1. The law of darkness.

                The law of darkness state that if you ware to do anything g in the darkness, you will probably do the opposite and get the negative results.

2. The law of electricity.

                The laws of electricity states that you will have a blackout when you are doing something important with the electricity.

3. The law of education.

                The law of education state that the person who becomes number one during the first test in school will never become last and the last will never become first forever.

4. The law of food.

                The law of food state that if come home and find there is food ,the hunger goes away, but wait until you come and get  there is no food, you become 4times hungry.

5. The law of class assignment.

                The law of class assignment state that the teacher will most likely check your class assignment when you haven’t done it.

Aircraft carrier needs electricity on larger scale to run its machinery. There is installed a ghostly Air-condition system that keeps the crew and equipments safe from heat. There is also a desalination plant that treats half million gallon water daily and there is also a big refrigeration system. This Ship keeps food which is enough for 6 thousands people for 70 days.

The purpose of all this technology is the creation of floating Airport. The flight deck covers about 4.5 acres. Underneath is a vast hanger where 100 Aircrafts can be parked. There are four ghostly lifts to shift Aircrafts from hanger to the deck. The single lift of this ship can lift around 150,000 pounds weight.

For such a large ship, certainly it needs fuel on larger scale and the same amount of space is required to keep this fuel too. Therefore, the American’s Aircraft Carriers use nuclear reactors. These reactors keep as much fuel in a smaller space that can run this ship for a decade. These reactors create steam that is run by different steam turbines. These turbines also run electric generators that provide electricity to remaining parts of the ship.

If we talk about the runway of an Aircraft Carrier, it is comparatively smaller than normal land runways. That’s why it takes support of the complex technology to overcome this lacking. When an Aircraft starts engines to take flight from the flight deck, the crew joins the steam power catapult to the front wheels of an Aircraft and as soon as the Aircraft engines pick thrust, the crew runs the shooter of the catapult. Due to which the big Aircraft gets the speed of 165 miles per hour in a distance of 300 feet. All this procedure takes only two seconds time and an Aircraft reaches the air. A new Aircraft can fly from the Aircraft Carrier after every twenty five seconds.

When landing turn comes the mentioned technology fixes the enormous cable in the hook of the Aircraft’s tail, which compels the plane to stop within 300 feet. And if cable doesn’t fixes in the hook the Aircraft takes flight again.

The above mentioned all the Aircrafts need fuel. An Aircraft carries keeps three million gallons fuel while journeying, but it is still short, therefore, Aircraft carrier never travels alone, but other smaller ships also travels with it, which is called sea fleet. This sea fleet contains Guided Missile, Cruise, two destroyer, two submarines and one frigate.

The American Aircraft carriers are of stunning capabilities. Likewise following America other countries of the world have also tried to make their sea fleets. Britain is trying to make many sea fleets, which will be operational till 2017. Russia has planned to make twelve sea fleets. China and India are also desirous of making sea fleets. It seems that in the next decade many sea fleets will be seen floating in the sea, which will change the shape of the sea altogether.

By Muhammad Irfan Zafar

Content Writer

Thomas Alva Edison, a walk through time.

Thomas Edison with his phonograph ; 1877

Thomas Alva Edison (more commonly known as Thomas Edison) was born on February 11, 1847 in Milan, Ohio, United States but grew up in Port Huron, Michigan. He was the seventh child of Samuel Ogden Edison, Jr. And Nancy Matthews Elliott. In school, young Edison’s mind often wandered and his teacher called him addled. Much of his education came from reading R.G. Parker’s School of Natural Philosophy. He had some hearing problems at a young age which was caused by a scarlet fever during childhood which left him with an untreated ear infection. In the middle of his career his chemical laboratory in a boxcar caught fire which then he was thrown out of the train for. He sold candy and newspapers on trains, and he sold vegetables to supplement his income. Thanks to this, he gained experience and talents as a businessman with eventually led him to founding 14 companies including one of the largest publicly traded companies in the world; General Electric; which is still in existence.

Thomas Edison 1878

Edison became a telegraph operator after saving 3 year-old Jimmie MacKenzie from being stuck by a runaway train which then led Jimmie’s father to training Edison as a telegraph operator. He was working the night shift when working with a lead-acid battery when he spilled sulfuric acid onto the floor, he was fired the next day. Thomas Edison began his career as an inventor, but the invention which first gained him notice was the phonograph. This accomplishment made the public thought even magical. However, it had poor sound quality and the recordings could only be played a few times. He gained money for his inventions through selling them hoping to get $4000 – $5000, in which he got $10000.

It is a common misconception to say that Thomas Edison invented the first electric light bulb, but instead invented the first commercially practical incandescent light. By 1879, Thomas Edison produced a new concept which was a high resistance lamp in a very high vacuum which would burn for hundreds of hours. He first tried many experiment with platinum and other metal filaments but returned to a carbon filament. In 1878, Edison formed the Edison Electric Light Company, and made the first public demonstration of incandescent light bulb on December 31, 1879, in Menlo Park. He even said that “We will make electricity so cheap that only the rich will burn candles”.

Thomas Edison 1889

On October 8, 1883, the US patent office said that Edison’s patent was based on the work of William Sawyer and was therefore invalid, but until October 6, 1889, a judge ruled that Edison’s electric light improvement claim for “a filament of carbon of high resistance” was valid. He did not want another court battle with Joseph Swan, whose British patent had been awarded a year before Edison’s, he decided to form a joint company called Ediswan to manufacture and market the invention in Britain.

