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Rare Earth Elements in U.S. Not So Rare

By Guest PostNovember 18, 2010Economy, Environment, Scienceaustralia, bear lodge mountains, bokan mountain, China, department of defense, deposits, geochemical properties, marcia mcnutt, mountain pass, rare earth elements, ree, united states

*Significant Deposits Found in 14 States*

Rare Earth Elements. Image credit: USGS

Approximately 13 million metric tons of rare earth elements (REE) exist within known deposits in the United States, according to the first-ever nationwide estimate of these elements by the U.S. Geological Survey.

This estimate of domestic rare earth deposits is part of a larger report that includes a review of global sources for REE, information on known deposits that might provide domestic sources of REE in the future, and geologic information crucial for studies of the availability of REE to U.S. industry.

The report describes significant deposits of REE in 14 states, with the largest known REE deposits at Mountain Pass, Calif.; Bokan Mountain, Alaska; and the Bear Lodge Mountains, Wyo. The Mountain Pass mine produced REE until it closed in 2002. Additional states with known REE deposits include Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, and South Carolina. (more…)

West Nile Virus More Prevalent in Low-income Neighborhoods, Study Finds

By Guest PostNovember 16, 2010Health, Sciencebird populations, coma, convulsions, disorientation, economic conditions, henri thomassen, low income neighborhoods, mosquito transmitted disease, mosquitoe, muscle, neck stiffness, North America, orange county, ryan harrigan, thomas smith, united states, west nile virus

Image credit: University of California

Low-income neighborhoods appear to be the most susceptible to West Nile virus, a mosquito-transmitted disease that is linked to more than 1,000 deaths since in the United States since 1999, according to new UCLA-lead research.

Using data on infected humans and mosquitoes from the West Nile virus hotspot of Orange County, Calif., from 2005-08, scientists found that per-capita income and other economic conditions were the single greatest predictor of occurrence, explaining 85-95 percent of the variation. While economic conditions have previously been linked to disease, the study is the first to use a rigorous statistical model. (more…)

‘Nightmare’ Economy Still a Source of Restless Nights, says Krugman

By Guest PostNovember 11, 2010Economyben bernacke, China, columnist, economist, Economy, federal reserve, global markets, Great depression, japan worriers, japanese economy, martin luther king, microeconomic, new york times, nobel prize, obama administration, paul krugman, richard c levin, sprague hall, united states

Paul Krugman. Image credit: Yale University

Nobel Prize-winning economist and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman had some generally dismal news for the near capacity audience that came to Sprague Hall on Tuesday for his Jackson Institute-sponsored town hall meeting.

The gathering, aimed at undergraduates, was held in conjunction with Krugman’s visit to Yale to receive the Henry E. Howland Memorial Prize, one of the highest honors that the University bestows.

Krugman was introduced by President Richard C. Levin; the two were briefly colleagues in Yale’s Department of Economics in the 1970s. He kicked off the Q&A with background on the current economic situation. (more…)

Windows Phone 7 Takes Aim at Bad Phone Design

By Guest PostNovember 8, 2010Technologyadvertising, at&t, bad mobile, harris interactive, katy asher, katy perry, maroon 5, Microsoft, minka kelly, mobile phone, samsung focus, smartphones, t-mobile, todd peters, united states, windows phone 7, YouTube

*Windows Phone 7 goes on sale today at AT&T and T-Mobile stores throughout the United States. The phone takes a new approach to smartphone design, hopefully addressing some of the “Bad Mobile Phone Behavior” called out in a new survey released today.*

REDMOND, Wash. – Nov. 8, 2010 – The mobile phone, like the craftiest of invasive species, knows no boundaries. It has crept into every inch of our lives, and spotting one in the bathroom or the bedroom can only elicit a weary response: “Really?”

