Posted on April 23, 2012 by Rashid Faridi

Sara's avatarcitymovement

Urban Cultural Studies posted “The City as You’ve Never Seen it Before” and it got me thinking about mapping and the Situationist Interntional. The Situationist International, an international group of revolutionary artists, philosophers and architects, was founded in 1957. The S.I. fought against the capitalist system and advocated for an alternative life style. In response to the city model Parisian urban planners were developing, the S.I. used the map of Paris to reconfigure the experience of the city by constructing situations that playfully and inventively explored the urban.  Psychogeography was one of the particular strategies that the S. I. used to lead pedestrians off their predictable passageways and conduits within the city and  surprised them with new experiences or insight of their urban landscape. By manipulating the map itself, they intervened in the logic of the city, constructing an alternative geography as well as a providing a different perspective of…

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Earth Day:Some Exciting Stats on Green Job Growth

Posted on April 22, 2012 by Rashid Faridi

Guest Post by Elena Verlee

Although many past Earth Days have come and gone with little in the way of good news regarding the environment, there is much to celebrate on April 22, 2012. Backed by one of the more environmentally-friendly presidents in recent memory, the United States has seen huge funding for alternative energy sources, a drive for better fuel economy, and a massive movement by colleges and other groups to live cleaner, greener, and more efficiently. So this Earth Day, think of these 25 exciting statistics about the growth of jobs for work that benefits the environment, and be happy. The future is bright.

  1. Hydropower is estimated to have the potential of adding 1.4 million jobs by 2025

    Every state has the potential to create hydropower projects, from ocean water, streams, or pumped storage water, meaning plants all over the country could be created and staffed with workers.

  2. The government has created a $2 million green job competition for veterans

    In March 2010, the government announced it would allocate $2 million toward grants for training military veterans in industries like bio-fuels, renewable electric power, energy-efficient construction, and more.

  3. The green construction industry will add 2.3 million workers to its labor force

    According to the U.S. Green Building Council, green construction employed more than 1 million people from 2000 to 2008. This number is expected to rise to 3.3 million by 2013, about a 230% increase. Nearly half of American solar power firms plan to hire more workers: In August 2011, almost half of 2,100 solar power companies surveyed said they plan to add an expected 24,000 jobs by August 2012.

  4. The solar industry job growth rate is 6.8%

    Compared to the fossil fuel industry’s negative growth rate of 2%, the nearly 7% growth in solar power jobs, including manufacturing and installation, is very promising.

  5. Tennessee will see the creation of 10,000 new green jobs by 2014

    A handful of companies like Volkswagen and Nissan Leaf and Storage Battery Manufacturing will help the state continue to see an 8% growth rate annually, with jobs like energy brokers and solar installation managers becoming available.

  6. Ohio could see 23,000 new auto industry jobs in the next 10 years

    A recent report by non-profit research group Ceres found that because of new federal regulations for fuel efficiency, hiring will increase by automakers and companies that make fuel-efficient tech.

  7. The geothermal industry has added 7,000 jobs and counting since 2008

    Executive Director of the Geothermal Energy Association Karl Gawell estimated in 2011 that new geothermal construction projects, which have no fuel costs and produce very little CO2, will add another 3,000 jobs in California, Nevada, and elsewhere.

  8. The bio-fuel sector could produce 807,000 jobs by 2022

    The Biotechnology Industry Organization said in late 2011 that the bio-fuel industry could produce hundreds of thousands of jobs while lowering U.S. oil imports by $70 billion.

  9. Knoxville, Tennessee’s green jobs grew by 14.6% annually from 2003 to 2010

    In 2009 alone, Knoxville added more than 16,000 green jobs, helping lower the unemployment rate to 7.7% for the city, a full two points lower than the rest of the state.

  10. The green industry in the U.S. now employs 3.1 million workers

    Green jobs now outnumber jobs in the fossil fuels industry (although some have taken issue with the definition of “green job” used in the calculation).

  11. In Little Rock, Arkansas 11,933 green jobs were created in 2010

    Being home to clean-tech companies like LM Wind Power and CLEAResult Consulting helped Arkansas’ capital become one of the fastest-growing cities in America for green jobs.

  12. President Obama’s Recovery Act of 2009 invested $90 billion in clean energy

    This money has already helped sponsor 40 clean-tech projects that will eventually employ upwards of 60,000 people.

  13. With more than 28,000, Albany has the highest concentration of green jobs in the country

    One out of every 15 workers in and around Albany has a clean job, or 6.7%, thanks in large part to the business of GE, which houses many of its clean-tech operations in Schenectady.

  14. The U.S. is only tapping 20% of its hydropower capacity

    There is much, much more room for job growth in hydropower because out of the 500 gigawatt capacity, the U.S. is only making use of 100 gigawatts.

  15. The Dept. of Energy’s Loan Guarantee Program will help create 10 times the number of the failed Keystone Pipeline

    And what’s even more exciting is that the DOE program will cost taxpayers $2 billion less than originally expected.

  16. Jobs for the Future is expanding green job training in seven cities across the country

    Funded with $38 million from the Dept. of Labor, JFF will equip workers with skills necessary for the green industry, adding thousands of jobs to Boston, Chicago, Detroit, and more.

  17. Worldwide, the green energy sector could create 20 million to 30 million jobs by 2030

    And that’s just the energy sector of green technology. This many jobs would inject trillions of dollars into a struggling world economy.

  18. North Carolina’s green industry grew by 700 companies from 2009 to 2010

    Job figures are certain to increase in “The Triangle,” the nickname applied to the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area, which already has one of the highest totals of green jobs in the country.

