$55 mln casino winning lawsuit on trial

Ly Sam,Make a bold statement with our men's tungsten jewelry and pendants. the plaintiff, is a 61-year-old American entrepreneur of Vietnamese origin, and the defendant is Dai Duong Joint Venture Company,We offer a wide range of flatwork ironer in our online collection. which owns the Palazzo Club at the five-star Sheraton Saigon Hotel.

Sam told the court that Dai Duong refused to pay him the exact winning amount $55,542,291.70, which was shown on the screen of game machine No. 13 that he played at the club on October 25, 2009.

At that time, Sam made his own report and asked other players at the club to sign as witnesses. He also took some photos of the machine that reported the winning result.

He then asked the club for a written confirmation of his winnings. The club manager refused, but said Dai Duong would pay Sam within three days. But the money was not forthcoming, and despite two requests from Sam, Dai Duong did not pay.

Eventually, Ewarton Consultancy,The Solar Centre's range of solar charger will power nearly all portable devices. an affiliate of Dai Duong, told him that due to “some fault” with the game machine, the result was “invalid”, Sam told the court.

Sam also said Dai Duong had persuaded him to receive $12,000 and closed the case but Sam did not agree. Nonetheless, the company later lowered the amount to only $10,000, Sam added.

Meanwhile, Dai Duong showed the court a video clip of Sam playing at the club on October 25, 2009. The clip showed that Sam beat one of his hands on the machine many times before the screen showed the winning amount.

A Dai Duong employee who was in court as a witness told the jury that Sam had beaten his hand on the machine several times before he reported he had won the prize.

However, Sam rejected the allegation, asserting that he had played normally before the machine showed the prize amount.

After the jury advised that the two sides should negotiate to reach an agreement,Sol provides the world with high-performance solar roadway and outdoor solar lighting solutions. Sam said he would agree to a reconciliation agreement in which Dai Duong will pay him at least $30 million.

Local residents who cashed in after an automated teller machine (ATM) started giving out double payments will have to give the money back.

Customers of the Khiri Mat branch of the Government Savings Bank (GSB) discovered the pleasant surprise at the ATM located in front of the district office on Friday, the Post Today website reported on Saturday.

The report said the machine started dispensing twice the money customers had requested, without debiting their accounts for the excess amounts.The quality of these solar garden light are amazing with unparalleled combinations of glass colors blown together.

Many more people reportedly rushed to take out money after news of the cash bonanza spread quickly.

It was not known how much money the bank lost in the incident, seen by many as an unexpected windfall or even a New Year gift.

Naunprang Krongtanin, director of the GSB's Sukhothai area office, said bank staff suspected and fixed a software glitch, and the ATM was functioning normally later on Friday afternoon.

Ms Naunprang said one honest customer notified the branch manager that he had received 20,000 baht from the machine after keying in 10,000. The bank then disabled the machine.

We’re Still Here

Over the years, more than a few alternate reality games, transmedia storytelling projects, and advertising campaigns have warned that December 2012 would mark the end of the world. That shouldn’t come as much of a surprise: you can’t get much higher stakes than saving the world, and fighting against an ancient prophecy with its own pre-existing mythos (however misinformed) can add mystique to a narrative.

In 2009, the alternate reality game The Institute for Human Continuity reportedly sparked hundreds of letters to NASA’s Astrobiology Institute from people earnestly worried about the coming Apocalypse. Closer to the date in question,The first production laser marker was used to drill holes in diamond dies. Funcom’s The Secret World offered a series of six missions intended to forestall the End of Days both inside and outside the game. Even Old Spice got in on the harbinger of doom act, using points from six increasingly ridiculous flash games to power a laser cutter that slowly etched additional time onto the Mayan calendar for their absurdist campaign,Our hardworking robots explore the planets and more on the wild frontiers of our solar system. Old Spice Saves the World.

Proclamations of impending disaster weren’t limited to global catastrophe this year, with Fourth Wall Studios’ Elan Lee adding his voice to the chorus claiming that ARGs are dead at the StoryWorld Conference in Los Angeles. And yet, 2012 was in many ways a renaissance for alternate reality games and transmedia storytelling, as new sources of funding arise for a thriving community of developers. What follows is a closer look at some of the major events in alternate reality gaming for the year.

The most heartening development of the year is the growing influence of local groups of transmedia developers. Transmedia LA turned to Kickstarter to raise almost $10,Marking machines and laser cutting machine for permanent part marking and product traceability.000 to develop the alternate reality game Miracle Mile Paradox to give its members hands-on experience creating a game from start to finish, calling back to the “training ARG” Orbital Colony. In New York City, StoryCode’s focus was on a more condensed Story Hackathon. Inspired by Storycode’s hackathon, Transmedia SF ran its own Transmedia Jam.A crystal light can be both modern and vintage, depending on the light fixtures and the surrounding accent pieces. The hackathon model will be moving to Los Angeles in 2013,Permanent solar trellis and emergency light systems require little to no maintenance and allow easy access. opening even more opportunities.

Established institutions in transmedia funding and support like Power to the Pixel and Sundance’s New Frontier are ramping up their efforts to provide direction and funding for the field, while new entrants like the Tribeca Film Institute, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Canadian Film Centre have been quick to follow with a variety of programs for prospective developments. On the legal front, Stitch Media managed to prevail in a Nova Scotia Supreme Court case revolving around the definition of interactivity for new media projects.

The list of transmedia storytelling platforms available for public consumption grew longer this year, as teams are increasingly viewing the technological infrastructures developed for projects as potential revenue generators. The Shadow Gang introduced Galahad, the platform developed in conjunction with Michael Grant’s alternate reality game for his Bzrk book series, while Failbetter Games released its StoryNexus platform into the wild, after using it to produce games like Echo Bazaar (now known as Fallen London) and The Night Circus. The year saw the official launch of Fourth Wall Studios’ RIDES platform. The company recently laid off the majority of its staff to shift the company’s focus away from production, redoubling efforts on developing the platform for licensing to partners. These new platforms join existing alternatives like Social Samba and Conducttr as potential tools for content management.

Save $200 on Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Touch ultrabook

While ultrabooks have been a hugely popular PC segment in 2012, few of them caught my interest like Lenovo’s ThinkPad offerings. Most ultrabooks use an aluminum chassis, sometimes just aluminum top covers, and ruggedness is not at the forefront of their design. The flip side is that you can get a regular consumer ultrabook for well under $1000, with touchscreen models starting just below $1000.

When Lenovo announced it was going to bring its ThinkPad lineup into the ultrabook space this year, the X1 Carbon was the first model available. It is ridiculously thin and light, with a 14-inch display shoved into a 13.3-inch chassis,Marking machines and laser cutting machine for permanent part marking and product traceability. but manages to keep the ruggedness and feature set we’ve come to expect with ThinkPads.

A tweaked version of the X1 Carbon was recently released, to let you put the new touch-focused Windows 8 OS to work. The X1 Carbon Touch integrated a 10-point multi-touch screen, which Lenovo claims is ultra-responsive and smooth. Whatever type of touch panel the company has integrated, Lenovo managed to do it without increasing the thickness, indeed an impressive feat.

Outside of the touch panel and Windows 8 preload, the X1 Carbon Touch retains all the awesome features I loved about the original X1C. The chassis is exceptionally robust thanks to the use of carbon fiber in the display cover and magnesium/aluminum in the base. This allows the X1C to keep its figure at 3 pounds (1.Permanent solar trellis and emergency light systems require little to no maintenance and allow easy access.36kg) and 0.31 – 0.74 inches, without sacrificing reliability. It even retains the liquid drain holes and spill-resistant keyboard,Our hardworking robots explore the planets and more on the wild frontiers of our solar system. designed to keep liquid off sensitive electronics and funneled out the bottom of the machine before any damage can occur.

Packed inside the X1C is a slew of third-gen Intel low-voltage processors, up to a Core i7. The base model comes with a Core i5-3427U, which clocks from 1.8GHz to 2.8GHz via Turbo Boost. A 128GB SSD is standard on all models, along with Intel 802.11n WiFi,The first production laser marker was used to drill holes in diamond dies. Bluetooth 4.0, and a fingerprint reader. The screen packs 1600×900 pixels and a 720p HD low-light webcam.

Stuffed around the razor-thin edges of the X1 Carbon Touch are a USB 3.0 port, USB 2.0 port, Mini DisplayPort output, and SD card reader. Lenovo even bundles a USB Ethernet adapter to ensure you can always plug in wherever you go. We also really like Lenovo’s neat trick of allowing the machine to be powered on and unlocked with one swipe of the fingerprint reader.

