Wednesday 27 August 2014

New Grammar of Life roundup...24th Nov 2014..12/48 am IST

New Grammar of Life Roundup consists of relevant papers, articles from various sources which try to highlight the accelerating telescoping of change based upon events impacting the environment & society which are increasingly surfacing all over the globe. These disturbing trends only reinforce the view that its now or never for us to implement radical NGL solutions which may help in decelerating and finally regress the rate of change of degradation of the environment and climate change and humanity. These disturbing events are selected randomly from web news relating to climate, environment, society, individuals, economies, finance and commercial organisations. 

The primary objective is to raise the level of awareness about the rapidly changing scenario in order to create interest in people so that a movement starts which would lead to implementation of solutions which can dampen the rate of change towards any untoward irreversible tragedy impacting mother earth and humanity as we know it.
24 nov 14

Federal action needed to tame airlines' high-flying climate pollution






9
Some 24 million Americans will cram into airplanes for Thanksgiving travel this year. They’ll face flight delays, bag fees and hassles with reclining seats. And most will fly home in inefficient planes that spew far too much climate-damaging carbon pollution. 
Greenhouse emissions from aviation are rising rapidly, even as scientists explain that we’re running out of time to avoid disastrous global warming effects, from dangerous temperature increases to food-supply disruptions. 
yet another polluting source to which all of us a addicted to. nothing like flying all the time for meetings. futile meetings which do not take us anywhere. god help us.  


18 nov 14

Rich collectively are willing to contribute on $ 10 bn for climate control. US is contributing $ 3 bn over three years, whereas its defence budget is $ 575 bn pa. this is the prioritisation of rich countries. Climate is only a rhetoric. No body take it seriously even tough this year unprecedented arctic chill has affect all 50 US states. Veritable frogs in gradually warning water. like lambs led to the slaughter.

14 nov 14

Climate change 'will see more UK forces deployed in conflicts around world'
Rear Admiral Neil Morisetti, one of the UK’s most senior military figures, says global warming is a risk to geopolitical security

  • The Guardian
shape of things to come. climate violence control will be a new specialised areas to army and police. Not that they do not have enough problems on their hands. climate refugees is a distinct reality in some time. water scarcity, flooding, drought, extreme weather could leads to millions seeking safer places to live which will create fresh imbalances in existing urban/rural centres. 


13 nov 14

US and China strike deal on carbon cuts in push for global climate change pact
Barack Obama aims for reduction of a quarter or more by 2025, while Xi Jinping sets goal for emissions to fall after 2030

The big two have made firm plans for eventual reduction. China will reduce only after 2030. will that be enough. another 16 years. so much can happen. already polar chill has descended on large tracts of US. my fear is that in a most likely scenario by 2030, certain critical irreversible climate events may take place jeopardising future of planet. many precursors of the likely events are already signalling clearly and loudly their intents. 

12 nov 14

The Independent

Zealot of US climate change sceptics Jim Inhofe to determine environmental policy
Now, the man who also compared the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate ... is in line for one of the most important environmental jobs in Congress.
Massive setback for US climate change initiatives. GOP will preside over the intensifying extreme climate. Ironical that the battle lines will get so clearly drawn as we step into an era where climate is gradually spinning out of control. 

11th Nov 14
Nigeria: Human Influence Affecting Climate Change - IPCC
The Synthesis Report released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has indicated that human influence on the climate system is clear and growing, with impacts observed on all continents, and. if left unchecked, climate change will increase the likelihood of severe, pervasive and irreversible impacts for people and ecosystems.
However, available options are to adapt to climate change and implementing stringent mitigations activities, which can ensure that the impacts of climate change remains within a manageable range, creating a brighter and more sustainable future. The Synthesis Report distils and integrates the findings of the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report produced by over 800 scientists and released over the past 13 months-the most comprehensive assessment of climate change ever undertaken.
"We have the means to limit climate change. The solutions are many and allow for continued economic and human development. All we need is the will to change, which we trust will be motivated by knowledge and an understanding of the science of climate change." R. K. Pachauri, Chair of the IPCC said.
The Synthesis Report confirms that climate change is being registered around the world and warming of the climate system is unequivocal.
Since the 1950s, many of the observed changes are unprecedented over decades to millennia. "Our assessment finds that the atmosphere and oceans have warmed, the amount of snow and ice has diminished, sea level has risen and the concentration of carbon dioxide has increased to a level unprecedented in at least the last 800,000 years" said Thomas Stocker, Co- Chair of IPCC Working Group I. The report expresses with greater certainty than in previous assessments the fact that emissions of greenhouse gases and other anthropogenic drivers have been the dominant cause of observed warming since the mid-20thcentury.The impacts of climate change have already been felt in recent decades on all continents and across the oceans.
The more human activity disrupts the climate, the greater the risks. Continued emissions of greenhouse gases will cause further warming and long-lasting changes in all components of the climate system, increasing the likelihood of widespread and profound impacts affecting all levels of society and the natural world the report finds The Synthesis Report makes a clear case that many risks constitute particular challenges for the least developed countries and vulnerable communities, given their limited ability to cope. People who are socially, economically, culturally, politically, institutionally, or otherwise marginalized are especially vulnerable to climate change.
In the mist of the report, the poor attitude of the present government in Nigeria to climate change has become a source of concern to many stakeholders in the country. They expressed deep worry over government's lackadaisical attitude to the effect of climate change on the people. During the 2014 budget presentation session with the Department of Climate Change, Federal Ministry of Environment, Chairman House of Representatives Committee on Environment, Eziuche Ubani expressed regret that government interest on climate change is dwindling. "With a budget of N250m against the enormity of climate change on our environment, that is very discouraging," he said.
Ubani's comment followed the disclosure of Taiwo Haruna, the Ministry of Environment Permanent Secretary who said the budget of the Department of Climate Change was increased from N240m in 2013 to 250m in 2014. The Permanent Secretary also said Nigeria is in arrears of €45,000 in international obligations to Conference of Parties (CAP) and Kyoto Protocol.

The enormity of the problem is probably sinking in. too little too late. what we need mare than anything is the will to change says Pachauri. He is like a prophet crying in the wilderness. the asking rate is going up all the time while we all quibbling about petty inessentials. time and tide wait for none.The actionable gap is widening continuously.moving from now or never to a numbing resignation to the inevitable fate which is staring at us. 

7th Nov 14


At Yale Environment 360 today, contributing writer Fred Pearce examines a contentious question: How much carbon can we emit into the atmosphere without causing dangerous climate change? It’s a question of critical importance, Pearce writes, and establishing a so-called climate budget is essential if we are to keep the planet a safe place to live in the coming century. Estimates of the carbon budget vary widely — anywhere from 100 billion tons to close to 500 billion tons — and as negotiators head toward climate talks in Paris next year, it would be best to get to the bottom of the discrepancies. In his analysis, Pearce attempts to cut through the statistical fog.

whatever be the climate budget for emissions, its most likely the cap will be breached in 30 years @ we are spewing forth carbon shamelessly.  2045 to 2050 appears to be a critical watershed in human history. 



6th November 14

Sen. Inhofe, denier of human role in climate change, likely to lead environment ...

Washington Post - ‎31 minutes ago‎
Sen. James M. Inhofe, an the Oklahoma Republican who once compared the Environmental Protection Agency to the gestapo, is likely to lead the Environment and Public Works Committee when the GOP takes control of the Senate next year. If approved ...

It could not get zanier than this. as the asking rate keeps rising, we have the sceptics in the driving seat who will surely ensure that all key initiatives are kept on the back burner....irony of human survival and existence,,,,,, 

4th November 14


 US Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday that those who ignore climate science do so at a risk to future generations, as UN experts unveiled the final chapter of a landmark climate report,AFP reports.

"Those who choose to ignore or dispute the science so clearly laid out in this report do so at great risk for all of us and for our kids and grandkids," Kerry said.
The UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said Sunday that time is running out to limit global warming to two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), and that current trends in carbon emissions heralded disaster.
Crowning a landmark review, the climate experts warned that emissions of three key greenhouse gases were at their highest in more than 800,000 years.
Kerry said the report issued in Copenhagen was a fresh warning, "another canary in the coal mine".
"The longer we are stuck in a debate over ideology and politics, the more the costs of inaction grow and grow," he said.
The report -- the first overview by the Nobel-winning organization since 2007 -- comes ahead of UN talks in Lima next month to pave the way to a 2015 pact in Paris to limit warming to a safer two degrees Celsius.
But the negotiations have been hung up for years over which countries should shoulder the cost for reducing carbon emissions, derived mainly from oil, gas and coal -- the backbone of the world's energy supply today.
"The bottom line is that our planet is warming due to human actions, the damage is already visible, and the challenge requires ambitious, decisive and immediate action," Kerry said.
"We're seeing more and more extreme weather and climate events, whether it's storm surges, devastating heat waves, and torrential rain, across the globe," Kerry said. "It's not a coincidence."
Earth, the panel warned, is on a likely trajectory for at least four degrees Celsius warming by 2100 over pre-industrial times -- a recipe for worsening drought, flood, rising seas and species extinction.
The report said switching to cleaner sources, reducing energy efficiency and implementing other emission-mitigating measures would be far cheaper than the cost of climate damage.
4th November 14



