Sony's Xperia Ice Cream Sandwich rollout pushed to mid-April (and beyond)

To be fair, things have... changed a bit since we heard back in November that the Xperia handset line would be getting Ice Cream Sandwich by March of 2012. Specifically, Sony Ericsson is no more, and it's up to Sony Mobile alone to continue the torch carrying. At any rate, the outfit has made clear today that it'll be mid-April at the earliest before any of the Xperia smartphones see an Android 4.0 update, with the Xperia Arc S, Xperia Neo V and Xperia Ray amongst the first on deck. We're told that the updates will start hitting that trio in the middle of next month, with every last owner to be gifted in the four to six weeks following. Beyond that, the Xperia Play, Xperia Neo, Xperia Mini, Xperia Mini Pro, Xperia Pro and Xperia Active will start seeing ICS "from the end of May / early June." You know, pretty much right when Android 5.0 will be unveiled.

Sony's Xperia Ice Cream Sandwich rollout pushed to mid-April (and beyond) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 30 Mar 2012 18:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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RFO for CSJMM Strategic Planning Services

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP)

Issue Date: March 30, 2012
Proposal Due Date: April 23, 2012 (By close of business day 6:00 p.m.)
Anticipated Award Date: May 4, 2012

All Bidders should prepare a response before April 20, 2012.

I. Introduction
IREX, (International Research & Exchanges Board), under the scope of G-MEDIA program is seeking proposals from qualified organizations to provide Strategic Planning Services for IREX/G-MEDIA sub-grant recipient Caucasus School of Journalism and Media Management (CSJMM) at the Georgian Institute of Public Affairs (GIPA).

II. Project Requirements

A. Background

About IREX
IREX (the International Research & Exchanges Board) is the premier US nonprofit organization specializing in higher education, independent media, Internet development, and civil society programs in the United States, Europe, Eurasia, the Near East, and Asia. Since its founding in 1968, IREX has supported over 15,000 students, scholars, policymakers, business leaders, journalists, and other professionals. IREX serves as a major resource for universities, governments, and the corporate sector in understanding international political, social, economic, and business developments.

The IREX Mission
? Foster democracy in transitioning societies
? Strengthen and help internationalize educational, nongovernmental, and media organizations
? Support the highest-quality research in the social sciences and humanities
? Identify and train the next generation of leaders by working together with universities, nongovernmental organizations, foundations, governments, and corporations

About G-MEDIA Program
Funded by USAID, Georgian Media Enhance Democracy, Informed Citizenry and Accountability Program (G-MEDIA) is to improve the public?s access to a range of sources of news and information by developing a more politically balanced, editorially independent, professional and viable media sector that reaches audiences across Georgia through diverse delivery channels. The program seeks to raise the quality and diversity of media content and broaden delivery channels; improve professionalism, including through university journalism education; depoliticize the regulatory environment and strengthen journalists? capacity to address infringements to their rights and breaches of professional ethics; and improve the viability of media outlets.
IREX has designed and implemented independent media projects in more than 20 countries across Europe and Eurasia. IREX also publishes the annual Media Sustainability Index (MSI), a valuable tool that analyzes the status and progress of independent media

About CSJMM

IREX/G-MEDIA grant recipient the Caucasus School of Journalism and Media Management (CSJMM) is one of three graduate schools at the Zurab Zhvania Georgian Institute of Public Affairs (GIPA), a non-profit organization concerned with building capacity for effective government, media and civil society. CSJMM currently offers three master?s degree programs: Journalism and Media Management; Journalism and Communication Management and Public Relations. In addition to its degree granting courses, CSJMM trains students and professionals in non-degree programs and trainings.

B. Task Description

IREX is seeking a vendor to facilitate a strategic planning process for the Caucasus School of Journalism and Media Management (CSJMM) that will provide guidance to its management for future decision making and continuous development of its programs and services. The purpose of the strategic planning process will be to assist in (1) determining the local needs which should be addressed; (2) developing a comprehensive and effective 10 year strategic plan.

C. Scope of Services

IREX is seeking a vendor who can assist CSJMM in developing Strategic Plan that will ensure achievement of its mission: to support the development of independent media in the Caucasus by means of educational and training programs in journalism, communication and media management. The school?s philosophy is that journalists? well-grounded in skills to report fairly and accurately and communication specialists ? facilitating a free access to information? will raise the level of journalism where they practice, and will serve the public by providing truthful information and upholding the highest ethical standards of the profession.

IREX is seeking the best strategy that will enable CSJMM to accomplish its mission by (1) exploiting the opportunities and strengths while (2) neutralizing its threats and (3) and correcting (or avoiding) its weaknesses.

IREX recognizes that development of a long range plan should be done as a collaborative process. The strategic planning will include planning, facilitating and evaluating a Planning Retreat with the CSJMM management and staff and, IREX/G-MEDIA representatives to:
? Review and revise, as necessary CSJMM vision and mission statements
? Develop short and long-long term goals and objectives
? Develop key strategies
? Develop key indicators and outcomes that can serve as the basis for performance measurement

The location, cost and event planning of the retreat will be coordinated through IREX/G-MEDIA.

