News 2016:

Turtle Island is in trouble. From climate change to oil spills and wildfires, the damage can be seen across the country.

Here are 13 quotes from contemporary and historic Native figures about the importance of conserving resources to save Mother Earth.

“Mother Earth is not a resource, she is an heirloom.”

Zika transmission has not yet been reported in the continental United States, although a woman who fell ill with the virus in Brazil later gave birth to a brain-damaged baby in Hawaii.

The United States could lower carbon emissions from electricity generation by as much as 78 percent without having to develop any new technologies or use costly batteries, a new study suggests. There’s a catch, though. The country would have to build a new national transmission network so that states could share energy.

“Our idea was if we had a national ‘interstate highway for electrons’ we could move the power around as it was needed, and we could put the wind and solar plants in the very best places,”..

Time-saving green tech kills those "blasted weeds" without chemicals

Although there are various other types of eco-friendly weed control, organic farm workers often end up doing what most of us do in our backyard gardens – bending down and yanking weeds out by hand. Thanks to the relatively new process of "abrasive weeding," however, that may not always be necessary. As an added benefit, crops could be fertilized and weeded in one step.

First introduced a few years ago, abrasive weeding involves blasting weed seedlings with organic grit, shot out of an air compressor at supersonic speeds.

U.S. appeals court declines to block Obama carbon emissions plan

In a big victory for the Obama administration, a U.S. federal court on Thursday rejected a bid by 27 states to block its Clean Power Plan, the centerpiece of its strategy to combat climate change by reducing carbon emissions from power plants.

US Clean Power Plan's proposed federal implementation plan draws fire, praise'

More than 200 comments have been filed praising or condemning the US Environmental Protection Agency's proposed federal implementation plan to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from existing power generators by 32% by 2030.

US Is Hiding Treasury Bond Data on Saudi Arabia That's Suddenly Become Crucial

It’s a secret of the vast U.S. Treasury market, a holdover from an age of oil shortages and mighty petrodollars: Just how much of America’s debt does Saudi Arabia own?..

In the past year alone, Saudi Arabia burned through about $100 billion of foreign-exchange reserves to plug its biggest budget shortfall in a quarter-century. For the first time, it’s also considering selling a piece of its crown jewel — state oil company Saudi Aramco. The signs of strain are prompting concern over Saudi Arabia’s outsize position in the world’s largest and most important bond market.

US, New Mexico ink settlements over nuclear radiation leak

New Mexico and the U.S. Department of Energy have inked $74 million in settlements over dozens of permit violations stemming from a radiation leak that forced the closure of the nation's only underground nuclear waste repository.

The settlements are the largest ever negotiated between a state and the Energy Department and come after months of negotiations.

We all Have Dreams

 “We all have dreams. But in order to make dreams come into reality, it takes an awful lot of determination, dedication, self-discipline, and effort.” ― Jesse Owens

Why You CAN’T Fail — How To Use Your “Mistakes” For Growth

Next time you think you’ve failed at something, stop, shift your perception, and focus on the feedback.

January 22, 2016

6.6 - OFF THE COAST OF JALISCO, MEXICO

ADA Attacked for Mercury Denialism

• The American Dental Association continues to claim mercury fillings are safe and affordable, but the research says otherwise
• People with certain genetic variants appear to be more at risk from harm from long-term, low-dose exposure to mercury
• Children with certain genetic variants who received mercury fillings performed significantly worse on tests of memory and concentration than children who received mercury-free alternatives

An Ancient, Brutal Massacre May Be the Earliest Evidence of War

Even nomadic hunter-gatherers engaged in deliberate mass killings 10,000 years ago

Attack on Vaccine Choice Rolls East

As we predicted, more states are following in the footsteps of California and restricting parents’ freedom to protect their children’s health. Check below to see if your state is one of them

Breaking down humanity's contribution to climate change

Over the past 100 years, global temperatures have risen by an average amount of 0.8° C (1.4° F), which according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), is due largely to humanity's release of pollutants into the atmosphere. Now an international team of researchers has analyzed almost 40 years worth of data in order to quantify exactly what fraction of the change can be attributed to mankind based on events and trends in different regions.

Cheap oil, good for consumers, is slamming stocks. Why?

Stocks are having their worst start to a year in history in part because of a rapid plunge in the price of oil. The price of crude is down 28 percent this year already, which in turn has dragged down energy company shares in the Standard & Poor's 500 index by 13 percent, which has helped pull the overall index down 9 percent.

This even though low oil prices — and the cheap prices for gasoline and other fuels that result — are wonderful for consumers and many companies.

Detailed seafloor gravity map brings the Earth's surface into sharp focus

Not so long ago the ocean floor was as unknown as the far side of the Moon. Now, an international team of scientists is using satellite data to chart the deep ocean by measuring the Earth's gravitational field. The result is a new, highly-detailed map that covers the three-quarters of the Earth's surface that lies underwater. The map is already providing new insights into global geology/

Does Water Flow Uphill?

One time, while I presented on the merits of thoughtful holistic green infrastructure implementation at a municipality, an attendee was given plans from a consultant showing SWC facilities designed so incorrectly that water would have to run uphill to work.  We are talking about a professional engineer screwing up the grade school ‘two step’ hydrologic cycle: 1) It rains; 2) Water runs downhill.

Drugging Animals on Factory Farms—ENOUGH Already.

We’ve all grown accustomed to the steady parade of television ads—$3 billion year worth, by some estimates— urging us to “ask our doctors” about the latest miracle drug. Pharmaceutical ads have been commonplace since the 1990s, after the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) cleared the way for prescription drug companies to aggressively market their wares directly to consumers.

Wisdom and ethics aside, it’s easy to see why Big Pharma would push pills to humans, to treat human ailments. It’s big money.  

Global Stocks Routed Again as Oil Slide Seems Bottomless

Energy stocks are leading another sell-off on Wall Street as the price of oil continues to plunge.

U.S. crude dropped 2 percent to just under $28 a barrel in New York early Wednesday. Dropping energy prices is a sign that the global economy is slowing down.

Grass-Fed Label For Meat—Gone!

Last week, the USDA announced it would be withdrawing its standard for the grass-fed meat label. The agency is giving producers who used the grass-fed label thirty days to (1) convert the current “grass-fed” standard, in which 99% of the animal’s feed must be from grass or forage, into their own private standard; (2) use some other “recognized grass-fed standard,” or else (3) develop a new, voluntary, grass-fed standard—whatever the company decides is fine with the USDA.

Gun background checks hit record number in 2015, despite Obama agenda

President Obama’s ongoing push for gun control is backfiring, according to critics, who cite new federal data that shows Americans are more interested than ever in getting their hands on firearms.

High levels of PCBs threaten whales and dolphins

Scientists are raising serious concerns about the future of whales and dolphins in European waters who are continuing to suffer from the effects of toxic chemicals that were banned decades ago, but continue to linger in the environment.

According to a new study led by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), which was just published in the journal Scientific Reports, whales and dolphins in Europe  have been found to have some of the highest levels of polychlorinated byphenyls (PCBs) in the world.

Hillary Clinton Email Said to Include Material Exceeding ‘Top Secret’

Intelligence officials reviewing emails on former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s private computer server have found information they consider to be of a higher level of classification than “top secret,” according to a letter sent to lawmakers last week by the intelligence agencies’ inspector general.

House Resolution Against Clean Water Protections Puts Polluters Before People

House Republicans recently passed legislation attacking clean water protections. Today’s action—a resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act –-blocks the Clean Water Rule, the Obama administration’s landmark action adopted last year. Because the Senate previously passed the same legislation, the measure will next go to President Obama, who has threatened to veto it.

Iran Gives Order to Boost Crude Oil Output Amid Global Glut

Iran’s oil ministry issued an order to increase production by 500,000 barrels a day as the country moved ahead with plans to add supply to a glutted market even at the risk of contributing to a price collapse.

ISIS pay cuts: Terror group reportedly slashes fighters' salaries

In a sign the Islamic State terror group could be pressed for cash, a new report claims its leaders slashed the salaries of all its fighters in half.

The "Treasury Ministry" of ISIS blamed "exceptional circumstances,..

ISIS Pays Its Fighters Double What The Iraqi Army, Hezbollah, Other Sunni Jihadists Groups Pay Their Men…

Muhammed Jamal can understand why many want to join ISIS.

“You get paid the most, you have the most weapons, you are with the most powerful group,” said Jamal, who as a Sunni Iraqi would have little trouble joining up with the group. ISIS has openly welcomed Sunni Muslims into its self-declared “Islamic State,” stretching 12,000 square miles through Syria and Iraq. “I’m not a fighter, but if I was that is who I’d join.”

Lawmaker decries uranium travel to Savannah River Site

A New York congressman has continued advocating against the Savannah River Site receiving a liquid form of highly-enriched uranium from Canada after the Department of Energy concluded transferring the material would be a "low risk" venture.

Lithium-ion battery warms itself in cold environments to maintain performance

Extreme temperatures can seriously compromise the performance of lithium batteries. We've seen a number of developments promising to reduce the risk of them overheating and catching fire, but at the other end of the scale, freezing temperatures aren't too friendly either, often leading to substantial power loss. In an advance that could have ramifications for everything from electric vehicles to space exploration, researchers have built a lithium battery that warms itself up to battle the winter chill.

Missouri Mathematicians Discover New Prime Number

At more than 22 million digits, it’s the longest prime yet

People have been hunting for prime numbers for thousands of years, ever since the concept was first discovered by ancient Greek mathematicians around 500 BCE. Prime numbers, of course, are curious in that they are only divisible by one and themselves. This newest prime belongs to a category called Mersenne Primes, named after a 16th century French monk and mathematician.

Natural gas likely overtook coal as top U.S. power source in 2015

Last year looks like it was an unwelcome watershed for the embattled U.S. coal industry.

Power companies in 2015 for the first time may have burned more natural gas than coal to generate electricity, according to analysts who attribute it to the cheapest gas prices in 16 years and a record number of coal-fired plants retired from service because of the high cost of meeting environmental regulations

Nearly 500K foreigners overstayed visas in 2015

Nearly half a million foreigners who legally entered the U.S. remained here after their visas expired last year, according to a government study that is the first of its kind.

The report, obtained by USA TODAY, is the first analysis of a population that is largely unknown. The so-called "visa overstays" represent an estimated 40% of the 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the country, but are overshadowed by undocumented immigrants who sneak across the nation's southwest border with Mexico.

New York’s Nuclear Power Plants Contribute Over $3 Billion to State’s GDP

A study by Brattle principals Mark Berkman and Dean Murphy finds that Upstate New York’s three nuclear energy power plants contribute approximately $3.16 billion to the state’s gross domestic product (GDP), account for nearly 25,000 full-time jobs (direct and indirect), and provide other significant economic and societal benefits.

Nibiru, Planet X, Nemesis, The Destroyer, Wormwood, Hercolubus, Comet Typhon

Is Nibiru real? Does it take Nibiru 3,600 years to complete one orbital journey? As you can imagine, the gravitational effects of a sizable planet moving close to the inner solar system would spell big trouble for planet Earth.

Nuclear GAIN: DOE backs carbon-free energy goal

In support of the Administration's goal to produce more carbon-free energy, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has selected two companies in which it will invest money to further develop advanced nuclear reactor designs.

Obama Blasts Bullying, Ignores Beheading

The 2016 State of the Union was very striking for the one-sidedness and disproportion of the President's concern for religious suffering.

President Obama worried that "politicians insult Muslims, whether abroad or fellow citizens."

Oregon Militia Nuts Hold Paiute History, Artifacts Hostage

On Friday, the tribe delivered a letter to federal agencies including the U.S. Attorney and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service demanding prosecution of Ammon Bundy and other armed militants occupying the Malheur Wildlife Refuge, “If the occupiers disturb, damage, remove, alter, or deface any archaeological resource on the refuge property.

Overfishing Has Been Even Worse Than We Thought

Official counts previously overlooked fish as bycatch, small-scale fishing and illegal fishing

For decades, the UN's Food and Agricultural Organization has collected reports about how much fish people have hauled out of the oceans. But according to new research, those numbers are wrong. More fish was caught than previously believed, and in recent years, the catch has dropped even more precipitously—a troubling sign of declining fish populations.

Plastic trash will outweigh fish in oceans by 2050: researchers

Plastic rubbish will outweigh fish in the oceans by 2050 unless the world takes drastic action to recycle the material, a report warned Tuesday on the opening day of the annual gathering of the rich and powerful in the snow-clad Swiss ski resort of Davos.

Pollution in Pacific tied to Africa and Asia

Burning down forests in Africa and South-East Asia causes ozone pollution in the air as far as the western Pacific Ocean, researchers say, calling for revision of global climate models to reflect their findings.

Poor Algal Bloom Outlook For Lake Erie

Agricultural runoff is largely to blame, but there may be other factors that contribute to Lake Erie’s algae problem. A new study points to climate change as a primary factor, and it said that pressure will not relent any time soon.

“By the latter half of this century, toxic algal blooms like the one that cut off drinking water to the city of Toledo in 2014 will no longer be the exception, but the norm, a study suggests. While researchers have long suspected that climate change will lead to stronger and more frequent blooms, a new fusion of climate models and watershed models has proven those suspicions right:..

