LONDON (Reuters) - London's Stansted and Luton airports closed on Wednesday morning to clear their runways after snow hit parts of southern England overnight.
Stansted airport, some 30 miles northeast of London, closed its only runway early on Wednesday and said it expected to incur some delays.
"Flights are being held as we clear the runway of snow but we expect to re-open the runway soon," a spokesman for Stansted, London's third biggest airport, said on Wednesday. "The mornings are busiest at the airport so there could be a knock on effect and delays to flights this morning."
Luton airport, 35 miles north of central London, closed its only runway for an hour but said it had since re-opened.
"We shut the runway for around an hour to clear it of snow and de-ice it. There will be a few delays this morning but nothing serious," a Luton airport spokesman said.
British low-cost airline easyJet, the biggest operator at Luton, said it had seen little disruption at Luton but expected some delays at Stansted.
London's Heathrow, Gatwick and City airports said they were operating as usual.
New test adds to scientists' understanding of Earth's history, resourcesPublic release date: 5-Dec-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Michal Kowalewski mkowalewski@flmnh.ufl.edu 540-250-4013 University of Florida
GAINESVILLE, Fla. A new study co-authored by a University of Florida researcher provides the first direct chronological test of sequence stratigraphy, a powerful tool for exploring Earth's natural resources.
The model allows geologists to better understand how sedimentary rocks are related to one another in time and space and predict what types of rocks are located in different areas. The information may help scientists more reliably interpret various aspects of Earth's history such as long-term climate changes or extinction events, and also benefit companies searching for the best locations to drill for oil.
The study published online Friday in Geology uses extensive numerical dating of fossil shells to verify key predictions of the sequence stratigraphy model. Although used successfully for more than 30 years as a theoretical framework for interpreting and exploring rock bodies, the model had never been proven quantitatively by direct numerical dating.
"Paleontologists and geologists are well aware of the fact that you should not take the fossil record at face value because you will then see changes through time that may not be meaningful," said study co-author Michal Kowalewski, a curator of invertebrate paleontology at the Florida Museum of Natural History on the UF campus. "However, by using dating to quantify how the resolution changes through time, we can improve quality control on our data and develop better strategies for reconstructing the history of life more accurately."
In the study, researchers used racemization, a technique in which amino acid ratios are obtained to estimate the age of fossils from the most recent geological record. Relative age estimates were calibrated using radiocarbon to date about 250 mollusk shells extracted from cores drilled in the Po Plain in northern Italy. The technique, developed over the last 30 years, has made dating of large numbers of shells affordable and efficient, Kowalewski said.
Kowalewski is principal investigator on the National Science Foundation-funded project, a four-year study involving a team of scientists from the University of Bologna and Northern Arizona University.
"We were thrilled to learn that sedimentary rocks assemble through time exactly as predicted," said Kowalewski, who recently relocated from Virginia Tech and is the Jon L. and Beverly A. Thompson Chair of Invertebrate Paleontology at the Florida Museum. "The results are not only a direct validation of the sequence stratigraphic model, but also provide us with direct numerical estimates of changes in the resolution of the fossil record as a function of relative changes in sea level."
As the model predicted for the geological setting of the Po Plain, the sediments accumulated at an increasingly slower pace during initial phases of sea level rise, culminating with horizons that formed so slowly that shells from multiple millennia were mixed within the same sediment layers. Following the sea level rise, sediment was deposited at an increasingly faster pace.
"We are pretty confident that the primary driver of sea level changes in this time frame was climate, but that's not always the case in the geological record," Kowalewski said. 'We can now provide a more informed constraint on timing of the most recent sea level rise in the northern Adriatic."
Because the Po Plain contains young sediments dating to about the last 10,000 years, part of the cycle researchers tested includes changes occurring today, said Carlton Brett, a geology professor at the University of Cincinnati. As sea level rises quickly, sediment accumulates in bays and river mouths, leaving little sediment offshore, Brett said.
"I think what they're doing is groundbreaking in the sense that they're testing a model that is one of the most important models in sedimentary geology that has ever come down the pipe," Brett said. "As one who uses that model a lot and makes those assumptions about why we are getting shell beds offshore, the fact that they have put numbers on the tests gives us very good confidence that we're on the right track."
