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Sunday, March 31, 2013
When cash is no longer legal tender
Workers at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing surrounded by piles of money (Discovery)Have you ever wondered what happens to all of the damaged dollar bills floating around the economy? How long does paper money actually last before it disintegrates into torn shreds or a pulpy mass that is indistinguishable from regular old paper? And at what point is paper money just too damaged to be used as legal tender?
On March 30 9 p.m. ET/PT, the Discovery Channel will give viewers an inside look at ?The Secret Life of Money,? which seeks to answer these questions along with offering many other insights into the world of money, including the history of how gold became a standard form of currency around the world.
David Kestenbaum and Jacob Goldstein from NPR?s "Planet Money" contributed to the special and chatted with Yahoo News about some of the stranger things they?ve learned about cash.
?To me, what?s most interesting is that there is a bigger idea at work here: Money is this thing that we take for granted,? Goldstein said. ?When you stop and think about money, it gets really weird, really fast.?
For example, if your money is damaged, you can legally exchange it with the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. But only to a point. The bureau says it receives upwards of 300 envelopes per day, containing ?torn, blackened, blood-soaked, shrunken or otherwise maimed money.? However, so long as 51 percent of that blood-soaked bill remains intact, you can get a freshly issued replacement bill.
?It?s not paper the way we normally think of paper. It?s 75 percent cotton and 25 percent linen. It?s like a T-shirt,? Kestenbaum says, explaining why money is actually more physically durable than some might think.
Still, that hasn?t stopped thousands of people each year from testing its limits in strange ways.
For example, one Florida man attempted to dry his money after it became wet by putting it in the microwave. But instead of returning to its crisp, clean form, the money was crisped and burst into flames.
These sort of incidents resulted in the bureau exchanging $28 million worth of paper money in 2011 alone.
Of course, Goldstein and Kestenbaum note that similar incidents are on the decline as money moves toward becoming a predominantly electronic transaction between buyer and seller.
?There is no truck full of dollar bills going from my employer?s bank to my bank,? Goldstein says, noting that the very basic idea of money is really more about trust than physical value. ?The U.S. dollar is already basically an electronic currency.?
And with the advent of independent currency providers such as Bitcoin, some people are trying to establish that trust without relying on a government.
Still, Kestenbaum says that for all its shortcomings, paper money is likely to stay with us for years to come. ?I am more bearish on the future of physical money,? he said. ?At some point, we won?t be using cash at all. Not in the next year, but in 50 years? Probably.?
Ironically, one of the reasons Goldstein and Kestenbaum say the U.S. dollar has a future in its physical form is its popularity outside of America. They note that there are currently more $100 bills outside the U.S. than within the borders of the country that printed them.
If you add up all of the cash, "there?s a lot missing because of how much is used overseas,? Kestenbaum said.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/secret-life-money-revealed-172617707.html
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?The Korean Zombie,? Boston and Tito Ortiz: Where did they fall on the Cagewriter Hot or Not list?
It's been a slow week for MMA, but it's likely to pick up as we start an eventful April. In this last week of March, who was hot or who was not?
Hot ? Boston: According to a tweet from UFC president Dana White, the promotion is headed back to Boston, his hometown. Fox's new channel, Fox Sports 1, will get its first UFC event with this card, scheduled for Aug. 17.
Not ? Commissions: First, Nick Diaz's camp said his weigh-in at UFC 158 was mishandled by the commission in Quebec. Then, Andrei Arlovski's camp said there was a timing error at the World Series of Fighting 2 card that caused Arlovski to take extra damage. Commissions' doing things right is necessary for the sport to grow, so mistakes like these are worrisome.
Hot ? Chan Sung Jung, aka "The Korean Zombie:" He stood up to the UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre with a respectful dignity. Jung informed GSP, and much of the MMA world, about the symbolism behind the Rising Sun that the welterweight champion wore on his gi for UFC 158. GSP and Hayabusa, the company behind the gi quickly apologized. Jung handled the situation with quiet courage, and used it as a teachable moment. It was an impressive moment for both TKZ and GSP.
Not ? Tito Ortiz: The retired UFC legend is now working as the manager for Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos, and he has a plan. Santos is fighting on next weekend's Invicta card, and he wants her to fight her next few fights in Invicta. Then on New Year's Eve, Ortiz wants Santos, who won't move down to bantamweight, to fight UFC women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey in the UFC.
"Cris has shown in Strikeforce, why she's so dominant, why women are afraid of her. She has three fights with Invicta, she will be the world champion and she will walk away a world champion. Like I said, New Year's Eve, let's make a super fight. Forget the title. Champion vs. champion, who cares about the title?"
That's a nice plan if you forget that Rousey has said she doesn't want to move up in weight, or that most of her 2013 is set. She will coach against the winner of Cat Zingano and Miesha Tate in the next edition of "The Ultimate Fighter."
Hot ? Fans: You're getting another Fan Expo. The UFC will host a Fan Expo in conjunction with UFC 162 in Las Vegas. Get your tickets here.
Memorable Moments from Yahoo! Sports:
Other popular content on Yahoo! Sports:
? Gun arrest shouldn't affect Guerrero in fight with Floyd Mayweather
? Kareem Abdul-Jabbar lobbies for the vacant UCLA coaching job
? QB Mark Sanchez learning West Coast offense under former pro
? Giants' Buster Posey gets record deal for a catcher
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Saturday, March 30, 2013
Autocinetrip: Invalauble Advice For Anyone In Need Of An Auto Repair
Invalauble Advice For Anyone In Need Of An Auto Repair
When your car next needs repairs, think about making repairs on your own! The following article can help you to fix your automobile. You'll be able to save money and feel good doing it.
