FIDE Women's Grand Prix 2010:Jermuk:round 6 results

Here are the results from round 6 of the FIDE Women's Grand Prix Chess tournament
in Jermuk,Armenia (the player on the left had the white pieces in the game): all the games
had decisive results:

Mkrtchian-Chiburdanidze      result:  1-0
Dzagnidze-T. Kosintseva:      result: 1-0
Shen Yang-Fierro Baquero   result: 1-0
Xu Yuhua-Kovanova           result:  1-0
Hou Yifan-Cramling             result  1-0
Stefanova-Danielian            result:1-0

These results mean the following standings exist in the tournament after 6 rounds of play:

1st:         Dzagnidze:                   5 1/2 points
2nd        Mkrtchian                    5 points
3rd        T. Kosintseva               4 points
4th-5th: Shen Yang, Hou Yifan  3 1/2 points
6th-8th Stefanova, Danielian      3 points
             Yu Yuhua  
9th      Chiburdanidze                2 1/2 points
10th    Cramling                        2 points
11th    Kovanova                      1 1//2 points
12th Fierro Baquero                  0 points

Here are the pairings for round 7 (the player on the left has the white pieces in the game):


Danielian Elina -- Mkrtchian Lilit
Cramling Pia--Stefanova
Kovanova --Hou Yifan
Fierro Baquero --Xu Yuhua
T. Kosintseva --Shen Yang
Chiburdanidze -- Dzagnidze


Best wishes to all the players for round 7!

Experts and Studies: Not Always Trustworthy

Experts and Studies: Not Always Trustworthy

June 26th,2010 Partial Lunar Eclipse

A partial lunar eclipse was visible in the western United States and Canada, the Pacific and eastern Asia this
last Saturday (June 26th) NASA says that the eclipse occurred in the pre-dawn hours on the West Coast.
It began at 3:17 a.m. PDT and ended about three hours later.

Here is a video of the eclipse which I found on Youtube, created by user Nicole
:Thank you to user Nicole for allowing me to
use this video of hers:
http://www.youtube.com/user/Nichole337

2010 FIDE Women's Grand Prix:Jermuk:round 6 pairings

Here are the pairings for round 6 of the tournament
(the player on the left has the white pieces in the game):Best wishes to all the players!
source:http://jermuk2010.fide.com/tourview/show-5.html

Round 6
----------
Mkrtchian-Chiburdanidze
Dzagnidze-T. Kosintseva
Shen Yang-Fierro Baquero
Xu Yuhua-Kovanova
Hou Yifan-Cramling
Stefanova-Danielian

2010 FIDE Women's Grand Prix:Jermuk:round 5 report

Three FIDE Women's Grand Prix chess events will occur in the next few months,these being:

Jermuk, Armenia 23rd June- 6th July 2010 Ulanbaatar, Mongolia 29 July - 12 August 2010 Santiago, Chile 27th October- 9th November 2010

Source:http://jermuk2010.fide.com/women-grand-prix-series.htm

Here is a list of the paricipants in the Jermuk Grand Prix:

o.	Name Surname	Federation	Rating
01	Hou Yifan	CHN	2589
02	Antoaneta Stefanova	BUL	2560
03	Pia Cramling	SWE	2536
04	Tatiana Kosintseva	RUS	2534
05	Maia Chiburdanidze	GEO	2514
06	Xu Yuhua	CHN	2484
07	Nana Dzagnidze	GEO	2478
08	Lilit Mkrtchian	ARM	2477
09	Elina Danielian	ARM	2473
10	Shen Yang	CHN	2452
11	Baira Kovanova	RUS	2366
12	Martha Fierro	ECU	2363

Five  rounds have been played in the Jermuk tournament thus far,to see
the results from these rounds please click on the following link:
http://jermuk2010.fide.com/tourview/show-5.html

GM Nana Dzagnidze of Georgia leads after 5 rounds with a score of 4.5 points. In second and
third are GM Tatiana Kostintseva of Russia and IM Lilit Mkrtchian of Armenia with 3.5 points.
Tied for 4th through 7th places are IM Elina Danielian of Armenia, WGM Shen Yang of China,
GM Hou Yifan of China and GM Maia Chiburdanidze of Georgia with 2.5 points. Tied for
8th-10th places are GM Antoaneta Stefanova of Bulgaria, GM Pia Cramling of Sweden and
GM Xu Yuhua of Chian, all with  2 points. WGM Baira Kovana of Russia is in 11th place
with 1.5 points and in 12th place is IM Martha Fierro Baquero of Ecuador with 0 points.

