Tuesday, October 22, 2013

BBM for iPhone finally, actually launching today... kinda!

BBM for iPhone finally, actually launching, but there's a catch

BlackBerry has announced that BlackBerry Messanger for iPhone is coming today, but you may still have to wait a bit before you get to use it. While the app will launch in the App Store today, BlackBerry is implementing a waiting system similar to Mailbox. BlackBerry detailed the process of signing up for BBM for iPhone in a post on their Inside BlackBerry blog:

BBM Roll Out Details:
  1. Download BBM – the easiest way is to visit BBM.com from your Android or iPhone browser
  2. Once you install the app, open it, and enter your email address to hold your spot in line
  3. We will email you as soon as you reach the front of the line and can start using BBM

BBM.com isn't currently live, mind you. Right now it shows a bizarre series of emoticons that makes us want to punch our screens. But it should be live at some point soon-ish. We hope. Maybe. Sigh.

If you previously signed up at BBM.com, BlackBerry says that you can start using BBM without waiting. However, BlackBerry wants to get as many people using BBM as they can as soon as possible, so users who didn't sign up in advance shouldn't have to wait too long.

(Unless you're in Africa, in which case Samsung has arranged for 3 days of exclusivity. No, that's not a typo.)

BBM for iOS was originally announced in May, but was delayed following the leak of the Android app. While you wait to finally use BBM on your iPhone, check out our hands-on impressions of the app.

Are you looking forward to finally using BBM on your iPhone, are you annoyed that you'll need to wait, or... what's BBM?

Source: Inside BlackBerry, via CrackBerry


    






Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/7Gbwx6YOJE0/story01.htm
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'The Walking Dead' Dissection: Scott Gimple Talks the Terror Within the Prison




AMC


"The Walking Dead's" Chad Coleman (Tyreese)



[Warning: This story contains spoilers from The Walking Dead's "Infected" episode.]



The survivors of The Walking Dead faced two new threats Sunday in the second episode of its fourth season, after Patrick, who succumbed to a flu and turned overnight, terrorized the gated community of the prison.


During the hour, Zombie Patrick attacks what used to be his own community, spreading both the flu (which seemingly has also taken out the pigs) and turning more members of the group into walkers. As for the source of the virus, that continues to remain a mystery -- as does just who is baiting the undead to the weakening gates of the prison.


As if that weren't enough, the prison gang is forced to contend with a murderer among its ranks after Karen and another resident are seemingly burned alive in the final moments of "Infected."

STORY: 'Walking Dead' Cast, Creators on Season 4's Key Changes, Challenges


The Hollywood Reporter caught up with showrunner Scott M. Gimple to dissect the episode.


The flu has spread to Karen -- does that narrow down the origins of the virus to either animals or water?


One thing I really dug about this story when we were talking about it [in the writers' room] is that because of the third-world situation that they're in -- it's almost medieval -- they don't get to know; they don't have a lab to take samples and look at stuff under microscopes. They need to roll with it and figure it out in a really difficult situation to do so. And the audience has to, too.


Carol (Melissa McBride) is now charged with caring for two young girls, Lizzie and Mika. What will she do differently after losing Sophia now that she's arming everyone?


She lost her daughter in a horrible way, and she absolutely got the memo regarding everything that happened with that. Carol was already teaching the children at the prison how to protect themselves at all costs to make sure that they don't become victims [like Sophia ultimately was]. With these two girls, she's going to continue that. It hits her now in a much deeper way -- these are her daughters now for all intents and purposes, and suddenly she's a mom again. She was pretty determined even before she was in that position, so it's only going to get more intense that way.


PHOTOS: 'The Walking Dead's' Most Shocking Deaths


Mika, the younger of the sisters, reveals that Lizzie is "messed up, not weak." In the comics, Sophia grappled with sanity while she was at the prison. Is this a remix of her story with Carl?