D. Deliverables

Contractor will be responsible for submitting the first draft of the Strategic Plan to IREX and CSJMM for review. After making corrections and revisions to the draft, contractor will make official presentation of the final Strategic Plan to CSJMM and IREX representatives. The dates for submitting the first draft and final Strategic Plan will be specified in the agreement between IREX and Contractor.

IREX anticipates that successful development of a strategic plan will lead to a follow-up project in which vendors will be asked to submit proposals for execution of the plan and direct implementation assistance.

III. Proposal Timeline

A. RFP Release ??March 30

B. Deadline to Submit Questions ??April 9
All questions must be submitted in writing, no later than 6:00 p.m. on April 9, 2012 to the address listed at the end of the document. E-mails are accepted. E-mail subject line must be CSJMM-RFP.

C. Answers to written questions (TENTATIVE) ??April 16

D. Deadline for Proposal Submission ??April 23

E. Review/Approval of Proposal (TENTATIVE) ??May 4

F. Announcement of winner (TENTATIVE) ??May 7

G. Contract signed (TENTATIVE) ??May 14

IV. Proposal Submission
A. Proposal must be received no later than the date and time for proposal submission: April 23, 2012 (By 6 p.m.)

B. All correspondence, including the proposals, must be submitted to:
Tamar Gabisonia, Senior Journalism Education Officer
IREX Georgia
6 Marjanishvili Street
Tbilisi 0102, Georgia
Email: gmedia@irex.ge

C. Proposal Format

Proposals must be submitted in BOTH hard copy and electronic copy in English before the deadline and should contain the following:

1. Summary of organization?s background and experience in similar projects. Vendor must have minimum of (5) years of experience in facilitating the strategic planning process for an educational institution or similar type of organizations.

2. Name, phone number and address of at least three references from similar contracts.

3. A brief synopsis explaining how the vendor sees CSJMM?s needs and how Vendor plans to meet these needs.

4. A detailed description of the proposed plan to achieve the Scope of Services, Section II, as understood by the vendor and the proposed timeline.

5. Cost. Budget proposal excluding VAT which itemizes all costs required to accomplish the work by task. To itemize salaries, indicate each project team member?s name and title, estimated number of hours to work by each, the hourly wage for each, and each employee?s total salary for the work. Hourly wages submitted shall remain in effect until project completion. If the estimated number of hours worked is exceeded, IREX bears no responsibility to compensate for those hours.

6. Resumes of key staff that will be assigned to the project;

7. Certificate of company registration;

8. Proof that company does not have debts to the tax authorities;

9. Any other pertinent information needed to evaluate proposal.

E. Proposal Condition

A. Contingencies

This request does not commit IREX to award a contract. IREX reserves the right to accept or reject any or all proposals or any part(s) of any or all proposals if IREX determines it is in the best interest of the IREX and CSJMM to do so.

B. Evaluation Process

All proposals will be subject to a standard review process developed by IREX. This includes technical review and evaluation, as well as cost evaluation. The primary consideration shall be the effectiveness of the organization in the delivery of comparable or related services based on demonstrated performance. Performance factors to be evaluated include past experience, delivery date of Strategy Document, cost effectiveness, quality of service, ability to provide complete and through documentation as required by IREX.

Responsive proposals will be evaluated and scored on the following criteria:
? Cost Effectiveness (25%)
? Qualifications of key personnel (25%)
? Quality and appropriateness of the overall methodology and planned activities (30%)
? Organizational capacity ? ability to provide complete and through documentation as required (10%)
? Past references (10%)

C. Incurred Costs

This request does not commit IREX to pay any costs incurred in the preparation of a proposal in response to this request and Proposer agrees that all costs incurred in developing this proposal are the Proposer?s responsibility.

D. Contract Award

Contract will be awarded based on a competitive selection of proposals received.

E. Contract Negotiations

IREX may require the potential contractors selected to participate in negotiations and to submit revisions to pricing, technical information, and/or other items of their proposals as may result from negotiations. The contents of the proposal of the successful Proposer will become contractual obligations, subject to negotiation, and failure to accept these obligations in a contractual agreement may result in cancellation of the award.

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It's the Last Chance to Enter the 2012 Distinguished Achievement ...

Due Today: Be sure to submit your project, program or deal to the 2012 Distinguished Achievement Awards competition! The awards program, now in its second year, recognizes the commercial real estate industry?s most noteworthy properties, programs, projects and transactions. The winners will be selected by a panel of judges representing expertise across commercial real estate disciplines.

Finalists will be announced in May on CPExecutive.com, and winners will be published in the July issue of Commercial Property Executive. (Read about last year?s winners, profiled in the October 2012 issue.)

Entries are due by March 30, 2012. Please contact Suzann Silverman at ssilverman@cpexecutive.com if you won?t quite make it!

To view the submission entry forms, select from the categories below:

Best Lease

Best Sale

Best Financial Structure

Best Development/Redevelopment

Most Creative Repositioning Plan

Most Innovative Property Management Program

Now you can submit payment and/or materials online!
Simply log on to CPE?s submission manager at http://cpexecutive.submishmash.com/submit

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Age of oldest rocks off by millions of years

Two of the solar system's best natural timekeepers have been caught misbehaving, suggesting that the accepted ages for the oldest known rock samples are off by a million years or more.

According to two new studies, a radioactive version of the element samarium decays much more quickly than previously thought, and different versions of uranium don't always appear in the same relative quantities in earthly rocks.

Both elements are used by geologists to date rocks and chart the history of events on our planet and in the solar system.

"If you have a critical event in Earth's history, something like an extinction event or a climate change shift or a meteorite impact, you need to know the absolute age with the most confidence," says Joe Hiess of the British Geological Survey, who led one of the studies. "In Earth sciences there's a need to be able to define what happened first and what happened second."

Chronometer shortage

Geochemists age rocks by measuring the ratio of radioactive isotopes ? versions of the same element with different atomic masses ? in them. Because the elements decay from one isotope, or element, to another at a constant rate, knowing the ratio in a particular rock gives its age.

Different elements and isotopes decay at vastly different rates. Scientists pick one that suits the timescale of interest. One of the favourites for tracing events in the early solar system, such as when the Earth's crust differentiated from its mantle or when the lava oceans on the moon solidified, is samarium-146, a hard shiny metal found in many minerals in the Earth's crust.

"In this time window, there are not many other chronometers," says Michael Paul of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

Scientists have measured samarium-146's half-life ? the time taken for exactly half of a sample of atoms to decay radioactively - four times over the past 60 years, and got different answers each time. The two most recent measurements seemed to converge on a half-life of 103 million years, plus or minus 5 million years. But Paul and colleagues suspected that that number wasn't quite right. So they used a technique called accelerator mass spectrometry, which Paul says is less likely to be skewed by experimental errors.

Youthful meteorites

They found that the half-life is just 68 million years, 30 per cent shorter than thought. That means that every rock dated by samarium-146 decay ? which include some of the oldest on Earth and the moon, and even some Martian meteorites ? formed 20 million to 80 million years earlier than thought.

In a solar system that's 4.5 billion years old, tens of millions of years "is a lot", Paul says. "It means everything was forming more quickly."

There was a second, separate hiccup. Earth's oldest rocks are also aged using isotopes of uranium, which decay into isotopes of lead. Until a few years ago, geochemists assumed that the ratio of uranium-238 to uranium-235 was constant ? 137.88 ? in all rocks, and therefore the ratio of lead isotopes was the only measurement needed to date the rocks. But high-precision measurements of early materials found in meteorites or rocks formed in oceans showed differences.

Hiess and colleagues made the most wide-ranging study of uranium isotope ratios yet, using 45 samples of zircon from all over the world (pictured, above right). Zircon was one of the first minerals to solidify on Earth, it resists weathering and melting, and it holds on to uranium well, so it's a good candidate for dating old rocks.

Mass extinction

The team found that, while most of their samples had similar uranium ratios, some were wildly different.

"It's no longer safe to assume that it doesn't vary. It clearly does," says Gregory Brennecka of Arizona State University, who was not involved in either study. "Nobody thought that was the case five years ago."

The team produced a new, average figure for the uranium ratios. It shifts the ages of Earth's oldest rocks slightly, by just under a million years, Hiess says. The oldest rocks will have the biggest corrections: sediments that are 4.4 billion years old are now younger by 700,000 years. "To put it into a human perspective, if the Earth was only 18 years old, we have taken 1 day off the life of its oldest materials," Hiess says.

Now that scientists know they need to measure the ratio of uranium isotopes in all of their samples - as well as the ratio of lead isotopes - they'll be able to date rocks more accurately.

That's important for putting events in order. If a mass extinction occurred just before a meteorite struck, say, that paints a different picture than if the meteorite hit first.

"These are two big steps in improving the way we do geochronology, both in the solar system and terrestrial rocks," Brennecka says.

Journal references: Science, DOI: 10.1126/science.1215507 and 10.1126/science.1215510

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True North - True North

In answer to our March 9th query," How Will Legislature Deal with Dayton DOE Lawlessness on QRS??," both the House and Senate education committees have responded forcefully and well. On March 27th, the House Education Finance Committee passed their omnibus education bill, HF 2949, containing language that deals specifically with the issue of the Department of Education's efforts to implement the early childhood scholarships by requiring that recipients attend a program that has been rated by the quality rating system (QRS). (Audio is available here).

The provision contains language from two different bills. One, HF 1828, by Rep. Paul Anderson (R-Starbuck) requires the scholarship funds to be evenly divided between metro and rural recipients. The other, HF 2729, by Rep. Jennifer Loon (R-Eden Prairie) after an excellent amendment by Rep. Sondra Erickson (R-Princeton), makes sure that parents can use the scholarship to attend the program of their choice and takes $250,000 of the scholarship funds for a voluntary, parent-involved, home-based literacy-only program that does not use or require the use of a QRS.? Education Liberty Watch was willing to suspend its usual skepticism of home visiting programs for this one based on the facts that it was not a typical home visiting program and that it was accomplishing other important purposes.

The Senate bill, SF 2107, is authored by Senator Terri Bonoff (DFL-Minnetonka) and contains only the funding for the home based program without any other changes. The bill passed unanimously out of committee after some minor amendments and awaits action on the Senate floor.

?

