, and master an EP my church was working on, Now I am trying to use those talents that I honed with anyone that wants to join me!
Click the 'Contact' above to get in touch. Looking forward to hearing from you.


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S.D. Artistries
Connect. Create. Conquer
D.M. Cosplay
Team Gallery
D.M. Addendum Cosplay & Crafts
Enter cosplayers and casual costumed folk alike for here lies the forge and crafts of D.M. Addendum, our resident reclusive mastermind of foam weaponry and armor.
All requests are subject to a schedule to be determined by the craftsman and client.
Enter Forge: Schedule Services
Helmets |
Guns |
Swords | Chest Plates | Shields | Leg Guards
All products are made from foam and clay unless otherwise specified.
A base coat will be applied by the craftsman free of charge with additional charges for detailing.
Prices vary dependent on the size and complexity of the product requested.
Available for Events!
Mini Master Chief
You Will Comply!
Furry Chief
Hark! A Master Chief Approaches


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This guy with the camera follows this girl around and talks her into joining him, they get in his car and the show goes on.
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3N2 Full Length Socks Size M 45 Forest Green
Made of ultra comfortable poly cotton with elastane and feature a highly efficient moisture management finish that will keep you dry and comfortable when the pressure's on. Advanced stitching reinforces arch and ankle support and reduces foot fatigue. If you're not fully satisfied with your purchase, you are welcome to return any unworn and unwashed items with tags intact and original packaging included. Size M 4.5. Color Forest Green. Gender Unisex. Age Group Adult.
|Catalogue Product Name
|3N2 Full Length Socks Size M 45 Forest Green
|Visit Store


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On Wednesday, April 8, the Bruning-Davenport/Shickley track team went back to Friend to participate in the 11-team Meridian Mustang Invitational. The girls scored 70 points and ended up in third place, while the boys scored 30 and finished in seventh.
The girls were led by Catherine Mick's four-gold medal performance. Catherine won the pole vault with a leap of 10-feet, 6-inches. She won both the 100-meter and 300-meter hurdles where she finished in 16.3 seconds and 48.1 seconds, respectively. She topped off her day with a 63.3-second effort in the 400-meter run and her final first-place finish. For her performance, Mick was named the meet's Outstanding Female Performer.
Tristen Mosier was a strong contributor to the girls' team as she also completed her day with four medals. She had a personal best leap in the pole vault of 10-0 to finish runner up to Catherine. She also captured a fourth-place medal in the 300 hurdles, a fifth-place medal in the 100 hurdles and teamed up with Courtney Kamler, Brice Ardissono, and Kristin Troyer to take fifth in the 1,600-meter relay as well.
Kristin took fifth in the long jump with a personal best of 14-2.5 and was joined by McKenna Schardt, Faith Stengel and Mashaya Dierking in the 400-meter relay where they finished fourth. Courtney added a fourth-place finish in the pole vault to her day as well. Brice was joined by Haley Pena Lopez, Johanna Kluck and Madison Yantzie to finish sixth in the 3,200-meter relay, while Megan Grote wrapped up the scoring with a fourth-place finish in the high jump.
The boys were paced by T.J. Krupicka's third-place finish in the 400-meter run, as well as the third place 1,600-meter relay finish where T.J. was joined by Kendall Dixon, Cody Garland and Chris Rohr. The hurdles were strong as Sam Christensen and Grant Norder took fourth in the 110-meter hurdles and fifth in the 300-meter hurdles respectively. Hunter Krehnke turned in two personal bests as he took fourth in the 300s with a time of 44 seconds and fifth in the 110s with a time of 17.1.
Chris also led the 3,200-meter relay team which included Charlie Martin, Kale Smith, and Brett Holtzen to a fourth- place, while Charlie picked up a sixth-place medal in the open 800-meter run as well. Taylor Anderson took fifth in the high jump with a personal best leap of 5-6 and Brandon Anderson also had a Personal best leap in the triple jump where he went 37-7.5 to take sixth place. Blake Stengel finished off the boys scoring with a sixth-place medal in the pole vault.