Take time to learn about the car and what could cause problems. You will only avoid the mechanic if you spend time learning about your car. You can save plenty of money if you don't have to have your tires or oil changed.
If your mechanic recommends more preventative maintenance than the owner's manual does, you should let them know you'd like to follow the guide. This could help you avoid costly repairs that are not really necessary.
Ask a potential mechanic is he is familiar with working on your car. If they say that they have, that's a very good thing.
Don't leave valuables in your car when it's being repaired. Mechanics might have to empty the work and they aren't responsible if you discover something missing.You want to remove items from your trunk.
Don't try to diagnose complex automotive issues. What may seem to be a simple task can be very complex, especially if the vehicle is newer.Let the auto repair shop diagnose your vehicle. Tell them everything you can about the issue, and then let them do their job.
The mechanic is the first obstacle you face with your car's repairs is your mechanic. You want to avoid any mechanics that give you a shady mechanic. If a mechanic ignores your input, talk quickly or don't listen to you, that is a good sign to stay away.
Not that many people invest the time in reading their car's manual. You need to look through this manual and understand how the information is organized so you can find things quickly. Your manual contains everything you need to know when it comes to maintaining your vehicle and performing small repairs yourself.
You do not have to call a mechanic in for simple repairs. There are a lot of things you can fix easily. If the repair is not difficult, you might be able to save money by doing it yourself.
Find a mechanic who is already familiar with your vehicle.Ask whoever will be responsible for the repairs if they have experience with your particular make and model of vehicle.
Watch out for blatant signs that a repair person is not to be trusted. If they are talking in circles and avoiding your questions, you'd be wise to not use their services. You should feel like you can trust them, so go elsewhere.
Always ask questions when speaking with a mechanic. How long will the repair take to complete? What kind of work being done? What is the breakdown cost of parts? Ask about anything and everything that you about the work being done.
It can be a scary prospect to try and fix your car yourself. But common auto problems can be dealt with safely with the right know-how. Follow the guide above to get yourself back on the road quickly.
Source: http://autocinetrip.blogspot.com/2013/03/invalauble-advice-for-anyone-in-need-of.html
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Incomes rose in February, helping to boost spending
U.S. consumer spending rose in February and income rebounded, further signs economic activity accelerated in the first quarter, even though part of the increase in consumption reflected higher gasoline prices.
The Commerce Department said on Friday consumer spending increased 0.7 percent last month after an upwardly revised 0.4 percent rise in January. Spending had previously been estimated to have increased 0.2 percent in January.
Economists polled by Reuters had expected spending, which accounts for about 70 percent of U.S. economic activity, to increase 0.6 percent last month.
After adjusting for inflation, spending was up 0.3 percent after advancing by the same margin in January.
While Americans paid 35 cents more for gasoline last month, they also bought long-lasting goods such as automobiles and spent more on services, thanks to a bounce-back in income growth.
Income increased a healthy 1.1 percent after tumbling 3.7 percent in January. A sustained pace of steady job gains is starting to boost wages, which should help to provide some cushion for households from higher taxes and support economic growth.
Personal income in December was sharply higher because of a rush to pay dividends and bonuses before tax hikes took effect this year. That also skewed data for January.
A 2 percent payroll tax cut expired on January 1 and tax rates for wealthy Americans also went up. Data ranging from employment to factory activity has so far shown little sign the tighter fiscal policy has been a major drag on the economy.
First-quarter GDP growth estimates currently range as high as a 3.2 percent annual rate. The economy grew at only a 0.4 percent pace in the fourth quarter.
Last month, the income at the disposal of households after inflation and taxes increased 0.7 percent in February after dropping 4.0 percent in January.
With income growth outpacing spending, the saving rate - the percentage of disposable income households are socking away - rose to 2.6 percent from 2.2 percent in January.
Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters.
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Friday, March 29, 2013
Clearwire taps Sprint funds, boosting deal prospects
(Reuters) - Wireless service provider Clearwire Corp
Clearwire, which is already majority owned by Sprint, said on Wednesday that it would continue talks with Dish but that it has not changed its recommendation in favor of its agreement with No. 3 U.S. mobile provider Sprint.
"We anticipate filing our definitive proxy in the coming weeks," Clearwire Chief Executive Erik Prusch said in a filing.
Clearwire's latest comments did not appear to bode well for its shareholders' demands for a higher price tag than Sprint's $2.97 per-share offer or for Dish's counter-offer. The satellite company run by billionaire founder Charlie Ergen had said that its $3.30 per-share bid for Clearwire was conditional on Clearwire not drawing on Sprint's convertible debt offer.
"Every month that they draw down on that $80 million gives Sprint more stock and is another nail in the coffin of a prospective Dish deal," said D.A. Davidson analyst Donna Jaegers. Dish was not immediately available for comment.
Many Clearwire shareholders said they were unhappy with the Sprint offer, which would need approval from the majority of Clearwire's minority investors.
Sprint's December deal to buy out Clearwire included the option for the smaller company to draw on $800 million in convertible debt in 10 monthly installments.
Clearwire, which also drew on the financing in March, had declined the offer in January and February because it was considering the Dish offer.
Clearwire said on Wednesday that it has not made any decisions about whether it would accept future installments of the Sprint money.
It did not explain on Wednesday how it could continue talks with Dish despite its apparent flouting of Dish's condition that it reject's Sprint financing.