During the committee process, both the House and Senate firmly instructed the Department of Education on the separation of powers when they objected to the funding and other changes in the scholarship program. House Education Finance Committee Chairman Pat Garofalo (R-Farmington) said during the initial March 14th hearing on the Loon bill:

I stand up for the legislative branch as a coequal partner in government. If the department is of the opinion that they can get out the truck and drive over us on this issue, they are sadly mistaken and in a bad place to be

Senate Education Committee Chairwoman Gen Olson (R-Minnetrista) made similar comments during the March 13th hearing (here at 52:13) on the Bonoff bill after the Department's director of government relations, Kevin McHenry objected to the expenditure:

Well, Mr. McHenry, the legislature passed the scholarships and if the legislature passed this as effectively being an effective use and application of that scholarship money, I think that is a prerogative of the legislative branch, which the executive branch in this case is expected to carry out.

A transcript of Dr. Karen Effrem's testimony for the House hearing is available here with audio available here. The audio of the Senate hearing is here with her testimony at about 46:50. Relevant testimony to this discussion is the following:

Despite our usual concerns about the data collection and parental autonomy in home visiting programs, we want to thank Rep. Loon for bringing forth this bill. We enthusiastically support a program that is voluntary, private, free-market, faith and home based, literacy focused, and does not require the top-down, one size fits all, government mandated program or curriculum standards without statutory authority...

...Again, we thank Rep. Loon for authoring this bill and look forward to this committee asserting its proper authority under separation of powers doctrine, as well as protecting parental and provider authority and autonomy.

There was some written whining about the Loon bill by secular, leftist activist Beth Hawkins at MinnPost who wrote inaccurately (again) that $500,000 instead of the actual $250,000 was being used for the literacy program.? Although there were some continued objections by DFL members? and Mr. McHenry to the Loon/Anderson provision in the House omnibus bill hearing, the scholarship provision passed unscathed.

In other important and related early childhood news, Rep. Mary Franson (R-Alexandria) has introduced a bill, HF 2964, that prohibits union dues or fair share fees from being taken from these early childhood scholarships. It is analogous to legislation that has already passed both the full House (HF 1766 by Rep. Kathy Lohmer, Rep. Franson, and twelve others) and Senate (SF 1630 by Senator Ted Lillie) but applies specifically to the early childhood scholarship funds instead of the childcare subsidies in the Dept. of Human Services. This legislation deals with the ongoing fight between the Dayton administration coupled with union allies to force a unionization election for some childcare providers, again without statutory authority, that is currently being waged in the courts. More details on this battle and Rep. Franson's brave stands for both welfare reform and employee freedom will be coming shortly.

The authors of these bills, the supportive committee members, and the committee chairpersons should be heartily thanked and these bills supported as the end of session crunch may be more rapidly approaching than previously thought amidst rumors of efforts to adjourn by April 5th.

Please thank and encourage the committee chairpersons,legislative leadership, and your individual legislators to keep these bills moving. Contact information for the House is here and the same information for the Senate is available here.

House Education Finance Chairman Pat Garofalo? (651-296-1069 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. )

Senate Education Chairwoman Gen Olson (651-296-1282? This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. )

House Speaker Kurt Zellers? (651-296-5502? This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. )

House Majority Leader Matt Dean (651-296-3018 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. )

Senate Majority Leader Dave Senjem (651-296-3903 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. )

Cross posted at www.edlibertywatch.org

Source: http://www.looktruenorth.com/component/content/article/68-family/education/19119-mn-legilsature-schools-dayton-doe-in-separation-of-powers.html

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APNewsBreak: New security for US troops

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/apnewsbreak-security-us-troops-200443603.html

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Dietz to be first playwright to speak at Visiting Writer's Series

In the newest installment of the Visiting Writers Series, widely produced and published playwright Steven Dietz will offer a diverse appeal to aspiring playwrights, actors and directors.

Dietz will present Thursday, March 29 at 7:30 p.m. in the Maloney Room in Main Building. Dietz has been the recipient of numerous awards for his more than 30 plays. Dietz was awarded the 2011-12 Ingram New Works Fellowship from Tennessee Repertory Theater, according to the Tennessee Repertory Theater.

?He is one of the most produced playwrights today by regional professional theaters because he writes plays that leave audiences talking,? Producing Artistic Director Ren? D. Copeland of the Tennessee Repertory Theater said.

Dietz has also won the Kennedy Center Fund for New American Plays Award twice, once for his play Fiction and once for his play Still Life with Iris.

Dietz?s best known plays include Lonely Planet, a deeper metaphorical look at the AIDS epidemic that won the PEN USA West Award and God?s Country, a play inspired by true events regarding white supremacy, according to his University of Texas profile.

Carrie Fountain, professor of English Writing and Rhetoric at St. Edward?s University, said that Dietz?s plays address difficult questions on a very human level.

Although Dietz is best known as a playwright, he has also directed numerous plays at America?s leading regional theaters. At the Playwrights? Center in Minneapolis, Dietz served as Artistic Director of Midwest PlayLabs and as a resident director. Dietz is currently a professor at the University of Texas.

Dietz is also known for his articles that have been featured in the American Theatre Magazine. Past articles include ?An Audience Manifesto,? ?A Modest Proposal: On Training Directors for the New Century,? ?Developed to Death? and ?Doom Eager: Writing What We Need to Know.?

