USGS: 7.4 magnitude quake hits near New Zealand

By Joshuah | Published: September 3, 2010

Source: CNN.com Blogs

An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.4 struck Friday near New Zealand, the U.S. Geological Survey said

Source: rttnews.com

The Pacific island nation of Vanuatu–lying between Fiji and Australia and north of New Zealand–was on Tuesday struck by a major 7.5-magnitude earthquake that generated a small tsunami and forced thousands of frightened residents flee for higher ground.

However, the temblor did not appear to have caused any significant damage in the South Pacific island nation.

The undersea quake, 22 miles (35 kms) deep and just 25 miles (40 kms) northwest of the capital Port Vila, hit the archipelago at 5:24 p.m. New Zealand time (0524 GMT) and shook buildings in the city for about 15 seconds, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said.

The USGS measured the latest tremor at 7.5 on the Richter scale while Geoscience Australia said it was 7.6 and at a depth of 37 miles (60 kms).

A nine-inch (22 centimeter) wave was observed off Port Vila, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said, but it warned that bigger waves may be seen in other areas.

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1 in 7 home kitchens would flunk inspection, worse than restaurants

By Joshuah | Published: September 2, 2010

Source: USATODAY.com 

A new study suggests that at least one in seven home kitchens would flunk the kind of health inspection commonly administered to restaurants.

Restaurants should be spotless, and so should your own home; especially
the kitchen area.  I have a few rules that I find to be helpful in this regard.

  • Garbage is emptied every evening. No garbage is to remain in the house over night. All garbage from every receptacle is sent to the trash can outside, usually after the dinner dishes are done.  Usually, we fill a 32 gallon trash can in about 2 weeks. 
  • All sponges, cloths, and towels are to be tossed in the wash at the end of every day.  Every morning the day starts with fresh clean towels and wash cloths.
  • Floors are swept daily, including carpeted and especially kitchen and bathroom areas.  This is also beneficial for discovering all those little toys and such that the little ones seem to love so much.

The Family IS the business.  Think of it as such and act accordingly. 

Posted in Economics, Food Storage, Health, Pestilence | Leave a comment

Hurricane Earl strengthens off U.S. East Coast

By Joshuah | Published: September 2, 2010

Source: Yahoo! News

Hurricane Earl gained more punch on Thursday as the large storm churned up the Atlantic threatening the U.S. East Coast with dangerous winds and large swells and forcing evacuations in North Carolina.

The National Hurricane Center said Earl, a powerful Category 4 storm on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale of intensity, had strengthened with its top sustained winds reaching 145 mph.

The winds are expected to reach the North Carolina barrier islands by Thursday afternoon and gain force during the night, though the hurricane is then expected to start weakening, the NHC said.

While a direct U.S. landfall was not forecast, Earl was on track to deliver a sidelong blow to the North Carolina coast ahead of the Labor Day holiday weekend marking the end of the summer vacation season.

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US grapples with bedbugs, misuse of pesticides

By Joshuah | Published: August 30, 2010

Source: guardian.co.uk

A resurgence of bedbugs across the U.S. has homeowners and apartment dwellers taking desperate measures to eradicate the tenacious bloodsuckers, with some relying on dangerous outdoor pesticides and fly-by-night exterminators.

The problem has gotten so bad that the Environmental Protection Agency warned this month against the indoor use of chemicals meant for the outside. The agency also warned of an increase in pest control companies and others making “unrealistic promises of effectiveness or low cost.”

Bedbugs, infesting U.S. households on a scale unseen in more than a half-century, have become largely resistant to common pesticides. As a result, some homeowners and exterminators are turning to more hazardous chemicals that can harm the central nervous system, irritate the skin and eyes or even cause cancer.

Posted in Pestilence | Leave a comment

Volcano erupts in Indonesia forcing thousands from homes

By Joshuah | Published: August 29, 2010

Source: guardian.co.uk

A volcano has erupted on the Indonesian island of Sumatra for the first time in four centuries, sending smoke 1,500 metres into the air and prompting the evacation of thousands of residents.

There are no reports of casualties so far, and aviation in the area is unaffected.
…
“This is the first time since 1600 that Sinabung has erupted, and we have little knowledge in terms of its eruptive patterns and general forms.”

Posted in Volcano, survivalism | Leave a comment

Lethal backfire: Green odor with fatal consequences for voracious caterpillars

By Joshuah | Published: August 27, 2010

Source: sciencedaily.com

Recently, the scientists’ attention was drawn to substances in tobacco plants called "green leaf volatiles" (GLV); GLV are compounds released by plants after mechanical damage. These molecules are responsible for the typical smell of freshly cut grass. Last year the green odorant substances of tobacco were examined more carefully. The scientists found that the amount of a certain GLV, namely (E)-2-hexenal, suddenly increased after oral secretions of Manduca sexta larvae had been applied on wounded leaves. In tobacco plants the aldehyde, hexanal, is present in two isomeric forms: (Z)-3-hexenal and (E)-2-hexenal. Z-E conversions can be catalyzed by specific enzymes, so-called isomerases. "We supposed that the increased occurrence of (E)-2-hexenal may attract the carnivores, because we always discovered Geocoris when young Manduca larvae had just hatched and started feeding on the tobacco leaves," says Ian Baldwin.