With knowledge that he gained from working as a telegraph operator, he learned the basics electricity. This made him able to make his early fortune with the stock ticker which was the first electricity-based broadcast system. He was also granted a patent for the motion picture camera or “Kinetograph”. In 1891, Thomas Edison built a Kinetoscope, or peep-hole viewer and this device was installed in arcades which people could watch short, simple films. His favorite movie was The Birth of a Nation which is one of the most racist movies ever created, and it was produced by the Ku Klux Klan. President Woodrow Wilson also favorited this movie.

Thomas Edison died of complications of diabetes on October 18, 1931, in his home, “Glenmont” which was in Llewellyn Park in West Orange, New Jersey, which he purchased in 1886 as a wedding gift for his wife Mina. He is buried behind his home. Edison’s last breath is contained in a test tube at the Henry Ford Museum. Ford reportedly convinced Charles Edison to seal a test tube of air in Thomas Edison’s room shortly after his death. A plaster death mask was also made.

He died on October 18, 1931 in West Orange, New Jersey, United States.

         According to the the “experts” on ancient alien encounters, when the Israelites were in the wilderness, found in Exodus, they had a manna machine. This machine would make manna out of the moisture in the air, and certain types of algae. It would use a type of laser and heat to make the algae and moister merge, and age faster.

        This picture is of a re-creation of the “manna machine” they believe the Israelites had. They say the power supply would have been stored in the arc of the covenant. According to them, this would explain why people often died when they touched the arc, because the power supply would have been radioactive. ”Ancient Aliens” claims this machine would have been given to the Israelites as a gift by extraterrestrials, or that it was stolen from the Egyptians when they left.

        These stories seem a little far fetched, and are made just to explain why it might be possible, for these amazing events in history, to have happened without divine intervention.

         ”Ancient Aliens” often challenges Christianity, and Christian beliefs, to learn more click here.

Matthew West

Spring 2008

Perspectives and Initiatives for Energy Efficiency and Combating Climate Change in Guanajuato, Mexico: A Report

Imagine that you live in Bangladesh and that your family’s livelihood has for as long as anyone alive in it can remember, been fishing. Naturally, you might live near the coast. Now imagine that for the past five or six years your family has had to relocate farther inland two or three times due to rising sea levels; your country is essentially on the verge of disappearance.

The facts and evidence are out there, global warming is a problem. Our planet, at least as far as we know at the moment, is not an unlimited reservoir of resources. We are beginning (at the very least) to understand what happens when we are not careful, responsible stewards of our planet. The effects are not always obvious to identify, but we can notice plenty by following what is now more or less basic science. When we burn excessive amounts of fossil fuels, the release of greenhouse gases contributes to rises in global temperatures, which greatly affect living conditions around the world, some regions so much that it pushes people to the breaking point, like Bangladesh and tiny islands in Indonesia. The existence of these islands is increasingly threatened by rising sea levels, caused by the melting of polar ice caps, itself caused by the rise in global temperatures.

Some maintain global warming is still just a theory, that we cannot be sure humans are the principal cause of this global trend in temperature increases and climate pattern alterations. However, when large numbers of expert scientists from several different countries, who have more or less devoted their lives to the study of our environment, tell us that we are causing a great deal of the damage, I can only conclude that it would be foolish to ignore their warnings.

Beginning from the most basic logic, we can say that if a global problem exists, a problem that either now or later will affect just about everyone on our planet, the best way to combat it and maybe solve it as soon as possible would surely have to include the participation of just about every part of the world. Therefore, we can apply this logic to our world’s looming climate crisis. If we really intend to curb greenhouse gas emissions and begin to stabilize and eventually lower the temperature of our planet, it is going to require initiatives from all parts of the globe, from the largest cities to the smallest villages. Any progress in this department is often attributed solely to large cities and states, but we must not fail to acknowledge what actions people are and are not taking in smaller communities either, and give them credit where it is due. And although we can certainly say the most immediately effective changes will be made only by the actions of the largest states and cities, there also must exist a certain mindset among our world’s people about the problem and what each individual can do to contribute to its resolution. For without the mindset, there can be no initiative to change. This means raising awareness, developing institutions, organizations, clubs, etc devoted to this purpose, in order to engrain in the minds of citizens that we must all participate if we truly want to fight this problem.

And so it is with all this in mind, as well as my interest in what everyday working people and small towns can do towards global collaboration, that I intend to examine what is being done towards and what mentalities exist about the climate problem in one moderately-sized town of about one hundred thousand in south central Mexico, Guanajuato, Guanajuato. An examination of climate-change mentality just might point us in the right direction as to where we need to take people mentally, so that climate change contributions become a part of everyday concerns. Additionally, such an examination will hopefully reveal to us what is being done and what more needs to be done in Guanajuato and places similar to Guanajuato, as well as what sort of things are inhibiting further and more effective action, the effect that is having on the climate, and how we can help these places to do more. In order to gain this information and perspectives, I resolved to shed light on some of the more informed perspectives on what is being done about climate change in Guanajuato, speaking with officials at any local environmentally-related organizations I could find. To complement this with an idea of what action is currently visible and what the average citizens observes, I spoke with a few randomly-chosen, ordinary citizens here in Guanajuato, in order to try to get some sort of sample of how Guanajuatans view things, what they do to combat the problem, and what their perceptions are about larger scale efforts to combat the problem in their area. We can reasonably infer that significant government efforts at combating climate change and the energy crisis, if they exist, would be visible to ordinary citizens in Guanajuato, as the problem affects all and in almost all arenas. In short, we shall see what the citizens see.

