Yearly Archives: 2011

An Eye on the Sun

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Eye-shaped sunspot group facing planet, Earth directed flares possible

Published on September 5, 2011 9:15 am PT
– By Jim Duran – Writer
– Article Editor and Approved – Ron Jackson


Click for larger image

(TheWeatherSpace.com) — The sun has a sunspot group that is facing our planet today and any large flares would be directed at us.

The field has a beta field which could harbor M-Class solar flares. The NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center is monitoring for changes in the field.

The interesting thing about this one is the shape of it. We know the Sun does not have eyes, but took a look at the image caught today. The sunspot group has an eyelid and eyeball shape. Pretty interesting huh!

fr/http://www.theweatherspace.com/news/TWS-09_05_2011_sunspot.html

Southern California Thunderstorm Outbreak

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Thunderstorms will continue all day and through the night across Southern California

Published on September 5, 2011 8:20 am PT
– By Jim Duran – Writer
– Article Editor and Approved – Ron Jackson


No larger image

(TheWeatherSpace.com) — Thunderstorms slammed the populated areas overnight on Sunday and into Monday morning and this will continue today.

TWS’ Southern California Weather division; SCWXA, issued a Thunderstorm Watch for the region on Monday evening. A few hours after, the first thunderstorms hit Los Angeles.
(View watch box) 

TheWeatherSpace.com Senior Meteorologist Kevin Martin states the watch continues and there will be more.

“Widespread thunderstorms are occurring in the Southland,” said Martin. “Per my projections at SCWXA, will keep the Thunderstorm Watch box activated through today and tonight as the best is yet to come where we get frequent lightning anywhere from Orange County, Inland Empire, and San Diego County today and this evening.”

to read more, go to:  http://www.theweatherspace.com/news/TWS-09_05_2011_socalthunder.html

Wal-Mart Eyes Sustainability

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Wal-Mart Takes Another Step Towards Food Sustainability

 By RP Siegel | August 29th, 2011

It appears that retail giant Wal-Mart is ready to take another step on its sustainability journey. Sourceswithin the food industry are reporting that Wal-Mart is planning to begin collecting data from its fruit and vegetable vendors in order to assess the sustainability of their operations.

This is a continuation of Wal-Mart’s initiative rolled out last fall in which they pledged to support farmers and their communities by selling $1 billion worth of food from one million small and medium farmers who will be trained in sustainability practices. This move will effectively double the amount of locally grown food they sell in the US, while increasing revenue to smaller farmers by 10-15%.

They also pledged to produce more food with fewer resources and less waste by investing over $1 billion in their food supply chain over the next five years and reducing food waste in their stores.

Furthermore they pledged to seek more sustainable sources for foods such as palm oil for all of their private branded products and beef from sources that do not contribute to rainforest deforestation.

The metrics announcement stems from the 2011 Sustainable Food Lab Leadership Summit which met in late June. Wal-Mart is working with and seeking input from the Sustainability Consortium which is jointly administered by the University of Arkansas and Arizona State University. A substantial portion of the metrics they will use were developed by the Stewardship Index for Specialty Crops (SISC), which was also mentioned as part of last fall’s announcement when the company pledged to “accelerate the agricultural focus of the Sustainability Index, beginning with a Sustainable Produce Assessment for top producers in its Global Food Sourcing network in 2011.”

SISC is a multi-stakeholder initiative to develop a system for measuring sustainability performance throughout the specialty crop supply chain which includes fruits, vegetables, nuts and horticulture. In addition to retail food buyers such as Wal-Mart and Wegmans, other stakeholders include growers and their representative associations, large food producers such as Heinz and Del Monte, packers, shippers, distributors, government agencies, academics and NGO’s including Defenders of Wildlife and the World Wildlife Fund. More than 400 representatives of these groups have joined the effort since its inception.