Yes. There's a couple things going on there that's taking elements of various stories from the prison and elsewhere in the comic. In the comic, Sophia winds up essentially becoming Maggie's daughter. Kids wind up with other people in the comic. That was something that absolutely came from the comic. Yes, Sophia in the comic, after losing Carol, was not completely looking at the world the right way; she didn't even remember Carol very quickly in the comic, which happened at the farm. A lot of this stuff is subliminal. Having read the comic as much as I have, even after the fact, I realized something that Robert [Kirkman] did. One of my favorite covers of all-time of The Walking Dead was Carl and Sofia holding hands in front of the fences with the walkers. I'm sure that that influenced stuff in [episodes] 401 and 402. That contrast of innocence with threats and death -- there's a whole lot of remixing going on there.


The group is now divided between those who have been exposed to the flu, leaving Michonne (Danai Gurira), Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and Carl (Chandler Riggs) split from the rest of the group. How will that change the leadership within the prison?


The council is getting broken up, and all stability at the prison -- all these things that they built -- are being challenged and compromised. The momentum to this is not good for them holding on to what they have.


The group thinks someone is leaving mice near the fence -- which could be another threat from within their walls. How long can this group stay at the prison?


It looks like that might be what's going on; that's what they're speculating it is. They're going to be tested. The thing I love is that you find safety in this world. You find these walls, and then those walls start closing in on you. And what the hell do you then?


Someone is feeding rats to the walkers and drawing them to the fences of the prison. Could Bob (Larry Gilliard Jr.) be connected to this? We don't know much about him before Daryl brings him to the prison.


There's a lot of speculation online with that, and I shall not comment! But I will say that Bob does have a lot going on under the surface.


PHOTOS: Inside 'The Walking Dead's' Spooky Season 4 Premiere


Michonne starts crying while holding Rick's baby, Judith. She was a mother in the comics. Could we see more of her backstory in flashbacks this year?


Michonne's story is very much tied in to finding out more about how she became who she is. One of my goals was to explore all of these characters to the nth-degree. Michonne has a lot of mystery about her. And as a reader of the comic and that Michonne one shot -- which wasn't in the comic -- and even a viewer of the show, I want to find out more about these characters, and I want to know how Michonne wound up the Michonne we know and love.


Why does Carl tell Rick (Andrew Lincoln) that Carol is teaching the kids how to defend themselves after she asked him not to?


He's his father's son, and that shows the strength of their relationship. Even though Carl did share this information, he also shared that he thought Rick should let her continue doing what she's doing. He did it with a recommendation and to maybe surprise this sad moment that Rick knows his son is right and that Carol is right. What we were shooting for was to see these two on the same page. Carl has not been totally down with the changes that have happened to his life and has moved away from being a soldier. But he is down with being his father's son; he appreciates that. To see Rick go toward Carl's line of thinking is a strong family moment for them.


Was there any part of that that was Carl manipulating Rick in order to get his gun back?


No way.


Considering the path that Carl was on at the end of season three when it was a question of whether he was going to be more like the Governor (David Morrissey) or his father, it seemed like it could have been in line with his dark leanings.


That's the goal: to show even though he still has that desire to be the soldier, he still wants to be his father's son and he wants to follow his dad's lead. There has been a change in Carl that Rick fostered that he enacted.


PHOTOS: The 'Dead' and the Red: 'The Walking Dead Cast in Character and on the Red Carpet


Rick (Andrew Lincoln) realizes he can't continue to take a back seat anymore and resumes carrying his holster and gun. How will he change going forward?


We started him off in a very peaceful place -- as peaceful as you can get on this show. He's achieved something for his family and for himself and the people around him. Clara said to him, "It's almost like a curse -- you don't get to come back from the things you've done." From the time he got back from there, that pig -- one of the symbols of what he achieved with his farm life -- had died. Things are getting taken away from him: There goes the farm, there's a gun in his son's hand, and he'd taken that gun out of his hand, and things are slowly being taken away from him. All the things he's achieved, he's going to be challenged whether he can hold on to them. Whether it's his identity, his family, his relationship to the people in the prison, it's all coming to a head very quickly.


The prison is very susceptible now to the walkers. How much longer can they stay there?


We've shown from the beginning that they have to do this regular maintenance on those fences -- meaning taking out walkers at fences. They're a little busy right now, and they're not at full strength but they need to be. They have a big problem coming up. We've talked about different locations this season, so who knows what can happen. Who knows, maybe they'll pull it off and maybe that requires another location. Maybe other locations come from them not pulling it off. It comes to a head sooner than later.


Tyreese finds Karen (Melissa Ponzio) has been killed and dragged outside, where her body -- and David, who was also sick -- were burned. Were these preventative slayings, or is someone targeting people who are sick with the flu?


Those were the two sickest people who were put away from everybody else. We also know some weird and scary things have been going on at the prison. So was it because they were sick? Was it because they were easy targets set away from everyone? I can only speculate along with you even though I totally know the answer (laughs).


It seems like there's a murder within the walls of the prison. Could whoever burned Karen's and David's bodies be the same person who is trying to force the group out of the prison from within? There's the origin of the flu, the rat bait at the fences …


Totally possible. Maybe, maybe not! It's a totally lame answer. But I will tell you this: It will be answered sooner rather than later.


Tyreese (Chad Coleman) had this peaceful approach to living in this world -- with Karen. How will her death change him?


That is a terrific question. We don't know Tyreese's full story, but the way he carries himself, he hasn't lost much the same way that some other people have since the turn. He hasn't lost his wife -- I'm not saying he had one -- but compared to Rick, he hasn't had these crushing losses. This is a very defining moment for him; it's his first big loss. Everybody has lost something, and everybody has lost this world, but for Tyreese, this is the first big loss he's had. It will change him, and it's going to deeply affect him. We're going to see those effects right at the start of the next episode.


Who do you think is behind the two slayings? Do you think the flu, fence bait and killings is the work of the same person? Hit the comments below with your thoughts. The Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9 p.m. on AMC.


E-mail: Lesley.Goldberg@THR.com
Twitter: @Snoodit



Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/live_feed/~3/pAeII37fcsg/story01.htm
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Monday, October 21, 2013

How Encouraging People to Walk Can Help Strengthen Our Cities

How Encouraging People to Walk Can Help Strengthen Our Cities

I live in L.A., a land of 20-lane interchanges, parking lots the size of football stadiums, and mind-bending, soul-crushing, life-altering traffic. Every day, I meet people who don't even know we have a public transit system and see places in my neighborhood without any sidewalks. This is because, a half-century ago, my city decided to redesign itself for cars, not humans.

Read more...


    






Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/M72GrRRq-TI/how-encouraging-people-to-walk-can-help-strengthen-our-1446544646
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Ranchers Wonder If U.S. Sheep Industry Has Bottomed Out





Ranches like Double J Feeders in Ault, Colo., are feeling the industry contraction, whether it's caused by epic drought, scarce feed supplies, harsh winters or wild price volatility.



Luke Runyon/Harvest Public Media/KUNC


Ranches like Double J Feeders in Ault, Colo., are feeling the industry contraction, whether it's caused by epic drought, scarce feed supplies, harsh winters or wild price volatility.


Luke Runyon/Harvest Public Media/KUNC


Over the last 20 years, the number of sheep in the U.S. has plummeted by half. The sheep industry has actually been declining since the late 1940s, when it hit its peak.


The sharp drop in production has left ranchers to wonder, "When are we going to hit the bottom?"


Some sheep are raised for their wool, others primarily for food. Consumption of both products — lamb meat and wool — have been declining in the U.S.


If you look at the tags on clothes in your closet, chances are quite a few pieces will be blended with synthetic fibers: nylon, rayon and polyester. As these human-made fibers have become more prevalent and inexpensive, people are wearing less and less wool.


The same goes for lamb. In the early 1960s, the average person in the U.S. ate about 4.5 pounds of lamb a year. That has dropped to less than 1 pound in 2011.


At the same time as the American sheep industry's decline, Australian and New Zealand wool and lamb imports are way up, squeezing into niche markets that America's sheep producers are having a hard time filling.


Ranchers are feeling the industry contraction, whether it's caused by epic drought, scarce feed supplies, harsh winters or wild price volatility.