Several miles northeast of the city of Guanajuato lies a rather secluded environmental and outdoor recreational park by the name of Las Palomas. The facilities and grounds are designated an ANP by the local government, which stands for Area Natural Protegida, or Natural Protected Area. This designation by the government and the fact that the Guanajuatan state government itself posts its Ecological Institute sign on the bulletin board at the entrance to the facility might suggest that the government here is actually doing the protecting. However, those that work at the facility do not exactly attest to this. The park at Las Palomas is run by several workers, most of whom are young and some of whom are studying for future environmentally related careers, who rotate in weekly shifts at the facility, performing various tasks other than mere facility maintenance. They assist in the provision of the main activity at Las Palomas, environmental education. While the intricacies of basic, long-known environmental science may not seem immediately relevant here, the majority of what Palomas does is hold workshops to educate children about the fragility of our environment and how we must act responsibly regarding our everyday use of environmental resources. We must not underestimate the care for the environment that is almost always engendered into human minds upon a greater understanding of it.

One of the first things I noticed when approaching the entrance at Las Palomas is that virtually all of the acreage leading up to the facility itself is carved up into small canals, which are used for retaining water so that at least a decent level of moisture may be retained in the generally dry soil around the area. This attempt to conserve rainfall is reflective of the general state of things here in Guanajuato: water is scarce and most citizens are used to this problem. In addition though, the water detainments at Las Palomas do not just help to maintain the conditions of the soil, but in turn naturally provide a more fertile base for the trees planted on their grounds for reforestation projects. Many of the names of the trees are labeled on the trees themselves with wooden planks for educational purposes. The principal activities at Las Palomas are as follows: environmental education of children, reforestation/soil conservation, and the separation of organic and inorganic trash. Organic trash is used to develop compost to put back into the soil.

The use of natural gas is far and away the principal means used here in Guanajuato for heating water and cooking in general. General electricity comes from the local power plants, which a local engineering student told me were some of the nicest he has seen, obviously implying how much the local government here puts into them. Guanajuato has historically been one of the richest states in Mexico. At Las Palomas, natural gas is only used for cooking; all other electrical power is solar. As you make your way up the pathway that leads to the entrance of Las Palomas, you immediately notice two large solar panels on your right and left, each with alternating positive and negative energy converters attached to the under-side of the panels. Las Palomas runs camping grounds as well, any electrical power for which is also provided by the sun. It is generally quite sunny for most of the time in Guanajuato, especially during the dry season when I was there and consequently, the manager at Las Palomas, whom I will refer to as Amelia, told me that the solar panels they use could not really be more useful and effective. She says they are reliable, and although sort of expensive to purchase at the outset, last for very long periods of time and require little maintenance.

It is obviously recognizable that a significant effort at preserving natural resources and combating climate change should include the implementation, at least as the next step, of these types of alternative energy sources, like solar power. Since Guanajuato is often so sunny, one might assume it could easily implement and benefit from solar power. Theoretically, it could. But according to Amelia, who is twenty-eight years old and studying to be an environmental engineering professor, the local government in Guanajuato will not permit the widespread commercial selling or distribution of alternative energy sources, like solar and wind power. All of these initiatives must be private. At the same time, Amelia, who has been the manager of the ten-year-old park for three years now, says the local government provides very little financial assistance to the park, despite basically claiming it as a part of one of its divisions. Las Palomas relies on donations and the small entry fees it charges for visitors in order to maintain its facilities and practices. Amelia considers the environmental education that takes place at the park to be essential to any effort at ingraining climate change awareness, or simply environmental preservation, into the minds of little ones. But the amount of children Amelia receives at Las Palomas is not a lot, she says, and the ones that do come do not come often. She knows of no other environmental education/preservation program or facility similar to hers in the immediate Guanajuato area. Nor did Braulio, the other worker I spoke to.

Amelia seems to think the government is afraid to implement alternative energy technologies, even when the potential benefits are obvious- the frequent sun and wind in Guanajuato could generate much power- at least partially because the current energy provision is provided by the government itself here. So, if this is a source of revenue for the government, one might understand the reluctance to abandon any solid source of income that already exists and is already providing jobs and energy for citizens who need it. Supposedly, according to Amelia, some governmental programs do exist in the area and are largely devoted to what she thinks are the government’s only three environmental priorities: recycling, reforestation, and water conservation; the first of which is quite basic and the last of which is essential and unique to the area. She is not convinced the government does much of this out of a concern for the environment rather than the simple need to conserve water so that people can live, keep the city relatively clean, and prevent the surrounding area from becoming a barren, tree-less wasteland. Her research and experience has not revealed to her any kind of collective, consistent commitment on the part of the local government to maintaining the health of the trees that are planted in reforestation projects, trees that likely represent our planet’s principal carbon-vacuum like process. For instance, she suggested that for the most part, when trees are planted the planter regard their work completed and do not return to check the health of the tree.