New research predicts California droughts will worsen

10/31/2014 8:26 PM 
 11/02/2014 11:22 PM




Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/environment/article3505269.html#storylink=cpy
Future droughts in California are likely to bite deeper and last longer than the one now gripping the state, according to new research into the potential effects of climate change.
Scientists from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the U.S. Geological Survey used computer climate modeling tools to estimate the effects of warmer temperatures in future decades. In particular, they studied the effect on California’s mountain snowpack, the largest source of fresh water in the state, which refills thousands of water-storage reservoirs each spring via snowmelt.
The results show that by 2050, the median snowpack present on April 1 each year could be one-third smaller than the historical median, and by 2100 it could be two-thirds smaller. Such a dramatic loss of snowmelt would produce less runoff to refill reservoirs each summer, potentially making droughts an ever-present condition.
The research also shows that by 2100, there is only a 10percent chance that California mountains will see a snowpack equal to the median that accumulates today.




Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/environment/article3505269.html#storylink=cpy
Grim portent for California. Similar picture to hold elsewhere with extreme becoming more pronounced.  


22nd October 14


Europe emission targets 'will fail to protect climate'


Wind turbine
Europe’s leaders are about to consign the Earth to the risk of dangerous climate change, a UN expert says.
Prof Jim Skea, a vice-chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, says the EU’s plan to cut CO2 emissions 40% by 2030 is too weak.
He says it will commit future governments to “extraordinary and unprecedented” emissions cuts.
The Commission rejected the claim, saying the 40% target puts Europe on track for long-term climate goals.
The 40% target - proposed by the European Commission - will be finalised at an EU summit this week.
A spokesman for the Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard said: "Our 40% target is in line with science as it puts us right on track to meet our 2050 goal of cutting emissions by 80%-95%.
there is no present sacrifice for future gain. everyone lives in the keynes adage in the long run we are all dead. the asking rate for incremental emission will climb to astronomical levels post 2030.we are all postponing the grim reality to future generations. selfishness of first order. no one wants a let down in their standards of high energy lifestyles.  







20th October 14


Japan's Volcanos Threaten Nuclear Reactors, Expert Warns

 Oct 17, 2014 06:47 PM EDT
















Japanese Volcanos Threaten Nuclear Reactors, Expert Warns
(Photo : Getty)

One volcano expert is warning that Japan's massive 2011 earthquake--which damaged the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant and caused a nuclear crisis--could cause large volcanic eruptions in the coming years, yet he could not say when people could expect the eruptions to happen. Mount Ontake, Japan's second tallest active volcano, erupted last month without warning and sent ash and smoke into the atmosphere and over the surrounding area.
Fukushima was nightmare for our generation. most haunting. same time was listening intensely to arcade fire. some of the songs become my personal anthems for the traumatic crises. many a night i used to continuously listen to VOA and CNN, experience was searing. yes indeed future shockean themes playing out their roles in the danse macabre of climate change. 



19th October 14


e360 digest


16 OCT 2014: GLOBAL BOOM IN NATURAL GAS
UNLIKELY TO HELP THE CLIMATE, STUDY SUGGESTS

Increasing global supplies of unconventional natural gas will not help to reduce the overall upward trajectory of greenhouse gas emissions and the planetary warming that comes with it, according to a new study published in the journal Nature. The findings further undercut the notion, long touted by proponents of natural gas, that the fuel — which emits less CO2 than coal when burned — represents an important "bridge" in the transition to low-carbon energy resources. The study, which synthesized models developed by numerous researchers working independently, suggested that atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations over the next 35 years would remain virtually unchanged — and in some models, warming would be worsened — by increased natural gas production around the globe. This was in part attributed to the fact that the new gas supplies would provide a substitute not only for coal, but also for existing low-emissions technologies like nuclear power and renewables. "Our results show that although market penetration of globally abundant gas may substantially change the future energy system," the authors of the study noted, "it is not necessarily an effective substitute for climate change mitigation policy."

