Greenpeace vs. Sea Shepherd: An Unfortunate Conflict

Written by Marika Collins

Greenpeace issued a lengthy statement on their website in an attempt to further distance themselves from Paul Watson and Sea Shepherd yesterday. With an aim at setting the record straight, Greenpeace made the statement out of frustration with what it claims are lies and falsehoods propagated by Watson, compounded by a general public misconception that Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd are associated with one another.

Greenpeace takes issue with what they describe as a fundamental difference in the anti-whaling tactics practiced by each organization. It is interesting to note how Greenpeace characterizes and differentiates their tactics versus that of Sea Shepherd, particularly their characterization of what constitutes violence.

For Greenpeace, violence constitutes doing something that might put a human being in jeopardy, something they say Sea Shepherd and Watson are guilty of.

However, in their attempt to illustrate how proactive they are in the fight to save whales, Greenpeace makes reference to how in the past, Japanese whalers run from their ship at high speed when faced with a potential confrontation.

Regardless of Greenpeace’s non-violent policies, would the Japanese ship run from them, or resort to bringing the coast guard, if there wasn’t a perceived threat of violence? The success of Greenpeace’s anti-whaling efforts is clearly connected to the willingness of Sea Shepherd to take tough action and thereby instilling fear of the protesters in the whalers’ minds.

And anyway, is there a huge difference between sabotaging a propeller or sinking an unmanned whaling vessel (Sea Shepherd tactics) and blocking a harpoon vessel from shooting a whale with your ship (a Greenpeace tactic)? All these tactics are designed to achieve the same result, namely to prevent or reduce the killing of whales, and none particularly put lives at risk. Can’t we all just get along?

Original here

New ‘Very High Speed’ Train Goes 220 mph and Has No Centralized Engine

This month, the French company Alstom Transport is testing its brand new “very high speed” train, the AGV (or Automotrice à Grande Vitesse), on live tracks in Eastern France. Unlike most trains, which have a single engine car in the front or back, the AGV has a series of distributed motors underneath the passenger carriages, which saves space and allows the train to carry 20% more passengers. (Notice in the photo below how little space there is from the nose of the train to the first passenger seats.)

The AGV is being tested over 12 nights this month on the Eastern high-speed line, between the Champagne-Ardenne and Lorraine stations, at its ideal speed of 224 mph. In comparison, the American high speed Acela train travels at a top speed of 150 mph.

The test train is outfitted with 4,000 sensors that will look at both the train’s overall mechanical capabilities, as well as the interior passenger compartment. Although significant testing has already been done with computer models and on closed course test tracks, it is impossible to perfectly replicate the environment a train will face on live tracks.

Some of the features being tested at high speeds include the train’s acoustics, vibration levels, wheel-to-rail dynamics, and forces exerted upon passengers. Additionally, safety features, such as the emergency braking mechanism is being tested through the activation of the brakes on tracks made slippery with soapy water. This is intended to simulate extreme conditions, such as when leaves may be covering the rails.

Additionally, electromagnetic interference will be measured by using aerial sensors hung above the tracks. This is to ensure that the train does not interfere with local radio and TV reception, as well as to make sure its own communications systems will work.

Alstom, which also builds the TGV and Eurostar trains, hopes that if the AGV passes these live tests it will receive final European certification by next year so that it can begin delivering production models by 2010. Already, Italian transportation company NTV has ordered 25 trainsets, with an option to buy 10 more.

Not only is the AGV able to transport more people at higher speeds, but it is also environmentally friendly. The AGV has low greenhouse gas emissions, with approximately 2.2g for every km traveled per passenger, which is 13 times less than a bus (30g), 50 times less than a car (115g) and 70 times less than a plane (153g). Of course, as the electricity generated to electrify the train gets cleaner, so will the train.

Fortunately, it seems Europe and Asia are not the sole locations embracing high speed rail. Recently, there has been a dramatic increase in focus on high speed rail in the United States, with the passage of Prop 1A in California, the election of apparent clean tech and infrastructure advocate Barack Obama, and the continuing development of potential projects in Texas, the Midwest, Florida, the Pacific Northwest, and possibly Minnesota. Hopefully, further developments like the AGV in Europe will inspire the U.S. to continue along this path, and maybe someday we’ll see this amazing train in America.

Original here

Green-blooded frog makes first appearance for scientists

Lewis Smith

A new species of frog that has green blood and turquoise bones has been discovered living in a former stronghold of Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge forces.

The Samkos bush frog is one of four previously unknown species discovered as part of a project to rebuild the country’s science base from the devastation left by the dictator’s regime.

The unusual colour of the blood and bones is caused by biliverdin, a pigment that would usually be processed in the liver as a waste product but which in the frog is passed back into the bloodstream.

Conservationists believe that the pigment helps to camouflage the amphibian because it shows green through the translucent skin. It is suspected that it also serves to make the frog, Chiromantis samkosensis, taste nasty to predators. Jeremy Holden, a naturalist for the conservation group Fauna & Flora International (FFI), who discovered the bush frog, said: “When I found the frog, I had a thrilling suspicion that we were looking at an entirely new species of amphibian.”

The species is so small and well camouflaged in the jungle habitat that researchers are able to track it down only by listening for its distinctive “rising trill” call. It is thought to breed in temporary pools created by heavy rain.

Smith’s frog, Rana faber, the Aural horned frog, Megophrys auralensis, and the Cardamom bush frog, Philautus cardamonus, are the other three species discovered by researchers from FFI during their surveys of Cambodia in the Cardamom mountains.

Original here