For Amelia, the problem is one of enforcement and education. She feels that greater enforcement mechanisms are needed to more or less threaten citizens with forms of punishment for failing to comply with environmental regulations that need to be in place. It may even be necessary for the government to sponsor programs to raise awareness or, as she put it, to almost frighten people into fearing for their own existence or the existence of their children in the future with daunting displays of the potential catastrophic effects of rising sea levels, droughts, air contamination, etc. This may be the only way to truly move the problem from the back of people’s minds to somewhere near the middle, at the least. And this is what Amelia feels is another large part of the problem: our mindsets. We here warnings about the problem, but then we routinely forget about it and go on about our everyday lives, possibly leaving the presentation we just saw about climate change by getting in our SUV’s and driving home. A consistent message might serve to bring the concern to the forefront of our minds each day and eventually affect our actions.

As regards her own private efforts, Amelia claims to do the things that we all need to be doing at this point, the simple things that add up to big differences: refraining from using lights unless they are greatly needed, keeping electrical devices off when they are not being used, utilizing public transportation when possible, recycling plastic, glass, paper, etc. But she does not observe similar activity among her peers, who seem to hear about the problem, express concern, but then continue living seemingly unaffected or unmoved to significant action. Nor does she give much credit to the generation older than her, of whom many seem to be stuck in their old, traditional, inefficient ways. Supposedly and hopefully, these enforcement mechanisms of which I spoke earlier could serve to motivate these types of people.

Guanajuato seems to be promoting an extensive campaign towards recycling and the proper disposal of trash. Simply walking around the city one notices signs reminding people how to dispose of different particular kinds of trash, and the Ecological Institute issues pamphlets detailing its activities in recycling. The trash problem might not be something obviously and directly related to climate change, but upon further inquiry it can teach us what kind of environmentally harmful and atmosphere-warming chemicals are released into the air and the land when say, for instance, a plastic bottle is left lying around in a field for several months at a time. Secondly, the trash problem can give us an idea about the city’s general concern for the environment and just how big a priority it is. Guanajuato is a city of twists and turns and hidden alleys and hidden spaces and while walking a good ways away from downtown, one frequently stumbles upon large heaps of trash piled up in spaces the sizes of the plots for moderately-sized houses. Essentially, hidden garbage reservoirs.

Anita is an elderly woman who teaches yoga at a local gym in Guanajuato. She has lived in Guanajuato all her life. She remembers when winters were actually cold here and when she was a girl how it did not become so hot so early during the year, telling me how around spring time the temperature used to hover in between twenty-five and twenty-eight degrees Celsius. She regularly observes it to now rarely drop below thirty. The host father with whom I have been living here for the past four months has told me more or less the same thing. The citizens who have been here a long time have noticed significant long-term temperature increases. Although Anita believes this process of global warming to have been occurring since the creation of our earth, she recognizes how the process is largely evolutionary, how at certain points in time we cross certain temperature thresholds and the problem eventually reaches a point demanding significant human action to curb the effects. We are only now being warned about the problem because its effects are only now glaringly obvious to even an almost environmentally-apathetic individual. According to Anita, our earth is not yet contaminated, but will be soon if we do not act. Contamination is what she focuses on to be a great portion of the problem, namely, air pollution from factories and water pollution from contaminated rivers and other water sources. She sees the abundant factories in the nearby city of Leon and resource processing plants to be some of the greatest contributors to the local problem. At least this is likely the manifestation of what she also, like Amelia, believes to be the root of the problem: our minds.

Anita however, views the mind problem as one largely related to consumerism. In short, we are an overly-consumerist society that simply out of ignorance thinks it is perfectly acceptable to continue consuming unnecessary amounts of products, products whose creation at this point in time stem from traditional manufacturing methods (not renewable ones) and that contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. Or on the other hand, plenty of us are aware of the effect our consumption has on the environment, but simply do not care out of selfishness. She simply pin-points material greed as an enormous part of the problem. And she is right; we can learn to do without excessive amounts of irresponsibly-produced products, especially if we are convinced it means the continued well-being of our lives on earth and those of our children. Hopefully, though, we can motivate people to altruistically care for the environment that we are largely in control of, instead of merely keeping it from going to waste so that we can use it again in the future.

Again, a citizen points to increased education when it comes to possible remedies. But more specifically, Anita and Amelia both feel the education needs to start from a very basic level in young children (whose minds are sponges), so that upon growing up, these children will have environmental care and maintenance engrained as an increasingly important priority in their daily lives. And fortunately, a proposal Anita supports, largely amounting to fining trash polluters and replanting what one destroys, is already in the works. In the April nineteenth edition of one of Guanajuato’s newspapers, a.m., there appeared an article listing the functions of a newly-passed law within the city, some of which included the punishment of institutions, businesses, and individual people for the improper disposal of waste, a mandate for those who cut down trees to replant more, and the creation of an additional committee devoted to the restoration and preservation of ecosystems in the surrounding area. 1

One of the biggest concerns regarding clean energy today is an economic one. We simply cannot ask poverty-stricken people to invest in alternative energy technologies in the name of preserving the environment, when they are in large part more concerned about the preservation of their families. This is only human. The poor are the ones generally buying the cheapest, most inefficient, polluting vehicles. This is particularly evident in Guanajuato, as the most popular cars are old, cheap, gas-guzzling, inefficient American models. The poor are also the ones more or less dependent upon cheap but dirty energy provided by the government. But the government has an argument here as well: it helps provide cheap energy to its struggling citizens. However, this is where gradual change and implementation play a role. Guanajuato is a windy and sunny place. Solar panels are expensive but can be subsidized for and wind turbines are cheap. Hence, the government would not have to charge so much for this type of energy, in turn making it affordable for middle to lower economic class citizens. And at the very least those of us who are already financially capable to make such energy shifts are the ones who have to start and eventually spread the practices.