Pot use does not lower teen IQ, study finds

Drug warriors obsessed with the teen brain should apparently be focusing on cigarettes, alcohol and poverty.

A new study undermines marijuana prohibitionists’ chief argument: that America needs a drug war to protect teen brains from harm.

Power is of two kinds

 “Power is of two kinds. One is obtained by the fear of punishment and the other by acts of love. Power based on love is a thousand times more effective and permanent then the one derived from fear of punishment.” ― Mahatma Gandhi

Read Letter Inspector General Sent Congress After Making Alarming Discovery About Clinton’s Emails

Intelligence more sensitive than “top secret” traversed through Hillary Clinton’s private home server while she served as secretary of state, according to a letter from an inspector general sent to Congress last week.

The Jan. 14 letter from Inspector General of the Intelligence Agency Charles McCullough III, obtained by Fox News, explained that findings indicated “several dozen emails” contained classified information, including intelligence on “special access programs.”

Reducing Greenhouse Emissions Unlikely To Reduce Global Warming; A More Likely Cause Is Ozone Depletion, According To Longtime US Geophysicist

No scientist has ever demonstrated experimentally that observed increases in greenhouse-gas concentrations actually cause air to warm enough to explain global warming. The only experiments documented in the literature were done in 1900 by Knut Angstrom, who showed any warming to be minimal.

"Ozone depletion is the most credible explanation for global warming," says longtime US geophysicist Dr. Peter L. Ward. "Depletion allows more solar ultraviolet-B radiation to reach Earth, providing a more direct and clearer explanation for observed warming."

Renewables Attracted Record $329BN of Investment in 2015

The slump in oil prices that’s brought upheaval and cost-cutting to the traditional energy industry spared renewables such as solar and wind, which raked in a record $329.3 billion of investment last year.

Report: Cause of low solar prices hard to pin down

The price of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems installed on homes and small businesses spans a wide range, and varies depending on a number of factors, researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) have found.

Report of Solar Geophysical Activity

C2 event observed.  Solar activity is likely to be low with a slight chance for an M-class flare on days one, two, and three (22 Jan, 23 Jan, 24 Jan).  The geomagnetic field is expected to be at quiet to active levels on day one (22 Jan) and quiet to unsettled levels on days two and three (23 Jan, 24 Jan).

Saudi Arabia alarmed, in private, at Iran's sanctions relief

Scientists: Solid evidence for 9th planet in solar system

Scientists say they finally have "solid evidence" for Planet X, a true ninth planet on the fringes of our solar system.

Scientists Think They Have Made Huge Discovery in Solar System: ‘My Jaw Sort of Hit the Floor’

Scientists at the California Institute of Technology announced Wednesday that they had uncovered evidence of a giant planet existing beyond Pluto in the outer solar system.

The planet, nicknamed Planet Nine, is estimated to have a mass approximately 10 times larger than Earth’s and an orbit 20 times farther from the sun. It is estimated that it would take Planet Nine between 10,000 to 20,000 years to orbit the sun just one time.

See all five bright planets simultaneously!

All five bright planets will appear together in the morning sky from about January 20 to February 20, 2016. That hasn’t happened since 2005.

SELC to EPA: Level the playing field for energy efficiency, renewables

As model carbon trading rules are finalized for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Clean Power Plan (CPP), clean energy supporters are urging the EPA to let energy efficiency and renewable energy compete on a level playing field with traditional utility power plants -- and related studies are supporting this position.

Space: the new frontier in clean energy

Sci-fi isn't all fiction anymore. Harnessing the power in outer space is closer than we think, and in just a few years, electrical energy from the sun could be beamed down to charge the smartphone in your pocket.

Think Bluetooth, but on a galactic scale.

Supreme Court Will Hear Case on Obama Immigration Executive Actions

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a multi-state lawsuit challenging the Obama administration’s executive action to shield 5 million illegal immigrants from deportation.

The justices agreed Tuesday to hear the case from 26 states in April and deliver a decision in June.

Surging Between Converging Worlds

There is a lot of evaluating and assessment going on right now. Where are we heading? The trajectory of the outside whirled is certainly not a good one. What about our personal lives? How will these seemingly inevitable fascist external controls affect us? Should we adjust our plans accordingly? And how?

The Carson campaign called for an investigation into CAIR, the goup connected to the Muslim Brotherhood and labeled a terror organization by other countries.

Ben Carson has made clear he will stand up to those who do harm to our country and constitution. CAIR is one of those groups. They blame terrorist attacks on American foreign policy, they support sharia law, they protect jihadis from the FBI and they push the fake Islamophobia that liberals everywhere follow.

To clean up ocean plastics focus on coasts, not the Great Pacific garbage patch

The most efficient way to clean up ocean plastics and avoid harming ecosystems is to place plastic collectors near coasts, according to a new study.

Plastic floating in the oceans is a widespread and increasing problem. Plastics including bags, bottle caps and plastic fibres from synthetic clothes wash out into the oceans from urban rivers, sewers and waste deposits.

Unbeatable Combination

“Patience, persistence and perspiration make an unbeatable combination for success.” ― Napoleon Hill

United Nations Report Calls for Dramatic Shift Back to Organic Agriculture

Even though United States government continues to push for the use of more chemically-intensive farming methods such as GMOs and monoculture-based crops, the cultivation of GMOs is being banned across the world including in several different European countries.

USDA Study Confirms GM Contamination Between GM and Non-GM Crops

A problem experienced by many farmers

A USDA study has confirmed the agency’s own original forecast that GM alfalfa would promiscuously contaminate the non-GM crop. This news follows years of contamination incidents, leading to lawsuits between farmers growing organic, non-GM crops and farmers growing genetically modified crops.

US NRC to 'closely monitor' nuclear power plants during upcoming snowstorm

Sheehan noted that potential issues for nuclear power units, which have arisen during severe rain and snow storms in recent years, are snow, ice and wind damage to large transmission lines, even those distant from a generating unit, and storm surges.

U.S. to tackle oil and gas methane waste on public lands -sources

The Obama administration is expected to propose new rules as soon as Friday to curb methane leaks from oil and natural gas production, its latest attempt to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from energy production under its control, sources familiar with the plan said.

US West Coast Earthquake Warning as Cascadia Subduction Zone Surges (Event Model)

An ocean data buoy is alerting to an “event” in the Cascadia Subduction Zone off the west coast of Oregon. This is where a magnitude 9 earthquake hit in 1700.

According to the data buoy, the water column height (depth) fell sharply within minutes off the coast of Oregon, signaling the land beneath the ocean has suddenly “sunk.”

As of 0231:30, the initial water column height is 2738.80 Meters deep (8985.56 feet). Two minutes and thirty seconds later, that same water column height had dropped to 2738.66 Meters deep (8985.10 feet). Where did the four inches of water disappear to? Answer: The earth sunk; ..

WebMD — The Latest Shill for Monsanto

• Corporate sponsorships color WebMD’s recommendations, and “passive” promotion techniques, where advertisements are designed to look more like editorials, have become commonplace
• Monsanto is now using WebMD’s influence to serve its own biased agenda, having crafted a number of sponsored advertorials that could easily be mistaken for “real” content rather than marketing
• Monsanto is also using independent 3rd parties to manipulate the GMO content on WebMD’s site

January 19, 2016

All-Female Christian Militia Takes on ISIS in Syria

Babylonia has no regrets about leaving behind her two children and her job as a hairdresser to join a Christian female militia battling against the Islamic State group in Syria.

The fierce-looking 36-year-old in fatigues from the Syriac Christian minority in the northeast believes she is making the future safe for her children.

Are Standing Desks Really Any Better For You?

In the light of the above reasons, it is clear that standing desks are overrated. They honestly don’t seem to do much for you, and in fact could lead to a host of new problems, or worsen the old ones.

Artificially Sweetened: How Politics Massaged the Science in the New Dietary Guidelines

The federal government just released a new set of dietary guidelines, and as always, they’re a work of both science and politics. They include controversial changes: for instance, sugar now has a limit, and cholesterol does not. Here’s your guide to what’s new, what isn’t, and where the experts disagree.

Astronomers see ashes of the first stars

A team of astronomers has found a gas cloud that existed when the universe was 13% of its current age that appears to be made of the pristine gas produced in the big bang but with just a wisp of heavier elements...

Could Alzheimer's Be Diagnosed By a Simple Urine Test?

Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia, and it's believed it affects more than 5.1 million Americans over the age of 65. However, there is no definite diagnostic test in living persons, and it's usually diagnosed by a series of tests that rule out other causes of dementia.

Cruz's Citizenship Status Challenged in Birther Lawsuit

"This 229-year question has never been pled, presented to or finally decided by or resolved by the U.S. Supreme Court. Only the U.S. Supreme Court can finally decide, determine judicially and settle this issue now," the lawsuit states.

Feds Try To Suppress Herbal Molecule That Makes Your Liver Nearly ‘Bulletproof’ Against Alcohol Damage

• The EPA spills toxic waste into rivers.

• The FDA keeps cancer causing additives in the food supply.

• The CDC pushes toxic vaccines laced with mercury… even when that mercury gets injected into children in California.

• The USDA approves toxic GMO crops that use deadly herbicide chemicals linked with cancer.

FPL seeks 23.7 percent increase in base rate, public counsel vows to fight it

Florida Power & Light on Friday asked the Public Service Commission to allow it to raise rates on 4.8 million Florida customers by 23.7 percent by 2019, a $1.3 billion increase that is also designed to reward its shareholders with substantially higher profits.

Freddie Mac: Mortgage Rates On Massive Win Streak

After a (very) rough December, mortgage rates have resumed their winning ways.

For the second straight week, government agency Freddie Mac is reporting a drop in 30-year conventional fixed rate mortgage rates; and, rates for the 15-year fixed rate mortgage and 5-year adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) are lower, too.

FT: Commodities Slide Triggers 'Freight Recession' on US Rails

The U.S. freight rail system is suffering from its own industry “recession” as rail cargo volumes tumble amid plunging commodity prices, CSX Corp. Chief Executive Michael Ward warned.

CSX recently said it expects to deliver lower profits in 2016 as weak demand for coal and crude oil persists and the strong U.S. dollar continues to limit exports.

How much methane IS leaking at Porter Ranch?

To date, Conley estimates that the leak has emitted nearly 80,000 tons of methane, or about 1,000 tons per day.

'This is big'

In early November, Conley took his first three flights downwind of the facility in his specialized airplane. He was astounded by the figure he recorded: Roughly 1,200 tons of leaked methane per day, or more than 100,000 pounds an hour.

"To put this into perspective, the leak effectively doubles the emission rate for the entire Los Angeles Basin," Conley said. "On a global scale, this is big."

How soil frost affects greenhouse gas emissions from Arctic soils

Soil frost is a nearly universal process in the Arctic. In a recent dissertation by doctoral student Marina Becher at Umeå University, it is shown that the frequency and extent of soil frost is important for the release of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide from arctic soil.

Soil in the Arctic has for thousands of years gathered large quantities of decomposed organic matter due to the decomposition being slow at the low temperatures in the region. As temperatures in the Arctic are increasing, there is a growing concern that the organic matter stored in the ground will be decomposed and released as carbon dioxide. Such a process would contribute to the ongoing increase in this greenhouse gas in the atmosphere.

I Have a Dream

“I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit together at the table of brotherhood.” ― Martin Luther King, Jr.

In Negotiating to Free Americans in Iran, U.S. Blinked on New Sanctions

Kerry and other top aides to President Barack Obama, who was vacationing in Hawaii, convened a series of conference calls and concluded they could not risk losing the chance to free Americans held by Tehran.

Iran condemns new US sanctions over missile test

Iran has denounced new sanctions imposed by the US over its ballistic missile programme.

The sanctions had "no legal or moral legitimacy", a foreign ministry spokesman said.

The new US move came just a day after international sanctions against Iran over its nuclear programme were lifted.

John Kerry Says the Middle East Is ‘Safer’ Thanks to Iran Deal Implementation — But That’s Not What Netanyahu Says.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that the lifting of nuclear-related sanctions against Iran would free up more money for the Islamic Republic to pursue terrorism.

Michigan Governor in Hot Water Over Flint Water Crisis

Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, a Republican, Thursday asked President Barack Obama to declare both an emergency and an expedited major disaster for Genesee County as a result of ongoing emergency water response efforts in the city of Flint.

National Banks – Ending the Stranglehold of Usury and the Private Money System

Money is a perfect system of exchange. The real problem with our money is rooted in who or what controls it and the system of how it is issued. The system being that of ‘usury.’ When interest is charged on loans, it then categorizes money as a ‘commodity’. It is no longer a simple and very effective method of a ‘fair exchange of energy’ and that, ladies and gentlemen, is the root cause of our financial woes today!

The monetization of money, allowing money to become a commodity itself which completely corrupts the original intent of use as a fair exchange of energy only is the issue.

New solar farms in Weld come online, can provide power for 1,300 homes

Beyond more jobs and additional development dollars in Weld County, two new solar facilities near Severance and Greeley will bring customers of Poudre Valley Rural Electric Association more stable energy for homes and businesses.

The association's new facilities -- 150 acres or the size of 48 football fields -- came online this month and will provide a renewable energy source for customers throughout Weld, Larimer and Boulder counties.

Nuclear bills important post-closure

With Entergy’s recent announcement of the pending closure of Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station , many residents thought only of celebrating the news. However, this is only the beginning of a difficult and lengthy process...

As residents and taxpayers, we must insist that the NRC do its job and ensure that decommissioning funds are used exclusively for cleanup of dangerous radioactive materials and protecting citizens with offsite emergency preparedness and planning.

Obama Halts Coal Leases on U.S. Public Lands

No new coal leases will be issued on public lands while the Obama Administration conducts a comprehensive review of the federal coal program to identify and evaluate potential reforms, Interior Secretary Sally Jewell announced today.

Obama’s 2017 Budget Seeks $4B for Self-Driving Cars

President Barack Obama is proposing a 10-year, nearly $4 billion investment to accelerate the development and adoption of safe vehicle automation through real-world pilot projects.

The President’s Fiscal Year 2017 budget proposal would provide nearly $4 billion over 10 years for pilot programs to test connected vehicle systems in designated corridors throughout the country, and work with industry leaders to ensure a common multi-state framework for connected and autonomous vehicles.

Obama Signs Executive Orders Lifting Economic Sanctions on Iran

The U.N. nuclear agency certified Saturday that Iran has met all of its commitments under last summer’s landmark nuclear deal, crowning years of U.S.-led efforts to crimp Iran’s ability to make atomic weapons. For Iran, the move lifts Western economic sanctions that have been in place for years, unlocking access to $100 billion in frozen assets and unleashing new opportunities for its battered economy.

Ontario utility to use Powerwall in microgrid test

Ontario's Veridian Connections has launched a test project that will make it among the first utility to use Tesla's Powerwall batteries in a microgrid installation.

OPEC sees more demand for its oil as prices hit US supply

OPEC Monday raised its estimate for world demand for its oil this year as plunging oil prices triggered the first contraction in non-OPEC supply since 2008.

Demand for OPEC's oil will rise to an average 31.65 million b/d in 2016, from 29.90 million b/d in 2015, the producer group said in its latest monthly report.

Putin: Human Evolution Under Threat By Big Pharma, GMO, Vaccines

A report prepared by the Security Council (SCRF) circulating in the Kremlin today states that President Putin has issued orders that his people must be protected from GMO “food” and Western pharmaceuticals “at all costs.”

Radical Simplicity – Making Space to Thrive

Complexity and busyness characterize our times. Most of us don’t have enough time to do the things that matter most. If we don’t have a way to digest and simplify, we can easily feel overwhelmed and stressed out. Thus the great de-cluttering movement to simplify our lives.

Simplicity, therefore, should not be a dumbing-down of life’s complexities but an embrace of them. This way we arrive at a radical, comprehensive simplicity as the force of our presence and expression in the world.

Report of Solar Geophysical Activity

Solar activity has been at very low levels.  Solar activity is expected to be very low with a slight chance for a C-class flare on days one, two, and three (19 Jan, 20 Jan, 21 Jan).  The geomagnetic field is expected
to be at quiet to active levels on days one and two (19 Jan, 20 Jan) and
quiet to unsettled levels on day three (21 Jan).

Reports piling up on the side of EPA CPP

New studies have emerged, confirming that the Environmental Protection Agency's final Clean Power Plan (CPP) can achieve significant reductions of carbon pollution from the nation's power sector while preserving a diverse energy mix and saving consumers money.

RPT-Lead developer quits bitcoin saying it "has failed"

Sugar Worse Than Fat for Heart Health: Researchers

Dietary fat — long demonized by nutrition experts, federal authorities, and the food industry — may not be as bad for your health as sugar, a new evaluation of medical evidence suggests.

In fact, efforts made over the last three decades to convince Americans to eat more low-fat foods — which are often laden with sugar and carbs — have fueled the nation’s growing obesity crisis, the researchers say. What’s more, sugar consumption plays greater role in heart disease than saturated fat, they have concluded.

Swimming Pool Poster Teaches Middle Eastern Migrants that Touching Girls’ Rear Ends Is a No-No

A poster hung at some public swimming pools in Germany aims to teach Middle Eastern migrants that touching the rear ends of girls they don’t know is most definitely verboten.

The Fracking Industry’s Answer to Toxic Wastewater: Spray It On Public Roadways

Just when we thought it couldn’t get much worse on the fracking front — polluted groundwater, poisoned environment, destroyed ecosystems — a dangerous new practice for ‘disposing’ of fracking wastewater has been put into action: spread it onto roadways for ice and dust management. Not only does the the flowback water from fracking contain a range of toxic compounds — including ammonium, iodide, heavy metals and bromide — it can also contain radioactive material.

The Virus Of Religion: An Ancient War On Human Consciousness

So you thought you wanted enlightenment? Thought that life would be all peachy and smooth sailing when the veils of illusion were lifted? Those who have become ‘dis-illusioned’ — and haven’t slid back into denial after seeing what was on the other side, or run in the opposite direction with their first taste of ‘enlightenment’ — realize that waking up is hard work!..

The realization that you have been fooled beyond belief can cause a great deal of inner turmoil to arise: utter dismay, a sense of humiliation, and a resulting backlash from friends and family who continually (and unconsciously) attempt to pull you back in line with the accepted ‘mainstream’ groupthink.

Tsai Ing-wen elected Taiwan's first female president

Ms Tsai, 59, leads the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) that wants independence from China.

In her victory speech, she vowed to preserve the status quo in relations with China, adding Beijing must respect Taiwan's democracy and both sides must ensure there are no provocations.

China sees the island as a breakaway province - which it has threatened to take back by force if necessary.

U.N. food agency says 14 million face hunger in southern Africa

About 14 million people face hunger in Southern Africa because of a drought that has been exacerbated by an El Nino weather pattern, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) said on Monday.

The worst-affected country is Malawi, where 2.8 million people, 16 percent of the population, are expected to go hungry, followed by the Indian Ocean island of Madagascar where almost 1.9 million are at risk, WFP said in a statement.

U.S. Funds Solar Panel Pavement That Generates Power

A new type of solar pavement that can generate electricity and send it to the power grid is being developed by the U.S. company Solar Roadways, with funding from the federal government say Michael Trentacoste and Robert Johns of the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Weak electrical field found to carry information around the brain

Why stars seem brighter this time of year

No matter where you are on Earth on December, January and February evenings, you’re looking toward bright stars in our local spiral arm.

January 15, 2016

10 Forgotten Spiritual Truths About Raising Children

In our life most of us have experienced one or two mysterious encounters, when visitors come to us from the unknown. These special guests are in fact our own children.

6.0 - SANTA CRUZ, BOLIVIA

6.7 - HOKKAIDO, JAPAN REGION

2015 worst US wildfire year on record

Wildfires burned more than 10 million acres of land in the United States in 2015, a year marked by intense drought across much of the west.

Adults Shouldn’t Be Drinking Milk, Apparently

In fact, no other species but humans can. Why did nobody ever mention this?!

Apparently, fewer than 40 percent of humans on earth can digest lactose post-childhood and only 5 percent of Asians and 25 percent of African adults can properly digest milk.

AirVisual Launches Free Air Pollution Forecasts For More Than 5,000 Cities Worldwide

AirVisual, a social enterprise providing air quality tools and information, now offers free air pollution forecasts for more than 5,000 cities worldwide. The forecasts are available on both a web and mobile platform to empower residents and business to make healthier and more effective decisions.

Al Jazeera to Shut US Operations by April End

Content delivered from the United States, however, will become part of its new global online plans, Capital New York reports.

A look back: Who led world renewables in 2015?

China was the world's leading market across a number of renewable energy technologies in 2015 and helped drive global renewable installed capacity to an estimated 913.48 Gigawatts (GW), according to research and consulting firm GlobalData.

A strong El Niño is expected to gradually weaken through spring 2016, and to transition to ENSO-neutral during late spring or early summer.

Most models indicate that a strong El Niño will weaken with a transition to ENSO-neutral during the late spring or early summer

Battery “kill-switch” prevents overheating and fires

Beautiful People

“The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of those depths.” ― Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

Bill calls for $40 million investment in clean energy job training

Lawmakers and environmental advocates gathered in Annapolis to push for the Clean Energy Job Act on the first day of the General Assembly session.

"We have to take this precious earth and leave it as well or better than we found it,"..

Cheap gasoline drives demand, giving Atlantic Basin refiners cheer

Cheap crude prices and strong gasoline demand will continue to keep most refineries on both sides of the Atlantic in the black in 2016, analysts say, but weak diesel profit margins in Europe and on the US East Coast will keep refineries on the closure watch list as more efficient facilities come online.

US gasoline demand, which been much stronger than forecast, is expected to retain some of that strength in 2016, according to Barclays' Paul Cheng.

Colossal star explosion detected

At its peak, the event was 200 times more powerful than a typical supernova, making it shine with 570 billion times the brightness of our Sun.

Researchers think the explosion and ongoing activity have been boosted by a very dense, highly magnetised, remnant object called a magnetar.

EPA Approves New Climate-Friendly Refrigerants/Rule supports president’s Climate Action Plan by curbing emissions of potent greenhouse gases

• Ethane in very low temperature refrigeration and in non-mechanical heat transfer;
• Isobutane in retail food refrigeration (stand-alone commercial refrigerators and freezers) and in vending machines;
• Propane in household refrigerators, freezers, or combination refrigerators and freezers, in vending machines, and in room air conditioning units;
• The hydrocarbon blend R-441A in retail food refrigeration (stand-alone commercial refrigerators and freezers), in vending machines and in room air conditioning units; and
• HFC-32 (difluoromethane) in room air conditioning units. HFC-32 has one-third the GWP of the conventional refrigerants currently being used in room air conditioning units.

Federal Agent: Iraqi Refugee Arrested on Terrorism Charges Planned to Bomb Two Houston Malls

An Iraqi refugee who is facing charges he tried to help the Islamic State group wanted to set off bombs at two Houston malls and was learning to make electronic transmitters that could be used to detonate explosive devices, a federal agent testified Wednesday.

Global mercury emissions down 30 percent as coal use drops: USGS

Global emissions of mercury from manmade sources fell 30 percent from 1990 to 2010, in part from decreasing use of coal, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reported on Wednesday.

HOW ARE WATTS, OHMS, AMPS, AND VOLTS RELATED?

Conductive objects are always full of movable electric charges, and the overall motion of these charges is called an 'electric current.' Voltage can cause electric currents because a difference in voltage acts like a difference in pressure which pushes the conductors' own charges along.

Humans Were in the Arctic 10,000 Years Earlier Than Thought

Distinctive cut marks on a Siberian mammoth represent the first known evidence of human hunters this far north

I'll be Dead Soon

“Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything - all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important.” ― Steve Jobs

Initial Jobless Claims in U.S. Unexpectedly Increased Last Week

The number of applications for unemployment benefits unexpectedly increased last week, a sign labor market momentum may be starting to cool.

Initial jobless claims rose by 7,000 to 284,000 in the week ended Jan. 9, the second-highest level since July, a report from the Labor Department showed on Thursday. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for a decline to 275,000.

Life and Rocks May Have Co-Evolved on Earth

A Carnegie geologist makes the case that minerals have evolved over time and may have helped spark life

Linked: Amazon wildfires, Atlantic hurricanes

Years of data on storms and sea surface temps show a correlation between a warm North Atlantic Ocean – more destructive hurricanes – and a fire-prone Amazon.

"Metal glue" could replace welding and soldering – in some applications

Usually, if you want to join two metal objects together, you either weld or solder them – depending on how big they are. Both processes involve the application of heat, however. This can damage the items (in the case of electronics), or even cause explosions (in the case of things like gas pipes). That's why scientists at Boston's Northeastern University created MesoGlue. It's a glue that bonds metal to metal – or to other materials – and it sets at room temperature.

Microsoft expands Get Windows 10 program to domains, publishes opt-out instructions

As the year-long free upgrade offer for Windows 10 nears the halfway mark, Microsoft is getting more aggressive, with new plans to begin displaying the GWX taskbar icon and upgrade prompts on business PCs that had previously been off-limits.

Milky Way age map shows growth rings

The first-ever complete age map of the Milky Way shows that our galaxy grew from the inside out.

Millions for new heat storage

Storing heat is less expensive than storing electricity. One hears this quite often. Seasonal heat storage systems, however, are still a niche market. The main reason for this is that very large storage systems are necessary, which take up valuable space.

Chemical and latent heat storage systems could solve this problem because they offer considerably higher storage densities than water...

Monsanto’s Chemicals Make Their Way Into 85% of Personal Hygiene Cotton Products

A new study at the University of La Plata in Argentina found that about 85% of cotton products such as gauze, cotton balls, feminine products like pads and tampons, baby wipes, etc. tested positive for glyphosate. Another even more staggering finding is that 62% of the tested products had traces of AMPA, a environmental metabolite aminomethylphosphonic acid that is a derivative of glyphosate and is potentially one thousand times more toxic than glyphosate.

