iPhone concept car-iChange

Since launching in 2001, Apple's iPod has helped change the landscape of the music business and the mobile phone industry. Many industries are jealous of this extraordinary success of the iPhone and taking a cue from Apple's success in the technology industry. About iChange it is hoped it could have the same affect on the car trade – by creating a vehicle that is controlled by using an iPhone.
The idea might sound like science fiction, but Swiss design firm Rinspeed hopes that it can bring that fantasy one step closer to reality with a new concept design to be put on display at next week's Geneva Motor Show.
The entire vehicle, known as the iChange, is built around Apple's popular mobile handset, which hooks into the dashboard and acts as the car's key – locking and unlocking it, as well as turning on the engine and performing other vital functions.
The electric-powered model also boasts a shape-changing design that allows it to seat one, two or three passengers. On first glance, the iChange is a teardrop-shaped single seater sports car – but at the push of a button the rear opens up to offer another two seats. The concept, which has been supported by the Swiss government, might seem far-fetched, but the team behind it say it is intended to stimulate the struggling car industry into innovative thinking.
Rinspeed founder Frank Rinderknecht said that the vehicle is the sort of required to push the modern car into the 21st century.
"The iChange is a symbol for the fundamental changes the auto industry undergoes worldwide," said Rinderknecht. "It is clear that only those companies will survive that have innovative answers for the demands of a new automotive era."

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'Bill of rights' by Facebook

In future, the Facebook has announced, proposals to change its terms of service will be circulated to users in order to get feedback. Some may go to a public vote, while it also said that its legal contract with Facebook addicts will be simplified into a "bill of rights and responsibilities". the social networking site has decided to stem off future criticism by putting some changes to public vote and asking users to sign simplified 'bill of rights'
"We're going to notify everyone who wants to be notified and give them time to comment," Mark Zuckerberg said. in a call with journalists earlier.
In the case that a proposed change draws a high volume of response, "we'll even put it up for a vote".
The move comes just a few days after an embarrassing climbdown, after changes to the site's terms of use led to outrage among many of the site's 175m users. The concerns, over a shift in wording that appeared to give Facebook perpetual ownership to every piece of data on the site, eventually led to Zuckerberg making a drastic U-turn.
Although executives at the site said they did not intend to offend or annoy users with the earlier changes, they recognised that data ownership was a sensitive issue for many people.
Facebook's vice president of communications and public policy, Eliot Schrage, said: "Because of the nature of the information our users share, we have to hold ourselves to a higher standard."
Facebook has suffered from backlashes before – when implementing its news feed or its controversial Beacon advertising system, for example. But this latest change effectively hopes to stem future controversies in the bud by putting part of the company's up for public approval (although Facebook will, of course, still control which issues are up for public discussion and vote)
Zuckerberg, who seemed stuck for words on a few occasions, said that although the announcement was precipitated by last week's farce, the changes had been discussed for a "long time".

New features of Apple Launch

Apple unveiled a number of new products at the Macworld conference. Safari - Apple's new web browser-Free to download, in beta (test) version now Safari-A major surprise was the arrival of Apple's new open source-based web browser. The move is seen by some as an attempt by Apple to become less reliant on Microsoft for vital programs. Safari is in a test version at the moment, but Apple claims it is already substantially faster than Internet Explorer - although they did not reveal how well it compares with the Mac browser from Norwegian software company Opera. Other features include Google integration, a "snap-back" feature to make searches easier, easier organisation of bookmarks and pop-up ad prevention. Apple's answer to PowerPoint
Another surprise, seen as a dig at Microsoft, whose PowerPoint software is the industry standard presentation creator on both Windows and Mac. Mr Jobs claimed the package had been specially made for him and, indeed, his presentation featured a few new special effects between some of the 500 slides. On first inspection Keynote seems a straightforward but powerful package. A library of templates is intended to give the impression of a large graphics design studio working for you "day and night". Importantly, Keynote will be able to import and export PowerPoint files. Could this be a subtle attempt to get Apple into PC-dominated businesses?
Video Editing Package
Video editing package, without losing much of the functionality that makes its parent package popular. The interface remains the same, there are plenty of special effects to give your video a professional look, and even sophisticated functions like colour correction remain. It usefully bridges the gap for amateur film makers who have grown out of iMovie, but who cannot afford - or face - the more complex Pro package.iLife - Apple's revamped digital media suite
iLife
Apple has revamped its digital media software, more closely integrating iTunes, iMovie, iDVD and iPhoto. This makes it easier, for instance, to set your digital photograph slide show (in iPhoto) to music (from iTunes). Apple sees its iLife suite doing for digital media what Microsoft's Office suite did for productivity software. The iMovie, iDVD and iPhoto programs have all been given major upgrades. Apple is charging for this software bundle for the first time, although all bar iDVD will still be available for free download.
The PowerBook G4 12" - a new compact notebook this is the world's smallest "full feature" notebook. It has a 12" display, and it is capable of burning DVDs with an optional SuperDrive. It is only 1.2 inches thick, and weighs 4.6lbs. Like its bigger sibling it comes equipped with Bluetooth, although Airport Extreme is available as an option rather than fitted as standard. Battery life is claimed to stand at five hours.
The PowerBook G4 17" - a new top-end laptop Apple's notebook range sports an enormous 17" widescreen display, yet is also the company's thinnest laptop at less than 1" thick. It has Bluetooth built in, allowing it to communicate wire-free with other mobile devices, and also sports Apple's new Airport Extreme - a faster version of the WiFi networking standard. The Airport antenna is built into the lid of the device, to tackle complaints that previous PowerBooks had poor WiFi reception. It has a 1GHz processor and a DVD burning SuperDrive as standard, and Apple claims four hours of battery life.

Apple's Snow Leopard to include "geopositioning"

Apple's Snow Leopard to include "geopositioning" for computer,
The next release of Apple's Mac OS X operating system will have the capability to pinpoint your position, the latest release notes of Apple's Snow Leopard operating system - still in preparation - show that the company is going to build in geopositioning for desktop and laptop computers, bringing it into line with its GPS-enabled iPhone.
This sees includes the CoreLocation framework which lets you determine the current latitude and longitude of a computer. The framework uses the available hardware to triangulate the user's position based on nearby signal information.
Now, what could you do with that? Well, apart from fitting in with the new location-enabled services in the latest version of Apple's iLife, one can see that there's going to be lot of people offering apps that will tell you where your precious computer is at all times - including if/when it's stolen.
The new seed includes some other stuff and it is being reported that it runs quite noticeably faster, at least on Apple's own apps compiled under the new gcc compiler. And it tells us that great progress has been made in the Grand Central Dispatch (libdispatch) and OpenCL APIs.
Grand Central and OpenCL, you'll recall, are the methods being used to get the graphics processing units (GPUs) to take over some of the processing load from the CPU.
There's also now Microsoft Exchange support. Though a few bugs do remain, such as
-The date shown in the iCal Dock icon does not update correctly. The prediction of launch if all goes well is May this year.

LED lightbulbs"smart lighting" will become the next generation of wireless communications technology

Smart-lighting technology means your house lights could communicate with your stereo. Professor Thomas Little of Boston University would like your house lighting to communicate with your computer, TV, and even the heating thermostat. By piggybacking data communications on to LED lightbulbs, he hopes "smart lighting" will become the next generation of wireless communications technology. But has it got a hope against existing technologies? The replacement of existing bulbs with low-energy LEDs reduces carbon emissions while offering an opportunity for smart lighting.
Little anticipates smart-lighting data rates of "1Mbps to 10Mbps with visible light this year and a 100Mbps to 500Mbps range with future prototypes". Such speeds are impressive except for one thing: exactly how will smart "We expect it to be two-way with the use of LEDs at the receiver. In practice, the channel will be asymmetric – just like cable modems or DSL [broadband] systems – due to the overhead lighting being intended to distribute light and the receiver intended to be passive," he says. "At the receiving end we will use a smaller LED and will investigate other wavelengths if visible light proves annoying in the back channel."
lighting challenge two-way wireless home networking?
The concept of smart lighting may not stop indoors. Little is considering outdoor applications such as smart LED brake lights or even data-transmitting road signs. "LED lighting is a green technology. If we enable all future lighting to provide network connectivity we will have a far deeper penetration than current wireless tech. We will do this without the additional energy cost of these other technologies," so being said by the researchers.