The team plans to continue working in the Po Plain, a well-understood system that records the most recent millennia of the region's geological history. The project can help researchers better understand human-induced changes because the Po Plain sediments document the fossil record of ecosystems that directly predate what many geologists refer to as the Anthropocene Epoch, the new geologic era of human modification of the natural world.
###
Study co-authors include Daniele Scarponi and Alessandro Amorosi of the University of Bologna, and Darell Kaufman of Northern Arizona University.
Credits
Writer
Danielle Torrent
Media Contact
Paul Ramey, pramey@flmnh.ufl.edu
Source
Michal Kowalewski, mkowalewski@flmnh.ufl.edu
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
New test adds to scientists' understanding of Earth's history, resourcesPublic release date: 5-Dec-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Michal Kowalewski mkowalewski@flmnh.ufl.edu 540-250-4013 University of Florida
GAINESVILLE, Fla. A new study co-authored by a University of Florida researcher provides the first direct chronological test of sequence stratigraphy, a powerful tool for exploring Earth's natural resources.
The model allows geologists to better understand how sedimentary rocks are related to one another in time and space and predict what types of rocks are located in different areas. The information may help scientists more reliably interpret various aspects of Earth's history such as long-term climate changes or extinction events, and also benefit companies searching for the best locations to drill for oil.
The study published online Friday in Geology uses extensive numerical dating of fossil shells to verify key predictions of the sequence stratigraphy model. Although used successfully for more than 30 years as a theoretical framework for interpreting and exploring rock bodies, the model had never been proven quantitatively by direct numerical dating.
"Paleontologists and geologists are well aware of the fact that you should not take the fossil record at face value because you will then see changes through time that may not be meaningful," said study co-author Michal Kowalewski, a curator of invertebrate paleontology at the Florida Museum of Natural History on the UF campus. "However, by using dating to quantify how the resolution changes through time, we can improve quality control on our data and develop better strategies for reconstructing the history of life more accurately."
In the study, researchers used racemization, a technique in which amino acid ratios are obtained to estimate the age of fossils from the most recent geological record. Relative age estimates were calibrated using radiocarbon to date about 250 mollusk shells extracted from cores drilled in the Po Plain in northern Italy. The technique, developed over the last 30 years, has made dating of large numbers of shells affordable and efficient, Kowalewski said.
Kowalewski is principal investigator on the National Science Foundation-funded project, a four-year study involving a team of scientists from the University of Bologna and Northern Arizona University.
"We were thrilled to learn that sedimentary rocks assemble through time exactly as predicted," said Kowalewski, who recently relocated from Virginia Tech and is the Jon L. and Beverly A. Thompson Chair of Invertebrate Paleontology at the Florida Museum. "The results are not only a direct validation of the sequence stratigraphic model, but also provide us with direct numerical estimates of changes in the resolution of the fossil record as a function of relative changes in sea level."
As the model predicted for the geological setting of the Po Plain, the sediments accumulated at an increasingly slower pace during initial phases of sea level rise, culminating with horizons that formed so slowly that shells from multiple millennia were mixed within the same sediment layers. Following the sea level rise, sediment was deposited at an increasingly faster pace.
"We are pretty confident that the primary driver of sea level changes in this time frame was climate, but that's not always the case in the geological record," Kowalewski said. 'We can now provide a more informed constraint on timing of the most recent sea level rise in the northern Adriatic."
Because the Po Plain contains young sediments dating to about the last 10,000 years, part of the cycle researchers tested includes changes occurring today, said Carlton Brett, a geology professor at the University of Cincinnati. As sea level rises quickly, sediment accumulates in bays and river mouths, leaving little sediment offshore, Brett said.
"I think what they're doing is groundbreaking in the sense that they're testing a model that is one of the most important models in sedimentary geology that has ever come down the pipe," Brett said. "As one who uses that model a lot and makes those assumptions about why we are getting shell beds offshore, the fact that they have put numbers on the tests gives us very good confidence that we're on the right track."
The team plans to continue working in the Po Plain, a well-understood system that records the most recent millennia of the region's geological history. The project can help researchers better understand human-induced changes because the Po Plain sediments document the fossil record of ecosystems that directly predate what many geologists refer to as the Anthropocene Epoch, the new geologic era of human modification of the natural world.
###
Study co-authors include Daniele Scarponi and Alessandro Amorosi of the University of Bologna, and Darell Kaufman of Northern Arizona University.