National Guard deployed in Flint water crisis

The first National Guard troops arrived Wednesday in Flint, Michigan, deployed to help the Red Cross and local volunteers distribute clean drinking water to a city that hasn’t had it for more than a year.  

NERC, FERC and Ukraine: A perfect storm brewing for the US?

A series of cyberattacks on the Ukrainian electric grid, starting on December 23 of last year and continuing for several days, is a reminder that a 2005 federal law designed to protect the electric grid in the United States has never been comprehensively implemented -- making the U.S. grid increasingly vulnerable to foreign cyberattack.

Nevada regulators deny requests to pause rooftop solar rate hike

Framed by a string of public comments from solar customers, employees and activists, the Nevada Public Utilities Commission denied petitions Wednesday to halt increases to rooftop solar bills, ensuring that the rates remain in effect as the commission considers appeals.

Before the vote, commissioners heard hours of public comment from activists, some of whom lined up to speak an hour before the morning meeting. Lines to speak in Las Vegas snaked outside of the office building that houses the commission here and into the parking lot.

New York Village Votes to Keep Official Seal Depicting a White Settler Strangling a Native American

"Political correctness, who cares?” voter Scott Hastings said to Skyler Srivastava for WKTV News. “This is our village, who cares what the world thinks? I want to see this settled today, once and for all."

NRA's Wayne LaPierre Challenges Obama to Debate on Guns

Wayne LaPierre of the National Rifle Association Wednesday challenged President Barack Obama to debate him on gun issues and vowed that the organization would fight his recent executive actions "more aggressively than we have ever challenged anything."

"I’ll meet you for a one-on-one, one-hour debate, with a mutually agreed-upon moderator, on any network that will take it," LaPierre, the association's executive vice president and CEO, said in a web post. "No pre-screened questions and no gas-bag answers.

"Americans will judge for themselves...

Pentagon: Air war against ISIL has cost $5.5 billion

The air war against the Islamic State group has cost American taxpayers $5.5 billion, or roughly $11.2 million per day, a $2 million increase since June, according to the latest Defense Department data.

The Air Force accounts for $3.75 billion — nearly 70% — of that cost, about $7.7 million a day since the U.S. began launching airstrikes in August 2014.

‘Remember It Well’: Why Anti-Migrant Politicians Say You Should Know the Arabic Word ‘Taharrush’

German investigators suspect the numerous New Year’s Eve sexual assaults were part of a Middle Eastern group sex-assault activity known as “taharrush,” a German newspaper reported.

“Such crimes are committed by groups of young men … mostly when there are large gatherings of people, such as demonstrations. They range from sexual harassment to rape,” the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) told the German newspaper Die Welt, according to a translation by American Thinker.

Report of Solar Geophysical Activity

Solar activity has been at very low levels.  Solar activity is expected to be very low with a chance for a C-class flares on days one, two, and three (15 Jan, 16 Jan, 17 Jan).  The geomagnetic field is expected to be at quiet levels on days one, two, and three (15 Jan, 16 Jan, 17 Jan).

Russia won't renew electricity supply agreement with Ukraine

Russia's Energy Ministry will not to renew an agreement on electric power supplies to Ukraine over the situation around Crimea, Kommersant newspaper reports citing a source at the ministry. The extension of the agreement was supposed to go hand in hand with an agreement on electricity supplies to Crimea. No new deal on power supplies to the peninsula was concluded because Kiev insisted that Crimea should be referred to as the Ukrainian territory in the text of the agreement.

Schneider Moves to Tackle Skill Gap in Power Sector

Schneider Electric, the global specialist in energy management, in partnership with the National Power Training Institute, (NAPTIN) has graduated its first set of trained electricians at the NAPTIN Ijora regional training centre, in a programme which began in March last year.

Senate rejects Rand Paul’s ‘Audit the Fed’ legislation

The Senate on Tuesday blocked legislation calling for tougher audits of the Federal Reserve, rebuffing an attempt by Republican presidential candidate Rand Paul to give lawmakers greater oversight of the central bank’s moves on interest rates.

The 53-44 vote fell short of the threshold to overcome a Democratic filibuster. But the Kentucky Republican, who is seeking the GOP’s nomination for president, was joined by independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, a candidate for the Democratic nomination for president who occupies the opposite end of the political spectrum from Paul.

Solar Jobs Continue to Outpace US Economy

The US solar industry added more than 35,000 jobs in 2015, growing the workforce by more than 20 percent for the third year in a row.

Spare transformers: The answer to extreme weather risks?

That bad weather can damage property and lives is already known. It also has turned out to be the leading cause of power outages in the United States. And that, in turn, has helped spur the formation of a consortium of electric utilities that plans to create a national stockpile of hard-to-replace spare transformers. 

Standard Chartered: Oil Poised to Plunge to $10 a Barrel

One bearish investment bank now warns that the price of oil may continue to plunge until it hits $10 a barrel.

Standard Chartered became the latest major bank to downgrade its oil outlook, predicting crude will tumble to $10. The bank joins Goldman Sachs, RBS and Morgan Stanley in making ultra-bearish calls as prices have collapsed by 15 percent this year, the U.K. Telegraph reported.

Superbugs to Kill Millions Soon?

Just because Big Pharma can’t make big money from the potential solutions is not a reason for further delay.

Antibiotic-resistant illnesses currently kill an estimated 700,000 people a year globally. By 2050, these illnesses are expected to kill 10 million people. Based on recent research, it could be even worse—and coming even sooner.

Synchrony and Exertion of Dancing Found to Encourage Social Bonding, Raise Pain Threshold

There is not one culture on Earth that does not have a long tradition of dance. This suggests that dancing, the act of moving in time to music, is central to the experience of being human. It is such a key form of cultural expression that it has been called the “universal language”. Every culture in the world has a customary style of dance that communicates aspects of the group’s identity, creativity, rituals, history and meaning. In fact, it has even been suggested that a person could learn as much, if not more, about another culture through participating in their dance as they could reading an anthropological paper.

Teen Who Hacked CIA Email Is Back to Prank US Spy Chief

One of the “teenage hackers” who broke into the CIA director’s AOL email account last year hasn’t given up targeting government intelligence officials. His latest victim is the Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, Motherboard has learned.

Texas Gov. Abbott: Constitutional Convention Needed, Congress 'Not Doing Its Job'

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott told Newsmax TV on Tuesday that a convention of states is necessary because "we have a Congress that is not doing its job."

"Under the Constitution, it is Congress under Article I that is assigned the duty of passing laws in this country — and yet more than 90 percent of the laws in this country are not passed by Congress," Abbott, a Republican who was most recently the Lone Star State's attorney general, told "The Steve Malzberg Show" in an interview.

The Brain Benefits of Being Bilingual

• Bilinguals enjoy enhanced cognitive control abilities, more mental flexibility, and improved handling of tasks involving switching, inhibition and conflict monitoring
• Bilingual older adults have greater cognitive reserve, a protective mechanism that may make your brain better able to cope with disease
• Being bilingual appears to help ward off cognitive decline including Alzheimer’s disease

The Ozone Hole Was Super Scary, So What Happened To It?

When the ozone hole was discovered, it became a worldwide sensation. Thirty years later, what's become of it?...

The Porter Ranch gas leak update

“We don’t have a moment to lose when it comes to addressing the ugly mess that’s happening in Porter Ranch. Californians need strong, immediate state action and today’s announcement by Senators de León and Pavley to keep the Aliso Canyon facility shut down until it’s safe is the show of leadership our communities need.

Top 5: Wind led clean energy progress in 2015

The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) has announced that wind led the clean energy sector in terms of progress in 2015.

"This American success story is not only helping us build a better world for our children, it's also helping consumers save money," said Tom Kiernan, CEO of the American Wind Energy Association. "Wind energy's continuing growth is something that should make all Americans proud."

Ukraine expects to restore control over rebel east this year

US nuclear plants making progress on safety upgrades: NRC chairman

US nuclear power plants are effectively implementing safety modifications mandated by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission in the aftermath of the devastating Fukushima I nuclear accident in Japan in 2011, agency chairman Stephen Burns told a Platts Energy Podium event in Washington Tuesday.

US patent grants slow in wake of Supreme Court business methods ruling

IT giants are no longer driving growth in U.S. patent grants There are some big changes in the patent landscape hiding behind a small drop in the number of utility patents granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office last year.

U.S. weather forecaster sees El Nino conditions weakening

The El Nino phenomenon currently affecting weather is expected to weaken during the Northern Hemisphere spring and transition to normal conditions by late spring or early summer, a U.S. government weather forecaster said on Thursday.

The Climate Prediction Center (CPC), an agency of the National Weather Service, was in line in its monthly forecast with a growing consensus that the much-watched phenomenon, which can roil commodities markets, will dissipate in the coming months.

White House readying overhaul of fossil fuel program as soon as Friday: sources

The Obama administration is preparing to announce as soon as Friday an overhaul of how the nation manages coal development on federal land, according to government and conservationist sources, in a further move to confront climate change.

In his State of the Union address on Tuesday, President Barack Obama said he would "change the way we manage our oil and coal resources, so that they better reflect the costs they impose on taxpayers and our planet."

Why the Himalayas keep growing

An international team of scientists has shed new light on the earthquake that devastated Nepal in April 2015, killing more than 8,000 people.

In a study published in the journal Nature Geoscience, the scientists show that a kink in the regional fault line below Nepal explains why the highest mountains in the Himalayas are seen to grow between earthquakes.

Wind, solar dominate US new power capacity in 2015

Nearly all new utility-scale capacity of 1 MW or greater that was added in the USA in 2015 was either wind or solar or a natural gas-fired unit, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said today.

January 12, 2016

A central Montana coal mine that cut about 20 per cent of its workforce last month has reached an agreement with environmentalis

A central Montana coal mine that cut about 20 per cent of its workforce last month has reached an agreement with environmentalists and state regulators that's intended to avoid a major shutdown.

Monday's deal comes as a declining coal market leaves the future of some mining companies in doubt.

All part of the plan: Solar, solar and more solar

Duke Energy, the largest electric power holding company in the United States, is again working with the U.S. military, as part of its plan to add more renewable energy to its generation mix.

Appalachian Power looks to bring solar, wind into energy mix

Appalachian Power is looking to diversify its energy profile by moving toward a greater reliance on solar and wind energy.

Arch Coal, hurt by the weakening demand for coal, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Monday

Arch Coal , which has been hurt by the weakening demand for coal, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Monday.

The coal industry is struggling as electric power companies shift to using natural gas, which costs less than coal and produces less pollution. Other coal companies have filed for bankruptcy protection recently, including Alpha Natural Resources Inc. and Patriot Coal Corp.

Arizona Sheriff Challenges Obama: What Shooting Specifically Would Your Exec Actions Have Prevented?

“Mr. President, you’ve said you have been frustrated by Congress. As a sheriff, I often times get frustrated. But I don’t make the laws. And I’ve sworn an oath to enforce the law, to uphold the Constitution — same oath you’ve taken,” Arizona Sheriff Paul Babeu said. ”The talk, why we’re here, is all these mass shootings. And yet you’ve said in your executive actions, it wouldn’t have solved even one of these or even the terrorist attack.”

As gas prices fall, consumers going back to less fuel efficient vehicles

There were high-fives this week from Detroit to Washington, D.C., as carmakers celebrated record auto sales.

Americans bought 17.5 million cars and trucks in 2015. That's a huge turnaround from 2009, and the Obama administration cheered the rebound as vindication of the president's decision to rescue General Motors and Chrysler from bankruptcy.

Campbell Soup to Adopt GMO Labels on its Products

Claims to support labeling standard for GMOs In a move that will likely rock the mainstream, mega-food industry, Campbell Soup Company announced that it will work to become the first major food company to adopt food labels that will disclose genetically modified ingredients.

Change the Mascot Wants CBS Not to Use Name of Washington NFL Team

The term 'redskin' is defined as disparaging and offensive. Critics of the name of the Washington NFL team asked the CBS network not to use the team's name should the franchise make it to Super Bowl 50.

Changing climate and reforestation

For the past six years, researchers at the Universitat Politènica de València (Polytechnic Univeristy of Valencia, UPV) have been studying the performance of twelve Aleppo pine varieties native to different regions of Spain in reforestation campaigns across three national forest areas. Different varieties or genotypes have different levels of resistance to cold and drought, which influence how well they perform in a given geographical region, and researchers wanted to find out which varieties worked best and where.

Coal Glut, Renewables Make EU Power Cheapest in Decade

Record-low coal prices and increased wind and solar generation that pushed European power prices to their lowest in a decade may cause further declines in 2016.

Cooking from Scratch Is so Important for Health, Some Medical Schools Are Now Teaching Doctors Cooking Skills

• Tulane University School of Medicine is now teaching medical students how to cook with real ingredients, in the hopes they may educate patients on healthier eating habits
• A processed food diet increases your risk of obesity and chronic diseases associated with insulin and leptin resistance, courtesy of the excess fructose and lack of healthy fats and fiber in processed foods
• How you cook your food influences its benefits and risks, as does the type of cooking oil you use. Ideally, use lower heat, and cook with stable fats like coconut oil, butter, and ghee

Copper sinks to lowest since 2009, losses reflect China gloom

Copper prices plummeted on Monday to their lowest in 6-1/2 years as large losses on Chinese equity markets reinforced tarnished prospects for growth and demand in the world's biggest consumer of industrial metals.

Crude futures settle under $32/b on China concerns, Iran crude return

Crude futures Monday settled below $32/b for the first time 12 years, dragged down by more weak economic data out of China and the imminent return of Iranian exports to the market.

NYMEX February crude settled $1.75 lower at $31.41/b and ICE February Brent settled down $2 at $31.55/b. Front-month NYMEX crude was last lower in December 2003, while prompt ICE Brent was last lower in April 2004.

‘Disturbing’ Clinton Email: More Detail Arises, but Many Questions Remain Unanswered

The State Department provided more detail Saturday about a 2011 document at the center of Hillary Clinton’s latest email controversy, as an official said the former secretary of state never received the paper by nonsecure fax. But many other questions remained unanswered.

Don’t Relax: Uncomfortability Is The New Convenience

To stop humanity from turning into useless, pleasure-seeking blobs, some designers are abandoning the quest to make everything easy, and introducing a little extra difficulty into our lives.

Elephants Will Not Drink Recycled Water In Denver

Denver Water's program provides wastewater that’s been sufficiently treated for irrigation purposes at a fraction of the cost of potable water. Since its plant opened in 2004, numerous parks, schools and private entities, including golf courses and the Denver Country Club, have signed up for irrigation with water from the utility's "purple pipe."

But recently, the program has come under the scrutiny of some local residents, who are blaming recycled water for a recent die-off of trees in Washington Park.

Energy storage on tap for autos in 2016

The automotive industry, like the power sector, is under intense pressure to lower emissions and increase efficiency. What will this mean for electric vehicles?

Extremely Massive Methane Gas Leak Puts California In A State of Emergency: Time To Leave?

The biggest environmental disaster since the BP oil spill is occurring in California as we speak, forcing the state’s governor to declare a state of emergency, urging the evacuation of people in and around the Porter Ranch facility on the outskirts of Los Angeles. Gas is currently shooting up into the atmosphere at a very fast rate, to the point where it now accounts for about a quarter of the state’s total emissions of methane — and it’s a big state.

Groundbreaking Study Maps the Decline of Wild Bee Communities in the United States

By now most of us are aware that the humble bee is not only responsible for creating one of the most natural, health giving, and divinely sweet substances — honey — but also for managing one of the most vital steps in the production of our food crops — pollination. Unfortunately what has contributed to this newfound awareness about bees and the crucial role they play in our food chain, and by extension, their relevance to our survival as a species, is their rapid and initially mysterious decline.

Have or Enjoy?

   “It is not how much we have, but how much we enjoy, that makes happiness.” ― Charles Spurgeon

Here’s What a Newspaper Found After Fact-Checking Gun Advocates’ Claim About Concealed Handgun License Holders

While debating Texas’ new open carry law, supporters of the measure often argued that less than one-third of one percent of those convicted of crimes in the state of Texas have a concealed handgun license.

Using statistics published by the Texas Department of Public Safety to fact-check the claim, a local newspaper has determined that the claim is true.

How Canoes Are Saving Lives and Restoring Spirit

Native maritime communities are rediscovering their heritage by learning how to craft and paddle together aboard the ancient dugout vessels of their past

How the Oil Industry Conquered Medicine, Finance, and Agriculture

• “How Big Oil Conquered the World” is a brilliant piece of investigative journalism, revealing the immense extent to which the oil industry has shaped and is ruling the world as we know it
• John D. Rockefeller’s father, William Avery Rockefeller, was an authentic "snake oil salesman" going by the fictional name of “Dr. Bill Livingston,” who made money conning people into buying a fake cancer cure
• Rockefeller and other key players who made their fortune in the oil business have taken over and now control education, medicine, the monetary system, and the food supply, in a quest to monopolize all aspects of life

Iran disables reactor, awaits end of sanctions

Iran removed the core of its plutonium reactor and filled it with cement on Monday, paving the way for economic and financial sanctions to be lifted soon.

The work that effectively rendered the reactor at Arak harmless was the last major hurdle for Iran to fulfill its commitments under a landmark deal reached just shy of six months ago in Vienna.

Iraq confronts a new enemy-the Persian Gulf

Iraq, already struggling with war, poverty, and sectarian strife, faces a new threat. The loss of water in the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which begin in Turkey and flow into the Persian Gulf, endangers farmers, city dwellers, and the famous Mesopotamian marshes that are home to a rich ecosystem. Turkish dams, a long drought, and water mismanagement mean that little freshwater reaches southern Iraq. As a result, the saltwater of the gulf is slowly working its way inland, with important ramifications for Iraq's future. University of Basra researchers are sounding the alarm.

Kentucky moves ahead with plans to dismantle health exchange

Kentucky's new Republican administration is moving forward with plans to shut down the state's health insurance exchange, becoming the first state to cut ties with one of the key pieces of President Barack Obama's signature health care law because of a political promise.

Listen to us, Duke Energy's neighbors plead

Duke Energy's neighbors are demanding that state regulators listen to the public after hazard rankings of coal ash ponds came out last week.

A draft list of those ponds in November classified all but two of the 32 ponds as of high or intermediate risk. Those would have to be drained and excavated by 2019 or 2024.

Monsanto Charged With Crimes Against Nature and Humanity, Set to Stand Trial in 2016

People are fed-up. And angry. We simply no longer accept that corporations have the right to ride roughshod over the environment or destroy the health of its inhabitants. We refuse to remain silent when faced with companies who contribute to poisoned rivers, people and wildlife — where the only concern is for the mighty dollar. No longer will we stand by and watch as beauty and the balance of nature is laid to waste.

Monsanto is Sinking: 3,600 Job Cuts as Corn, Roundup Sales Plummet

There’s a reason that Monsanto recently made a suicide bid for its competitor Syngenta’s business. The company continues to lose profits, with the latest numbers painting a continued stark financial picture for one of the most hated companies in the world.

Newly Released Clinton Emails Confirm 2014 ‘For the Record’ Investigation

Retired U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Charles Kubic told For the Record, “[Gaddafi] was threatening the fiat currencies of both Europe and the United States. There was fear that if this started to take hold, that there would be some very powerful interests that would start to lose a lot of money.”

Emails obtained from Clinton’s private server confirm Kubic’s claim.

Once disparaged, fuel cells are making a comeback on Long Island

Fuel cells, a power-generation technology that LIPA once predicted could find wide-scale use before scrapping them because of too-short life cycles, are making a quiet comeback on Long Island .

Of 452 Suicide Attacks Worldwide Last Year, How Many Do You Think Were Perpetrated by Muslims?

A new study by Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University found that of the 452 suicide attacks it tallied last year, 450 were carried out by Muslims.

Oil's New Year: A Saudi-Iran crisis and prices near 12-year lows

The New Year has got off to a turbulent start with oil prices at nearly 12-year lows and a deepening crisis in the Persian Gulf involving two of the region's key producers.

Brent crude futures are currently languishing below $35 per barrel and earlier this week sank to $32.16, the lowest level since April 2004.

Orion the Hunter easy to spot in January

Tonight – or any January evening – look for the constellation Orion the Hunter. It’s probably the easiest to pick out of all the constellations in the winter sky. It’s identifiable by Orion’s Belt, three medium-bright stars in a short, straight row at the mid-section of the Hunter. See these stars? They are easy to spot on the sky’s dome. As seen from mid-northern latitudes, you’ll find Orion in the southeast at early evening and shining high in the south by late evening (around 10 to 11 p.m. local time). If you live at temperate latitudes to the south of the equator, you’ll see Orion high in your northern sky at this hour. Pick out Orion’s Belt and the nearby bright stars in that part of the sky, and you’ve probably found Orion.

Pakistan says it will respond to any threat to Saudi Arabia

Any threat to Saudi Arabia's territorial integrity will evoke a strong response from Islamabad, Pakistani army chief Gen. Raheel Sharif said Sunday.

Procrastination

“Procrastination is one of the most common and deadliest of diseases and its toll on success and happiness is heavy.” ― Wayne Gretzky

Public meetings set on ash pond closings

State regulators have scheduled a series of public meetings on the hazard ratings that will determine when and how Duke Energy closes its 32 coal ash ponds in North Carolina.

The Department of Environmental Quality proposed the ratings last week, but they're not final. Ponds judged to be of high risk have to be closed by 2019, intermediate risk by 2024 and low risk ponds by 2029.

Rape Survivor Who Questioned Obama on Guns Reveals Harsh Thoughts on the President’s Answer

The rape survivor and mother of two who questioned President Barack Obama on guns at a Thursday town hall said she was not satisfied with the answer she received.

Ratepayers face unknown costs for renewable power

Electricity providers have a new <California> state mandate -- get at least half of their power from renewable sources by 2030 -- but they do not yet know the cost to customers.

Realization of a Vision: NZ on its way to 90 percent renewables

Energy Excelerator is helping New Zealand reach its goal of 90 percent renewables by 2025.

Report of Solar Geophysical Activity

Solar activity has been at very low levels...  Solar activity is expected to be very low with a chance for a C-class flares on days one, two, and three (12 Jan, 13 Jan, 14 Jan).  The geomagnetic field is expected to be at unsettled to minor storm levels on day one (12 Jan), quiet to active levels on day two (13 Jan) and quiet to unsettled levels on day three (14 Jan).

Report: The FBI Expands Investigation of Hillary Emails for Possible Public Corruption

According to the report, the FBI is looking into the possibility that Clinton violated public corruption laws by allowing her work at the State Department to overlap with her work at the non-profit Clinton Foundation. The new probe is in addition to the ongoing investigation into whether or not Clinton knowingly communicated classified information through her non-secure email server.

Seeing black holes in visible light

For the first time, flickering light was seen around a nearby black hole in outburst. It was bright enough to be seen in small telescopes.

Small Things

 “Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.” ― Mother Teresa

Solar and Wind Liberated

It's astounding what Congress members can accomplish when they find that it's in their best interest to cooperate. In order to ensure smooth sailing (at least on the budget front) until the 2016 election, Congress just passed a spending bill with none of the drama or tumult that has become its status quo. And, better yet, that spending bill promises to unleash the potential of solar and wind in our country as viable, cost-effective clean energy sources.

SolarCity lays off more than 550 workers in Nevada

SolarCity has laid off more than 550 employees -- about a quarter of its workforce -- in Nevada.

The news comes two weeks after SolarCity announced it was halting the sale and installation of rooftop solar panels in the state after utility regulators approved cutting the rate NV Energy pays solar customers for generating excess power. The new rate went into effect last week.

Solar Ready: NY continues commitment with veteran training

New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo is once again strengthening his commitment to solar with the announcement that the state will participate in the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Solar Ready Vets training program.

Stephen Hawking Thinks We Can Solve a Major Black Hole Mystery With Hair

No toupees needed, though. The "hairs" in question are minute changes in spacetime at the fringes of black holes

The most famous living physicist has proposed a new way to solve one of most perplexing puzzles in modern physics: Can a black hole erase information from the universe? According to Stephen Hawking and his collaborators, the answer might be no—if you give black holes a lush head of hair.

Strong European gasoline cracks enticing US condensate, crude shipments: sources

US condensate and now unrestricted light sweet crude exports could find a marketplace in Europe as refiners eye attractive gasoline and naphtha cracks, sources said Friday.

Light end cracks are extremely high for the time of the year, supported by an increase in demand for gasoline, as low prices have stimulated consumption.

Teslasuit offers full-body haptics to VR users

Tesla Studios (no relationship to Tesla Motors) recently announced that it has developed a full-body suit that will give the wearer a sensory experience to match the visual experiences now available through virtual reality headsets. Called the Teslasuit, it relies on neuro-muscular electrical stimulation technology also used in medicine, electrotherapy and professional sports to offer both tactile stimulation and temperature control.

Texas armed standoff ends after 15 years

John Joe Gray was arrested in 1999 for assaulting a state trooper during a traffic stop. Gray said it was his God-given right to carry the pistol he had that day, without a concealed handgun license. When the trooper tried to arrest him, Gray got into a scuffle with the officer and bit him.

Gray was eventually charged with assaulting a public servant, but he refused to return to court, and instead, armed himself at home.

"If they come out after us, bring extra body bags. Those who live by the sword will die by the sword," Gray told ABC News in a 2000 interview.

The Ebola-poverty link

Ebola spread faster in the denser living conditions found in poorer areas than in other places, the study found. People with low socioeconomic status also had to travel further for healthcare — often on foot or by bus — than those of higher status, therefore coming into contact with more people before their illness was diagnosed and treated.

The Road To Water Resource Recovery

A chief product of the workshop would be the jointly-reached vision for the water resource recovery facility (WRRF) of the future. It was agreed that a WRRF should be able to “effectively manage more diverse waste streams, generate fuel, produce water and fertilizer, and help communities recover other valuable resources,” per the report.