The financing is in the form of debt that will be convertible to Clearwire shares in the event that its shareholders vote against Sprint's offer.
So every installment that Clearwire accepts would further weaken its minority shareholders' clout in the future.
However, Clearwire's shares were still well above the Sprint offer price at $3.24 when the Nasdaq closed on Thursday, indicating that many shareholders were still hoping for a better deal.
(Reporting by Sinead Carew, additional reporting by Nicola Leske; Editing by Gerald E. McCormick, Maureen Bavdek and Richard Chang)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/clearwire-taps-sprint-funds-boosting-deal-prospects-210741860--sector.html
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Thursday, March 28, 2013
Cypriot banks reopen after 12 days -- but customers can only withdraw $383 each
Yannis Behrakis / Reuters
A staff member of Laiki Bank, which is to be liquidated, tries to calm customers as the branch in Nicosia prepares to open.
By Ian Johnston, Staff Writer, NBC News
Banks on the tax haven of Cyprus opened Thursday for the first time in 12 days amid the island's continuing financial crisis.
Strict limits on the amount of money that could be withdrawn have been imposed ? people will be able to withdraw 300 euros ($383) a day and no checks will be cashed ? amid fears of a run on the banks.
Account holders showed up hours before the banks were due to open to get in line.
Early indications were that there was no mass rush to withdraw cash, with just 13 people waiting outside one large Bank of Cyprus branch on the island as it opened at noon local time (6 a.m. ET). They were surrounded by a scrum of journalists.
?We need only from you cooperation, understanding and please patience,? the manager of the branch said before opening.
However a small crowd of people did press against the doors of a branch of Laiki Bank, which is being liquidated. CNBC sources estimate those with more than 100,000 euros (about $128,000) in accounts in Laiki Bank could lose 40 to 70 percent of their deposits.
During the banking shutdown, people could only withdraw 100 euros (about $127) a day from the country's two biggest banks, using ATMs.?Most who lined up for the opening Thursday were elderly people and those without ATM cards.?
Deposits above 100,000 euros with the Bank of Cyprus will be frozen and 40 percent of each account will be converted into bank stock. Accounts in both banks with balances under 100,000 euros will be fully protected.
A previous proposal to take less from all bank accounts?was vetoed by the Cypriot parliament.
The country is seeking to meet the terms of a bailout from the European Union of 10 billion euros ($12.9 billion) and, in order to raise enough funds to meet strict conditions imposed by the EU, it is preparing to take money from bank accounts.
CNBC's Michelle Caruso Cabrera reports on banks reopening in Cyprus and the limits they've imposed on depositors. The situation, she says, is calmer than expected.
Ahead of the banks? reopening, money was flown into the island and guards were seen delivering cash to banks in armored vehicles.
The banks were due to close at 6 p.m. local time (12 p.m. ET).
There was some relief on the island that the banks were finally opening again, but this was mixed with fear about what could happen.
'Slow death'
Yorgos Georgiou, who owns a dry cleaning business in Nicosia, told Reuters that "finally people's mood will be lifted and we can start to trust the system again."
But he added: "I'm worried about the poor kids working in the cashiers today, because people might vent their anger at them. You can't predict how people will react after so many days."
Kostas Nikolaou, a 60-year-old retiree, told Reuters that the uncertainty of the past two weeks had been "like a slow death."
"How can they tell you that you can't access your own money in the bank? It's our money, we are entitled to it,? he added.
The country?s president, Nicos Anastasiades, has described the bailout deal as ?painful? but essential.
However, Nobel laureate economist Christopher Pissarides said it was ?extremely unfair to the little guy.?
?For the first time in the euro zone, depositors are (being) asked to bail out failing banks," he said. "Now that used to be the case in the 1930s, especially United States (and) caused big bank runs. It has been decided since then that we shouldn?t allow that to happen again.?
As Cyprus celebrates its Independence Day, the ?government is defending the last-minute bailout deal it's negotiated with the European Union. This means shutting down the country's second biggest bank, with big savers facing ?losses. ?ITV's Emma Murphy reports.
Among other controls, the island's central bank will review all commercial transactions over 5,000 euros and scrutinize transactions over 200,000 euros on an individual basis, Reuters reported. People leaving Cyprus can take only 1,000 euros with them. An earlier draft of the decree had put the figure at 3,000.
Reuters summed up the situation facing the island:
With just 860,000 people, Cyprus has about 68 billion euros in its banks - a vastly outsized financial system that attracted deposits from foreigners as an offshore haven but foundered after investments in neighboring Greece went sour.
The European Union and International Monetary Fund concluded that Cyprus could not afford a rescue unless it imposed losses on depositors, seen as anathema in previous euro zone bailouts.?The bailout looks set to push Cyprus deeper into an economic slump, shrink the banking sector and cost thousands of jobs.
European leaders said the bailout deal averted a chaotic national bankruptcy that might have forced Cyprus out of the euro.
Many Cypriots say the deal was foisted upon them by Cyprus's partners in the 17-nation euro zone within the European Union, and some have taken to the streets to vent their frustration.
CNBC's Michelle Caruso-Cabrera and Katie Slaman, and Reuters contributed to this report.
Related:
Cypriots fear run on banks as branches prepare to reopen
Cypriots: Hope, but also fear they 'will be like slaves' to Russia
EU to Cypriots: Let us raid your savings or no bailout
This story was originally published on Thu Mar 28, 2013 4:52 AM EDT
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'Fifty Shades of Grey' earns blockbuster sales numbers for publisher Random House
The sales figures for the 'Fifty Shades of Grey' trilogy make the series one of the fastest-selling in history.