Fountain said that Dietz will be the first playwright she?s known of to present through the Visiting Writers Series.

Dietz has had his plays seen in Argentina, Australia, Austria, Brazil, England, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Peru, Russia, Singapore, Slovenia, South Africa, Sweden and Thailand, according to his University of Texas profile. Additionally, Deitz has had his plays translated into 10 languages.

Students can expect Dietz?s presentation to show his wide range of expertise and provide an interactive experience.

?It?s not going to be a traditional Visiting Writer?s Series event,? Fountain said.

Related Posts:

Source: http://www.hilltopviewsonline.net/2012/03/28/dietz-to-be-first-playwright-to-speak-at-visiting-writers-series/

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Top Tips for Insuring your Boat or Watercraft - Insurance Blog of ...

Spring break is in full swing, and with summer vacation around the corner, many will consider buying a boat, jet ski or other watercraft. Whether you are looking at purchasing for the first time, or just want to make sure that your coverage is where it needs to be before taking to the water.

Here are five tips from SIG Insurance of Florida.

1. Take a Boating Safety Course- ?Similar to a safe driver course, boating safety courses come with a discount on most policies, and the peace of mind that you are practicing safety while on the water, ?says SIG President, Walter Page.

2. Don?t make the assumption that homeowners? insurance covers your boat. Besides, boating comes with a higher risk and danger.

3. Know your coverage- It?s important to know what is covered under your policy. For instance, make sure that other uh ohs! are covered such as towing, personal effects, and even fishing tackle.

4. Know your agreed value, actual cash value or replacement cost.

5. Reach out to a local insurance agent.? SIG cautions against jumping on the same insurance carrier that is carrying policies on your Florida auto or homeowners? insurance.

Source: http://www.insuranceblogflorida.com/?p=1686

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BMW and Toyota come together, right now, over batteries

Clue's in the headline, really. Car makers BMW and Toyota have finally gotten around to confirming that they're pairing up to research next generation lithium-ion batteries. The focus will be on building environmentally friendly technologies that'll boost the power of future EVs. The duo will also examine new ways of combining materials to build better cathodes, anodes and electrolytes. As part of the deal, Toyota will be buying diesel engines for its European subsidiary from its Teutonic new best friend from 2014.

Continue reading BMW and Toyota come together, right now, over batteries

BMW and Toyota come together, right now, over batteries originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 27 Mar 2012 13:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/8En40lnOjG8/

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Playing at home energy savings

ScienceDaily (Mar. 28, 2012) ? An approach to cutting domestic energy consumption based on playing a game -- Energy Battle -- can lead to household savings of up to 45% on electricity consumption and lead to better energy-saving habits, says a study published in the Journal of Design Research.

Daphne Geelen, David Keyson, Stella Boess and Han Brezet of Delft University of Technology in The Netherlands evaluated an energy-saving game in twenty student households that gives the occupants direct feedback on energy usage, ranking of the competing teams, tips and access to the Energy Battle game. The obvious aim is to find ways to reduce energy consumption such as switching off unnecessary lights, using energy-saving bulbs and unplugging electrical equipment rather than leaving it in standby.

During the Energy Battle, the student households were able to cut their energy consumption on average by a quarter through the gamification of efficiency. However, the most efficient household was able to cut their energy use almost in half (45%). Once the game was over, energy use in most of the households increased but remained below the baseline recorded prior to starting the game.

"A game such as the Energy Battle appears to provide a powerful means to stimulate energy saving in the short term," the researchers explain. In follow-up interviews they found that some participants had changed their energy-use habits, but the researchers suggest that now is the time to see whether the "gamification" of energy efficiency can be exploited for long-term reductions in fuel consumption and whether the same approach might work for domestic environments other than student households.

"The test of the Energy Battle in student households demonstrates the potential for creating insight among households on how to save energy and the formation of new habits," the team says. "The next step would be to make a translation of the findings from this study to tailor the Energy Battle for other target groups, such as families with children."

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Inderscience, via AlphaGalileo.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

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Journal Reference:

1. Daphne Geelen, David Keyson, Stella Boess and Han Brezet. Exploring the use of a game to stimulate energy saving in households. Journal of Design Research, 2012

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/03/120328090830.htm

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Ryan Gosling Takes A Beating (Not Really) For 'Only God Forgives'

Ryan Gosling came out of his last Nicolas Winding Refn movie, "Drive," pretty much unscathed. Sure, he took a knife in the gut near the end, but that didn't stop him from driving off into the sunset to some retro-sounding synth music. It doesn't look like he'll be so lucky for his next Refn movie, [...]

Source: http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2012/03/28/ryan-gosling-only-god-forgives/

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Make Your Home-based Business More Successful Using These ...

[unable to retrieve full-text content]If you wish to get going within a home-based business, this post is great for you. No matter what the main reason you have is (having the capability to work from your home, having the capacity to establish your very own ...

Source: http://ezinearticlesnow.com/2012/03/make-your-home-based-business-more-successful-using-these-wonderful-tips-2/

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Benefit From The Personal Finance Knowlege That Is Provided ...

Monday, March 26th, 2012 at 9:42 pm ?

