Demand Very Strong for Clean Coal Research (Viable Green Solution?)

Obama as Senator, The carbon sequestration pitch:


The Virginia pitch:


The 60 Minutes Challenge:


A Conspiracy Challenge On Freedom Sequestration:


Excerpt taken from FINKELMAN, Robert B., U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA 20192, CENTENO, Jose A., Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Washington, DC 20306, and ZHENG, Baoshan, Institute of Geochemistry, Guiyang, 550002, China [EMAIL: rbf@usgs.gov]

Health problems caused by coal are derived from either the use of poor quality coal (high ash, high sulfur, or high content of toxic trace elements) or by the improper use of coal. When poor quality coal is used in an improper way the resultant health problems can be widespread and severe. In millions of houses in many developing countries coal and other biomass fuels are burned in unvented stoves causing severe indoor air pollution. In Guizhou Province, southwest China the situation is exacerbated by the villagers' use of coal that has extraordinary high concentrations of toxic elements. Thousands of people in this region are suffering from severe arsenic poisoning. More than 10 million people in Guizhou Province and surrounding areas suffer from dental and skeletal fluorosis. The fluorine exposure is due to the use of briquettes made from high-fluorine coals and high-fluorine clay binders. A preliminary geochemical survey indicates that low arsenic coals and low fluorine coals and clays are available. A simple, inexpensive field test kit has been developed to help the villagers identify low-arsenic coal. Not all of the health problems attributed to coal are caused by combustion. An unusual situation exists in the Balkans where there may be health problems caused by coal in the ground. Well waters containing polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons leached from low-rank coals may be the cause of, or a contributing factor to, Balkan Endemic Nephropathy, an interstitial nephropathy, that is believed to have killed more than 100,000 people in the former Yugoslavia alone. Not all of the allegations of health problems caused by coal are legitimate. Concerns expressed about exposure to radioactivity from coal and coal combustion products are misplaced. The products of commercial coal combustion (fly ash, bottom ash) have uranium and thorium concentrations about 5-10 times higher than that of the coal. However, the uranium and thorium in the coal byproducts should not cause concern because they are mostly in insoluble forms at concentration levels similar to most soils.

Medically speaking, in the past, dirty coal burning without the proper technology can cause harmful pathological conditions. With the Copenhagen Treaty looking pretty set on finalizing green eco-friendly solution, clean coal will be in high demand. This will come at a cost to some industries while creating jobs in others. Change will be here by this Christmas.

For more information on the future of coal, click here for download from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology coal study.
Which side are you for? Do you feel it is a real possibility or political hype?

Dangerous Knowledge (1-10)

This ten part video series provides an explanation of why and how researchers who work on unraveling uncertainties become profoundly changed. In this BBC documentary, David Malone looks at four brilliant mathematicians whom the general public knows very little about - Georg Cantor, Ludwig Boltzmann, Kurt Gödel and Alan Turing.
It is the quest for answers to problems that will improve and save lives that will leave your own life forever changed. Enjoy!


Part I



Part II


Part III


Part IV


Part V


Part VI


Part VII


Part VIII


Part IX


Part X

Healthcare Reform (It will happen and change IS coming) ... Are you prepared?

Dear Readers,

Been extremely busy these few months as 2009 comes to a rapid close and Thanksgiving is a week away. Busy on what? In my line of work, sometimes our greatest accomplishments are based on what didn't happen or transpire. That's what preventative maintenance is all about.

So "as the world turns", there is yet another major event that is coming up that will affect your life because the numbers have gotten "out of hand". And that is the topic of much debate called the "Healthcare Reform Bill". Does it have national and international implications? Absolutely!

Is there a righjavascript:void(0)t or wrong answer? It depends on which side of the fence you sit on and undoubtedly with rising unemployment (>10%) of the national workforce, a dropping dollar and worries about an overheating international economy ... you should be concerned.

