Current progress in technology has made wireless networking in our homes more of a necessity than a convenience. We rely upon wireless connections to our laptops, cell phones, MP3 and DVD players, and even our blasted TVs. To utilize all of the features packed away in these gadgets, and to be connected we need to have Linksys router a device that sends data traffic from one network to another. Thus nearly every home in a residential block will be clogging airspace with perpetual transmissions from innumerable wireless devices.
Networking In Our Homes
January 29, 2010 By
Tricho Cards To Control Pests In Paddy Fields
January 9, 2010 By
With every day dawning with a new pest threat for the Kuttanad farmer, newer methods of tackling the threats are being experimented all across the agricultural belt. And help too, is coming in from various quarters.
After the Kuttanad Vikasana Samithi, which will experiment the tricho card in about 2,000 acres in Kuttanad during this puncha season, the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), a Bangalore-based non-governmental organisation, is now offering the same anti-pest measure with subsidies for farmers in the region.
Surrogate host
Tricho-cards have pasted onto them eggs of a surrogate host infested with Trichogramma larvae, which release pests that tackle other pests like leaf roller worms or stem borer worms, which are common threats in paddy fields. The pests that emerge from the eggs on the card, after doing their job, either move on or die without enough food, thus creating no further threat for the crop.
Each tricho card contains about 20,000 parasitised eggs. Each hectare requires around three to five cards.
The cards are attached to coconut leaves, and are planted among the paddy three to four times every 10 to 15 days.
ATREE, according to its programme officer Jojo T.D., has begun its experiment with the tricho card, which is based on the concept of using lab-reared pests to tackle wild pests.
The card was used in 55 acres in the Aymanam panchayat of the neighbouring Kottayam district from December 19, with the local Krishi Bhavan providing a 50 per cent subsidy and ATREE, another 25 per cent subsidy for the farmer.
Organic produce
Training to use the cards were imparted to the farmers and ATREE is now preparing to take the initiative to other panchayats as well, including those in the Kuttanad belt of Alappuzha district.
No side effects
The tricho cards, they say, do not have any biological side-effects, and with the use of artificial pesticides being avoided, the paddy thus produced can be labelled as organic.
“In fact, the Aymanam panchayat is planning to move for organic certification of the paddy cultivated in the 55 acres where we used the tricho-card,” Mr. Jojo said, adding that ATREE was willing to help any padasekharam samithi in Kuttanad which approached it for assistance in using tricho cards. The Hindu
Iran Rejects Nuclear Swap Deadline Set By US
December 25, 2009 By
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast on Wednesday rejected a nuclear swap deadline set by the United States, the state-run IRNA news agency reported.
On Tuesday, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said that December is “a very real deadline” for Iran to “pursue its responsibilities” on the nuclear issue.
Responding to Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s defiance over the year-end deadline, Gibbs said while Ahmadinejad “may not recognize … the deadline that looms, but that is a very real deadline for the international community.”
Mehmanparast said that Iran rejects the December deadline for Iran to accept a deal for swapping enriched uranium with nuclear fuel, adding that the new deadline is not something new.
Tehran is still waiting for response from six major countries to its nuclear fuel swap proposal, Mehmanparast said.
Iran has proposed to swap nuclear fuel at the Iranian Kish Island to secure fuel supply for a Tehran medical research reactor and the six major countries might have a new proposal to offer, he said.
“Iran welcomes any proposal to meet the demand for fuel to the Tehran reactor,” he was quoted as saying.
“Iran has adopted a crystal clear stand on its peaceful nuclear activities and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is responsible to provide Iran with nuclear fuel based on its Charter and the Non-Proliferation Treaty,” Mehmanparast said.
“If they refuse to meet our legal demand, it will be quite natural for Iran to produce 20 percent nuclear fuel for the reactor,” he said.
Under a draft deal brokered by the UN nuclear watchdog, most of Iran’s existing low-grade enriched uranium would be shipped to Russia and France by the end of the year, where it would be processed into fuel rods with the purity of 20 percent.
The higher-level enriched uranium would be transported back to Iran to be used in the research reactor in Tehran for the manufacture of medical radioisotopes.
Iran has rejected the deal, demanding a simultaneous exchange between low and higher level enriched uranium inside the country.