Green Dream Hybrid Car made by China

China is rolling BYD (Build Your Dream) cars on massive scale. These car are hybrid cars and do not need to be charged specially on the electric charge station. These cars can by recharged conveniently from electricity supplied to homes. Wow!!!! what a great achievement for our environment. In china manufacturer with breathtaking ambitions, supported by a government seeking to become a world leader when it comes to green technology.
BYD Auto – short for Build Your Dreams – was only founded in 2003, yet it has pulled off a global coup by mass-¬producing the world's first plug-in, petrol-¬electric hybrid, the nifty-looking BYD F3DM (byd.com). Under the bonnet, the car is more of a purely electric car than any similar hybrids on the road today, and has made its debut at least a year ahead of similar models from the US and Japan.
The car, which does not need a specialised electric charging station and can be charged using a normal household supply, is now on sale in China, where it costs just under 150,000 yuan (£15,000), a similar price to a mid-range petrol-powered sedan and a bit more than half the 250,000 yuan it costs to buy a Toyota Prius. BYD has come from nowhere to sell 24,107 vehicles in January alone, an increase of nearly 80% from the previous year, and aims to sell 400,000 models in China this year.BYD aims to tap into the world's fastest-growing auto market as China's emerging middle class – now estimated to number between 100 million and 150 million people – swap their bicycles for four wheels. While the economic crisis has sent vehicle sales tumbling around the world, Beijing alone is still adding more than 1,500 new cars to its gridlock every day. "The use of alternative types of cars could really make a contribution to the reduction of pollution in large Chinese cities," says Karl-Thomas Neumann, chairman of the carparts manufacturer Continental.
A survey by Continental shows that Chinese consumers are much more interested in hybrids than their European counterparts, with 53.7% of those surveyed happy to buy a hybrid and 73.4% who would consider an electric car – decidedly more green than the UK's respective 30.2% and 37.1%. Chinese drivers are more open to hybrids as "more than 90% drive in urban centres and travel less than 60 miles a day", says Paul Lin, BYD Auto's marketing manager.

Nasa's pioneering satellite, designed to map carbon dioxide concentrations, has crashed.

Nasa's pioneering satellite, designed to map carbon dioxide concentrations, has crashed into the ocean near Antarctica after running into technical difficulties during launch.The Orbiting Carbon Observatory (Oco) blasted off aboard a Taurus XL rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The payload fairing failed to separate from the vehicle during ascent." The 160 centimetre-wide payload fairing is the nose cone that protects the satellite as it blasts through the atmosphere and should have split in two before falling away from the satellite. Because of the additional weight of the fairing, the rocket and satellite failed to reach orbit and subsequently plummeted into the Southern Ocean.

"Certainly for the science community it's a huge disappointment," said John Brunschwyler, Taurus project manager for Orbital Sciences Corp, which built the rocket and satellite. "It's taken so long to get here." The project took nine years to reach the launch pad. "The loss of this instrument is a serious setback," added Professor John Burrows, a co-investigator for the satellite. "Oco planned to build on the first measurements by the European Sciamachy instrument on Envisat and is complementary to the recently launched Japanese mission, Gosat." The technology onboard Oco was unique and boasted the ability to take more frequent and sensitive readings of CO2 levels than Envisat and Gosat. Nasa's director of Earth sciences, Michael Freilich, said: "Over the next several days, weeks and months, we're going to carefully evaluate how to move forward and advance the science, given our evaluation of the assets that are in orbit now, the assets of our international partners and the existence of flight spares in order to put together a programme, as rapidly as possible, to pick up where Oco left off." The £190m satellite was designed to collect precise measurements of the greenhouse gas in the Earth's atmosphere, identifying where it is being emitted, where it being absorbed and what happens to it in between. "It's critical that we understand the processes controlling carbon dioxide in our atmosphere today so we can predict how fast it will build up in the future and how quickly we'll have to adapt to climate change," said David Crisp, principal investigator for the Oco based at Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.

Experts believe a successor to Oco is likely. "Given its relatively low cost, I would expect a second Oco to be approved," said Dr Chris Welch, principal lecturer in Astronautics at Kingston University's Faculty of Engineering.

Economic package for Pakistan by US and international community

As per media reports the United States is working on a major economic package for Pakistan and Afghanistan, besides involving the two countries in formulating a new security strategy for the region. Richard Holbrooke, the US special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, had recently invited about a dozen economists from the two countries for discussing various proposals for the economic uplift of the region.

The participants said that the United States was developing a multi-pronged approach for ending terrorism and militancy from the Afghan-Pakistan region, with a major emphasis on economic development. A former Pakistani finance minister, Shahid Javed Burki, who also participated in the meeting, proposed a $60 billion package for economic development in Pakistan.

Under this proposal, the donors will contribute half of this fund while Pakistan will provide the other half. Since Pakistan does not have that kind of cash at this stage, the donors will make their contributions first. The donors will also be involved in formulating various programmes for economic development and also in implementing them.

Americans are seemed to be very interested in the proposal, which would also call for establishing a social security system in Pakistan and for easing the economic burden on ordinary people. Mr Burki also suggested that since the Pashtoons living on both sides of the border were one community, the Durand Line should be treated as a soft border. Former Afghan finance minister, Ashraf Ghani, also supported the proposal.

At this critical juncture, wherein both Afghanistan and Pakistan are suffering the most in the so called war against terror, it is binding on the international community to come forward and initiate programmes for the social development of the region by initiating major investment in the education, health and create alternate source of living for the local peoples.

Both Afghanistan and Pakistan are pregnant with chronicle problems you name any problem you will find in the region Kalashnikov and heroin culture is result of the continuous war and terrorism in the region. The war lords in the region especially in Afghanistan have been found to be most powerful and influential. The people can only be liberated by careful planning. If locals have the sources of earnings and can stand on their own feet I am sure they will not look towards the war lords.

Trade with Russia and Central Asia

In a major policy shift the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) is going to target markets in Russia and Central Asian Republics for promotion of country’s exports. The new export strategy is based on comparative advantages focusing on developing new products and new markets with an aim to widen the narrow export base. This was stated by Syed Mohibullah Shah, chief executive, Trade Development Authority of Pakistan. He said for the last 30 years “we were neglecting these markets which did not only give us proximity advantage but also held great opportunity for our products which are in great demand.” He said in this connection for the first time a very large trade delegation from Russia is visiting Pakistan from Wednesday (Feb 25, 2009) on an exploratory mission.
The delegation members, he said, would have extensive visits of our manufacturing facilities in Karachi and Faisalabad so that they could have a firsthand information about the range of our products and their quality. Syed Mohibullah said there had been minimal export of around $100 million to Russia whereas their total imports from around the world presently stand at $190 billion. The TDAP chief said there was a great demand of products, like textiles and clothing, poultry, meat, fish and fish products, furniture, footwear, cutlery, fruits and vegetables in Russia and CARs. However, our export figures indicate that we are not exploring these potentials though they are being produced and exported to other markets of the world, he added. Twentyfour leading exporters, he said, have booked with the TDAP to meet the visiting Russian trade delegation. Similarly, Pakistani trade delegation would soon be visiting Russia and by exchange of bilateral delegations and holding of fairs, there would be a substantial increase in exports, he maintained. Another major market, Mohibullah Shah said was the Central Asian Republics (CARs) where there was a great advantage of proximity, besides, the demand of such products which are already being produced and exported by Pakistan in other world markets.
All these CARs are presently getting their supplies of such goods like wide range of textiles and clothing, fruits, fish and fish products, meat, furniture etc from Europe, Turkey and Ukarain.
However, it takes around 15 days for supplies to reach CARs from these countries, he said. The TDAP, he said, would also organize a “Trade Caravan” in summer this year to display Pakistani products in major cities of CARs. The caravan will travel through Karakuram Highway and hold a multi-purpose exhibition. There would also be a Pakistan Festival where heritage, culture, music and art events would be organised in three major cities of CARs.
He hoped that by entering these new markets, Pakistani products affected by hard hit recession in the West would gain because impact of slowdown in economies of these countries was much lesser.