'Fifty Shades of Grey' is the first in author EL James' trilogy of books following Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey.
Enlarge?Fifty Shades of Grey? publisher Random House recently revealed its sales figures for the series ? a number high enough to boost the publisher?s operating earnings (before taxes and interest) by 75 percent.
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Random House says it sold 70 million copies of the trilogy between the series' March 2012 debut in the US and December of that year. That figure includes print copies, audio books, and e-books sold in English, Spanish, and German.
It would seem that the trilogy was particularly popular in e-book format. According to the Guardian, 50 percent of revenue from sales of the series were from e-book versions ? in contrast to the 20 percent which is apparently more typically the share of revenue drawn from the electronic version of a book.
Random House chairman Markus Dohle wrote a letter to employees at the company praising them for their ?highly effective execution of our author- and content-centric, and market- and reader-oriented strategy,? according to Publishers Weekly. ?With your know-how and passion, and your collaborative and entrepreneurial spirit, you have expertly navigated the new order of publishing, and positioned us well for future opportunities,? Dohle wrote. All employees in the US at the company received a $5,000 bonus because of the success of the series.?
The numbers for ?Fifty Shades of Grey? make the trilogy Random House?s fastest-selling series in its history.
By contrast, as the Wall Street Journal noted, the thriller ?Gone Girl? by Gillian Flynn, which has dominated bestseller lists since its June release, has sold 2 million copies in the US and Canada so far, a number which also counts traditional paper copies, e-books, and audio books.
In terms of other series, ?Harry Potter,? published in the US by Scholastic, has sold more than 450 million copies all over the world since 1997, when the first book was released in the US. But this past August, the first book in the ?Fifty Shades of Grey? trilogy ? with sales of 5.3 million books in all formats ? surpassed ?Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows? to become the highest-selling book ever in Britain.
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Dell Inspiron 17-3721
The Dell Inspiron 17-3721 is a great choice for many budget-minded users, especially those who want a much bigger screen than they can find on any standalone tablet. It has an attractive $450 price tag, and you don't have to give up any performance for that relatively small purchase price. It doesn't scrimp on features despite its slim profile and modest price, and that makes it our new Editors' Choice for budget laptops.
Design and Features
The Inspiron 17 is definitely a large desktop replacement laptop. It measures about 1.2 by 16 by 11 inches (HWD) and weighs 5.9 pounds. It's certainly lighter than the 7-pound behemoths we used to see in the desktop replacement category. Its size consequently means that you have the space for a huge 17.3-inch display. Cementing its budget status, the screen has a resolution of 1,600 by 900 rather than the 1,920-by-1,080 resolution we expect in pricier laptops. This means that images and text will be a little larger than they would be on a 1,920 by 1,080 screen. This is a good thing if need glasses or think you will need them soon. The extra laptop real estate also means that there's room for a full set of keys, including a full numeric keypad to the right side. The non-backlit, chiclet-style keys are comfortable to use and feel better than the sometimes spongy ones on other budget systems like the HP Pavilion Sleekbook 15z-b000 ($554.99).
The screen itself is large, making it easy to view online videos, on screen text, and the occasional photo on your Facebook feed. The textured lid and palm rest give the Inspiron 17 a bit more character than the smooth-surfaced budget laptops we've seen in the past. The diamond-cut style texture also makes the system easy to grip when you're toting it around the house.
Speaking of around the house, the Inspiron 17 has a lot of connectors, including two USB 3.0 ports, two USB 2.0 ports, HDMI, Ethernet, and a DVD burner. HDMI and Ethernet are useful for wired connections to a HDTV and your wired broadband router, respectively. This is a better situation for the wired PC user than in the former budget Editors' Choice Acer Aspire V5-571-6891($499.99), which needs a dongle for Ethernet. We do have a nit to pick with the USB 3.0 ports: they are black colored like the USB 2.0 ports, so they are easy to confuse unless you look for the miniscule USB SS logos next to the faster USB 3.0 ports. The Inspiron 17 comes with a removable battery, which is important for the home user that doesn't upgrade too often. Like all rechargeable batteries, the battery in the Inspiron 17 will eventually stop holding a charge, and since the battery is removable it should be easy to replace at that point. Sealed systems like the Asus VivoBook X202E-DH31T ($549.99) will have to be taken to a service depot or replaced altogether when the battery stops holding a charge.
Though not a deal breaker for such an inexpensive system, the Inspiron 17 lacks a touch screen, something that the pricier VivoBook X202E includes. Thankfully, the Insprion 17 has a very responsive multi-touch trackpad embedded into the keyboard deck. This makes it easy to bring up the Charms bar and other UI elements with a touch or swipe. You can also use an external mouse with Windows 8, but the trackpad works well enough on its own. A touch screen would make Windows 8 easier to use, but alas even if it were available as an option, it would definitely boost the price of the system over $500.
Thankfully, the Inspiron 17 comes free of most bloatware. There are a few extra programs pre-installed like eBay, Amazon, Kindle, McAfee Security Center, Microsoft Office trial, and Skype, but these are a far cry from other systems like the Asus and Acer listed above. The Inspiron 17 comes with a 500GB hard drive, par for the course, but it's nice to see that there aren't too many programs you'll have to uninstall. The system comes with a one-year standard warranty.