SISC’s core operating principles include:

  • Avoiding duplication of efforts
  • Realizing that we will achieve more through a collaborative effort that includes all supply chain stakeholders
  • Creating metrics that are performance-based, non-prescriptive, allowing individual operators to innovate
  • Maintaining an open and transparent process

In El Salvador – Gold vs H20

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Gold or Water? A Deadly Debate

To protect their water supply, Salvadorans are trying to ban corporate gold mining—and facing threats and violence as a result.
posted Aug 29, 2011

 

El Salvador Greenhouse

Photo by John Cavanagh

We are inside a greenhouse, gazing at row after row of hydroponic tomatoes and green peppers, learning why people in this community in northern El Salvador are receiving death threats. We have been sent byThe Nation magazine to chronicle the struggle by people here to protect their river from the toxic chemicals of global mining firms intent on realizing massive profits from El Salvador’s rich veins of gold.

Before going to the greenhouse, we spend the morning at the home of Carlos Bonilla, a farmer in his sixties whose handsome face is creased with the wisdom, suffering, and joy of decades of struggles for justice. Over a delicious meal of local tortillas, vegetables, and chicken, Carlos and a group of eight young people tell us their stories.

“We reject the image of us just as anti-mining. We are for water and a positive future. We want alternatives to feed us, to clothe us.”

These young people run a radio station, Radio Victoria, where they broadcast to a growing audience across this mountainous terrain. They tell us about giving air time to local leaders who, beginning seven years ago, found themselves facing a new threat: Mining firms, granted permits to explore for gold in the watershed of the great Lempa River (which supplies water to over half the country’s 6.2 million people), entered these communities with promises of jobs and prosperity.

Gold is now selling for more than $1500 an ounce. Local organizer Vidalina Morales tells us: “Initially, we thought mining was good and it was going to help us out of poverty…through jobs and development.”

But, then, a strange thing happened. A stream dried up near the exploration wells that a Canadian firm, Pacific Rim, was digging. Concerned, Vidalina and other activists traveled to nearby Honduras to meet with members of communities where large mining projects were already underway. They returned with grisly stories of cyanide poisoning the soil and water (cyanide is used to separate the gold from the surrounding rock), and people in mining areas suffering skin diseases and other ailments.

This wasn’t what they wanted, especially near the Lempa River. Local people in northern El Salvador began to organize against the mining firms. First, they linked up with other groups across this province of Cabañas to coordinate opposition. Next, they found allies in other provinces and in the capital San Salvador, and they formed a National Roundtable on Mining. After discussion and debate, the Roundtable decided that the only way to save their vital water source was to organize for a national ban on gold and other metals mining.

Then, they tell us, the death threats began. Some came as anonymous phone calls, some as untraceable text messages, some as people were stopped by men in cars. In June 2009, a dynamic local cultural leader, Marcelo Rivera, disappeared; his body was found in the bottom of a well, with signs of torture reminiscent of the bloody civil war that convulsed this region in the 1980s.

to read more, go to:    http://www.yesmagazine.org/blogs/john-cavanagh-and-robin-broad/gold-or-water-a-deadly-debate

New Solar Flare

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SOLAR FLARE: This morning at 1145 UT, an active region on the sun’s western limb unleashed an M3-class solar flare. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory recorded the flash of extreme UV radiation:

Although the blast site was not directly facing Earth, radiation from the explosion nevertheless ionized Earth’s upper atmosphere. This altered the propagation of radio signals around Europe, where it was high-noon at the time of the flare. “I detected a sharp change in signal levels from two radio stations on the VLF band,” reports Rob Stammes of Lofoten, Norway.

In addition to the UV flash, the explosion also hurled a CME into space: SOHO movie. The cloud is not heading for Earth, so no auroras will result from this particular event. That’s not to say, however, that no auroras are in the offing.

fr/spaceweather.com

Recent Extreme Earth Events

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Disasters in US: An extreme and exhausting year

September 4, 2011 By SETH BORENSTEIN , AP Science Writer

Disasters in US: An extreme and exhausting year (AP)

In this May 25, 2011 file picture, a line of severe storms crosses the Mississippi River in Memphis, Tenn., passing by the Memphis Pyramid. The dark formation was reported a few minutes earlier as a tornado in West Memphis, Ark. Nature is pummeling the United States in 2011 with extremes. There have been more than 700 U.S. disaster and weather deaths. What’s happening, say experts, is mostly random chance or the bad luck of getting the wrong roll of the dice. However, there is something more to it, many of them say. Man-made global warming is loading the dice to increase our odds of getting the bad roll.