This Year's El Niño Looks Menacingly Familiar

Do these satellite sea surface images look similar? Experts think so. The image of the Pacific Ocean on the left was taken recently. To the right is a sea surface image taken in December 1997.

Twitter Unverifies Outspoken Conservative Journalist. It’s Unlikely It Ever Expected This Response in Return

A Breitbart journalist accused Twitter of removing his verification badge over the outspoken conservative views he often expresses on the social media platform.

Understanding Donald Trump

... it is clear that he is a phenomenon and that any history of the 2016 presidential race will have to spend a good bit of time analyzing Trump and his impact.

Unions brace for Supreme Court case that could ‘bankrupt’ their influence

Last year the US supreme court handed major victories to liberal Americans, legalising gay marriage and throwing out a challenge to Barack Obama’s landmark healthcare reforms. But 2016 may be less kind. On Monday the justices will begin to hear a case that labor leaders argue could “bankrupt” public-sector unions and geld one of the most powerful forces in politics.

US coal train loadings drop to year-low totals in final weeks of 2015: STB

US coal train loadings fell in December, plummeting to consecutive year-low totals in the final two weeks of the year, railroad reports show.

What’s the Difference Between an A-Bomb and an H-Bomb?

Why North Korea’s alleged nuclear test is drawing skepticism and fear alike

North Korea’s new claims that it has tested a hydrogen bomb is drawing both fears and skepticism from politicians and experts. While North Korea isn’t a nuclear superpower by any means, it’s been generally accepted that the tiny dictatorship probably has a few nuclear warheads in its possession, albeit lacking the missile technology necessary to launch them. So why are people so worried by North Korea claiming it tested an H-bomb?

What's So Great About Grape Seed?

• Grape seeds are rich in powerful antioxidants and natural plant compounds called oligomeric proanthocyanidin complexes (OPCs)
• Grape seed extract may play a role in cancer prevention, bone strength, oral health, healthy blood pressure and more
• Grape seed extract may even be useful as a preventative or therapeutic agent in Alzheimer’s disease

What to expect from El Niño

The third-recorded super El Niño is underway. Top climate expert Kevin Trenberth reports...

Every El Niño cycle is different. The effects from this year’s already include a record number of hurricanes/typhoons in the Pacific and intense wildfires in Indonesia.

Whole-body imaging technology uses contactless tracking of blood flow

Whether it's a stethoscope, blood pressure cuff or a carefully placed pair of fingers, current approaches to monitoring blood flow typically rely on readings from a single point of the body. Scientists have developed a new technology they say paints a more complete picture. The imaging technique tracks blood flow around the body and does so without needing to make contact with the skin, providing a tool that could prove useful in treating everybody from severe burn victims to the elderly.

Woodward: Hillary Wanted to 'Subvert Rules,' 'Feels Immune'

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was clearly trying to "subvert the rules" when she asked aide Jake Sullivan in an email to turn a secure fax that wasn't transmitting into "nonpaper with no identifying information and send nonsecure," says The Washington Post's Bob Woodward.

January 8, 2016

2016 brings increased pessimism to oil and gas

As 2016 begins, the energy industry remains uncertain of when the oil and gas sector will turn around -- and companies are taking steps to streamline operations until prices begin to recover.

Breakthrough In The Medical World: Spain Finds Effective Cure For HIV

As we all know, HIV has been a very rampant disease as of lately. As our world continues to grow and harbors more people with every passing day, we have finally come to a breakthrough for a cure to the HIV virus. Doctors within Barcelona, Spain believe that they have unearthed a cure using blood transplants from the umbilical cords of individuals that have a generic resistance to HIV. They have proven this to be effective with the case of one patient so far.

CNBC: Mortgage Applications Plunge 27 Percent After Earlier Rate-Hike Rush

Mortgage application volume plunged more than 25 percent during the past two weeks in the wake of the Federal Reserve’s first rate hike in nearly a decade.

Total mortgage applications slid 27 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week that ended Friday, compared with two weeks earlier, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The numbers for both weeks were adjusted for the Christmas and New Year holidays, when banks were closed, CNBC reported.

County of origin labeling on our meat no longer required

It's now harder to find out where your beef or pork was born, raised and slaughtered.

After more than a decade of wrangling, Congress repealed a labeling law last month that required retailers to include the animal's country of origin on packages of red meat. It's a major victory for the meat industry, which had fought the law in Congress and the courts since the early 2000s.

Does Cancer Screening Save Lives? Unclear, Say Researchers

While cancer screening may be linked to fewer deaths from tumors, finding cancers doesn't necessarily save lives when fatalities from all causes are taken into account, the authors point out.

Studies to date may have included too few people to detect slight overall mortality benefits associated with screening, two doctors and a health care journalist argue in The BMJ. It’s also possible that any reduction in cancer deaths due to screening may be offset by fatalities connected to harmful effects of the tests themselves or of unnecessary treatments.

Do just once

“Do just once what others say you can't do, and you will never pay attention to their limitations again.” ― James Cook

For First Time Ever, Congress Sends Obamacare Repeal Bill to Obama’s Desk — Here’s What’s Next

The House voted on Wednesday evening to repeal President Barack Obama’s signature health care law, with the measure passing the Republican controlled chamber 240-181.

This marks the first time that Congress has sent a measure to repeal the Affordable Care Act to Obama’s desk, forcing the president to issue a rare veto.

Four new elements confirmed

Chemistry textbooks are in need of a rewrite with the addition of four new elements to the Periodic Table. The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) has confirmed the existence of four new elements with the atomic numbers 113, 115, 117, and 118, which were discovered by laboratories in Japan, the United States, and Russia. This bumper group of new elements completes the 7th row of the Periodic Table and clears the way for the discoverers to start thinking up names for them.

George Soros Sees Crisis in Global Markets That Echoes 2008

Global markets are facing a crisis and investors need to be very cautious, billionaire George Soros told an economic forum in Sri Lanka on Thursday.

China is struggling to find a new growth model and its currency devaluation is transferring problems to the rest of the world, Soros said in Colombo. A return to positive interest rates is a challenge for the developing world, he said, adding that the current environment has similarities to 2008.

GOP Rep. Drops Terrifying Revelation After Two Pakistani Men Are Apprehended at U.S. Southern Border

According to records reviewed by TheBlaze, two Pakistani men, Mukhtar Ahmad, 25, and Muhammad Azeem, 20, surrendered to a U.S. Border Patrol agent Sept. 20, 2015, near Otay Mesa, California. A Terrorist Screening Database records check of Ahmad revealed that he is on a terror watch list as he’s an associate of a known or suspected terrorist. A records check of Azeem revealed that he had been flagged as a positive match for derogatory information — it is unclear from the records what that “derogatory information” is.

Graphene filter can clean nuclear wastewater

Just a few days into 2016, and the first graphene story of the year is already here. New research further suggests there's nothing graphene can't do. The wonder material's latest feat is the production of heavy water -- water with higher levels of the hydrogen isotope deuterium.

Graphene sieves work as an ultra-fine filter, separating hydrogen atoms with single-proton nuclei from heavier deuterium atoms. The isotope deuterium is a hydrogen atom with both a proton and a neutron in its nucleus

How to block Windows 10 upgrades on your business network (and at home, too)

Microsoft's aggressive upgrade campaign for Windows 10 rubs some people the wrong way. Here's how to say no to the new version in 30 seconds or less, without installing third-party software.

How Your Gut Microbiome Influences Your Mental and Physical Health

• Bacteria appear to influence human health and disease in two key ways. An overabundance of certain bacteria have been linked to disease, while other microbes are actively involved in preventing certain diseases
• Foods and chemicals known to produce metabolic dysfunction (such as processed foods, sugar/fructose, and artificial sweeteners) also alter the gut microbiome. This may be a key mechanism by which these foods promote obesity and chronic disease
• Researchers have linked high-sugar diets to memory – and learning impairments, courtesy of altered gut bacteria

Human Kidney Inspires Water Purification Tech

The human kidney is the inspiration for a new water purification technology from Singapore researchers.

Researchers at the National University of Singapore have engineered “a novel biomimetic membrane that can purify water at low pressure, thus reducing energy costs. This new technology can potentially reduce water purification costs by up to 30 percent,” according to a statement from the university.

Lane County, Oregon Tries to Kick Out Monsanto with GM Ban

Jackson County, Oregon was already successful in banning genetically modified foods (known as GMOs) even though Big Ag tried to fight the democratic vote. Now another Oregon County is following suit.

Lawrence Livermore Laboratory developing underground battery system to store energy and CO2

The intermittency of when the wind blows and when the sun shines is one of the biggest challenges impeding the widespread integration of renewable energy into electric grids, while the cost of capturing CO2 and storing it permanently underground is a big challenge for decarbonizing fossil energy.

However, researchers from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Ohio State University, University of Minnesota and TerraCOH, Inc. think they’ve found an answer to both of these problems with a large-scale system that incorporates CO2 sequestration and energy storage.

Learning

“Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.” ― Henry Ford

McCain: Cruz's Canadian Birth Legitimate Issue, May Be Up to SCOTUS

Sen. John McCain, who faced birther questions of his own while running for president, said Wednesday that the Supreme Court may have to eventually decide if Canadian-born GOP candidate Ted Cruz is eligible for the Oval Office.

Medicine’s Future: Will the FDA Let It Happen?

The most exciting and innovative advancement in medicine today is the field of medical testing. So why is the FDA strangling it?

New glimpse of geology under Antarctic ice

Using technology built to withstand the harsh winters, scientists have managed to map the volcanos, rifts, and basins hidden under West Antarctica’s ice sheet.

NRC to conduct special inspection at Oconee Nuclear Plant

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission began a special inspection Tuesday at Duke Energy's Oconee nuclear power plant to assess the degradation of power cables on start-up transformers for two of the plant's three units.

The plant is located near Seneca , about 30 miles west of Greenville .

Obama: 'Legal' Gun Control Orders Tighten Background Checks, Expand ATF

Obama's plan to broaden background checks forms the centerpiece of a broader package of measures the president plans to take on his own on gun control in his final year in office.

Oil Dives Below $35, Lowest in 11 Years, as US Supply Swells

Crude oil prices plunged 6 per cent on Wednesday, diving below $35 (U.S.) per barrel for the first time since 2004 as data showing a shockingly large build-up of U.S. gasoline supplies fed fears that a global surplus was still growing.

Organic Farming Can Cut Nitrate Leaching In Half

How significant is a 50 percent reduction in nitrate leaching? Very! The goals of the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy call for a 41 percent reduction in nitrate leaching across Iowa agriculture. Changing to an organic cropping system could by itselfachieve the goals of the INRS for those farms that make that conversion.

‘Organic’ From China Exposed: The Shocking Truth About ‘Organic’ Foods Grown In The World’s Worst Environmental Cesspool

When it comes to foods, superfoods and even nutritional supplements from China, “organic” is largely a hoax. This is my opinion, of course, but I’ve been researching the issue quite extensively as the key decision maker for new products in the Natural News Store. And I’ve come to the conclusion that “organic” from China is largely a fraud. Here’s why…

Panel disputes US EPA finding no 'systemic impacts' to groundwater from fracking

Concerning the EPA's finding on groundwater, the SAB's report said the statement "does not reflect the uncertainties and data limitations described in the body of the report associated with such impacts."

The scientists added that while the EPA report focused on the impacts of fracking nationally, most potential impacts from fracking are experienced by residents on the local level.

RECALL:Walmart Recalling 90,000 Pounds Of Beef For Containing “Extraneous Wood Materials”

Walmart announced this week that they will be recalling 90,000 pounds of beef because they could possibly contain “extraneous wood materials.”

Report of Solar Geophysical Activity

C1 event observed. Earlier M2 event observed.  Solar activity is expected to be low with a chance for M-class flares and a slight chance for an X-class flare on day one (03 Jan) and expected to be very low with a chance for a C-class flares on days two and three (04 Jan, 05 Jan).  Solar activity is expected to be very low with a chance for a C-class flares and a slight chance for an M-class flare on days one, two, and three (08 Jan, 09 Jan, 10 Jan).

Scientists Find New Way To Judge Drinking Water Age

“James Waples, a scientist at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, says that measuring the decay of strontium-90, a radioactive byproduct of nuclear fission, can help determine how long drinking water spends in a municipal or private building system before it reaches a customer's tap,” Michigan Live reported.

The Early History of Autism in America

A surprising new historical analysis suggests that a pioneering doctor was examining people with autism before the Civil War

The Truth About Gratitude: Is Your Sense of Gratitude Conditional?

I’m not saying that you should give up your preferences – that’s not the point. The point is that you don’t need the attainment of anything in order to feel grateful. You can be grateful right now – without convoluted conditions attached to gratitude. This is Unconditional Gratitude. 

Unconditional Gratitude is not a mind game, but rather a full heart experience, manifested as a field of love that expands well beyond the physical mind and body.

Understanding oxygen concentrations 1.4 billion years ago

Animals evolved by about 600 million years ago, which was late in Earth's history. The late evolution of animals, and the fact that oxygen is central for animal respiration, has led to the widely promoted idea that animal evolution corresponded with a late a rise in atmospheric oxygen concentrations.

"But sufficient oxygen in itself does not seem to be enough for animals to rise.

