marika
2009-06-16 00:58:08 UTC
http://www.mercurynews.com/education/ci_8269190
Bill would require California's science curriculum to cover climate change
SOME THINK SCIENCE ISN'T DEFINITIVE ENOUGH TO TEACH
By Paul Rogers
Mercury News
Posted: 02/15/2008 01:42:53 AM PST
Updated: 01/01/2009 01:11:48 PM PST
Click photo to enlarge
Senator Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto (Courtesy Joe Simitian )«12»
Have your say!
Vote and comment:
Should climate change be required learning in public schools?
Reading, writing and . . . global warming?
A Silicon Valley lawmaker is gaining momentum with a bill that would require
"climate change" to be among the science topics that all California public
school students are taught.
The measure, by state Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, also would mandate
that future science textbooks approved for California public schools include
climate change.
"You can't have a science curriculum that is relevant and current if it
doesn't deal with the science behind climate change," Simitian said. "This
is a phenomenon of global importance and our kids ought to understand the
science behind that phenomenon."
The state Senate approved the bill, SB 908, Jan. 30 by a 26-13 vote. It
heads now to the state Assembly. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has taken
numerous actions to reduce global warming, but he has yet to weigh in on
Simitian's bill. Other Republicans in the Capitol, however, are not happy
about the proposal.
Some say the science on global warming isn't clear, while others worry the
bill would inject environmental propaganda into classrooms.
"I find it disturbing that this mandate to teach this theory is not
accompanied by a requirement that the discussion be science-based and
include a critical analysis of all sides of the subject," said Sen. Tom
McClintock, R-Thousand Oaks, during the Senate debate.
Sen. Tom Harman, R-Costa Mesa. Maldonado's district includes Los Gatos,
Morgan Hill, parts of San Jose, Scotts Valley, Watsonville and Monterey.
Harman represents Orange County. All 13 of the no votes were from
Republicans
Bill would require California's science curriculum to cover climate change
SOME THINK SCIENCE ISN'T DEFINITIVE ENOUGH TO TEACH
By Paul Rogers
Mercury News
Posted: 02/15/2008 01:42:53 AM PST
Updated: 01/01/2009 01:11:48 PM PST
Click photo to enlarge
Senator Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto (Courtesy Joe Simitian )«12»
Have your say!
Vote and comment:
Should climate change be required learning in public schools?
Reading, writing and . . . global warming?
A Silicon Valley lawmaker is gaining momentum with a bill that would require
"climate change" to be among the science topics that all California public
school students are taught.
The measure, by state Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, also would mandate
that future science textbooks approved for California public schools include
climate change.
"You can't have a science curriculum that is relevant and current if it
doesn't deal with the science behind climate change," Simitian said. "This
is a phenomenon of global importance and our kids ought to understand the
science behind that phenomenon."
The state Senate approved the bill, SB 908, Jan. 30 by a 26-13 vote. It
heads now to the state Assembly. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has taken
numerous actions to reduce global warming, but he has yet to weigh in on
Simitian's bill. Other Republicans in the Capitol, however, are not happy
about the proposal.
Some say the science on global warming isn't clear, while others worry the
bill would inject environmental propaganda into classrooms.
"I find it disturbing that this mandate to teach this theory is not
accompanied by a requirement that the discussion be science-based and
include a critical analysis of all sides of the subject," said Sen. Tom
McClintock, R-Thousand Oaks, during the Senate debate.
Sen. Tom Harman, R-Costa Mesa. Maldonado's district includes Los Gatos,
Morgan Hill, parts of San Jose, Scotts Valley, Watsonville and Monterey.
Harman represents Orange County. All 13 of the no votes were from
Republicans
http://scitation.aip.org/getabs/servlet/GetabsServlet?prog=normal&id=JOEEDU000132000006000568000001&idtype=cvips&gifs=yes
Technology Evaluation of Hydrogen Light-Duty Vehicles
J. Envir. Engrg. Volume 132, Issue 6, pp. 568-574 (June 2006)
Issue Date: June 2006 ABSTRACTREFERENCES (9)Buy This Article (US$30)
Virginia P. Sisiopiku,1 Aymeric Rousseau,2 Fouad H. Fouad,3 and Robert W.
Peters4
This study analyzed candidate hydrogen-fueled vehicles for near and
long-term use associated with their efficiency, performance, and
emissions. Various types of hydrogen-fueled vehicles were assessed using
Argonne National Laboratory's Powertrain System Analysis Toolkit vehicle
simulation model. These include hythane- and hydrogen-fueled internal
combustion engines (ICEs), hydrogen-fueled hybrid electric propulsion, and
direct hydrogen fuel cells. Vehicle sizes and configurations, consistent
with the available component models/data, were simulated to compare
efficiency and emissions with baseline conventional vehicles. The
simulations provided salient information on the vehicle characteristics,
performance, and efficiency, as functions of operating conditions on
standard driving cycles. It was found that substantial gains in fuel
economy can be achieved through hybridization both for conventional and
fuel cell vehicles. When hybridized, hydrogen ICE configurations achieve
similar fuel economy to gasoline counterparts. The results also confirm
that ICE hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) achieve higher fuel economy than
fuel cell configurations and comparable results with fuel cell HEV.
Comparison of efficiency results for various driving cycles further
indicates that cycles with low power demand are most suited for hybrid
operations.
Technology Evaluation of Hydrogen Light-Duty Vehicles
J. Envir. Engrg. Volume 132, Issue 6, pp. 568-574 (June 2006)
Issue Date: June 2006 ABSTRACTREFERENCES (9)Buy This Article (US$30)
Virginia P. Sisiopiku,1 Aymeric Rousseau,2 Fouad H. Fouad,3 and Robert W.