Plants possess intelligence?

Photo of Abutilon theophrasti (Common name:VELVET LEAF
source of image:http://www.cod.edu/people/faculty/chenpe/prairie/2005_08_29
/Abutilon_theophrasti.jpg


Scientists at the Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton have placed their  findings concerning an experiment they performed with the annual plant Abutilon theophrasti.


^{The goal of the scientists was to "determine whether a plant can demonstrate a complex response  towards two conditions:presence of a competitor and} 
 heterogeneous  distributions.  Individually grown plants  fully explored the pot 
by using a broad and uniform rooting distribution regardless of soil resource
 distributions. Plants with competitors and uniform soil nutrient  distributions 
exhibited pronounced reductions in rooting breadth and spatial 
soil segregation among the competing individuals. In contrast, plants 
with competitors and heterogeneous soil nutrient distributions reduced their root growth
 only modestly, indicating that plants integrate information about both neighbor and
 resource distributions in determining their root behavior.


What does this all mean in layman's terms?


It means, "Researchers at the University of Alberta have found plants have the ability
 to integrate different types of information, an accomplishment previously seen only in the brains of animals.

J.C. Cahill, an ecology professor who published the results in the journal Science Thursday,
 traced the growth of roots in a pot and demonstrated how the plant was balancing risk and
 reward from two different environmental clues -- making a choice, after a fashion.
"We need thought to do this. Plants don't need thoughts," Cahill said.


Read more: http://www.edmontonjournal.com/technology/environment/Plants+able+make+decisions

/3201230/story.html#ixzz0s0B4V73N

Syncrude guilty in death of 1,600 ducks

 Image:http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/30744/

One of the ducks that landed in Syncrude's tailings pond. Five ducks survived and were 

taken to a wildlife rehabilitation centre outside Edmonton for treatment. 

"Syncrude Canada has been found guilty under wildlife laws of causing the death

 of 1,600 ducks in a tailings pond at its oilsands mine in northern Alberta."

"It should have been obvious to Syncrude that deterrence should have been in place

 in the spring as soon as reasonably possible," provincial court Judge Ken Tjosvold 

said Friday in his ruling."

"Syncrude did not deploy deterrence early enough or quickly enough."

"In his written judgment, Tjosvold said, "I am convinced beyond reasonable doubt that
Syncrude could have acted lawfully by using due diligence to deter birds from the basin ... and it did not do so."

Source:http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Canada/20100625/oilsands-syncrude-100625/

It is great to see someone in authority who is looking after the interests of all of the animals in our province!

Thank you Judge Tjosvold for this ruling!

CBC News - Technology & Science - British cat gets bionic paws

CBC News - Technology & Science - British cat gets bionic paws

CBC News - Technology & Science - Toxic metals in whales threat to humans: study

Source of image:http://www.orcahome.de/mont2006/images/mont200605_100.jpg
Thanks to Stefan Jacobs for allowing me to use the image.

To read an article related to this blog post please click on the following link:
CBC News - Technology & Science - Toxic metals in whales threat to humans: study

Fraser Institute suggests Canada export its surplus water

According to a new  document entitled: "Sustainable water exports possible with reformed Canadian water policies", which was released on June 16,2010 by the Fraser Institute,

"Canada should look closely at the benefits and opportunities presented by bulk water exports and move beyond the fear mongering and protectionism that has long tainted the issue, concludes a new report from the Fraser Institute, Canada’s leading public policy think-tank.
“Canada is blessed with abundant supplies of unspoiled surface water and groundwater, and bulk exports can be undertaken in an environmentally sustainable way,” said Diane Katz, Fraser Institute director of risk, environment, and energy policy and author of Making Waves: Examining the Case for Sustainable Water Exports from Canada.a document you can read by clicking on the following link: (you need a program
which reads PDF files on your computer in order to read the document):
  http://www.fraserinstitute.org/commerce.web/product_files/Case-for-
sustainable-water-export.pdf

Diane Katz believes Canada officials can "act responsibly" in order to ensure that the United States
does not "suck Canada dry" of our water.

