I just could not let this one go.

Global Nuclear Decommissioning Market 2017...(click here)

This report provides a general overview of the Nuclear Decommissioning industry 2017. This report split global into several key Regions, with sales (volume), revenue (value), market share and growth rate.

This press release was orginally distIributed by SBWire

Pune, Mahrashtra -- (SBWIRE) -- 03/10/2017 -- Worldwide Nuclear Decommissioning 2017 Research Report presents a professional and complete analysis of Global Nuclear Decommissioning Market on the current situation.

In the first part, the report provides a general overview of the Nuclear Decommissioning industry 2017 including definitions, classifications, Nuclear Decommissioning market analysis, a wide range of applications and Nuclear Decommissioning industry chain structure. The 2017's report on Nuclear Decommissioning industry offers the global Nuclear Decommissioning development history, development trends and competitive landscape analysis.

In the second part, the report covers manufacturing processes and price structures on Nuclear Decommissioning scenario. This report also includes Nuclear Decommissioning import/export, supply chain relationship, consumption ratio, Nuclear Decommissioning revenue and gross margin by regions/countries (United States, EU, China, and Japan).

Isn't that interesting? I thought it was very interesting. I thought these were interesting, too.

Global Nuclear Decommissioning Market 2016-2020 (click here)

I thought this was interesting, too.

The global nuclear decommissioning market (click here) has been estimated at USD XX billion in 2016 and is projected to reach USD XX billion by 2022, at a CAGR of XX% during the forecast period from 2017 to 2022. The world’s focus is shifting towards clean energy sources, as the nations are moving towards energy efficiency. As a result, technologies such as solar photovoltaic and wind power generation are growing at a fast pace. Even though nuclear energy is considered a low carbon technology, nuclear power plant related accidents such as the Three-Mile Island accident, the Chernobyl disaster, and the recent Fukushima nuclear power plant accident have all been cause for concern to the public and to governments that have plans for nuclear power generation. Countries like Germany have already dropped the plans of having nuclear energy in their energy mix. As a result, many countries are shedding their nuclear power in order to move towards non-nuclear power generation programs. Moreover, there are certain reactors that retire from operation as they are economically not viable to produce power. Hence, the global nuclear decommissioning market is growing at a good rate....

With all this decommissioning going on, what the heck was Yucca Mountain all about? Just another ploy to scare the living hell out of Americans? I mean it. What the heck does the USA need Yucca Mountain for if these plants are being decommissioned. 

I am trying to figure out if Bush spent as much on Yucca as Reagan did on his superconductor when the sky was the limit! (click here)

The release of the two most widly used CFCs, CFC-11 and CFC-12, grew from insignificant amounts in the 1950s to more than 700 thousand tonnes a year in the early 1970s. It has declined in recent yeas as a result of measures under the Montreal Protocol. But the atmospheric concentration is continuing to rise (red scale) demonstrating the long lifetime of these compounds.

Three scientists. Three precious scientists saved the human race from complete demise. Three. Only three. 

The USA needs to remember what values existed during some of the most astounding finds in science, literature, physics, medicine, chemistry and peace. The culture of a country matters. It creates the basis of which continued living on Earth exists.

Three scientists is the reason human beings are still living and breathing today on Earth. No one should forget that. When 97 percent of scientists on Earth state anthropogenic global warming is real, now and needs to end; everyone should be listening!

In 1971, H. S. Johnston, at the University of California (Berkeley), pointed out the potential danger of a large fleet of SSTs emitting considerable amounts of nitric oxide into the lower stratosphere, possibly accelerating natural ozone destruction. Only three years later, 
F. S. Rowland and M. Molina (click here) showed that a widely used class of very inert chemicals known as chloro- fluorocarbons were transported to the stratosphere by convective air movements. There, they could absorb high-energy photons from sunlight and release free chlorine; Once released, the chlorine could destroy stratospheric ozone through a series of catalytic reactions....

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) (click here)

(published in The Chapman & Hall Encyclopedia of Environmental Science, edited by David E. Alexander and Rhodes W. Fairbridge, pp pp.78-80, Kluwer Academic, Boston, MA, 1999.)

James W. Elkins

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Climate Monitoring and Diagnostics Laboratory (CMDL), 325 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80303 U.S.A.