Speaking of powering up, the X1 Carbon Touch also features Lenovo’s RapidCharge technology, which claims to allow you to charge the battery from 0-80% in just 35 minutes, using the included 90W adapter. The integrated 45Whr battery should last up to 8 hours on a full charge.

While this svelte and rugged machine clearly impresses, its price has never before been discounted. Even the regular X1 Carbon only receives a couple of discounts per year. Right now you can grab the largest discount we’ve ever seen on the X1 product line, bringing the starting price down to just $1,A crystal light can be both modern and vintage, depending on the light fixtures and the surrounding accent pieces.319.12 after a 12% coupon code.

Preservationist discovers rare ‘steam’ link to Watertown’s industrial past

The Watertown-made link to the nation’s Industrial Revolution sat gathering dust in a northern Wisconsin barn for decades, its working days of powering manufacturing long gone and its novelty days of being trailered in parades more recently gone. But late last summer, when that barn door was opened for Mark W. Lakie, the first step was taken to reclaiming the machine’s former glory.

“I was like, ‘You’re kidding me,’” Mr. Lakie said. “I’ve seen one built around the same era, and it was shot.”

Mr. Lakie, of Camillus,The Solar Centre's range of solar charger will power nearly all portable devices. Onondaga County, is a collector and refurbisher of portable steam engines; specifically “steam traction” engines. The first portable steam engine in the U.S. was built in Watertown by Gilbert Bradford in the 1840s. The manufacture of portable steam engines became one of the city’s chief industries, with the company that Mr.The quality of these solar garden light are amazing with unparalleled combinations of glass colors blown together. Bradford created leading the way.

To find one of those machines so well preserved, and will be in running condition in a few years, is amazing, Mr. Lakie said.

He plans to restore his steam traction engine — which were advanced portable engines — to its original glory and bring it back to visit its birthplace. He hopes to bring it to the 2013 Jefferson County Fair in late June for people to view.

“It’s believed this is the only Watertown steam traction engine in existence,” he said.

Mr. Lakie, a building mechanic for the U.S. Postal Service and a volunteer at the steam engine exhibit at Camillus Erie Canal Town Park, owns three other steam traction engines,Make a bold statement with our men's tungsten jewelry and pendants. one of which sits in his backyard.We offer a wide range of flatwork ironer in our online collection. The self-propelled steam engines were early farm tractors, but they could run a variety of machinery.

“Traction engines were an advancement over portables because they were capable of being self-propelled through a series of gear arrangements. They could be driven from site to site and were the first machines to plow a field,” Mr. Lakie said.

Mr. Lakie explained the earlier portable steam engines were typically mounted on some type of secure platform and made portable by attaching wheels to the platform. Horses had to pull them because of their weight.

“Self-propelled traction engines did not make a big appearance until the late 1870s,” Mr. Lakie said.

Gilbert Bradford’s obituary in 1885 noted he first made a crude steam engine in 1848 — which led to the portable engine — when he was a foreman at Goulding’s machine shop.

A year later, the portable machines were being manufactured in Watertown by Hoard & Bradford, located on West Main Street. The company was founded in 1849 by Mr. Bradford and C.B. Hoard.

Their portable steam engine was the first manufactured in the U.S. and also the first engines used for driving such machinery as printing presses, according to Times files. Horace Greeley, founder of the New York Tribune, visited Watertown in 1850 and was amazed when he witnessed a demonstration of one of the engines running a printing press at the Democratic Union, churning out 1,200 sheets an hour.

He was fascinated that it could likely run “a fortnight, day and night on a ton of pea coal.”

“The time must be at hand when every thrifty farmer and nearly every mechanic will have such an engine of his own, and chopping straw, turning grindstone, cutting wood, churning thrashing, etc. will have ceased to be a manual, and become a mechanical operation,” Mr. Greeley wrote in the July 13, 1850, issue of the Tribune.

Mr. Lakie said the steam traction engine from Watertown that he found in Wisconsin is important because it’s a relic of America’s Industrial Revolution. He estimates his engine was manufactured around 1882.

In 1872, the firm was sold to a new company, the Watertown Steam Engine Co. Until 1889, the business occupied the site later used as the plants for J.B. Wise lock factory and Sloat & Greenleaf Lumber Co. More room was needed and the operation was moved from West Main Street to 17 acres on VanDuzee Street. Two hundred machinists were among those employed in three acres of buildings.Sol provides the world with high-performance solar roadway and outdoor solar lighting solutions.

Rebirth of the Viking warship

When the sleek, beautiful silhouette of Roskilde 6 appeared on the horizon, 1,000 years ago, it was very bad news. The ship was part of a fleet carrying an army of hungry, thirsty warriors, muscles toned by rowing and sailing across the North Sea; a war machine like nothing else in 11th-century Europe, its arrival meant disaster was imminent.

Now the ship's timbers are slowly drying out in giant steel tanks at the Danish national museum's conservation centre at Brede outside Copenhagen, and will soon again head across the North Sea – to be a star attraction at an exhibition in the British Museum.

The largest Viking warship ever found, it was discovered by chance in 1996 at Roskilde. It is estimated that building it would have taken up to 30,000 hours of skilled work, plus the labour of felling trees and hauling materials. At just over 36 metres, it was four metres longer than Henry VIII's flagship Mary Rose built 500 years later, and six metres longer than the Viking ship spectacularly recreated as Sea Stallion, which sailed from Scandinavia around Scotland to Dublin in 2007.

"This ship was a troop carrier," said Gareth Williams of the British Museum. It was built some time after 1025 when the oak trees were felled,Conergy manufactures solar modules and distributes well-known solar module brands. and held 100 warriors taking turns on 39 pairs of oars if there was not enough wind to fill the square woollen sail. They would have been packed in tightly, sleeping as they could between the seats, with little room for supplies except a minimal amount of fresh water – or ale or mead, which would not have gone stale as fast – and dried salt mutton.

It would have been an uncomfortable journey, but short: they did not need to carry much as their ship could move startlingly fast – Sea Stallion managed an average speed of 5.5 knots, and a top speed of 20 knots. Once they landed, the warriors could forage with ruthless efficiency, as many a coastal community or wealthy monastery discovered.

The original Roskilde ships are spectacularly displayed in a purpose-built ship hall, but could never travel: the timbers look solid but might shatter like glass.The Solar Centre's range of solar charger will power nearly all portable devices. When excavated, the sodden timbers of Roskilde 6 would have disintegrated into a heap of dust if left exposed to air. National museum conservator Kristiane Straetkvern managed the project, which has been drying timbers up to 10 metres long far more slowly than the older techniques, then replacing the lost moisture with synthetic resin, leaving them lighter but stable.

It was a nervous moment for her when some completed timbers were test assembled, each resting in a felt lined individually laser-cut support, in a frame that bolts together like a giant Meccano set, but that dismantles into hundreds of components for travelling.

The exhibition will display finds from across Scandinavia and from deep into the countries they penetrated wherever a river could carry their shallow draft ships – as far inland as Lichfield in England,We offer a wide range of flatwork ironer in our online collection. deep into Russia, to Byzantium in the east, where Vikings fought as mercenaries on both sides, and beyond. Objects from 12 countries,Many people are wearing stainless steel rings, tungsten ring, and stainless steel necklaces. including many recent finds, will demonstrate that Vikings were traders, farmers, fishermen, and superb craft workers in timber, bone and metal.

However the most spectacular single artefact will be the ship, a potent witness that the Vikings were also dreaded raiders.The quality of these solar garden light are amazing with unparalleled combinations of glass colors blown together.

The Roskilde team are now experts on recreating ancient ships, regularly commissioned to build them. One day they hope to recreate a full-size, ocean-going replica Roskilde 6, and send it across the sea to awe rather than to terrorise the coasts of the British Isles.

Apple's leadership spurs industry-wide changes for Chinese labor

Apple's efforts to reform the labor practices of its Chinese suppliers is having a noticeable impact, according to a recent New York Times report.With advancements in controls technology, industrial extractor are becoming increasingly more sophisticated and flexible.We are the premier online retailer of unique, hard to find and incredibly stylish stainless steel bracelet, Titanium rings. While the changes may be happening slower than some labor advocates would like, Apple's attempts to improve worker safety, curb excessive overtime, and eliminate the use of child labor is having a "ripple effect" throughout the industry.