Farmers markets and demand for locally sourced food is helping sheep farmers find a niche.



Luke Runtyon/Harvest Public Media/KUNC


Farmers markets and demand for locally sourced food is helping sheep farmers find a niche.


Luke Runtyon/Harvest Public Media/KUNC


"The numbers are just way down — and [there are] less sheep ranchers, just in general," says Albert Villard, a sheep rancher in Craig, Colo.


Blizzard and drought the past three years have culled Villard's herd to its lowest point in a long time. Building it back up hasn't been easy.


"The industry as a whole, I think, is trying to get the numbers up, but there's so many factors as to why," Villard says. "I don't think you can blame any one thing."


Double J Feeders outside Ault, Colo., which is one of just a handful of lamb feeding operations in the country, feels the decline too. The feedlot can hold up to 50,000 sheep at any given time and fattens them up before slaughter.


One part of the decline could be the changing agricultural landscape across the country. Farms have grown larger and more technologically advanced, and there are fewer small family farms today than ever before.


"Thirty or 40 years ago, every farmer in the winter time would buy 1,000 lambs, run them out on the beet tops, corn — whatever — and then they'd market those lambs in the spring. Well, all that has changed," says Jeff Hasbrouck, the owner of Double J Feeders.


Most farms aren't fenced in any more, Hasbrouck says, and have grown so large that maintaining a sheep herd makes no economic sense. It's more trouble than it's worth for a large crop grower.


Another problem that has plagued the industry is lamb's perception by the average consumer. Longtime sheep producers put the blame on the meat fed to soldiers all the way back in World War II.


"Those troops were fed canned mutton and when they came home they said, 'No more lamb, no more sheep. Don't eat any of it.' And that's where we saw the steady decline," says Brad Anderson, livestock supply manager for Mountain States Rosen, a large co-op that markets lamb to meatpacking companies and locks in prices.


Sheep numbers tanked even faster 20 years ago when Congress ended subsidies for sheep ranchers with the repeal of the National Wool Act in 1993. The removal of those subsidies sent the sheep industry into wild market swings and stayed volatile for years. The increased risk, Anderson says, pushed many ranchers out of business.


Today, ranchers who are left face new problems like wolf attacks. Peter Orwick, director of the American Sheep Industry Association, says an attack this year in Idaho left more than 100 sheep dead.


"In spite of having herders out there, the wolves still come right in, the horses scream, the dogs lay down and whine and they ran sheep over a cliff," Orwick says.



But there is hope for sheep producers. Because many sheep and lamb operations tend to be small, the growth in farmers markets and local food has benefited sheep ranchers. One-third of all lamb sold in the U.S. now is direct sale from producer to consumer, according to the American Sheep Industry Association. There's plenty of room for growth in big cities, too.



"It's ethnic communities. Every major metropolitan city in the U.S. has a large immigrant neighborhood," Orwick says. "Where are the people coming from? Where they prefer lamb. It's their meat."


As the face of America changes, ranchers will be watching those new markets to see whether or not they grow fast enough to keep their industry from shrinking even further.


Luke Runyon reports from Colorado for KUNC and Harvest Public Media, a public radio reporting collaboration that focuses on agriculture and food production issues. A version of this story originally appeared on Harvest Public Media's site.


Source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/10/21/238899518/ranchers-worry-as-demand-for-sheep-declines?ft=1&f=3
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The potential of straw for the energy mix has been underestimated

The potential of straw for the energy mix has been underestimated


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PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

21-Oct-2013



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Contact: Tilo Arnhold
presse@ufz.de
49-341-235-1635
Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ



Study: Straw could supply energy to several millions of households in Germany



This news release is available in German.


Leipzig. Straw from agriculture could play an important role in the future energy mix for Germany. Up until now it has been underutilised as a biomass residue and waste material. These were the conclusions of a study conducted by the TLL (Thueringian regional institute for agriculture), the DBFZ (German biomass research center) and the Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research (UFZ). According to them, from a total of 30 million tons of cereal straw produced annually in Germany, between 8 and 13 million tons of it could be used sustainably for energy or fuel production. This potential could for example provide 1.7 to 2.8 million average households with electricity and at the same time 2.8 to 4.5 million households with heating. These results highlight the potential contribution of straw to renewable sources of energy, scientists state in the peer-reviewed scientific journal Applied Energy.