Unprecedented triple-digit heat and devastating drought. Deadly tornadoes leveling towns. Massive rivers overflowing. A billion-dollar blizzard. And now, unusual hurricane-caused flooding in Vermont.

If what’s falling from the sky isn’t enough, the ground shook in places that normally seem stable: Colorado and the entire East Coast. On Friday, a strong quake triggered brief tsunami warnings in Alaska. Arizona and New Mexico have broken records for wildfires.

Total weather losses top $35 billion, and that’s not counting , according to the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration. There have been more than 700 U.S. disaster and weather deaths, most from the  this spring.

Last year, the world seemed to go wild with natural disasters in the deadliest year in a generation. But 2010 was bad globally, and the United States mostly was spared.

This year, while there have been devastating events elsewhere, such as the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, Australia’s flooding and a drought in Africa, it’s our turn to get smacked. Repeatedly.

“I’m hoping for a break. I’m tired of working this hard. This is ridiculous,” said Jeff Masters, a  who runs Weather Underground, a meteorology service that tracks strange and . “I’m not used to seeing all these extremes all at once in one year.”

The U.S. has had a record 10 weather catastrophes costing more than a billion dollars: five separate tornado outbreaks, two different major river floods in the Upper Midwest and the , drought in the Southwest and a blizzard that crippled the Midwest and Northeast, and Irene.

What’s happening, say experts, is mostly random chance or bad luck. But there is something more to it, many of them say. Man-made global warming is increasing the odds of getting a bad roll of the dice.

Sometimes the luck seemed downright freakish.

to read more, go to:    http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-09-disasters-extreme-exhausting-year.html

Houseplants Defy Indoor Pollution

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“Gobble Up 87% of the Air Toxins in Your Home in
24 Hours – NASA Discovery”

Just go to your local nursery and pick out any of these 10 types of common houseplants. Plus, 9 extra steps you can take – and the gas created by “lightning” that’s the ultimate pac-man for destroying the enemy invading toxins lurking in your home…

Indoor air quality is a very big concern of mine. The following numbers pretty much speak for themselves, and can be both surprising and quite alarming at the same time…

  • Americans spend over 90% of their time indoors… some estimates go as high as 97%
  • Many homes and offices have airborne pollutant levels 25-100 times higher than the air outside
  • Over 1500 substances may be found in the typical North American home… some of which can emit toxic fumes

These numbers and statistics are not meant to frighten you… but simply to give you a wake-up call to what many folks unknowingly assume is okay… and that’s indoor air quality.

Since I last examined this, I believe the average time folks spend indoors may have even increased.

Why?

Because very challenging winters in the cold climates of the US coupled with more work-at-home opportunities (and economy-driven employment issues) add up to people spending more time at home and indoors.

The good news is there are some very positive steps you can take to enhance the indoor air you breathe… and I’m here to help you do just that.

Why the Indoor Air in Your Home and Office is So Important

Have you ever spent time in an environment that invigorated you, and inspired you to think clearly and creatively?

 

 

pollution-free environment
Ever wonder why spending time in
a natural pollution-free environment
can be so invigorating?”

Chances are this environment was somewhere outside in nature.

 

 

So what causes the air inside your home or office to not come close to having the same effect… or worse, to even reach high pollution levels?

First of all, the EPA tells us that the air outside your home establishes the baseline for your indoor air.

This seems to make perfect sense. It also means if you already live in an area with high levels of outside pollutants, your indoor air probably started out ‘bad’ before anything inside your house had a chance to impact it even further.

“Ever wonder why spending time in a natural pollution-free environment can be so invigorating?”

