Spinach could fuel the next wave of efficient renewable energy, so say researchers from the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology. Tapping into a plant cell that uses sunlight to produce water and electricity may be a new method to convert solar power into usable hydrogen fuel.
Is it dumb to spend $14,000 on a “smart” toilet?
A Japanese company is making “smart” toilets that features comfortably heated seats that deodorize local air on demand. Its lid rises and falls based on proximity sensors. The unit continually cleans itself, and auto-flushes. It also cleans your personal bits. This could be the death of toilet paper.
How Hong Kong’s eco-vision can save China and Asia
Hong Kong’s vision for a “greener city” through a new wave of innovative waste management and recycling initiatives was outlined to eco-industry leaders and associations along with consul-generals and trade commissioners representing 16 countries at a networking lunch themed “Waste Less, Save More – Creating Business Opportunities” on 16 March 2018 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.
The event was an introduction to the Eco Expo Asia 2018 to be held at Asia World-Expo from 25-28 October. The Expo is jointly organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) and Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd. And it marks a trend of the east, companies being rewarded with growth for their eco and energy-efficient vision. Companies like the smart cities tech company operating on the blockchain, flux (www.fluxiot.com), are setting up offices in Hong Kong to help fuel green growth in one of the planet’s last frontiers.
In the welcoming speech, Benjamin Chau, Deputy Executive Director of the HKTDC said the “Waste Less, Save More” theme responded to strong market demand for waste management schemes and technologies.
“Waste has become a common problem for affluent societies, with ever-growing amounts of refuse, including food, produced as a result of economic expansion,” he said, explaining the pressing need for imperative measures on waste management and recycling are a “committed focus” of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government.
Hong Kong initiatives
In his keynote address, HKSAR Secretary for the Environment Wong Kam-sing, outlined the latest Environment Bureau waste management and recycling initiatives that could offer a glimpse into a better, greener world ahead.
“Waste management is a major challenge for a green city,” he said, as our consumption-driven lifestyles are putting enormous pressure on landfills. “Clearly, Hong Kong needs a more sustainable way to deal with waste.” The Secretary for the Environment went on to explain some of the measures Hong Kong is undertaking to address these problems.
Among the city’s new initiatives is the WEEE PARK, a waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) treatment and recycling facility. It is a flagship government-funded waste-to-resources facility that officially opened on 19 March.
Operated by a consortium formed by Germany’s ALBA Group and the Integrated Waste Solutions Group, WEEE PARK is the modern face of WEEE recycling facility turning WEEE into useful secondary raw materials through a series of detoxification, dismantling and recycling processes using advanced technologies and equipment.
Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s first self-sustained sludge treatment facility, T PARK, marks a significant step forward in the city’s waste-to-energy journey. Being one of the most technologically advanced facilities of its kind in the world, T PARK combines a variety of advanced technologies into a single complex and bring together sludge incinerators with power generation and desalination. To enhance public awareness of sustainable development, a wide range of educational and leisure facilities showcasing the benefits of a waste-to-energy approach in waste management are also open to the public.
At the community level, a “Dump Less, Save More” Municipal Solid Waste Charging Scheme is to provide financial incentives to promote waste reduction at source and reduce overall disposal.
In addition, Mr Wong highlighted other environmental initiatives the government is working on. Hong Kong’s first organic resources recovery centre, O PARK, is a large-scale waste-to-energy facility with the major target for treating food waste generated from the industrial and commercial sectors including manufacturers, restaurants, hotels and supermarkets. Furthermore, EcoPark and the Recycling Fund are backing the recycling industry to develop enhanced technology to improve waste recovery rates.
At the same time, a HK$300 million “Pilot Green” transportation fund supports the testing of green and innovative technologies for public transport and goods vehicles. The green bond issuance plan promotes the development of green finance in Hong Kong. Moreover, the government will enhance tax concessions for capital expenditure incurred by enterprises in procuring eligible energy-efficient building installations and renewable energy devices by allowing tax deductions to be claimed in full in one year, instead of the current time frame of five years.
“With all these initiatives, we will make Hong Kong cleaner, and save more,” pledged Mr Wong.
Researchers say we can’t ignore Internet cats anymore!
There are more than 92 million cat videos posted on YouTube, and they attract more views per video than any other category of YouTube content. Scientific studies have shown that simply watching cat clips can boost your energy and create positive emotions, so it’s no surprise that engaging an actual cat has a number of tangible benefits.