For their respective study, scientists analysed the development of residual substances resulting from German agriculture. Accounting for 58 per cent, straw can be regarded as the most important resource, and yet so far it has hardly been used for energy production. From 1950 to 2000 there was a noticeable rise in the cultivation of winter wheat, rye and winter barley in Germany which then remained relatively constant. To remove any bias from weather fluctuations, the average values were taken from 1999, 2003 and 2007. On average, approx. 30 megatons of cereal straw per year were produced in these years. Due to the fact that not all parts of the straw can be used and the fact that straw also plays an important role as bedding in livestock farming, only about half of these 30 megatons are actually available in the end.


Sustainable use

It must be taken into consideration that cereal straw plays an important role in the humus balance of soils. For this reason some of the straw must be left scattered on the agricultural land to prevent nutrients from being permanently extracted from the soil. To calculate the humus balance of soils three different methods of calculation were tested by the team of scientists. Depending upon the method of calculation used, 8, 10 or 13 megatons of straw can be used sustainably every year for energy production i.e. without causing any disadvantages to the soils or other forms of utilisation. "To our knowledge this is the first time that a study like this has been conducted for an EU country, demonstrating the potential of straw for a truly sustainable energy use, while taking into account the humus balance", stresses Prof. Daniela Thraen, scientist at the DBFZ and the UFZ.


Greenhouse gas balances depend on utilisation forms

It can thus be said that straw can contribute to the future energy mix. The degree to which it will contribute to greenhouse gas reduction however will depend on how the straw is used. A reduction compared to fossil fuels can be somewhere between 73 and 92 percent when using straw for the generation of heat, combined heat and power generation or as second-generation biofuel production. The different greenhouse gas balances cast a differentiated light on the EUs goal of covering ten percent of transportation sector's energy use by using biofuels. Once again the study emphasizes how the use of bioenergy needs to take into account various factors. Given the conditions prevalent in Germany, the use of straw in combined heat and power generation would be best for the climate. "Straw should therefore primarily be used in larger district heating stations and/or combined heat and power stations, but technology must be developed for an environmentally-friendly utilisation", stresses Dr. Armin Vetter from TLL, who has been operating a straw-fuelled power station for 17 years.



Role model Denmark

According to the summary of the new study, straw-based energy applications should be developed in Germany in particular in those regions with favourable conditions and appropriate power plants. Even if we wouldn't be spinning straw into gold in the foreseeable future, it would still make an important contribution to the energy turnaround. Looking across the border shows us what is feasible when the course is optimally set: currently Denmark is still considered to be the world leader in straw-based energy applications. 15 years ago a master plan was introduced there, ensuring in the meantime in Germanys northern neighbouring country that over 5 billion kilowatt hours of energy per year is generated from straw.
Tilo Arnhold


###


Publications:

Christian Weiser, Vanessa Zeller, Frank Reinicke, Bernhard Wagner, Stefan Majer, Armin Vetter, Daniela Thraen (2013): Integrated assessment of sustainable cereal straw potential and different straw-based energy applications in Germany. Applied Energy, Available online 30 July 2013
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2013.07.016

The study was funded by the BMU the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety within the program Promoting projects to optimise biomass energy use".