The United States and its Western allies have been accusing Iran of secretly developing nuclear weapons under the disguise of civilian nuclear power. Iran has denied the accusation and stressed its nuclear program is only for peaceful purposes.
The United States has threatened another round of UN sanctions against Iran if it does not abide by the year-end deadline. China Daily
Determine Benchmark Price
December 3, 2009 By
In today’s world of technology, computers are found in most aspects of our daily life, and for some it is hard to even imagine a world without them. Most households do have them and of course in the workplace too. It is one of the great tools in connecting people with their friends and families from far-flung areas. And since holiday is past approaching, so are the shoppers also looking for deals on laptop and desktop computers. Buying a computer online is easy and can be considerably cheaper than purchasing from a physical retailer. All you have to do now is research prices first when buying online or if not, visit manufacturer websites and check prices and shipping rates on the desired computer or laptop model to possibly determine a benchmark price.
Bredesen: Biofuels Investment Back In ‘Good Shape’
November 11, 2009 By
Gov. Phil Bredesen said Tuesday that a private investment deal is back on track following discussions between the company and the head of a legislative panel that questioned a state-backed biofuels initiative in East Tennessee.
The Legislature’s Fiscal Review Committee last week delayed approval for an $11 million contract to operate the University of Tennessee plant to turn switchgrass into ethanol. The Democratic governor responded that the move was “outrageous,” and could have scuttled a previously unannounced investment related to the project.
But subsequent conversations between the head of the legislative panel, Republican Sen. Bill Ketron of Murfreesboro, and the company have soothed fears over the future of the project and returned the deal into “good shape,” Bredesen told reporters Tuesday.
“When you’re a sophisticated company I think you sometimes understand how politics works,” Bredesen said. “Once we convinced them this was not some rump effort to turn Tennessee away from a commitment to solar power, but really something that was much more of a political transaction, I think it made them comfortable.”
Bredesen said he considers the switchgrass project among the state’s solar power efforts because it is made from a renewable resource grown by the sun.
“I think we’ve got this all straightened out,” said Ketron. “We see the opportunity for the citizens of Tennessee and we’ll move forward in this.”
As originally envisioned, the facility was to produce 5 million gallons of ethanol per year that could be sold to pay the operating costs of the research refinery. Under subsequent changes, the facility will now produce only about 250,000 gallons annually.
Officials say that’s enough to determine whether the process of turning switchgrass to fuel will work for a full-size refinery, but the legislative review staff said it’s not enough to pay for ongoing costs.
After a presentation from Jim White, the panel’s executive director, several lawmakers raised questions about the project and Ketron suggested future investment could fall victim to the state’s budget crunch.
Ketron on Tuesday chalked up those concerns to a lack of communication between the administration, lawmakers and White. Had they known about the potential third-party investment, “it would have changed the whole perspective,” he said.
“We just all need to be focused on working together and communicating,” Ketron said. By Erik Schelzig, Houston Chronicle
One Of The Best Ways To Gain Quality
October 28, 2009 By
You know guys; directory submission is still one of the best ways to gain quality one way links. These are when a website links back to without you linking to them. These links are important factor where search engines uses to determine your website’s rankings. Further, these links can lead to improved search engine rankings, and ultimately more visitors will be coming to your site. But the main problem with submitting site to directories is how time consuming the task can be. Building your websites link popularity is quite hard enough, and so to have your site submitted easily and quickly, web directories is the answer. The new directory was prompted by the flood of incoming requests received each day from people around the world asking for their favorite sites to be added to the menu.
Inexpensive Solution For Carrying Files
October 28, 2009 By
Have your normal workflow productivity resources on the drive. Yes, now you can store, carry and transfer files quickly in an affordable, convenient device. Branded flash drive has been around for almost ten years. It is a mini hard drive, or a mini storage device for all kinds of files. It helps budget conscious users break storage barrier, allowing you to easily store and move files in a device no bigger than a pocketknife. As easy as click and drag, branded flash drive can hold just about any file you can think of – reports, pictures, spreadsheets or any other important documents. It works virtually on any device with USB port and also a reliable, inexpensive solution for carrying files for your easy access anytime you want it.