E-mail: James.W.Elkins@noaa.gov, Phone: (303) 497-6224, Fax: (303) 497-6290

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) are nontoxic, nonflammable chemicals containing atoms of carbon, chlorine, and fluorine. They are used in the manufacture of aerosol sprays, blowing agents for foams and packing materials, as solvents, and as refrigerants. CFCs are classified as halocarbons, a class of compounds that contain atoms of carbon and halogen atoms. Individual CFC molecules are labeled with a unique numbering system. For example, the CFC number of 11 indicates the number of atoms of carbon, hydrogen, fluorine, and chlorine (e.g. CCl3F as CFC-11). The best way to remember the system is the "rule of 90" or add 90 to the CFC number where the first digit is the number of carbon atoms (C), the second digit is the number of hydrogen atoms (H), and the third digit is number of the fluorine atoms (F). The total number of chlorine atoms (Cl) are calculated by the expression: Cl = 2(C+1) - H - F. In the example CFC-11 has one carbon, no hydrogen, one fluorine, and therefore 3 chlorine atoms....

Well, lookey thar. That isn't something you see everyday.

And you say, Donald Trump is Commander and Chief, huh? You betcha.

March 12, 2017

Southwest Miami - Dade Florida (WSVN) - A 400-acre brush fire (click here) that broke out at Turkey Point, early Sunday, did not affect the nuclear energy plant, officials said.

Only smoke remained at the scene of the blaze, in the area of Southwest 117th Avenue and 344th Street, Sunday night.

The Florida Forest Service said crews were able to contain the flames that spread over 400 acres, including keeping the fire away from the power plant, which is located on a 3,300-acre site two miles east of Homestead.

That is what they always say, "The 400 acre fire did not effect the nuclear plant."

"This time." I think the NRC (Nuclear Regulatory Commission) needs to pay a visit before we end up with another Three Mile Island or Chernobyl.

Oh, yeah, and the extra feature on this map is the some weather and air quality alerts. I would think air quality might be a concern Turkey Point.

It sort of looks similar to Fukushima than Chernobyl. Hm.

Oh, that reminds me, there is an update on Japanese radioactive hogs.

March 11, 2017

By Lizzie Dearden

Hunters have been called in (click here) to kill radioactive wild boars that have taken over towns evacuated during the Fukushima nuclear disaster before their residents return....

...“After people left, their ecosystem changed,” hunter Shoichi Sakamoto told the BBC.

“They began coming down from the mountains and now they’re not going back.

“They found a place that’s comfortable – there’s plenty of food and no one will come after them. This is their new home now, and this is where they have children.”

He leads a team of 13 hunters assigned to catch and kill the wild boars using air rifles, trapping them in cages by using rice flour as bait.

Are they sure about the safety of the area if the plants are still radioactive? There are children to consider.

This is more information about halocarbons. The current use is monitored. Right?

In our Ammonia Refrigeration Simplified (click here) paper we told you everything you wanted to know about ammonia refrigeration but were afraid to ask. But ammonia isn’t the only refrigerant used in food processing, meat, dairy, bakery, and cold storage facilities. Freon (a trademark of Dow and the most recognized halocarbon chemical) is preferred by many processors. So what are the pros and cons of Freon? Read on to learn the facts from Food Plant Engineering team of experts.

Halocarbons come in two flavors: one is methane-based and the other ethane-based. Because of ozone-depletion concerns, methanes are being eliminated from industrial use. (As part of the Montreal Protocol, the widely-used halomethane R-12 was phased out in 1995. Similarly, R-22 is scheduled to cease production in 2020.) Ethane-based halocarbon systems are very common today in certain types of processing facilities. If you’re considering such a system, discuss the following:...

There is still fires roaring in the USA. You would think this would be the focus of federal legislators, but, alas playing politics with the American people are more importan.

Click here for the interactive map to the right. (Thank you) Click on the small icons to found out if your house is burning or simply burned to the ground.

March 10, 2017
By John Asebes

During the record setting fires in Kansas (click here) this past week, crews from surrounding communities lent their resources to help battle the flames.

“I have taken pictures at a lot of grass fires but none that big.”

Through the eyes of a firefighter.