Depressing that even increasing use of natural gas will not slow global warming and climate change. Solar is probably the best hope but as long as cheap natural gas energy is there solar will find it difficult to find a market due to its higher cost. There will be allout milking of natural gas so that energy companies can make their piles as long abundant supplies of natural gas exist. 


7th October 14


In Nobel season, laureates fret for 'sickly' Earth
AFP | 2014-10-04 04:46:00 +0000



2nd Oct 14


Mass gathering of 35,000 walruses is latest sign of global warming




ANCHORAGE: Pacific walrus that can't find sea ice for resting in Arctic waters are coming ashore in record numbers on a beach in northwest Alaska.

An estimated 35,000 walruses were photographed on Saturday about 5 miles (8 kilometers) north of Point Lay, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Point Lay is an Inupiat Eskimo village 300 miles (482 kilometers) southwest of Barrow and 700 miles (1,126 kilometers) northwest of Anchorage.

(really heart rending as these walruses reach kind of their EOL.                                                                  desperation mounting as most mammals have met extinction since                                                                 1970)
23rd Sept 14NEW DELHI: Carbon dioxide emissions will reach a record high of 40 billion tonnes in 2014, according to the latest report of the Global Carbon Project, which is co-led in the UK by researchers at the University of East Anglia and the University of Exeter. This dire projection comes ahead of the New York Climate Summit starting on September 23, where world leaders will seek to catalyse action on climate change. 

"The time for a quiet evolution in our attitudes towards climate change is now over. Delaying action is not an option - we need to act together, and act quickly, if we are to stand a chance of avoiding climate change not long into the future, but within many of our own lifetimes," Pierre Friedlingstein, professor at the University of Exeter and lead author of the paper published in Nature Geoscience said. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/global-warming/CO2-emissions-set-to-reach-record-high-in-2014/articleshow/43138366.cms?intenttarget=no

(Time is running out. Max of 30 years, ie 2044 could be apocalypse year for humanity. Like the X-files all governments had been saying that 2100 is year when the climate tipping point could be reached. Indeed painful to see humanity in steamrolling ahead with all the hi-tech progress which contain the seeds of its destruction. like veritable moths to the fire. being sucked inexorable to our blinding extinction...end of anthropocene era....)

20th Sept 14


Oceania voices on environment loud and strong
While money and energy continues to be spent on global talks about climate change, Pacific islanders are scrambling to build sea walls out of sticks, stones, shells and coral, to protect their lands and homes from erosion and rising sea levels.
This is one of the findings of a Caritas report, Small yet strong: Voices from Oceania on the environment, to be launched at St Peter Chanel Catholic Church, Clover Park, Auckland on October 4 (St Francis Day).
“Vulnerable people throughout Oceania are living every day with and adapting to environmental changes and challenges. They are actively striving to overcome environmental problems not of their making and beyond their control,” says Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand director Julianne Hickey.
(its now or never...lets pray next week's climate conference in NY is a serious one with concrete steps for an integrated move for rollback of emissions, water conservation, mindless consumerism....)

18th Sept 14


The Daily Meal

On the march against climate change
21 - the Climate Change March. I have hitched a ride on a ... There is no doubt that climate change is impacting our environment and our economy.
Storms, like Sandy, are more frequent, and droughts like those in California are impacting even greater parts of the world, and, yes, here, too! This once divisive issue between developed and emerging markets is now seriously discussed, and locally the political discourse is being seen, as a unifying force. No longer can we remain silent on what we all see everywhere from Japan to Europe to the Pacific to the Atlantic- great degradation of our environment. Iced seas are melting, and cancers of various types are rising. Water, because of scarcity, is the new oil! - See more at: http://www.northjersey.com/news/environment/on-the-march-against-climate-change-1.1090012#sthash.w5H4jZ9K.dpuf

(All climate aware activists should make their protests count on Sept 21 Climate Change March. Time is running out. We all seem to living in a slow motion movie where coming climate crash seems surreal. Most skeptics are like stoned out in their heads and thinking climate change is some kind of figment of imagination of other paranoid people. Unless radical rollbacks are executed right now the future may not be. With everyone in their comfort zone lives, nobody is prepared to bite the bullet and change their energy intensive lifestyles. We need the New Grammar of Living. Its now or never.) 