Credits
Writer
Danielle Torrent
Media Contact
Paul Ramey, pramey@flmnh.ufl.edu
Source
Michal Kowalewski, mkowalewski@flmnh.ufl.edu
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
The New York Post is facing criticism over its decision to publish a front-page photo of a man, pushed onto the subway tracks in Midtown on Monday, trying to climb to safety before being fatally struck by an oncoming train.
Ki Suk Han, a 58-year-old from Queens, N.Y., was hurled from the 49th Street station platform onto the tracks by "a deranged man" around 12:30 p.m., according to the paper. Han was attempting to calm the man, apparently a panhandler, when a scuffle broke out, police say. The man then pushed him onto the tracks.
Witnesses told police the man had been harassing people on the platform.?"At least one witness felt that the aggressor was emotionally disturbed," NYPD spokesman Paul Browne told The New York Times.
"Onlookers screamed, shouted and frantically waved their hands and bags in a bid to get the downtown Q train to stop," the Post reported.
R. Umar Abbasi, a freelance photographer, was among those waiting on the platform. He said he tried to alert the train's conductor with his camera.?"I just started running, running, hoping that the driver could see my flash," Abbasi told the tabloid.
During the chaos, Abbasi managed to snap the photo that the Post splashed on its cover.
In a larger version of Abbasi's photo, people are seen huddled at one end of the platform in apparent fear.
"People were shouting and yelling when it happened," Dr. Laura Kaplan, another witness, said. "But then people ran the other way."
"DOOMED," the Post declared on its front page. "Pushed on the subway track, this man is about to die."
Abbasi did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment, nor did representatives for the paper. But plenty of Twitter users expressed outrage. "Sickening rubber-necking front page from the New York Post," Ian Prior wrote on Twitter. "Imagine how this man's family feels."
"I would drop dead if I saw a family member about to be run over by a train on the cover of a newspaper," Chris Spooner wrote. "@nypost trades in snuff."
"Shame on the NY Post," Haverly Elizabeth tweeted. "Though I am less then shocked they'd stoop so low."
"Wow," Daniel Joseph wrote. "The New York Post might be the most tasteless, disgusting, and despicable publication out right now. #Garbage #Classless."
"Horrifying," Katie Zezima wrote on Twitter. "Why did no one help?"
"It was a lot of confusion," Patrick Gomez, another witness, told amNewYork.com. "It was a lot of people getting scared."
Han was taken to St. Luke's Hospital where he was pronounced dead, according to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
The train's operator was treated for shock, the MTA said, declining to release his name.
The man who pushed Han fled the station, police and witnesses say. The NYPD described him as a black male in his mid-20s or early 30s, about 5-foot-9, 240 pounds with short dreadlocks. He was wearing a tan T-shirt, a dark jacket, jeans, black sneakers and a black beanie when he left.
The suspect is seen arguing with Han in the video, released by the NYPD, below.
Sometimes it just isn?t practical to travel with your dog. Perhaps your dog does not have the temperament to be a world traveler, or maybe you?re going someplace that does not allow dogs. ?Or maybe, like me, you are traveling?for work where bringing your dog might be frowned upon . In those cases, you need to weigh your options between boarding a hiring a pet sitter.
Boarding
When it comes to boarding your dog, you will find everything from a kennel at your veterinarian?s office to a five-star doggie resort. Which you choose depends on your dog and your budget.
Veterinarian or Small Kennel-?Dogs with significant health problems are prime candidates for boarding at a veterinarian?s office. They will receive the attention they require and owners will have peace of mind. For small fees you can arrange for special walks and playtime.
Doggie Resort -?If your pet is particularly social and you would like to spring for some special pampering, look for a pet resort in your area. Pet resorts can provide a wide variety of amenities. One advantage to pet resorts is that you can arrange for two or more of your pets to share sleeping facilities. ?But check out the resort to see what they really offer. ?I love my vet and his practice boasts a ?Pet Spa?. ?Well the spa is nothing more than a larger steel-bottomed crate and hardly a spa.
Tip: If you choose to board your pet, pack a few favorite toys and your pet?s regular brand of food.
Pet Sitters
Hiring a pet sitter could mean anything from hiring a professional pet sitting service to enlisting your dog-loving neighbor to care for your pooch, in your home.