In January, NYT published a scathing report planting much of the responsibility for the ills of labor abuses in China on Apple's shoulders, even as the company became the first electronics manufacturer to join the Fair Labor Association and agreed to independent, third-party audits. The report suggested that Apple executives were willing to look the other way on labor abuses in order to keep costs from Chinese suppliers low. Apple CEO Tim Cook refuted the claims, saying that "any suggestion that we don't care is patently false and offensive to us."

FLA audits conducted in February and March at several Foxconn facilities, which assemble most of Apple's devices as well as those of other manufacturers, identified 360 "action items" in order to improve working conditions, such as cutting down overtime hours, improving worker safety, increasing wages, and implementing a grievance system so that workers would not fear retribution for reporting problems. FLA inspectors noted in August that 284 of those items had been addressed,Fredeco Italian nautical marine polished brass Lamp shade with steering wheel and parchment shade. many ahead of the schedule formulated by the FLA.

Apple's efforts are causing other consumer electronics companies and other Chinese OEMs outside of Foxconn to take notice.

"When the largest company [Foxconn] raises wages and cuts hours, it forces every other factory to do the same thing whether they want to or not," Tony Prophet, a senior vice president at Hewlett-Packard, told NYT. "A firestorm has started, and these companies are in the glare now.With high quality Solar garden lighting, there is little difference in performance to those powered by the mains. They have to improve to compete. It's a huge change from just 18 months ago."

But the problem isn't always an easy one to solve.Waterproof led strip Lighting is a perfect architectural LED light for homes. For instance, even internally at Apple there are disputes about how to fund the improvements to worker conditions. "Executives often believe improvements should be financed by suppliers, whereas suppliers say changes are not feasible unless Apple pays more," according the report. And while Foxconn is cutting hours down to the 49 hour per week average required by Chinese law, some workers would prefer to work more overtime for extra pay.

Still, many believe there is more Apple could do. "Although we think Apple is among the best in terms of auditing, we still think that Apple can do more because it is the most profitable company in the world," activist Li Qiang, founder of China Labor Watch, said earlier this year. "As soon as Apple is willing to give a small percentage of its profits, the workers can benefit a lot."

An anonymous Apple executive suggested to NYT that the company may be preparing to do just that. "The days of easy globalization are done," the Apple executive, who requested anonymity because of confidentiality agreements, said. "We know that we have to get into the muck now."

Toyota Takes $1.1 Billion Hit In Unintended

Toyota waited until boxing day to announce it had reached a tentative settlement in an ongoing class-action lawsuit representing owners claiming they were negatively impacted in the value of their cars due to the recent recalls spurred by alleged unintended acceleration. The original recalls focused primarily on ill-fitting floor mats and stuck accelerator pedals.

Despite even NASA finding no fault with the suspected Toyota and Lexus models included in the recalls (many suspect driver error), the new settlement, if it passes all associated appeals, will see the Japanese automaker launch a new customer-support program that will provide supplemental coverage for certain vehicle components and a retrofit of a brake override system to compatible cars.

Additionally,We are the premier online retailer of unique, hard to find and incredibly stylish stainless steel bracelet, Titanium rings. Toyota will offer cash payments to eligible customers who sold or turned-in their leased vehicles in a period during 2009-2010, as well as other specified persons, and to eligible current owners and lessees who will not be offered the brake override system.

The proposed settlement would also establish additional driver education programs and fund new research into advanced safety technologies.

Toyota is estimating a total cost of $1.1 billion for the settlement, though some suggest the figure could balloon to triple this amount. The estimated costs can be broken down into $250 million for those customers that sold or turned-in their leased vehicles at a loss, $250 million in payments for owners whose vehicles cannot be updated with the brake override system; between $200 million and $400 million to install brake override systems on up to 3.25 million vehicles; $400 million for extending warranties; and about $200 million in court and lawyer fees.

Note,Buy your folding machine from Tesco and earn Clubcard points on your purchase as well. Toyota is facing two other legal actions related to the previous unintended acceleration issue.We are backed by a committed staff of laundry equipment specialists with decades of experience in the laundry industry. These cases concern incidents of injury or death relating to the unintended acceleration issue. Trials for these are scheduled to commence in February.

The boxes will reportedly be able to record all sorts of information about a vehicle including how fast it was traveling, the number of passengers, and the vehicle location. The National Transportation Safety Agency is calling for public comments on the proposed rule by February 11, 2013. The NTSA has the authority to set motor vehicle safety requirements and it is within the agency’s power to require automakers install event data recorders in the vehicle.

The way these boxes would work is that the devices would activate the record data for about 30 seconds during certain events. This would mean during sudden braking, acceleration, swerving, or other types of driving that could lead to an accident. The information would be able to be downloaded from the box remotely or through physical connection depending on the vehicle model.

The federal regulators say that the data would be used “primarily for the purpose of post-crash assessment of vehicle safety performance.You may have a few questions about choosing Chandelier that works with your style.” You can bet if the information is available; it will also wind up being used in court to prove or disprove the drivers fault in an accident. Privacy advocates want the data to be anonymized and wants guarantees that the information won’t be marketed. Insurance companies could potentially take this information and use it to increase rates for an area.Tolomeo reading floor lamp is a floor lamp with light project for modern living room lighting.

Freeze off those holiday love handles

Thousands of Americans are freezing off their fat this Christmas, rather than burning it off at the gym, after signing up for a plastic surgery treatment that uses extreme cold to blast away love handles, muffin tops and spare tires.

The procedure,We offer a wide range of flatwork ironer in our online collection. which can be done during a lunch hour, is proving particularly popular with men who do not want surgery or liposuction.

Those seeking a pre-emptive strike against the festive bulge are hooked up to a machine that uses vacuum pressure and deep cooling to target fat below the skin, freezing unwanted fat cells in the waist, hips,With advancements in controls technology, industrial extractor are becoming increasingly more sophisticated and flexible. thighs, buttocks, abdomen, arms and back.

Patients can answer e-mails and phone calls, read a book or watch a film while having the CoolSculpting treatment.Fredeco Italian nautical marine polished brass Lamp shade with steering wheel and parchment shade. It is used for small areas of fat that refuse to budge with exercise and is done without anaesthetic or medication.

According to plastic surgeons, it is best for those who are about 7 kilograms to 9 kilograms overweight and removes 20 to 30 per cent of fat in the targeted area, with the results showing gradually over a period of weeks after the procedure.

At Marina Plastic Surgery, which has so far performed 4,000 of the procedures in Los Angeles and Beverly Hills, Dr. Grant Stevens, a plastic surgeon, says: “I had my love handles done myself. The fat dies, the skin tightens, it’s incredibly easy and it only takes about an hour.

“The beauty is, it’s permanent. If you eat a lot, you’ll gain weight in other places, so you need to keep going to the gym and watching your diet, but the fat that we freeze doesn’t come back.”

Stevens said there had been a rush for the procedure by men, who were attracted by its non-invasive nature compared with liposuction.Conergy manufactures solar modules and distributes well-known solar module brands. There are no incisions, scars or suction hoses. Only 13 per cent of his usual clientele are men, but for fat freezing it rises to 45 per cent.

“The men have their love handles treated,” he says. “The other place is the tummy, and they also have their man boobs done. Women go for love handles, muffin tops, the thighs and arms.

“Patients like it because there is no discomfort during the procedure and it only takes one hour to lose one inch.

“Although this method does not offer the more extensive fat loss available from liposuction, it is a great alternative for those with smaller areas of fat.”

The temperature of the machines used to freeze away the fat is kept secret, but the idea of using extreme cold to damage fat cells first surfaced in the 1970s, when it was discovered that some children who ate ice pops developed cheek dimples.

According to Dr. Mathew Avram, of the Massachusetts General Hospital Dermatology Laser and Cosmetic Centre, who helped to create the technique, it “targets and cools fat cells to temperatures that trigger their natural death.”

He adds: “Because lipids crystallize faster than normal cells,Waterproof led strip Lighting is a perfect architectural LED light for homes. there is no damage to nerves or other tissue. Over the next few weeks and months, the fat cells shrink and begin to die.”

Doctors have warned that the system, which was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2010, is not a weight-loss treatment. It costs about $750 US for each session, and each love handle is considered a separate session.

Patients have described how the area being targeted feels numb during the procedure and they have seen drops in waist size over ensuing weeks. However, not all experiences have been positive.

A Colorado woman who had fat around her navel frozen wrote on an Internet review site: “The swelling was terrible. I looked pregnant. I went from a 32-inch measurement in the morning to 36-in that night. It was gross.”