17th Sept 14

Leading philanthropic foundations can create climate “tipping point”

  1. COMMENT: Jeremy Leggett from Carbon Tracker outlines five ways philanthropists can use wallets to curb carbon emissions
    (Pic: Saskatoon/Flickr)
    (Pic: Saskatoon/Flickr)
    By Jeremy Leggett (Most damning forecasts 4c to 6c of global warming with devastating consequences)
    In the largest and most international declaration ever published by environmentalists, 160 winners of environmental prizes from 46 countries, have today called on the world’s foundations to use their financial power to fight global warming. 
    In an appeal published in the International New York Times they call on foundations and philanthropists to dig into their endowments to create a tipping point in climate action – “to trigger a survival reflex in society.”
    The world’s philanthropic foundations own endowments worth hundreds of billions of dollars.
    They invest those endowments to generate returns from which they can pay out grants or make loans. They use these to fund a multitude of  causes, but as things stand only a minority tackle climate change, either as part of their mission or as their major focus.
    Yet climate change is the issue that is arguably the single biggest threat to civilization.
    We are on course for 4C to 6C of global warming, with devastating consequences for the whole world. The environmentalists say they are “terrified that we will lose our ability to feed ourselves, run out of potable water, increase the scope for war, and cause the very fabric of civilization to crash.”
    Global warming on this scale threatens to damage or destroy all the good work done by foundations and throw into chaos the financial markets where most of their endowments are invested.
    - See more at: http://www.rtcc.org/2014/09/15/leading-philanthropic-foundations-hold-key-to-un-climate-talks/#sthash.PzUEXPf6.dpu
16th Sept 14
by Amy Davidson
The President called the fight against ISIS a “counterterrorism campaign.” When it comes to military action, what’s in a name?

(US gets sucked into yet another war not of its choice. Events remorselessly have dragged US reluctantly to this ISIS war. The strident tones and acts of ISIS are too provocating to be ignored. The free democratic world is at severe risk. Need for a broad coalition of forces of free and secular world to put down this arrogant call of the fanatical ISIS. Is this beginning of what Nostradamus had predicted. There is enough for the world to unite in its fight against inexorable climate changes. Now these distracting theatres of war like ISIS and Ukraine only serve to dissipate the energies to focus upon the real struggle which humanity must wage against degradation of the environment.)

13th Sept 14





VietNamNet Bridge

Detailed plans needed to fight off the effects of climate change
VietNamNet Bridge – Climate change is hitting the Mekong Delta much earlier ... Do you think that our climate change scenario in the Cuu Long (Mekong) ... importance of managing natural resources and protecting the environment.
(Unless immediate steps are taken climate events forecasted 50 years hence could come in next 10 to 20 years and the whole province could be flooded. The future is now.)


12th Sept 14

  1. U.S. TRYING TO BUILD BROAD ANTI-ISIS COALITION - (hurtle 2wards worst case scenario: terrorist with nuke missile - humanity being torn asunder by religious bigotry)  “In declaring that the United States would degrade and ‘ultimately destroy’ an al-Qaeda offshoot in Iraq and Syria, President Obama articulated an objective that the United States has yet to achieve against any of the Islamist adversaries it has faced since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.” The U.S. is hoping to enlist an international coalition made up of "Arab states, European allies and long-time U.S. adversaries such as Iran and China" in the fight against the extremist group. A CIA spokesman revised previous manpower estimates for the extremist group, saying it could “muster between 20,000 and 31,500 fighters across Iraq and Syria.” James Foley’s mother said she was “embarrassed and appalled" with how the U.S. government had handled her son’s captivity, and detailed how they threatened prosecution if the family paid his ransom. [WaPo]
  2. Ebola and Climate Change: Are Humans Responsible for the Severity of the Current Outbreak?

http://www.newsweek.com/climate-change-ebola-outbreak-globalization-infectious-disease-264163

(rapid urbanisation in developing ecos leading to mass deforestation. like moths to a flame..humans lured to cities for better lives .. this chasing of energy intensive lifestyles of developed ecos... glamorised on tv..spreading like virus to all humanity...till we meet our doom..the tipping point has been reached..poles melting faster...more twisters.. tornadoes.. floods..extreme weather..die is cast..is it point of no return?..)