World's first satellite to map concentrations of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere

The world's first satellite designed to map concentrations of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere is being launched by Nasa. The Orbiting Carbon Observatory (Oco) will collect precise measurements of the greenhouse gas in the Earth's atmosphere, identifying where it is coming from, where it is absorbed and what happens to it in between.
This improved tracking of CO2 will help scientists develop maps how the gas is concentrated around the world and give a better picture of how it affects the Earth's climate. Policymakers and governments will be able to use the data when setting and monitoring CO2 emissions targets designed to tackle climate change.
The Oco will blast off on a Taurus XL rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California in the early hours of Monday morning. It will help scientists answer one of the biggest mysteries about the movement of CO2 in the Earth's atmosphere. Of all of the greenhouse gas emitted into the air since the industrial revolution in the 19th century, around 40% has stayed thee. Half of the remainder has been absorbed by the Earth's oceans but the rest has not yet been be accounted for. Scientists think the gas must have been absorbed on land but no one really knows where these missing carbon sinks are or what controls them.
"It's important to make clear that the 'missing' sinks aren't really missing, they are just poorly understood," said Scott Denning, an atmospheric scientist at Colorado State University. "We know the 'missing' sinks are terrestrial, land areas where forests, grasslands, crops and soil are absorbing carbon dioxide. But finding these sinks is like finding a needle in a haystack. It would be great if we could measure how much carbon every tree, shrub, peat bog or blade of grass takes in, but the world is too big and too diverse and is constantly changing, making such measurements virtually impossible. The solution is not in measuring carbon in trees. The solution is measuring carbon in the air."
Previous Nasa missions, such as the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder, have also measured the amount of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere but only at altitudes of 5km to 10km above the surface. "Oco is the first Nasa mission that has been dedicated, and optimised to make precise measurements of carbon dioxide throughout the atmospheric column, between the surface and space, with the greatest sensitivity near the Earth's surface, where most of the carbon dioxide sources and sinks are thought to be located," said Crisp.
Oco will collect about 8 million measurements every 16 days for at least two years. It will use three high-resolution spectrometers to split light into its various constituent colours. By anlaysing this light to detect the unique signature of gases such as carbon dioxide and oxygen in the atmosphere, scientists will be able to determine their relative concentrations and identify sources and sinks of CO2.
"Oco is primarily an exploratory science mission, whose objective is to test and validate a new technique for measuring carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere from space. If we find that this approach works as well as we predict, it should provide scientists with the data that they need to produce the first global maps of carbon dioxide sources and sinks on regional scales, or spatial scales comparable to the size of Great Britain," said Crisp.

Solar Mobile

ZTE of China was set on Wednesday in Barcelona to unveil the world’s first low-cost solar-powered mobile phone targeted at the two billion people who have no or limited access to electricity, a spokeswoman said. The first solar phone was put on display by South Korean rival Samsung earlier this week here at Mobile World Congress, the industry’s biggest trade show, creating a buzz around the alternative energy source. Samsung’s phone, called Blue Earth, has mini solar panels on its back and is to go on sale later this year. The handset will be expensive, however, and targeted at ‘green’ conscious consumers in developed countries. A spokeswoman for ZTE said the company’s version, to be unmasked at a press conference later, would be the first ultra-low-cost solar handset pitched at the poor. It is expected to have a screen and buttons on one side and solar panels on the other. South Korean manufacturer LG has also put a prototype solar-powered phone on display here, but it has not been named and it is not yet ready for the market.
A salesman for Samsung claimed 10-14 hours in the sun would give a user four hours of talk time on the Blue Earth, which can also be plugged in.

Khetran Tribal Dance

Khetran Whirling Dance

Khetran is a tribe living in the Barkhan District, Balochistan. The traditional tribal dance (rand) which also known as martial dance and its war cries are well known. There are seven different styles of khetran (Kehtran) dance for example DRESO, chau pheri, pidra, gatay etc. Mostly people dance in the marriage ceremonies.

A clip of such dance from a marriage ceremony held in Nahar Kot is attached to have taste of such dance.

Eco Homes-zero carbon homes.

The terms eco home refers to zero carbon homes. The term "eco home" is now so used and abused that it barely retains any trace of meaning.
This house, in Crossway, Kent, is one of the first zero-carbon homes in the UK. It was designed by architect Richard Hawkes, who will be its first occupant, with structural design by Michael Ramage and Philip Cooper – both based at the University of Cambridge's Department of Architecture.What sets it apart is its structural reliance on a large vaulted roof which spans 20m. Much of the house is covered in earth to aid insulation and help it to blend into its rural setting. The earliest known example of "Catalan vaulting" – the forebear of timbrel vaulting – is a building in Valencia dating back to 1382 and it is a very resource-efficient way of creating a strong, expansive roof.
A zero-carbon home which could become a template for more houses in the UK is to be unveiled in Kent. The four-bedroom property, called 'Crossway', situated near Staplehurst, uses a technique borrowed from 600-year-old medieval architecture to provide what may prove a blueprint for energy-efficient living in the future
But it is intriguing to know that it claims to draw on centuries-old ideas, such as timbrel vaulting. It has often struck me when talking about how we might green up our housing stock just how often the solutions can be found by thumbing through the history books. Much of what is prescribed – insulation, insulation, and a bit more insulation – isn't exactly rocket science.
Our ancestors realised all this long ago, but as fuel becomes ever more available and affordable we largely lost the need to care about wasting energy in our homes. However, things are fast changing and we need to urgently rethink how we use and save energy at home. After all, households account for 27% of the UK's carbon emissions.
"The vaulting gives the house plenty of structural strength but obviates the need for embodied-energy intensive materials such as reinforced concrete," says Dr Michael Ramage, who helped to design the home. He is an architectural designer based at the University of Cambridge's Department of Architecture with expertise in structural design and construction technology. "It also provides it with great thermal mass, enabling the building to retain heat, absorb fluctuations in temperature and reducing the need for central heating or cooling systems," adds Ramage.
The UK's first example of a combination photovoltaic and thermal heating system has been installed alongside an 11kW biomass boiler to provide the home's heating and power needs.

Globalisation

While the international financial system that oiled the wheels of the world economy is in shambles, protectionism is being reinforced in the West to fight deepening recession. With credit drying up in developed economies, banks in Britain have been advised not to lend money to overseas clients.

Focus has shifted from globalisation to national fiscal stimulus plans even in the European Union. Foreign trade is shrinking, as imports are falling on dwindling domestic demand in the United States and Europe. The industrialised world has ceased to be an engine of growth for developing countries dependent on the affluent markets for their exports. China will be a big loser.

Global foreign investments have plummeted and portfolio investments substantially withdrawn by global investors from developing economies. And multinational assistance is being used to shore up the distressed economies. China says, the best way it can help the world, is to salvage its own economy from recession. Efforts have been mounted worldwide to restore robust health to national economies, be fore the globalisation journey is resumed with renewed vigour and diverse approaches. For sometime, there will apause in globalisation.

The current downturn in globalisation is evident in declining foreign investments and the latest move by the United States to insert a “Buy American” clause in its stimulus programme. Earlier, the US and EU resisted investments by National Wealth Funds in their crisis –ridden corporations. For too long, the West has refused to withdraw subsidy on its agricultural products. Western countries have free market within national or regional (EU) boundaries but restrict foreign investment and trade in a variety of ways.

In the past three decades or more, globalisation was spurred by the international financial markets dominated by the West – a patronised and partially unregulated system which has almost collapsed. Unless a new international financial architecture is developed on a more equitable basis and much broader shared responsibilities, international trade and investment flows would remain stifled.

No longer can the West accumulate world’s financial resources at its financial centres like London and New York and distribute it to the developing countries according to its whims and narrow interests.

The global financial system evolved since the 1970s, anchored on the excessive printing of dollars, cannot be salvaged. The system has been destroyed by organic failures and the greed of its own creators. But what is worse, powerful dogmatists are still pinning hopes on outdated ideas which may prolong the world’s agony. The future, however, belongs to those who adjust quickly to fast changing global economic scenario.

Given the changing international environment, Pakistan needs to look inwards rather than outwards for the resolution of its economic problems. The outlook for exports and foreign investment are not very bright, at least for short to medium -term.

With huge stimulus plans, governments of developed countries would not have much money to spare for developing countries. Multilateral assistance would depend on the domestic economic performance and the ability to repay debts. The inflow of foreign investment may improve, though not much, if the economic growth rate picks up. Like many other countries, Pakistan will have to fend for itself by adopting a policy of national self-reliance.

The opening of the domestic market to international competition (where it helps the economy and restricting trade where it hurts) has to be a gradual process. It should not be driven by donors/lenders but flow from a well conceived process of national decision-making, to avoid frequent economic downturns..

Even ideas offered by lenders that have universal application have to be adapted (not adopted) over a period of time, with well thought out sequence, and these should not to be adopted prematurely.. The devil lies in the details--- the specifics rooted in the ground realities. Countries with different backgrounds can pursue different, quite often contradictory approaches, to reach the same goal. The boom-bust business cycle cannot be over come by acquiring domestic ownership of lenders-dictated programmes nor can a dogmatic approach.

In recent years, the country benefited from huge foreign capital and financial inflows but much of it was not used to raise productive capacity. Foreign direct investment came in few sectors, primarily attracted by distress sales of state enterprises whose proceeds were needed to shore up the fiscal deficit and balance of payments position. FDI went into existing import-substitution capacities and not export-oriented industrialisation. The services sector expanded at the cost of agriculture and industry.

Pakistan’s economy is much too small , compared to those of its giant neighbours, India and China and the domestic market is shrinking because of the rising poverty. The purchasing power of the middle classes that attracts foreign investment is declining. Nor does it exhibit dynamism that successful small economies have demonstrated. The national economy is not integrated with regional markets that could attract foreign investment in projects that could cater regional markets.

Foreigners see as to how the domestic industry is performing before putting money in any market. Even local people with money find it difficult to find productive channels. There is over-reliance on financial mode to correct imbalances and develop the economy while domestic banks prefer to invest in T/bills rather than lend money to the commodity producing sectors. .

