Warming in the Arctic can smooth winters in Europe

A warmer Arctic could lead to less extreme events â€" and less cold â€" in autumn and winter in Europe, parts of Asia and the United States, according to a study published on Sunday by the University of Exeter.

According to James Screen, researcher in Exeter, England, with the Arctic warmer, the cold winds that blow from the North are heating up faster than that blow from the South. This means that the reduction of variability in temperatures â€" and, potentially, less cold weather extremes.

Published in Nature Climate Change, the study goes against what many scientists said in recent years, while the links between Arctic warming and Jet currents â€" and how they influenced the weather systems around the world â€" were being studied.

Using climate models, Screen showed that these changes will continue in the future, with projected decreases in temperature variability in all seasons â€" with the exception of the summer.

Foto:  NASA Goddard Photo and Video / Creative Commons

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An application that translate sign language in real time

Students of the School of communication Berghs, in Switzerland, developed an application that allows for real-time interaction between people who use sign language to communicate and those who can't understand the meaning of gestures used.

The application was awarded at the Cannes Film Festival, the biggest and most prestigious event of publication, communication and marketing in the world, and works with the aid of two electronic tracks used in the forearm of the person who carries out the signs.

Named Google Gesture, the application can analyze the movement of muscles, associate them to gestures and send the information to the smartphone, which would play the matching words in real time.

See the project.

Although the application using "Google" in their name, the company is not involved in the project. In fact, this application was created for an advertising campaign, having forecast still to be developed in the short term. Nobody wants to take on this idea?

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Azores: search at sea the solution to the economy (with video)

All Portuguese regions use different strategies to boost the local economy, taking into account their cultural and geographical capital gains. The Azores are no exception, and the tradition linked to the sea always comes to mind of the rulers when it comes time to invest in tourism and services.

One example is the SailAzores, a company founded in 2010 and who rents sailboats with and without skipper. The company emerged from the dream of two sisters and two brothers-in-law and received some help from regional government. "The passion for the Azores by sea and boats made us study the market and understand that there was a gap in the market: no one was renting boats without a skipper," explained Nicholas Faria, partner at SailAzores.

The first sailboat cost 300 thousand, but the total investment already totals € 1 million, since they are already four boats held by SailAzores. "Through Community funds, the regional Government has a program of incentives. We have enjoyed this program and earned the trust of the regional Government, "explained Nicholas would do.

In 2010, never thinking of the four partners that SailAzores grow so much. Like all other professional lives, the solution went through hiring two employees â€" for the marketing department and for the maintenance of sailboats.

With 350 to 400 customers per year, the next step of SailAzores is to allow the anchor in bays in the archipelago. "We will create the project Anchoring Azores and put, as a first step, five anchoring buoys around the islands of the central group. In a second phase will increase the number of buoys, "said Nicholas would do.

When the project is on the ground, SailAzores customers will be able to spend the night in the Bay. According to company officials, the business will continue to grow and there's room for new companies of sailing yachts rental option without skipper, the example of what already exists in Greece, Italy, Croatia. See the episode 275 of the green economy.

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Switzerland: roofs give way to urban gardens

The large roofs, mechanical plans and without use are perfect to install urban gardens. At least that's what you think the Italian architect António Scarponi, enthusiast for producing food within cities and decided to create an opportunity for agricultural activities in Basel, Switzerland.

Antonio took advantage of the unused spaces of the city and set up a space for urban agriculture these roofs. In just 400 square meters, the responsible implemented two prefabricated modules: a greenhouse for the production of plants and containers for other purposes, the companies Office cloakrooms and storerooms.

Second counts the sustainable planet, was even installed a hydroponic system to create a balanced environment. Thus, while a fish tank nourishes the vegetables, plants clean the water from the fish.

The architect asserts that any industrial building plan can produce food and behave spaces like this, that can be arranged in different layouts.

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Photovoltaics for own final consumption are exempted from licensing

The production of electricity to fuel consumption directly from a family or company will have a more affordable licensing scheme, according to the business journal. The diploma, which provides legally production to consumption, will now be subject to a public consultation, but the Secretary of State for energy, Artur Trinity, assured the Business exists "in the interests of administrative simplification".