Modernizing the post-Sandy electrical grid

Hurricane Sandy slammed into New Jersey and our neighboring states, destroying homes, businesses, our shoreline and stability. It left approximately 2.7 million customers without power and, at its height, almost two-thirds of New Jersey in the dark. The economic impact is estimated to be at least $20 billion.

The hurricane sent a clear message: The country’s current energy system is antiquated and overstressed. Even as the U.S. has added new power sources, innovative technologies and developed more efficient power models, the grid has not changed much in the last 50-60 years. In 2008, The American Society of Civil Engineers gave the country power grid infrastructure a “D” grade, saying it is in “urgent need of modernization.”

Updating the U.S. power grid means shifting from the current centralized model to smaller functioning pockets. Decentralized micro-grids are capable of predicting power disruptions, isolating damaged areas and connecting to alternate power sources. This translates into fewer areas without power and for shorter periods of time and would allow New Jersey towns, homes and services to minimize the effect of outages that may occur nearby or in other parts of the state. A blanket of micro-grids will result in fewer widespread outages and faster restoration.Here you will find a list of the main skystream around the world.

Modernizing our grid is the end game, but we won’t have this solution overnight. Even if all the utilities, townships, states and regulatory agencies began today to make the required changes and improvements,Compare prices and buy all brands of solar panel cells for home power systems and by the pallet. the roll out would take years and the cost would be staggering. For instance, a seemingly simple strategy of burying power lines is stymied by flood areas, tree-clearing,Sol provides the world with high-performance solar roadway and outdoor solar lighting solutions. existing architecture and infrastructure. While we look to update the country’s electrical system in the near future there are things that can be done right now to prevent power loss.

The immediate solution is onsite power. A building un-tied to the grid, capable of producing its own power can serve as a spring of electricity even amidst widespread darkness. As a state, while we await large scale change, these are the measures that we have to adopt now.

Those fortunate enough to have had access to a natural gas generator after Sandy, quickly realized that it was a limited, short-term solution. Service stations also lost power and couldn’t pump gas.TEPCO, elevator push button is an independent, American owned corporation devoted to servicing you, our customer. Any gas station lucky enough to have or regain power quickly depleted their supply,There are three main types of lasers used in Laser engraver. producing long lines of frustrated people. Many new generator owners have yet to realize while their generators sit idle waiting for the next storm, they require regular maintenance and a standby gas supply to remain operational. As New Jersey begins preparing for the predicted harsh weather patterns that lay ahead, is using a generator as a personal or corporate back-up power strategy enough? We’ve learned it’s not.

While the onsite power systems, also known as distributed generation, vary, they work well together to generate continuous power. DG technologies include generators and renewable energy systems such as wind and solar, fuel cells, and battery storage systems. These technologies used in conjunction with a natural gas generator and a dependable back-up power solution “stack” numerous on-site technologies so that power options are available no matter what is happening with the grid.

As the second largest solar state in the nation, New Jersey is already a leader in renewable and DG solutions. We use solar panels and wind turbines to generate electricity, and solar thermal systems to heat hot water. Using these renewable systems in combination with fuel cells and generators can provide stand-by power to keep our state energized during grid failure. As a simple example, DG backup systems in gas stations would have provided the energy for pumping and significantly reduced the gas shortage (and panic) we experienced. As an additional bonus, the renewable energy systems installed as backup power can produce power even when not in back-up mode.

End Wind Subsidies, Let Natural Gas Flourish

The government should end its uneconomical subsidies for wind power and let natural gas production blossom instead, says former Sen. Phil Gramm, now a visiting scholar at the American Enterprise Institute.

“Federal subsidies for new wind-power generation will end on Dec. 31, unless they are renewed by Congress,” Gramm writes in The Wall Street Journal. “For the sake of our economy and the smooth operation of the energy market, Congress should let the subsidies lapse. They waste taxpayer money, subvert the allocation of capital, and generate a social cost many times the price tag of the subsidies themselves.”

Natural gas is the answer instead,Just like the Basic Cable, the elevator cable is formed working the stitches out of order. he says. “If unimpeded,Advantages of laser cutter over mechanical cutting include easier workholding and reduced contamination of workpiece. the expanded use of cheap natural gas to generate electricity will raise living standards and attract millions of new industrial jobs back to our shores. A vote to stop wind subsidies from being extended is, therefore, a vote for cheaper, more reliable power, higher living standards,A research team headed up by the University of Houston is on track to develop a superconducting wire for wind power generators.There are different configurations of industrial laser marking machine: moving material, hybrid, and flying optics systems. reindustrialization, and fiscal sanity.”

Government wind subsidies cost $52.48 per 1 million watt hours generated, compared to a cost of 63 cents for generating the same amount of natural gas. “But the cost to taxpayers is only part of the problem,” Gramm says.

“Subsidized, wind-generated electricity is displacing other, much cheaper sources of power. The subsidies are so high that wind-power producers can pay utilities to take the electricity they produce and still make a profit.”

When wind is fuelling a power grid, it has to keep redundant, backup generating capacity in case the skies are calm at the same time that energy demand is strong.Sol provides the world with high-performance solar roadway and outdoor solar lighting solutions. “Many of these backup sources, such as coal and gas-fired plants, have to be kept up and running to be available when they are needed — even if they are not used,” Gramm says. “This partially offsets the environmental benefits of wind power.”

With oil prices high and natural gas prices low, Kansas oil production edged toward what could turn out to be the highest level since the mid-1990s.

While natural gas production dropped again, as prices remained relatively low, production from wind farms boomed. More than 1,000 megawatts of capacity were installed across the state in advance of an expiring federal tax credit.

Ethanol production dropped as corn prices remain high and gasoline consumption continues to drift down in the economic downturn.

For oil and gas in Kansas, look for more of the same in 2013, said Don Warlick, president of Houston-based consultant Warlick Energy. Oil prices will head back up – he is calling for a range of $80 to $100 per barrel – and Kansas oil producers will also see a boost in prices from increasing pipeline capacity at Cushing, Okla.

The number of vertical wells drilled statewide likely will continue to rise, and companies involved in horizontal drilling say they will continue to expand.

Gas producers, Warlick said, will get only slight relief from low prices caused by overproduction nationwide. He projects a ceiling of $4 per 1,000 cubic feet of gas.

Wind power construction, at this point, is largely at a standstill in Kansas for 2013 with the expiration of the federal Production Tax Credit. If a renewal of the credit is approved by Congress as part of a budget deal, look for momentum for more wind energy to build again.

The Energy Information Agency is projecting that the ethanol industry will regain some ground as the economy strengthens and, if the drought ends, lower corn prices.

Decisions about Nebraska wind development dependent

Wind development in Nebraska could be altered if a Production Tax Credit expires Dec. 31. That's because expiration of the federal incentive could change who constructs and places wind turbines in the state.

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, wind projects in operation before the end of the year are eligible to receive a 10-year, 2.2-cent tax credit for each kilowatt-hour of generation produced.

Al Beiermann, land management manager for Nebraska Public Power District, said the credits are only available to the private sector. The fact that NPPD can't take advantage of them is part of why the utility typically opts to let developers handle the land leases and construction associated with the turbines. NPPD then buys the power generated.

"The operational risk and maintenance also falls back on the developer," Mark Becker, NPPD media relations specialist, said. "It's cheaper for us that way." It may not be the least expensive route in the future.

"If the credit expires, it will drive the cost up when we go for a power purchase agreement,Sol provides the world with high-performance solar roadway and outdoor solar lighting solutions." Becker said. "We may say, 'Is this an opportunity for us to do our own construction - can we build it cheaper?'"

According to Beiermann, there is no mandate in Nebraska that requires utilities to use an increased amount of wind energy. However, the NPPD Board of Directors has voluntarily set a goal of having 10 percent of its electricity come from renewable energy resources by 2020.

"There is a strong push by regulators and the general public as well for clean energy resources," Beiermann said. "Nebraska reportedly has the third best wind energy resources in the nation, so there's a lot of interest in wind for export." He said it also makes sense for NPPD to have a diversified portfolio.

"We hear about all the environmental regulations on coal plants these days," Beiermann said. "You don't want all your eggs in one basket. There's a commitment to get all these turbines put in, so [they] will continue to go up."

Private developers do not have the right to eminent domain, but NPPD does. Beiermann said the utility doesn't currently have any condemnation on wind sites and stressed that it tries its best to work with landowners before that point is reached.A research team headed up by the University of Houston is on track to develop a superconducting wire for wind power generators.

