White House Launches Climate Change Communication Tool that Treats Citizens Like Adults

Screenshot of an interactive map accessible from data.gov/climate showing expected inundation of areas of New York City based on different projections of sea level. (Source: NOAA and data.gov/climate)

A day after a major scientific organization released an embarrassingly ineffective report aimed at communicating the realities of climate change, the White House has launched something entirely different — and better.

For now, it is a web portal that serves as a kind of clearinghouse for all manner of information on how sea level rise is remaking our coasts and posing risks to those who live and work along them.

The screenshot above shows one of the interactive tools available on the site, data.gov/climate. In stunning graphic detail, it shows areas in the New York metro area that would become inundated in the future based on different projections of sea level rise. It’s one of just dozens of such tools available right now on the site.

And according to the White House, it is just the start of a major effort at climate change communication. The effort is designed to enable citizens to see how climate change is affecting them where they live and work, and what they might expect in the future, through interactive, graphics-based digital tools.

Yesterday’s report by the American Association for the Advancement of Science was, at its heart, a “We’re scientists, so listen to what we say” effort. In contrast, the initiative launched by the White House today treats people like grownups and gives them powerful tools to learn for themselves what’s happening. And unlike the AAAS report, its ultimate goal is to take full advantage of the power of digital technology — and visual communication — to empower people to plan for a future of climate change.

I’ve only had time to scratch the surface of the new web site. But so far, I’m impressed. And I know that it will be helpful in my future reporting on climate change.

To offer just one example, the web site offers access to an online, interactive tool from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that allows users to select a county and get a quick snapshot of its demographics, infrastructure and environment within flood zones. The results include a floodplain map, and graphics showing the overall population in floodplains, as well as the population over 65 years of age and in poverty that live in these areas, along with a plethora of other useful statistics and information.

I’ll be poking around the new site in coming days, and I may come back with an update on what I find.

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BMW launches fuel-efficient, 'still cheeky', new Mini

By Rhys Jones

OXFORD Mon Nov 18, 2013 10:54am EST

1 of 5. Members of the media and guests view the new Mini at BMW's plant in Oxford, southern England November 18, 2013.

Credit: Reuters/Suzanne Plunkett

OXFORD (Reuters) - BMW (BMWG.DE) unveiled a more fuel efficient, third-generation version of its iconic Mini on Monday, as the world's biggest luxury carmaker looks to retain its leadership in the lucrative high-end compact car market.

The launch of the three-door hatchback took place at the Mini's production plant in Cowley, Oxford, on the 107th anniversary of the birth of the Mini's founding father Alex Issigonis. Prices will start at about 13,500 pounds ($21,700).

"It's a brand new car under the skin and it retains that go-kart feel to drive," said BMW board member Peter Schwarzenbauer, who was driven on to stage to the music of British band Blur in a Mini adorned with the Union Jack flag.

Describing the new Mini as "original and still cheeky," he said it would appeal to "young people with their finger on the pulse" and older Mini fans. The previous Mini generation was launched in 2007.

Production of the new Mini will start later this week and it will go on sale in Britain early next year. It will be based on a brand new BMW-engineered platform called UKL1.

The small, fast and affordable original Mini was hugely popular when it first went on sale in 1959 and has been a big success story for BMW since it revived the brand in 2001, growing sales volumes by 21 percent to more than 285,000 cars last year.

It has also seen an influx of competitors into the high-end compact car sector in recent years such as Fiat's (FIA.MI) 500 and Opel's (GM.N) Adam, which are courting environmentally-conscious city dwellers in want of easy-to-park vehicles.

FURTHER INVESTMENT

The new range, which will be displayed later this week at the Los Angeles and Tokyo motor shows, will continue to include a basic MINI One, mid-range MINI Cooper and MINI Cooper D diesel, as well as a top-spec MINI Cooper S version. They are taller, longer and wider than the previous generation.

The car features a new grille, LEDs on the front lights, a steeper windscreen and a lower rear bumper. It will come with a choice of three new 3 or 4 cylinder engines with fuel consumption reduced by about 27 percent, Schwarzenbauer said.

The new MINI One will be the entry-level model and prices should start at around 13,500 pounds, with the MINI Cooper, which comes with more equipment and a more powerful engine as standard, coming in at around 15,000 pounds, a source close to BMW said.

There will also be a 16,000 pound diesel version of the Cooper, called the MINI Cooper D, which will be the most economical model in the range. The MINI Cooper S, costing 18,500 pounds, will be the fastest and most powerful model.

The MINI Cooper and Cooper D will be around 400 pounds more expensive than current models, the source said.

BMW also said it would invest 750 million pounds at its three British plants in the coming years, with 500 million of that being pumped into the plant in Oxford, where a new body assembly arena has been built featuring 1,000 robots, more than double the amount used on previous versions.

It said the investment would support its international growth plans for the Mini, which will expand its current line-up of seven models to include up to 10 different body styles in the medium term.

"Mini is in good hands with BMW," British transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin said.

"The success of the Mini proves Britain's manufacturing sector is good enough to compete and win on the global stage."

