Archive for October, 2009
Portland Community College inches toward net-zero goal
by admin on Oct.31, 2009, under Uncategorized
Daily Journal of Commerce (Portland, OR), Oct 20, 2009 by Justin Carinci
Portland Community College’s Sylvania campus edged closer to producing all the energy it uses with a $1 million federal stimulus grant announced Tuesday. The grant money will pay for improvements to make campus buildings more energy efficient.
That $1 million goes toward a larger project to make the campus self-sufficient in terms of energy and water, said Sylvania Campus President Linda Gerber. The $15 million first round of the project will focus on building controls and other energy upgrades at all 13 buildings on campus.
It also includes replacing Sylvania’s inefficient boilers with a combined-heat-and-power generator. Such cogeneration systems recapture the waste heat produced to create electricity and use it to heat water.
Generators are more efficient than boilers, but they still burn fossil fuels, said Renee Loveland, project manager with Gerding Edlen Sustainable Solutions. The assessment Gerding Edlen produced for PCC calls for eventually shifting to all-renewable power sources.
“The strategy for now is cogeneration,” Loveland said. “But they’ll be moving to fuel cells in the future,” powered by methane captured from waste products on campus.
PCC officials have ambitiously sought money for the so-called “net zero” plan, estimated to cost $138 million. That plan would have the Sylvania campus not only creating all its own energy from renewable sources, but also treating and reusing storm water and wastewater.
The net-zero plan was one of the first proposals presented to the Oregon Way Advisory Group, which Gov. Ted Kulongoski created earlier this year to help state agencies tony robbins personal power compete for federal stimulus money. PCC asked for $43 million, which would pay for solar panels and water-system improvements.
The college is piecing together money from a number of sources, including bond sales, state and federal stimulus programs and private investments, to get to net zero, Gerber said
Bent is winning race for fitness
by admin on Oct.31, 2009, under Uncategorized
Evening Chronicle (Newcastle, England), Oct 29, 2009
GOAL king Darren Bent is expected to be fit to face West Ham this weekend.
Sunderland’s eightgoal top-scorer missed the midweek Carling Cup penalty shoot-out defeat against Aston Villa after picking up a knee injury in last Saturday’s league reverse at Birmingham.
But Black Cats boss Steve Bruce said today he hopes his pounds 12m record buy will be fit when the Hammers come to the Stadium of Light on Saturday – although he still has a huge injury headache with Lee Cattermole (knee), Bolo Zenden (hamstring) and John Mensah (calf) ruled out.
And George McCartney (hip), Phil Bardsley (shoulder) and Fraizer Campbell (hip) are all major doubts.
Bruce said: “Darren is a doubt but I expect him to make it this weekend – and if he does, it will be a huge boost for us.
“He took a horrible whack on his knee at Birmingham in the early part of the game and you could see that he was worried about it and it affected his performance for the rest of the game.
“He was still walking a bit gingerly on it on Monday morning, which is why he didn’t play against vertical training Villa, and I pulled him out of training for a couple of days.
“But he trained today and hopefully he will have no reaction to it.
“As for the other lads, we know Catts is out longterm, I can’t see Bolo making it and John Mensah is still struggling with his calf strain.
“George, Phil and Fraizer are all very doubtful and, to be honest, I don’t expect them to be fit.
“When you play two or three games a week, the downside is that you inevitably pick up a few knocks.”
Cattermole is ruled out until the New Year with medial ligament damage suffered in Sunderland’s win against Liverpool a fortnight ago, while Mensah is likely to be sidelined for another two to three weeks.
But Bruce is hoping that the rest of his injury problems will clear up in time for the Black Cats’ game at Spurs in nine days’ time.
Spartech Announces Divestiture of Wheels Business
by admin on Oct.31, 2009, under Uncategorized
Market Wire, October, 2009
Spartech Corporation (NYSE: SEH) announced
today that it has completed the sale of its wheels business, a manufacturer
of PVC tire and plastic wheel assemblies primarily for the lawn and garden
and medical markets. The wheels business, with production facilities
located in Warsaw, Indiana, Tupelo, Mississippi, and Reynosa, Mexico, has
annual sales of approximately $41 million and was previously reported in
our Engineered Products segment.
Spartech’s President and Chief Executive Officer, Myles Odaniell stated,
“The sale of this business is consistent with our strategic plan and the
specific objective to focus our portfolio on core business platforms. With
the completion of this sale, we continue our progress of realigning our
portfolio, improving our business performance, and positioning the company
for growth in our core hanging hammock chair businesses. We thank the management and employees of
the wheels business for their past contributions to Spartech and wish them
continued success under their new ownership.”
The wheels business was sold to a group of private investors, consisting of
Hamilton Robinson Capital Partners and existing management members, and
will now operate under the name Custom Engineered Wheels, Inc. The sale
price for the business was $34.5 million, including $6 million of
contingent payments, which are based on future performance of the wheels
business. Spartech intends to use the net cash proceeds from the sale to
pay down debt and invest in strategic improvement and growth initiatives.
Following the sale of the profiles business in Canada and closure of the
marine operation earlier in the year, we will report all results from these
businesses as discontinued operations and no longer report an Engineered
Products segment.
Spartech Corporation is a leading producer of engineered thermoplastic
sheet materials, thermoformed packaging, and polymeric compounds and
concentrates. The Company has facilities located throughout the United
States, and in Canada, Mexico, and Europe.
Safe Harbor For Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning
of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995
Get full locks
by admin on Oct.31, 2009, under Uncategorized
Natural Health, Nov, 2009 by Olessa Pindak
THERE ARE TWO MAJOR CAUSES of thinning hair, says Rodney Barnett, a certified trichologist (scalp expert) based in Dallas. One, low levels of protein or iron and two, a decline in estrogen (often around menopause). These easy fixes can help bring back full hair:
* RUB ON WILD YAM CREAM Its progesterone helps balance estrogen and testosterone in the body. Rub it on your cheeks, wrist, or between your thighs, where it absorbs easily.
* TRY BLACK COHOSH This supplement contains phytoestrogens from plants that mimic your own body’s estrogen.
* UP YOUR IRON Get an iron test during your annual physical and if you’re low, try a daily multivitamin with buy phentermine 37.5 iron.
* BE GENTLE Treat your strands gently by using an SLS-free shampoo, and rub your scalp at least once a week with treatments that contain rosemary and peppermint essential oils.
Money Help Desk: Insurers will not pay up over theft at car park
by admin on Oct.30, 2009, under Uncategorized
0 Comments | Scotland on Sunday (Edinburgh, Scotland), Oct 18, 2009
Byline: NO BYLINE
MY TWO-year-old Range Rover was stolen about three weeks ago, although fortunately it has now been recovered by the police.
However, when I made a claim from my insurance company, they refused to meet it. This, they say, is because of the circumstances of the loss. I had stopped my car near the ticket machine in a pay and display car park, and while I was struggling to get coins in, I heard my car start and looked round to see it driving off – it was only about 15ft away! Foolishly I had left the keys in the ignition before going to find a parking space. Can they get away with this?
AS, Edinburgh
Ian Crowder, insurance expert at the AA, writes:
CAR crime is rising and is a factor contributing to the fastest rise in car insurance premiums for 15 years, and we are seeing rising instances where car owners do, as you did, unwittingly leave themselves open to thieves who may be waiting for an unguarded moment. Keys are the weakest link in the car theft chain. Modern cars can’t easily be taken without them, so thieves are also getting more determined to get hold of them and more violent in their tactics too. Government statistics tell us that every day 50 cars are stolen after homes have been burgled or people robbed to get keys so they can steal the car. AA Insurance has seen a 15 per cent texas auto insurance quotes increase this year in claims for cars stolen in exactly this way.
Unfortunately, almost every car insurance policy has a clause that negates any claim for theft of a car where the keys were left in the ignition, and as you have discovered, you won’t get a sympathetic hearing if yours has disappeared in this way.
It may be worth an appeal to the Financial Ombudsman, who may take a more pragmatic view if you were standing right beside the car, for example, or the exclusion was never drawn to your attention.
Have I left it too late to start saving for a pension?
I AM 50 with no pension provision. My employer offers a scheme, but am I too late to start?
SV, Edinburgh
Tom McPhail, head of pensions research at Hargreaves Lansdown, writes:
THERE is no doubt that starting pension saving earlier would have been preferable. But if you are retiring at the age of 65 then you still have 15 years to make contributions, in which time you can build up a substantial retirement pot. This is particularly true if your employer offers to contribute. But even on your own you have enough time to build better retirement prospects. If your employer is still offering a final salary scheme then you should grab it with both hands.
If you were to pay in GBP 200 a month then the government would add GBP 50 in tax relief. If you are a higher rate taxpayer then you would get another GBP 50 paid back to you by the taxman. That could generate an income of around GBP 3,500 at age 65. If your employer paid in matching contributions then you could expect an income of over GBP 7,000.
The alternative is to rely entirely on the state. The full basic state pension is GBP 95.25 a week, plus if you are employed you can probably expect some additional state pension as well. The amount of additional state pension depends on your earnings, but if you have been employed for a full working life it would not be unreasonable to expect several thousand pounds a year. You can get an estimate of the state pension you will receive by visiting www.direct.gov.uk or by calling 0845 3000 168.
If you have a low state pension entitlement then you may qualify for means-tested benefits. This currently guarantees anyone with an income below GBP 130 a week that they will have that income topped up to GBP 130 by the government. If you might fall into this situation the case for retirement saving unhelpfully turns several shades of grey. By increasing your pension income you may be replacing state benefits you would have received had you just spent the money.
However, if you don’t save for retirement then you run the risk that the means-testing system won’t be there to help you out in 15 years’ time.
Refunds for home loan cover on way
IN LAST week’s article on mortgage protection insurance (‘Move to plug holes in mortgage umbrella’) you suggested that policyholders who had seen their premiums rise over the past year would get their money back.
I have had a policy since 1992 and in April this year the monthly premium was increased by 28 per cent. The insurance company cited conditions in the UK economy leading to an increase in claims for the rise. Your article suggests that customers can expect a refund of these increases and I would ask if you could clarify this point.
JM
Teresa Hunter writes:
WE’VE rechecked with the Financial Services Authority, and anyone who was forced to pay a higher premium is indeed due a refund. A spokesman said the insurance industry has agreed to pay these refunds and companies are due to begin contacting customers shortly to explain what has happened and make arrangements to repay the premium.
It is not necessary for customers to take the initiative by being pro-active. But I can’t see any harm in ringing, e-mailing or writing to your insurer to find out exactly how they intend to treat this blanket refund, and when and how much you are due
New Report Highlights How Health Insurance Reform Will Reduce Costs for Small Businesses
by admin on Oct.30, 2009, under Uncategorized
Business Wire, Oct 29, 2009
WASHINGTON — HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today released a new report, Lower
Premiums, Stronger Businesses: How Health Insurance Reform Will Bring
Down Costs for Small Businesses. The report outlines the many ways
health insurance reform will lower health care costs for small
businesses and is available now at www.HealthReform.gov.
Small businesses drive our economy and create jobs, but they are
struggling as health care costs continue to rise, Secretary Sebelius
said. The high cost of care is making it difficult or impossible for
these businesses to offer care or grow their business. Health insurance
reform will bring costs down and give small businesses the relief they
need.
The report notes:
-
Small businesses, the backbone of job creation in our economy, are
disproportionately burdened by the financial strains caused by rising
health care costs. On average, small businesses pay up to 18 percent
more than large firms for the same health insurance policy. This
difference is due in part to high broker fees (which can be up to 10
percent of premiums), and health plan administrative costs that are
three times those in the large group market. -
In a recent national survey, nearly three-quarters of small businesses michigan auto insurance quotes
that did not offer benefits cited high premiums as the reason. -
Nearly half of workers covered by a small business employer have
insurance that limits the total amount the plan will pay for medical
care and nearly one in ten small business workers have a health plan
that does not offer prescription drug coverage. -
Workers in small firms are more likely to shoulder burdensome
out-of-pocket health care costs
Dennis James signs with Probiotica
by admin on Oct.30, 2009, under Uncategorized
Flex, Nov, 2009 by James Riley
On August 1, Dennis James joined forces with Probiotica, a Brazillian-based nutritional company that’s been in business since 1986.
Currently exporting its products to 32 countries across the globe, Probiotica is poised to enter the uber-competitive U.S. supplement market, a move that it believes will be greatly facilitated by its association with jon muranko the ever-popular James.
“They approached me at FIBO in Germany,” James says. “They had been considering signing me for years and were finally ready to do so this year. The great thing is that I’m not just a sponsored athlete
Swine flu booster
by admin on Oct.30, 2009, under Uncategorized
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Dr. Farokh Jiveh Helps the California Center for Advanced Dental Studies Perform the Largest Number of Programs to Date
by admin on Oct.29, 2009, under Uncategorized
Market Wire, October, 2009
By the end of the year, the California
Center for accredited online degree Advanced Dental Studies (CCADS) will have completed 14 hands on
programs in 2009, making it one of the youngest post-graduate dental
education organizations to complete such a feat. This is just CCADS’
second year operating under its current model where full scholarships are
granted, allowing dentists to attend a comprehensive hands-on program
series. This accomplishment includes providing advanced clinical education
to over 200 students in five different locations in three countries, all on
scholarship. Dr. Farokh Jiveh has been instrumental in helping to reach,
instruct and mentor the doctors involved. “Dr
Why 2009 poppies are needed to support new generation of soldiers; Iraq and Afghanistan veterans reveal true horrors of today’s war
by admin on Oct.29, 2009, under Uncategorized
0 Comments | Western Mail (Cardiff, Wales), Oct 23, 2009
Byline: Lisa Jones
EACH night as he closed his eyes, young soldier Mike Hughes would relive his own personal fight against the Taliban.
Yesterday, to mark the launch of the 2009 Poppy Appeal, the 25-year-old revealed how he could not sleep as his tortured mind went over the horrors he witnessed in Afghanistan.
Like an increasing number of soldiers dealing with the demands of warfare, Mike, from Carno, Powys, was suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, haunted by images which dramatically affected his ability to function day to day.
Mike, who served as a gunner in 19 Regiment Royal Artillery, left the Army in 2008 after five years’ service, with tours in Iraq in 2005 and Afghanistan in 2007, where he provided fire support in Helmand Province.
Over a six-month tour of duty in Afghanistan, the battle group Mike was the cure for insomnia part of was involved in a firestorm against Al Qaeda and Taliban fighters at unprecedented levels of ferocity and intensity.
Tracing a finger over a scar across his right cheek, Mike, whose best friend was blown up on his 21st birthday while in Iraq, said: “A bullet scrammed my face early on in the tour. I couldn’t sleep after that. They knew there was something wrong with me.”
He is one of many young men and women who are the focus of help for this year’s Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal, which was launched in Wales at the National Assembly in Cardiff Bay, under the motto, For Their Sake Wear a Poppy.
Presiding Officer Dafydd Elis Thomas, who hosted the event, with senior armed forces officers and politicians present, said: “It’s as important now as it ever was to remember what our armed services have done and are still doing for this country.”
The UK campaign was launched at the same time by forces sweetheart Dame Vera Lynn, who joined soprano singer Hayley Westenra at London’s Horse Guards Parade for a rendition of the classic wartime song We’ll Meet Again.
This year’s appeal, which aims to raise pounds 31m, urges people to support troops wounded in Afghanistan and the families of those killed in the conflict by wearing a poppy. It focuses on the need to help the current generation of servicemen and women who have fought in the war-torn country.
After his return from Afghanistan, Mike began to regularly get drunk to drown out the vivid flashbacks he suffered.
Unable to help him, his mother Ruth contacted the Royal British Legion, who last year provided financial help to 10,000 service personnel, recent veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan and their families.
“He was getting drunk all the time,” she said. “He didn’t realise what he was doing. He thought the Taliban were after him. Hours later it would be as though nothing had happened. It was horrible.”
The Royal British Legion put Mike in touch with Combat Stress, an organisation which treats soldiers suffering from PTSD during short, residential stays.
Mike, who was unable to work for six months because of his condition, said: “It doesn’t matter how many times I explain to people, they don’t know what it was like.
“It’s important to help and support us
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