Research by Jessica Gall Myrick, an assistant professor at Indiana University Media School, has found that viewing cat videos boosts people’s energy and positive emotions and decreases negative feelings. Her project involved surveying nearly 7,000 people via social media about their cat video viewing habits and related moods.
“Some people may think watching online cat videos isn’t a serious enough topic for academic research, but the fact is that it’s one of the most popular uses of the Internet today,” said Myrick. “If we want to better understand the effects the Internet may have on us as individuals and on society, then researchers can’t ignore Internet cats anymore.”
Here are five benefits you’ll gain by sharing your life with a feline.
1. OWNING A CAT IS GOOD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
A 2009 study found that it’s It’s greener to own a cat than a dog. The resources needed to feed a dog over its lifetime matched the eco-footprint of a Land Cruiser. By comparison, cats, who eat less than dogs and are more likely to eat fish than corn- or beef-based products, have the carbon footprint of a small hatchback.
2. CATS HELP US COPE
Losing a loved one is incredibly painful, but cats have been shown to help people get over their loss more quickly. Pet-owners show fewer physical symptoms of pain, such as crying. People in mourning report talking to their pet to work out their feelings, since it is often easier to talk to something that won’t respond and can’t judge.
3. MOUSE CATCHER OR MATCHMAKER?
A British poll found that 82 percent of women said they are more attracted to men who like animals. If you have a pup, it’s good – but 90 percent of single women said that men who own a cat are “nicer” than other guys. But remember, the cat is not just a Tinder prop, a pet is for a lifetime.
4. YOU’LL HAVE A HEALTHIER HEART
Cats lower your stress level and lower the anxiety in your life. Petting a cat has a positive calming effect. One study found that over a 10-year period cat owners were 30 percent less likely to die of a heart attack or stroke than non-cat owners.
5. SLEEP LIKE A KITTEN
Several studies and polls in the UK have found that people (especially women) prefer to sleep with their cats than with their partners, and they even report sleeping better with a cat than with a human. A recent study from the Mayo Clinic Center for Sleep Medicine found 41 percent of the people in that study indicated that they slept better because of their pet, while only 20 percent said that it led to disturbances.
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As an added bonus, cats can save your life! One cat in the United Kingdom warns her human when he’s about to have an epileptic seizure. Another cat in Montana woke up its two humans when a gas pipe started leaking. Firefighters told the couple that the house could easily have exploded if not for cat’s intervention.
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Reconnecting with Friends as you get older
As we get older, we tend to drift apart from people we spent a lot of time with when we were younger. This is just part of growing up, and a big consequence of getting older and moving on with your life. You have to understand that people change, and you will probably lose some friends as you get older in life. Not for any bad reason, but simply because you will drift away from one another.
But, the great news is that these days it has become much easier to find people again. Technology has developed to the stage where we can track and pretty much anybody these days, and find out information about people we want to reconnect with. So, if you are getting nostalgic and you want to make sure you reconnect with old friends (especially those who do great things for our planet!), these are some of the best ways you can go about doing that
Social Media
The best and easiest way of reconnecting with old friends these days is via the medium of social media. Hundreds of millions of people are active on social media sites these days, and these represent a great way of finding out more about people. You can scour sites like Facebook and find out what people are doing these days, where they live, who their friends are. It’s a great way of keeping track of people you rarely see, and the first step in the process of working toward reconnecting.
Look Them Up
Now, if you haven’t had much luck on places like Twitter, you should try a people search. There are plenty of things you can do that will help you achieve this. There are online sites that allow you to search for people and find out information about them. By typing in the first name, last name, and the state, you can pretty much find anybody you want. This is a wonderful way of ensuring that you keep up with where people are living and what they have been doing in the years since you’ve seen them. Looking up old friends is fun and exciting, and you’ll be able to use this to rekindle your friendships over time.
A Mutual Friend
Of course, there is no obligation to go online and search for a person – there are more personable ways of doing it. For instance, there’s a chance you might have a mutual friend and this is useful. You can meet with this friend regularly and get updates about what your old school friends are up to these days. This is a really great way of finding out information and starting the process of reconnecting with your old friends.
