By Cathleen McGuigan, Newsweek Entertainment
March 12, 2007
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17437334/from/ET/
**I posted this article to gain opinions (pros and cons) from my classmates for my Researched Argument paper**
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Taiwan offers 'freeway' for butterflies
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070324/ap_on_sc/taiwan_butterfly_migration
Sat Mar 24, 6:16 AM ET
Taiwan will cordon off part of a highway to create a safe passage for a massive seasonal butterfly migration in the coming days, an official said Saturday.
The milkweed butterflies — which are indigenous to the island off China and have distinct white dots on purple brown wings — migrate in late March from southern Taiwan to the north, where they lay eggs and die.
The young butterflies then fly south every November to a warm mountain valley near the southern city of Kaohsiung to escape the winter cold in the north.
Conservationists say Taiwan has about 2 million milkweed butterflies.
To protect the migrating butterflies, a 600-yard stretch of highway in southern Taiwan's Yunlin County will be sealed off in the coming days as the migration peaks, said Lee Tai-ming, head of the National Freeway Bureau.
Authorities will set up nets to make the butterflies fly higher and avoid passing cars, Lee said.
He said they will also install ultraviolet lights to guide the insects across a highway overpass.
Taiwan began the laborious task of tracking down the butterflies' 180-mile migration paths in recent years.
Taiwan originally had more types of milkweed butterflies, but the largest became extinct decades ago when they were routinely caught and made into specimens for sale, the newspaper said.
Sat Mar 24, 6:16 AM ET
Taiwan will cordon off part of a highway to create a safe passage for a massive seasonal butterfly migration in the coming days, an official said Saturday.
The milkweed butterflies — which are indigenous to the island off China and have distinct white dots on purple brown wings — migrate in late March from southern Taiwan to the north, where they lay eggs and die.
The young butterflies then fly south every November to a warm mountain valley near the southern city of Kaohsiung to escape the winter cold in the north.
Conservationists say Taiwan has about 2 million milkweed butterflies.
To protect the migrating butterflies, a 600-yard stretch of highway in southern Taiwan's Yunlin County will be sealed off in the coming days as the migration peaks, said Lee Tai-ming, head of the National Freeway Bureau.
Authorities will set up nets to make the butterflies fly higher and avoid passing cars, Lee said.
He said they will also install ultraviolet lights to guide the insects across a highway overpass.
Taiwan began the laborious task of tracking down the butterflies' 180-mile migration paths in recent years.
Taiwan originally had more types of milkweed butterflies, but the largest became extinct decades ago when they were routinely caught and made into specimens for sale, the newspaper said.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Lint rollers may collect dangerous Moon dust
22:32 (10:32pm) 06 March 2007
NewScientist.com news service
Kelly Young
Magnetic wands and lint rollers may be among the tools NASA uses to keep dangerous lunar dust at bay when it returns to the Moon around 2020.
While hailed as a potential source of oxygen and metals, Moon dust is a concern because doctors fear the smallest grains could lodge in astronauts' lungs, possibly causing long-term health effects.
Now, NASA is working on a number of ways to reduce the amount of lunar dust astronauts are exposed to – from simple grates on the floor to streams of liquid usually used to flush contaminants out of photocopiers.
Even during the relatively short Apollo Moon landing missions nearly 40 years ago, astronauts reported difficulty breathing.
"It turns out what we did in Apollo was probably the worst way we could have handled it operationally," says Kriss Kennedy, project leader for architecture, habitability and integration at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, US. That is because the Apollo landers did not have airlocks, so the astronauts had to live among the dust for days.
Air showers
So the agency plans to set up an airlock on the first lunar trips, which are expected to last just a week. That way, astronauts can take off their spacesuits and boots in a sort of 'mudroom' or entryway without tracking dust into their living quarters.
The airlocks on subsequent missions will become more advanced, with metal gratings outside them to collect lunar soil, or regolith. Inside, they may also be fitted with "air showers", wherein blasts of air from above whisk dust to a grated floor below – just like those used outside of cleanrooms on Earth.
These measures could help remove 90 to 95% of the dust coming into the spacecraft, Kennedy told New Scientist.
The methods may be especially good at removing large particles of dust. But getting rid of smaller particles – which some scientists believe pose more health risks – may require more ingenuity.
Magnetic wand
That is because they harbour strong forces between their molecules, known as van der Waals forces, which make it tricky to free them once they stick to a surface.
So engineers have come up with a variety of solutions that exploit different properties of the powder.
Some lunar dust carries an electrostatic charge thanks to ionising radiation hitting the Moon's surface. So air filters could be built to attract charged dust particles.