Katz develops what I consider to be these key points in her document:

A."The profit potential from bulk water sales is slim, at present, given the high
costs of transport."  (I see this point as an item of contention for Canada to begin exporting its excess
water to countries in need. Why should Canada allow its excess water to be transported to
other countries if we cannot make a decent profit from the export? Other countries export
goods, services and even raw materials to Canada, and expect to make a decent profit from
doing so).In addition, how can Canada be expected to export any surplus water we
have if other countries cannot afford to transport it back to their country?)

B.Katz provides 5 recommendations to the Canadian Governments regarding the export of our water:

1.Improve public under standing of water issues. 2.Conduct groundwater mapping and freshwater inventories. 3.Determine sustainable water levels. 4.Reform public subsidies of water use.
5.Repeal prohibitions against water exports.

These recommendations suggest that Canada Governments, Canadian Companies and Canadian
citizens have alot of work to do within our country before any exporting of water can occur.


I find these aspects of this paper very interesting and informative concerning my fellow Canadians
and our water supply:


(a)Canadians regard water as the natural resource of great est importance to the coun try’s
fu ture (Nanos, 2009).2009). In a poll 4 conducted for Policy Options journal, nearly 62%
 of respondents cited water as the country’s most im portant re source compared to 22% for
oil and gas, 11% for forestry and 4% for fisheries. Treasured as water is, however, mis -
conceptions about its supply, quality, and governance abound. To a large extent, the
public generally regards Canada’s water resources as despoiled and diminished
(Nanos, 2009).

(b)"Water export can be environmentally sustainable".

(c)"Opponents of water export contend that Canada is not actually a water-rich country
despite ranking third world wide in the most “renewable” fresh water, behind Brazil
and Russia (source: Environment Canada, 2009, Nov. 19). The problem, they claim,
 is that 60% of Canada’s fresh water drains to the north, but three-quarters
 of the population is concentrated within 160 km of Canada’s southern border
 with the United States (Source: Environment Canada, 2009, Nov. 19).
 There fore, water shortages loom in Canadian population centers."

To me this obviously indicates that if water shortages loom in country
we can hardly be in a position to export any of our water elsewhere!

(d)"Bulk export of water would only be problematic if there was insufficient water in
total to meet domestic needs" . Again as   Diane Katz, stated in "(c)" above, water shortages
loom in Canada so we certainly cannot be expected to ship bulk export our water in the near
future.


(e)"Many of the temporary short ages that do occur in Can ada are largely a result of
water system mismanagement (Ander son and Hill, 1997)."  To me this suggests
we cannot be expected to export our water until this mismanagement of our water is corrected.

(f) "If ex ports were initiated, Canada supposedly would be powerless to restrict water sales
to the US under existing trade agreements. But that is largely a misrepresentation of
the North American Free Trade Agreement. NAFTA does not prohibit signatories
from regulat ing resource use as long as the restrictions are applied equally to
domestic and foreign firms. The treaty also permits trade limitations for environmental
protection".

Why should firms in Canada have to experience restrictions on the use of water
 found within Canada? It is Canada's water? Why should we allow a country like the
United States to access Canada's water, when the people of United States and its government
has done things such as slapping tariffs on Canadian lumber and food, despite the existence of
a free-trade agreement between the two countries? Look at the final agreement which
was arrived at regarding the softwood lumber dispute between the U.S. and Canada:

"On July 1, 2006, trade ministers from Canada and the U.S. signed the final legal text of the softwood lumber deal. David Emerson, Canada's international trade minister and U.S. trade representative Susan Schwab signed the agreement in Geneva, where ministers were attending international trade talks.