Always negotiate with debt collectors. They bought your debt from the originating company at a discount. So, even if you can only pay them a small piece of what you originally owed, they will probably still make a profit. Keep this in mind when you work with collection agencies to resolve your debt.

Create an automatic savings plan that creates an emergency fund over time. This method simplifies the savings process because you never have the money in your possession. It is however incredibly beneficial should you need it for any unforeseen reason, including emergencies.

You may want to talk with a friend or family member that either currently works in, or did in the past, a financial position, so they can teach you how to manage your finances from their personal experiences. If one does not know anyone that has worked in financial services, a friend or family member who is very good with their finances may be able to offer some help.

Your emergency fund should contain at least three months of income. Consider putting ten percent of your pay into a savings account that will provide you with high interest.

Having a written budget is key to your success with your personal finances. Your personal budget should contain a written list of all of your monthly bills and expected expenses. Write down everything, including rent payments, heating bills, food and electricity. Be sure to list all anticipated expenditures. Add up your anticipated monthly expenses, and make sure you don?t spend more than what you have left after paying them.

Managing your finances is essential to your success. Capital that you invest should be well protected. When you put some of your profits into capital, this builds a foundation to grow upon. However, when you utilize those profits wisely, you can watch your money grow as return on investment. Set standards for profits and what you put into capital.

As stated initially in this article, managing your finances can sometimes be stressful. You can relieve a bit of that stress by learning what you can do to improve your personal finances. The article that you just read will help to set you on the path to improve your personal finances and find some peace of mind.

This article posted by Tom Morgan

Tagged with: bills ? debt ? finances ? profits

Filed under: Finance Tips

Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!

Source: http://finance-411.com/benefit-from-the-personal-finance-knowlege-that-is-provided/

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asics ? Blog Archive ? paul smith online Travel and Leisure Cruising ...

Around the earth cruise is essentially one of travel?s finest experiences. It is really the best of everything and likewise gives you dazzling places and destinations nearly the earth Moreover,paul smith online, it has the altitude services. It draws within tourists who would favor apt penetrate into earth?s societal diversity and likewise the planet?s greatest attractions up approach and private,burberry sunglasses,never to mention checking out the views of the intriguing visitors onboard. In touring get out of the way the earth tourists obtain apt retard out awesome natives and after go backward apt the boat as supper and enjoyment. You?ll have difficulty fighting off the mouthwatering meals served by the best cooks.
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This entry was posted on ???, 3? 25th, 2012 at 11:18 PM and is filed under ???. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Source: http://asics.manablog.jp/archives/13607

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Obama vows to pursue further nuclear cuts with Russia

SEOUL (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama vowed on Monday to pursue further nuclear arms cuts with Russia, saying the United States has more warheads than necessary, and issued stern warnings to North Korea and Iran in their nuclear standoffs with the West.

Speaking ahead of a global nuclear security summit in Seoul, Obama held out the prospect of new reductions in the U.S. arsenal as he sought to rally world leaders for additional concrete steps against the threat of nuclear terrorism.

"We can already say with confidence that we have more nuclear weapons than we need," Obama told students at South Korea's Hankuk University.

He pledged a new arms-control push with incoming Russian president Vladimir Putin when they meet in May. But any further reductions would face stiff election-year opposition from Republicans in Congress who already accuse him of weakening America's nuclear deterrent.

Obama laid out his latest strategy against the backdrop of continued nuclear defiance from North Korea and Iran, twin challenges that have clouded his overall nuclear agenda and the summit in Seoul.

He set expectations high in a 2009 speech in Prague when he declared it was time to seek "a world without nuclear weapons". He acknowledged at the time it was a long-term goal, but his high-flown oratory helped him win the Nobel Peace Prize.

In Seoul, Obama made clear that he was committed to that notion, saying "those who deride our vision, who say that ours is an impossible goal that will be forever out of reach", were wrong.

Though Obama was vague on exactly how such a vision would be achieved, he voiced confidence the United States and Russia, which reached a landmark arms-control treaty in 2010, "can continue to make progress and reduce our nuclear stockpiles".

"I firmly believe that we can ensure the security of the United States and our allies, maintain a strong deterrent against any threat, and still pursue further reductions in our nuclear arsenal," he said.

But another arms accord with Moscow will be a tough sell to U.S. conservatives who say Obama has not moved fast enough to modernize the U.S. strategic arsenal, a pledge he made in return for Republican votes that helped ratify the START treaty.

The United States and Russia are the two biggest nuclear powers, possessing thousands of warheads between them, arsenals that arms-control advocates say are capable of destroying the world several times over.

With U.S. officials privately expressing concern about China's opaqueness over its growing nuclear weapons program, Obama said he had urged the rising Asian power "to join us in a dialogue on nuclear issues, and that offer remains open".

NORTH KOREA, IRAN

Obama also used his speech to call on North Korea, which plans a long-range rocket launch next month, to curb its nuclear ambitions or face further international isolation.

"And know this - there will be no more rewards for provocations. Those days are over. This is the choice before you," he said, directing his comments at North Korea's leadership.

Pyongyang says the rocket will send a satellite into space, but Seoul and Washington say it is a ballistic missile test. Two previous launches of the long-range missile have failed.