It’s important to do as much as you can to reconnect with other people, especially old friends. Sometimes we drift apart, and it’s nobody’s fault, it’s one of those things that just happens. Well, thankfully technology lets us keep up with these people’s lives even though we might not have seen them for a number of years. Using the ideas listed makes it much easier for you to connect with friends as you get older.
How big is your digital carbon footprint?
Years ago, Green Prophet brought you a link to help calculate your carbon footprint, a free carbon calculator that summed up your carbon imprint in a matter of minutes, and benchmarked it against performances of the entire world. Back in 2012, nascent social media didn’t figure into the carbon equation. Come see how your digital life measures up.
Your carbon footprint is the sum of all carbon dioxide (CO2) gas emissions caused by your daily activities in a given time frame. The figure’s usually expressed in tons and calculated over a year. Most everyday actions use energy and produce CO2 emissions, simple stuff like showering, cooking, reading this article on a computer. Sipping that cuppa is carbon-neutral; shipping the tea to your market and heating the kettle are not.
As the number of Internet users increases, the minute measure of CO2 emitted by every tweet, comment, email and google search, starts to stack up to significance. This is our digital carbon footprint, and on a global scale, the numbers are worrying.
Thanks to the colossal number of data centers that are now needed to feed our internet obsession, the virtual world of online communication is beginning to damage the real world. EcoMENA recently ran a story by Salman Zafar that presented stats per second of CO2 emissions across different internet and social media functions.
According to Facebook’s sustainability report, in 2004 one million people were using the platform. As of 2016, users exceed one billion. The company reports that their annual per-user carbon emissions is 299g of CO2, which is less boiling a pot of tea. But with increasing usage, it adds up.
Raffi Krikorian, a developer at Twitter once stated that each tweet consumes around 90 joules, equaling 0.02g of CO2 emissions. Tiny figure, until you factor the 8,000 tweets published every second.
YouTube
The Guardian reported that 1g of CO2 was emitted for every 10 minutes of YouTube watched. Multiply that by the views on viral videos, and watch the ozone disappear.
Google Searches
There are more than 60,000 searches made on Google per second, each producing an average 0.2g of CO2.
In 2007, Google vowed to be carbon neutral by 2017, which they have met thanks to a $2.5 billion of investment in solar and wind projects, carbon offset programs and renewable energy.
No real message here other than understand that our online lives have real environmental impact. Do your part, like Google, in offsetting your carbon footprint with any of Green Prophet-endorsed initiatives such as Meatless Mondays, building yourself an affordable holiday home, or supporting local artisans.
Etihad and Masdar launch LEED Platinum eco-residences
Etihad Airways has opened its new Etihad Eco Residence project in Abu Dhabi, the world’s first purpose-built, LEED Platinum-rated cabin crew accommodation project, offering . The project, resulting from a partnership with Masdar, provides 500 fully furnished one and two-bedroom flight crew apartments contained in 11 buildings at Masdar City.
“The opening of the landmark Etihad Eco Residence underscores not only the importance we place on providing superior housing to our valued cabin crew, but also our responsibility, as part of the greater Abu Dhabi vision, to play a part in transforming the capital into a global leader in smart urban planning, clean energy and sustainability,” Mana Mohamed Saeed Al Mulla, chief group support services officer at Etihad Aviation Group said at the ribbon-cutting.
The project is part of the airline’s crew accommodation strategy of providing superior, environmentally-friendly and facility-rich homes that are in close proximity to the city’s international airport. The Eco Residence demonstrates Masdar’s commitment to the “triple bottom line” of sensitivity to social, economic and environmental sustainability. The design minimizes use of materials with high-embedded energy ratings, and reduced transport-related carbon emissions (at least 20% of materials were either sourced or manufactured within 800 km of the project) according to a statement.
Each of the Etihad Eco Residence’s buildings has been designed using low environmental impact construction materials, which aid the reduction of strong sunlight yet maximize available natural daylight. Solar hot water systems provide 76 per cent of the community’s water demand and the buildings’ design encourages greater water efficiency and the reduction of potable water usage, as well as smart waste management.
An enhanced micro-climate has been created around each of the buildings using sustainable landscaping methods and massing the shape and size of the buildings, which captures the breeze for natural ventilation while offering protection from wind and dust. These features complement the urban environment and contribute to overall energy saving, while promoting biodiversity.