The deal is based on the April 26 framework agreement. Emerson says he will introduce legislation in September 2006 to confirm the agreement and hopes to have it in place by October 1, 2006."

Parts of the deal include:

• "Import duties of $4 billion the U.S. charged Canadian companies since 2002 will be returned. But the U.S. keeps $1 billion.
• A seven-year term, with a possible two-year extension.
• A ban on the U.S. launching new trade actions.
• Restrictions on Canadian exports will kick in if prices fall too far.
• Neutral trade arbitrators will provide final and binding settlements of disputes."
• source:http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/softwood_lumber/

Why did the U.S insist on keeping one billion dollars which were rightfully Canada's?Why did the U.S.

negotiators insist that "restrictions on Canadian exports kick in if prices fall too far?"

I hope if you are a Canadian you take the time to inform yourself about the key issues relating to
Canada's water supply by reading  Diane Katz's paper and by reading other documents as well!

Source of image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ashfay/2236863753/

Analysis of Radjabov-Gelfand, 2010 King's Chess Tournament round 4

I have just analyzed another chess game for my blog, and I would like to share this analysis with
the viewers of this blog. This game comes from the 4th round of the King's Chess Tournament
currently being played in  Medias, Romania. The game I have analyzed is between
Grandmaster Teimor Radjabov (elo  2740,) of Azerbaijan, who is the thirteenth highest-rated
 chess player in the world, and  and Grandmaster Boris Gelfand of Israel who has an  elo of
2741 and is the eleventh highest chess player in the world. The opening played in this game
is the  Petroff's Defense.I hope you enjoy playing through this analysis. This is game number
15 in the Chessviewer Deluxe game index.

CBC News - Technology & Science - Scientist admits defaming oilsands researchers

CBC News - Technology & Science - Scientist admits defaming oilsands researchers

What I find most interesting about this article is the following statement:
"Hudema said in a news release. "The government of Alberta seems more concerned about the reputation of the tarsands industry than it is about learning about the destructive and dangerous impacts this industry has."

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/06/21/edmonton-mceachern-defamatory-apology.html#ixzz0rXcOmjPZ

Are Australian honeybees behind U.S. hive collapse?

To read an article entitled:

Are Australian honeybees behind U.S. hive collapse?

please click on the link above.

Source of image: http://advocacy.britannica.com/blog/advocacy/
2007/06/who-killed-the-honeybees/

So much for promises from Mel Knight

Please read the article at the following link which was written by
Jeff Gailus (an Alberta writer and communications professional
 from Calgary, Alberta):

Only laws with teeth can save our grizzlies

Source of image:

http://people.ucalgary.ca/~jlinke/

You can read about Jeff by clicking on the following link:
http://www.gailus.ca/about.html

If you  want to save the Alberta Grizzly Bear from extinction and you oppose
what the  Energy Resources Conservation Board just did, by allowing 
 Petro Canada  to  build 11 gas wells, two pipelines and one gas battery
 in important habitat in the Livingstone Grizzly Bear Management Area west
 of Longview.and if you also want to voice your disapproval of the 
Spray Lakes Sawmills'  desire to clear cut trees in the Castle Special 
Management Area, then please email  Mel Knight at 
Minister.Energy@gov.ab.ca  and also please
phone or email the Energy Resources Board of  Alberta at   (403) 297-8311 
from 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. or by e-mail at Inquiries@ercb.ca    

Read more: http://www.edmontonjournal.com/business/Only+laws+with+teeth+s

ave+grizzlies/3179980/story.html#ixzz0rWGKXFcP

CBC News - Technology & Science - Oil leak could fill 9,200 living rooms

Please click on the following link to  read a story which deals with the mathematics of the
Gulf Oil leak:


CBC News - Technology & Science - Oil leak could fill 9,200 living rooms

Source of image: http://theworldtopics.com/gulf-oil-spill/

Mistakes Fibromyalgia Patients Make - fibromyalgia - Health.com

To read a pictorial article which discusses some of the mistakes which people with fibromyalgia make,
and which may cause us to have more pain and problems, please click on the following link:


Mistakes Fibromyalgia Patients Make - fibromyalgia - Health.com

How The First Stars In The Universe Came Into Existence

Image: A computer model image showing the formation of the first stars.
The blue shading in this image reflects differences in warm dark-matter density. Credit: Science

To read an interesting article about how the first stars in our universe came into existence,
please click on the following link:

How The First Stars In The Universe Came Into Existence

Here are some links to other  articles which discuss the origin of stars in our Universe:
Please note that some of these links require you have a program which reads
PDF files installed on
your computer:

http://evolutionfacts.com/Ev-V1/1evlch02.htm
http://photon.phys.clemson.edu/wwwpages/StarLife.html
http://www.worldscibooks.com/etextbook/p353/p353_chap1.pdf
http://www.originquestions.com/stars.html

Tiny insect brains capable of huge feats

Image: The image is a microscopic photo of the brain of an ant
Source of image: http://www.scifair.org/project-desperationproj.html



To read an interesting article concerning the capability of the brains of insects please click on the
following link:



Tiny insect brains capable of huge feats

Comprehensive look at human impacts on ocean chemistry

The view from Bodega Head, Sonoma County State Beach.
Photo used with permission © Copyright 2010 [Roy Tennant], FreeLargePhotos.com.

To read an article dealing with the impact of humans on the chemistry of the ocean, please click on the
following link:

Comprehensive look at human impacts on ocean chemistry

New reliable method based on patients’ gait helps to diagnose fibromyalgia

ScienceDaily (2010-04-30) -- "A researcher from Spain has designed a reliable method that --
combined with the diagnostic criteria of the American College of Reumathology --
 helps to diagnose fibromyalgia on the basis of patients' walk parameters, i.e. their gait."

To read about this method please visit the following website:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100427081053.htm#

New criteria proposed for diagnosing fibromyalgia

ScienceDaily (2010-06-06) -- "The American College of Rheumatology is proposing a new
set of diagnostic criteria for fibromyalgia that replaces the tender point test with a rating
 system that includes common symptoms such as fatigue, sleep disturbances, and
cognitive problems, as well as pain."

Source:http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100524143427.htm#

This is great news for those of us with fibromyalgia!

Germans Find XMRV, Retrovirus Linked to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

According to Adrienne Dellwo at the website:
 http://chronicfatigue.about.com/b/2010/05/25/germans-find-xmrv-retrovirus-l
inked-to-chronic-fatigue-syndrome.htm

"A new study  out of Germany could provide support for U.S. research linking XMRVto
chronic fatigue syndrome and casts doubt on European studies failing to find it."
 To read Adrienne's article
please click on the link above.

You can read the study if you have a program which reads PDF Files (Adobe Acrobat for example,
or Nitro PDF Reader) by clicking on the following link:
http://www.cdc.gov/eid/content/16/6/pdfs/10-0066.pdf

A Grizzly Challenge: Please Download it!!

Experts concerned with the future of the Grizzly bear species in Alberta have created a very
informative document entitled, "A Grizzly Challenge:Ensuring A Future for Alberta's Endangered
Grizzles." Please visit the following link and download this report, and read it. Only by doing this will
the citizens of Alberta be informed and be able to contact the Alberta Provincial Government with facts
 to ensure the Government does recommended actions to maintain the Grizzly Bear population in
 our Province. You can download the document (which requires the use of a program which reads
PDF files) by going to the following link:http://www.davidsuzuki.org/publications/downloads/2010/Grizzly_challenge-web.pdf

I suggest you download the new Nitro Reader to read any PDF file you encounter online.
You can download it for free at the following website: http://www.nitroreader.com/download/
You can also use Adobe Acrobat, however I have stopped using the program because of security
concerns with it.

Thank you to the following website and also thank you to David Chudnov who photographed
the grizzly bears in the image above, for allowing me to use the photo in this blog entry.
Source of image: http://freelargephotos.com/?fetch=300077_l.jpg&subject=Grizzly%20Bears copyright
2010 Photographer:
 David Chudnov 

BP better not get their way!