The flightpath from a west coast launch pad will take the rocket south towards the Philippines. The defense ministry in Seoul said South Korea was drawing up a plan to shoot down any components that may crash into South Korean territory.

The ministry added that the main body of the rocket was being positioned into place for the launch.

On Sunday, Obama appealed to China, North Korea's only major ally, to use its influence with Pyongyang to rein in its nuclear program.

Chinese President Hu Jintao said the North Korean issue was "very complicated and sensitive".

"We do not hope to see a reversal of the hard-won momentum of relaxation of tension on the peninsula," Hu said, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

Obama told Hu before going into a closed meeting on Monday that North Korea and Iran were "obviously of great importance".

"We both have an interest in making sure that international norms surrounding non-proliferation, preventing destabilizing nuclear weapons, is very important," he said.

Earlier on Monday, Obama accused Iran of having taken the "path of denial, deceit and deception" in the past but said there was still time for a diplomatic solution and that Tehran had to act with a sense of urgency.

"Time is short," Obama said, referring to the prospects of renewed negotiations between Iran and world powers. "Iran's leaders must understand that there is no escaping the choice before it."

Tehran says its nuclear program is purely peaceful, but Israel and Western nations believe it is moving towards a nuclear bomb that could change the regional balance of power.

Obama has urged Israel to hold off on any pre-emptive strikes on Iran's nuclear sites to give sanctions and diplomacy more time to work.

The U.S. president also met Russia's outgoing leader, Dmitry Medvedev, on the sidelines of the summit, with missile defense in Europe, Iran and the conflict in Syria topping their agenda.

Medvedev said he supported peace envoy Kofi Annan's mission to end fighting in Syria. Russia and China have shielded Syrian President Bashar al-Assad from U.N. Security Council condemnation by vetoing two resolutions over the bloodshed.

"We together with the U.S. president maintain that (Annan's mission) is a good way to reach at least an initial point of settlement (of the crisis) and open the road for communication between various groups of society in Syria," he said.

(Additional reporting by Alexei Anishchuk, Yoo Choonsik, Jack Kim and Alister Bull; Editing by Nick Macfie and Jonathan Thatcher)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-reaffirm-pledge-nuclear-arms-cuts-015208083.html

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Baby Boomers Have New Desire ? Articles Alternative

The baby boomer generation that are in their ?golden years? is causing demands for senior home care services to rise. The demographic, economic, and technological change is created because this population segment is living longer, healthier, and active lives.

We are not blaming the parents of yester year, however, the baby boom generation is not settling for the ?alone and invisible? scenario as their parents experienced. In taking care of their aging parents, experienced seniors know and understand the heavy burden of caretaking.

The baby boomers recognize and respect that their adult children have lives, careers, and a family of their own, which overtime may cause conflict in providing the necessary care for them. In some cases, the adult children may eventually be or unable to provide any care for them. From that lesson, today?s seniors are initiating pro-active planning for life after retirement and as they continue aging.

In bygone days, elders and their adult children lived in old-fashioned neighborhoods where a nucleus of family, friends, and neighbors have a support network that allowed them to assist each other with the caretaking of aging members of the community. The caretaking activities would have included taking the elder members to doctor appointments, grocery shopping, recreational outings, conversations, administrating medication(s), gatherings, or meal preparations. The responsibility was shared; caretaking was less stressful for the adult children and other families.

In today?s society, when the adult children are unable to provide the care necessary for parents, the caregiver is faced with searching for and selecting alternative living arrangements and/or care giving providers such as nursing services, respite care, or assistant living facilities. The costs, depending on services may be expensive along with other barriers such as cultural, language, inappropriate care facilities, or can become a high risk of being abused.

However, the most challenging and difficult hardship and heart wrenching barrier to care for seniors that have high assets is that their assets are now a liability. In order to receive Medicare benefits, the senior must spend down all their assets to collect the benefits.

Using assets toward elder care is a boomer?s dream. In addition to this dream, the idea of convenient services, an inter-generational community and a model solely not based on business but inclusive of people caring with elderly people in mind is welcomed. The baby boomers armed with the past experience and knowledge provides them with foresight to request these elements for elder services.

Therefore, with a community created and focused on being a elder-friendly will provide the type of senior home care structure that is practical, affordable, convenient, and bundle with a stimulating social environment. Thus, a senior?s desire to live in a home of their own is fulfill.

I?m a healthcare expert specializing in senior home care. Click here for more information.

Article source: http://goarticles.com/article/Baby-Boomers-Have-New-Desire/6275270/

Source: http://articlesalternative.com/archives/94080

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How Come Nearly 90% Of Businesses Not Succeed? Lack Of ...

Posted by sangd347re on 15 hours ago

A entrepreneur who was extremely busy moaned, ?I am too over-loaded to talk to any business planning consultant.? He was correct, he was too over-loaded and explanation is simply because he had not grabbed the time to invest in business planning process. People are too rushed to implement any type of planning however with out a strategy they?re going to remain overhelmed. And busy doesn?t suggest profitable.

Is your business unique? Does your business differentiate themselves from the others?