“You look at the pictures and realize how much damage was done,” says Garry Brownlee.

Garry Brownlee shot these images of a fire that left more than 500,000 acres torched in Clark and Comanche counties.

“Our crews worked on one major fire line almost all night long. The fire line was approximately 2 and a half 3 miles long. The wind was blowing terrible. It moved quick.”...

Once the name is found in the map above the incident can be looked up here. (click here) Yep, Texas and Oklahoma are still burning. It can be hard on people.

This is current use and information of halocarbons

That brings us to the production of halocarbons and sulphur hexafluoride.

6.4.4.1. Sources of Halocarbons

The CFCs and HCFCs are wholly anthropogenic and do not exist naturally. They have been widely used as propellants in aerosols, as blowing agents in foam manufacture, in air conditioning units and refrigerants (CDIAC, 1991, 1993). The Montreal Protocol (click here) has recently cut emissions of many species by over 90%. Methylhalides are primarily produced in the oceans, usually associated with algal growth (Moore & Tokarczyk, 1993), although a significant fraction may come from biomass burning. Annual emissions of halocarbons may be found in IPCC (1995).

Halocarbons are still produced. There is a plant in River Edge, New Jersey. The production plant is in South Carolina. I am sure there are regular inspections that insure the proper use of the chemicals and their containment to prevent escape into the troposphere.

Halocarbon Products Corporation, (click here) a leading worldwide producer of specialty fluorochemicals and inhalation anesthetics, today announced that David Bacon will be joining the company as its new chief executive officer, effective April 28, 2015.

The following (click here) are just a few of the numerous applications that benefit from fluorochemistry:

• Pharmaceuticals – Fluorinated compounds have shown efficacy as antibacterials, antifungals, antibiotics, anesthetics, protease inhibitors and anticancer agents, among many other applications.
• Agricultural Chemicals – Fluorinated compounds are used as fungicides, herbicides and insecticides and often show more potency than their non-fluorinated analogues. The increased potency allows lower application rates.
• Advanced Photoresists – In the quest for finer features in semiconductor lithography, photoresist polymers incorporating fluorine and/or fluorinated substituents exhibit the best combination of optical transparency at shorter wavelengths, etch resistance and solubility.
• Liquid Crystals – For use in display devices, the addition of fluorine has been found to change viscosity, miscibility, electrical properties, steric characteristics and other qualities that are important to these devices.
• Fluorinated Surfactants – Utilized as emulsifying and dispersing agents, while related compounds are used as repellant finishes or soil-release finishes for textiles, these compounds rely on the ability of fluorine to alter surface-energy properties.
• Dyes – The addition of fluorine or fluorinated substituents, such as the CF3 group, has been found to improve the fixation yield, lightfastness and chemical resistance of dyes.
• Fluoroplastics and Fluoroelastomers – Used as coatings, vessel liners, films, wiring insulation, gaskets, seals, lab equipment and hoses because of their chemical and thermal stability.
• Ion-Exchange Membranes – Fluoropolymer membranes are used for enhanced chemical and thermal stability in harsh environments.

The altitude in the picture is in kilometers 1 Kilometer = 3280.8399 Feet

A kilometer is half again more in height as a half mile.

Most ozone (about 90%) (click here) is found in the stratosphere, which begins about 10–16 kilometers (6–10 miles) above Earth’s surface and extends up to about 50 kilometers (31 miles) altitude. The stratospheric region with the highest ozone concentration is commonly known as the “ozone layer” (see Figure Q1-2). The ozone layer extends over the entire globe with some variation in altitude and thickness. The remaining ozone, about 10%, is found in the troposphere, which is the lowest region of the atmosphere, between Earth’s surface and the stratosphere.

The Burj Khalifa is the tallest building in the world challenged by none.

A mile is 5280 feet. The Burj Khalifa is a bit more than a half mile high.

If one examines the architecture of Burj, it is build similarly to pyramids. One level built on top of another level gradually diminishing in "area" all the way to the top. Fascinating. A half a mile. Wow.