I just read on the cnn.com website that BP wants a judge (who gets tens of thousands of dollars
a year in oil royalties and is paid travel expenses to industry conferences,) to be appointed
 to hear the lawsuits (over 200) which have been filed against the company!! The nerve of company
executives!! Who do they think they are dealing with?

To read the article I took this information from click on the following link:

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/06/17/bp.judge.oil.ties/index.html?hpt=T2

The IPBES and the International Year of Biodiversity

The Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)  has announced

the formation of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity 

and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) . This organization will be devoted to monitoring the 

ecological state of our planet. I found the following statement which indicates the purpose of 

this new organization::

the IPBES will focus on making "

"informed decisions on how biodiversity and ecosystem services are conserved 

and used around the world."

(source:http://www.uicn.org/about/work/programmes/ecosystem_management/ipbes/ )

The official website for this new organization is: http://www.ipbes.net/ .

The members of this organization have chosen a difficult job, however I certainly agree that

such an organization needs to exist in our world. It is nice to see that people from different

countries and cultures can come together and agree that biodiversity of the life forms on our

planet must be maintained and strengthened. In addition the crucial  ecosystem of our planet

now has a means of being perpetuated by  services offered by this organization. Lets hope

the members of this new organization focus on results and action rather than rhetoric and 

self-interest. 

According to the official website:

this  "independent platform will in many ways mirror the Intergovernmental Panel on 

Climate Change (IPCC) which has assisted in catalyzing world-wide understanding

 and governmental action on global warming.

The new body will bridge the gulf between the wealth of scientific knowledge- 

documenting accelerating declines and degradation of the natural world- and the

 decisive government action required to reverse these damaging trends.

Its various roles will include carrying out high quality peer reviews of the wealth of 

science on biodiversity and ecosystem services emerging from research institutes 

across the globe in order to provide 'gold standard' reports to governments."

source: http://www.ipbes.net/

According to, the website: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biodiversity

"Biodiversity is the variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or on the 

entire Earth. Biodiversity is often used as a measure of the health of biological systems.

 The biodiversity found on Earth today consists of many millions of distinct biological

  species. The year 2010 has been declared as the International Year of Biodiversity."

According to the website: http://canadianbiodiversity.mcgill.ca/english/theory/threelevels.htm
  three levels of biodiversity exist: genetic diversity.species
diversity and ecosystem diversity. You can read about these at the just-provided website.

I just learned that Canada has fifteen terrestrial and five aquatic ecozones, which you
can read about by going to the following website:


http://canadianbiodiversity.mcgill.ca/english/ecozones/ecozones.htm

To read more about the programs and events which will occur in this International Year of

Biodiversity, please visit the folllowing websites:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Year_of_Biodiversity

http://www.cbd.int/2010/welcome/

I am appalled to admit that this is the first time I have heard that this year is the International

Year of Biodiversity? What does this fact say about news agencies, and the news
 media in our world??

Here is a very informative video which will provide you with the basics of
biodiversity:
(source:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGxJArebKoc ) This video was created by
the organizationhttp://www.untamedscience.com/ Below this video is the "Official"
Video of the International Year of Biodiversity 2010.
(source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1VYmpTikgw )
I hope you find these videos informative and that you take up the challenge to engage in
behaviors which will preserve the biodiversity on our planet!

Was there at one time an ocean on Mars?

Geologists now believe that at one time the planet Mars possessed a large ocean. To read about this
scientific hypothesis please visit the following website:


http://www.nature.com/news/2010/100613/full/news.2010.293.html


Source of image: http://www.pdphoto.org/PictureDetail.php?mat=&pg=7964

Scientists announce new estimates of Gulf oil flow

Oil floats on the surface of the Gulf of Mexico near the coast of Louisiana.
(Source of image: May 26, 2010 - AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)


According to the article: 

"Admiral Allen; Dr. McNutt Provide Updates on Progress of Scientific 

 Teams Analyzing Flow Rates from BP’s Well" which you can read at:

http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/doc/2931/627011/

new estimates concerning how much oil is flowing from the BP Well have been announced by

scientists studying the disaster.To read these new estimates please visit the following 

website: http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/doc/2931/627011/

What the Gulf Disaster Could Tell Us About Global Warming

Source of image:
http://lecanadian.com/2010/06/04/gulf-oil-spill-shows-an-america-in-decline/


An article entitled, "What the Gulf Disaster Could tell us about Sudden Global Warming,
written by Lauren Schenkman has been posted to the following website:
http://news.sciencemag.org/scienceinsider/2010/06/what-the-gulf-disaster-could-tel.html

"Scientists think sudden, violent outflows of the gas from the sea floor might have
spiked the planet's temperature about 55 million years ago, and they think the gulf
 spill affords them the unique opportunity to study an analog in real time."

