The World in 2050:Global warming will benefit some regions

Posted on September 9, 2010 by Rashid Faridi

As worldwide population increases by 40 percent over the next 40 years, sparsely populated Canada, Scandinavia, Russia and the northern United States will become formidable economic powers and migration magnets, Laurence C. Smith writes in “The World in 2050: Four Forces Shaping Civilization’s Northern Future” (Dutton Books), scheduled for publication Sept. 23.While wreaking havoc on the environment, global warming will liberate a treasure trove of oil, gas, water and other natural resources previously locked in the frozen north, enriching residents and attracting newcomers, according to Smith. And these resources will pour from northern rim countries — or NORCs, as Smith calls them — precisely at a time when natural resources elsewhere are becoming critically depleted, making them all the more valuable.

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Posted in books, climate change, Global Warming | 2 Comments

Penguin Populations Continue to Decline

Posted on September 9, 2010 by Rashid Faridi

Adele penguins jumping off of iceberg. Antarctica. (Credit: iStockphoto/Keith Szafranski)

Penguin biologists from around the world, who are gathered in Boston the week of September 6, warn that ten of the planet’s eighteen penguin species have experienced further serious population declines. The effects of climate change, overfishing, chronic oil pollution and predation by introduced mammals are among the major factors cited repeatedly by penguin scientists as contributing to these population drops. Prior to the conference, thirteen of these penguin species were already classified as endangered or threatened. Some penguin species may face extinction in this century.

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Big Bang Was Followed by Chaos

Posted on September 9, 2010 by Rashid Faridi

Seven years ago Northwestern University physicist Adilson E. Motter conjectured that the expansion of the universe at the time of the big bang was highly chaotic. Now he and a colleague have proven it using rigorous mathematical arguments.The study, published by the journal Communications in Mathematical Physics, reports not only that chaos is absolute but also the mathematical tools that can be used to detect it. When applied to the most accepted model for the evolution of the universe, these tools demonstrate that the early universe was chaotic.

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Attention:Asteroids Zipping by Earth at Less Than Moon’s Distance

Posted on September 8, 2010 by Rashid Faridi

Two asteroids are passing close by Earth today. The second space rock will be less than 48,000 miles away — about one-fifth the distance to the moon.There is no danger of impact, says NASA, even though at closest approach asteroid 2010 RF12, the afternoon visitor, will be less than 48,000 miles away. The moon, in comparison, averages about 239,000 miles away.
The asteroid is estimated to be between 20 feet and 46 feet in diameter.
Asteroid 2010 RX30, which is between 32 and 65 feet in diameter, flew by at 5:51 a.m. EDT, passing about 154,000 miles during its closest approach to Earth. Both space rocks were discovered on Sunday by the University of Arizona’s Catalina Sky Survey.

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