We need to start to wake-up and to have a serious and hard look at cost cutting measures for the greater good. But will that impact accessibility to the best medical care? Absolutely. So what should we do? We need to increase efficiencies and start to think as a whole community. Perhaps evaluating the taboo territory of alternative medical care, prevention, eating right ... may become a necessary part of everyone's share?

Here's the latest on what has happened over the weekend:
Senate about to vote (WSJ)

Best in Health!!

Historical Views:

One view promoting health reform (sponsor included):


Certain Physicians' View:


Keith Olbermann's View:


President Obama's Address:


Regardless of what kind of reform is chosen, we need to cut costs, improve efficiency and make technological advances that will lower our unsustainable burdens. The US healthcare problem plays a significant role in the US healthcare deficit problem.

There are arguments for right and left views. At the end of the road, something will happen and change is coming. Are you informed and prepared? Are you a small or medium sized business owner or employee? This will ultimately affect an unprecedented number of lives.

I look forward to seeing your views ...

The remaining 3 months of 2009 ...

Nine months into the year and we've experienced:

1. The stock markets crashed in March 2009 and we're moving to higher highs.
2. We've witnessed a nasty virus (H1N1) and it spread to level 6 pandemic levels.
3. Gold has rocketed to almost breaking 1038/oz.
4. The US dollar is close to breaking another low (Bloomberg).
5. We are at the brink of national healthcare reform.
6. Sell-in May and go away (did not happen, the markets rallied).
7. September crash month of 2008 did not occur (so far).
8. The infamous fear index (^VIX) is trending lower.

What do you think will be in store for the rest of 2009? Where do we go from here?

One thing for sure has happened is problems continue to worsen but the reaction has gotten less and less (even the media has stopped talking about the bad things).

We've printed lots of $ and the conclusion at the G20 was we need to continue supporting a recovering economy. Few are buying gold jewelry but for some strange reason, someone or something is parking lots of money into gold. Some guess it is could be China.

Yes, stability has occurred and it may be here to stay with a cost. The cost will be a weaker dollar. If the problems require even more printing, the dollar may further weaken and gold may break to higher levels despite lack of jewelry demand.

Only time will tell what 2009 holds in store for Christmas this year.

U.S. consumers have changed and showed that change is possible. Articles on being frugal (aka Financially Fit) is the new trend: story.

What do you see for the remaining 3 months?

One thing is for sure. Oil has remained expensive and increased demand could make it go higher. Less demand means less recovery (so we don't want that either). How about food? Will food get cheaper or more expensive? The only solution would be to mass produce more animals, more plants in confined conditions.

Here is some humor to pass the time:

Question: But wouldn't that create more H1N1 like viruses?

Answer: Yes, but let's put that off for now and worry about a financial recovery. By the way, those genetically modified crops could offer a way to lower food costs.

Question: But wouldn't we run the risk of single genetics that could get infected (i.e. the potato blight in Ireland)?

Answer: Anything is possible. Let's put that off for now and worry about feeding the family with lower cost foods. By the way, those genetically modified crops taste quite 'similar'. You'll get used to it and soon forget there was ever an issue.

Question: Those banks that were too big to fail have gotten stronger. This seems like creating a bigger bubble than before.

Answer: Nah, you're just being oversensitive. If there is another bubble, we'll take care of it just like we always do.

Question: The water doesn't taste so good. There are medical publications about acinetobacter being multi-drug resistant. Do you think the wastewater facilities are working?

Answer: What do you want? It is free. Low cost. How can you complain about free stuff. Now if we could start charging for it, we might improvise.

Propionibacterium acnes market

According to the Mayo Clinic, the pathogenesis of acne (diagram) is formed when the

1. pore is clogged (no oxygen)

2. Propionibacterium acnes a gram positive species which thrives under anaerobic conditions increases in numbers (this can be detected by measuring for endogenic porphyrin–coporphyrin III). Unlike most anaerobic bacteria, P. acnes is aerotolerant so it survives in the presence of oxygen.