Interestingly, the next few buildings in this exclusive club are Shanghi Tower, China at 2073 feet without a radio antenna, Makkah Royal Clock Tower, Saudi Arabia at 1972 feet, Pang An International Finance Center, China is 1965 feet, Lotte World Tower in South Korea at 1819 feet, One World Trade Center also known as The Freedom Tower USA at 1776 feet, CTF Finance Center, China at 1739 feet, Tapei 101, Tiawan at 1667 feet, Shanghi World Financial Center, China at 1614 feet and the International Commerce Center, Hong Kong, China at 1588 feet.

Of the nine tallest buildings in the world five are in China. China is 3.7 million square miles. The USA is 3.797 millions square miles. China has nearly 1.4 billion citizens. The USA has nearly 319 million citizens. So, China has 4.5 times more citizens than the USA on nearly the same square miles of land. It is understandable why the cities in China are vital.

The important part here is that the Burj Khalifa is one half mile high.

The Burj Khalifa, (click here) originally known as the Burj Dubai, towers above the city's already burgeoning skyline. It has 163 floors and a height of 2,717 feet tall, and is the tallest building in the world. Primarily constructed from steel and concrete, the building is the design by Owings, Skidmore and Merrill of Chicago, who were also responsible for the design of famous skyscrapers such as Willis Tower and One World Trade Center. The South Korean company Samsung C&T carried out the engineering and construction of the structure, which was completed in the year 2010. The building was a project by the United Arab Emirates’ government to shift the country’s economy from solely oil-based to a more tourism- and service-based nation. The building has 30,000 residences, 19 residential towers, a man-made lake which occupies 30 acres, parkland which occupies seven acres, nine hotels, and a shopping mall. This superstructure has given the United Arab Emirates international recognition, in addition to receiving praise from critics for its sleek design.

March 1, 2017
By Todd Wilkinson

Jackson Hole, WY – Whether it’s Yellowstone, Grand Teton, our national forests, wildlife refuges or even private ranches, never in the history of America has preserving land, by keeping its conservation values intact, resulted in huge economic hardship over mid to long-term horizons.

In fact, the most thriving, consistent, and sustainable economic sector in the great state of Wyoming is tourism, fueled by the powerful engine of protected public lands in the northwest quadrant of the state.

As Gov. Matt Mead and the legislature struggle to deal with budget shortfalls to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars—the vast majority related to the state’s misguided gamble on coal—you still hear elected officials spreading the unsubstantiated rumor that environmental protection is costing the state.

Recently, U.S. Sen. John Barrasso and Congresswoman Liz Cheney once again claimed the Endangered Species Act, public review requirements as part of the National Environmental Policy Act, and laws enforced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have hobbled the Wyoming economy.

While such anti-federal rhetoric certainly resonates with Wyoming voters, there is scant evidence to back it up.

Barrasso and Cheney would have their constituents believe that the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan, implemented by EPA to control pollution and carbon emissions, was decimating Wyoming’s low sulfur coal industry. But the Clean Power Plan actually didn’t come on line until late last year.

Many months before, four of the major coal companies doing business in the state declared bankruptcy not because of any environmental regulation, but instead owed to a glut of cheap natural gas and oil that became the fuel of choice for power generators. In fact, competition from these other fossil fuels so undercut the commodity value of coal that companies could barely give it away, much less profitably operate coal export terminals to Asia.

Now using Obama as a convenient foil and President Trump vowing to unlock $66 trillion of oil shale, Barrasso and Cheney are hard-pressed to explain how that strategy, which includes gutting environmental regulations, will advance their cause of reviving Wyoming’s coal future....

Fremont County, Wyoming GDP (click here)

Wyoming’s tourism economy (click here) saw another year of tremendous growth in 2015. In a preliminary assessment released today by the Wyoming Office of Tourism (WOT), a record 10.5 million people visited the state in 2015, up from 10.1 million visitors in 2014 or 4.2 percent. Wyoming significantly outpaced the national average visitation growth rate of 2.4 percent. This follows several years of consistently strong rises in visitation. Over the last decade, Wyoming’s tourism marketing has helped contribute to a 48 percent increase of visitation in the state.  

Travel spending in the state grew to just under $3.4 billion in 2015, an increase of $9 million over the previous year.  This visitor spending directly affects Wyoming’s economy by generating $175 million in local and state tax revenues, up 7.4 percent in 2015 compared to $163 million in 2014. Since 2005, tax revenues generated by the tourism and hospitality industry have grown by more than 86 percent.