Conference:

Five years BMU funding program "Promoting projects to optimise biomass energy!" 14. - 15.11.2013 in Leipzig

http://www.energetische-biomassenutzung.de/index.php?id=448


Further information:

Christian Weisser, Armin Vetter

TLL (Thueringian regional institute for agriculture) Thueringian center for renewable resources in Dornburg/Saale

Tel.: +49-36427-868-133

http://www.thueringen.de/de/tll/


Prof. Daniela Thrn

Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research (UFZ) / German biomass research center (DBFZ)

Tel.: ++49 341 2434 435

http://www.ufz.de/index.php?de=21081


or from

Tilo Arnhold, Susanne Hufe (UFZ Press)

Tel.: +49-341-235-1635, -1630

http://www.ufz.de/index.php?de=640

and

Paul Trainer (DBFZ Press)

Tel.: +49-341-2434-437

http://www.dbfz.de/web/presse.html


Other Links:

BMU-funding program "Biomass energy use"

http://www.energetische-biomassenutzung.de/de/home.html

Basic information on the sustainable use of residual substances from agriculture for generating energy (Series of articles within the BMU-funding program Biomass energy use"):

http://www.energetische-biomassenutzung.de/fileadmin/user_upload/Downloads/Ver%C3%B6ffentlichungen/02_Basisinformationen_Reststoffe_web.pdf

The potential of straw in the federal states and administrative districts in Germany:

http://strohpotenziale.dbfz.de/


TLL (Thueringian regional institute for agriculture) is responsible as a specialized authority on agriculture for the sovereignty and enforcement of agricultural law. Beyond that, it offers various services as a competence center for agricultural and food production in the form of consultation based on applied and practice-oriented research. The focus thereby is on an efficient and environmentally-friendly production of food-, feed- and non-food-products.

http://www.thueringen.de/de/tll


The DBFZ (German biomass research center) works as a central and independent mastermind in the field of the energetic use of biomass on the question of how limited available biomass resources can contribute sustainably and most efficiently to the existing and above all to a future energy supply. In the context of its research work the DBFZ identifies, develops, follows up, assesses and demonstrates the most promising fields of application for bioenergy and particularly outstanding and positive examples together with partners in research, economics and the community.

http://www.dbfz.de


At the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) scientists are interested in the wide-ranging causes and impacts of environmental change. They conduct research on water resources, biodiversity, the impacts of climate change and adaptation strategies, environmental and biotechnologies, bioenergy, the behaviour of chemicals in the environment and their effects on health, modelling and sociological issues. Their guiding motto: our research serves the sustainable use of natural resources and helps towards long-term food and livelihood security in the face of global change. The UFZ has over 1100 employees working in Leipzig, Halle und Magdeburg. It is funded by the federal government, as well as by the State of Saxony and Saxony Anhalt.

http://www.ufz.de/


The Helmholtz Association contributes to finding solutions for large and pressing issues in society, science and the economy through excellence in the following six areas of research: energy, earth and the environment, health, key technologies, structure of matter, transport and aerospace. With almost 35,000 employees and coworkers in 18 research centres and an annual budget of approx. 3.8 billion Euros the Helmholtz Association is the largest scientific organization in Germany. Work is conducted in the tradition of the renowned natural scientist Hermann von Helmholtz (1821-1894).
http://www.helmholtz.de/




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The potential of straw for the energy mix has been underestimated


[ Back to EurekAlert! ]

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

21-Oct-2013



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]


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Contact: Tilo Arnhold
presse@ufz.de
49-341-235-1635
Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ



Study: Straw could supply energy to several millions of households in Germany



This news release is available in German.


Leipzig. Straw from agriculture could play an important role in the future energy mix for Germany. Up until now it has been underutilised as a biomass residue and waste material. These were the conclusions of a study conducted by the TLL (Thueringian regional institute for agriculture), the DBFZ (German biomass research center) and the Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research (UFZ). According to them, from a total of 30 million tons of cereal straw produced annually in Germany, between 8 and 13 million tons of it could be used sustainably for energy or fuel production. This potential could for example provide 1.7 to 2.8 million average households with electricity and at the same time 2.8 to 4.5 million households with heating. These results highlight the potential contribution of straw to renewable sources of energy, scientists state in the peer-reviewed scientific journal Applied Energy.