Many company proprietors are action-takers individuals who merely need to move on with the job. They typically feel that ?planning? is one thing that large firms undertake because they have people that are able to do it. Often they say their market place is everyone and promote on quality and being cheap. With these two concepts, the enterprise may be the very same as most of other businesses inside the market so there?s it is not possible for them to differentiate.

Devoid of a properly developed business program, the organization will rarely be more than a job. They may possibly have several workers however the enterprise is probably to be smaller than it may very well be, be less profitable than it must be and require far more hours than is efficient.

Tips on how to do strategic planning.

One of several greatest difficulties for organization owners in beginning the planning process will not be understanding tips on how to develop the business plan. Sadly company planning explained in high schools so the majority of people have extremely tiny notion of what they?re able to use.

In addition many people are too near to their small business and have a psychological bond to it to adopt an unbiased look in the market place and the strategies for delivering the service to that market place. So the most effective answer would be to invest in a strategic planning consultancy.

What does a strategic planning consultant provide?

Very good business planning consultants may take the managers by means of a strategy planning procedure using tried methods.

This will determine how you may be different in your market. There are various other providers that offer you a similar product or solution so merely stating your organization will be the finest plumbing company, financial planner or tyre retailer does not make a distinction.

The analysis techniques will define your marketplace from all people to 1 where it is possible to differentiate yourself as the specialist like a plumbing company for high-rise buildings, a financial planner for those who own companies or possibly a tyre shop for performance cars. Instantly, your market will see you because the expert and you?re performing within a less populated environment.

The last key to a prosperous business plan will be the action program. It really is no use developing a great program if it really is never carried out. A poor plan successfully executed will probably provide more benefits than a great program improperly implemented.

A important piece of a business preparing course of action is usually to look at resources to see if they can fulfill the aims and objectives.

? Do you have got enough equipment?

? Do you?ve got the best men and women?

? Are your staff trained effectively?

? Do you have sufficient capital?

? Will it give a good ROI?

The last segment in the strategy is how will you measure it? With out measuring you might have no notion of one?s success.

Effective companies have 1 thing in prevalent

Each of those elements ? identifying the target market, positioning yourself because the apparent choice for that market and a nicely resourceful action plan ? are foundations to a successful business.

A superb strategic plan will not ensure you a effective business. Nevertheless devoid of a strategic planning process, you will be certain to fail. Hiring a business planning service Auckland can help your business

strategic planning service Auckland

Source: http://www.flippingpad.com/profiles/8103-sangd347re/blogs/8411-how-come-nearly-90-of-businesses-not-succeed-lack-of-strategic-planning-is-most-likely-the-reason

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How to construct your own tv lift for cabinetry using electric actuator

These days, every body loves to watch their favorite television shows, movies, soap and serials in a flat screen LCD or LED hanging with the wall out there somewhere in their drawing or living room area. These flat or plasma screens TV's requires to be keep in a safe place, so why not try different things to protect them. It's always safe to hide your LCD or LED screen behind a TV lift cabinetry whenever you switch off and again when you wish to switch on just pop-in the lift cabinetry and your LCD/LED set is projected outside the cabinetry to be viewed. Thus, a device should be installed something like an electric actuator or a linear actuator show the process of sliding in or out of your lift cabinetry is not done manually. It's also safer because if your LED/LCD TV set are being hidden behind the lift cabinetry, it would remain safer from the eyes of thieves. Thus, you would get an extra bit of space to breadth free inside your living/dinning space as you can utilize the free space where the TV was projected earlier, to the fullest as per your requirements. Thus, the requirement and need for a TV lift cabinetry is essential. You can make the cabinetry all by yourself or through any other local carpenter operating inside your locality.

There are few steps through which you can construct your own TV lift cabinetry. These are as follows:

* Firstly, take an inch tape in your hand and carefully measure the length and breadth of your LCD/LED TV set. After that take a saw and begin making a wooden box in such a manner that the inner measurement of the wooden box would remain an inch longer as well as higher than the actual size of your LCD/LED TV. After creating the wooden box, try to add support to the cabinet hanging with L-Cabinets which provide stability to the wall;

* Secondly, attach an electric actuator or a linear actuator to the bottom half of a cabinet. Linear actuators will help the whole system to remain in a straight motion runned through an electric motor which helps the electric actuator to slide in and out your TV Set whenever push in or out the cabinet;

* Thirdly, axe down a piece of plywood as same as the outer dimension of 2 vertical sides with dimension of 2x4's of the plank box and then screw the wooden box with the TV lift cabinetry;

* Fourthly, buy a pair of guide rails and then properly screw them to the either end side of your 2X4 dimensional box along with the plywood covering side. These guided rails should be attached with an equidistant to each other so that the TV set rails down quiet easily through the rails;

* Fifthly, Now screw the L-brackets on the backside of your LCD/LED TV set properly so that the whole structure stays balanced;

* Sixthly, also screw the electric actuator or a linear actuator to the center point of the plywood board properly and also attach a rod to its center;

* Seventhly, make the necessary connections using the wires each connecting with the actuator and the remote control;

* Lastly, put your LCD on this gliding rails and screw the plywood box to the accessories, you choose to attach with and simply plug-in your TV actuator with the wall socket.

Now, gently press the LCD/LED TV remote and watch your television rise. This is how you can construct your own TV lift cabinetry.

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