Japanese Banking Crisis. A laughing matter?
A reader sent the following as his contribution to solving the current financial situation …..
Following the problems in the sub-prime lending market in America and the run on Northern Rock in the UK, uncertainty has now hit Japan.
In the last 7 days Origami Bank has folded, Sumo Bank has gone belly up and Bonsai Bank announced plans to cut some of its branches.
Yesterday, it was announced that Karaoke Bank is up for sale and will likely go for a song, while today shares in Kamikaze Bank were suspended after they nose-dived.
While Samurai Bank fell on its sword, Ninja Bank is reported to have taken a hit, but they remain in the black.
Furthermore, 500 staff at Karate Bank got the chop and analysts report that there is something fishy going on at Sushi Bank where it is feared that staff may get a raw deal.
As they say laughter is the best medicine or should it be when in trouble yen for humour??
Biodegradable Phones??
Sony Ericsson has announced plans to explore using environmentally sound components in its cell phones. MobileData reported that cell phones are not biodegradable, containing small amounts of potentially harmful substances in batteries, which, if not disposed of properly, could damage the environment.
The GreenHeart concept will research green technologies, using bio-plastic housings, recycled plastic keypads, zero charger with 3.5mW standby power, HTML based e-manuals, a game style educational application 'Ecomate' and environmentally conscious packaging. In August, Samsung released its E200 Eco, a phone whose entire case is made from bioplastic. NEC introduced a bioplastic phone in Japan in 2006, and has been using plant-derived materials since 2004.
"The global take back scheme and the GreenHeart project bring us closer to our vision of being a leader in sustainability in the mobile phone industry," said Mats Pellback-Scharp, Head of Corporate Sustainability for Sony Ericsson. Sony Ericsson has also setup collection points to recycle used cell phones in an environmentally sound way. There are currently more than 500 collection points in India, Taiwan, China, Thailand, Singapore, USA and Mexico. By 2009, it plans to roll out the program in all the countries in which it operates. This story came from the Resource Recovery forum
www.resourcesnotwaste.org
How big is your carbon footprint?
With global warming dominating so many headlines today, it’s no surprise that many are looking to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases our activities produce.
By assessing how much pollution each of your individual actions generates—be it setting your thermostat, shopping for groceries, commuting to work or flying somewhere for vacation—you can begin to see how changing a few habits here and there can significantly reduce your overall carbon footprint. Luckily for those of us who want to see how we measure up, there are a number of free online carbon footprint calculators to help figure out just where to start changing.
One of the best is the University of California at Berkeley’s Cool Climate Calculator. The free web-based tool takes into account daily driving mileage and grocery and electricity expenses, among other factors, to assign a carbon score, which users can compare to similar households across the 28 largest urban areas in the U.S. Some of the results are surprising. For example, residents of eco-aware San Francisco tend to have bigger carbon footprints than those in more conservative Tampa, Florida. The reason: San Francisco has a higher cost of living and colder, wetter winters (requiring more fossil-fuel derived heat).
Another carbon footprint calculator is available at EarthLab.com, an online “climate crisis community” that has partnered with Al Gore’s Alliance for Climate Protection and other high-profile groups, companies and celebrities to spread the word that individual actions can make a difference in the fight against global warming. Users just take a three-minute survey and get back a carbon footprint score, which they can save and update as they work to reduce their impact. The site provides some 150 lifestyle change suggestions that will cut carbon emissions—from hanging your clothes to dry to sending postcards instead of letters to taking the bike instead of the car to work a few days a week.
“Our calculator is an important first step in educating people about where they are, then raising their awareness about what they can do to make easy, simple changes that will lower their score and positively impact the planet,” says Anna Rising, EarthLab’s executive director. “Our goal isn’t about convincing you to buy a hybrid or retrofit your house with solar panels; our goal is to introduce you to easy, simple ways that you as an individual can reduce your carbon footprint.”
CONTACTS: Cool Climate Calculator, http://bie.berkeley.edu/calculator.html; EarthLab, www.earthlab.com;
More from http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=how-big-is-your-carbon-footprint Courtesy of Glen Moore, Director of Wollongong Science Centre and Planetarium http://sciencecentre.uow.edu.au
Innovative Work Experience Project
The Illawarra Innovative Industry Network (i3net) was recognised with an award at the recent 2008 Engineering Excellence Awards. The Highly Commended Award for Education and Training was awarded to the i3net for their innovative approach to providing Work Experience opportunities for High School Students.
Thirty-five students from eight Illawarra high schools recently participated in a trial program to gain work experience online. The i3net arranged a suitable website to remove most of the barriers for smaller businesses to host work experience projects.
"Our aim was to increase the work experience opportunities for students so that they can make the right career choices" says Dr Sander Kroes, Project Manager of the program and current Chairman of the i3net. "We are particularly interested in exposing more students to the varied and exciting activities being undertaken by engineering businesses in the Illawarra."
Six online work experience projects were conducted early this year as part of the trial program. Projects ranged from designing engineering components through 3D drawing software to conducting a market study for engineering products.
"The judges recognised that our approach will allow students in the most remote areas to engage with high-tech engineering firms anywhere in the world" said Dr Kroes. "They appeared particularly impressed by one team which helped to design the world's first self supporting conveyor. The i3net also appreciated the students’ efforts to the extent that five of our members collaborated to assist the students build this unique conveyor."
Dr Kroes accepted the award at the recent Engineers Australia Gala Dinner at the Martin Place Westin Hotel. Dr Kroes also accepted a "Highly Commended Award" in the category of Innovations and Inventions for Zipform - an unique means for constructing prefabricated structures. More information on i3net and this project can be found at www.i3net.com.au
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