Tag Archives: Economy

Study: Sanctions Boost Foreign Military More Than They Hurt Economy

The available evidence indicates that economic sanctions are not effective tools for achieving specific policy goals in foreign nations. New research from North Carolina State University argues that increased military spending caused by economic sanctions counterbalances the adverse impact of the sanctions – and points to Iran as a case study in how this can happen. (more…)

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China’s Hidden Water Footprint

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Highly developed but water-scarce regions in China, such as Shanghai, Beijing, and Tianjin, are contributing to water depletion in other water-scarce regions of the country through imports of food, textile, and other water intensive products, according to a new study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology. For example, purchasing cloth in Shanghai may not consume water directly, but the production of cloth requires cotton, which is water intensive to cultivate – indirectly contributing to the water scarcity in the less-developed cotton production regions. This dynamic also holds true for food and other products. Only 20% of Shanghai’s scarce water footprint, or the amount of scarce water consumed, is from local watersheds while 80% is from water resources of other water-scarce regions, such as Xinjiang, Hebei, and Inner Mongolia. (more…)

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Meeresbewohner auf der Roten Liste

Hamburg, 12.05.2012: Tierische und pflanzliche Meeresbewohner  stehen unter Druck: 30 Prozent der marinen Arten in deutschen Nord- und Ostseegewässern sind gefährdet. Dies geht aus  der „Roten Liste“ der marinen Arten, die das Bundesamt für Naturschutz heute veröffentlichte hervor. „Diese Bestandsaufnahme verdeutlicht, dass wir unsere Meere besser schützen müssen, um die Vielfalt des marinen Lebens zu bewahren. Das Meer braucht auch Ruhezonen ohne menschliche Eingriffe wie Fischerei oder Rohstoffabbau, um  sich zu erholen“, kommentiert Stephan Lutter, Meeresschutzexperte des WWF. Auch Düngemitteleintrag aus der Landwirtschaft und Verschmutzung durch Plastik oder chemische Stoffe schädigen die Lebensräume im Meer und  ihre Bewohner. (more…)

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Mystery of 1918 Pandemic Flu Virus Solved by UA Researchers

University of Arizona researcher Michael Worobey and his team have discovered that the key to understanding influenza pandemics may lie in flu exposure during childhood.

Just as the world was recovering from the devastation of World War I, another killer swept across the globe. A deadly flu virus attacked more than one-third of the world’s population, and within months had killed more than 50 million people – three times as many as the war – and had done it more quickly than any other illness in recorded history. (more…)

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Es ist das Wetter, Dummkopf

Steigt die Arbeitslosigkeit, wenn sie nicht soll, dann ist auch das Wetter schuld.

»It’s the economy, stupid» (es geht um die Wirtschaft, Dummkopf). Mit diesem Slogan punktete Bill Clinton im Wahlkampf von 1992. Die Entwicklung von Bruttoinlandprodukt, Aktienkursen oder Arbeitslosenzahlen beeinflusst nicht nur Wahlkämpfe in den USA, sondern auch Volksabstimmungen in der Schweiz – und mithin die Schlagzeilen in den Medien. (more…)

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Limited food may be significantly changing Great Lakes ecosystems

ANN ARBOR — Declines of the food resources that feed lake organisms are likely causing dramatic changes in the Great Lakes, according to a new study.

The study, led by the U.S. Geological Survey and co-authored by three University of Michigan researchers, found that since 1998, water clarity has been increasing in most Great Lakes, while phytoplankton (the microscopic water organisms that feed all other animals), native invertebrates and prey fish have been declining. These food web changes fundamentally affect the ecosystem’s valuable resources and are likely caused by decreasing levels of lake nutrients, and by growing numbers of invasive species such as zebra and quagga mussels. (more…)

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IBM Awards Multi-Million Dollar Cloud Computing Platform to Seven Nova Scotia Schools

System to drive analytics curriculum, research and development

MARKHAM, ON & HALIFAX NS – 27 Nov 2013: IBM today announced it is contributing a multi-million dollar private cloud to a consortium of post-secondary institutions in Nova Scotia. The system, the first of its kind in Atlantic Canada, will form a shared computing platform enabling the schools to together create new curriculum and conduct research, all aimed at better equipping graduates with high-demand analytics skills to drive Nova Scotia’s economy.

The system, operational in early 2014, is being hosted at Dalhousie University but will also be accessible through a simple, single log-on process to faculty and students at Acadia University, Cape Breton University, Mount Saint Vincent University, Nova Scotia Community College, Saint Mary’s University and St. Francis Xavier University. (more…)

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Nourishing people—and an economy

Milk has a reputation for strengthening bones. In Malawi, the growing dairy industry is strengthening the livelihoods of small dairy farmers and the health of the country’s inhabitants.

In an effort to double the capacity of Malawi’s dairy value chain, MSU researchers led by Puliyur MohanKumar, professor in the College of Veterinary Medicine, are applying successful outcomes from a similar MSU partnership project that helped transform India’s dairy industry. India, now the world’s top milk producer, shares similar environmental and cultural traits with Malawi. (more…)

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