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When the bombs were falling from all angles during the deadly war between Azerbaijan and Armenia from 1991 to 1994, no one would imagine that an exiled team from Nagorno- Karabakh's adjacent Aghdam district would play in the Champions League one day.
Yet, to everyone's surprise, Azerbaijan's exiled team Qarabaq FK qualified for the UEFA Champions League after beating FC Copenhagen over two legs and made it to the group stages, where they are up against footballing giants such as Atletico Madrid, Roma and Chelsea, writes Dr. Ceyhun Osmanli.
Qarabaq made two remarkable draws 0-0 (18 October) and 1-1 (1 November) against Atletico Madrid. However, they lost narrowly 1-2 (27 September) against Roma, but they face their toughest test against Chelsea in a classical David and Goliath face-off.
Ironically enough, it was Stamford Bridge, a battlefield where English and Norwegian armies fought back in 1066 that Qarabaq FK played against Chelsea on 12 September. Most of the players of the Qarabaq FK had to flee from a battlefield themselves in a conflict that caused 30,000 deaths and 1,000,000 IDPs and refugees.
Their home town Aghdam, also referred to as the Hiroshima of the Caucasus, was entirely destroyed, with 6,000 inhabitants being killed. For 25 years, the ruins of the Imarat Stadium, where they used to play their home games, have been patrolled by Armenian snipers.
This is the reason why Qarabaq FK became the only registered international football club in the world not being able to play home games in their own stadium and Chelsea will play Qarabaq FK some 440 kilometres away from their home stadium to the east in the Baku Olympic Stadium on 22 November.
A few of the players from the first Azerbaijani team to ever qualify for the Champions League come from the 128,000 inhabitants of Aghdam, who were internally displaced and settled in 875 settlements in Azerbaijan due to the Armenian occupation.
The team faced the risk of closure and went through hard times. The club had to organise and try to welcome supporters scattered all around Azerbaijan. Qarabaq somehow managed to live out their second spring like a phoenix born out of the ashes.
Some of Qarabaq's former players had to play football under incoming missiles or fill holes in the pitch made by bombs in order to continue the games. Others, such as Qarabaq's former coach and Aghdam-native Allahverdi Bagirov, who became an army commander during the war, lost their lives on the frontline running over landmines.
The club's current captain Rashad Sadygov, midfielder Gara Garayev and striker Vuqar Nadirov were all displaced from the Nagorno-Karabakh and its seven surrounding districts as children.
It is a rare miracle in the football world that these displaced people won Azerbaijan's Premier League Championship for four consecutive years, played Ukraine's Dnipro, France's Saint Etienne and Italy's Milan and made it to the Champions League. One can only wonder what kind of surprises the upcoming days will hold for football fans.
Once again political stakes will be high during the 2017-2018 Champions League. Not only will Armenia be viewing Qarabaq's success as a reminder of its longstanding occupation of the 20 percent of the Azerbaijani territories despite several UN, European Parliament and Council of Europe resolutions calling for the immediate withdrawal of its armed forces…but also Russia, which deploys an estimated 5,000 military personnel and two bases in Armenia, will be eyeing the next game between Chelsea and Qarabaq to take place in Baku on 22 November with suspicion.
Even more so, considering that the owner of the British club is a Russian billionaire businessman, Roman Abramovich.
Could Qarabaq become another Denmark, which surprised the whole world as champions of the Euro 1992 Championships following the ban of war-torn Yugoslavia? Hundreds of thousands of IDPs and refugees hold their breath and channel their hopes on the upcoming football battle between David and Goliath in the Champions League.
Source: EU Today