Additionally, travel-related jobs are showing growth with the creation of 690 new jobs in Wyoming last year. The state’s tourism industry supports just under 32,000 full and part-time jobs, an employment number that has risen 7.7 percent in the past 10 years, and represents 12 percent of the state’s total workforce.

“We knew that by adding Seattle to our target markets and deepening our presence in existing markets, our campaign was strategically focused to get more visitors to Wyoming,” the Wyoming Office of Tourism’s Executive Director, Diane Shober said.  “With the addition of the work being done by local lodging tax boards and many tourism related businesses, Wyoming was and continues to be well positioned for success,” Shober added....

It's Sunday Night

March 11, 2017
By John Meyers

Duluth, Minn. — Many trees (click here) common in forests across the eastern U.S., including Minnesota and Wisconsin, won’t be able to keep up with the current pace of climate change, according to a new study by the Woods Hole Research Center.

The study echoes the findings of other, recent scientific research that shows some northern tree species simply won’t adapt fast enough to climate change that scientists say already is occurring.

The most recent study, published in the journal Global Change Biology, looked at 40 different eastern U.S. forest species and found balsam fir, quaking aspen and red spruce among the most vulnerable species to warming temperatures.

The trees will begin to fail in warmer climates in many areas and won’t keep up with changes without human intervention, according to the study’s conclusions.

“Trees, after all, cannot walk,” said Woods Hole scientist Brendan Rogers, the study’s lead author, in a statement with the study’s release. “They must disperse seeds that, in turn, establish, grow and reproduce. The pace of climate change threatens to rapidly overtake this migration, and landscapes fragmented by humans present even more challenges.”...

April 29, 2011

By Devon (David Haines)

A Devon composer says he has landed his 'dream job' of becoming a songwriter-in-residence of a US science festival.

David Haines has taken up the role for the Cambridge Science Festival, held in Massachusetts — the first of its kind in the United States.

It runs from tomorrow until May 8 and is a collaboration between Harvard, MIT Museum and the City of Cambridge, among others. MIT Museum director John Durant invited Mr Haines to become involved with the first festival in 2007 and he has had his work performed at each annual festival since.

This year, Mr Durant invited David to become songwriter-in-residence and several of his science songs will be premiered at festival concerts.

Mr Haines, from Teignmouth, has been rubbing shoulders with scientists and professors. He said: "This is my dream job — to have the opportunity to chat with some of the world's leading scientists about their work and do my best to interpret their work in a medium which makes it accessible to all.

"What strikes me about the scientists I've met so far is the overwhelming passion they have for their subject," said Mr Haines.

"North Cambridge Family Opera Company" (click here)

Presents "Powers of Ten"

Words and Music by David Haines

Trained at Bristol University, London's Guildhall School, and Banff School
of Fine Arts, David Haines has written fifteen music theater works,
including The Puzzle Jigs, which was performed by NCFO in 2003 and
2008. He has worked with many thousands of schoolchildren and has a
special interest in using song to enhance the science curriculum. The
NCFO Science Festival Chorus performed David's science oratorios
Lifetime: Songs of Life and Evolution in 2007 andPowers of Ten in 2008.
More recently, Powers of Ten was the official opening event of the first
USA Science and Engineering Festival in Washington DC. David is the
Cambridge Science Festival's Songwriter-in-Residence 2011-2014, and
has just been appointed to the same role with Green Schools Alliance.
He lives and teaches in Teignmouth, Devon in southwestern England.

Many Voices: The Science of Communication features twelve songs by David Haines

I want the CEO of Uber charged for obstructing justice every time an Uber vehicle used "Greyball."

March 3, 2017

San Francisco — Uber has for years (click here) engaged in a worldwide program to deceive authorities in markets where its low-cost ride-hailing service was being resisted by law enforcement, or in some instances, had been outright banned.

The program, which involves a tool called Greyball, uses data collected from Uber’s app and other techniques to identify and circumvent officials. Uber used these to evade authorities in cities such as Paris, Boston and Las Vegas, and in countries including Australia, China, South Korea and Italy.

Greyball was part of a broader program called VTOS, short for “violation of terms of service,” which Uber created to root out people it thought were using or targeting its service improperly. The VTOS program, including the Greyball tool, began as early as 2014 and remains in use today, predominantly outside the United States. Greyball was approved by Uber’s legal team.