Because some of the particles are magnetised, the air filters could also be equipped with magnets, and astronauts could wave a magnetic wand over their suits to attract the dust after a Moonwalk.
NASA might also try to blow the dust away with cans of compressed air – the same kind usually used to clean off computer keyboards on Earth.
Flush out
Another technique borrowed from Earth-bound offices involves carbon dioxide snow cleaning systems, which are used to clean photocopiers and telescopes. These systems flush out contaminants with a stream of liquid CO2.
But getting heavy carbon dioxide tanks to the Moon may be too much of an undertaking given all the other gear that must be transported there, say engineers. Instead, they say the system might be better suited for Mars, where carbon dioxide could be extracted from the atmosphere.
A lighter-weight option takes a page from pet owners the world over. NASA may simply use sticky surfaces – rather like lint rollers – to remove dust.
They may also use coveralls that could go over the spacewalker's pressure suit and be thrown away after a trip outside the lunar habitat. Engineers at Johnson Space Center are also investigating spacesuit materials that are impervious to dust.
Resistant materials
But much of NASA's research is likely to focus on simply designing good seals to keep it outside key modules and spacesuits and coming up with materials that are resistant to the dust's abrasiveness.
"I think that a lot of the solution is kind of boring – good old-fashioned engineering," says Sandra Wagner, head of planetary environment management and integration at Johnson.
Dust may be a niggling problem for NASA in its plans for the Moon, but it's not insurmountable, says Rajiv Kohli of Johnson.
"There are no showstoppers per se," Kohli told New Scientist. "Most of the problems that we think we have are manageable."
NewScientist.com news service
Kelly Young
Magnetic wands and lint rollers may be among the tools NASA uses to keep dangerous lunar dust at bay when it returns to the Moon around 2020.
While hailed as a potential source of oxygen and metals, Moon dust is a concern because doctors fear the smallest grains could lodge in astronauts' lungs, possibly causing long-term health effects.
Now, NASA is working on a number of ways to reduce the amount of lunar dust astronauts are exposed to – from simple grates on the floor to streams of liquid usually used to flush contaminants out of photocopiers.
Even during the relatively short Apollo Moon landing missions nearly 40 years ago, astronauts reported difficulty breathing.
"It turns out what we did in Apollo was probably the worst way we could have handled it operationally," says Kriss Kennedy, project leader for architecture, habitability and integration at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, US. That is because the Apollo landers did not have airlocks, so the astronauts had to live among the dust for days.
Air showers
So the agency plans to set up an airlock on the first lunar trips, which are expected to last just a week. That way, astronauts can take off their spacesuits and boots in a sort of 'mudroom' or entryway without tracking dust into their living quarters.
The airlocks on subsequent missions will become more advanced, with metal gratings outside them to collect lunar soil, or regolith. Inside, they may also be fitted with "air showers", wherein blasts of air from above whisk dust to a grated floor below – just like those used outside of cleanrooms on Earth.
These measures could help remove 90 to 95% of the dust coming into the spacecraft, Kennedy told New Scientist.
The methods may be especially good at removing large particles of dust. But getting rid of smaller particles – which some scientists believe pose more health risks – may require more ingenuity.
Magnetic wand
That is because they harbour strong forces between their molecules, known as van der Waals forces, which make it tricky to free them once they stick to a surface.
So engineers have come up with a variety of solutions that exploit different properties of the powder.
Some lunar dust carries an electrostatic charge thanks to ionising radiation hitting the Moon's surface. So air filters could be built to attract charged dust particles.
Because some of the particles are magnetised, the air filters could also be equipped with magnets, and astronauts could wave a magnetic wand over their suits to attract the dust after a Moonwalk.
NASA might also try to blow the dust away with cans of compressed air – the same kind usually used to clean off computer keyboards on Earth.
Flush out
Another technique borrowed from Earth-bound offices involves carbon dioxide snow cleaning systems, which are used to clean photocopiers and telescopes. These systems flush out contaminants with a stream of liquid CO2.
But getting heavy carbon dioxide tanks to the Moon may be too much of an undertaking given all the other gear that must be transported there, say engineers. Instead, they say the system might be better suited for Mars, where carbon dioxide could be extracted from the atmosphere.
A lighter-weight option takes a page from pet owners the world over. NASA may simply use sticky surfaces – rather like lint rollers – to remove dust.
They may also use coveralls that could go over the spacewalker's pressure suit and be thrown away after a trip outside the lunar habitat. Engineers at Johnson Space Center are also investigating spacesuit materials that are impervious to dust.