Performance
The Inspiron 17 has an Intel Core i3-3227U processor with Intel HD Graphics 4000, 4GB of memory, and a 500GB, 5,400rpm hard drive. The i3-3227U is clocked just 100MHz faster than the i3-3217U found in systems like the Acer V5-571-6891 and Asus X202E-DH31T. It's therefore no surprise that all three systems are very close to one another on multimedia tests like Handbrake, CineBench, and Photoshop CS6. The Acer V5-571-6891 and Inspiron 17 also scored very close on the PCMark 7 test, which measures performance at day-to-day tasks. All three are even within a half-hour on the battery rundown test, so all three are equally up to the task of unplugged computing, at least around the house, where we suspect these systems will see the most use. All three won't be great at 3D gaming, but someone serious about gaming will be prepared to spend more than $500 on any PC in any case.
The Inspiron 17-3721 is great budget computing for the general PC user. It's a true home and student workhorse PC for about the same price as a tablet, which makes it attractive to users who need Windows program compatibility plus a real keyboard. Sure, the Inspiron 17 doesn't have a touch screen, but for less than $450, you won' miss it. The larger screen and full-size Ethernet port make it more usable in a household with older equipment (and users) than the former EC Acer Aspire V5-571-6891. Thus, the Dell Inspiron 17-3721 is our new Editors' Choice for budget laptops.
BENCHMARK TEST RESULTS
COMPARISON TABLE
Compare the Dell Inspiron 17-3721 with several other laptops side by side.
More laptop reviews:
??? Dell Inspiron 17-3721
??? Dell XPS 13-MLK
??? MSI GX60 1AC-021US
??? Acer Aspire M5-581T-6405
??? Acer Aspire M5-481PT-6644
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/RHSjqDl05lI/0,2817,2417032,00.asp
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Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Trees used to create recyclable, efficient solar cell
Mar. 26, 2013 ? Solar cells are just like leaves, capturing the sunlight and turning it into energy. It's fitting that they can now be made partially from trees.
Georgia Institute of Technology and Purdue University researchers have developed efficient solar cells using natural substrates derived from plants such as trees. Just as importantly, by fabricating them on cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) substrates, the solar cells can be quickly recycled in water at the end of their lifecycle.
The technology is published in the journal Scientific Reports, the latest open-access journal from the Nature Publishing Group.
The researchers report that the organic solar cells reach a power conversion efficiency of 2.7 percent, an unprecedented figure for cells on substrates derived from renewable raw materials. The CNC substrates on which the solar cells are fabricated are optically transparent, enabling light to pass through them before being absorbed by a very thin layer of an organic semiconductor. During the recycling process, the solar cells are simply immersed in water at room temperature. Within only minutes, the CNC substrate dissolves and the solar cell can be separated easily into its major components.
Georgia Tech College of Engineering Professor Bernard Kippelen led the study and says his team's project opens the door for a truly recyclable, sustainable and renewable solar cell technology.
"The development and performance of organic substrates in solar technology continues to improve, providing engineers with a good indication of future applications," said Kippelen, who is also the director of Georgia Tech's Center for Organic Photonics and Electronics (COPE). "But organic solar cells must be recyclable. Otherwise we are simply solving one problem, less dependence on fossil fuels, while creating another, a technology that produces energy from renewable sources but is not disposable at the end of its lifecycle."
To date, organic solar cells have been typically fabricated on glass or plastic. Neither is easily recyclable, and petroleum-based substrates are not very eco-friendly. For instance, if cells fabricated on glass were to break during manufacturing or installation, the useless materials would be difficult to dispose of. Paper substrates are better for the environment, but have shown limited performance because of high surface roughness or porosity. However, cellulose nanomaterials made from wood are green, renewable and sustainable. The substrates have a low surface roughness of only about two nanometers.
"Our next steps will be to work toward improving the power conversion efficiency over 10 percent, levels similar to solar cells fabricated on glass or petroleum-based substrates," said Kippelen. The group plans to achieve this by optimizing the optical properties of the solar cell's electrode.
Purdue School of Materials Engineering associate professor Jeffrey Youngblood collaborated with Kippelen on the research.
A provisional patent on the technology has been filed with the U.S. Patent Office.
There's also another positive impact of using natural products to create cellulose nanomaterials. The nation's forest product industry projects that tens of millions of tons of them could be produced once large-scale production begins, potentially in the next five years.
The research is the latest project by COPE, which studies the use and development of printed electronics. Last year the center created the first-ever completely plastic solar cell.
This research was funded in part through the Center for Interface Science: Solar Electric Materials, an Energy Frontier Research Center funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences under Award Number DE-SC0001084 (Y.Z., J.S., C.F., A.D.), by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (Grant No. FA9550-09-1-0418) (J. H.), by the Office of Naval Research (Grant No. N00014-04-1-0313) (T.K., B.K.), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture -Forest Service (Grant No. 12-JV-11111122-098). Funding for CNC substrate processing was provided by USDA-Forest Service (Grant No. 11-JV-11111129-118) (R.J.M., J.P.Y., J.L.). The authors thank Rick Reiner and Alan Rudie from the U.S. Forest Service- Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) for providing CNC materials.