Greyball and the broader VTOS program were described to The New York Times by four current and former Uber employees, who also provided documents. They spoke on the condition of anonymity because the tools and their use are confidential and because of fear of retaliation from the company....

For every time "Grayball" was used in traffic. There is no reason to allow Uber to get away with obstruction of justice. I am waiting to hear how Uber is a hero and does things regular taxis can't do necessarily, like call 911 when an accident happens in it's path a distance ahead or alert the police to a perceived drunken drive to save lives. Those kinds of stories aren't available because the company, "Uber," is narcissistic and stupid.

December 14, 2016
By Andrew J. Hawkins

...As I wrote last September (click here) when Uber launched its first self-driving service in Pittsburgh, the experience was equal parts thrilling and mundane: thrilling because of the implications for the future of transportation, and mundane because it was like driving with your overly cautious grandmother. But unlike Pittsburgh, Uber wouldn’t let me get behind the wheel, so all of my impressions of the car’s self-driving capabilities are from the backseat.

Occasionally, the safety driver would take control, like when he wanted to do something that could be perceived as reckless by a computer but totally normal to a human, like cut across three lanes of traffic. And the car occasionally kicked itself out of autonomy mode, forcing the driver to take the wheel. While Uber says the goal is full autonomy, the company admits the technology is not there yet....

See, Uber's CEO is blindly stupid and a parasite to every human being. Uber's CEO is a classic moron at the top of a company.

When Uber finally becomes completely driverless, who is going to call the car for a ride? 

Uber's CEO lives in a world where human beings don't exist. He is part of the "Skynet" CEO's who actually believe customers only come in the way of other robots. That should be interesting to watch how Wall Street uses it's citizenship to destroy the very essence of an economy and self-destructing wealth.

Michael Moore should be hosting the Academy Awards.

Next year I want Michael Moore to host the Academy Awards. He doesn't host "Late Night," he makes films. Why does that seem like a choice that makes sense?

I am sure he would get contact lens for such an honor.

2003

Documentarian Michael Moore (click here) made his career on political cage rattling, but he brought his beliefs to the Oscar stage in 2003, when his film "Bowling for Columbine" won in the feature documentary category. Wagging his finger,  Moore chastised then-President George W. Bush for the Iraq War, which had started just days prior, calling him a “fictitious president” and saying “Shame on you!”...

Americans need to understand what demoralize means.

1. :  to cause to turn aside or away from what is good or true or morally right :  to corrupt the morals of
2. 2a :  to weaken the morale of :  discourage, dispirit; were demoralized by the loss...foreclosures were further demoralizing an already desperate real-estate market — F. D. Rooseveltc :  to throw into disorder
3. b :  to upset or destroy the normal functioning of

Donald Trump is definitely attempting to demoralize the people of the USA.

Demoralizing allows other influence to set in if hopeless sets in because of it.

There were demoralizing influences during Bush as well. I remember Nicholas Kristof's editorial that basically stated, "You have to go along to get along." Hogwash. Americans have many friends that are from a country that is NOT demoralized and it is they that can add to a stronger resolve for those that are targets of the Trump administration.

I want to point to a realization I came to while watching the Academy Award winning documentary, "White Helmets" (click here). It is a case of demoralizing the opposition.

I could never understand the bombings of hospitals in Syria. It is a human rights offense and the idea Syria's people were not safe in hospitals bewildered me.

I now realize why the attacks occurred on Syrian hospitals. It was to demoralize the heroes called, "White Helmets." 

Think about it. Here a group of many ethnicity and possibly both Sunni and Shi'ite have come together to save the lives of people caught in the rubble after bombing runs. When the people, primarily civilians, were rescued they were most likely to be taken to a hospital to treat wounds. 

Demoralize. 

When the hospitals became targets it was to demoralize the "White Helmets." They never became that despondent to give up all hope. A week old baby saved from death told them their mission was correct and required.

That is demoralization which attempts to remove hope and purpose. It is intended to remove morality as citizens know it and replace it with injustice and victimization. Demoralization will turn the strongest opponent into the weakest victim. We cannot allow that to happen.