3. 




















































Washington Trading Probe Broadens to Hedge Funds

SEC Examines Communications Between Investors and Height Securities 

After Alert on Health-Insurance Policy Shift











WASHINGTON—Federal investigators have uncovered a flurry of communications between a Washington research firm and several hedge funds, opening a new front in an insider-trading probe focused on the firm's 2013 investor alert about a change in government health-care policy.
The Wall Street Journal has previously reported that the Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating whether anyone in the government illegally leaked word of the announcement to Height Securities. Now, the agency is looking at whether hedge...
(The nexus between banks, stock markets, investment banks, hedge funds, credit raters, regulators, central banks, large investors, politicians is the power that controls global finance & economies. Another powerful nexus is that in health care industry between hospitals, doctors, pharma industry, health insurers, health care regulators, medical research which has huge stranglehold in all economies especially in developed one. Here we see a case of an intersection between the financial and healthcare sectors. Indeed the lines between sectors is blurring. There is convergence everywhere including the forces of corruption across all sectors of economies.)



11th Sept 14
1.


The Hindu

'J&K floods grim reminder of climate change' (worst ever rain in Pakistan & Kashmir..climate's geometrical curve)
The Ministry of Environment and Forests had expressed no opinion on the ... In 2007, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in its ...

2. Draghi Looks Ahead to a Turbulent Time (post industrial aging societies.. difficult 2 
resuscitate post mature economies..Japan..Europe..US)
9 mins ago
The ECB chief thinks the euro zone's growth challenge is now so serious that it needs to act more like a political union, but that puts him on a collision cour..
3.
Spain Launches 50-Year Bond (in the long run we are all dead...)

10 hours ago
The Spanish government launched its long-awaited 50-year bond, stretching the maturity of the country's debt into new territory.
4. Goldman Made Loan to Banco Espírito Santo Shortly Before Collapse (Goldman Sachs rules the world..since 1981 some US Treasury Secretaries from Goldman)
14 hours ago
As Portuguese lender Banco Espírito Santo neared collapse this summer, it found a Wall Street ally to help it raise badly needed funds: Goldman Sachs Group.

10th Sept 14


The Guardian

Greenhouse gas emissions rise at fastest rate for 30 years (our knee jerk actions are too feeble to arrest the irreversible changes)
Prof Joanna Haigh, co-director of the Grantham Institute for Climate Change and Environment, Imperial College London, said: “Far from a slowdown, ...

2.



































  1. An Inconvenient Truth Global Warming - United States Vice ... (great documentary..must see)

    www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcLG-tcMvyg

    Feb 24, 2014 - Uploaded by World Documentary Channel
    An Inconvenient Truth Global Warming - United States Vice President Al Gore's - LONG DOCUMENTARY ...
 3.

Artificial intelligence meets the C-suite

Technology is getting smarter, faster. Are you? Experts including the authors of The Second Machine Age, Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee, examine the impact that “thinking” machines may have on top-management roles. more
This article is part of a series celebrating the 50th anniversary of McKinsey Quarterly.
 4.  Do "energy drinks" make you fat?  (the truth about energy drinks, plus my healthy alternative concoction)

5.   Are you eating toxic fish from grocery stores and restaurants? (this is beyond mercury)
6..  Canned food and bottled water can increase your abdominal fat?

9th Sept 14

  1.  RARE RESPIRATORY VIRUS STRIKES KIDS “Hospitals in Colorado, Missouri and potentially eight other states are admitting hundreds of children for treatment of an uncommon but severe respiratory virus. The virus, called Enterovirus D68, causes similar symptoms to a summer cold or asthma: a runny nose, fever, coughing and difficulty breathing. But the illness can quickly escalate and there are no vaccines or antiviral medications to prevent or treat it … the virus is ‘increasingly recognized’ for causing severe — and potentially deadly — respiratory illness.” And the CDC is calling this the “tip of [the] iceberg.” [Story, Image via WaPo] 
  2. ELIMINATING ISIS COULD TAKE OVER THREE YEARS “The Obama administration is preparing to carry out a campaign against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria that may take three years to complete, requiring a sustained effort that could last until after President Obama has left office, according to senior administration officials. The first phase, an air campaign with nearly 145 airstrikes in the past month, is already underway to protect ethnic and religious minorities and American diplomatic, intelligence and military personnel, and their facilities, as well as to begin rolling back ISIS gains in northern and western Iraq.” President Obama is expected to announce the full plan on Wednesday. [NYT]