Masdar is collaborating with local stakeholders to pioneer a ‘greenprint’ for sustainable urban development at Masdar City using a holistic approach focused on integrating sustainable transportation initiatives, optimizing waste management, reducing energy use, water consumption and carbon emissions, and accommodating rapid urbanization.
Mark Scoble, Etihad Airways Head of In-flight Performance and Operations, said, “Our brief to the architects and designers of the Etihad Eco Residence was to create a development that is in line with Etihad’s environmental principles as well as a safe, secure and commercially viable residential precinct that embraces our acclaimed cabin crew community, who hail from over 120 countries around the world.” Etihad employs over 5,800 Abu-Dhabi-based crew.
Grilled Chicken Wings With Middle-Eastern Flavors
This week is when the weather finally turns warm in Israel, inviting families on Passover vacation to fire up their grills outdoors. You can hardly walk through a public park without skirting families unpacking picnics, fanning charcoals, and chasing runaway toddlers. And chicken wings are a favorite on these picnics, being easy to cook and so easy to eat. (If you prefer to enjoy your warm-weather meal at home, cook up Kabsa, our prize chicken and rice recipe).
Here’s a recipe for grilled chicken wings that’s mildly spicy and pops with flavor. You do need time to marinate the wings before setting them on the grill, so plan ahead.
Grilled Chicken Wings With Middle-Eastern Flavors
Serves 6-8
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon ground black peper
1 teaspoon fine salt
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon dry oregano or za’atar
1/2 tablespoon sweet paprika
6 cloves garlic
Squeezed juice of 2 lemons
1/2 cup olive oil
1 kg. – 2 lb. chicken wings
Optional for people who like it hot: 2 hot red chillies, blended with the rest of the seasonings.
Chop the garlic. Place it, with all the rest of the ingredients, in a blender and whizz to make a runny paste.
Put the wings in a large bowl or bag with a seal.
Add the blended seasonings. Either massage the seasonings into the wings, if storing them in a bowl, or close the bag and shake it well to season all the wings.
Refrigerate the wings from 12 hours to 2 days.
Allow the wings to stand at room temperature for 1/2 hour before grilling.
Grill 15-20 minutes, brushing with the seasonings often.
For safety, don’t brush the wings with the seasonings for the last five minutes of grilling. This allows the last brushing to cook through. Discard the leftover seasoning; do not use a second time.
Eat the wings hot, and lick your fingers.
Creamy Roasted Garlic Soup
It’s full garlic season in the Middle East. Markets display piles of the pungent bulbs, with the green stalks for you to hang up and dry, or with the greens chopped off for your convenience. I confess, I’m crazy about about garlic. Every spring, I buy 30 kg. to see me through the year. Local garlic, with its purple peel and dirty roots. Never imported garlic, and here’s why.
How about some garlic soup? If the bare thought makes you shudder, here’s the good news: roasting tames the raw flavor of garlic until it’s almost sweet. Try this creamy, roasted garlic soup. It’s perfect for the present changeable weather – or any time, really. Note: this recipe is totally Passover-friendly and makes a nice change from the usual Passover fare.
Creamy Roasted Garlic Soup
4 servings
Ingredients:
6 whole garlic heads
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 onions, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon thyme leaves
3 cups vegetable stock
2 cups cream
4 tablespoons grated hard cheese like Parmesan or Kashkeval
1 lemon, quartered
Salt and pepper to taste
Preheat the oven to 375° F – 180° C.
Remove the outer layer of peel from the garlic heads, if dirty, but don’t peel them entirely. Slice away a thin layer from each one’s bottom (root end) so that the flesh shows.
Spread the olive oil all over the garlic heads, taking special care to oil the bottoms.
Bake the garlic for 45 minutes. The heads should be soft.
Separate the cloves and squeeze the soft flesh out from each. Press at the pointed end; the flesh will come out of the exposed root end.
In a soup pot, fry the onions and thyme in the butter until the onions wilt.
Add the garlic flesh and vegetable stock.
Cook 20 minutes over medium-low heat, covered.
Blend the soup until smooth.
Whip the cream. Add it to the soup.
Season the soup to taste with salt and pepper.
Top each serving with grated cheese. Serve the soup with a quarter of a lemon to squeeze in.
Enjoy!