Peters4
This study analyzed candidate hydrogen-fueled vehicles for near and
long-term use associated with their efficiency, performance, and
emissions. Various types of hydrogen-fueled vehicles were assessed using
Argonne National Laboratory's Powertrain System Analysis Toolkit vehicle
simulation model. These include hythane- and hydrogen-fueled internal
combustion engines (ICEs), hydrogen-fueled hybrid electric propulsion, and
direct hydrogen fuel cells. Vehicle sizes and configurations, consistent
with the available component models/data, were simulated to compare
efficiency and emissions with baseline conventional vehicles. The
simulations provided salient information on the vehicle characteristics,
performance, and efficiency, as functions of operating conditions on
standard driving cycles. It was found that substantial gains in fuel
economy can be achieved through hybridization both for conventional and
fuel cell vehicles. When hybridized, hydrogen ICE configurations achieve
similar fuel economy to gasoline counterparts. The results also confirm
that ICE hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) achieve higher fuel economy than
fuel cell configurations and comparable results with fuel cell HEV.
Comparison of efficiency results for various driving cycles further
indicates that cycles with low power demand are most suited for hybrid
operations.
"220,000 stranded by heavy snow in Xinjiang"
(Source: China Daily, 1/7/06)
Heavy snows of up to 1 metre have stranded 220,000 people in Northwest
China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, cutting off traffic and
communications.
Winds from Siberia also caused temperatures to drop sharply to minus
43 C in some areas.
Altogether lives of more than 620,000 people have been affected and
9,234 heads of livestock were killed, Xinjiang Daily reported.
About 100,000 people have also been forced to leave their homes
because of the snow.
A week-long blizzard that started December 29 also toppled houses,
especially in the northern parts of the region, said Qu Songlin, an
official with the region's civil affair bureau.
About 6,000 people suffered from various diseases, and 300,000 heads
of livestock face starvation, he said. There have been no reports on
human casualties. Disaster relief efforts are under way.
The Ministry of Civil Affairs has also sent officials to the region to
supervise relief efforts, a ministry official surnamed Zhang said on
Friday.
The top priority is to resume traffic and transportation, said Wang
Zhenyao, another disaster relief official with the ministry. Providing
adequate clothing and enough food for those affected is also high on
the agenda.
(Source: China Daily, 1/7/06)
Heavy snows of up to 1 metre have stranded 220,000 people in Northwest
China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, cutting off traffic and
communications.
Winds from Siberia also caused temperatures to drop sharply to minus
43 C in some areas.
Altogether lives of more than 620,000 people have been affected and
9,234 heads of livestock were killed, Xinjiang Daily reported.
About 100,000 people have also been forced to leave their homes
because of the snow.
A week-long blizzard that started December 29 also toppled houses,
especially in the northern parts of the region, said Qu Songlin, an
official with the region's civil affair bureau.
About 6,000 people suffered from various diseases, and 300,000 heads
of livestock face starvation, he said. There have been no reports on
human casualties. Disaster relief efforts are under way.
The Ministry of Civil Affairs has also sent officials to the region to
supervise relief efforts, a ministry official surnamed Zhang said on
Friday.
The top priority is to resume traffic and transportation, said Wang
Zhenyao, another disaster relief official with the ministry. Providing
adequate clothing and enough food for those affected is also high on
the agenda.
"Delhi gets first winter ice in 70 years, Indian cold toll soars"
(Sorce: Media Corp news, 1/8/06)
NEW DELHI - The Indian capital Sunday saw its first winter frost in 70
years as a cold wave sweeping in from the Himalayas killed more people
in northern India overnight, officials said.
The capital city of 14 million people ordered schools shut for three
days from Monday as the mercury for the first time since 1935 fell to
0.2 degrees Celsius (32.36 Fahrenheit), leaving mounds of ice on
parked cars.
White-laced streets greeted early risers, but any novelty value
brought by the cold soon died as frost on power cables sparked partial
power cuts across large swathes of New Delhi, said the privately-run
BSES utility provider.
On January 16, 1935, Delhi recorded minus 0.6 degrees Celsius.
"I was born in New Delhi and this is the first time we are seeing ice
on grass," said Supriya Singh, a fashion designer. "It's just like
snow ... It's heavenly."
Her jubilation was not shared by the homeless thousands.
The city municipality late Sunday rushed to set up community shelters
for some of the city's 150,000 homeless people as the weather office
warned the severe chill would continue.
"The indications are that these conditions would continue for the next
two days before the temperatures rise," a spokesman for New Delhi's
meteorological department told AFP.
(Sorce: Media Corp news, 1/8/06)
NEW DELHI - The Indian capital Sunday saw its first winter frost in 70
years as a cold wave sweeping in from the Himalayas killed more people
in northern India overnight, officials said.
The capital city of 14 million people ordered schools shut for three
days from Monday as the mercury for the first time since 1935 fell to
0.2 degrees Celsius (32.36 Fahrenheit), leaving mounds of ice on
parked cars.
White-laced streets greeted early risers, but any novelty value
brought by the cold soon died as frost on power cables sparked partial
power cuts across large swathes of New Delhi, said the privately-run
BSES utility provider.
On January 16, 1935, Delhi recorded minus 0.6 degrees Celsius.
"I was born in New Delhi and this is the first time we are seeing ice
on grass," said Supriya Singh, a fashion designer. "It's just like
snow ... It's heavenly."
Her jubilation was not shared by the homeless thousands.
The city municipality late Sunday rushed to set up community shelters
for some of the city's 150,000 homeless people as the weather office
warned the severe chill would continue.
"The indications are that these conditions would continue for the next
two days before the temperatures rise," a spokesman for New Delhi's
meteorological department told AFP.