"The first step we do is gauge the interest out there," Beiermann said.TEPCO, elevator push button is an independent, American owned corporation devoted to servicing you, our customer.Compare prices and buy all brands of solar panel cells for home power systems and by the pallet. "If people aren't interested, we pack up and leave and pursue another site. We don't force anything."

Ken Colburn is continuing his efforts to kill PSNH's Merrimack Station power plant. He mentions that any PSNH ratepayer can go elsewhere in New Hampshire to get cheaper electricity – so why don't the complainers do so and keep their peace?

On Jan. 15, 2009, the Monitor reported that a Colburn study conducted for the Hirshberg group (Stonyfield Yogurt et al) could cost ratepayers an additional $864 million to $2.5 billion to meet future environmental standards. As the old canard goes, "Give me a desired result and I will give you a study.There are different configurations of industrial laser marking machine: moving material, hybrid, and flying optics systems."

If Colburn and his ilk want cheap, green power, what is their stand on Northern Pass? Washington state, Oregon and California, yes, even the Tennessee Valley Authority have been using hydropower for decades! And did anyone notice that small New Hampshire hydropower generators are being licensed and re-licensed in great numbers, even in sewage treatment plant outfalls?

PSNH power plants will be required indefinitely to back up wind power and solar power generators; the wind doesn't blow and the sun doesn't shine all the time (but it does rain and snow – hydropower).

I'm sure PSNH would favorably consider a gas pipeline to Bow to provide cheap gas available from the present surfeit of fracked gas. Coal will always be there for use as well. Remember the coal-to-gas tanks on South Main Street in Concord and the city-wide coal gas system?

Power company seeks lower solar costs

The nation's largest electric company wants to slash its payments to solar generators in North Carolina, even as it seeks to increase what residents pay.

The News & Observer of Raleigh reports that if approved, the request would reduce rates paid for green energy to levels unseen since 1984, when the state produced virtually no energy from renewable sources.

Progress Energy, which recently merged with Duke Energy, links the request before the N.C. Utilities Commission to the plummeting cost of natural gas, which is lowering the market price of electricity nationwide. The utility argues it's overpaying for the green energy that a 2007 state law requires it to buy, then passing on those inflated costs to customers.

"It is important that the costs paid to qualifying facilities reflect the utilities' true cost,Sol provides the world with high-performance solar roadway and outdoor solar lighting solutions." said utility spokesman Mike Hughes. The company must "ensure that retail customers do not have to subsidize energy sources priced above the market."

Advocates of renewable energy say North Carolina's solar industry already operates on very thin margins due to the impending loss of a subsidy. The 12-cents-per-kilowatt-hour premium that power companies paid solar generators a few years ago is now at less than one cent. The proposed cuts could bring the industry to a standstill, advocates warn.

"There would be a big curtailment," said Richard Harkrader, chief executive at Carolina Solar Energy, a Durham developer. "The stuff under contract would go ahead, but it would be very difficult to build any new" solar projects.

In North Carolina, solar producers also benefit from a 35 percent state tax credit that can be combined with a 30 percent federal tax credit to reduce the cost of materials, equipment and installation.

The request affects electricity rates the utility pays to small renewable energy producers - those with a capacity of up to 5 megawatts.There are three main types of lasers used in Laser engraver. Contracts with larger producers are negotiated individually.

But Harkrader said any rate approved by the utilities commission will likely set a precedent for how power companies deal with the entire renewables industry.

The utility is seeking cuts between 3 percent and 29 percent for 15-year contracts with solar, biomass and wind power producers. The larger cuts would be to Progress Energy contracts, since it has been paying more than Duke.

The state commission has set a public hearing for Feb. 12 but is not expected to make a decision until at least the summer.Here you will find a list of the main skystream around the world.

The request comes as the utility seeks a 14 percent rate increase for North Carolina residential customers to cover the cost of transmission line updates, new power plants and other operating expenses.

Hughes said there's nothing hypocritical about asking households to pay more for electricity while it seeks to pay less. Not all electricity is equal from an accounting perspective, he said.

Progress officials initially asked the utilities commission to approve the rate cut for renewables Nov. 1 but backed down after complaints. The utility agreed to let the current rates apply to any green energy project proposed by Dec. 1.

Those locked in at the higher rates would include the 130 alternative energy producers - most of them solar - that filed proposals for new projects in the month leading up to the deadline.Compare prices and buy all brands of solar panel cells for home power systems and by the pallet. Those projects represent more than 200 megawatts of power, Hughes said.TEPCO, elevator push button is an independent, American owned corporation devoted to servicing you, our customer.

Canon EOS 5D Mark III review

The review unit was delivered to our test bench with a 24-105 mm F4 IS USM lens. The EOS 5D Mark III is a 22.3 mega pixels full frame 35mm camera. Unlike the predecessor’s 3.9 fps, the Mark III offers a shooting speed of 6 frames per second, and loads up 61 Auto focus points and a 63 zone metering system. The camera’s shutter life is 150,000 cycles.

Canon has reworked almost every bit of the software and there are many hardware additions too in the 5D Mark III. It is almost a complete overhaul of the 5D Mark II which it replaces.

The new camera has many novel features, like HDR capture , HD movie capture, multi exposure mode, 100 per cent viewfinder,The Oregon Department of Transportation placed in service the nation’s first solar photovoltaic system in a U.S. highway right-of-way. touch-response rear dials for video controls and a new 'rating' button which makes image/video selection on the go possible, to name a few.

Lightweight but hardy, the 5D Mark III manages to combine what would seem to be opposite ends of the spectrum of users. It expands the level of manual intervention and settings tweaks possible and yet offers in camera HDR, more video recording capability, dual card slots (SD and CF capability) and suppressed shutter noise levels.

The 5D Mark III is capable of 1080p HD video, with 24, 25 or 30 frames per second. But, of course, what interested me more was its ISO capability of 25,Conergy manufactures solar modules and distributes well-known solar module brands.600 expandable to 102,400.

One of the key parameters that most photographers look out for is low noise at high ISOs. This is an absolute necessity for sports photography, and for getting good results indoors and outdoors at night.

I set the ISO at 12,800 and photographed my jet black great Dane with a white snout against a cream toned wall lit only by a single tube light in the room.The quality of these solar garden light are amazing with unparalleled combinations of glass colors blown together. The white balance was set to Auto. The result as seen on the camera’s 3.2-inch LCD screen was excellent, the blacks and whites reproduced faithfully without a tinge of a colour cast. After checking the result on my iMac, I found the noise levels to be within acceptable levels.

After stepping up the ISO to 25,600, I took the camera to the beach near by. The auto white balance couldn’t correct the colours taken under the street light and the auto focus couldn’t handle the low light near the waves. However, the high ISO could handle the low light on the manual focus mode.

The next set of pictures was taken in good evening light at a farmhouse holding an event for pets. With the ISO set at 640, the focus was fast so was the continuous shooting at 6 frames per second, the colours and contrast were good, but the pictures required a bit of sharpening.

The final test was at a music concert where I shot with ISO`s ranging between 2,000 to 25,600. Although the noise levels was low the images got progressively soft and a bit of out of camera sharpening was required and this resulted in a progressive build up in noise levels and vignetting at the corners was more pronounced

I tried the highlight tone priority on a bright day on white benches, and the dynamic range of the camera was sufficient to hold all highlight tones, and the highlight tone priority mode could not contribute much by way of (highlight) tonal range addition. The dynamic lighting function,There are three main types of lasers used in Laser engraver. which builds shadow and darker mid tones information works well as it should. Though, I prefer to turn it off to preserve the original lighting contrast.

For RAW shooters, who can afford post production, the image quality is excellent. The camera comes only with a monoaural mike input, so for sound, seperate Digital stereo sound recording gear may be necessary.

In still photo mode, low contrast images do not render too well, though the camera responds immaculately and quickly to any situation, largely because of the new Digic 5+ processor.DANUBE international supplies a full range of cylinder heated long lasting washer extractor. Low contrast images tend to go a bit too soft and appear muddy. Even in the default settings, sharpening artefacts are visible and at higher ISOs, the image rendering is not optimal, with details getting obscured especially in low contrast areas. The absence of an AF illuminator makes auto focus functions difficult in low light.

Cabinet nod for two keypower sector proposals

The state cabinet on Monday gave its approval for the creation of Bihar Grid Company Ltd for which an agreement would be signed between the Bihar State Power (Holding) Company Ltd or its associate company and Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd ( PGCIL), in a bid to strengthen the power transmission system in the state.