For their respective study, scientists analysed the development of residual substances resulting from German agriculture. Accounting for 58 per cent, straw can be regarded as the most important resource, and yet so far it has hardly been used for energy production. From 1950 to 2000 there was a noticeable rise in the cultivation of winter wheat, rye and winter barley in Germany which then remained relatively constant. To remove any bias from weather fluctuations, the average values were taken from 1999, 2003 and 2007. On average, approx. 30 megatons of cereal straw per year were produced in these years. Due to the fact that not all parts of the straw can be used and the fact that straw also plays an important role as bedding in livestock farming, only about half of these 30 megatons are actually available in the end.


Sustainable use

It must be taken into consideration that cereal straw plays an important role in the humus balance of soils. For this reason some of the straw must be left scattered on the agricultural land to prevent nutrients from being permanently extracted from the soil. To calculate the humus balance of soils three different methods of calculation were tested by the team of scientists. Depending upon the method of calculation used, 8, 10 or 13 megatons of straw can be used sustainably every year for energy production i.e. without causing any disadvantages to the soils or other forms of utilisation. "To our knowledge this is the first time that a study like this has been conducted for an EU country, demonstrating the potential of straw for a truly sustainable energy use, while taking into account the humus balance", stresses Prof. Daniela Thraen, scientist at the DBFZ and the UFZ.


Greenhouse gas balances depend on utilisation forms

It can thus be said that straw can contribute to the future energy mix. The degree to which it will contribute to greenhouse gas reduction however will depend on how the straw is used. A reduction compared to fossil fuels can be somewhere between 73 and 92 percent when using straw for the generation of heat, combined heat and power generation or as second-generation biofuel production. The different greenhouse gas balances cast a differentiated light on the EUs goal of covering ten percent of transportation sector's energy use by using biofuels. Once again the study emphasizes how the use of bioenergy needs to take into account various factors. Given the conditions prevalent in Germany, the use of straw in combined heat and power generation would be best for the climate. "Straw should therefore primarily be used in larger district heating stations and/or combined heat and power stations, but technology must be developed for an environmentally-friendly utilisation", stresses Dr. Armin Vetter from TLL, who has been operating a straw-fuelled power station for 17 years.



Role model Denmark

According to the summary of the new study, straw-based energy applications should be developed in Germany in particular in those regions with favourable conditions and appropriate power plants. Even if we wouldn't be spinning straw into gold in the foreseeable future, it would still make an important contribution to the energy turnaround. Looking across the border shows us what is feasible when the course is optimally set: currently Denmark is still considered to be the world leader in straw-based energy applications. 15 years ago a master plan was introduced there, ensuring in the meantime in Germanys northern neighbouring country that over 5 billion kilowatt hours of energy per year is generated from straw.
Tilo Arnhold


###


Publications:

Christian Weiser, Vanessa Zeller, Frank Reinicke, Bernhard Wagner, Stefan Majer, Armin Vetter, Daniela Thraen (2013): Integrated assessment of sustainable cereal straw potential and different straw-based energy applications in Germany. Applied Energy, Available online 30 July 2013
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2013.07.016

The study was funded by the BMU the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety within the program Promoting projects to optimise biomass energy use".


Conference:

Five years BMU funding program "Promoting projects to optimise biomass energy!" 14. - 15.11.2013 in Leipzig

http://www.energetische-biomassenutzung.de/index.php?id=448


Further information:

Christian Weisser, Armin Vetter

TLL (Thueringian regional institute for agriculture) Thueringian center for renewable resources in Dornburg/Saale

Tel.: +49-36427-868-133

http://www.thueringen.de/de/tll/


Prof. Daniela Thrn

Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research (UFZ) / German biomass research center (DBFZ)

Tel.: ++49 341 2434 435

http://www.ufz.de/index.php?de=21081


or from

Tilo Arnhold, Susanne Hufe (UFZ Press)

Tel.: +49-341-235-1635, -1630

http://www.ufz.de/index.php?de=640

and

Paul Trainer (DBFZ Press)

Tel.: +49-341-2434-437

http://www.dbfz.de/web/presse.html


Other Links:

BMU-funding program "Biomass energy use"

http://www.energetische-biomassenutzung.de/de/home.html

Basic information on the sustainable use of residual substances from agriculture for generating energy (Series of articles within the BMU-funding program Biomass energy use"):

http://www.energetische-biomassenutzung.de/fileadmin/user_upload/Downloads/Ver%C3%B6ffentlichungen/02_Basisinformationen_Reststoffe_web.pdf

The potential of straw in the federal states and administrative districts in Germany:

http://strohpotenziale.dbfz.de/


TLL (Thueringian regional institute for agriculture) is responsible as a specialized authority on agriculture for the sovereignty and enforcement of agricultural law. Beyond that, it offers various services as a competence center for agricultural and food production in the form of consultation based on applied and practice-oriented research. The focus thereby is on an efficient and environmentally-friendly production of food-, feed- and non-food-products.

http://www.thueringen.de/de/tll


The DBFZ (German biomass research center) works as a central and independent mastermind in the field of the energetic use of biomass on the question of how limited available biomass resources can contribute sustainably and most efficiently to the existing and above all to a future energy supply. In the context of its research work the DBFZ identifies, develops, follows up, assesses and demonstrates the most promising fields of application for bioenergy and particularly outstanding and positive examples together with partners in research, economics and the community.

http://www.dbfz.de


At the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) scientists are interested in the wide-ranging causes and impacts of environmental change. They conduct research on water resources, biodiversity, the impacts of climate change and adaptation strategies, environmental and biotechnologies, bioenergy, the behaviour of chemicals in the environment and their effects on health, modelling and sociological issues. Their guiding motto: our research serves the sustainable use of natural resources and helps towards long-term food and livelihood security in the face of global change. The UFZ has over 1100 employees working in Leipzig, Halle und Magdeburg. It is funded by the federal government, as well as by the State of Saxony and Saxony Anhalt.

http://www.ufz.de/


The Helmholtz Association contributes to finding solutions for large and pressing issues in society, science and the economy through excellence in the following six areas of research: energy, earth and the environment, health, key technologies, structure of matter, transport and aerospace. With almost 35,000 employees and coworkers in 18 research centres and an annual budget of approx. 3.8 billion Euros the Helmholtz Association is the largest scientific organization in Germany. Work is conducted in the tradition of the renowned natural scientist Hermann von Helmholtz (1821-1894).
http://www.helmholtz.de/




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Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-10/hcfe-tpo102113.php
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Singapore’s Asia TV Forum to Launch Animation Lab




ATF is held annually at Singapore's Marina Bay Sands casino, hotel and convention complex



This year’s edition of the Asia TV Forum & Market (ATF) in Singapore will debut a new three-day event dubbed Animation Lab, the event's organizers announced Monday.



Intended to help promote the region’s burgeoning animation industry, the program will seek to bring together Asian animation producers, who are seeking investment and funding opportunities, with international broadcasters and financiers, who are interested in both the growing animation talent and market opportunity of the region.


STORY: ATF, ScreenSingapore Lock Down Dates for 2013


ATF organizers say the program will be open to all individuals or companies that have new animation projects in the planning or production stage, and will give them a platform to engage in closed-door pitches to various participating international commissioners.


International TV pros signed on to take part include Henrietta Hurford-Jones, director of children’s programming at the BBC Worldwide.


"The aim is always to try and grow the international CBeebies brand as well as our children’s portfolio worldwide,” Hurford-Jones said in a statement. “I would be delighted to find creative partners in Asia to potentially develop exciting new children’s content with.”


Also on hand to take pitches and meetings will be, Barbara Uecker, head of programming and acquisitions for children's TV at Australia’s ABC TV, and Nicole Keeb, head of international co-productions and acquisitions for children and youth programming at Germany’s ZDF Enterprises GmbH, along with her colleague Arne Lohmann, vice president of ZDFE.junior.


AFT says additional network execs will be added to the Animation Lab roster in the coming weeks.


AFT is Asia’s most established TV and cross-platform content market for buyers and sellers from the region and afar. This year’s event, ATF’s 12th edition, will take place Dec. 3-6 at Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands casino, hotel and convention complex.  


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/HollywoodReporterAsia/~3/Dj40PirknUc/story01.htm
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