New Gas giant planet found orbiting a 12 million year old star

"Astronomers say their years-long observations of a gas giant orbiting a young star demonstrate
that such planets can form in just a few million years, which is a surprisingly short span of time
n cosmic terms. The findings, published online today by the journal Science mark another
advance for the booming field of exoplanetary science"

Source of text: http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2010/06/09/4488680-
giant-planets-made-in-a-jiffy


source of video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_J4O8Rsrxd4&feature=digest

Incredible video of a tornado

I found the following incredible video of the formation of a Tornado in Colorado which took place on
June 10th.This video was posted by the user Reed:

source of video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xG6Y-POpH8

Study that linked chronic fatigue syndrome to a retrovirus draws doubts - latimes.com

Study that linked chronic fatigue syndrome to a retrovirus draws doubts - latimes.com

How sharks sniff out their prey - latimes.com

Source of image:
http://www.kidzone.ws/imageschanged/sharks/hammerhead.jpg

An interesting article which discusses how sharks are able to smell their prey
can be read at the following website:

How sharks sniff out their prey - latimes.com

Deepwater Horizon oil rig missed inspections, records show - latimes.com

Source of image: http://cgvi.uscg.mil/media/main.php?g2_itemId=77427


To read an article which discusses the fact that the Deepwater Horizon oil rig,
(which was involved in the Gulf oil spill) please visit the following website):

Deepwater Horizon oil rig missed inspections, records show - latimes.com

Oil spill: Threatened Barataria Bay is key to life in the gulf - latimes.com

Source of image: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bayou.jpg

Oil spill: Threatened Barataria Bay is key to life in the gulf - latimes.com

The Oil Spill by the Numbers

To see a video  which discusses some of the numbers  of  the Gulf Oil Spill please
 click on the following link:
http://www.time.com/time/video/player/0,32068,91101495001_1995883,00.html

Mars was livable: study

Chemical signals from a  the Gusev crater on Mars suggest that at one  time the planet
may have had an envbironment which could have sustained life!.

Read more: http://www.edmontonjournal.com/technology/space/Mars+livable+study/

3112336/story.html#ixzz0qlGI8uxn

Source of image:http://www.stsci.edu/~inr/thisweek1/thisweek295.html

A New Theory on How Comets Are Born

A New Theory on How Comets Are Born


This artist's conception shows a lump of material in a swirling, planet-forming disk. Astronomers
 using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope found evidence that a companion to a star --
either another star or a planet -- could be pushing planetary material together,
as illustrated here:

 source:http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/spitzer/multimedia/spitzer-20090923_prt.htm

Government of Alberta designates Grizzly bears as "threatened":big deal!!

Source of image: NPS Photo
 http://www.weforanimals.com/free-pictures/wild-animals/
grizzly-bears/1/grizzly-bear-9.htm

After waiting and waiting for the Government of the Province of Alberta to act in regards to the
alarming reduction in the Grizzly Bear province, I learned today by reading the Edmonton Journal,
that Sustainable Resource Minister Mel Knight has  designated grizzly bears in the province as now
being "threatened". What does the designation "threatened" mean for the Grizzlies in our province?
According to the Provincial Government's own website at:
http://alberta.ca/home/NewsFrame.cfm?ReleaseID=/acn/201006/28501FF40EEF0-D53C
-C48F-6FF952CC62DDEF7C.html,


"Grizzly bears were recognized in Alberta as a species that may be at risk as early 
as 2000."