Giving this information after the cabinet meeting, principal secretary, cabinet coordination, Vijoy Prakash, said the decision to set up such a company was recently taken at a meeting to review different transmission projects in the state. The new company would function on build, own and operate ( BOO) basis for strengthening the power transmission system in the state. An efficient power transmission system is expected to enhance power availability in the state, he said.

The cabinet also approved a proposal to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Sutlej Hydro Power Corporation, a joint venture of Himachal Pradesh government and the Union government,There are three main types of lasers used in Laser engraver. for transfer of Buxar thermal power project at Chausa to it from the Buxar Electricity Company Private Ltd.Conergy manufactures solar modules and distributes well-known solar module brands.Marking machines and laser cutting machine for permanent part marking and product traceability. Sutlej Hydro Power Corporation is expected to get coal linkage for this 1320MW (2X660 MW) project.

Prakash, said that under the MoU,The quality of these solar garden light are amazing with unparalleled combinations of glass colors blown together. Bihar would have 85% share of the power generated from Chausa project whereas Sutlej Power Corporation would get the rest 15%. The site selection and geo-technic research for the project has been done and a detailed project report has already been prepared. Airport Authority of India's clearance regarding the height of the chimney of the thermal power station and water linkage clearance from the Central Water Commission have already been taken, he said.

The cabinet decided that the state government would bear the difference between the cost of solar power purchased from solar power companies and the cost of power purchased from conventional thermal power companies under the scheme "Niche Machli Upar Bijlee". The difference of cost would be measured on the basis of price of power purchased by the Bihar State Power (Holding) Company Ltd from a 150MW solar power firm and a 100MW conventional thermal power firm, through competitive bidding, Prakash said. This is to be done to promote solar power generation under the Renewable Energy Source Promotion Policy, he added.

In some other decisions, the cabinet approved Rs 24.63 crore for the acquisition of 100 acres of land for the Gaya International Airport by providing this amount to the Infrastructure Development Authority. The Authority would transfer the developed infrastructure free to Airport Authority of India for its use.

It was also decided to remove the caste "Khatve" from the list of extremely backward castes for the purpose of job reservation on the basis of recommendation of the Bihar Commission of Backward Classes. It also approved release of Rs 4.5 crore for bearing the cost of creation of 154 posts at the Bihar Open School Education and Examination Board.The Oregon Department of Transportation placed in service the nation’s first solar photovoltaic system in a U.S. highway right-of-way. It approved the release of Rs 13 crore for the annual payment of salary to the newly-created 54 posts of Class III and Class IV for the establishment of Udakishanganj subdivisional court in Madhepura district. It also released Rs 2.5 crore for the establishment and other costs of Bihar State Human Rights Commission.

Mass Megawatts Wind Power

Mass Megawatts Wind Power, Inc.We offer a great selection of women's women shoes manufacturer sandals. today launched a sales program for a new wind powered water pump and a wind electric power generator. The initial market is agricultural facilities,Many people are wearing stainless steel rings, tungsten ring, and stainless steel necklaces. farms and ranches in Colorado. Within the next few months, a new augmented retrofit and aftermarket feature for the wind powered water pumps will be introduced.

Our goal is to bring widespread availability of more cost effective water pumping and electric power technology for farms and ranches in the central plains of the United States with the use of augmentation and diffuser technology. Mass Megawatts developed a wind system with considerable torque for mechanical applications. The gearbox and crankshaft is used to convert the rotary motion toward moving a rod in a pump cylinder at the water located in the well. The wind power units for agricultural applications will be produced at its Midwest regional manufacturing facility located on Highway 8 in Morrison, Colorado.

The wind power system leverages the patented, wind augmenter technology that increases the wind velocity directed toward the wind turbine. This, in turn, can result in a significant increase in power output. For example, an increase in wind velocity from 10 to 20 miles-per-hour can increase the power output of the wind system by a factor of eight.

In the last month, the company began offering electric power at competitive rates to commercial and residential electricity users in several states, including Connecticut,We are the premier online retailer of unique, hard to find and incredibly stylish stainless steel bracelet, Titanium rings. Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York,Marking machines and laser cutting machine for permanent part marking and product traceability. Pennsylvania, Delaware and Illinois.

Additionally, Mass Megawatts recently completed a wind augmentation system for most currently available wind turbines by utilizing a less complicated and inexpensive wind-focusing technique to increase the wind velocity directed at the turbine by an average of 70%. This accelerated wind speed, in turn,Conergy manufactures solar modules and distributes well-known solar module brands. results in an increasing electrical power generated by more than three times than produced from similar wind turbines without wind augmentation. Using horizontal or propeller type turbine blades, the cost per rated kilowatt is projected to be less than $1000 and anticipated to approach $600 in mass production. This compares very favorably with traditional wind power systems that realize a cost of $1500 to $2000 per rated kilowatt.

With its patented, wind augmentation system, a new retail sales business, and very little debt, Mass Megawatts believes it is well positioned to ramp-up production of its new augmentation units in the shorter term while expanding its infrastructure to support mass-production goals in the longer term.

This press release contains forward-looking statements that could be affected by risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to Mass Megawatts Wind Power, Inc.'s ability to produce a cost-effective wind energy conversion device. Among the factors that could cause actual events to differ materially from those indicated herein are: the failure of Mass Megawatts Wind Power, Inc. to achieve or maintain necessary zoning approvals with respect to the location of its power developments; the ability to remain competitive; to finance the marketing and sales of its electricity; general economic conditions; and other risk factors detailed in periodic reports filed by Mass Megawatts Wind Power, Inc.

French national kidnapped in northern Nigeria

A French energy worker has been kidnapped in northern Nigeria after 30 gunmen attacked a residence and killed a policeman and a security guard protecting the foreign employee, officials said on Thursday.

No group claimed credit for the abduction but Islamist groups linked to Boko Haram, which has killed hundreds in an insurgency this year, have been behind similar kidnappings in the past and have become the biggest security threat to Africa's largest oil exporter.

Local Nigerian police spokesman Aminu Sadiq Abubakar said the attack had taken place on Wednesday in the town of Rimi about 20 kilometres (12 miles) north of Katsina, very close to the border with Niger. A police station nearby had also been bombed and some inmates freed from detention, Abubakar said.

The kidnapped worker was employed by French renewable energy firm Vergnet, officials said. A Paris-based Vergnet executive confirmed the kidnapping.

Vergnet is a French firm specialising in wind power turbines, with 700 globally.The quality of these solar garden light are amazing with unparalleled combinations of glass colors blown together.There are three main types of lasers used in Laser engraver. The company is currently building Nigeria's first wind farm based in Katsina state.

The French Foreign Ministry said it could not immediately confirm the kidnapping but was making checks.

Two Frenchmen were killed last year in a failed rescue attempt after being snatched by al Qaeda linked groups from a bar in Niger's capital Niamey and seven people were abducted in the northern city of Arlit a year earlier, including five French nationals. Four of those are still being held.

"While we have no firm concrete news, the location and style of the attack suggests Boko Haram or a faction of the group," said Peter Sharwood-Smith, Nigeria country manager of security firm Drum Cussac.DANUBE international supplies a full range of cylinder heated long lasting washer extractor.

A Briton and an Italian were abducted in May last year in Nigeria's northwestern region and their captors killed them during a British-Nigerian rescue mission in March this year.

Britain last month officially labelled a Nigeria-based Islamist group called "Ansaru" as a "terrorist organisation". It said it was aligned with al Qaeda and was probably responsible for the killing of the two men.

Boko Haram has in the past sent some of its members to train with Al Qaeda's north African wing in Niger, security experts and foreign diplomats say. Ansaru has loose ties with Boko Haram, security experts say.

Boko Haram has killed hundreds in its insurgency this year, focusing its attacks on security and religious targets in an effort to carve out an Islamic state in a country of 160 million split roughly equally between Christians and Muslims.

Seven French nationals are already in the hands of kidnappers in the Sahara,A crystal light can be both modern and vintage, depending on the light fixtures and the surrounding accent pieces. and one is held in Somalia. At the opposite end of Nigeria, in the oil-producing Niger Delta there have been several kidnappings both onshore and offshore in recent weeks.

However, abductions in the oil-region tend to be carried out by criminal gangs for ransom, rather than by extremists. It is a multi-million dollar business and victims are usually released.

According to a May 2010 Congressional Research Service report, for more than half a century, federal energy tax policy focused almost exclusively on increasing domestic oil and gas reserves and production. There were no tax incentives promoting renewable energy or energy efficiency. During that period, two major tax preferences were established for oil and gas.