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Story Source:
The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Georgia Institute of Technology.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Journal Reference:
- Yinhua Zhou, Canek Fuentes-Hernandez, Talha M. Khan, Jen-Chieh Liu, James Hsu, Jae Won Shim, Amir Dindar, Jeffrey P. Youngblood, Robert J. Moon, Bernard Kippelen. Recyclable organic solar cells on cellulose nanocrystal substrates. Scientific Reports, 2013; 3 DOI: 10.1038/srep01536
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/3eP5hoGrcgI/130326111958.htm
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APNewsBreak: $1.7M penalty proposed in Exxon spill
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Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Hamlin has compression fracture in lower back
From front, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Timmy Hill, Joey Logano, Paul Menard and others pit during the first caution flag during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series auto race in Fontana, Calif., Sunday, March 24, 2013. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)
From front, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Timmy Hill, Joey Logano, Paul Menard and others pit during the first caution flag during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series auto race in Fontana, Calif., Sunday, March 24, 2013. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)
Denny Hamlin suffered a compression fracture in his lower spine during Sunday's last-lap crash at Fontana, Calif., his racing team said Monday.
Joe Gibbs Racing disclosed the injury and said Hamlin was expected to be released soon from a Southern California hospital to return home. He has what is called an L1 compression fracture; essentially, the first vertebra in the lumbar section of his spine collapsed.
There was no immediate word on how long his recovery would take. JGR said he will be evaluated by Dr. Jerry Petty of Carolina Neurosurgery and Spine Associates later this week.
Hamlin was airlifted from the track after a collision with Joey Logano on the penultimate turn sent him nearly head-on into the inside wall. Logano managed to finish third despite wrecking into the outside wall after hitting Hamlin, who spun Logano last week at Bristol and sparked a bitter post-race confrontation.
"He probably shouldn't have done what he did last week, so that's what he gets," Logano said Sunday after the race won by Kyle Busch.
Tony Stewart got into a post-race shoving match with Logano, who aggressively blocked Stewart out of a late restart. Hamlin's team expects Logano to be fined.
Hamlin got himself out of the car, but then slumped to the ground beside it before an ambulance arrived. He was eventually airlifted out due to traffic around the track. His girlfriend, Jordan Fish, tweeted afterward that Hamlin was "alert n awake, main concern is his back."
The injury is a bit more common in open-wheel racing, which has had three incidents of drivers breaking their backs since 2009.
Will Power broke several vertebrae in his lower back in a 2009 crash during practice at Sonoma and missed that event and the final three races of the season. He couldn't train for two months and wore a back brace for almost four months.
He also suffered a compression fracture of his fourth thoracic vertebrae in the 2011 season finale at Las Vegas but missed no racing as he healed during the offseason.
Justin Wilson fractured his fifth thoracic vertebra in 2011 and missed the last six races of the season. Wilson said he was in a back brace for 10 weeks.
In NASCAR, Sterling Marlin missed the last seven races of the 2002 season with a fractured vertebra in his neck.
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Monday, March 25, 2013
Arab League gives Syrian seat to opposition
DOHA, Qatar (AP) ? In a symbolic blow to embattled Syrian President Bashar Assad, senior Arab diplomats said Sunday that they will transfer Syria's seat in their main regional group to opposition forces.
The Arab League's decision is unlikely to mean much in practical terms to Assad's regime, which has already been abandoned by many Arab states that are siding with rebel forces in the two-year civil war. But it reflects pressure being exerted by key rebel backers ? Qatar and Saudi Arabia ? for a show of Arab solidarity against Assad at a two-day Arab League summit beginning Tuesday in Doha.
The gathering comes amid a serious shakeup within the opposition force over complaints that international support is insufficient to bring down Assad and turn the tide against his security forces.
The president of the Western-backed Syrian opposition coalition, Mouaz al-Khatib, resigned Sunday from the Syrian National Council, blaming world powers for not giving the anti-Assad forces the ability to "defend themselves" against Assad's superior military power.
It was a clear snub of U.S. and Western allies that have resisted calls by regional countries, including Qatar and Saudi Arabia, to increase the flow of heavy weapons to rebel fighters. Western governments fear stepped-up military aid could prolong the bloodshed and potentially give greater firepower to Islamic extremists who have joined the civil war, which has claimed more than 70,000 lives.
The Doha summit could now become a high-profile forum for a newcomer opposition figure, Ghassan Hitto, a Syrian-born American who this month became head of the Syrian National Council's interim government. Qatar's prime minister, Hamad bin Jassim Al Thani, has invited Hitto to the summit.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohammed Amr Kamel said it was now up to the Syrian opposition to decide on its envoy once the Arab League officially transfers the seat after the summit gets under way.
The Saudi deputy foreign minister, Prince Abdulaziz bin Abdullah, called the decision another "turning point" in boosting international recognition of the Syrian National Council, which has presented itself to world leaders as a political alternative to Assad.
The move, however, also underscores some rifts and reservations among Arab states.
Syria's neighbor Lebanon ? caught in a volatile split between Assad backers and opponents ? abstained from the vote on switching the Arab League seat, said a diplomat who took part in the discussions. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief media.
Other nations are wary about completely cutting ties with Assad. Iraq and Algeria voted in favor of transferring Syria's seat, but urged the Arab League to take a "conservative" approach toward the civil war, the diplomat said.
Only hours before the Arab League decision, the traditional Syrian flag ? not the rebel version ? was displayed in the meeting hall in a sign of the disputes over how far to back the rebels.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is scheduled to travel to Paris on Wednesday to meet French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius for talks that are expected to focus on arming Syrian rebels. The discussion also is expected to touch on the suspected ? but still unproven ? use of chemical weapons in Syria, according to French officials.