text:
Llŷn's Monoglots
where English can sound like Arabic"
To a small and
diminishing band of people living in a secluded corner of the Llŷn
Peninsula of North Wales the English language is as foreign as Chinese or
Arabic. They are the last of the Welsh monoglots.
People like Mrs Mary
Roberts of Uwchmynydd, near Aberdaron, who after 91 years, is able to
speak only six words of English, and doesn't want to learn any more.
In any other part of
Wales this could be an oddity and a handicap in life, but this part of the
narrow finger of Caernarvonshire owes little allegiance to the Queen's
The lack of what has never been needed is no
loss to them. And they do not feel inferior even when the strident English
accents of caravan and camping visitors to this delightful holiday area
drowns the native tones.
No one knows how many
monoglots there are in the area, because of the very seclusion which has
made Welsh the only essential tongue in their long, happy and invariably
healthy lives.
Most are in their
eighties now and the last of their kind, a fascinating, and authentic
survival of the general pattern of the Welsh country life in the 19th
Mrs Mary Roberts has
spent all her working life within three miles of her farm, and in 66 years
ventured in recent years only as far as Anglesey. Three years ago she
visited Harlech for the first time. Occasional trips to Pwllheli,
Caernarvon and Bangor had been her farthest journeys. The little English
she learned in her schooldays was soon forgotten, because it was never
needed around the farm. Until World War II and the holiday invasion which
came after it she heard almost no English, except on the radio. "No one
then stayed in the hotels or down in the village, so I heard no English
spoken from one year to the next"
She never really
thought about English after leaving school. English newspapers were
occasionally brought home from Pwllheli by one of the family. Mrs Roberts
is bright and cheerful, her eyesight good and her mind sharp, and
she has a quick sense of Welsh humour. She has come to terms with the
holidaymakers. If it rains she will tell the campers "Bad day" When the
sun shines she says, "Good day". Her other greeting in English is "How are
you?" She became a hired farm servant at 13 and earned £7 10s a year. The
hard work kept her strong and healthy. She dislikes television and only
occasionally is persuaded to watch
Welsh programme. But she never misses the Sunday morning radio service and
hymn singing.
Mrs Jane Jones aged
88, lives three miles away at Bryn-y-Gloch farm in Llangwnadl and perhaps
an even rarer case of a perfectly happy monoglot. She also started life as
a hired servant on local farms, but has never slept away from home
for a night in more than 60 years she has been at the farm. She
occasionally visited Pwllheli, once had a day-trip to Caernarvon
and only once visited Aberdaron six miles away. English is completely
foreign to Mrs Jones, but she reckons she can detect the cultured English
visitor from others. She says she had not been through the farm gate to
the main road for the past three years. Others say it is probably more
than 10 years. She was born only a mile from her present home and has,
except for a brief excursions, spent all her life within a square mile.
"There was no end to the day's work, from morning till night in the old
days," she said. "But we did not find it hard, we took our time and were
always happy working. I never wanted to go anywhere, not even to the
village," Her daughter and son-in-law, Mr and Mrs John Williams, who live
at the farm with her say she had pneumonia about 40 years ago, but has not
seen a doctor since.
A few fields away at
Plas Morfa, lives her 90-year-old brother, Mr Ifan Roberts, he speaks no
English, but his wife had a good English education at Howell's School,
Near Nefyn lives
another elderly, once-monoglot Welsh man, who married a monoglot English
woman. Through necessity each learned the other's tongue.
Jack Bryn y Gloch, Jane's son in law.
Bryn y Gloch, Llangwnadl
Mrs Jane Jones insists
that neither Mrs Helen Thomas, aged 87, of Yr Oerfa, nor Mrs Martha Evans,
aged 88, of Penclawdd, know or speak any English. Others that she and her
daughter confirm as monoglots are Miss Sarah Hughes, aged 86, of Bryn,
Llangwnadl, and Mrs Mary Jones, aged 88, of Gwyddel, Uwchmynydd. Mr Owen
Roberts, another octogenarian of Afan, and Miss Ann Williams, aged 80, of
Bryn Trefgraig, both of Llangwnadl, can speak no English. Mr William
Thomas, aged 88, of Y Fron, Aberdaron, reads an English paper every day,
but claims he does not speak the language. There are also Mrs Margaret
Williams, aged 88, of Glanrafon, Aberdaron, and Mrs Janet Parry who is 90,
and lives at Ty Anelog, Aberdaron.
These are the known
monoglots in the area, but it is almost certain there are many more
quietly living their lives in blissful seclusion. Good health, contented
minds and the sea-grit remoteness of this corner of Wales have combined to
naturally resist any of today's English inroads on the Welsh language and
culture. The intrusion of cars, television and visitors on Llŷn's good
roads have come too late to affect them. "Those in their seventies have
nearly all some rough knowledge at least of English, even if they don't
use it, and this is true of many here, even in middle-age," said the local
clergyman Rev Robert Williams. He says he is still a newcomer after 15
years in his parish.
A headmaster who has
carried out research into the monoglot population of the peninsula called
last night for an accurate record to be compiled before the last survivors
die. Mr John Morris, headmaster of Aberdaron Primary School, told me, "No
one really knows how many there are in these parts." "So many of the old
people have had hardly any contact with English or with English people
that it is not easy to estimate, other than with the real monoglots, how
much English they know.
A team from St Fagans
Folk Museum has visited the monoglots of Llŷn and plan to go again,
furthering their studies in Welsh dialects. Headed by Mr Vincent H
Phillips, keeper of all Traditions and Dialects, they have compared the
monoglots' dialects and taped them for their archives, taken details of
old folk songs and made a photographic record of old farmhouses. "The
stories they tell of farm life many years ago provide useful information
for the museum," he said. "We hope to go to the area again, but we face
the problems of finance and finding enough researchers to investigate
before some of these very old people are lost to us."
(Footnote) Mrs Jane
Jones, Bryn y Gloch, Llangwnadl, died in 1980 when she was 100 years old.
From a local newspaper dated 1968
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text:
Please, don't anyone spend time looking this up. We can find it
ourselves with a little work; I'm asking here only because I feel
certain that several of you will know right off. If whoever answers
will copy the answer to the list, the others will know not to bother.
Thanks much.
Randy Leedy