While the incentives in place for oil and gas are permanent, wind power has consistently been faced with a recurring boom-bust cycle of uncertainty it has seen in previous years when the PTC was allowed to expire.Permanent solar trellis and emergency light systems require little to no maintenance and allow easy access. The PTC has driven the lowering of the cost of wind power by more than 90% and fostered economic development in all 50 states. Wind power has brought consumers savings on their bills.

Refugees from Myanmar settle in for first Christmas in Wichita

In the rice fields and jungles of Myanmar, Saw learned how to work. Karen villagers farm the rice fields below the mountains. They walk everywhere, no cars.In a elevator parts system, steel cables bolted to the car loop over a sheave.Marking machines and  laser cutting machine, for permanent part marking and product traceability. They share every bit of food and work to keep families alive despite poverty and “ethnic cleansing.”

After Saw and his wife ran for their lives,We're making www.zclp.com and digitization accessible to everyone. he worked 15-hour days in the refugee camps in Malaysia for seven years, washing dishes, helping in the kitchen.

He learned fluent English, learned first how to say “please” and “thank you” because he wanted to thank the English-speaking people helping them. He learned the phrase “ethnic cleansing” because he said that is the name for what the government of Myanmar has done to the Karen.

He and his wife had known each other since childhood. In the refugee camp, they were cut off from their village, parents and lifelong friends. This hurt. The Karen people are close-knit. Saw says he and other Karen passionately love their people and their country. It hurts to be gone. But it is good to stay alive.

In the camp after seven years, they were approved as refugees and were given no choice about which country to go to. One day, he and Naw were told they were going to America, to Wichita.

They had never heard of Wichita, but they had heard of America. Saw said the one thing he knew was that America has freedom of speech. This impresses him deeply. In Myanmar, free speech can get you killed and your tribe hunted down by men with machine guns. When they boarded the plane to Wichita, Naw was eight months pregnant.

They were told that someone from a church group would meet them, but when they got off the plane and started walking, they saw no one, and Naw began to cry. Then someone pointed the right direction to walk, and they walked toward a crowd and realized suddenly that the crowd was there for them. Thirty Wichitans greeted them, with signs and cheers, handshakes, promises of help and words of welcome.

Most of the Americans were church people. Some have helped Saw and his family ever since, donating coats, rides, food, anything.

Saw is grateful, but reluctant. At 11 p.A research team headed up by the University of Houston is on track to develop a superconducting wire for wind power generators.m. one night, three weeks after he and Naw arrived in Wichita, Naw felt painful contractions and told him the baby was coming. They needed a ride, fast, because Via Christi Hospital on Harry was miles away.

Saw declined to call anyone. He thought it would be rude. He made Naw wait seven hours, in contractions, until 6 the next morning, until he finally called Mahan from the church.

Saw says many Americans are great people, and not only because they are generous. At Thanksgiving, their doctor showed up at their little apartment, carrying a turkey. They had a meal together.

Later Mahan, one of their benefactors, saw leftover turkey in the refrigerators of all the other Burmese refugees. As they did in Myanmar, Saw’s family shared everything with everyone.

Saw says he misses his parents and his village terribly; it is sad. They are alive, but they are homesick, and they are worried.

He had told a story a few minutes before, about how he and Naw named their new son. They had been so scared, after flying around the world and landing in a strange land, and now the baby was coming.

At Via Christi on Harry,Welcome to Find the right laser Engraver or laser cutting machine,Careel Tech supply highest quality products and best service. Saw said, the doctors and nurses took good care of them and treated them with respect. In Myanmar, people in authority don’t do that, Saw said.

Tomorrow Together with Hitachi Malaysia offers convenience

Hitachi Sales (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd (Hitachi) recently launched a series of home appliances from refrigerators to air conditioners and washing machines that not only deliver high performance, cutting-edge innovation, aesthetically beautiful but also friendly to the environment.

"Tomorrow Together has been Hitachi's tagline and that is the philosophy that guides the designs and innovations of our products. We want to ensure that Hitachi products contribute to making the world a better place to live in," said managing director Masahiro Sakata.

Built with the 'Tomorrow Together' philosophy in mind, the Hitachi Inverter French Bottom Freezer Refrigerators series is powered by Hitachi's Innovative Inverter Technology, equipped with an Inverter and Dual Fan cooling system that cools each compartment independently and efficiently.A research team headed up by the University of Houston is on track to develop a superconducting wire for wind power generators.Welcome to Find the right laser Engraver or laser cutting machine,Careel Tech supply highest quality products and best service.

Designed for your peace of mind, the Big Drum 510 Front Load washing machine does its job quietly and efficiently. With a bigger diameter drum of 510mm, it generates a powerful beat washing effect that removes dirt and stains even more effectively.

The new range of Hitachi air conditioners is powered with the most advanced technology that provides high quality, efficient energy saving methods and reliable air conditioning solutions. The RAS-S10CC is also awarded the 5-star rating by the Energy Commission (EC),Welcome to Find the right laser Engraver or laser cutting machine,Careel Tech supply highest quality products and best service. further substantiating Hitachi's claim for its energy saving capabilities.

The Hitachi French Bottom Freezer Refrigerators, Hitachi Room Air-Conditioners and the Hitachi Big Drum 510 Front Load Washing Machines will be available at major electrical chain stores and electrical shops throughout Malaysia from January 2013 onwards.

Sally West, Age UK policy officer, said: "This is the time of year when many people start to think about the cost of turning up the heating when they want to buy Christmas presents for their grandchildren.

"It is often very difficult for them because they only just have enough income to get by. When the boiler or cooker breaks down then it could tip them over the edge.

"They start to 'make do' and that really means cutting back on the essentials of food and heat and clothing. They may do things such as only using one ring on the cooker." The basic state pension is only 107.45 a week and, although extra financial support is available, around 5.5billion a year goes unclaimed.

Ms West said: "It is an enormous amount to go unclaimed. For many it is simply that they are not aware they are eligible but some are put off by the process of claiming." Former office worker Rita Young has 166 to get her through each week and has no savings to back her up.

"It doesn't go very far," she said. "Food is incredibly expensive and my bank balance is always going down to the wire.

"It seems ridiculous that we live in one of the wealthiest countries in the world yet we cannot afford to give our pensioners a decent, living amount."

Rita, 77, of Peterborough, whose lorry driver husband Gordon died eight years ago, added: "I went 4 overdrawn last week and it is a struggle.Just like the Basic Cable, the elevator cable is formed working the stitches out of order. So many of us at the lower levels have that mentality of 'heat or eat'. One or the other, not both.

"I couldn't cope if my washing machine or something like that broke down.You can play with the six different combinations of these Domino contemporary lamps for a nice effect. I'd have to do it by hand because I couldn't save up for a replacement."

When the other guy is a fine feathered friend

Convention calls for McGrory to begin "Buddy" with a note of exaggerated surprise on a special morning. Each travelling cable is made from several lengths of steel material wound around one another. Here it is, the first day after the first night that McGrory, his fiancee, her two daughters and their assorted pets have spent under the roof of a new house that the engaged couple have just bought. And McGrory professes to wake up confused. Where is he? How did he get shanghaied away from the Back Bay in Boston? And what is that hellish racket outside? "Try as you might," he writes, "you never forget the first time a rooster announces the dawn of a new day from your very own yard."

Pam Bendock,Zamberlan ladies shoes wholesale quality boots mountain and trekking footwear. McGrory's intended,There are three main types of lasers used in Laser engraver. does her best to be comforting. "Poor guy is scared and confused," she says. Given the skillfully jokey tone of McGrory's writing, of course she is talking about Buddy, not about her scared and confused future husband.

McGrory is too well versed in the journalism playbook to tell this tale chronologically. "The story of this rooster actually begins with a dog," he soon writes, flashing back. One of the nice things about "Buddy" is that the cherished-dog part happens to be believable. The book rhapsodically describes its author's idyllic relationship with Harry, a golden retriever who spent 10 mutually rewarding years as McGrory's very best friend.

"Buddy" warmly describes long walks through particularly beautiful parts of Boston, a nightly hour spent a deux on the front stoop outside McGrory's home and an endless array of Harry's enchantingly doggy characteristics. If McGrory went to get his coat, Harry "would squint and take on the appearance of a well-preserved older man reading a dinner menu in a dimly lit bistro," trying to determine whether the coat meant the man would be taking Harry out.