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Associated Press Writer Brian Murphy in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed to this report.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/arab-league-gives-syrian-seat-opposition-134517209.html
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Sunday, March 24, 2013
Vettel of Red Bull wins Malaysian GP
Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso of Spain goes off the track during the Malaysian Formula One Grand Prix at Sepang, Malaysia, Sunday, March 24, 2013. (AP Photo)
Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso of Spain goes off the track during the Malaysian Formula One Grand Prix at Sepang, Malaysia, Sunday, March 24, 2013. (AP Photo)
Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso of Spain goes off the track during the Malaysian Formula One Grand Prix at Sepang, Malaysia, Sunday, March 24, 2013. (AP Photo)
Formila One drivers, from left, Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel of Germany, Ferrari's Fernando Alonso of Spain, Ferrari's Felipe Massa of Brazil and Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton of Britain race side by side during the start of the Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang, Malaysia, Sunday, March 24, 2013. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel of Germany leads the pack while debris fly off from a Ferrari car of Fernando Alonso of Spain at the back during the Malaysian Formula One Grand Prix at Sepang, Malaysia, Sunday, March 24, 2013. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Crew members works on a Red Bull car of Sebastian Vettel from Germany at the pit during the Malaysian Formula One Grand Prix at Sepang, Malaysia, Sunday, March 24, 2013. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
SEPANG, Malaysia (AP) ? Three-time defending Formula One champion Sebastian Vettel held off Red Bull teammate Mark Webber in a scintillating battle to win Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday.
Vettel, who earlier in the race complained to the team about Webber's slow pace, battled the Australian for much of the day, with the cars almost touching as the German grabbed the lead on the 46th lap for his 27th victory. The surprising run of Mercedes continued, with 2008 champion Lewis Hamilton coming in third ahead of teammate Nico Rosberg.
It was a disastrous day for Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, who crashed out of the race on the second lap after damaging his front wing when he bumped Vettel a lap earlier.
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Health reform turns 3, with the hardest part yet to come
Three years ago this weekend, President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act into law.
Its provisions sound sweeping ? get health insurance to 32 million Americans who don?t have it now, stop insurers from cherry-picking their customers, require basic coverage that?s proven to improve health and lower costs, not to mention initiatives to get doctors to work together in teams. But the law?s written to go into effect in stages, and it?ll be years before all the provisions are up and running.
The federal government has barely met each deadline, and the biggest batches of changes are coming up in the next few months.
Don?t expect it to go smoothly, experts predict.
The next big deadline is Oct. 1, when states are supposed to have the new health insurance marketplaces, called exchanges, up and running. This one?s down to the wire for most states, and it?s still impossible to say what they will look like, how many policies people will have to choose from and how much they will cost.
The 55 percent of Americans who are covered by their employers already know it can be confusing at ?open enrollment? time, when they often have to choose among several plans. Dental or vision coverage? Which prescription plan? If you choose a high co-pay -- an amount paid every time a patient visits a doctors or other caregiver, or fills a prescription -- does the lower premium balance that out? Or will you end up paying more in co-pays if you end up making a lot of doctor visits, or need surgery?
Expect that to be multiplied, a lot, on one of the new exchanges. And most of the people buying on these exchanges will not have much experience in this area.
Lori Dustin, chief marketing officer for HighRoads, a human resources consulting firm, sees more than a few bumps in the road. ?Consumers will be faced with a lack of information to shop for plans,? she predicts. While big states like California and New York are likely to provide many choices, smaller states with a history of limited insurance options may not have much to offer, she says.
?They have to service consumers who are uninsured, who don?t understand what a co-pay is,? she said. ?There are going to be a lot of calls into customer service centers.?
Many people will get sticker shock when they see the premiums they will be charged, Dustin predicts. No premiums are yet set ? insurers have until April 30 to apply to sell a product on the federally run exchanges.
But the new plans will be comprehensive ? the law requires that. So they?ll cost more than some of the bare-bones plans offered in the past. That could scare off younger, healthier customers, Dustin says. ?If the premiums are unreasonable, an uninsured person is going to weigh the difference between paying a penalty and paying premiums that may be enormous,? she says.
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The whole basis of health insurance is to get a wide variety of people paying premiums, so the insurer can pay for the health care of those who need it, while still covering its administrative costs and staff, not to mention making a profit. If healthier people who don?t yet need insurance don?t buy in, then insurers are stuck with a pool of sick customers.
No coverage cap or ban on those with pre-existing conditions
In the past, many insurers would exclude these sickest people whenever possible, even kicking some off the rolls when they started to cost too much. ?Obamacare?, as even the administration now calls it, stops this. Starting in 2014, new policies may not cap coverage and they have to take all comers, even if they are already sick.
But to make this work for the insurers, the new exchanges will have to lure in more healthy payers, too. While the Health and Human Services Department is confident it can, Dustin and some other critics aren?t so sure. In the first year, the fine for not having health insurance will be as low as $95 ? not much of a deterrent.
Dustin also sees technological barriers. The websites that form the basis of the new marketplaces are complex. ?They don?t even propose to test these websites until late summer and open enrollment is October 1,? she said. ?You?d typically want something in place for at least nine months to a year to test quality and usability.?
Jay Angoff of law firm Mehri & Skalet, who oversaw health reform as head of HHS?s Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight office, thinks HHS will meet the deadline and have workable websites.
?It?s a phenomenal accomplishment, when you think about the technology it takes for people to go to the Internet, punch in the answers to a few questions, and get quotes from carriers in their states,? Angoff said in a telephone interview.
The software has to help HHS communicate instantly with other government agencies, for the Internal Revenue Service to the Social Security Administration, to verify what people say and calculate whether they qualify for a federal subsidy to buy the insurance.
But Angoff, an unabashed cheerleader for the effort, admits there may be glitches.