4th Sept 14

1. Economic Inequality, Innovation and Cronyism










































Does economic inequality lead to the end of growth spurts? This series of articles on the economic impacts of inequality has addressed some arguments used by economists at Standard & Poor’s in their paper on inequality. The S&P economists cite a study arguing that growth spells are more likely to end when inequality is greater.
(Previous articles in this series are Economic Impacts of Inequality and Economic Stagnation.)
2.


1st Sept 2014
by Derrick Harris
Aug 30 2014, 7:24am PDT
Kalev Leetaru has measured the Twitter heartbeat, gathered and analyzed 35 years worth of news data, and this week helped launch the Internet Archive's collection on Flickr of millions of historic book images. He recently shared his fascinating thoughts on computing on the Structure Show.
Read More »

2. Water crises looming. Bleak future for 50% globe. Xtreme climate & water. Need for newgrammaroflife.blogspot.inus7.campaign-archive2.com/?u=6043f781036…

3.The Eurozone Is A Growing Problem For U.S. Economy (Difficult to resuscitate Europe) 
from Seeking Alpha 13 hours ago
Summary The euro-zone is in another economic crisis. It is the largest trading partner of the U.S. Will its growing problems affect the still anemic U.S. economy? Will its stock market declines resume and be a drag on U.S. markets? · The 18-nation euro-zone is the largest economy in the world, eclipsing that of the U.S. · The euro-zone is the largest trading partner of the U.S. (the largest importer of U.S. goods, the largest exporter of goods to the U.S.). · The euro-zone...

4.
The Guardian

5.
54 mins ago
China's average housing prices fell in August for the fourth straight month, though at a slower pace, as property developers continue to struggle with excess s..
54 mins ago
Capital spending by Japanese companies fell by 1.8% in the April to June period from the previous quarter, reflecting a slump in demand after the first sales t..

31st August 2014

Martin Rees: Can we prevent the end of the world?


06:52 minutes · TED2014
A post-apocalyptic Earth, emptied of humans, seems like the stuff of science fiction. But in this short, surprising talk, Lord Martin Rees asks us to think about our real existential risks — natural and human-made threats that could wipe out humanity. As a concerned member of the human race, he asks: What’s the worst thing that could possibly happen?

What will winter be like this year? Check out the woolly bears

from Examiner.com 19 hours ago
According to Live Science on Thursday, the 2015 edition of the Farmers Almanac hit the shelves on August 25th, and the news is disheartening for all those hoping for a mild and balmy winter this year. More Photos View all 7 photos The 200-year old Almanac is calling for below-normal temperatures covering three-quarters of the nation, predicting that the " Northern Plains and the Great Lakes regions of the U.S. will be hardest hit. " But not to be outdone by an old American stand-by like...

27 August 2014

The Guardian

UK's winter floods strengthen belief humans causing climate change – poll
More than a quarter of people say UK's winter floods strengthened their belief in human-induced climate change, a survey has found. Half the people ...



India Today

Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change announces job vacancy
The Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change has invited applications for recruitment at two posts. The interested and eligible candidates ...
Sydney Morning Herald

Climate change may disrupt global food system within a decade, World Bank says
The world is headed "down a dangerous path" with disruption of the food system possible within a decade as climate change undermines nations' ...


OBAMA CHASING CLIMATE CHANGE “The Obama administration is working to forge a sweeping international climate change agreement to compel nations to cut their planet-warming fossil fuel emissions, but without ratification from Congress. In preparation for this agreement, to be signed at a United Nations summit meeting in 2015 in Paris, the negotiators are meeting with diplomats from other countries to broker a deal to commit some of the world’s largest economies to enact laws to reduce their carbon pollution.” The news of the push follows the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s report on the “irreversible, dangerous”effects of climate change. [Story, Image via NYT]

Swami Sarvapriyanda

https://youtu.be/Fi-XTOIxSPo