Security Enhancements For Nuclear Power Plants
Nuclear power plants are among the most sensitive facilities in use today. They are a key part of the power grid, making them essential to protect against vandalism and theft. In addition, they are an ideal target for terrorism, both for motives involving disruption of the power grid and for the potential to create deadly fallout. Spies from hostile nations may also want to enter the area to gain intelligence about the use of nuclear fuels, for both energy and ordinance.
Because there is so much at stake, security is incredibly important at nuclear power plants. Yet like any other longstanding institution, a degree of complacency could be present in some of these installations that might provide opportunities for would-be thieves, vandals, spies, and terrorists to make access.
As a rule, policies and procedures are fairly consistent. Anyone with access has appropriate credentials, and those who control points of entry are vigilant about verifying their validity. In addition, these procedures are easy to oversee, making it likely that any laxity in performance would be identified and corrected.
It’s more on the physical side that security can be improved, and it isn’t so much a function of neglect as it as advancements in technology. Today’s security threats are more sophisticated than ever, so the old techniques for guarding against them are inadequate, no matter how effective they were at the time the facility was built.
The options for fortifying sensitive locations like nuclear power plants are more complex and versatile than ever before, making security easier to create and maintain. Here are a few examples.
Fencing Options
Forget about chain link and razor wire. Fence security has come a long way since those simple techniques were considered state of the art. New prefabricated sections of the industrial concrete fence now make it easy for fences to be installed in more difficult locations by requiring only placement with a crane or other implement, instead of calling for room to build forms, set up concrete pumps, and perform all the steps that made wire fences a more appealing method.
These durable, extra-secure panels are far more effective than their predecessors. They are not susceptible to damage by wildlife, corrosion, trees, or vehicles, providing uninterrupted service.
Barricading
No matter how good a fence is, it still must feature gates to allow access to authorized people and vehicles. Because the gates must be movable, they cannot be constructed of heavy concrete, so they are usually constructed of metal and wire. These softer points are easier for vehicles to ram through, making it necessary to develop a better option.
There are two key things that must be present for a vehicle to force its way through a gate. First, the gate must be soft enough for the vehicle to penetrate it. Second, there must be a clear path to permit the necessary buildup of speed. Construction of meandering entry access roads, enhanced by the use of concrete barriers to keep vehicles on those paths, makes it more difficult for vehicles to simply ram their way into a facility.
Video Technology
It seems the whole world is now under video surveillance, and digital technology is making the process much more practical. Old systems on VHS generated grainy footage that was only available for a brief time before being overwritten. If a security breach was discovered too late, there was no way to review footage.
Today’s video systems are drastically better. The resolution and sharpness of the images and video are much higher, increasing the likelihood that the cameras will provide useful information to identify perpetrators. The massive size of video storage systems permits longer retention of footage. There is even night vision technology available to provide clear views regardless of light and weather.
These are just a few of the options out there for improving security at nuclear power plants. They can provide critical protection for these important facilities.
Tips for Preventing Bank Fraud Of Your Personal Accounts
Going paperless is no doubt good for the trees, but there are other concerns we need to worry about when we go into this eco option: If you have been listening to the news over the past couple of months, there is a good chance that you have heard about many cases of identity theft and fraud. In fact, The Federal Trade of Commissions estimates that over nine millions Americans suffer from identity theft in any given year. This might sound like an astronomical number, but the truth of the matter is that it isn’t when compared to the national average. A hacker could easily access your credit card information and use it for his or her own purposes, when others could access your personal information and open up long-term banking and credit card accounts. Whatever the situation is, both of these could be detrimental to your future credit score, so how do you go about preventing these situations?
Always Guard Your Information When Online
In today’s time, it is not uncommon for many individuals and consumers to shop online. Many individuals even do most of their banking online. There is nothing wrong with these practices, but if you have all your accounts floating around online this gives hackers more and more chances to gain access to your usernames and passwords. If you are using public terminals to access your accounts always make sure that you clearing your username and password before leaving those specific terminals. In addition to this, changing your password on a regular basis can also protect you in many instances. It’s also become more common for everyday people to use VPNs, but many of them can leave your data vulnerable.
If paying online, always utilize a credit card, as this guarantees you under the law that your payment methods will be safer and more secure. Some companies like PayPal, backed by banks also protect payments if you pay through a business account or through services and goods. If you send to “friends” you won’t be able to get that money back. So be aware.