Some of the good news is that these sorts of proposals for wind energy have already been made and are at least in the midst of the stage of transforming the idea/proposal into visible, effective action. The Catholic monument and frequent tourist destination in the Guanajuato area, Cristo Rey, is one of the highest points in the area and consequently would serve as “the principal potential to install wind energy generators” for the cities of Guanajuato and Leon, as some of the steadiest horizontal wind currents take place up there.2 The proposal I speak of also includes the collaboration of a Leon-based business and el Instituto de Investigaciones Electricas in the creation of an experimental, enormous wind-energy generator at this location. They have also proposed to map out the areas on tops of hills in Guanajuato where other significant wind currents could give significant basis for the construction of more of these experimental machines. What about wind mills? The ideas are out there, as well as those who support them and would have them implemented. The next step is implementation.

Additional, but at the very least hopeful developments may be found in the local government’s official statements and occasionally, hard laws like the one previously mentioned over waste disposal. On the state government’s website(the city of Guanajuato is the capital of the state of Guanajuato), one can find general statements that are referred to as “advantages” of running an environmentally-friendly, limited energy using, innovative, and globally-minded business.3 Upon further exploration one notices governmental “recommendations” for ways in which the city as a whole can act to protect the local environment, in the hopes of maintaining a healthy place to live for current Guanajuatans and those of future generations.4 Not surprisingly however, the vast majority of these environment-related postings center on care for the surrounding environment and especially, the conservation of water, which is likely the most threatening problem at the moment for the people of Guanajuato. There is no shame in this, as humans simply need water to survive, but we must not overlook the great effect this has of diverting the concerns of many Guanajuatans to simply their own state’s well-being, if not just their own individual well-being. Local water conservation likely has positive implications for the globe in general, but in this case does not seem to be directed towards or motivated by a larger-scale concern for our globe’s climate problems.

A further student I spoke with named Bris, who is nineteen years old, living in Guanajuato and studying at The University of Guanajuato, offered a shockingly honest account of her own patterns of action-provoking thought regarding global climate change. She first told me that she simply does not do much to combat the problem, but then later, perhaps from a sense of guilt, mentioned she did do some basic things like making sure unneeded electricity was turned off. But she said she does not really notice the government doing anything either. This might have been what lead her to then mention the outlooks of many of her friends, who are aware of the problem, but do not really act to mitigate its effects because they simply feel their efforts would be of no avail, as they also observe little large, institutional, or just collective action. She even conceded that a great deal of pessimism exists among her friends that reside at an increased level of awareness of the problem and are more familiar with its effects. Bris’ impressions of governmental action in the area towards combating climate change seemed to resemble that of previous interviewees, largely consisting of admissions that governmental officials here simply have more pressing priorities. This primarily includes the well-being of the citizens of the city, which in Guanajuato, and Mexico in general, boils down to economic, job related concerns. So logically, the contribution of the city of Guanajuato towards diminishing the effects of global warming is a bit farther down their list of priorities. The trash collection, reforestation, and energy efficiency related programs (that were few) that she said she noticed seemed to always be cut short, likely due these more directly alarming priorities of economic well-being.

We might pinpoint time and money as the root of the problem here in Guanajuato, the underlying reason that more is not done to initiate large-scale climate change mitigation efforts. For starters, three people I spoke to all emphasized to me that the city government officials here only remain in power for four to six years. During their time in office, they supposedly want to secure for themselves an excellent reputation in the eyes of their citizens. They want to get re-elected. This means making changes that take effect quickly and on large scales. Our planet’s climate crisis does not lend well to this pattern. Actions towards combating our climate problem naturally must start small and slowly accrue to have a long-term positive effect. And no governmental official wants to do just a little. Theoretically, they would not want to spend their time contributing to efforts that will take the equivalent of at least five or six of the time periods they could be in office to come to fruition. At the same time, any reason that there might not be sufficient funds within the government here to mandate large-scale climate-savvy action is difficult to justify when one receives information from people who have lived in Guanajuato all of their lives regarding excessively high salaries for government officials. Anita specifically mentioned that the government here also continues to send much money to retired governmental officials. The other, and arguably more legitimate side of the economic problem, has already been mentioned but resides in the fact that many citizens rely on the cheap energy the government currently provides and in a larger sense rely on the cheap(but often inefficient and dirty) provision of energy in all respects. Their concern for their own economic well-being naturally precedes that of the well-being of our planet.

So, what can we conclude from all of this? A number of things. The city of Guanajuato is not completely devoid of well-managed, properly guided initiatives to do its part, or what it can, to contribute towards the alleviation of our planet’s climate crisis. But it is not full of them either. The ones that exist range from mere suggestions or recommendations to hard governmental laws that threaten to punish businesses and individuals for insufficient consideration of the environment amidst their regular practices to recycling projects to reforestation efforts to predominantly privately lead alternative and clean energy initiatives. Some of Guanajuato’s own unique factors, principally economic, seem to have a great affect on climate change action, as we have already seen. From what I have gathered myself, there does seem to exist some sort of gap in between what the government says it supports and does, and what the citizens in the city observe the government doing. The governmental initiatives that do exist tend to be mostly geared to benefit a specifically Guanajuatan population, while the majority of globally-minded efforts in the city seem to come from individual, private efforts. These often take the form of simple action within people’s own homes, ranging from utilizing the bulgingly popular and more efficient compact-fluorescent light bulb, limited use of products made from non-renewable sources (plastic, styrofoam, etc.), keeping lights and other electrical devices turned off when not being used, use of public transportation and natural light, and more.