($1 = 0.6215 British pounds)

(Writing by Brenda Goh; Editing by Mark Potter)

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Confessions of a reference librarian: IAmRUSA launches interview series

For Immediate Release
Tue, 10/29/2013

CHICAGO — On October 28, the Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) debuted its first week-long interview session as a part of its IAmRUSA series. Each week IAmRUSA will feature a different interviewee for participants to ask questions about their professional careers, their passions and anything else involving librarianship. Hosted by ALA Connect, anyone interested may join the IAmRUSA community; participants do not need to be RUSA members. 

If you are interested in participating as an interviewee, contact Kirk MacLeod at kgmcleod@ualberta.ca or Sarah Hammill at hammills@fiu.edu for more information.

The Reference and User Services Association, a division of the American Library Association, represents librarians and library staff in the fields of reference, specialized reference, collection development, readers’ advisory and resource sharing. RUSA is the foremost organization of reference and information professionals who make the connections between people and the information sources, services, and collection materials they need. Learn more about the association at www.ala.org/rusa.

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Russia launches rocket after fiery crash in July

MOSCOW | Mon Sep 30, 2013 3:51am EDT

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia successfully launched an unmanned Proton-M booster rocket on Monday, the first since the same type of rocket crashed in flames shortly after lift-off in July, the space agency said.

Carrying a communications satellite for Luxembourg-based SES, the rocket blasted off from the Russian-leased Baikonur facility in Kazakhstan at 3:38 a.m. (2138 GMT on Sunday), Roskosmos said.

The satellite reached orbit about nine hours later, state-run spacecraft maker Khrunichev, which built the Proton-M, said on its website.

The heavy-lift Proton-M is a workhorse of Russia's space program and the fiery crash on July 2 was one of several setbacks in recent years.

Officials have said velocity sensors that had been installed wrongly caused the crash, which generated tension between Russia and Kazakhstan because it spilled toxic rocket fuel.

The launch on Monday was conducted by International Launch Services, a U.S.-based subsidiary of Khrunichev.

(Writing by Steve Gutterman; Editing by Angus MacSwan)

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Russia launches rocket after fiery crash in July

MOSCOW | Mon Sep 30, 2013 3:51am EDT

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia successfully launched an unmanned Proton-M booster rocket on Monday, the first since the same type of rocket crashed in flames shortly after lift-off in July, the space agency said.

Carrying a communications satellite for Luxembourg-based SES, the rocket blasted off from the Russian-leased Baikonur facility in Kazakhstan at 3:38 a.m. (2138 GMT on Sunday), Roskosmos said.

The satellite reached orbit about nine hours later, state-run spacecraft maker Khrunichev, which built the Proton-M, said on its website.

The heavy-lift Proton-M is a workhorse of Russia's space program and the fiery crash on July 2 was one of several setbacks in recent years.

Officials have said velocity sensors that had been installed wrongly caused the crash, which generated tension between Russia and Kazakhstan because it spilled toxic rocket fuel.

The launch on Monday was conducted by International Launch Services, a U.S.-based subsidiary of Khrunichev.

(Writing by Steve Gutterman; Editing by Angus MacSwan)

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Pentagon, NASA to spend $44 billion on space launches through 2018: GAO

Tourists take pictures of a NASA sign at the Kennedy Space Center visitors complex in Cape Canaveral, Florida April 14, 2010.

Credit: Reuters/Carlos Barria

WASHINGTON | Mon Sep 9, 2013 7:42pm EDT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Defense Department and NASA expect to spend about $44 billion to launch government satellites and other spacecraft over the next five years, including $28 billion in procurement funding, the Government Accountability Office said on Monday.

The GAO, a congressional watchdog agency, said it was difficult to determine exact funding plans because both agencies used different accounting methods, but it arrived at the combined total by analyzing Pentagon and NASA budget documents, and looking at funding from other government agencies.

GAO said the projected funding data was an initial step toward answering a larger request from lawmakers who question the steep cost of space launches, and why efforts to inject more competition have not gotten more traction.

"Defense and civilian government agencies together expect to require significant funding, nearly $44 billion, in 'then-year' dollars that factor in anticipated future inflation, for launch-related activities from fiscal years 2014 through 2018," the agency said in a letter to the investigations subcommittee of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

Senator Carl Levin, a Michigan Democrat who chairs the investigations subcommittee, and John McCain, the top Republican on the panel, had asked GAO to investigate space launch funding to get a better handle on the overall government effort.

GAO said it would continue to look into the larger question surrounding "impediments to economical procurement of government launch vehicles and launch services."

The Pentagon and NASA have sought in recent years to introduce more competition to the space launch business, which is largely dominated by United Launch Alliance, a joint venture of Lockheed Martin Corp and Boeing Co, the Pentagon's two largest suppliers.

Orbital Sciences Corp and privately held Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, are trying to break into the market for launching large government satellites into space.

In a letter to the Levin and McCain, GAO said it hoped the aggregated data would help "inform plans to lower launch costs, increase competition, and invest in new programs."

GAO said planned procurement funding of $28 billion accounted for about 65 percent of the total amount through fiscal 2018, with the Pentagon accounting for about $16 billion of that amount.

Combined research, development and testing activities accounted for about $11 billion, or 26 percent, according to the GAO letter. NASA accounts for the lion's share of that projected funding, or $10.5 billion, including about $7 billion on its work on a launch vehicle and the ground systems needed to support human exploration of deep space.

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal-Esa; Editing by Ken Wills)

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NASA launches satellite to study how sun's atmosphere is energized

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