When trade deficits became unmanageable, the rupee was allowed to depreciate significantly to curb imports, with no other incentive orprogramme for import substitution, barring some focus on farm production.

The policy makers pin their hopes on services sector and agriculture for current year’s GDP growth. Manufacturing is sliding at a rapid pace It is not an integrated approach to economic development. The recent inter-sectoral disharmony gave rise to energy shortage.

The first priority should go to achieving self-sufficiency in foods grains while boosting production in farm and factories with the financial sector playing a supporting role.

High efficiency irrigation

Irrigated farming occupies a significant place in the country’s economy which is primarily agro-based. Of the total cultivated area of 23 million hectares, about 18 million hectares are irrigated. Important sources of irrigation include surface water, rainfall and underground water. Surface water, however, is largely used to irrigate crops.

Our irrigation system is one of the largest in the world that comprises reservoirs, barrages, inter-link canals, irrigation canals and major and minor water courses. To add to this, groundwater pumped through tube-wells constitute important source of irrigation.

Nevertheless, conveyance, distributive and irrigation efficiency of the canal irrigation system is extremely low due to huge conveyance losses from main canals and their branches, from main watercourses, from farmers’ watercourses and from irrigation fields through evaporation, seepage, percolation and overflow due to unlined canals, poor designed and maintained watercourses, defective irrigation practices, inequity in water distribution and lack of precision land level ing. As a result, crop yields are 50-80 per cent below their potential, contributing to plausible gap between actual and potential yields of arable crops.

This necessitates improving irrigation efficiency of the existing system so as to use available water resources effectively and to prevent wastage of land and water resources. On the one hand, a major project of construction, repair and rehabilitation of barrages, head works and re-modeling of canals, regular desilting of canals, distributa ries and minors, redesigning and improvement of watercourses, post-improvement care by community participation approach and precision land leveling through laser technology needs to be implemented, while on the other hand, the farmers are re quired to adopt recommended methods of irrigation.

Additional area could be brought under cultivation by plugging water losses. For instance, many acres have been brought under cultivation due to availability of additional water in Multan, Bahawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan, Rajanpur and other backward areas of Punjab due to rehabilitation of Taunsa Barrage which is playing a significant role in promotion of agriculture as well as socio-economic condition of the farmers. Likewise, abundant water has become available for crop cultivation in Bhakar, Layya, Khushab, Muzaffargarh and other areas owing to remodeling of the Thal Canal.

Construction of small dams to enhance water storage capacity for agriculture is crucial in the backdrop of lack of national consensus on construction of large dams. Small dams constructed in Rawalpindi, Jhelum, Chakwal and other arid areas are greatly helping in storage of water for agriculture purposes.

The farming community needs to shift from traditional methods of irrigation to modern methods such as drip irrigation, sprinkler irrigation etc. Drip irrigation is an effective technique to improve irrigation efficiency, saving water and protecting land form water logging and salinity. Moreover, this system is of great importance in arid and semi-arid regions such as Balochistan.

Sprinkler irrigation is another technique to utilise water equivalent to the water requirement of a crop and application of excess of water which may cause deep percolation and water logging could be avoided. Thus, this system considerably increases irrigation efficiency.

Lack of precision land leveling has been contributing to application losses up to 50 per cent, uneven distribution of irrigation water, leaching of nutrients, water logging and salinity, loss of cultivated land due to excessive bunds, trouble in cultural practices and lower yield of crops.

Realising the importance of land leveling, the Punjab government has launched a programme of providing the farming community laser sets in irrigated areas for development of irrigated agriculture which is the hub of farming activities. It is estimated that this programme would help in curtailing 50 per cent application water losses and increase in cultivated area.

At the farm level, conservation practices such as zero-tillage sowing of wheat in rice-wheat cropping system could increase water use efficiency by 20 per cent, decrease cultivation cost of wheat by about 82 per cent, reduce energy consumption by 81 per cent and increase yield by 15 per cent.

Likewise, suitable sowing method also helps improving irrigation effi ciency. For instance, bed-furrow sowing of wheat and cotton increase irrigation efficiency up to 30 per cent.

Moreover, appropriate cropping pattern could have considerable effect on water saving. For instance, spring planted sugarcane crop requires 64-80 acre-inch of water per acre, while autumn cane crop requires 80-100 acreinch of water per acre. Thus a crop water requirement is an important yardstick that could be used while selecting a crop in a particular region.

Importantly, the farming community needs to optimise plant population, use recommended irrigation methods, ensure timely sowing of crop, manage weeds free fields, adopt effective plant protection measures, optimal tillage during fallowing, use organic manures and where possible use mulches.

Problems like water theft, conflicts on the issues of water distribution, cutting of trees from canal banks and many other pilfering activities are prevailing unabated.

Therefore, irrigation strategy encompassing appropriate measures for checking water theft from water courses and canals would directly benefit the farmers located at the tail ends. Socio-economic uplift of the farming community in irrigated tract is greatly associated with steady supply of irrigation water essential for increasing farm productivity.

Fuel of Future

Hydrogen is being considered as a fuel for the future the world over. It is an environmentally benign replacement for gasoline, diesel, heating oil, natural gas and other fuels. However, producing hydrogen using conventional methods defeats the purpose of using hydrogen as a clean alternative fuel.
Molecular hydrogen has the highest energy content per unit weight among the known gaseous fuels with heating value of 143 GJ per tones, and is the only carbonfree fuel which when burned, only produces water as a combustion product.
Burning hydrogen not only has the potential to meet a wide variety of end use applications but it also does not contribute to greenhouse emission, acid rain or ozone depletion.
Currently hydrogen is used basically as primary feedstock in industrial processes, including petroleum refining, petrochemical manufacturing, glass purification and in fertilisers. It is also used in the semiconductor industry and for the hydrogenation of unsaturated fats in vegetable oil.
Approximately, 90 per cent of the hydrogen produced annually worldwide is from fossil fuels, mainly by steam reforming of natural gas and petroleum derivatives. Other industrial methods use coal gasification and water electrolysis. Each method of hydrogen production requires a source of energy — thermal, electrolytic or photolytic (light) energy.
Hydrogen produced by steam reformation costs approximately three times more that the natural gas per unit of energy produced. Also, producing hydrogen from electrolysis using electricity will cost slightly less than two times the cost of hydrogen from natural gas.
The production of hydrogen from nonfossil fuel sources, such as solar, hydropower, wind, nuclear, etc., has becomes central for better transition to hydrogen economy.
Unicellular green algae offer an attractive choice in the production of hydrogen from water via the process of photosynthesis. Biological processes, unlike their chemical or electrochemical counterparts, are catalysed by micro organisms in an aqueous environment at ambient temperature and pressure. Biological hydrogen production has advantages, when compared to photo-electrochemical or thermo-chemical processes, that include low energy requirement and investment cost. Light absorption by the photosynthetic apparatus is essential for the generation of hydrogen gas. While regular green algae absorb most of the light falling on them, engineered algae have less chlorophyll and let some light through. In University of California, Berkeley, Melis and his colleagues are designing algae that have less chlorophyll so that they absorb less sunlight. When grown in large, open bioreactors in dense cultures, the chlorophyll-deficient algae will let sunlight penetrate to the deeper algae layers and thereby utilise sunlight more efficiently. The critical enzymatic component of this photosynthetic reaction is the reversible hydrogenase enzyme, which reduces protons with high potential energy electrons to form hydrogen. During normal photosynthesis, algae focus on using the sun's energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose, releasing oxygen in the process. Only about three to five per cent of photosynthesis leads to hydrogen. Because hydrogenase is sensitive to oxygen, this hydrogen production must be carried out in an anaerobic environment Photosynthetic hydrogen production by green algae involves water splitting to produce hydrogen and oxygen. Unfortunately, hydrogen production by this process is quite ineffective since it simultaneously produces oxygen, which inhibits the hydrogenase enzyme.

Thus, during light reaction, hydrogen evolution ceases due to an accumulation of oxygen. Therefore, the prerequisite for photohydrogen production by green algae is that they have to adapt to an anaerobic condition. By exposing the cells to specific conditions, scientists are able to modify photosynthesis so that oxygen will not act as the final electron carrier of the electron transport chain; rather hydrogen will allow the cells to release molecular hydrogen as opposed to molecular oxygen. Melis estimates that if the entire capacity of the photosynthesis of the algae could be directed toward hydrogen production, 80 kilograms of hydrogen could be produced commercially per acre per day. The yield of hydrogen production currently achieved in the laboratory corresponds to only 15 to 20 per cent of the measured capacity of the photosynthetic apparatus for electron transport. In a laboratory, Melis worked with low-density cultures and have thin bottles so that light penetrates from all sides. Because of this, the cells use all the light falling on them. But in a commercial bioreactor, where dense algae cultures would be spread out in open ponds under the sun, the top layers of algae absorb all the sunlight but can only use a fraction of it. In Pakistan, hydrogen is largely produced in the fertiliser industry from natural gas, which is used for the production of anhydrous ammonia — the building block for nitrogen fertiliser. On an average, the fertiliser sector has consumed 15.6 per cent of our natural gas. The government provides an indirect subsidy to fertiliser manufacturers. As on January 1, 2008, the balance recoverable natural gas reserves have been estimated at 31.266 trillion cubic feet. With the present consumption rate of 3,826 million cubic feet per day, these resources will last only 20 years at the most. According to The Energy Security Action Plan of the Planning Commission, Pakistan will be facing a shortfall in gas supplies rising from 1.4 billion cubic feet (BCF) per day in 2012 to 2.7 BCF in 2015, and escalating to 10.3 BCF perday by the year 2025. It is, therefore, a matter of economic security to develop alternative hydrogen resources to avoid mid century energy crises in the country. The advent of hydrogen will bring about technological developments in many fields, including power generation, agriculture, the automotive industry and other as yet unforeseen applications. It will increase employment, stimulate the economy and will have a positive impact on the environment in which atmospheric pollution is all but alleviated and the socalled greenhouse effect is mitigated.

US Economy Bail Out package of $789

Congressional leaders reached agreement on a compromise $789bn stimulus deal on Wednesday as Tim Geithner hit back against widespread criticism that his separate US financial rescue plan lacks specifics.
The stimulus package, which is likely to be signed into law by President Barack Obama by his target date of Monday, is smaller than both versions individually passed by the House and Senate.After days of intense debate, the speed of agreement reflected pressure exerted by the White House to reach a deal. It trimmed tax cuts and health and education spending to keep the figure below $800bn, a ceiling insisted on by moderate Republicans and Democrats in the Senate.
The other countries are also being persuaded to do more to save the global economy. “We will certainly be asking the others about their plans and encouraging them to take bold measures to help sustain the global economy,” the treasury officer is being so.
Earlier, Mr Geithner told the Senate regarding the financial rescue plan: “I completely understand the desire for details and commitments. But we are going to do this carefully.” He left the door open for a request for more bail-out funds at a later date. “We want to be careful before we come to you and ask for additional resourcesor authority that we have done so with as much care and consideration on design as possible,” he said.
Mr Geithner said regulators would use a stress test for big banks under the rescue planto “provide a more realistic, forward-looking assessment” of the losses they might face. This could require banks to step up provisioning.
The rescue plan was still attracting criticism on Wednesday. Ed Yardeni, president of Yardeni Associates, an advisory firm, said Mr Geithner was “an empty suit with an empty plan”. But Lawrence Summers, director of the National Economic Council, said it reminded him of the initially negative reaction to the successful 1994 Mexico bail-out.
Investors said they could be interested in investing in toxic assets alongside the government providing there was attractive government financing and guarantees – but said there was little to go on in Tuesday’s announcement. “I don’t know who, exactly, they’re talking about, or how they’re going to lure people in,” one private equity investor said.

GM crops (Genetically modified crops)

Genetically modified crops are continuing to spread across the world’s farmland, according to the leading annual survey of GM in agriculture, published on Wednesday. The International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA) said the global area of GM crops increased from 114m ha in 2007 to 125m ha in 2008, producing a harvest worth $7.5bn. The number of farmers planting GM crops rose from 12m in 22 countries to 13.3m in 25 countries.Clive James, ISAAA chairman, said the most significant development last year was the first commercial planting of biotech crops in two African countries: maize in Egypt and cotton in Burkina Faso. Both crops contain “Bt genes” from bacteria, which kill insect pests. In 2007 South Africa had been the only country on the continent with GM plants (cotton, maize and soya).
The third country where GM crops were planted for the first time last year was Bolivia, where farmers grew herbicide-resistant soya; it is the ninth country in Latin America to adopt the technology. One new GM crop, herbicide-resistant sugar beet, was launched last year in the US and Canada.
In Europe the area sown with Bt maize, the only GM crop approved for planting in the EU, was little changed from the previous year at 107,000 ha. While France suspended the planting of GM maize, this was balanced by a 21 per cent increase in seven other European countries.
But US farmers are responsible for half the world’s GM acreage. They planted 62.5m ha with biotech crops in 2008.
Crops with “stacked traits” are becoming increasingly important, the ISAAA report shows. These contain two or more genetic modifications in the same plant – usually a combination of herbicide and insect resistance. Planting with stacked traits increased by 23 per cent to 27m ha in 2008.
The ISAAA review argues that biotech crops “make an impressive contribution to sustainable agriculture”, by increasing yields of food, fibre and biofuels while reducing agriculture’s environmental footprint.
Of the cumulative economic gains of $44bn over 10 years of growing GM crops, the report attributed 44 per cent to yield increases and 56 per cent to reduced production costs, including the use of 359,000 tonnes less pesticide.
Looking to the future, ISAAA says the most important new biotech trait will be drought tolerance, because drought is much the greatest constraint to increased agricultural productivity worldwide. ISAAA is a non-profit organisation based at Cornell University in New York and with branches in Africa and Asia. The first drought-resistant maize for temperate regions will to be launched in the US by 2012. A drought-resistant variety for tropical regions of Africa, where it is most needed, could follow by 2017, it is expected.
Friends of the Earth published its own report on GM crops on Wednesday with a very different message. Their cultivation “is still confined to a handful of countries with export-oriented intensive farming”, the environmental group said. “The most widely grown GM crop, soy, is grown mostly as high protein animal feed for export to the UK and Europe. GM soy monocultures in South America are wiping out forests, causing massive climate emissions and forcing communities off their lands.”
The GM crops are making inroads into developing countries rapidly. Pakistan will not be an exception in the long run. The BT Cotton is already being grown in some areas according to some credible reports. But before doing that a careful analysis in needed before handing over our food chain to conglomerates.

Habit of checklist a cure of many ills

After he landed US Airways Flight 1549 on the icy waters of the Hudson, Captain Chesley Sullenberger was lauded as a hero for guiding his 155 passengers to safety. But what about the role of his co-pilot, Jeffrey Skiles, and his checklist? The events of January 15 in New York might well have resulted in casualties were it not also for Mr Skiles’ faithful execution of his emergency engine-failure and water-ditching checklists. Gary Klein, a cognitive psychologist, says such lists are vital to those who make critical decisions under pressure: “The Hudson River pilots didn’t have a half-hour to decide what to do with the engines. Instead they need a checklist that has been compiled by people who have seen these situations before and considered the ways to respond.”

Lists of repetitive yet critical steps in stressful situations are familiar to airline pilots, firefighters and wedding planners. But managers in sectors including finance and healthcare are also beginning to be persuaded of the merit of low-tech prompts that require no more than a sheet of A4 and a pencil.Mr Klein, chief scientist of Applied Research Associates, a software supplier to the US military, says checklists are more than just a memory aid. “They are a safeguard against interruptions and they help teams co-ordinate. If you can trust everyone on your team or crew to follow the checklist, it makes everyone’s actions predictable.”

“Checklists clarify and make explicit what the expectations are. But you also need to create a culture that allows and encourages cross-checking.” Dr Pronovost prescribes different types of checklist according to the nature and risk-profile of the task (see below). The most basic is a series of read-and-do actions completed by just one person.

For One hour Globe will be switched off

• 377 cities already committed, and double the number of countries that participated in 2008
  
• Archbishop Desmond Tutu leads call for action on climate change
  
• Christ The Redeemer statue to turn off its lights
  
• Iconic Obama artist Shepard Fairey joins campaign
  

February 5, 2009: With eight weeks still to go before people around the world switch off their lights for Earth Hour, the public awareness raising campaign on climate change is showing signs of being the greatest voluntary action the world has ever witnessed.
The lights out initiative, which began in Sydney in 2007 as a one-city environmental campaign, has evolved into a grassroots action that has captured the attention of the citizens of the world. In 2008, 371 cities across 35 countries turned their lights out in a united call for action on climate change.
Now, with almost two months still remaining before Earth Hour 2009, that number has already been eclipsed, with 377 cities across 74 countries now committed to turning off their lights for one hour at 8.30pm on 28 March.
WWF Director General, Mr James Leape, said he is optimistic about the campaigns potential to drive key decision making on the issue of climate change.
With hundreds more cities expected to sign up to switch off in the coming months, Earth Hour 2009 is setting the platform for an unprecedented global mandate for action on climate change, he said.
The list of cities confirming their participation in Earth Hour 2009 includes 37 national capitals and some of the great cities of the world, including London, Beijing, Rome, Moscow, Los Angeles, Rio de Janeiro, Hong Kong, Dubai, Singapore, Athens, Buenos Aires, Toronto, Sydney, Mexico City, Istanbul, Copenhagen, Manila, Las Vegas, Brussels, Cape Town and Helsinki.
Along with the great metropolises of the world, Earth Hour 2009 will also see the lights go out on some of the most recognised landmarks on the planet, including Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Table Mountain in Cape Town, Merlion in Singapore, Sydney Opera House, CN Tower in Toronto, Millennium Stadium in Cardiff and the worldís tallest constructed building Taipei 101.
A host of high profile ambassadors across the world have also lent their support to the campaign, most notably Nobel Peace Prize recipient Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Academy Award-winning actress Cate Blanchett. Shepard Fairey, the artist who created the iconic imagery for Barack Obama in the recent US Presidential Election, has agreed to create artwork for the Earth Hour campaign.
Earth Hour Executive Director, Mr Andy Ridley, said the 2009 campaign is an opportunity for the people of the world to cast their vote on this important global issue.
Earth Hour by its very nature is the essence of grassroots action. This is the opportunity for individuals from all corners of the globe to unite in a single voice and demand action on climate change, said Mr Ridley.
2009 is a critical year for action on climate change, with the worldís leaders due to meet at the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December to sign a new deal to supersede the Kyoto Protocol.

