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<title>Haaze.com / newsEgor76 / All</title>
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<pubDate>Thu, 09 Jun 2011 07:11:02 +0000</pubDate>
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<title><![CDATA[Future bright for cleaner-burning natural gas]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=future-bright-for-cleaner-burning-natural-gas</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=future-bright-for-cleaner-burning-natural-gas</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 09 Jun 2011 07:11:02 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>newsEgor76</dc:creator>
<category>Eco</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=future-bright-for-cleaner-burning-natural-gas</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The different sources of natural gas, including conventional wells, shale rock, and coal beds. Not included are methane hydrates, or gas trapped in ice.(Credit:MIT, Energy Information Association)For natural gas, the stars are aligned for it to play a far more substantial role in the world energy mix, according to a pair of reports this week.The Massachusetts Institute of Technology today published its report on natural gas, which it characterized as an abundant and reasonably priced resource able to act as a bridge to a low-carbon future. The International Energy Agency released its own study (PDF) Monday, where it said natural gas is poised to enter a &quot;golden age.&quot;The key driver for the optimism around natural gas is supply as well as societal pressure to cut greenhouse gases and transition away from dirtier fossil fuels. Although there are considerable uncertainties, MIT estimates there are about 150 years' worth of natural gas available at current consumption rates. Burning natural gas produces about half the carbon dioxide as burning coal and has much lower levels of mercury and air pollutants. Natural gas has become a favored energy source for many politicians in the U.S. because it's cleaner than coal and is domestic. Even without laws that put a price on carbon emissions and an unknown supply, the abundance and versatility of natural gas--which can be used for electricity, heating, or transportation--means that its use will grow significantly, according to both the MIT and IEA reports. In the U.S., the energy picture has been dramatically changed over the past few years by tapping so-called unconventional resources of natural gas locked in shale rock. Russia, the Middle East, and the U.S. contain altogether an estimated 70 percent of supply, according to MIT. &quot;Gas is, globally speaking, a very young industry with a very bright future ahead of it,&quot; said Anthony Meggs, the study's co-chair and visiting engineer at the MIT Energy Initiative, during a presentation today. &quot;Shale gas is transformative for the economy of the U.S. and potentially on a global scale.&quot;He said that it's difficult to pinpoint the actual amount of known reserves, particularly unconventional sources outside the U.S. Drilling from shale has shown to be highly variable with some wells being less productive than expected before drilling, making them uneconomic. One of the recommendations from the report is further government-funded research into understanding natural gas reserves.Impact on renewables, nuclearAlthough natural gas is considerably cleaner than coal, drilling shale gas in the U.S. has been marked with growing environmental concerns over the past few years due to the practice of &quot;fracking,&quot; where shale rock is cracked and then released by pumping fluid into wells.The primary concerns with fracking are preventing gas from entering water aquifers with faulty well casings and treating fracking wastewater, Meggs said. MIT said that environmental concerns are &quot;challenging but manageable.&quot; Meggs said that drilling companies should disclose the fluids and that regulations should better address environmental issues.&quot;It's a big threat. The industry is doing a very poor job of organizing a coherent response to a very concerted campaign, or series of campaigns,&quot; he said. &quot;Common sense means that less environmentally sensitive oil and gas companies (of which there thousands drilling shale gas) will lose their license to operate there...and they will gradually be squeezed out.&quot;In recent months, there have been questions, notably from a study on lifecycle emissions from Cornell University, as to whether leakage of the potent greenhouse gas methane--the main component in natural gas--during drilling means that natural gas is a bigger contributor to global warming than coal. The study's authors today said that even with recent revisions on emission estimates from the EPA on leakage, natural gas is still substantially cleaner. The study projects significant greenhouse gas benefits by replacing older, inefficient coal power plants with more efficient gas plants. Although natural gas is often characterized as a bridge to a low-carbon energy supply, the low prices of natural gas pose a barrier to renewable energy and nuclear for electricity generation. &quot;The gas price is