If your pet has serious health problems and you are nearing some end of life decisions for it, please think twice before hiring a pet sitter. That is a terrible burden to place on a sitter. If you choose to hire a pet sitter anyway, contact your veterinarian?s office to discuss your wishes and to notify them that you will be leaving your pet. ?Be sure to leave a medical release form and your veterinarian?s contact information for your pet sitter.
I am incredibly lucky. ?My dog sitter is a vet tech and has been sitting for my pups for years. ?When my old girl Molly was nearing end of life I had a stinking work trip that I thought I had to go on. ?No sooner did I get there than I realized my only true place was at home. ?But it would still take me a day or so to get home (snow delays). ?I was so fortunate to have my sitter who had her boyfriend come to my house and hand feed my Molly and just sit with her while my sitter was at work.
Ideally, you will select a pet sitter your dog already knows. If you are going through a service, arrange for a meeting between your dog and the sitter before you leave on your trip.
Some sitters will just visit during the day to feed your dog and let them out for bio breaks. ?Others, like mine, will sleep over with your pup. ?If that is the case, be prepared to leave them food and anything else they might need to know to keep them comfiortable like where the heat and air conditioning controls are as well as the TV remotes
Write out detailed instructions for your pet sitter. Even if you go over everything verbally, it?s good to leave notes to which your sitter can refer. Include your dog?s normal feeding, exercise and bathroom schedule. If they are taking any medications make sure you leave those instructions too including how to administer the meds. ?My dogs are Labrador Retrievers who will eat virtually anything but some dogs are more challenging when it comes to taking medications and may need a pill pocket or cream cheese to swallow a pill.
Tell the sitter about your dog?s quirks. If your dog is likely to try to escape for a swim in the neighbor?s pool, be sure your sitter knows that! My old dog Cooper would hide out in the bathtub if he got nervous. ?My Sophy hangs out in the laundry room. But my favorite quick was dear old Molly. ?No matter what door you let her out of, she would come in another. ?Since my house had about 5 doors in and out, the sitter would never know where to find Molly.
If you expect a pet sitter to collect your mail, water plants, take out the garbage and turn some lights on and off, include that information.
Finally, be sure to include your contact information and travel schedule. Also, don?t forget to take your pet sitter?s contact information with you. Flights can be cancelled and travel plans can change. You will, of course, want your dog cared for in any event!
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel rejected concerted criticism from the United States and Europe on Monday over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's decision to expand settlement building after the United Nations' de facto recognition of Palestinian statehood.
Washington urged Israel to reconsider its plan to erect 3,000 more homes in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, saying the move hindered peace efforts with the Palestinians.
Britain, France, Spain, Sweden and Denmark summoned the Israeli ambassadors in their capitals to give similar messages.
An official in Netanyahu's office said Israel would not bend. "Israel will continue to stand by its vital interests, even in the face of international pressure, and there will be no change in the decision that was made," the official said.
Angered by the U.N. General Assembly's upgrading on Thursday of the Palestinians' status in the world body from "observer entity" to "non-member state", Israel said the next day it would build the new dwellings for settlers.
Such projects, on land Israel captured in a 1967 war, are considered illegal by most world powers and have routinely drawn condemnation from them. Approximately 500,000 Israelis and 2.5 million Palestinians live in the two areas.
In a shift that raised the alarm among Palestinians and in world capitals, Netanyahu's pro-settler government also ordered "preliminary zoning and planning work" for thousands of housing units in areas including the "E1" zone east of Jerusalem.
Such construction in the barren hills of E1 has never been put into motion in the face of opposition from Israel's main ally, the United States. Building in the area could bisect the West Bank, cut off Palestinians from Jerusalem and further dim their hopes for a contiguous state.
Israeli television stations reported Jerusalem's district planning commission would soon approve plans for several thousand more housing units, including more than 1,000 Israel had shelved two years ago after angering Washington by publishing the plans before a visit by Vice President Joe Biden.
The settlement plan, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said, would deal "an almost fatal blow" to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
French President Francois Hollande said he was "extremely concerned" and Washington made clear it would not back such Israeli retaliation over the U.N. vote, sought by Palestinians after peace talks collapsed in 2010 over settlement building.
"We urge Israeli leaders to reconsider these unilateral decisions and exercise restraint as these actions are counterproductive and make it harder to resume direct negotiations to achieve a two state solution," White House spokesman Jay Carney told a briefing.
Ahead of a Netanyahu visit this week, Germany, considered Israel's closest ally in Europe, urged it to refrain from expanding settlements, and Russia said it viewed the Israeli moves with serious concern.