Earth Hour

Earth Hour at 8:30pm Saturday March 28 2009!
Earth Hour will be celebrated on March 28, 2009. Cities already listed to participate in Earth Hour 2009 include Cape Town, Chicago, Copenhagen, Dubai, Hong Kong, Istanbul, Las Vegas, Lisbon, London, Los Angeles, Manila, Mexico City, Moscow, Nashville, Oslo, Rome, San Francisco, Singapore, Sydney, Toronto, and Warsaw.
On this special night, the world will witness some of the most recognisable landmarks on the planet dim the lights in support of decisive action on climate change. Icons switching off include the world’s tallest hotel building in Dubai - the Burj Dubai, the tallest free-standing structure in the Americas - the CN Tower in Toronto, Moscow's Federation Tower and in Rome - Quirinale - the official residence of the President of the Italian Republic, Giorgio Napolitano.
Auckland's Sky Tower - the tallest tower in the Southern Hemisphere will go dark, joined by Australia’s iconic sails of the Sydney Opera House and across in Cape Town, South Africa, the iconic Table Mountain will mark Earth Hour by turning off its flood lights.
Earth Hour 2008
Where did the lights go off?
From the President of Fiji to the residents of Santa Cruz in Bolivia, individuals around the world turned off the lights off in their homes and businesses.
Major participation took place in more then 25 major cities, on 6 continents, including Chicago, Copenhagen, Manila, Tel Aviv, Bangkok, Dublin and Toronto.
In total more than 400 more cities signed up to support this event in 2008.
Lights off at The Sydney Opera House, San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge and Toronto's CN Tower meant world-famous city skylines disappeared for an hour while celebrities like Nelly Furtado hosted acoustic concerts for fans.
Join this campaign and spread this message to every human. As a nation and as an individual that we should care about mother nature.

London Olympics Oppertunity to multiply your investment

The London mayor announced a legacy plan for the London Olympics. This visionary plan of 30 years in East of London offers you golden opportunity in multiply your investment if you are smart enough to think wisely and invested in the areas where you have comparative advantages over others.
The London Olympics will create “a thriving district of new communities”, the mayor and ministers pledged on Tuesday as they published a detailed masterplan for the legacy to be left by the 2012 Games.London mayor, expressed confidence that the £1bn legacy plan would boost prosperity in east London and signal the area’s “new importance in a 21st century London”.The masterplan includes proposals to build a 1,000-pupil secondary school in the Olympic stadium, which would have access to the sporting venues left after 2012. The mayor’s determination to create an Olympic university using the facilities built for the broadcast centre are also included in the plan, as well as a hub for creative and technology-based businesses.The plan also envisages the creation of 10,000 homes, in addition to up to 3,000 in the Olympic village, and 10,000 jobs on top of those created by the Stratford City retail and business development.The plan sets out precise plans for the regeneration of the area around Stratford and Hackney Wick following criticisms from Mr Johnson last year that planning for the games legacy, one of the central planks of the London Olympic bid, had been badly neglected and was behind schedule.
he mayor’s advisers hope a wide-ranging planning application will lessen the risk for developers and encourage private sector funding of the legacy projects. Although they acknowledge that the recession has brought private sector investment to a halt, they stress that the plan covers a 30-year development period after 2012.The plan sets out the vision of new communities surrounded by parklands and reclaimed waterways. It includes plans to house the National Skills Academy for Sports in the stadium as well as the English Institute of Sport. The stadium will host athletic events but retain the potential to stage other sports and leisure events, such as concerts. There will also be an arts academy and three new primary schools in the area.
In my view this shall be a place that should provide opportunities for local people and must become a real powerhouse for prosperity in the UK and in London.

Lowest Home Sales in UK over the Last 30 years.

In UK, surveyors sold fewer homes per agency in the three months to January than at any time in the past 30 years, according to the latest monthly survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. The average number of transactions, at 9.9 for each office over the past three months, is down only marginally from 10 in December. Nevertheless, the profession has noted such a large rise in inquiries from potential buyers that it is decidedly optimistic. Those surveyors reporting a rise in new-buyer inquiries rose last month to 16 per cent more than those reporting a fall. That compares with 37 per cent more surveyors reporting a drop in inquiries in January last year. In London, the turnround was even more dramatic, with 38 per cent more surveyors saying the number of inquiries rose, up from 1 per cent more saying they were falling back in July 2008.
Anecdotal comments from London agents in the survey suggest that the weak pound is spurring interest from continental buyers who would be paying in euros. The apparent disconnection between new-buyer inquiries and actual sales has puzzled some economists, who have seen inquiries as a leading indicator of demand. Economists at Nationwide, unveiling their most recent house price index, suggested that lack of financing might be delaying buyer interest being translated into sales.

Offshore oil exploraition

Sindh is the largest producer of oil and gas with 72 per cent of gas and 57 per cent of oil production in the country. Efforts are being made to explore and exploit more onshore and offshore reserves of oil and gas in the province. Government is also planning a new hydrocarbons policy with more incentives for domestic and foreign investors. The ministry of petroleum and natural resources has signed a number of joint exploration and production sharing agreements (EPSAs) for offshore oil exploration in the Arabian Sea touching Badin, Karachi and Thatta. Arabian Sea was declared as Zero Zone which comprised of Indus North, Indus X, Indus Y and Indus Z. Approximately an area of 4,170sq km was given to different multinational companies including British Petroleum (blocks U,V, and W in Indus Delta), ENI (blocks M, N and C), PETRONAS ,with partners like TOTAL 40 per cent, OMV 30 per cent, MGCL 10 per cent and subsidiary PETRONAS Carigali Pak Ltd, Tullow and OGDCL (blocks G and H.). It was claimed that an investment of $3.19 million is envisaged during the first two years of the project.

The mismanagement of marine resources and lack of enforcement of environmental laws, have made the environment and local peoples’ livelihood unsustainable. Coastal and marine resource degradation is increasing. Coastal areas have a population of 1.2 million. Around 33 per cent of the country’s population lives below the poverty line and tragically, 80 per cent of this ratio resides in that area. Due to shortage of fresh water flows, fish stocks are declining, and commercially important marine species are fast disappearing. Water, air, and land are being contaminated. In the Human Development Index of 2007, Badin which produces almost 40 per cent of the total oil and gas reserves of the province stands among the country’s poorest districts. Because of shortage of river water in downstream delta areas, sea intrusion has destroyed 1.6 million acres of fertile and agriculture land. The fishing sector is under tremendous pressure. The fisher communities are both hopeful and suspicious of the offshore oil development. They hope for new job opportunities and socio-economic wellbeing but fear the destruction of their environment, fishing grounds and the disappearance of their culture and livelihoods. The offshore oil and gas exploration pose a threat to the marine resources of the region, to the coastal waters, the bays, wetlands, reindeer pastures and salmon spawning grounds that make up the delicate human and natural ecosystem of the coastal region of Sindh.An oil slick will be catastrophic, both for the natural environment and the humans who depend on it. There are legal bindings for the protection of environment and livelihood of the people living in the coastal areas of Sindh but in the Petroleum Concession Agreement (PCA) and Exploration and Production Sharing Agreements (EPSA), there is scant regard for it. Schedule of Marine Research Fees on the Offshore Oil and Gas Exploration and Production says very little about the protection of the said resources, human livelihood and areas.
In the case of offshore exploration, the protection of environment, eco systems and socio-economic wellbeing of the indigenous poor people of the coastal areas needs to be given priority. The people of Sindh should be the main beneficiaries of the of natural resources of the province.