sufficiently low that it makes it very tough for nuclear or renewables to take market share,&quot; said Henry Jacoby, MIT management professor and co-chair of the study.Even without climate policies or mandates for cleaner energy, natural gas usage will go up in the U.S., he said. Coal accounts for about 50 percent of electricity generation, compared to 23 percent from natural gas.Substituting natural gas for coal in commercial and industrial boilers can deliver relatively quick return on investments of a few years, said Melanie Kenderdine, executive director of the MIT Energy Initiative. Buildings account for 55 percent of natural gas demand.MIT researchers are not bullish on natural gas for vehicles, as is called for in the revised Pickens Plans for fueling long-haul trucks with natural gas. They say there isn't a fueling infrastructure, and that there is a substantial incremental cost to converting trucks, as well as a long payback period. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[At last, iPhone comes to Verizon]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=at-last-iphone-comes-to-verizon</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=at-last-iphone-comes-to-verizon</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 11 Jan 2011 08:10:22 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>newsEgor76</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=at-last-iphone-comes-to-verizon</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Apple COO Tim Cook and Verizon COO Lowell McAdam on stage at the Verizon iPhone announcement this morningAt a press conference in New York City today, Verizon said it will soon begin selling Apple'siPhone. The device will be available on its network starting in early February, COO Lowell McAdam said to a gathering of press at Lincoln Center. It's the same model iPhone 4 that AT&amp;T and international carriers currently sell except that it connects to the CDMA network instead of GSM.Starting on February 10, a 16GB model will cost $199.99 with a two-year contract, according to Verizon Wireless' Web site. The 32GB model will sell for $299.99. An extra feature Verizon will offer is the phone's ability to be a personal Wi-Fi &quot;hot spot.&quot; Up to five Wi-Fi devices can connect to the Verizon iPhone at one time. Despite early rumblings, Steve Jobs did not join McAdam on stage for the announcement. That job fell to Apple COO Tim Cook. He told the gathering of press that Apple is &quot;very excited to bring the iPhone to Verizon's 93 million customers and new customers who want to use the iPhone 4 on Verizon.&quot; Verizon's customers will get first dibs on the phone. On February 3, a week before the scheduled launch, existing subscribers will have opportunity to pre-order the phone. McAdam did not delve into any details about pricing plans during the event. (See CNET's first take of the new iPhone here.)Despite the white version of the iPhone 4 being listed in Verizon's marketing materials on its Web site, a Verizon representative told CNET there is no confirmed date when the white model will be available. The white iPhone 4 for all carriers has been delayed several times since June.Speculation that a Verizon iPhone announcement was coming today had been rampant following a press invitation from the carrier Friday announcing a &quot;news&quot; event. But rumors of such a device have been around for years. At the event this morning, McAdam acknowledged the speculation, joking, &quot;If the press writes something long enough and hard enough, it comes true.&quot;Verizon getting its hands on the iPhone means AT&amp;T is no longer the only iPhone carrier in the U.S. AT&amp;T reportedly had an exclusive contract with Apple for what was initially reported to be five years, starting in 2007. McAdam said the journey to bring the iPhone to Verizon began two years ago. In 2008, they talked about bringing an iPhone to the CDMA network and it was designed and tested &quot;to make sure it would come up to the standards of Verizon.&quot; Despite its launch of almost a dozen 4G phones for its upcoming LTE network atCES last week, the iPhone Verizon sells will use CDMA technology, not LTE. Apple's Cook said there were two reasons for that: the first generation of LTE chipsets &quot;forced design compromises,&quot; and &quot;Verizon customers want the iPhone now.&quot; Though it will be first, Verizon does not have an exclusive contract to carry the CDMA model iPhone, Cook said. That means we can likely expect announcements from CDMA carriers in other countries in the next few months. While Apple did not redesign the iPhone 4's infamous wraparound antenna band in the course of building the CDMA model for Verizon, there has been at least one subtle design change: the ringer/mute switch on the left side was moved down slightly. That means iPhone 4 cases currently in stores and bumpers won't fit this model. Corrected at 9:42 a.m. PT with accurate information about the availability of the white iPhone 4. Though Verizon has listed it in its press materials, it will not be available next month.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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