What a Natural Disaster Taught Me About the Second Amendment and Why It’s More Important Than Ever

Several years ago I found myself pondering the meaning of the Second Amendment beyond the traditional argument that armed civilians are a check against the tyrannical inclinations of government. Rather, I considered its broader meaning through the prism of a regional catastrophe.

What This Navy SEAL Told Hillary Clinton To Her Face Will Make You Proud To Be An American

Navy SEALS aren’t timid.  They’re used to taking on America’s enemies.

And one, former SEAL officer Dan Raso, took it directly to Hillary Clinton, for lying about facing sniper fire in Bosnia.

Where is Your Soul on the Path of Spiritual Evolution?

There are three transformational processes within the evolution of the Consciousness. These are, in fact, three levels of development. At these different levels of development the state and functions of the Counsciousness show entirely different signs. If we are aware of these characteristic signs, we may easily recognize what state of development of the Consciousness we are in: ordinary Consciousness, awakening or the level of complete freedom.

White House skeptical of North Korea's hydrogen bomb claims

The White House expressed skepticism of North Korea's claims to have successfully detonated a hydrogren bomb Wednesday.

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said the initial analysis by U.S. intelligence agencies is “not consistent with North Korean claims of a successful hydrogen bomb test.”

Why is a Cancer-Causing Additive Banned Elsewhere in the World Still in Our Bread?

Potassium bromate, a chemical historically used to whiten and strengthen dough for baking, was declared unsuitable for use in flour by the World Health Organization and the United Nations’ Food and Agricultural Organization in the early 1990s. In 1999 it was declared a possible human carcinogen by the WHO. There’s also evidence that the chemical damages kidney function in humans.

Why Newly Revealed Internal Islamic State Videos Showing Anti-Aircraft Missiles Kept a Military Bomb Expert ‘Awake All Night’

Islamic State technicians have been developing heat-seeking anti-aircraft missiles and driverless suicide car bombs with the aim of launching attacks in Europe, a video seized in Turkey from the laptop of a captured jihadist fighter revealed, Britain’s Sky News reported.

Why Women Have More Problems Sleeping Than Men

• Levels of estrogen and progesterone fluctuate during a woman’s menstrual cycle and are thought to affect women’s sleep
• Pregnancy brings with it a host of sleep-disrupting symptoms among women, as does caring for children
• Menopause brings its own set of troubles for women’s sleep, including hot flashes and night sweats

January 5, 2016

1 MW E-Cat Plant Test Hits 300 Day Mark (Update: Charges in Reactors Still Unchanged — One Reactor Losing Efficiency)

Today there’s a bit of a milestone in the 350 day test for Andrea Rossi’s test of the 1 MW E-Cat plant. According to Rossi’s It has been 300 days since the test started on February 20th of this year (according to my calculations)

$1 billion in legal pot taxes predicted for California

California cannabis prohibition is costing the state about $1 billion per year in lost tax revenue that’s sorely needed for social services, a new analysis from the state’s Department of Finance reports this December 21.

Department of Finance director Michael Cohen and legislative analyst Mac Taylor reported to the Attorney General Kamala Harris this December that the state stands to gain over $1 billion in uncaptured tax revenue if California legalizes cannabis for adults 21 and over in the November 2016 election.

2 Fed Officials Shrug Off Stock Plunge, Say Economy Is Sound

Two regional Federal Reserve bank presidents, Loretta Mester of Cleveland and John Williams of San Francisco, dismissed concerns over stumbling stocks on the first trading day of the year and said the U.S. economy’s expansion was on solid ground.

“Underlying fundamentals of the U.S. economy remain very sound,” Mester said Monday in an interview on Bloomberg Television. “There’s going to be volatility in the markets, that’s kind of the nature of financial markets.”

3 Billionaires Bet Big on Gold Despite Worst Slump Since '84

Investing icons Stanley Druckenmiller, John Paulson and Ray Dalio continue to wage big bets on gold, despite the precious metal heading for its longest slump in more than 30 years as investors sold from bullion-backed funds. Gold has fallen roughly 45% from the highs it reached less than five years ago, the Motley Fool reports, but Druckenmiller is one of the top 10 holders of SPDR Gold Trust

12 Things The Media Won't Tell You About the Militia Occupation in Oregon

An estimated 300 peaceful marchers demonstrated Saturday on behalf of two Oregon ranchers set to report to prison this week and, soon thereafter, a militia group took control of a federal wildlife building.

The occupation was staged without violence, but the militia said it plans to stay at the facility to protest "overreach" by the federal government for years to come.

14 States Boost Minimum Wage to Start New Year

Fourteen states, including New York and California, will lift their minimum wages on either New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day.

These wage increases range from a 35 cents an hour in states like Michigan to a dollar in California, Massachusetts and Nebraska, ..

2015 Exotic Free Energy technology advancements in review; 2016 predictions

2015 was a very significant year in the world of exotic free energy technologies.  ..

While there are eight technologies for sale, only two of them are presently delivering product to customers: Rosch and Hydroxy. The others are taking pre-orders, being in process of manufacturing.

Bible Professor Believes This One ‘Mistranslated’ Word Means Eve Was Not Created From Adam’s Rib — but From a Very Different Body Part

A professor of the Bible in California has posed the theory that the Adam and Eve narrative in the book of Genesis was mistranslated and that Eve was created not out of Adam’s rib, but his baculum, or penis bone.

‘Bomb Cyclone’ Lashes North Pole, Sends Temps Above Freezing

Bundy Militia Musters Again Over Paiute Land

Some of the same armed “militia” involved in the Cliven Bundy affair in Nevada have occupied federal land in Oregon formerly reserved for the Northern Paiute. Ironically, the “legal” basis for starting a fight with the federal government is that sovereignty “really” belongs to Oregon rather than the Paiutes, who have seen their federal trust land shrink from over one and a half million acres to a tiny remnant of 760 acres in Burns, Oregon, where this current armed standoff began.

Cancer Researcher With ‘Novel Approaches To Treatment’ Found Stabbed To Death

There is no evidence at this time that he was researching in the field of holistic or alternative cancer treatments, though suspicion is ripe that he potentially had his hands in something pharmaceutical companies viewed as a threat. The death is incredibly mysterious and suspicious, robbing victims don’t commonly end up stabbed to death. Without evidence of malicious intent outside of the robbery line, it is unlikely this case warrants much more investigative time. Unfortunately, we may never know exactly what happened to Ernsting.

Cheese by-product fuelled power plant serves 1,500 French residents

Located at Albertville in Savoie, France , the plant has been operational since October and serving the power requirements of a local community with 1,500 inhabitants. The facility has the capacity to produce about 2.8kWh of power annually.

China’s Market Crashes, Sets Off Panic Sell in Europe

U.S. stocks tumbled to begin 2016, with the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index off to its worst start in 15 years as a rout in Chinese equities renewed concern that an economic slowdown there will damp global growth.

Investors returning to the market after the New Year holiday faced a worldwide selloff sparked by weak factory data in China, while a reading that showed the fastest contraction in U.S. manufacturing in six years bolstered anxiety that slowing growth in the world’s second-largest economy is spreading. A flareup in tension between Saudi Arabia and Iran added to the unease.

Conservatives Brace for 'War' Over Obama Gun Order

Conservatives, lawmakers and gun advocates are beginning to mount a defiant opposition to President Barack Obama's plans to order expanded background checks for gun buyers.

The go-it-alone move signals "war," Chicago radio host and former congressman Joe Walsh warns, calling it "time for civil disobedience."

Criminal probe focuses on San Onofre response

A state criminal investigation into the California Public Utilities Commission centers around former President Michael Peevey's persistent intervention into the process to assign costs for the failure of the San Onofre nuclear plant, newly released court documents show.

Specifically, Peevey pushed the idea of plant owner Southern California Edison funding $25 million of greenhouse gas research at the University of California Los Angeles as part of the $4.7 billion settlement deal.

Crude futures erase early rally, weaken on Chinese economic data

Crude futures closed slightly lower Monday after a morning rally driven by increased tension between Saudi Arabia and Iran fizzled, while global economic concerns were revived.

NYMEX February crude settled down 28 cents at $36.76/b, compared with an intraday high of $38.39/b. ICE February Brent settled 6 cents lower at $37.22/b after reaching $38.99/b at one point.

“Dairy Is F**king Scary” – The Truth About Milk Explained In 5 Minutes

We’ve said it before and we will say it again: the way we treat animals on this planet is truly heartbreaking. It may seem easier to simply turn a blind eye to the horrors being enacted upon these creatures, but ignorance is never the answer. When it comes to raising animals for slaughter — something that happens to billions of animals every single year — the word ‘terrifying’ is an understatement. Most people don’t even want to know about the conditions in which their meat is raised, but it is the responsibility of each and every one of us to stay informed. Shedding more light on our modern day food industry can help change this system and encourage others to seek healthier and more environmentally friendly options.

Excellence

“Excellence is an art won by training and habituation. We do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but we rather have those because we have acted rightly. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.” ― Aristotle

Explicit Islamic State ‘Fatwa’ on Female Sex Slaves Reveals How and When Captured Girls Can Be Raped

The Islamic State has allegedly issued a “fatwa” explaining how and when members can rape their female sex slaves, which is described as “one of the inevitable consequences of jihad.”

The documents were originally revealed by Reuters after U.S. special forces discovered the fatwa among a trove of documents in a Syrian raid earlier this year.

Farrakhan’s Warning About What Will Happen If Donald Trump Becomes President — and His Message About the ‘Character of the Whites’ Who Follow Him

The Minister Louis Farrakhan has a warning for the American public: “If Donald Trump becomes president, he will take America into the abyss of hell.”

Feds say no to Washington state storage project

Federal regulators have denied a utility's request to again renew a preliminary permit for a proposed large-scale power generating reservoir south of Goldendale in south-central Washington state. 

That puts the fate of the $2.5 billion proposal, which garnered support from a Chinese hydropower company in November, back into question.

Ford to Invest U.S.$4.5 Billion in Electrified Vehicle Solutions

Ford is investing an additional $4.5 billion in electrified vehicle solutions by 2020 as well as changing how the company develops vehicle experiences for customers - all to make people's lives better by changing the way the world moves. Ford is adding 13 new electrified vehicles to its portfolio by 2020, when more than 40 per cent of the company's global nameplates will come in electrified versions. This represents Ford's largest-ever electrified vehicle investment in a five-year period.

Former Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship convicted of conspiracy

After the fatal April 5, 2010, explosion at the Upper Big Branch mine in Montcoal, many family members who lost loved ones said they never thought they would see day the coal company's CEO was brought to trial.

But 65-year-old Don Blankenship's trial began Oct. 1, and just over two months later, a jury found him guilty of conspiring to willfully violate mine safety standards.

Good news about restoring river ecosystems

It is a commonly held belief that most ecosystems take about a lifetime to recover after damage is introduced by humans. However, researchers at Ohio State University are finding that initial recovery can be dramatic if the right conditions are present. The discovery was made while monitoring how dam removal impacted local species.  

Indonesian Couple Accused of ‘Affectionate Contact’ Brutally Beaten in Front of Cheering Crowd

Officials in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, held a public caning Monday. According to the Jakarta Post, six people were brutally beaten outside a mosque for indecency and gambling, activities prohibited by the province of Aceh’s Islamic bylaws, or “qanun.”

Among the guilty were two university students, a man, 23, and a woman, 20, who were caned five times each for displaying affectionate contact while unmarried, a violation known as “khalwat.”

Iran confirms receiving 200 tons of yellowcake

Iran has received about 200 tons of yellowcake from Russia as part of a July nuclear deal between Tehran and the world powers, director of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Ali Akbar Salehi said.

Yellowcake is a type of uranium concentrate powder obtained from leach solutions, in an intermediate step in the processing of uranium ores. It is a step in the processing of uranium after it has been mined, before fuel fabrication or enrichment.

Iraqi PM says Turkey not respecting agreement to withdraw troops

ISIS Targeting America's Electric Grid

ISIS attacks in California and Paris may be just the beginning of an unprecedented plot to bring America to its knees by targeting our nation's scandalously vulnerable electric grid, warn officials at the Pentagon and FBI.

Why? Because terrorist groups like ISIS realize they can't beat us with brute military force on the conventional battlefield. We're way too strong for that.

But when the electric grid fails, it will be like watching America have a heart attack right before your eyes.

Israel's first bio-waste power plant to be built

Doral Energy is teaming up with Kibbutz Lahav to build a facility to generate energy from organic waste and animal waste the first of its kind in Israel. The installation will be constructed on Kibbutz Lahav property and will accept the organic waste of nearby kibbutzim.

The investment in the installation will cost NIS 15 million. The facility will first generate 0.63 megawatt, to flow to the electric grid. Bio-gas facilities are very common across the world, specifically in Europe.

Is the Pope right on climate change?

Last June, Pope Francis released his much-anticipated encyclical on the environment, Laudato Si’, which received tremendous praise from diverse quarters. The same day, Coral Davenport, writing in the New York Times, noted that the papal encyclical "is as much an indictment of the global economic order as it is an argument for the world to confront climate change." Ms. Davenport quoted me (accurately) as saying that elements of the encyclical were unfortunately "out of step with the thinking and the work of informed policy analysts around the world." In this column, I will elaborate.