But once inside your home or office, the air you breathe can get worse and loads of other pollutants may be added from materials and faulty processes inside your home such as…

to read more and see the video, go to:    http://airpurifier.mercola.com/

 

 

On Antibacterial Soap

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The Soap You Should Never Use – But 75% of Households Do

Posted By Dr. Mercola 
germophobia can damage brainThe main compounds in antibiotic wipes, creams and soaps — triclosan and triclocarban — have been added to chopping boards, refrigerators, plastic lunchboxes, and mattresses in an attempt to halt the spread of microbes.

But studies show that these antibiotic chemicals are no more likely than regular soap to prevent gastrointestinal or respiratory illness. In fact, for chronically sick patients, antibiotic soaps were actually associated with increases in the frequencies of fevers, runny noses and coughs.

According to Scientific American:

“What we do know is that the influence of these wipes and salves does not end with our hands, but instead spreads from them down our drains and out into society.

What happens when antibiotic soaps and suds go down drains? To find out, a group of scientists recently made artificial drains clogged with bacteria … and then subjected them to low and high doses of triclosan … Triclosan kills ‘weak’ bacteria but favors the tolerant, among them species of bacteria that eat triclosan … Triclosan may also favor lineages of bacteria that are also resistant to the oral antibiotics used in hospitals”.

Additionally, there have been recent concerns about its possible effects on human health — and triclosan has been detected in human breast milk, blood, and urine samples. A study evaluated the effects of triclosan in female rats, and was found to advance the age at which the rats hit puberty.  Serum thyroid hormone concentrations were also suppressed by triclosan.

According to the study, published in Toxicological Sciences:

“In conclusion, triclosan affected estrogen-mediated responses in the pubertal and weanling female rat and also suppressed thyroid hormone in both studies.”

to read more, go to:   http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/07/27/how-washing-your-hands-and-germophobia-can-damage-your-brain.aspx?e_cid=20110727_DNL_art_1

September 4-10

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Things will be shifting this week, including alliances and allegiances. You also might begin to feel that where you are living and what you are doing is reaching a point at which you cannot continue in that place or that occupation for much longer.  These are things that you have been aware of for some time,  but just as a nagging itch. Now you are becoming less tolerant and more anxious for things to get moving.  This is good. Take time this week to get rid of things that confine you to an image that no longer suits the new you that is rapidly coming out of the cocoon, getting ready to fly.  Hurrah.  You have known this would be happening, just not when;  The time is now as the energies all over are shifting.  There will be less judgement about what you are doing and why as others become very focused on the confusion in their own lives.  Corporations, institutions, and groups also will find themselves in turmoil and looking at what is happening to the greater whole.  So do not worry!  This is the perfect time to be WHO you are and go for it.  Look around for signs and symbols, even art work, that reflect your growing individuality, an individuality that belongs to a community.  You will also be noticing physical issues and weirdness.  This is the core of your physicality responding to the energetic shifts, blips, and changes. These changes are happening on every level, emotional, physical, spiritual, and mental.  Be kind to yourself and know that if what you are feeling rings true to your heart, your intuition, then all is well.  This is also a good time to backup, double check, and ascertain that things you are working on or planning are safe and available.  Things will be disappearing on all levels, from your computer, your files, etc..   Prioritize and be certain that what you need is protected.  (I have available in the GALLERY section some pieces that might help in this transition..  Or for some god karma, a donation goes a long way towards assisting with keeping things going and up to date)

On the larger scale things are starting this week in terms of Earth changes, however we are only seeing the tip of the iceberg here.  More will come into view as time goes by.  There are many things in this atmosphere that need to be equalized and what is going on right now indicates an attempt towards this.  There is a lot of crazy ego-bound anger that is working against the movement towards change.  All of this results in upheavals.  Spiritual crises on alarge scale cannot help but be mirrored in actual physical events.  So, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, volcanoes.  The energy of the galaxy that has been moving towards us is now in proximity and twists certainty into uncertainty.  This will leave those in the area of science wondering why their methods no longer yield predictable results. Prediction based upon the past has no future.  Prediction based upon uncertainty tells the truth.  But it is something that so many wish not to hear.  The easy, good, none-to-five, work and get a good retirement life is over.  The politicians do not know this on an intellectual level, but intuitively they are aware.  Therefore the whole political game, for game it is, is up in the air.  They do not know what they are saying, and they do not know what it means.  But there is a very large wedge moving into this whole thing — perhaps a wild card, but it will  make everyone see things in a different light.  Finances are as best they can be.  It is time to see it all for illusion, a game in which you do not hold the winning cards.  Best approach—follow your intuition.  Expect the unexpected.  Keep your eyes to the skies. And look below the surface.