text:
Temptation's Kiss was the 14th novel released by Sandra Brown.
This story had a publication date of August 28, 1983.
Temptation's Kiss book description
Megan Lambert can deal with her high pressure job as sales manager for an Atlanta radio station.
She just can't handle her antagonism toward Josh Bennett, a major advertiser. Now he wants a meeting with her, and she doesn't know why.
Josh is many things – powerful, handsome, and arrogant… but predictable isn't one of them.
Suddenly, Josh makes a demand that puts Megan's career on the line and sets the emotional stakes so high they send her reeling.
She's about to enter a world of limos and luxury, deception and false hope… and games of passion that can break a woman's heart when the wild card is love…


text:
Cypress Hills
Sponsored By
Police: Man Wanted For Questioning In Brooklyn Cemetery TheftLate Monday night, police released a photo of a man wanted for questioning in the case.
Man Seen On Video Robbing Woman At Gunpoint In BrooklynIt happened around 1:30 p.m. Monday on Grant Avenue between Fulton Street and Ridgewood Avenue in Cypress Hills.
Neighbors: Exploding Battery Pack In Wheelchair Suspected Of Sparking Brooklyn FireThe blaze broke out around 11:50 p.m. Sunday inside a four-story complex at 97 Euclid Ave. in Cypress Hills.
Search On For 3 Men Who Robbed Deliveryman At Gunpoint In Cypress Hills, BrooklynPolice were searching Monday for three suspects who held up a deliveryman at gunpoint earlier this month in Brooklyn.
2 NYPD Officers Hurt When SUV Crashes Into Cruiser In BrooklynTwo NYPD officers were taken to the hospital Saturday after their cruiser was hit by an SUV in Brooklyn.
NYPD Officer Shot, Wounded In Brooklyn; Suspect Found Dead After StandoffAn NYPD officer was shot and wounded in Cypress Hills, Brooklyn late Thursday afternoon.
Man And Woman Wanted In Brooklyn Stick-Up SpreePolice are looking for two people who have been sticking up stores in Brooklyn. The man and woman have allegedly knocked off eight stores in less than two weeks.
Police: Pair Of Thieves Rob Same Brooklyn Deli Two Nights In A RowNot only did the brazen bandits target the same bodega, they also robbed the same cashier who came back to work even after being held at gunpoint the first time. CBS2's Ali Bauman reports.
Police Shoot Suspect After Fight Among Roommates Turns Violent In BrooklynA fight among roommates turned violent and ended with police opening fire Sunday night in Brooklyn.
Knife-Wielding Man Shot, Wounded By Police In Cypress Hills, Brooklyn, NYPD SaysAn NYPD officer shot and wounded a knife-wielding man who had just stabbed his roommate in Cypress Hills, Brooklyn Sunday evening, police said.
Boy, 15, Arrested After Allegedly Bringing Loaded Gun To Brooklyn SchoolA 15-year-old student was under arrest Wednesday afternoon after he allegedly brought a loaded gun to school.
Search On For Assailants Who Beat 2 Sanitation Workers In BrooklynTwo city sanitation workers ended up bloodied and bruised this week after they were attacked while on the job in Brooklyn.
1 Dead After Fire Sweeps Through Vacant Apartment Building, Spreads In BrooklynOne person is dead after an extra-alarm fire broke out Tuesday night in an apartment building in Cypress Hills, Brooklyn.
Brooklyn Woman Struck By Bullets While Watching Grandchildren At PlaygroundA Brooklyn grandmother was hit by three bullets this week, in what police think is a random shooting.
Police: Off-Duty Cop Fatally Shoots Man In Brooklyn Road Rage IncidentThe officer was stopped at a red light after a traffic dispute when a 37-year-old driver allegedly attacked the officer, who was seated in his personal car, by repeatedly punching him in the head, police said.