RETALIATION
Israeli Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz said Israel could not have remained indifferent to the Palestinians' unilateral move at the United Nations.
"I want to tell you that those same Europeans and Americans who are now telling us 'naughty, naughty' over our response, understand full-well that we have to respond, and they themselves warned the Palestinian Authority," he said.
Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat said building in E1 "destroys the two-state solution, (establishing) East Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine and practically ends the peace process and any opportunity to talk about negotiations in the future".
The United States, one of the eight countries to vote alongside Israel against the Palestinian resolution at the General Assembly, has said both were counterproductive to the resumption of direct peace talks.
In Europe, only the Czech Republic voted against the status upgrade while many countries, including France, backed it. Netanyahu plans to visit Prague this week to express his thanks.
In the Gaza Strip, Sami Abu Zuhri, spokesman for the governing Hamas Islamist movement, called the settlements "an insult to the international community, which should bear responsibility for Israeli violations and attacks on Palestinians".
Israeli police arrested three Jewish settlers on Monday whom they suspect of arson and other crimes against Palestinian property in the West Bank, including the torching of a car.
Attackers have often proclaimed they are exacting a "price tag" for steps taken against the settler movement by Palestinians, or by the Israeli government.
Alongside the settlement plans, Israel announced it would withhold about $100 million in Palestinian tax revenues from the Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited self-rule in the West Bank, saying Palestinians owed $200 million to Israeli firms.
"These are not steps towards peace, these are steps towards the extension of the conflict," Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo said.
Only three weeks ago, Netanyahu won strong European and U.S. support for a Gaza offensive that Israel said was aimed at curbing persistent cross-border rocket fire.
Favored by opinion polls to win a January 22 national election, he brushed off the condemnation and complaints at home that he is deepening Israel's diplomatic isolation.
Netanyahu told his cabinet on Sunday that his government "will carry on building in Jerusalem and in all the places on the map of Israel's strategic interests".
But while his housing minister has said the government would soon invite bids from contractors to build 1,000 homes for Israelis in East Jerusalem and more than 1,000 in West Bank settlement blocs, the E1 plan is still in its planning stages.
"No one will build until it is clear what will be done there," the minister, Ariel Attias, said on Sunday.
Israel froze much of its activities in E1 under pressure from former U.S. President George W. Bush, and the area has been under the scrutiny of his successor, Barack Obama.
Israel cites historical and Biblical links to the West Bank and Jerusalem and regards all of the holy city as its capital, a claim that is not recognized internationally.
(Additional reporting by Crispian Balmer, Dan Williams, Nidal al-Mughrabi in Gaza, Jihan Abdalla in Ramallah, Steve Gutterman in Moscow, Gareth Jones in Berlin, John Irish and Elizabeth Pineau in Paris and Tim Castle in London; writing by Jeffrey Heller; editing by Philippa Fletcher)
The letters and numbers you entered did not match the image. Please try again.
As a final step before posting your comment, enter the letters and numbers you see in the image below. This prevents automated programs from posting comments.
Having trouble reading this image? View an alternate.
Blackwell Insurance | Boat & Watercraft Insurance | CA
?
?
Boat and Watercraft Insurance Taking your boat out for a day on the water with your family and friends is a favorite activity. You?ve got the snacks, the lemonade, the sunscreen, your shades, even the life preservers?but do you have the insurance to protect you in the event of unexpected loss and damage to your marine dream? The specialists at Blackwell Insurance Agency can help. We select among many of the best insurance companies to find the right Boat insurance policy to protect you from the high medical expenses, boat repairs, and lawsuits that can arise from an unforeseen event. Contact us today to construct a policy that works best for you! www.blackwellins.com (866) 574-5301
12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ ? Fidelis Group Holdings LLC (FGH) through its subsidiary company Continental Underwriters, Ltd., a leader in providing Marine Insurance coverages and services, announced today details of their new $ 25,000,000 Excess Marine ? Source
![[ Back to EurekAlert! ]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_sijjFkD32PeS6HcIEys_iR8j1iMPKshbgMlrnPKN0I0lOLsTPUMwbKUDulyAraRu2zU9jQV1FLXsjpG6s2LVasSk3_xjcp73a0jPn-PGs=s0-d){kind=small}
Public release date: 5-Dec-2012
Share ] 