I ask, Why then did it take 10 years for the Government of this province
 to finally designate the 
grizzly bears in this province as being "threatened?"




According to the Edmonton Journal article, "there are 700 grizzly bears in Alberta, in contrast, their
are 17,000 Grizzly bears populating the province of British Columbia? How could their be such a 
discrepancy? According to Robert Barclay, a biologist with the University of Calgary, "the
threatened designation doesn't do anything for grizzly bears."


So once again we have the Government of Alberta failing in its behavior towards the people
or animals of this province!!!  Why Mr. Mel Knight did you not go further and show some genuine
concern for a living creature in this province by setting aside areas of  this province for 
"Grizzly Bear habitat"?  Mr. Knight,  What are you going to say to the people of this province, 
 (in particular the children) when the last grizzly bear in Alberta is killed on a railroad line or on
a highway?  Mr. Knight, you had a chance to show the people of this province and  the people of 
this World that you cared about a species of animal which is as Albertan as the humans in this
province, all you have shown is you are only interested in half-hearted measures, and  all
you have shown is you have no long-range plan to ensure that these wonderful
 animals will be found in Alberta in the future!




According to the website: http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/36654/


"The primary way to recover Alberta’s declining grizzly bear populations is to minimize
 contact between people and bears by limiting the number of roads in grizzly-bear habitat
, says a new report."

"Released last Friday by a coalition of conservation groups, the report said the

 outlook for Alberta’s grizzlies “under current conditions is a 98.6 per cent risk 

of population decline by 30 per cent or more over the next 36 years.”

"Titled A Grizzly Challenge, the report was released the same week a grizzly sow 

was killed after being hit by a train in Banff National Park and another sow 

was illegally shot and later put down near Cardston."

"Sarah Elmeligi, senior conservation planner with the Canadian Parks and

 Wilderness Society, one of the sponsors of the report, says the report showcase

s where the government has fallen short on grizzly bear recovery."

Once again it seems resource development companies and "Big Oil"  have

gained precedence over another group within our province.This time this presidence

could mean the extinction of the Grizzly bear from the Province of Alberta in the near 

future,something Mel Knight does not seem to care about, based upon his comments

and actions as Sustainable Resource Minister of  this province!!!! By not designating

area within the province to sustain the population of these bears, Mel Knight should

expect to be held accountable when the last Grizzly bear dies due to human actions!!

According to  scientist Jeff Galius, (MSc.) who authored a report entitled


A Grizzly Challenge: Ensuring a Future for Alberta’s Threatened Grizzlies,
which you can read at: 
http://cpaws.org/files/report_grizzly-challenge-2010.pdf


"a four-step recovery plan should be implemented for the Grizzly bear population in
Alberta.. The steps include:

"1. Limiting annual human-caused mortality to a rate that will allow grizzly bear populations to grow to a size and density that enables long-term persistence...

2. Providing grizzly bear habitat security of between 55 to 68 per cent over an area large enough to maintain a grizzly bear population big enough for long-term persistence.

3. Limiting the density of roads and other routes across the recovery area to avoid unsustainable levels of motorized and non-motorized access.

4. Maintaining demographic connectivity between small population units by preventing the construction of, or

mitigating the effects of, roads, highways, railroads and other sources of fragmentation in grizzly bear habitat.

Although it is not discussed in this report, successful grizzly bear recovery will require an effective and well-funded public education program."

The remedial action is needed, writes the report author, Jeff Gailus, because

"Industrial activity and the road networks required to harvest timber and extract oil and gas are expected to increase dramatically in grizzly bear habitat, as are motorized recreation, and urban and agriculture development."

And if these steps are not implemented to protect the species, what is the possible outcome? The coalition warns

"The outlook for Alberta’s bears under current conditions is a 98.6 per cent risk of population decline by 30 per cent or more over the next 36 years."

source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/292667

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If   this warning goes unheeded by Mel Knight and the members of the  Provincial Conservative

Party of Alberta  then we know that he and  "it" are  only interested in Big Oil and resource development,regardless of the cost to  other life forms in this province! How much more selfish

can a group of individuals be?? (especially elected representatives!!!)