  19. California is projected to spawn more than 200,000 jobs by 2020

    A 2011 report by The Donald Vial Center on Employment in the Green Economy stated that energy efficiency policies will produce 211,000 skilled, high-paying jobs and more than $11 billion in revenue for the state.

  20. The number of green jobs in Toledo, Ohio have gone up 72% since 2003

    The city added 4,000 jobs during the period, and in one 18-month period the jobs helped lower unemployment nearly four percentage points.

  21. Organic farmers’ markets rose 17% in 2010 alone

    A key part of the green movement is locally sourced, organic food. Farmers had plenty of work in 2010, as the markets’ surge in popularity swelled their numbers to 7,175 across the nation.

  22. Des Moines, Iowa is growing in green jobs at 11.4% per year

    Since 2003, more than 2,500 green jobs have been created, moving the city’s total to over 5,200 green industry jobs and helping keep unemployment low.

  23. Albuquerque lowered unemployment 2.6% in 2010 thanks to green jobs

    The city’s 9,000-plus clean-tech jobs at manufacturing companies like Advent Solar and Schott AG have helped make it a hub of environmentally-friendly work.

  24. Ogden, Utah has been growing at a rate of 8.6% for new green jobs each year

    The 927 jobs the Ogden area has added in recent years are thanks to openings created at green companies like recycling company American Specialty Glass Inc. and green manufacturer W.R. Grace & Co.

also published here

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Settlement Patterns in Ancient India

Posted on April 21, 2012 by Rashid Faridi
Copy of an old etching of the ghats of the anc...

Copy of an old etching of the ghats of the ancient city of Benares in India. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Some of the plans of rural settlements in Ancient India have been discussed elaborately in the ancient texts like Manasara Shilpashastra. Shilpashastras are old Sanskrit texts which were possibly compiled about the fifth or sixth century B.C. but the tradition which they indicate are of greater antiquity. VideHavels wrote about them in Ancient and medieval Architecture of India, 1915. P.K. Acharya translated them into English with his own comments entitled as Indian Architecture in five volumes in 1927.

Most of the plans are rectangular or square and do not appear to differ in essentials. Each village was surrounded by a wall and ditch for defense purposes. There were generally four gates in the middle of the four quarters. The centre of the village was generally occupied by a temple, tank or public hall. The four quarters were further sub-divided by straight streets. Each block was inhabited on the basis of caste or  profession, the best quarters being generally given to Brahmins and the high caste. The easterly axis of the general plan and the intersection of the urban street by north south running shorter streets bean relationship with climatic conditions. Such an arrangement ensured the advantage of sun-light and the proper circulation of fresh air.

The plans of rural settlements do not seem to have survived in the true form. When one speak of the village plan, one refers to the layout of the Basti (inhibited site) resulting from the arrangement of houses and  village streets of panes. In this sense a definite pattern has emerged only in the case of compact or linear settlements which are very limited in number. At times the settlements are so irregularly huddled together that it becomes very difficult to recognize the definite pattern.

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India stands tall today: Agni 5 launch

Posted on April 19, 2012 by Rashid Faridi

 5,000 km range Agni 5 missile was launched from a test range at Wheeler Island off the coast of Odisha at 8.07 am. It took 15 minutes to reach its target in Southern Indian Ocean.

Agni-V is a solid fueled intercontinental ballistic missile under development by DRDO of India. It will greatly expand India’s reach to strike targets well beyond 5,500 km away.The Agni-V is a three stage solid fueled missile with composite motor casing in the third stage. In many aspects, the Agni-5 carries forward the Agni-3 pedigree. With composites used extensively to reduce weight, and a third stage added on (the Agni-3 was a two-stage missile), the Agni-5 can fly 1,500 km further than the 3,500 km range Agni-III.Two stages of this missile will be made of composite material. Advanced technologies like ring laser gyroscope and accelerometer will be used in the new missile.

The advantage for Agni-5 is that it specially suited for road-mobility. The missile will utilize a canister and will be launched from it. During firing, the canister will be able to absorb enormous stresses when a thrust of 300 to 400 tonnes is generated to eject the 50-tonne missile.

Agni-V will feature Multiple Independent Re-entry Vehicles (MIRVs) with each missile being capable of carrying 3-10 separate nuclear warheads. Each warhead can be assigned to a different target, separated by hundreds of kilometres; alternatively, two or more warheads can be assigned to one target.MIRVs ensure a credible second strike capability even with few missiles.

Political Implications

According to C. Uday Bhaskar,defence analyst and former Director of the New Delhi-based National Maritime Foundation,the run-up to the Agni V missile launch has seen many references to China and the fact that with a 5,000-km missile India will now be able to ‘balance’ its imposing neighbour. The reality is more modest. China already has a range of proven ICBM in its inventory that straddle the 5,000 to 10,000 km bandwidth. India cannot acquire any equivalence with China in the WMD domain, nor is it warranted. More importantly, Beijing has a geo-political missile in Rawalpindi and the scope and depth of the Sino-Pak nuclear-missile cooperation adds to the Indian security challenge.

The  test is a significant technology demonstrator and its strategic implications need to be placed in appropriate context. When inducted into India’s strategic forces command (SFC), a proven ICBM capability would enhance India’s deterrent capability. This in turn would enhance the credibility of Delhi’s No First Use (NFU) commitment as regards the use of nuclear weapons. The Indian doctrine is predicated on not being the first party to use the apocalyptic nuclear weapon — but conveying to its potential adversaries who chose to go down this path that the retaliation which will inevitably follow will be ‘massive’.

Links and Sources:

Rediff , Wikipedia ,Reuters

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