Sunday, September 4:    Grainty White

Things will be in and out of focus today.  At times, that might just leave you feeling that you are going a bit daft.  This is not the case, however, it is just the way things are.  There is something that you have been searching for or wanting to do that has eluded you for quite sometime.  Today, it will be closer to you than before.  You will also get a sense as to how to achieve what it is that you have been desiring.  There is unexpected assistance coming your way.  Do not discredit such things as dreams, intuition, or coincidence.  Things are bringing themselves to the fore these days in ma ny different disguises.  This is a time for looking below the surface.  If you are not sure, ask questions.  If you are still not sure, ask more.  In terms of what it is that you are becoming, this is a good time for some meditation, journaling, or other creative work.  In these kinds of activities, you can contact layers of yourself that are often hidden.

Monday, September 5:    Cloudy White

Labor Day:    When dealing with people today, again, it will be important to understand what is being said and about whom or what it is being said.  There is a lot of confusion in the air, and people will be saying things out of sync with what is going on around them.  This is not a time to take tings seriously.  If you find yourself feeling out of sorts because of words or actions that you are not clear about, ask.  And if it is too late to ask, review the situation.  Much is happening today on all levels, and in this kind of energy it is hard to know on what level you are.  This is not a day for firm decision making or for making big changes.  Let the day be as it is.  Observe, question, and as best you can clarify.  There are things that happen today that will become important in the next few weeks in terms of getting it straight about some people, options, opportunities, and future plans.

Tuesday, September 6:    Periwinkle Blue

There is much to be learned today in terms of your friends and your community.  In many cases, the communities are just beginning to be drawn together, and there will be indications of who it is that will be part of your community.  You are aware that you have been feeling the need to make some shifts in your life.  There are indications out there of what would best fit you.  Because of all the inner turmoil, you have lost touch with the really important aspects of yourself. This is a day in which you will find reminders of just what those are.  Be open to what is around you. Synchronicity is in the air.

Wednesday, September 7:    Violet

This is a day for staying strong in WHO you are and grounded in your core.  There is innuendo in the air.  People seem to be talking about you.This can lead to feelings of uncertainty and powerlessness.  Do not act before making sure that you know what its going on.  The imagination can definitely play tricks on one, and when you are in the midst of the shadows, it is easy to mistake one thing for another.  The nest thing to do today is to stay with your routine. Be with the people,  places, and things that you know and trust most.  If you have to go out and about, then plan your activities carefully.  Be observant and see how things are happening around you.  There is much to be learned.

Thursday,  September 8:    Medium Blue

At this time, more and more things are coming up from the past. Emotions will be close to the surface.  There can be exchanges about past matters and even a phone call from someone from long ago.  At this time, you are feeling somewhat off center and not balanced.  Today, the energies are letting you take what it is that you are feeling and make them into a  kind of basis for you to work from as time goes by.  You need perspective and this what they are giving to you.  There are opportunities around right now.  Do not let them pass.

Friday, September 9: Light Amber
Plans can be changed unexpectedly today. besides, there are so many lose ends that still need to be tied up before you can get started on… This is a day also for planning, for determining what it is that you are wanting to get done by the end of the month. thing are shifting and changing right now, as are you. You need to be okay with everything that is going on and everything that is happening in your life right now. Take some time to go inside and work with your core and your own personal heartfelt sense of destiny. Then write down what it is that you discover. Put together your month’s work and prioritize. Do not let the important things slip through the holes.