?The administration will be able to say that it has met the deadline. I don?t think everything is going to be elegant in all states,? he said.
Constantly bumping up against deadlines
All along, HHS has met the deadlines set in the law at virtually the last possible moment. ?Why always at deadline? For the same reasons that you and I waited until the last minute to do our term papers in college,? Angoff says.
To be fair, there have been distractions. The Supreme Court was asked to rule on whether the Affordable Care Act was even constitutional, and waited until the very last possible day in June to do so. Then Congress went down to deadline after deadline to decide on the ?sequester? ? the package of mandatory budget cuts imposed in case there was no political deal on the budget. No deal ever came and the sequester?s now in effect, forcing government agencies, including HHS, to scramble almost halfway through the fiscal year to make budget cuts that can include furloughing workers.
HHS has also had to wait for states to decide if they will run their own exchanges, and then approve their plans to do so. HHS will have to do the job for the states that won?t ? at last count, 26 of them.
But however they turn out, exchanges are going to shape the future evolution of health insurance coverage, experts agree. And they will eventually be forced to make it an easier process.
?In time I think you?ll see this market evolve,? says Joel Ario, a former Pennsylvania insurance commissioner who helped direct development of the health insurance exchanges for the Obama administration and who now is a managing director at Manatt Health Solutions.
?The winners are the ones who will make it as simple and easy to navigate as possible.?
Although about 7 million people will initially buy insurance on the public exchanges, according to the Congressional Budget Office, Ario says employers will start moving to exchange-style marketplaces as well. And while states and the federal government are the largest forces running exchanges, private groups are already also designing and marketing exchanges ? to states, public employers and to companies.
And, by the way, lawmakers are going to get a taste of what the rest of the country is feeling. The law requires that starting in 2014, members of Congress and many of their staffers will have to buy their health insurance on the exchanges, unless they?re over 65 and on Medicare. President Barack Obama is also supposed to buy a plan on an exchange ? although he mostly relies on a personal physician at the White House Medical Unit.
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States get more time for health exchange plans
Source: http://feeds.nbcnews.com/c/35002/f/653381/s/29e80429/l/0L0Snbcnews0N0Cid0C512930A0A0A/story01.htm
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Man killed in Texas called suspect in Colo. slaying
DENVER (AP) ? Colorado investigators on Saturday said for the first time that a former prison inmate who was killed in a gunfight with Texas authorities is a suspect in the death of Colorado's state prison system chief.
The evidence gathered in Texas after the death of Evan Spencer Ebel provided a "strong, strong lead" in the fatal shooting of Colorado Department of Corrections director Tom Clements, who was killed at his front door, El Paso County sheriff's spokesman Lt. Jeff Kramer said Saturday.
Kramer also confirmed Ebel had been a member of the 211s, a white supremacist prison gang in Colorado. It was not known if Ebel knew who Clements was and that he was the state's top prison official, Kramer said.
A darkly ironic connection emerged among Ebel, Clements and Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper when the governor confirmed Friday he was a longtime friend of Ebel's father, attorney Jack Ebel.
Jack Ebel had testified before Colorado lawmakers two years ago that solitary confinement in a Colorado prison was destroying his son's psyche.
When Hickenlooper interviewed Clements for the top prison job in Colorado, he mentioned the case as an example of why the prison system needed reform, but Hickenlooper said he did not mention Ebel by name. Later, Clements eased the use of solitary confinement in Colorado and tried to make it easier for people held there to re-enter society.
Hickenlooper's spokesman said Clements did not know specifically who Ebel was.
Clements was shot Tuesday night when he answered the door of his home in a wooded, rural area north of Colorado Springs.
Kramer said investigators were trying to determine whether the 211 gang was involved in Clements' death.
The Colorado Department of Corrections was also investigating Clements' death, but spokeswoman Alison Morgan declined to say whether the 211 gang was a focus of the inquiry.
Denver police say Ebel is also a suspect in the March 17 slaying of pizza delivery man Nathan Leon. Texas authorities found a Domino's pizza delivery box and a jacket or shirt from the pizza chain in the trunk of the car Ebel was driving.
Authorities previously said that car was similar to one seen not far from Clements' home the night he was killed, and bullets Ebel fired at Texas police were the same caliber and brand as the bullet or bullets that killed Clements. But until Saturday they had stopped short of saying Ebel was a suspect.
Kramer stressed that investigators have not yet confirmed a link between Ebel and Clements' death. Tests were under way to determine if the weapon used to kill Clements was the same one recovered from Ebel in Texas.
Results could be available Monday, Kramer said.
Ebel, who was paroled from a Colorado prison in January, was fatally shot Thursday by authorities in Texas after a pursuit reaching 100 mph.
The Tarrant County medical examiner's office in Texas said Ebel died from a gunshot wound in his forehead.
There was no indication that Hickenlooper's relationship with the Ebels played a role in the shooting. Hickenlooper said he did not having any role in Evan Ebel's parole.
Evan Ebel was paroled Jan. 28 as part of a mandatory process after serving his full prison term, Morgan said. He had most recently been sentenced to four years for punching a prison guard in 2008, according to state records.
The entire state prison system has remained under lockdown. Morgan said the lockdown would not be lifted until after a public memorial service for Clements on Sunday.
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Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Nicholas Riccardi, P. Solomon Banda, Nicholas Riccardi, Colleen Slevin, Catherine Tsai and Kristen Wyatt in Denver and Angela K. Brown in Decatur, Texas.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/man-killed-texas-called-suspect-colo-slaying-175729821.html
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