Always Monitor Accounts
Some of the best bank fraud defense attorneys will always recommend checking your accounts on a regular basis. If any purchase or withdraw appears out of the normal this is a good indication that something might be going on. Unfortunately, this might not always be the case, as most hackers will usually hide in your account and withdrawal the minimum amounts each month, so that they can appear undetected.
Invest In A Shredder
You have probably seen many characters and individuals shredding documents on movies and TV series. You probably only thought this was a technique used to create drama in the storyline. Well, the truth of the matter is that this is a practice that can greatly protect you in a variety of situations. When you shred your bank and credit card information it makes it much harder for scammers to gain access to these accounts. In fact, any information that contains your billing address, personal name, or account information could be detrimental to your personal accounts.
Never Opt Out Of The Fraud Alerts
When setting up banking and online savings accounts you will be asked if you want fraud protection. You would be surprised how many individuals opt out of this option just because it cost a few more dollars each month. Well, this truly is a major mistake. This protection will automatically freeze and place fraud alerts on your accounts when there has been any indication of incorrect activity. Whether you made a purchase that was too big, or someone took control of your account, fraud alerts can always ensure that you are protected at all times. Multiple service providers is also a good tip to follow.
Everything you need to know about shoplifting laws (about being a Robin Hood)
If you are an activist Robin Hood type you might see good in stealing from the rich to give to the poor…there is some good in the approach but mostly, it’s against the law. There is a good chance that you know someone who has shoplifted. In fact, you may have shoplifted at some point in the past. Many people believe that shoplifting is a fun game and that you are helping someone out, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. If you’re caught shoplifting, you’re going to find yourself in big trouble. Within this guide, you will learn all about shoplifting and the associated laws.
What Is Shoplifting?
First and foremost, you should know that shoplifting is a term used to describe the theft of items from a retail establishment. It is possible to shoplift for many different establishments, including restaurants, convenience stores and big box stores. Shoplifting is often referred to as a five-finger discount and boosting. There are many forms of shoplifting, but they all usually fall under the same laws. You may believe that you’re smart enough to outwit the authorities. Nevertheless, they’ll get you at some point or another.
Legal Definitions
The legal definition of shoplifting differs from one country to the next. In the United Kingdom, it is considered as dishonestly appropriates property belonging to another with the intention of depriving the other of it. Shoplifting is subject to prosecution in every state in America. Shoplifting just happens to be one of the most common crimes in the world. In America, shoplifting crimes soar higher during the Christmas season. Arrest rates climb even higher during spring break.
Awaiting trial from home where you can be surrounded by family and legal support can make a difficult situation far less stressful. Shoplifters facing charges in the seat of Seminole County are often approaching a bail bonds agency in Sanford to help them secure their release while preparing for court proceedings. This allows defendants to continue their daily routines and consult with their attorneys without the added burden of remaining in custody. Having professional assistance during this process can make a significant difference in managing both time and emotional strain.
Punishment
The punishment for shoplifting varies significantly from state to state and country to country. It is also important to understand that your current situation will likely alter your punishment. If you’ve been in trouble in the past for shoplifting, there is a good chance that you’re going to face stiffer penalties. The value of the merchandise may also impact the punishment. Trying to steal something of higher value will likely cause your punishment to be elevated to another level.
In the state of Tennessee, theft is considered a Class A misdemeanor when the value of the property of $500 or less. If the value is more than $500 but less than $1,000, the crime is increased to a Class E Felony. A Class Misdemeanor can come with a maximum punishment of 11 months and 29 days. A Class E Felony can bring a punishment of one year to less than six years in Tennessee. Again, the laws can vary from one state to the next. Larceny criminal defense lawyers will be able to help you understand the laws in your specific area.
Southern Houston and Galveston County courts can treat theft cases very differently depending on the facts and how the charge is filed. Getting guidance from the Tad Nelson criminal defense law firm can help you understand what prosecutors may focus on and what options you may have early in the process. Knowing the local approach to plea offers, diversion programs, and sentencing ranges can help you plan your next steps with more confidence.
How To Fight A Charge
If you’ve been caught shoplifting, you may be able to fight off the charge. Some cases rely heavily on witness testimony. If no video is available, witnesses will be used in court. You may be able to discredit the witness and clear your name. You should also consider negotiating a deal. Hire an attorney and attempt to negotiate a plea deal with the prosecutor responsible for your case. You might even be able to get the charge expunged at some point in the future!