According to a new survey released today, the answer across the country is a resounding – if resigned – “Yes.” (more…)

Yahoo! Shopping Challenges Shoppers to Name the Ultimate Gift This Holiday Season

By Guest PostNovember 8, 2010Technologydc, fifts for her, gifts for him, gifts for kids, grand prize, greg hintz, holiday gift, ipads, shopping, ultimate gift challenge, united states, video games, Washington, Yahoo

*Yahoo! Shopping’s Ultimate Gift Challenge sweepstakes lets people pick this year’s ultimate holiday gift for a chance to win a $10,000 grand prize*

SUNNYVALE, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)— Yahoo! Shopping has unveiled its Ultimate Gift Challenge (https://shopping.yahoo.com/seasonal/holiday/ultimate-gift-challenge), a sweepstakes in which Yahoo! users can vote for their favorite gifts and select the top holiday gift for 2010. Over the course of the six-week shopping tournament, every time people vote in the Ultimate Gift Challenge, they will be entered to win the grand prize drawing of $10,000 at the end of the sweepstakes. Plus, the first time that players vote, they will be entered to win one of five $100 gift cards drawn daily. (more…)

Hostile Environments Encourage Political Action In Immigrant Communities

By Guest PostNovember 2, 2010Culture, Politicsafrican communities, anti-immigrant legislation, anti-immigrant practices, asian american, backfire, Chicago, dina okamoto, immigrant, immigrant communities, kim ebert, latino, los angeles, memphis, miami, middle eastern, united states

A new study from North Carolina State University finds that anti-immigrant practices – such as anti-immigrant legislation or protests – are likely to backfire, and spur increased political action from immigrant communities. The study examined political activity in 52 metropolitan areas across the United States.

“U.S. Census data indicate that 60 percent of the foreign-born in the U.S. are not citizens,” says Dr. Kim Ebert, an assistant professor of sociology and co-author of a paper describing the research. “Non-citizens can’t vote, so we wanted to determine how they are participating in political life.” (more…)

iSoftStone Signs Agreement With Microsoft to Develop Citizen Health Solutions in China Using HealthVault

By Guest PostOctober 29, 2010TechnologyChina, chinese market, isoftstone, isoftstone information technology, Jiangsu, Microsoft, microsoft healthvault technology, tw liu, united states, wuxi

*Digital health innovation center is first step of a joint healthcare effort in Wuxi, China.*

REDMOND, Wash., and WUXI, China — Oct. 29, 2010 — Microsoft Corp. and iSoftStone Information Technology (Group) Co. Ltd. have signed an agreement that enables iSoftStone to introduce Microsoft HealthVault technology to the Chinese market. HealthVault, a personal health application platform, enables individuals to store and manage their health information in a personal, online account. Initially focused on Wuxi, in the province of Jiangsu, the vision of the Microsoft-iSoftStone relationship is to enable citizens to connect to various health systems and services run by government organizations, physicians, hospitals, pharmacies and even fitness facilities for a comprehensive view of their personal health information. iSoftStone will be the exclusive operator of HealthVault in Wuxi and will develop and offer the HealthVault-based services to developers, application providers and device manufacturers to provide citizens with tools that will help foster dynamic, trusted and personalized healthcare. (more…)

Learning the Truth not Effective in Battling Rumors About NYC Mosque, Study Finds

By Guest PostOctober 28, 2010Culture, Politicsamericans, annenberg public policy center, arab, erik nisbet, factcheck, feisal abdul rauf, ground zero, imam, islamic cultural center, middle east, mosque, new york city, ohio state university, r kelly garrett, rumors, terrorism, united states

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Evidence is no match against the belief in false rumors concerning the proposed Islamic cultural center and mosque near Ground Zero in New York City, a new study finds.

Researchers at Ohio State University found that fewer than one-third of people who had previously heard and believed one of the many rumors about the proposed center changed their minds after reading overwhelming evidence rejecting the rumor.

The false rumor that researchers used in the study was that Feisal Abdul Rauf, the Imam backing the proposed Islamic cultural center and mosque, is a terrorist sympathizer who has refused to condemn Islamic attacks on civilians. (more…)

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