3. When a pore is blocked, this anaerobic bacteria overgrows and secretes chemicals that breakdown the wall of the pore, spilling other bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus into the skin. Interestingly, Staph. aureus is a Gram positive, facultative anaerobe (it can exist in the presence and absence of oxygen).

Comparisons of Liquid Growth (this figure provides good insight)

4. the sebum/oils become infected with a mixture of bacteria

5. inflammation pathway is triggered, re-triggered and scars develop

Common typical solutions:

Usage of benzoyl peroxide, antibiotics (i.e. tetracyclin, Clindamycin, Azithromycin), tretinoin -for scarring, U.V. light

Common problems:

Treatment resistance getting intolerable, ineffective with side effects (dry skin, pigmentation), problems reappear in weeks/months, enviro-toxic, unnecessary chemo-induced aging.

Less common problems:

Photosensitivity increased, Redness, itching, hives, swelling and a burning sensation after topical application

Cautionary statements specific to tretinoin (i.e. Retin-A):

It is a teratogen, and therefore can cause birth defects and tests have shown increases in foetal skull abnormalities in rats. Women who are or may be pregnant, or who are seeking to become pregnant, are therefore warned against using it. This teratogenic effect is caused by the interference of the exogenous retinoic acid with endogenous retinoic acid signaling, which plays a role in patterning the developing embryo. However the risks of topical tretinoin to the unborn child seems to be 'limited'.

Research Objective:

To find an alternative, low cost method to non-invasively disrupt bacterial mixtures while impregnating them into a facial cleansing system.

Background:

The electric dipole moment for a pair of opposite charges of magnitude q is defined as the magnitude of the charge times the distance between them and the defined direction is toward the positive charge. It is a useful concept in atoms and molecules where the effects of charge separation are measurable, but the distances between the charges are too small to be easily measurable. It is also a useful concept in skincare applications (see documents).

Water molecules as a liquid state are attracted to each other by electrostatic forces, and these forces have been described as van der Waals forces or van der Waals bonds. Even though the water molecule as a whole is electrically neutral, the distribution of charge in the molecule is not symmetrical and leads to a dipole field - a microscopic separation of the positive and negative charge centers. This leads to a net attraction between such polar molecules which finds expression in the cohesion of water molecules and contributes to water's properties of viscosity and surface tension. Van der Waals forces are what holds water in the liquid state until thermal conditions are violent enough to break those van der Waal bonds at 100°C. With cooling, residual electrostatic forces between the molecules cause water to liquify and eventually solidfy into ice.

Advantages:

Chemical free, 100% eco-friendly. Upon dilution, the activated dipole will become normalized drinking water, low cost, non-invasive, hypoallergenic.

Conclusions:

By utilizing uniquely dipolarized water, a unique action known to water molecules, aerotolerant, facultative and obligate can be reduced, removed without creating an enviro-compromising solutions. Additionally, resistance can not occur since the methodology is using molecular weight 18.0 g/mol smaller than oxygen (32.0 g/mol) as a penetration force.

Market size:

According to the 2003 annual report of Johnson & Johnson, the global skincare market is worth $43 billion per year. In June 2002, an Italian magazine: Italia Imballagio estimated that there are more than 14,000 cosmetics producers worldwide."Through acquisitions and, more importantly, strong post-acquisition growth, we now hold a leading position in the highly-fragmented $43billion per year global skin care market."Johnson & Johnson: 2003

Here is the 2008 annual report from Johnson & Johnson for comparisons:

http://www.myvirtualpaper.com/doc/jnj/Johnson-And-Johnson/2009030501/

Acne treatments will account for $561 million, or 16.9% of the market by 2008. Topical germicidals and antiseptic sector accounted for $469 million in 2003, representing 15.3% of total market value. (Source: GY T.)

Behind the Sweetness lies a complex issue ...