Plant diets help farms produce 20x more protein
About a third of the food produced for human consumption is estimated to be lost or wasted globally. But the biggest part of food waste, which is not included in that estimate, may be through dietary choices that result in the squandering of environmental resources.
Consider that cows, chickens, pigs – whether for eggs, dairy, or meat – all need to eat plants – and farmers need to grow food for them. Imagine there were no more meat eaters? If we all become vegans or ate meat grown in a lab? How would that shift edible crops for us?
This is a good study for proponents of Alt Protein, alternative meat, fake fish and milk from a lab companies.
In a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science and their colleagues have now found a novel way to define and quantify this second type of wastage.
The scientists have called it “opportunity food loss,” a term inspired by the “opportunity cost” concept in economics, which refers to the cost of choosing a particular alternative over better options.
Opportunity food loss stems from using agricultural land to produce animal-based food instead of nutritionally comparable plant-based alternatives.
The researchers report that in the United States alone, avoiding opportunity food loss – that is, replacing all animal-based items with edible crops for human consumption – would add enough food to feed 350 million additional people, or more than the total US population, with the same land resources.
“Our analysis has shown that favoring a plant-based diet can potentially yield more food than eliminating all the conventionally defined causes of food loss,” says lead author Alon Shepon, who works in the lab of Prof. Ron Milo in the Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences.
I had the pleasure of gardening with Alon a few years ago when he showed the parents of the Tel Aviv Waldorf School, Beit Hinuch Aviv, how to grow a permaculture garden. We’ve ben harvesting it ever since. Earlier he’s researched papers on why beef is much worse for the planet than chicken or pork. Read the brief on the study here.
In the 2018 study, the scientists compared the resources needed to produce five major categories of animal-based food – beef, pork, dairy, poultry, and eggs – with the resources required to grow edible crops of similar nutritional value in terms of protein, calories, and micronutrients.
They found that plant-based replacements could produce 2 to 20 times more protein per acre than using that land for animal feed.
The most dramatic results were obtained for beef. The researchers compared it with a mix of crops – soya, potatoes, cane sugar, peanuts, and garlic – that deliver a similar nutritional profile when taken together in the right proportions.
The land area that could produce 100 grams of protein from these crops would yield only 4 grams of edible protein from beef. In other words, using agricultural land for producing beef instead of replacement crops results in an opportunity food loss of 96 grams – that is, a loss of 96% – per unit of land.
This means that the potential gain from diverting agricultural land from beef to plant-based foods for human consumption would be enormous.
Analyzing The Enormous Benefits Of Smoking Cessation
As you likely already know, smoking cigarettes is very detrimental to your health. If you do not take steps to stop smoking, you’re continuing down a very dangerous path. Your bad habit will eventually lead to your death. With this in mind, you need to stop smoking as quickly as possible. Within this comprehensive guide, you will learn more about the enormous benefits associated with smoking cessation.
How Soon?
Many people believe that they’re not going to see the benefits of smoking cessation for a few months or even years. This couldn’t be further from the truth. After you’ve stopped smoking cigarettes, you will begin to see a massive improvement almost immediately. In fact, it is possible to notice improvements after just 20 minutes.
After Just 20 Minutes
After just twenty minutes of smoking cessation, you will begin noticing improvements. In general, your blood pressure and pulse will begin to decrease. You should also understand that smoking causes the temperature of your hands and feet to decrease significantly. This is something that will change after you give up smoking. Approximately twenty minutes after you’ve stopped, you will begin to notice the temperature of your hands and feet increasing ever so slightly.
Eight Hours Later
Your body will go through significant changes eight hours after you’ve stopped smoking. Smoking causes carbon monoxide to build up in your body. Carbon monoxide is incredibly dangerous! After eight hours, the levels of carbon monoxide in your body will decrease and return to normal. At the same time, the amount of oxygen in your blood will begin to increase. Vape e-cigarettes and vaping in general are considered far safer than traditional cigarettes. This is why many medical professionals recommend vaping as opposed to conventional tobacco products.
Heart Attacks
As you should already know, smoking will dramatically increase your risk of suffering from a heart attack. Obviously, a heart attack could very well be fatal. This is why you need to stop smoking immediately. You’ll be surprised by how quick your body will improve after you stop smoking. After just twenty-four hours, your chances of suffering from a heart attack will decrease significantly. If you sincerely care about yourself and your family, you should give up cigarettes right away!