Crystal Energy: TurtleBack Stone—-A good mineral for cleansing and renewal. It assists with the inner journey of soul recognition. Resonates with the Divine Feminine. Vibrates to the Root and Heart Chakras.

Saturday, September 10: Chocolate Brown
This is a god day for enjoying the sweetness of life. Just do not overdo it. There will be temptations to go beyond what you usually think of as enough. these can be found in conversation, in emotion, in reaction, in physical movement, and of course, in eating. This is a good time to go within and become aware of what your limits are, how much you are willing to do, and how much you are willing to put up with. There are people out there who are watching you, waiting for you to make a mistakes. This is a good time to remember that you are in charge of all that you do and how you do that will present to those outside of you a picture of yourself. The bottom line is WHO you are. DO not worry about the watchers. They will always be there, but they will only be able to effect you if you let them.

Crystal Energy: Siberian Amethyst—-The energy of this stone assists with alignment of the true purpose of self with the All. It allows for vision into the truth of one’s being. Resonates with the Third Eye Chakra.

Dragon Con This Weekend

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Dragon*Con is the largest multi-media, popular culture convention focusing on science fiction and fantasy, gaming, comics, literature, art, music, and film in the universe!

This year, Dragon*Con will be held Labor Day weekend (September 2-5, 2011) in Atlanta, GA.

check out the website:    http://www.dragoncon.org/index.php

And here are some of the

FEATURED GUESTS

Note: Recent additions are marked with a » (within 7 days) or a » (within 14 days).

Authors:
Kevin J. Anderson Terry Brooks A. C. Crispin
Bill Fawcett Richard Garfield Richard Garriott
Laurell K. Hamilton Charlaine Harris Laura Hickman
Tracy Hickman Sherrilyn Kenyon Jonathan Maberry
Todd McCaffrey Rebecca Moesta Jody Lynn Nye
Mike Resnick John D. Ringo Robert J. Sawyer
Susan Sizemore Michael Stackpole S. M. Stirling
Janny Wurts Chelsea Quinn Yarbro Timothy Zahn

 

Film & Television:
Loni Anderson Ralph Bakshi Kristin Bauer
Trace Beaulieu Jim Beaver Julie Benz
Jon Bernthal David Blue Ernest Borgnine
Nicholas Brendon Beau Bridges Amy Bruni
Sara Canning Brian Cano Misha Collins
Frank Conniff Bill Corbett James Darren
Felicia Day Nicole de Boer Aaron Douglas
Robin Dunne »Eliza Dushku Elvira
Robert Englund Richard Epcar Beth Ezzo
Tom Felton Colin Ferguson Louis Ferreira
Lou Ferrigno Samantha Ferris Carrie Fisher
Sean Patrick Flanery Chris Gauthier Patrick Gilmore
Steve Gonsalves Erin Gray Joel Gretsch
Dean Haglund Doc Hammer Richard Hatch
Kyle Hebert Tricia Helfer Lance Henriksen
Howard Hesseman Virginia Hey Christopher Heyerdahl
Jordan Hinson Michael Hogan Sam Huntington
Tom Kane Clare Kramer Gary Kurtz
Martin Landau Madison Lintz Christopher Lloyd
Gareth David Lloyd Joe Manganiello James Marsters
Peter Mayhew Eddie McClintock »Sylvester McCoy
Mary McDonnell Gates McFadden Mike McFarland
Mercedes McNab Robert Duncan McNeill Julie McNiven
Addy Miller Temuera Morrison Kate Mulgrew
David Nykl Denis O’Hare Amy Okuda
Edward James Olmos Jim Parrack Tahmoh Penikett
Meaghan Rath Norman Reedus Chandler Riggs
Michael Rosenbaum William Shatner Mark A. Sheppard
Brent Spiner Dave Tango Amanda Tapping
Lea Thompson Robin Thorsen Tony Todd
James Tolkan James Urbaniak Laura Vandervoort
Nana Visitor Garrett Wang Wil Wheaton
Sam Witwer Steven Yeun Aimee Zaffis
Chris Zaffis John Zaffis