text:
February 17th, 2014 at 8:33 PM by Twofour
Since making the move to beautiful Portland Oregon I have been focusing on a couple of things. First, I had a kidney stone, which was great fun and I am really glad I am finished with that project…for now. Second, I have been doing more wood pieces. Focusing on making simple shapes to convey the detail. This one came out alright I think. Right now this direction is a bit on the cartoon side for me but I am excited to see where this takes me. Im trying to carve the pieces to give them a bit more of a dimensional look. The big eagle was a take on the eagle in the WPA logo.


text:
IBM and Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS) are joining forces to help area hospital clinicians, researchers, academics and entrepreneurs accelerate the development and commercialization of new healthcare innovations.
The two announced plans to establish a new centre in downtown Hamilton focused on healthcare innovation. The centre – with both a physical and virtual collaboration space – will give area healthcare providers, researchers, innovators and entrepreneurs advanced technology tools and expertise to improve healthcare outcomes and put Hamilton on the map as a hub for healthcare innovation in Canada. The target location for the centre is 100 King Street West. More than 300 HHS administrative staff will also move in to the same location this fall.
"Hamilton is among the top cities in Canada for health research innovation. When you combine that with the entrepreneurial spirit of our city, the possibilities are endless," said Hamilton Mayor Fred Eisenberger. "This partnership is proof of the growing platform we have here to launch new ideas and turn them into new products that improve health care and create the jobs of tomorrow."
IBM is contributing access to an array of its Watson cognitive and analytics software, expertise in cloud computing and high-performance computing infrastructure, and a network of global collaborators. HHS, with its cadre of more than 1,500 principal investigators and research staff, provides practical industry expertise and a "real-world" test environment.
"Healthcare is facing tremendous challenges, and so we have to innovate in order to be sustainable."
"Healthcare is facing tremendous challenges, and so we have to innovate in order to be sustainable," said Rob MacIsaac, president & CEO, HHS. "We're creating an innovation space that will attract others to bring their ideas and solutions to the table for deployment across our healthcare system. This multidisciplinary approach to innovation is the way of the future providing opportunities to transform healthcare in Hamilton, in Ontario, and potentially around the world."
In two of the first projects, IBM and HHS will test how IBM Watson cognitive and analytics capabilities can be applied to HHS' existing decision-support database, to provide insight into how patients use the healthcare system; they will also explore introducing a mobile component to add functionality and scalability to HHS's early warning system, which electronically monitors a patient's vital signs for subtle changes indicative of a worsening condition or pending medical event.
The facility will also be open to others including academics from HHS research partners McMaster University and Mohawk College, local start-up and scale-up businesses, and individual innovators who share the common goal of developing innovative healthcare solutions.
"We're witnessing a convergence of market forces in healthcare that position this industry for massive transformation. This new era of cognitive computing and our Watson technology is enabling health care organizations worldwide to leap forward to advanced solutions spanning clinical research, patient care and population health and wellness," said IBM Canada President Dino Trevisani. "By collaborating with Hamilton Health Sciences, we can foster discovery, accelerate commercialization and drive better healthcare outcomes that put Hamilton-grown, Canadian-grown, R&D innovation on the world stage."
Hamilton Health Sciences & IBM from Hamilton Health Sciences on Vimeo.