Alternate energy cars

If you care about alternative energy cars, if you ever hoped to drive one. If you ever wanted to be supportive and help make cars happen then now is the time to act on a VERY SPECIFIC ISSUE:
There is no more investment money for alternative energy cars. The Venture Capital market is dead and may never come back. IF, it comes back, Tesla’s problems have put such a bad taste in the VC’s mouth that they will never invest in cars again and those few that did invest in a few car companies have proven that they have no comprehension of how a car company works.
Detroit and the oil industry has managed to block alternative energy cars for decades.
BUT, now, a single door, a last chance has opened. Money was approved and banked, on a emergency fast track basis called the Section 136 DOE ATVM but it was supposed to be released last year and it has been either stalled intentionally by Detroit and Big Oil or mismanaged by those with no idea what they are doing or mis-used by those exploiting the interest revenue on the $25B sitting in Treasury.
Most of the alternative car companies have applied for this money, they are dying in this economy and they all planned for receipt of funds long before this.

What can you do? Tell those in charge to get this money released today.

Today: Call the White House at 202-456-1414

Today: Call Steven Chu, the new head of the DOE at 1-202-586-5000

Today: Call CNN and demand an expose at 800-CNN-NEWS

Please re-post this and forward it to your friends.

A better time to buy car

There's never been a better time to buy a car. On the other hand, there's never been a scarier or more confusing time, either. There are big incentives out there and dealers are discounting like crazy as they try to get aging inventory off their lots. But consumers are understandably worried about the financial health of the automakers they may be buying from, especially domestic manufacturers. So, is it worth taking the deal? Here are some points to consider. The product: If it weren't for all the financial trouble, this would be a great time buy a car from either General Motors or Ford.
GM has some really outstanding products, including the award-winning Chevrolet Malibu, new large three-row SUVs - the GMC Acadia, Buick Enclave, Saturn Outlook and Chevrolet Traverse - and the Cadillac CTS, a world-class mid-size luxury sedan. Ford (F, Fortune 500), meanwhile, has successfully attacked its past quality problems. Now when you buy a Ford car or crossover you can expect the same kind of dependability that was once the hallmark of Japanese brands like Toyota and Honda, according to Consumer Reports. Beyond dependability, vehicles like the Fusion mid-sized sedan, a new, more powerful 2009 Escape crossover and the Flex large crossover are just good cars that offer practicality, style and excellent fuel economy.
Meanwhile, Chrysler has been lagging its competitors in dependability and overall product quality. The new Dodge Ram truck, with a sharper design, nicer interior and better handling than competitors' big rigs, is one product that's arguably superior, if you're looking for a truck that's better looking and more enjoyable to drive.
The prices: Auto sales are forecast to stay low until at least the end of 2009. And while some think car prices will continue to drop, they probably won't. Manufacturers have been drastically cutting production. That means that inventories will get lower, manufacturers will have less need to pile on incentives and dealers won't be as worried about getting cars off their lots quickly. So, from a price perspective, this really is the best time to buy. On many Ford, Chrysler and GM models, you could even get below-wholesale prices, according to pricing data at AOL Autos.
The incentives: Right after GM's financing partner, GMAC, got its own government aid package in late December, GM (GM, Fortune 500) announced it was offering 0% financing on selected products. Unfortunately for car shoppers, the deal is limited to just the Saab 9-3 and 9-5. For SUV shoppers, the 0% deal is limited to the Chevrolet Trailblazer and its variants, including the Saab 9-7X. These older truck-based designs are outclassed by competitors and even by GM's own crossover vehicles. Still, GM is offering low-rate financing on other, better vehicles that can still save you hundreds of dollars even it's not 0%. Those rates could make it a good time to pick up one of those more attractive offerings like the CTS, Malibu or Traverse. GM is also offering big rebates on many models.
For its part, Ford is offering its "Employee Pricing Plus" program and, in many cases, they're adding big rebates on top of the price discounts.The risks: Depreciation, the difference between what you pay for a car and what you can ultimately trade it in or sell it for, is the single biggest cost of car ownership.
And that could offset the savings if the resale value of your car takes a steep dive. The financial troubles of America's automakers have led to more than-than-usual uncertainty about that. Looking at Kelley Blue Book value data, once a car brand ceases production, the resale value of vehicles bearing that brand drops fast. That's true even if the manufacturer stays in business, as happened with GM's Oldsmobile brand and Chrysler's Plymouth. So if you're looking at purchasing a Saturn or Saab, for instance, keep in mind that GM is reconsidering the future of those brands. Then there's the scary prospect that GM or Chrysler themselves might not survive the next couple of years. It's probably a safe bet that they will, with government help, but no-one can say for sure.
If the very worst were to happen and these automakers were to completely go out of business, some of their brands would likely carry on. Chrysler's Jeep brand, for instance, has already outlived several previous owners and no doubt would again. Some other company will pick up the business Even if GM were turn out all its lights, brands like Cadillac, with its unique luxury image, and Buick, which is a huge success in China, would probably carry on somehow.
Ford is the lone Detroit automaker not seeking immediate government assistance. So, from a business perspective, they seem like the safest bet for longevity. Certainly, the Ford brand itself has a secure future. Around the world, the Ford blue oval is a strong brand and Ford is putting even more emphasis on strengthening it.
For car buyers, buying the best cars from the strongest brands is always the best play, though. Ultimately, that's not good news for any of the domestic manufacturers. Despite suffering its first operating loss since 1950, no-one is questioning the long term viability of Toyota. Or that of Honda, either. Both companies also make reliable cars that are, at worst, competitive with Detroit offerings and they have better resale value, too. Both are also offering incentives like 0% financing. Despite Detroit's big improvements in all-around competitiveness and product quality, America's financial crisis will drive even more consumers to buy Japanese cars even as the federal government to save America's automakers.

Fuel Efficient Vehicle in USA

The Department of Energy has received the first applications for $25 billion in low-interest federal loans intended to spur development of fuel-efficient vehicles and components.
The Energy Department reported 34 applications were filed for the Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing Incentive Program, part of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. The money is not related to the government bailout of the auto industry.
a maker of lithium-ion batteries for hybrid, plug-in electric and pure electric vehicles, applied for a $480 million loan with an estimated annual interest rate of less than 4%. The New York-based company also makes software to customize complete battery systems for commercial vehicles.
Ener1 said with the funding it will be able to double the manufacturing capacity of its Indiana lithium-ion battery subsidiary, EnerDel.
EnerDel should be able to produce 600,000 hybrid electric vehicle packs per year at its existing plant by 2011, and build a second larger plant capable of producing battery packs for up to 1.2 million hybrid electric vehicles by 2015 if it gets the loans.
"A critical new industry is taking shape before our eyes," said Charles Gassenheimer, Ener1 chief executive. "We have the technology, but we lack the domestic production capacity."
Expanded capacity will mean 1,300 new jobs, the company said. The company has facilities in Indianapolis and Noblesville, Ind.
Based on DOE data, Ener1 estimates the batteries it produces could save the U.S. economy up to $600 million at the gas pump and eliminate up to 1 billion tons of carbon emissions annually.
The Energy Department said it expects more applications for funding in the near future.
Ener1 has raised about $200 million, but said the low-interest loans are needed to meet expected demand for hybrid and electric cars.

Climate change threatens Lebanon’s legendary cedars

Lebanon’s majestic cedar trees have withstood the test of time for centuries but climate change is threatening the country’s most treasured symbol. Used by various civilisations throughout history for their strong and durable wood, Lebanon’s cedars are now on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List as a “heavily threatened” species. Local experts and environmentalists warn that global warming could have a negative impact on the cedars.
“Enough talking about the need to preserve the cedars, it’s time for action. We must preserve the trees now,” said Nizar Hani, scientific coordinator of the Al-Shouf Cedar Nature Reserve in the mountainous Shouf area southeast of Beirut.
“All indications are that if the current climatic changes continue, the cedars could be in danger.” Lebanon’s largest reserve, where 25 per cent of the country’s 2,000 hectares (nearly 5,000 acres) of cedar trees are located, was established in 1996, stretching from Dahr al-Baidar in the north to Niha Mountain in the south.
Some of the reserve’s cedar trees, which belong to the pine family and have needle-like leaves bearing seeds in scaled clusters, are estimated to be 2,000 years old.
“The melting of snow on mountains as a result of climate change would lead to the disap pearance of the cedars in Lebanon,” said Wael Hmaidan, executive director of the League of Independent Activists, or IndyAct, a non-governmental organisation which focuses on environmental issues.
“We need to tackle climate change and limit its effects before it’s too late.” Snow is a must for the tall evergreen cedars, which have a natural range of 1,200-1,800 metres (4,000-5,900 feet) above sea level. Warmer temperatures would push the trees higher up in order to grow and develop.“If there is no combination of rain, snow and frost for several consecutive days, the seeds of the cedar won’t be disseminated. We also need cold treatment for the seeds to be able to germinate,” said Fady Asmar, a consultant and expert in Mediterranean forests.
“They also need summer mist, which compensates for water needs. Any change in these conditions for several consecutive years might eventually lead to the death of trees.” Lebanon’s cedars were heavily deforested for thousands of years, and the remaining trees are now kept in protected areas. Deforestation accounts for around a fifth of global emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases.
It is said the Phoenicians used cedars for building trade and military ships, as well as houses and temples, while their resin was key to the ancient Egyptians for mummification. It is also believed that King Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem was built from Lebanon’s cedars, which were designated as the dwelling of the gods in the Sumerian epic of Gilgamesh. Three other species of cedar exist in Turkey, Cyprus, Morocco and Algeria as well as Afghanistan and India. “The rainy season was bad this year. We can’t easily control climate conditions,” said Hani. Drought was blamed for the infestation of a wood wasp called Cephalcia Tannourinensis that ravaged cedars in Tannourin village in northern Lebanon several years ago.
“This (wasp) lives with the cedars in the same environment. But warm weather and rising temperatures have extended its life cycle from once a year to three times a year, leading to the problem of Tannourin,” said Hani. “Such pests become very active when temperatures increase.”While Hmaidan warned that global warming could “transform Lebanon into a desert,” Asmar said the effects of climate change in the long run can not yet be measured. “Unfortunately, Arab countries are not exerting enough efforts like the rest of the world to face climate challenges,” Hmaidan said. “They are not considering their long-term interests and do not realise the dangers of climate change which might transform Lebanon into a desert.” However, Asmar said there was not enough data available to sound the death knell of the trees at this time.