Recently, I've been asked to work on a natural diabetic friendly sugar project in addition to the bacteria/virus research. Like anything, I usually do some market research to gain a perspective on the situation. I found that bacteria, molds and sugars are highly correlated. While we share the same desires (for sugar), only people will fight and create barriers to access by trading sugar as a commodity. The natural + diabetic friendly sugar that can also release benefits of minerals is clearly a tough one (finger's crossed).

Research summary:
Goldman Sachs said this year’s rise in prices was “just the beginning” of another rally that was likely ultimately to be even more extreme than past episodes as supply problems worsened.

There was once a game, heads I win, tails you lose. This seems to apply very much in the case of sugar.

1. If we get a recovery, commodities like sugar will skyrocket.
2. If we don't get a recovery, commodities like sugar should fall due to a decrease in demand, right? -Wrong.

A. Generally speaking, people eat more sugary foods when they are nervous.
B. Economically speaking, it is one of those cheaper excursions relative to everything else (just like women will buy less make up in harder economic times, it is the opposite for lipstick).
C. Environmentally speaking, India had its driest June in 83 years. Weather conditions in Brazil and around the world have increased risks for the 2009-2010 period.


D. Medically speaking, large sugar intake cause wild swings in the insulin/glucagon response. This is one of the underlying causes for adult onset diabetes. Diabetes is projected to grow. This will impact productivity and healthcare costs.

Does this mean we are going to end up spending more on ice cream, sodas, maple syrup etc. ?

Not necessarily. As companies realize that consumers are sensitive to pricings, they will inevitably search for less expensive options. One option is the use of high fructose corn syrup as a substitute and to market it as a healthy alternative.

Another option is to use "synthetic sweeteners" that will boost the sweet taste without requiring the need to add more sugar. This has been catalyzed by the talk in Washington to tax sugar:

1. Want a Healthier State? Let's bring on the Soda Tax, Sugar Tax.


2. Sugar/Soda Tax considered to help pay for Healthcare Reform Bill


As sugar, soda and food companies feel pressured by changes ... options need to be considered to increase (or just to keep) bottom line profits. Companies running a business need to sustain profits for shareholders. Yet, every employee realizes that sugar is not healthy. US Consumers are purchasing less soda.

Therefore, the only areas of expansion is to look abroad at emerging economies and Chindia (China +India). You may recall Coca-cola's strong interest and failed acquisition of China's Huiyuan Juice Group which got slammed after Coca-cola was rejected by the Chinese government (stock).

So what are your thoughts? Do you have a sweet tooth? You're not alone. According to D.C.A.L., we found there's another organisms that LOVES sugar more than people. They are fungus, molds, mildew, bacteria ...

Once thought of as harmless, out of control growth of Candida Albicans can lead to bothersome yeast infections. Look around you at the supermarket and pharmacies and you'll notice that vaginal yeast products and options including placing a piece of crushed garlic remedies have skyrocketed (we'll save this one for another article) ...

Enjoy!

H1N1 Updates: Legal protections for vaccine makers and WHO gives up on counting cases

The Associated Press: Legal immunity set for swine flu vaccine makers: "Vaccine makers and federal officials will be immune from lawsuits that result from any new swine flu vaccine, under a document signed by Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius, government health officials said Friday."

1. How severe is the current crisis?
2. UN health agency gives up on counting swine flu: The World Health Organization says it will stop counting individual cases of swine flu.
3. Tracking individual swine flu cases is too overwhelming for countries where the virus is spreading widely, the agency stated, "WHO will no longer issue global totals of swine flu cases, although it will continue to track the global epidemic."
4. WHO says countries should look for signs the virus is mutating, such as changes in the way swine flu is spreading, surges in hospital visits or more severe cases ...
5. WHO had reported nearly 95,000 cases including 429 deaths worldwide. But the numbers are outdated, with United Kingdom estimating it had 55,000 new cases last week alone.