text: I enjoy the sound of my stock exhaust but would like to update the design or clean up the engine compartment. Clearly all the newer aftermarket systems out there do this very nicely. The only problem I find with this new systems are they are bit noisy or drone. Does anyone have experience with an aftermarket quiet exhaust. Honestly if there was replacement headers that mounted to the stock exhaust , that would be the perfect solution for me. I have a test pipe and this was all the extra sound I enjoy. Also what is the deal with the wrap around exhaust design, seems a bit complex for an exhaust system. Thanks in advance


text:
It's getting increasingly hard to tell where one Web application ends and another begins. Everywhere you turn these days some provider of a Web application is announcing another application programming interface (API).
The latest example is Producteev, which offers a task-management application as a service. As much as Producteev CEO Ilan Abehassera would like people to use his service online, he's more interested in having other application providers embed Producteev inside their application services. After all, task management probably is better as a subset of another application rather than a stand-alone app.
As Web applications evolve, they are becoming as borderless as our Web sites. The average Web site today is a collection of modules delivering content from who knows where. The model is now being applied to Web applications that are taking advantage of custom and de facto industry standard APIs that essentially allow customers to customize and integrate these applications with just about any other Web application.
The rise of these new borderless Web applications will present some interesting security and data-management challenges. But what was once a relatively simple mashup concept involving the sharing of data between two applications rapidly is becoming a never-ending series of composite applications that are always connected.
From an end user perspective, this capability presents all kinds of possibilities for mass customization as part of the general trend toward the consumerization of IT. From an IT manager's perspective, however, mass customization currently equals mass confusion.
There's no doubt we're seeing the rise of a new era of applications of the Web; then only real question at this point is how are we going to manage them?
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Nice point well made, but of course user satisfaction is always an interesting multifaceted discussion. It is also worth noting the increasing number of web access channels; escalating service path complexity and application/infrastructure interdependencies. To put this in even greater perspective; a recent survey and scientific study we ran showed that well over 50% of online UK already experience transactional problems and over 80% DO NOT REPORT THEM. Now consider mobile internet usage which is predicted to become the primary web access method and potentially hit 3Bn users by 2015. Consider also the increased potential impact of application /service disruption in an environment that will no doubt bring together physical, virtual and cloud. Incidentally cloud based sub-services (inevitable in any such cocktail) are already posing all sorts of SLA questions across industry. No easy answers but you can learn more about this vital area of concern at http://www.ca.com/serviceassuranceReply
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text:
I don't know what it is with Crime Scene themed shows, but I just love to watch them. I guess its just that evidence gathering, truth-seeking then stitching them all together to solve a crime really interests me. And because in watching Crime Scene television series, the power of forensic science and law enforcement always prevail in the end unlike in reality.
But among the three CSI series franchise, my personal favorite is CSI: Miami. I just love how Lieutenant Horatio Caine delivers his one-liners in a very intimidating way while of course doing the very famous 'putting-on-his-sunglasses move'. That never fails! Haha!
Horatio is the very compassionate Lieutenant and head of the Miami-Dade crime lab. Their whole team including Calleigh Duquesne the ballistics specialists, Ryan Wolfe the OCD detective, Eric Delko the very attractive Latin-American fingerprint and drug expert, Natalia Boa Vista the sexy DNA analyst, Walter Simmons the comedic art theft specialist and all the other cast who were part of the current and early seasons of CSI: Miami were all very interesting.
The twists and turns of the crime stories plus the involvement of their personal lives gives depth to this hit CBS series. Every episode gives you something to look forward to the next. Thus attracting millions of viewers around the globe and stayed on top all throughout its ten outstanding seasons. That's why it is saddening to know that this show will never have a continuation anymore due to its cancellation for no apparent reason. But despite that, I am still hoping that CBS will put this show back on air because I definitely miss Horatio and his team.


text:
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