The story of Harry is told with such doggy high spirits that intrusion of acute canine illness comes as a shock. But it is tempered by the arrival of Bendock into the story. She is Harry's doting veterinarian, and for a married mother of two,A research team headed up by the University of Houston is on track to develop a superconducting wire for wind power generators. she also seems to pay quite a lot of attention to his owner. McGrory certainly notices how appealing this vet is. "James Herriot she was not," he writes, "and I mean that in the best of ways."

The middle part of the book is about its author's awkward efforts to acclimate himself to Bendock's life in the suburbs, which is of course skewered by a man who hated giving up city life. Her marriage has ended by the time she starts making house calls for Harry's sake. McGrory has been married and divorced, but he has never dealt with children, let alone pampered little girls who rule the roost in the family home. "There are Brazilian supermodels who aren't photographed as often as a typical kid in 2012," McGrory writes.

It is the girls' father who gets the egg-hatching kit that yields an adorable fuzzy chick, often called Boo-Boo. That name sticks even after a cleaning lady leaves a note bearing these fateful words: "We fed some cheese to your rooster. Hope it's OK. Back in two weeks." Fed some cheese to your what?

Now Buddy's secret is out, and McGrory looks at him with new eyes: "Gone was the demure, henlike creature with the soft rounded head and tentative gait. In its place was a mini-monster with a broad chest, a cherry-red comb sprouting atop its snow-white face, and a walk that oozed the kind of confidence a star lineman would have on his way across the field before the big game."

The subsequent bad-rooster stories, family discord and grudging acclimation by McGrory to life in a menagerie accomplish what is surely the desired end. They put "Buddy" into the "Marley & Me" league of winsome books about the hyped-up horrors and tender, unexpected rewards of pet paternity.

"Buddy" probably milks its Buddy-related crises for more than they are really worth. For all of Buddy's screaming, pecking and splatting (he seems to have taken malicious joy in despoiling the deck of McGrory's bachelor beach house in Maine), the book conveys a stealthy sense that Buddy wasn't such a misery to have around. He is made to sound like a very attractive nuisance. He's also a walking sight gag.We offer a great selection of women's women shoes manufacturer sandals. Picture a rooster's red comb peeking out of the top of a washing machine, from which no one in the family wants to rescue him, and you have some idea of Buddy's potential.

Geospatially Measuring & Modeling an Israeli Archeology

The non-profit Beit Lehi Foundation was setup in 2005 to "advance the understanding and awareness of the general public of ancient religious history associated with this site through scientific research and education." Because of this mission and recent excavations completed on the site in 2010, the foundation president, Alan Rudd,Each travelling cable is made from several lengths of steel material wound around one another. asked the Engineering Graphics and Design Technology department at Utah Valley University (UVU) located in Orem, Utah, to get involved with designing and constructing a visitor's center, parking facility, pedestrian pathways, and other on-site public and preservation facilities, as well as obtaining some archeological survey information.A research team headed up by the University of Houston is on track to develop a superconducting wire for wind power generators.

UVU's efforts are now directed by Darin Taylor, a Drafting Technology professor who has made the project into an official UVU study abroad program which offers Drafting, Geomatics, Digital Media, and Construction management students and faculty an opportunity to get engaged in an international project where they can apply skills and knowledge they have learned in school.

Utah Valley University (UVU) first got involved with the Beit Lehi, Israel project when Alan Rudd, President of the Beit Lehi Foundation contacted Darin Taylor, then Department Chair for Engineering Graphics and Design Technology (EGDT). Alan learned of the unique skill sets the EGDT students and faculty possess. These students are capable of doing the initial site surveying, mapping, and facilities and infrastructure design to accommodate a visitor center with gift shop,We're making www.zclp.com and digitization accessible to everyone. theater, site walkways,Welcome to Find the right laser Engraver or laser cutting machine,Careel Tech supply highest quality products and best service. parking lots, and roadways for tour buses and vehicles.

The Digital Media department faculty and students were also included to help film a site documentary focusing on the EGDT students and faculty as they worked on the project, as well as produce a movie that would eventually tell the story and at least part of the known history of the site. The Construction Management department students and faculty may be involved in the future. UVU administration consisting of Ernie Carey, Dean of the College of Technology and Computing, Larry Marsing, Associate Dean of the School of Technology and Construction, and Darin Taylor, Department Chair of the EGDT department visited Israel and the Beit Lehi site at the invitation of the Beit Lehi Foundation to analyze the practicality, cost, and safety of the project for their students and faculty.

During this analysis period Danial Perry, Associate Professor and Licensed Surveyor from the EGDT department, engaged in a conversation with Oren Gutfeld, Chief Archeologist for the Beit Lehi site regarding the possibility of 3D laser scanning in addition to the surface surveying required for the site infrastructure and facilities. Dan has been scanning since 2001 using a Leica GeosystemsTM,Welcome to Find the right laser Engraver or laser cutting machine,Careel Tech supply highest quality products and best service. Cyrax 2500 laser scanner and was familiar with what could potentially be done with archeological sites. Oren became enthusiastic about the possibilities of introducing 3D laser scanning technology to archeology.

Oren mentioned this technology, the conversation with Dan Perry, and the possibilities scanning could provide to Dean Carey, who came home from Israel not only excited about all the wonderful learning and teaching prospects the project could provide but also determined to purchase a 3D scanner for the school and the Beit Lehi project. After approval from UVU was obtained and an agreement made between the university and the Beit Lehi Foundation, Darin Taylor became the project leader who currently sits on the Beit Lehi Foundation board, and Dan Perry became lead surveyor and scanner for the project.

The scope of the project expanded to include not only conventional surface surveying using GPS, Total Stations, and Automatic levels, but also 3D laser scanning using a Leica GeosystemsTM C10. The C10 is used to scan the entire ancient and recently excavated subterranean facilities including the Olive Press, Ritual Bath (Jewish Mikveh), Byzantine Chapel, and Columbarium's (anciently used on this site as a place for the raising of doves and/or pigeons).

Chesterfield Township man admits to robberies

A 55-year-old Chesterfield Township man admitted he damaged his late parents’ “legacy” by committing five armed robberies in Macomb County to raise money to buy drugs.

Steven P. Champine took responsibility and apologized for his robbery of the stores earlier this year before he was sentenced Monday to 10 to 25 years in prison by Judge David Viviano of Macomb County Circuit Court in Mount Clemens.

Champine told the judge he is the only one of eight children of his parents who veered from the path of good citizenship.

“I have been so wrong in this,” he said, and then referred to his deceased parents. “I put a dark mark on their legacy. … I don’t know why I was singled out. … Frankly, I was raised better than this.

“I’ve deeply hurt and shamed my family, and for that I am truly sorry.In a lift cable system, steel cables bolted to the car loop over a sheave.”

The father and grandfather also apologized to the store employees whom he admitted he likely “terrorized” or “frightened” during the incidents. One of the employees sought counseling.

“I would never hurt someone,” he said. Several family members and friends of Champine attended the sentencing.

Champine’s series of robberies included a dry cleaning business July 14 at Gratiot Avenue and 21 Mile Road in Chesterfield Township, as well as a shoe store at Groesbeck Highway and Cass Avenue in Clinton Township, a convenience store in Utica, a perfume store in Sterling Heights and a Roseville business. Police said Champine used a plastic pellet gun and screw driver in the robberies.The first production laser cutting machine was used to drill holes in diamond dies.

He was initially arrested for the shoe store robbery in mid-July after a store surveillance image of Champine published in The Macomb Daily led to a tip to Utica police. He admitted to the other offenses, police said.Most Popular zclp from the World Leader in Book Scanning.

The judge said Champine’s prescription drug addiction appeared to start in the late 1990s after he was prescribed pain killers for a knee surgery. Over the years, he went off and on drugs, Viviano said, “But for whatever reason, you always found your way back to drugs, leading you to commit these atrocities in our community.”

Champine was employed for many years by ABC Warehouse. He had recently started working part time at a Mount Clemens pawn shop.This season's range of ladies shoes wholesale includes ballet pumps.

Regarding the sentence, Champine’s attorney,Let me state up front that I probably won't be able to help you out much if you decide to build your own residential wind turbines. Mark Chadwick, said he was satisfied. “The judge was fair,” he said. “I don’t think I’ve represented anybody who has shown more remorse.”

The sentence was slightly below the guideline range for the minimum term of 126 to 210 on four of the cases and 135 months to 225 months on one case. Champine also was ordered to pay $780 in restitution to four of the victims.

Viviano said he granted “the small departure” from the range “in light of your capability to do good.”

“I do believe you have the ability to do good things in your life, unfortunately a lot of things will have to happen within the confines of the prison system,” Viviano said.