Resistant materials
But much of NASA's research is likely to focus on simply designing good seals to keep it outside key modules and spacesuits and coming up with materials that are resistant to the dust's abrasiveness.
"I think that a lot of the solution is kind of boring – good old-fashioned engineering," says Sandra Wagner, head of planetary environment management and integration at Johnson.
Dust may be a niggling problem for NASA in its plans for the Moon, but it's not insurmountable, says Rajiv Kohli of Johnson.
"There are no showstoppers per se," Kohli told New Scientist. "Most of the problems that we think we have are manageable."
Bolivians: Coca-Cola should drop "coca"
By Dan Keane, Associated Press Writer
Fri Mar 16, 4:52 AM ET
Always Coca-Cola? Not if Bolivia's coca growers have their way. The farmers want the word "Coca" dropped by the U.S. soft drink company, arguing that the potent shrub belongs to the cultural heritage of this Andean nation, where the coca leaf infuses everyday life and is sacred to many.
A commission of coca industry representatives advising an assembly rewriting Bolivia's constitution passed a resolution Wednesday calling on the Atlanta, Ga.-based company to take "Coca" out of its name and asking the United Nations to decriminalize the leaf.
The resolution demands that "international companies that include in their commercial name the name of coca (example: Coca Cola) refrain from using the name of the sacred leaf in their products."
The commission, which met for three days in Sucre, 255 miles southeast of La Paz, is part of an effort led by President Evo Morales to rehabilitate the image of plant, used in the Andes for millennia but better known internationally as the base ingredient of cocaine.
Coca-Cola released a statement Thursday saying their trademark is "the most valuable and recognized brand in the world" and was protected under Bolivian law.
The statement repeated the company's past denials that Coca-Cola has ever used cocaine as an ingredient — but was silent on whether the natural coca leaf was used to flavor their flagship soda.
"They need to understand our situation," said David Herrera, a state government supervisor for the coca-rich Chapare region. "They exported coca as a raw material for Coca-Cola, and we can't even freely sell it in Bolivia."
The Bolivian government regulates the sale of coca to prevent use by the drug trade.
In its natural state, the green leaf is only a mild stimulant. In Bolivia's white-collar offices, coca tea is served instead of coffee, and the country's farmers, miners and longhaul truckers chew the leaf to get through a long work day.
The government wants the U.N. to decriminalize trade in coca-based products to promote its exports.
Morales, a former coca grower, believes an international market for coca-derived products such as tea, flour, liquor, and even toothpaste would draw some of the country's estimated 65,500 acres of coca away from the drug trade.
But the United States, which funds a Bolivian coca-eradication program, is adamantly opposed to the policy, saying it only encourages more coca production.
Fri Mar 16, 4:52 AM ET
Always Coca-Cola? Not if Bolivia's coca growers have their way. The farmers want the word "Coca" dropped by the U.S. soft drink company, arguing that the potent shrub belongs to the cultural heritage of this Andean nation, where the coca leaf infuses everyday life and is sacred to many.
A commission of coca industry representatives advising an assembly rewriting Bolivia's constitution passed a resolution Wednesday calling on the Atlanta, Ga.-based company to take "Coca" out of its name and asking the United Nations to decriminalize the leaf.
The resolution demands that "international companies that include in their commercial name the name of coca (example: Coca Cola) refrain from using the name of the sacred leaf in their products."
The commission, which met for three days in Sucre, 255 miles southeast of La Paz, is part of an effort led by President Evo Morales to rehabilitate the image of plant, used in the Andes for millennia but better known internationally as the base ingredient of cocaine.
Coca-Cola released a statement Thursday saying their trademark is "the most valuable and recognized brand in the world" and was protected under Bolivian law.
The statement repeated the company's past denials that Coca-Cola has ever used cocaine as an ingredient — but was silent on whether the natural coca leaf was used to flavor their flagship soda.
"They need to understand our situation," said David Herrera, a state government supervisor for the coca-rich Chapare region. "They exported coca as a raw material for Coca-Cola, and we can't even freely sell it in Bolivia."
The Bolivian government regulates the sale of coca to prevent use by the drug trade.
In its natural state, the green leaf is only a mild stimulant. In Bolivia's white-collar offices, coca tea is served instead of coffee, and the country's farmers, miners and longhaul truckers chew the leaf to get through a long work day.
The government wants the U.N. to decriminalize trade in coca-based products to promote its exports.
Morales, a former coca grower, believes an international market for coca-derived products such as tea, flour, liquor, and even toothpaste would draw some of the country's estimated 65,500 acres of coca away from the drug trade.
But the United States, which funds a Bolivian coca-eradication program, is adamantly opposed to the policy, saying it only encourages more coca production.
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