Smell And Taste Improve
When you smoke, your senses are impaired. Don’t worry, because this can be fixed with time. After you’ve managed to give up cigarettes for at least 48 hours, your senses will begin to return to normal. Your smell and taste will improve significantly.
Improved Breath
If you are a long-time smoker, you have probably been told that your breath is retched. Smoking not only stains your teeth, but also attacks the “gum tissue cells,” which in turn causes bad breath. Once you give up smoking, your breath will begin to improve. Now, you may not notice instant improvement, since it will take a while for the chemicals found in cigarettes to exit your system.
Your mouth will feel cleaner over time and your taste buds will begin to function properly again, as smoking decreases the sense of taste. It may take several weeks to see improvement, but the wait will definitely be worth it.
How to Use an Evidence-Based Approach When Promoting Your Green Project
While everyone is entitled to their own opinions, we are not entitled to our own facts—and the facts strongly support the thesis that we are destroying the environment and jeopardizing the well-being of future generations. However, this massive level of ignorance about the ecosystem is not an accident; it is engineered. Due to vested corporate interests, the public has been routinely misinformed about a large spectrum of sustainability issues.
As someone working in the green industry, whether as a scientist or a business person, your biggest challenge when it comes to championing the idea of creating a sustainable future is the high level of ignorance you face when you propose your academic ideas or your green projects. As a result, you must do your research for whatever green idea or project you are working on. The only way that you will be able to be heard is if you can back up your ideas with hard evidence.
Here, then, are 4 ideas to help you get better at researching green topics:
- Solicit the support of eco-friendly corporations.
Many corporations are sensitive to environmental issues and are doing their part to help create a sustainable future. Using a resource like CorporateOfficeHQ, you can find their phone numbers, addresses, and other contact information. These corporations may be willing to support your project.
- Reference well-known publications to drive your point home.
Let’s suppose your project involves decreasing the use of plastic bags and increasing the use of biodegradable materials for everyday packing needs. Your challenge is that despite the fact that the global ocean plastic problem has now become a serious threat to oceanic life, grocery stores throughout the United States continue to hand out plastic bags regularly to their customers. Neither the store owners nor the customers appear to be aware that these plastic bags often end up in landfills or getting dumped into the oceans where they fail to disintegrate. So, how do you dissuade people from using plastic bags? Reference credible sources like National Geographic that have articles about how there is now a plastic garbage patch larger than the country of Mexico floating in the Pacific ocean.
- Use visuals to illustrate your quantitative data.
It’s not enough to make your case using only qualitative information, you must also quantify your research. However, simply talking about numbers isn’t going to get through to your audience. So start making numbers easier to understand through the use of pie charts, bar graphs, and other ways of “illustrating” quantities. Visuals will allow you to get your point across.
- Interview authorities in your field.
While you can theoretically get all your data through the Internet and through the libraries, your research will have the quality of seeming more authentic if you do more than simply have a long list of citations. By talking to people who are authorities in the field you are researching, your audience will be far more receptive to your ideas.
For instance, let’s suppose you wanted to start a green roofing business. One way to sell your business idea to clients would be to simply list out your researched list of benefits. However, you would really drive your point home if you discussed how the University of Haifa is researching green roof technology in the Middle East where temperatures are high and water is scarce. But instead of simply referencing the literature about the University’s project, you would have more of an impact on your target audience if were to interview a few of the professor’s in charge of researching the efficacy of green roofs in the Middle East and quote them in your presentations.
- Present your findings in plain English.
Since the ultimate purpose of your research is to deliver a convincing presentation, either in the form of a white paper, a book, or a talk, you have to communicate your ideas in the clearest way possible. In order to reach a broader audience, you will have to simplify your language. According to the Clear Language Group, the average American adult reads at a 7th to 8th-grade level. Consequently, you will have to limit your vocabulary and length of sentence structure in both your written and oral communication. This can be quite a challenge for you if you are someone who thinks, reads, and writes at a university level.
In conclusion, it’s not enough to simply express your ideas when involved in educating the general public about your green project. You also have to back up your ideas with research, even though the truth about how we are systematically wrecking our world is hiding in plain sight.