‘I Will Not Stop Talking About This’: Fox News Contributor Unleashes On ‘Fake-Feminist’ Clinton

Fox News contributor Katherine Timpf turned to her Twitter account Tuesday to sharply criticize Hillary Clinton over how she treated the women who accused President Bill Clinton of sexual assault.

Timpf, who also writes for the National Review, listed multiple incidents where Clinton called into question the character of women who accused her husband of sexual wrongdoing.

Jettison Through Nearly 60 Years of Space Junk Accumulation

People have been leaving a mess out in Earth's orbit...

The visualization jettisons along through the history of space junk since Sputnik’s launch. And though the early years seem fast, wait till you see the year 2007, when a Chinese ballistic missile tests exploded, adding 2,000 more pieces to the space. A collision between two satellites in 2009 added about 2,000 more.

Julius Baer to Pay $547 Million to Resolve U.S. Tax Probe

Julius Baer Group Ltd said it expects to pay about $547 million to settle a U.S. criminal investigation into how it helped Americans evade taxes, clearing the way for other Swiss banks to resolve similar probes.

Life is a Series of Punches

 “Life is a series of punches. It presents a lot of challenges. It presents a lot of hardship, but the people that are able to take those punches and able to move forward are the ones that really do have a lot of success and have a lot of joy in their life and have a lot of stories to tell, too.” ― Josh Turner

Majority of Duke coal ash ponds classified as high- or intermediate-risk

Twenty of Duke Energy's 32 coal ash storage ponds in North Carolina are high- or intermediate-risk, according to a draft report released Thursday by the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality that could drive the cleanup requirements for those sites.

Man Who Escaped Islamic State Prison Provides Horrifying Details on What Group Did to Christians

A member of the Iraqi military who escaped an Islamic State prison explained in a new interview how the terror group treated Christians...

He then provided horrifying details on exactly how the group tormented them.

Marine Vet Told to Remove ‘USMC’ Cap for Driver’s License Photo. He Refuses. Here’s What Happens Next.

When Marine veteran Alex Morales headed over to a California Division of Motor Vehicles office to get his driver’s license renewed last month, he was wearing his “USMC” baseball cap...

Curiosity took hold of the official, who asked why he wouldn’t remove his cap. Morales replied that he saw other men wearing religious head coverings who were getting photographed with no problem: “Those men didn’t remove their head wear, I shouldn’t either.”

Meat-Processing Plant Fires Nearly 200 Workers Amid Muslim Prayer Dispute — and CAIR Is Getting Involved

Cargill Meat Solutions made the decision to fire employees — individuals who are mostly Muslim immigrants from Somalia — after the workers refused to show up to work at a Fort Morgan, Colorado, plant last month, with the workers claiming that they were denied breaks to pray.

Microsoft to Warn Email Users of Suspected Hacking by Governments

Microsoft told Reuters about the plan in a statement. It comes nine days after Reuters asked the company why it had decided not tell victims of a hacking campaign, discovered in 2011, that had targeted international leaders of China's Tibetan and Uighur minorities in particular.

Most residents back Hawaii energy goal

Blue Planet Foundation said Monday that a recent survey conducted by the clean energy organization shows strong support for the state's 100 percent renewable energy goal as well as increased availability and integration of clean energy.

New Gun Laws for the New Year: Three Big Changes Coming for 2016 in These States

Although President Barack Obama has expressed frustration about his inability to sign federal gun laws, liberal lawmakers at the state and local level have pushed through proposals to curb firearms.

By contrast, Texas has expanded gun rights, with varying responses from the business community in the state.

No Constraints

“There are no constraints on the human mind, no walls around the human spirit, no barriers to our progress except those we ourselves erect.” ― Ronald Reagan

Obama Reveals New Year’s Resolution — and It has Everything to Do With Guns

President Barack Obama unveiled his New Year’s resolution on Friday, saying that he plans to move forward on tackling the nation’s “unfinished business” surrounding the “epidemic of gun violence.”

“My New Year’s resolution is to move forward on our unfinished business as much as I can and I’ll be more frequently asking for your help,” Obama said in his weekly radio address. “That’s especially true for one piece of unfinished business: our epidemic of gun violence.”

Opponents of Maine wind farms seek to opt out of speedy reviews

Opponents of commercial wind farms are gathering signatures to remove their townships and plantations from the vast areas of Maine where proposals receive speedier reviews, setting the stage for more contentious debates over the growing industry.

Ouch! $7 Trillion Debt Refinancing Tab Due in 2016

The amount of debt that the governments of the world’s leading economies will need to refinance in 2016 will be little changed from last year as nations make strides in cutting budget deficits to a third of the highs seen during the financial crisis.

The value of bills, notes and bonds coming due for the Group-of-Seven nations plus Brazil, China, India and Russia will total $7.1 trillion, compared with $7 trillion in 2015 and down from $7.6 trillion in 2012. Japan, Germany, Italy and Canada will all see redemptions fall, while the U.S., China and the U.K. face increases, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

‘Our Nation Is in Trouble’: Franklin Graham Warns That ‘We’ve Turned Our Back on God’ — but He Has a Bold Plan to Fight Back

Franklin Graham, president and CEO of Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, believes that America is “in trouble,” so he’s embarking on a bold, nationwide tour to encourage the masses to appeal to God in an effort to alter the nation’s cultural trajectory.

PUC affirms November's split decision on Boulder's muni plans

The Colorado Public Utilities Commission on Wednesday affirmed the oral decision handed down at its meeting last month in which it ruled Boulder cannot acquire Xcel Energy facilities that exclusively serve customers outside city limits, and that the commissioners won't force the utility to share facilities with the city.

Rates for rooftop solar customers set to increase Friday

NV Energy will implement steep rate hikes on Friday that triple a fixed fee and cut the value of incentive credits for rooftop solar customers, despite several last-minute efforts this week to delay the increases until an appeals process runs its course.

Right wing militia from Bundy Ranch occupy federal wildlife building in Oregon

Militia members protesting a federal prison sentence for two Oregon ranchers convicted on charges of setting fire to federal land have occupied the headquarters of a national park, the OregonLive reports.

The protesters include Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy’s son, Ammon, and two of his brothers. Also among them is Ryan Payne, who organized snipers to aim weapons at federal officers during the Bundy Ranch standoff last year.

Saudi Arabia Cuts Diplomatic Relations With Iran Over Execution Protests

Saudi Arabia said Sunday it had severed ties with Iran over the storming of the Saudi Embassy in Tehran in a worsening diplomatic crisis between the regional rivals following the kingdom's execution of a prominent Shiite cleric.

Saudi Arabia Executes 47, Including Prominent Shiite Cleric

Saudi Arabia has executed 47 men for various bombings and attacks, the interior ministry said on Saturday.

The punishments were carried out in 10 provinces, according to a statement by the official Saudi Press Agency. While most of the convicted men were Saudi citizens, the number included one Egyptian and one Chadian national, it said. Some executions were carried out by firing squad and some by sword, a ministry spokesman said on Al-Arabiya TV.

Second Amendment Advocates React to News of Obama’s Upcoming Town Hall on ‘Guns in America’ — and They Don’t Hold Back

Once word spread about the “Guns in America” town hall, a number of second amendment advocates weighed in on the upcoming program:

She Left a Frustrated Note on a Stranger’s Windshield After the Person Parked in Her Private Spot. What Happened Next Shocked Her.

Clearly annoyed by the situation, the unnamed woman — whose story was shared by a user named Pemu — decided to leave a note expressing her frustrations on the individual’s windshield who had parked in her private spot.

It was the result of that note that she couldn’t have predicted, though, the Epoch Times reported.

Solar gaining on coal in India

When the accountants have fully loaded the network and other costs PV ends up as very slightly cheaper than using lndian-mined coal. And, of course, this advantage will grow as solar gets cheaper.

Solar is in, biomass energy is out--and farmers are struggling to dispose of woody waste

It should have been a good year for turning wood and waste into electrons.

A record-setting drought forced growers to bulldoze thousands of acres of trees, and hardly anyone in the Central Valley has permission to light bonfires anymore.

Solar Maximum: A major storm's brewin'

The New Year ushered in more than just celebrations and resolutions. New Year's Day saw a geomagnetic solar storm measuring G2, which can cause power grid fluctuations and voltage alarms on high-latitude power systems, according to the Space Weather Prediction Center at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

State Department Kept Tabs on the Drudge Report, Emails Reveal

Hillary Clinton’s State Department kept tabs on the Drudge Report, new emails released Thursday reveal.

In an April 2012 email, then-Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs Michael Hammer alerted then-Chief of Staff to Hillary Clinton Cheryl Mills about a story “running on Drudge.”

Sustainable Meat Production Goes Hand in Hand with Renewable Land Management

• Grazing cattle are important for optimal ecosystem functioning. Densely congregated animals moved frequently is best
• When properly managed, cattle do not promote climate change. The EPA has quantified the total impact of all domesticated grazing animals as contributing about two percent of greenhouse gases to the total climate change picture
• Mob grazing fosters the composting that takes place naturally in a pasture-range land environment, thereby accelerating the building of fertile topsoil and positively impacting the water cycle

Take a Look at How Much the Taxpayers Are Shelling Out for One Obama Christmas Vacation

For the last week and a half, President Barack Obama has been in Hawaii celebrating Christmas with his family, playing golf with friends and eating shaved ice on family outings.

It might take a couple of years before taxpayers know the precise cost of this year’s Christmas vacation, but if it’s similar to previous years, such as 2013, it will cost more than $8 million.

Tesla meets 4th-qtr estimate with 17,400 vehicles delivered

The Amazing Benefits of Breastfeeding

• Breast milk is a perfect food for the human infant as it contains all the nutrients vital for healthy growth and development, plus beneficial microbes that promote a healthy gut microbiome
• Prematurely born babies who received their mother’s milk had a 46 to 90 percent reduced risk of developing retinopathy of prematurity, an eye disease that in 10 percent of severe cases causes blindness
• Nearly 17 percent of women who lactated for a month or less had atherosclerotic plaques, a risk factor for heart disease, compared with less than 11 percent of those who breastfed for 10 months or longer

The US Economy Needs a Republican President

Hillary Clinton wants Americans to believe the economy does better with a Democratic president than a Republican in the White House — that is simply false.

Unless a president presides over an absolute economic disaster — as did George W. Bush or Herbert Hoover — comparing one with another is tricky business.

This Is What a Massive Methane Leak Looks Like

A leak is spewing millions of tons of the invisible gas into the skies above Los Angeles.

Thousands of feet beneath Los Angeles’ suburban San Fernando Valley, an environmental disaster is playing out in real time. Since October 23, an underground storage well at a natural gas storage facility in Aliso Canyon has been spewing methane and other pollutants. Now, an environmental group has released infrared aerial footage of the leak’s above-ground consequences.

This Year's El Niño Looks Menacingly Familiar

The world is bracing for record rains and droughts

Weather watchers have found a doppelgänger—the evil twin of a past weather system that suggests Earth is in for a wild 2016. Satellite images of the Pacific Ocean suggest that El Niño 2015/16 could be as bad as the one that happened in 1998.

Three Masked Gunmen Forcibly Enter Armed Homeowner’s House — Only Two Escape

Police say three masked gunmen forcibly entered a home in Trotwood, Ohio, early Monday, demanding money — but they soon found out the homeowners were armed.

US Fails to Track Foreign Visitors Who Overstay Visas

Federal officials admit they've lost track of how many foreign visitors overstay their visas every year – despite a nearly 20-year-old law requiring the government to develop a tracking system, The New York Times reports.

Federal agencies haven't even provided a new report to Congress on overstays since 1994, the Times reports.

US Senate Expected to Take up Microgrid Policy in Early 2016

A grid modernization bill — one that takes steps toward federal microgrid policy — is likely to reach the floor of the U.S. Senate early next year, according to Sen. Lisa Murkowski.

If passed, the Energy Policy Modernization Act of 2015 (S. 2012) will heighten the federal role in supporting microgrids, which has been largely a state endeavor to date.

US shuts down drone base in Ethiopia that was used to target Islamic extremists in Somalia

The U.S. government has shut down its drone operation base in southern Ethiopia, an embassy official announced.

A decision has been reached that the base in Arba Minch, 450 kilometers (280 miles) south of Addis Ababa, is no longer necessary, embassy spokesman David Kennedy told The Associated Press by email.

Victory for Medical Choice as New York Supreme Court Reverses Mandatory Flu Vaccine Rule

On December 16th, 2015, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Manuel Mendez ruled on behalf of The Supreme Court of the State of New York to end the mandatory flu vaccine rule. Mendez said in his decision that the city’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene “lacked the statutory authority” to mandate the influenza vaccines because they are not required under state law.

WSJ: White House Used NSA to Spy on Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu, Members of Congress, American Jewish Groups

The alleged spying took place despite a promise two years ago by President Barack Obama — after it was revealed that the NSA had listened in on German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s phone calls — that the U.S. “will not monitor the communications of heads of state and government of our close friends and allies.”