Las Vegas’s underworld Mob museum to showcase underworld

Las Vegas is not generally known for its educational offerings, but by next year it plans to offer a new attraction that the mayor is convinced will be a hit with tourists: a mob museum.
The planned $50 million Las Vegas Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, due to open in 2010, would be the first centre to examine the complex role of Mafia families in American history and culture as well as the FBI agents who sought their demise.
It is expected to occupy the entire 42,000 square feet of a threestorey neo-classical building in downtown Las Vegas which was the first federal courthouse in the county and then served as a post office. Visitors will be allowed to have their mug shots taken, wiretap their friends and stand in mock police line-ups, museum creative director Dennis Barrie said. The building itself is already part of mob lore, having staged a 1950 hearing held by the Senate Special Committee to Investigate Crime in Interstate Commerce into organized crime spearheaded by Tennessee senator Estes Kefauver. In 2000, the federal government deeded the decaying building to the city for one dollar on the promise that it would be restored and used for educational or museum purposes. Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman, a former defence attorney who defended several Mafia figures in the 1970s and 1980s, hit upon the idea of commemorating this angle of history.
“I’m saying to myself, although my mother was a great artist, nobody’s going to come to downtown Las Vegas to look at paintings, they’re not going to look at watercolours, they’re not going to look at porcelain, they’re not going to look at miniature trains,” said Goodman.
“What will they look at? They’ll look at something that’s really embedded in history, that makes us unique and distinctive from any other city, that has a historical nexus, a keystone because of the Kefauver hearings, and I said, ‘A mob museum!’ And I think it’s natural.” As simple as that sounds, the idea has had critics. The mayor acknowledged the Italian-American community was so alarmed by the idea when he first hit upon it in 2002 that he backed off at first with a quip that he had actually proposed a “mop museum.” To allay concerns of those who fear the museum will glorify criminals and their acts, Goodman recruited retired FBI Special Agent-inCharge Ellen Knowlton to chair the museum’s non-profit board.
Knowlton convinced the FBI to loan a variety of pieces of evidence to the museum for display.

Bt cottonseed in Pakistan

Having made inroads into several developing countries, Monsanto, the leading GM seed multinational, has been trying over the years to enter into Pakistan market to sell its Bt cotton and other GM seeds despite reservations of the country’s scientists and cotton growers.
Initially, the hybrid was welcomed everywhere for the promises of higher yields but later scorned when it began playing havoc with crops.

The American multinational, whose GM products have not been without controversy for their effects on crops, human health, environment and land despite a dramatic rise in output, is still resisted in Europe. United Kingdom’s ministry of agriculture had, in recent past, issued a strongly worded advice against any approval of a multinational’s GM cotton. Monsanto has been pursuing its case with the officials concerned in Pakistan for long and using various means and skills to win a favourable contract.
In May last year, the company succeeded in getting a Letter of Intent from the ministry of food, agriculture and livestock (Minfal) for marketing certified Bt cottonseed in the country. On December 4, its officials gave a briefing to the Steering Committee on Bt Cotton which was also attended by the federal agriculture minister and it is believed the ministry was greatly inclined to finally let it enter the Pakistan market.Which kind of seeds it would be allowed to sell is not clear although domestic research has been going on for long to determine or evolve the varieties that would suit Pakistani soil and environment. The National Institute of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering (NIBGE), Faisalabad, Central Cotton Research Institute in Multan and Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology(CEMB), University of Punjab, Lahore, have been engaged in developing varieties through genetic engineering with a view to combating various diseases. NIBGE, in particular, is said to have made considerable progress in that direction.The institutes are trying to blend foreign genetically modified seeds with local input to make Bt seeds more economical with a better yield and effective pest resistant. Both India and China have adopted modified seeds but are entirely dependent on the foreign multinationals.
A news report on January 20 stated that an agreement between Islamabad and Monsanto was about to be signed for purchase of its Bt cottonseeds worth one billion dollars that would enhance the country’s cotton production by 40 per cent.
The seeds are to be produced under weed control technology called ‘Bollguard II with round-up ready flex’, which, it is claimed, would save up to $250 million now spent on pest control. The multinational would charge $21 for sowing its inputs over one acre. Of that amount, it would return $4.2 to the farmer for research purpose. The proposed or expected deal has been declared as ‘a milestone’ in agriculture in general and cotton cultivation in particular.
Monsanto, it may be mentioned, dominates the global Bt cottonseed market and that about two thirds of such cotton seeds sold in the world come from it or its subsidiaries. Bt cotton is grown in a number of countries, particularly in the US, Australia, China and India.
Pakistan has been producing small quantities of a variety of biotech crops on experimental basis but none have been commercialised yet despite the issuance of National Biosafety Guidelines in April 2005. The National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering (NIBGE) had even submitted in the recent past an application to the National Biosafety Committee (NBC) for the approval of a GM cotton variety. There had been efforts in recent years to cultivate Bt cotton in some areas illegally under an assumption that it would give much higher yield. In the year 200102, for instance, its cultivation was undertaken in the lower and upper Sindh areas from the seeds smuggled from India.The ministry of agriculture did not take notice of it. Two years’ observation of this transgenic variety, under the climatic conditions of upper Sindh, showed its performance was very erratic.
Latest reports say the smuggled Bt cot ton is being cultivated on about 2.7 million acres of land against total cotton cultivation over eight million acres.The current requirement is 16 million bales but nearly 12 million bales are produced. So, the shortfall of about four million bales have to be imported. An official says that the country can save $5 billion annually by increasing the yield by cultivating Bt cotton. Scientifically speaking, the Bt or Bacillus thuringiensis is a toxin-producing bacterium found naturally in soils. Scientists have isolated certain genes responsible for the production of these toxins and have then used genetic engineering techniques to insert them into cotton. The resulting cotton plants produce the Bt toxins and susceptible
pests die when they eat them. In 2002, Bt cotton was cultivated on 4.6 million hectares around the world, roughly 13 per cent of the total cotton acreage.
In China and the US, two countries with a long experience of growing the crop, Bt cotton initially brought down the use of pesticides. But before long, pests not controlled by the Bt plants, which had once been of minor importance, started to cause serious crop damage, and farmers were soon back to their former levels of pesticide use. In a recent study of the experiences of 481 cotton farmers in five provinces of China, researchers from Cornell University found that the early income gains that the farmers had achieved with Bt cotton during the 2000–2001 season had completely disappeared three years later.
In Pakistan, there are two major types of pests that are damaging our cotton crops – sucking and chewing. To certain extent, it is easier to control sucking pest by strong pesticides but it is difficult to control chewing pests – American bollworms,Army, Pink and Spotted – causing major devastations in the cotton crop fields. The recently emerged Burewala strain of the cotton leaf curl virus (CLCV) is attributed to the unauthorised cultivation of imported Bt cotton by growers.
According to P.V. Satheesh, Convenor of the Andhra Pradesh Coalition in Defence of Diversity, India’s experience in the first year (2002) was a disaster, yielding 35 per cent less than the non-Bt cotton, even while costing four times more.
In the third year, new diseases spread through the soils and the plant. Cattle which grazed Bt cotton plants started dying. And in 2006, Bt plants started wilting, forcing farmers to uproot them. The disease spread to nearby villages, spreading panic among farmers.