Fortunately, we also see ideas being proposed to install solar and wind energy receptors around the Guanajuato area. But these will be hard-pressed to take positive effect unless the government here embraces them by allowing them to be sold on a large scale or simply by beginning to provide them themselves.

Regarding the mentalities that exist among citizens in Guanajuato when it comes to the problem, it is obvious that there is no lack of awareness. The town in general may be described as fairly progressive, although somewhat conservative, and more or less informed, as it holds the liberal University of Guanajuato and retains some intellectual figures. The problem however, seems to reside in the importance and priority the problem takes in the minds of citizens here, as well as the government. This translates directly into an issue of degree. Things are being done, but they simply do not seem to be enough. This is not just from what I gathered in my own investigative and observational experience, but judging from the words of citizens in Guanajuato as well. The inhibitions to this further action seem to be particularly strong, especially when one considers the great potential this area has for wind and solar energy, like we have already discussed. One might think environment and energy related concerns like these would be nearer to the front of people’s minds and therefore priorities, especially given the fact that the area already has significant problems with water scarcity, erosion, dryness of land, and deforestation. But unfortunately, much of the formal concern and initiative to action stop at the local level. This helps, but our mindsets need to grow to include our planet on the whole, if it is in fact the planet we want to help. It is not unreasonable to propose that harsh threats of punishment are in order to force people to comply with climate protection laws, as well as the implementation of some kind of display of the potentially drastic consequences that will ensue if we do not take more effective action. According to the citizens I spoke with, increased, regular and routine education about climate change are things that need to be put into action here.

My own role in this exploratory process was not intended to be one of judgment, although a certain degree of that is unavoidable. I wanted to observe, analyze, observe some more, let thoughts settle, and then analyze a bit more. I feel this was what I did. I certainly am a bit removed from the real inside situation here in Guanajuato, including that of climate change combat, and forever will be simply because I am not a Guanajuatan. But the fact remains that I can still retain some legitimacy in analyzing what efforts are being put forth in a city I have spent four months in and whether or not those efforts seem to be effective.

What has been invaluable to me about this process has been the chance to speak with real people who experience the real events, problems, and successes in the city. I have had a vested interest in climate change and our natural world for several years, but it was only until this process did I learn to appreciate the every-day realities for those who have to combat the problem, and specifically t

Between Savery’s and Watts’ time, the power of a horse was defined inconsistently by different engine makers. Watt estimated that the amount of weight a horse could pull over a given distance in a given period of time was 33,000 foot-pounds per minute, which has been the accepted definition of 1 horsepower ever since. Power is also now measured in watts, and 1 horsepower is equivalent to 746 watts.

Sources differ on how Watt came up with his definition of horsepower. Some say he based it on how quickly a draft horse could turn a mill wheel. According to another account, he based it on ponies lifting coal at a coal mine, but he increased the number by 50 percent to estimate the power of a horse, rather than that of a pony. Another source claims that Watt based it on the power of a horse but deliberately overestimated a horse’s power by 50 percent so that he would not be accused of exaggerating the number of horses his engines could replace.

In pulling contests, draft horses have been observed to have a peak power output of nearly 15 horsepower for a few seconds. The average horse cannot work at a rate of 1 horsepower over long periods, but a fit draft horse can sustain 1 horsepower for hours.

Although the definition of horsepower was standardized more than two centuries ago, the method of measuring an engine’s power has varied. For example, before the 1970s, American automakers measured and advertised their engines’ gross power—the power at the engine’s crankshaft with no belt-driven accessories. Since then automakers have quoted net horsepower—remaining power output after losses caused by standard power-consuming accessories.

Collected by:

Md. Rezaul Karim, Assistant Professor, Southern University Bangladesh

The government, for the second time in a year, raised the bulk electricity tariff by 6.66 per cent from the first day of this month. Tariff of each unit of electricity at the bulk level has moved to Tk 2.80 from Tk 2.63. Power tariff at retail level was enhanced from February this year and according to reports, the government is also contemplating raising this tariff as well. In February, the authorities enforced an 11 per cent increase in the bulk power tariff. In the second phase, it is a 6.66 per cent rise which became effective from August 1, 2011. In the first phase, each unit of electricity for bulk consumers went up to Tk 2.63 from Tk 2.37 consequent upon the power tariff hike, country’s industries and the end-users suffered a terrible blow. Consumers under Dhaka Electricity Supply Company (DESCO) and using 200 units of power paying Tk 606.50 are under the new tariff, which used to be Tk 560 until January this year. Most of the bulk power purchasers are DESCO, Dhaka Power Distribution Company Ltd (DPDC), Rural Electrification Board (REB), West Zone Power Distribution Company etc. who purchase power from PDB.

Agricultural pumps, educational and religious institutions have been kept out from the price hike. According to Bangladesh Energy Commission Act, price increment at any level must go through public hearing. This time BERC organized the hearing only for the bulk users. But the regulator increased power tariff at retail level as well. On this point, BERC said the 5.0 per cent price hike at retail level is an interim order. This hike will be readjusted after the hearing at end-users’ level. The regulator justified the price hike at retail level saying the bulk users should remain in the business. It argued that the retail price hike was nominal as the BERC tried to fix the rate considering purchasing ability of the people. Defending the price hike, the regulator said it is due to high import cost of furnace oil, and as part of efforts to cut system-loss and increase efficiency.

Already battered by endless cycles of load-shedding and outages, the general as well as commercial consumers of electricity are now faced with another predicament – a fresh hike in power tariff. The increase evoked criticism from all circles, who said the government could have waited until the acute power crisis in the country is solved. Business leaders said the hike came at a time when industries and businesses get only 30 to 40 per cent of their total requirements from power.  The Consumer rights group also voiced concern saying that the new tariff would create further pressure on the customers. If the government could fix the faults at production stage, it might not be needed to increase price in such a way, it added. If the authorities can stop pilferage, the country will be able to save a lot of electricity. The consumer rights activists wanted drastic reforms in the sector first, before giving approval to any hike for power tariff.

In all public hearings, consumers tagged uninterrupted supply to the price hike move. Consumers and members of various business organisations said if the government fails to ensure its stable supple, why should they pay the inflated bills? Representatives of various business chambers and associations also expressed their concerns on the hike. They raised questions about making a projected 110 per cent hike in three years. It is not, however, clear as to how increased tariff will address the problem of systems loss, or distribution inefficiency as long as the pilferage of power rooted in systemic corruption as well as bureaucratic sloth continues to plague the power administration.

Power generation in Bangladesh depends heavily on gas. Nearly 90 percent power was produced in 2009-10 by using gas. But the use of liquid fuel has been rising for inadequate gas supply. Presently, liquid fuel generates around 5.0 per cent of electricity, which will go up to 20 per cent in 2013. The private sector’s contribution to power generation is also rising which used to be dominated by the government only a decade ago. The country is now reeling under an acute electricity crisis coupled with low voltage and frequent load-shedding resulting in slowing down business activity, fall of industrial output and ultimate sufferings of the people. Country’s overall electricity generation is now hovering around 4,000 megawatts (mw) against the demand for over 6,000 mw. Against this backdrop, why should the government raise the electricity tariff remains a big question.

Country’s business leaders, expressing their mounting concern over the government’s fresh electricity tariff hike, said the country’s industrial growth will be severely jeopardized. A sudden and significant increase of electricity tariff would be detrimental to industry as well as the consumers, they pointed out. Cost increases should be reasonable, appropriate and within the context of the state of economy. It must take into account the impact on the economy, inflation and employment. A steep increase in tariff would provide greater incentives for theft and pilferage, they added. Due to poor and insufficient planning and necessary fund, coupled with inadequate supplies of natural gas – the main fuel for the country’s power generation – installation of much-needed power plants is being delayed. Year’s of apathy from the donor agencies in funding necessary power plants also aggravated the country’s overall electricity crisis. Nagging electrify crisis all over Bangladesh has recently become an issue of concern of the government as the power sector is deemed by critics as among the worst performing sectors of the government.

While the pilferage problem was hardly addressed, subsequent governments did not adjust power tariff in line with investment costs, pushing the PDB to a perpetual loss-making situation. Power sector experts say a tariff hike should be undertaken only after exhausting all other options for increasing power revenue. These options, as there are sufficient reasons to believe so, have not been explored to their entirety. The price of one megawatt of electricity lost due to PDB’s inefficiency is estimated at Tk 200 million. While a section of people is being benefited due to rampant corruption in the PDB, the entire power sector as a whole suffers immensely.

Past experiences suggest that when power tariff is raised, prices of essential consumer goods tend to make another jump. These are all inter-related matters. Consequent upon any power tariff hike, the prices of foodstuffs go up again in local markets, because the prices of farm inputs also go up. The general consumers and the industries of all sorts will continue to suffer from higher tariff, notwithstanding load shedding and low voltage. The authorities concerned do, first of all, need to ensure adequate electricity generation to satisfy the consumers. Without improving the situation in power sector it will not be a rational choice to force the citizens to pay for a service that they seldom get.

The stock market is rebounding in very small steps and the prediction of a double dip recession is real to all of us. We are looking at going into a severe economic depression that will be worse than the first great depression America survived. Now is the time to begin preparing for harder times.

Over the next six months it is predicted that food prices are going to increase and in the next two years gas prices are going to rise again. For those who bought homes when the market dropped for a low price are already upside down for the value of the home. Refinancing, home save through mortgage programs and trying to pay ahead are becoming a losing battle.

What can you do now? Make a new plan for times creating a third world country. The everyday family is going to be hit the hardest. So many are already out of work and have no income. Employment benefits have run out and homes have been lost. It is simply survival for most people and soon it will be daily survival for a lot more.

There will be many people living out of the cars, tents, rentals, or with family. The street people and homeless are a lot more common than in the past and trying to help them is hard when the people who provide the most help are in trouble themselves. We have to find ways to take care of ourselves and family in the most economical way possible.

First, food and shelter are the number one concern of everyone, especially families that have children to protect. If you live in a home now, make a decision if it is wise to stay or leave. If it is going to be less for you to leave the high payments behind and seek less expensive shelter, then do it now. If you are going to lose the home and there is another option, then save the money you can while you are living there to invest in another living arrangement.

If you are stable at the moment, but concerned about the future it is a good time to invest in a trailer or motor home your family can live in. Either one can plug into electricity at another home or will run on simple propane. If you must live without electricity, there are generators you can use for short periods of time. It is a lot more cost efficient than trying to live in a large home.

Find a family that is having a hard time and offer to pay utilities plus a small amount to park in their yard and use the electricity to run your own trailer. This provides them with a way to keep the utilities on without having to pay the high cost and enough to cover one more bill or help with their mortgage payment. For families in a situation of losing their home because there is not enough income, consider hosting one of the families that must live in a trailer.

Stock up on basic food now. The price is going to rise and your dollars will buy less and less. Stock up on canned vegetables, soup mixes, instant potatoes, spices from the dollar store, canned fruit and coffee. They are the basic of what you can use to cook with. If you are a bread person, then invest in flour or baking mixes.

Keep meals simple. Use a crock pot for a basic, low cost meal. Cheap cut beef, potatoes, carrots and a few spices. That is it. This will make a tasty and cheap meal to fill the stomach and feed the soul. Everyone loves their comfort food, but us it as a treat, not as a meal. Canned goods and coffee are the two items that will increase in price to the point of hurting the budget, because they are the most common and desired items.

Cook only enough to feed everyone at one meal. It slows down the waste of food that gets thrown out. If you can find food from a food bank, then get what you can and use it for the meals instead of your food stock. Learn to cook a few good meals that do not involve meat for times when meat is too expensive to purchase for every meal.

Save every cent you can. Even if you save only a few dollars a week it will pay off over the long run. You are going to have an emergency fund that will pay for another tank of gas, not six months worth of living expenses. Spend wisely or do not spend at all. Learn to say no or learn how to turn what you have into something you want or extra cash.

Start saving those aluminum cans for recycling. Take a walk to help with the stress of being homeless, in debt or in need of a little more cash. Three garbage bags of semi crushed can are about 18 pounds and depending on where you live, this can bring a few gallons of gas or pay for a doctors bill. It will help when you need to purchase medicine, buy another meal for the day or just feel good to hang on to for a few days.

Learn to trade services or skills for food, money or items you need. Cleaning homes for food or money, yard work for a place to park, volunteer work for a good meal, home care in exchange for room and board or general labor for just about anything you can use or need. Offer to help harvest a garden for a small portion of the produce. You can use it for your own family or share with others in need.

If you live in an area where hunting or fishing is common, take up a collection for enough to buy one person a fishing or hunting license. This can help to feed a lot of people or families. Deer, elk, fish and any other animal common for food use can be eaten fresh, canned or dried into jerky for easy storage and later use.

Check with local truck stops or health clubs for a one day pay or monthly investment to use the facilities. Sometimes it is much cheaper than a house payment and you will have a place to shower and clean up every day. You can have a good work out, relax for a while out of the weather, hand wash a few items, go swimming or watch TV.

Use your local library for relaxation and reading or use the computer for communication or learning a new skill. Volunteer at the local hospital to get out of the weather and help others. You may even be able to work your way into a few days of pay to help with cost for food and shelter.

It is going to be hard to survive in the next few years, but as a nation and as a community we will pull together to survive from day to day. Keep your options open, keep positive, seek help and offer help.

Collected by

Md. Rezaul Karim, Assistant Professor, Southern University Bangladesh

Continuing protests by residents of different areas across the capital Dhaka over the past few days against ‘insufficient supply of water’ deserve serious attention of the authorities concerned. According to a report of New Age on Friday, having experienced an acute crisis of water for around a week, residents of West Rampura and Ulun took to streets and put blockade on the Rampura-Baridhara road for about half an hour Thursday morning. Moreover, people living in other parts of the capital like Mirpur, Mohammadpur, Moghbazar, Shantinagar, Badda, Dhanmondi, Kalabagan, Gulshan, etc have also been reeling under acute water crisis for the past three to five days. Worryingly still, the managing director of Dhaka WASA, responsible for water supply in the capital, appears to have trivialized the problem by denying that the crisis is acute.

Against the demand of 250 crore liters of water, the Dhaka WASA has the capacity to produce about 220 liters a day through its 590 deep tube-wells and four water purification plants. However, there seems to be a big question about the actual quantity, not to mention the quality, of the water it produces every day. Although the Dhaka WASA seemingly wants to have the people believe that frequent power cuts that lead the pumps to remain inoperative for hours are behind the water crisis in question, there are some other factors relating to its own negligence which, in fact, have played an important role to turn the problem into a crisis. First of all, power outage problem is nothing new; it has rather become a regular phenomenon over the years. The Dhaka WASA should have enough number of generators or any other alternative means to continue operation of the pumps during load-shedding. Regrettably, however, the number of generators the DWASA currently owns falls way short of the actual requirement. According to the report, it has 233 permanent generators and 60 mobile generators while the number of pumps is 590. Second, the WASA pipelines in a significant number of areas have become rundown over the years causing leakage of huge quantity of water on the one hand and disruption in water supply to the relevant areas on the other. Worse, despite repeated protests on parts of the dwellers of the areas concerned, WASA has hardly taken any effective initiative to replace or repair those shabby pipelines. Yet, it has recently hiked its water tariff for the fourth time in the past two and a half years.

The government needs to take immediate actions to make the Dhaka WASA comply with the demands of the people of the areas in question to ensure adequate supply of water. It also needs to take the WASA top brass to task for its apparent failure in addressing the subscribers’ woes on time. Irony of fate is that if someone is interested to solve his or her own water problems thru’ deep well, it is illegal, reason is environmental affect – water layers will be falling down. But how the WASA is delivering! Again if you pay fees- legal! So, many draconian laws exist in the country only God knows what is to be done.