Posted in Agriculture, Economics, Insects | Leave a comment

Black Rice May Be Cheap Source of Antioxidants

By Joshuah | Published: August 27, 2010

Source:   healthfinder.gov

scientists say they’ve also found a cheaper source of antioxidants for consumers: black rice.

“Just a spoonful of black rice bran contains more health promoting anthocyanin antioxidants than are found in a spoonful of blueberries, but with less sugar and more fiber and vitamin E antioxidants,” study co-author Zhimin Xu said in a news release from the American Chemical Society.

“If berries are used to boost health, why not black rice and black rice bran?” suggested Xu, associate professor at the food science department at Louisiana State University Agricultural Center in Baton Rouge. “Black rice bran would be a unique and economical material to increase consumption of health-promoting antioxidants.”

Posted in Food, Health | Leave a comment

How to ‘undo’ an ill-advised Gmail message

By Joshuah | Published: August 23, 2010

Source: CNN.com

To enable ‘Undo Send’:

1. Log in to Gmail and go to Google Labs. If you’ve never gone to Labs before, click the word "more" in the very top left corner, then scroll down and click "even more."

2. In the column on the right, click "Labs." It’s next to the icon of a beaker filled with green stuff.

3. Click "Gmail Labs" in the column on the right.

4. Scroll down almost all the way to the bottom until you see "Undo Send." Click "enable" and the feature is now on. Then scroll the rest of the way down and look in the bottom left corner for the "Save Changes" box. Click it.

5. Now, go back to the main Gmail page and click "Settings" in the top right. You should also see your green Labs beaker icon there now — this will let you go straight to Labs from now on.

6. Scroll down to "Undo Send" — it should be right above "My Picture." Your default should be set to 10 seconds. But you can use the drop-down bar to stretch that to 30 seconds.

7. Scroll down and hit "Save Changes."

8. To undo an email, just look for the box at the top of the screen that will have the words "Your message has been sent." After that, you should see the "Undo" option. Click that and you’ll be sent back to the e-mail’s draft form, where you’ll have 30 seconds to edit or delete it before it goes out.

Posted in Communications | Leave a comment

200-fold boost in fuel cell efficiency advances ‘personalized energy systems’

By Joshuah | Published: August 23, 2010

Source: sciencedaily.com

"Our goal is to make each home its own power station," said study leader Daniel Nocera, Ph.D. "We’re working toward development of ‘personalized’ energy units that can be manufactured, distributed and installed inexpensively. There certainly are major obstacles to be overcome — existing fuel cells and solar cells must be improved, for instance. Nevertheless, one can envision villages in India and Africa not long from now purchasing an affordable basic system."

Such a system would consist of rooftop solar energy panels to produce electricity for heating, cooking, lighting, and to charge the batteries on the homeowners’ electric cars. Surplus electricity would go to an "electrolyzer," a device that breaks down ordinary water into its two components, hydrogen and oxygen. Both would be stored in tanks. In the dark of night, when the solar panels cease production, the system would shift gears, feeding the stored hydrogen and oxygen into a fuel cell that produces electricity (and clean drinking water as a byproduct). Such a system would produce clean electricity 24 hours a day, seven days a week — even when the sun isn’t shining.

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Coffee and sugar markets surge

By Joshuah | Published: August 23, 2010

Source: - Coffee and sugar markets surge

Coffee and sugar prices have jumped to new highs on the back of a recent run of commodities speculation.

A Financial Times report notes that the price of Arabica coffee surged 3% to $1.852 a pound for December delivery in New York, a 12-year high while in a parallel climb, the October price for raw sugar increased over 20 cents a pound for the? first ?time ?in five ?months.

The report went on to note that coffee inventories are dropping in the face of strong demand and poor production in key coffee-growing nations including Vietnam and Colombia.

"The price rises in the futures markets are already beginning to affect the price of a cup of coffee – with or without sugar. This month JM Smucker, which distributes the Dunkin’ Donuts, Millstone and Folgers coffee brands to US retailers, said it would increase its prices by 9%."

Kona Haque, agricultural commodities analyst at Macquarie, told the FT that the coffee futures market was increasingly attractive to speculators: "It’s completely dominated by funds right now."

Reflecting these commodity market moves, the US Department of Agriculture removed regulations on sugar import quotas last week because of "tightness" in the US raw sugar market.

The DoA added that it expects US sugar inventories to fall to their lowest level in 40 years next year.

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment