Climate 2030: A National Blueprint for a Clean Energy Economy (Executive Summary)

Courage of conviction, unyielding stamina to underscore the dangerous realities of unchanging lifestyle habits and doing business as usual in today’s world, and unfettered tenacity necessary to build an ever-growing network of dedicated individuals and scientists struggling to express the need for public awareness and governmental action, describes this nationwide group. The Union of Concerned Scientists, primarily headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, presents its forecast for 2030 – complete with the recipe needed to be undertaken for individuals and businesses to both survive and thrive

¿El amor por la religión o la religión del amor? Revisando el Ġazal de Ibrāhīm ibn Sahl

The Andalusi poet Ibrāhīm ibn Sahl (609/1212-649/1251), who converted from Judaism to Islam, wrote poems in the sub-genre of love poetry known as al-ġazal al-ʿuḏrī about objects of affection named Mūsà and, less frequently, Muḥammad. Scholarship on Ibn Sahl has typically focused on the question of whether the historical Ibn Sahl’s conversion to Islam was sincere or not, reading his poetry for clues about his true religious identity and beliefs. More specifically, readers have wondered whether his poems about Mūsà indicate a yearning for Judaism. This article problematizes this question with attention to what is known of the historical circumstances in which Ibn Sahl lived and through critical discussion of the phenomenon of conversion. It then redirects the conversation about Ibn Sahl’s poetry: rather than trying to understand the sincerity of Ibn Sahl’s conversion through his poetry, this article reads his poems as literary texts, with attention to their wordplay, imagery, and intertextuality. Analysis of Ibn Sahl’s poetry that pays close attention to this significant intertextuality illuminates the network of religious references in it and the ways in which they function within the poetry. The conclusion, following from close reading of select poems from Ibn Sahl’s dīwān, is that the merit of these poems, and the characteristics that have made them compelling to audiences, stems from the ways in which they maintain the possibility of different interpretations, thus continually stoking the audiences’ curiosity, as well as their marvel-inducing usage figurative language, intertextuality, and wordplay.El poeta andalusí Ibrāhīm ibn Sahl (609/1212-649/1251), que se convirtió del judaísmo al islam, escribió poemas pertenecientes al subgénero de la poesía amorosa conocida como al-ġazal al-ʿuḏrī sobre los amados Moisés, y con menor frecuencia Mahoma. Las investigaciones sobre Ibn Sahl se han centrado, tradicionalmente, en la cuestión acerca de si la conversión histórica al islam fue sincera o si sus poemas sobre Moisés reflejan un anhelo oculto por el judaísmo. Este artículo problematiza esta cuestión, prestando atención a lo que se sabe de las circunstancias históricas en las que vivió Ibn Sahl y por medio de una discusión crítica del fenómeno de la conversión. Luego redirijo la conversación sobre la poesía de Ibn Sahl: en lugar de tratar de comprender la sinceridad de la conversión de Ibn Sahl a través de su poesía este artículo lee sus poemas como textos literarios, con atención a sus juegos de palabras, imágenes e intertextualidad. El análisis de la poesía de Ibn Sahl, que presta mucha atención a esta significativa intertextualidad, ilumina la red de referencias religiosas que hay en ella y las formas en las que funcionan dentro de la poesía. La conclusión, tras la lectura atenta de poemas seleccionados del dīwān de Ibn Sahl, es que el mérito de estos poemas y las características que los han hecho atractivos para el público proceden de las formas en que mantienen la posibilidad de diferentes interpretaciones, por lo que continuamente avivan la curiosidad del público, así como su uso, que induce a los portentos del lenguaje figurativo, la intertextualidad y los juegos de palabras

Development of a water conservation plan for the Town of Buena Vista, Colorado

The Town of Buena Vista (Town) has a limited water supply, although Cottonwood Creek runs through the center of Town and the Arkansas River borders the Town to the east. The Towns water rights portfolio is entirely on Cottonwood Creek, and includes a reliable 10 cubic feet per second (cfs), or 6.46 million gallons per day (MGD) for the months of October to March, but only 3.88 cfs (2.51 MGD) senior water rights from April to September, which coincides with irrigation season. The Town does not own any water rights on the Arkansas River. The existing treatment and distribution capacity for the Town is approximately 2.15 MGD. The maximum daily demand in 2011 was 1.421 MGD, which is equivalent to 56% of total available water rights, and 66% of treatment capacity. Using a 3% growth rate, the Town will increase in size by 55% in 20 years or less, and there will be an insufficiency of water rights and of supply capacity to satisfy demands. In order to prevent a future shortage in the water system, a water conservation plan was approved by the Board of Trustees for commencement. The water conservation plan was developed following Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) guidelines, and is intended to be adopted by the Board of Trustees and approved by the CWCB in order to be eligible for grants for water conservation implementation projects. The twenty-year forecast for maximum day demand exceeds the existing supply capacity by 367,000 gallons a day, and exceeds the existing irrigation season water rights by 10,000 gallons per day. Prior to conservation, the ratios of demand to supply capacity and demand to water rights are 1.17 and 1.0, respectively. The Town\u27s Capital Improvement Plan contains 6M of production-related improvements between 2012 and 2018, including: install well #3; install additional storage tank; install non-potable Arkansas River well #4; increase water treatment plant capacity; and purchase additional senior water rights. If all of the proposed projects were installed, the monthly rate for water system customers would increase over nine dollars, or 34%. Conservation measures were analyzed for implementation in order to reduce the need for the expensive projects proposed to meet growing demands, with the following goals: reduce the water loss rate from 26% to a more typical rate of 10-15%; reduce irrigation use to decrease peak use in the summer which coincides with the period when the Town has significantly less water rights; and reduce indoor use at residences, which comprise 81% of the water system customers. More than eleven specific measures for conservation were considered per Colorado Revised Statutes (CRS) 37-60-126. The measures were screened for applicability, success rates in other municipalities, costs, and benefits, and the following measures were combined and recommended for implementation: 1. Toilet and/or showerhead and faucet rebate programs; 2. Education/audits (public education, water-saving demonstrations); 3. Conservation (tiered) rate structure to encourage efficiency; 4. Leak detection system purchase; 5. Regulations/Ordinances regarding landscape efficiency (low water use landscapes, drought-resistant vegetation, and watering restrictions); 6. Regulations/Ordinances prohibiting once-through cooling for industrial and commercial efficiency. The implementation of the combination of measures will achieve the goals of reducing loss, irrigation use, and indoor use, with an estimated savings of 9.1 million gallons of water annually at a projected cost to the Town of approximately 13,000 per year. A one-time purchase of a $10,000 leak detection system could provide an additional 600,000 gallons per year savings. The decrease in maximum day demand after implementation of the proposed conservation measures is estimated to be over 392,000 gallons, a 16$100 if the customers participate in all the measures

No Confusion Here: Proposing a New Paradigm for the Litigation of Keyword Advertising Trademark Infringement Cases

Internet search engines such as Google and Yahoo! earn a majority of their profit from selling advertisements to appear next to search results. Google\u27s coveted advertising space, however, causes nightmares for trademark holders when their trademarks are auctioned by Google to competitors as keywords to trigger the competitors\u27 advertisements when the trademark is used as a search term. Advertisers strategically bid on trademarks of competitors to ensure that their ads appear whenever the trademark is used as a search term, instead of the advertisements of the trademark holder. For example, Nike could bid on the trademark for Adidas, with the result that Nike ads appear whenever a computer user searches for Adidas. This strategy can allow advertisers to gain visibility by having their ads appear next to search results of a competitor, often a more popular brand. Advertisers also admit to employing the strategy for the purpose of drawing consumers to their websites, and away from the website of the trademark holder. Trademark holders object to this practice on the basis that it allows competitors to free ride off the goodwill and reputation of a trademark when used for the specific purpose of diverting consumers. Because Google derives such a large share of its revenue from advertising, it has been loath to cater to the desires of trademark holders and restrict the sale of keywords as advertising triggers, instead choosing to allow the use of keyword triggers in countries such as the U.S. where the courts have not taken an aggressive stance against search engines on the issue. Courts both inside and outside the U.S. have struggled to resolve the issues of trademark use and likelihood of consumer confusion in a way that promotes fair competition while also upholding policies that protect trademark owners\u27 rights, including those of the mark\u27s reputation and goodwill. Now that courts are in agreement that the sale or purchase of a trademark keyword constitutes a use in commerce, claims will boil down to the issue of a likelihood of confusion. Because the harm of a keyword case--misappropriation of a mark\u27s goodwill--falls on the trademark owner, rather than the consumer, this Note proposes that keyword plaintiffs should not have to prove the element of consumer confusion. Rather, the defendant\u27s intent to divert consumers and free ride off the mark\u27s goodwill should replace the element of confusion. This Note examines the doctrine of initial interest confusion as evidence that courts are already moving in this direction. Finally, the Note argues that, rather than precluding the development of case law, Google and other search engines should help remedy the situation by adopting policies that are more favorable to trademark holders and consistent across national boundaries

An age of opportunity: Education and employment in cyberspace

There are many trends in cyberspace that are directly affecting both universities\u27 education systems and the current job markets. This research provides an overview of some of these computer mediated trends. The purpose of this work is to look at the current job market, examine some of the computer related jobs for recent college graduates, look at distance education as an educational opportunity for many different people, and look at future opportunities that computer mediation will continue to provide. Students will have better insight of these trends, while professors will have a strong appreciation of the importance of teaching and understanding telecommunications

Physiologic Effect of Relaxation Therapies on Autonomic Tone Early After Acute Coronary Syndromes

Post-MI patients are at increased risk of arrhythmic sudden death. Stress and sympathetic activation are known to influence arrhythmogenesis. While relaxation therapies improve psychological well-being in multiple medical illnesses, whether these therapies can positively influence sympathovagal balance in the post-MI population is unknown. We explored the physiologic effects of Reiki, a light-touch relaxation therapy, and music on post-acute coronary syndrome (ACS) inpatients, using heart rate variability (HRV) to assess changes in cardiac autonomic function during treatment. Forty-eight patients with ACS within the last 72 hours were randomized to received a single 20-minute session of either Reiki, classical music, or a control minimal distraction environment . All subjects underwent ambulatory ECG Holter monitoring. Emotional state was assessed by Likert scale. HRV was analyzed by spectral analysis via fast Fourier transformation during the baseline, intervention, and post-intervention periods and high-frequency power (lognormalized) compared via ANOVA with repeated measures. Adequate Holters were recorded in 12 control, 13 music, and 12 Reiki patients. High frequency (HF) component of HRV, an index of parasympathetic tone, increased significantly during Reiki (0.58±0.16) but not during music (-0.1±0.16) or control (0.06±0.16). RR interval increased significantly with Reiki and control, but not with music. Reiki significantly reduced reported anxiety and increased sense of relaxation compared to control (p=0.04), whereas music did not. In conclusion, post-MI recipients of light-touch from nurses trained in Reiki experienced increased vagal activity and decreased anxiety. Whether longer-term use of this therapy can improve outcomes requires further study

The Lifestyle of the Urban Tribe

It was once the norm for people to get married in their early twenties, perhaps right after college or maybe during college. Once married, there was the need to start a family as soon as possible. However, nowadays, people appear to be substituting (at least for this period of time after college) the traditional family structure with a new one – the “urban tribe.” This paper takes a critical approach to examining portrayals of rituals in “urban tribes” in two television shows – Will & Grace and Friends in which we argue that the progressive elements of these shows counter the master narratives of traditional family values and that these counter stories act as resistance to the given context of family