Last year, remains the newspaper, the Government worked on a preliminary draft for the so-called "distributed generation", that is, the generation of electricity from small producers, with much lower powers to those of large power plants.

This diploma will make the framework of production for own final consumption â€" which was a legal vacuum â€" and will introduce changes in the operation of micro and miniprodução. The document has already been sent to associations of the sector, said Jorge Moreira da Silva still, Minister of the environment.

The aim of the Government is to approve the new regime in Council of Ministers by the end of July.

As regards consumption, one of the main novelties advances that facilities under this scheme will not have a share of power allocation, as was happening until today in the micro-and miniproidução. Thus, the access to this model will be free.

For installations up to 700 watts of power is only required a prior communication electronically to DGEG (Direcção-Geral de Energia e Geologia). Over 700 watts operating certificate will be required. Only the equipment with more than one megawatt (MW) of power is that they will need to have a license for exploration and production.

The diploma is still Government referred to a clause that ensures that, if the consumption market grow very quickly, the electrical system does not imbalance. If the production for own final consumption is a success, the system will lose part of consumption that normally bear the costs of the sector. If this succeeds, the legislation provides that the production facilities for consumption on pay a contribution to the system, but the equipment up to 1,000 watts will be exempt.

However, this scenario will only when 180MW are reached in consumption facilities.

Foto:  Mataparda / Creative Commons

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Antibacterial soap is damaging sewage treatment systems

Triclosan is an indiscriminate killer, bacteria will even in places where the microbial communities work hard to keep us healthy, including sewage treatment systems.

The wastewater treatment plants add often anaerobic digesters so you can reduce the amount of garbage that have to deal with. Bacteria that survive in oxygen media degrade organic waste, including sewage, and produce small molecules of ammonia, carbon dioxide and methane â€" which can be used as fuel. Thus, the amount of waste handling is much smaller, the treatment process is more effective.

However, in the presence of antibacterials in wastewater, these anaerobic bacteria cannot do its job of cleaning. Triclosan is an antibacterial agents more used and its use is becoming worrisome. In addition to being incorporated in antibacterial soaps, products for acne, this component can be found in other less obvious products, such as toothpaste, detergent for dishes, sportswear, labial balsamos and even in pencil, referred to the New Next.

A new study published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology indicates that "in wastewater treatment plants, the antibacterials can sabotage the work of aerobic bacteria and promote resistance to other microbes". The solid waste resulting from the process of filtering and treatment often end up as fertilizer, and are scattered in fields and cultures, infiltrating into the soil and killing microbial life essential to the functioning of ecosystems in the subsoil.

However, the problem has a simple solution: end the use of triclosan. Several studies that investigated the use of this component and the effectiveness in reducing disease concluded that the antibacterial soaps are not more effective than the traditional soaps.

Photo: ASCOM-municipality of Votuporanga/Creative Commons

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Community funds with €44 million for environmental projects in 2014

The European Commission opened last Wednesday the nomination period for the submission of proposals for a new Community Fund, which will finance projects related to the climatic actions.

The subprogram-LIFE Climate Action â€" is equipped with €44,26 million to finance the development and implementation of innovative measures to respond to climate change in Europe.

"The new LIFE programme for Climate Action offers new funds from earlier for climatic innovative projects throughout Europe. This will help give life to more sustainable technology and maximising the climate solutions that already exist. These funds will also help to achieve the policy objectives under the climate as well as to comply with the legislation already adopted in this area, "said the European Commissioner for Climate Action Connie Hedegaard.

The subprogram is entered in the EU LIFE Programme 2014-2020, which will provide €864 million for climate action over the next seven years, the European Commission said in a statement.

Interested organisations should submit proposals until October 16, 2014. The second phase of submission of applications runs in the fall and is for non-profit organisations active at European level in climatic and environmental issues.

The LIFE is a program of Community funds was implemented in 1992 and already has co-funded more than 4,000 projects. The EU LIFE Programme for Environment and Climate Action 2014-2020 is divided into two periods: 2014-2017 and 2017-2020. For the first period is available a budget of €449,2 million.

Foto:  Cintia Barenho / Creative Commons

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