The West Antarctic ice sheet may start to collapse if sea temperatures rise by 5 degrees Celsius (9 degrees Fahrenheit), triggering a thaw that would raise world ocean levels by 5 meters (16 ft), US scientists said.
Such a rise in sea levels -- taking thousands of years -- would swamp many coasts and cities and wipe some low-lying Pacific islands off the map.
West Antarctica, the part of the frozen continent most vulnerable to climate change, has thawed several times in the past few million years, most recently 400,000 years ago, according to Thursday's edition of the journal Nature.
The study "suggests the Western Antarctic ice sheet will begin to collapse when nearby ocean temperatures warm by roughly 5 C," David Pollard of Pennsylvania State University and Robert DeConto of the University of Massachusetts wrote.
The study helps plug big gaps in understanding Antarctica's likely reaction to modern global warming by improving knowledge of the history of the ice.
Pollard told Reuters the 5 C estimate for triggering a collapse was a rough guide, based on an computer model. The bigger East Antarctic ice sheet had not thawed in past warm periods studied.
The UN Climate Panel has projected a best estimate that world atmospheric temperature will rise by between 1.8 and 4.0 Celsius by 2100 because of emissions of greenhouse gases that could bring floods, droughts, heatwaves and more powerful storms.
Higher rises were possible unless the world reined in the growth of emissions, it said. Oceans temperatures lag far behind the rise in air temperatures.
"The required ocean warmings, of the order of 5 Celsius, may well take several centuries to develop," wrote Philippe Huybrechts of Vrije University in Brussels in a commentary.
"But such an outcome could result from the accumulation of total greenhouse-gas emissions projected for the twenty-first century, if emissions are not greatly reduced," he wrote.
A related paper in Nature suggested that past collapses of the West Antarctic ice were linked to the earth's rotation.
"The pattern of collapse suggests an influence of 40,000-year cycles in the tilt of Earth's rotational axis," Nature said of the study led by scientists in New Zealand.
2009年3月18日星期三
2009年3月5日星期四
Learn Chinese: Wishing to Learn Chinese
The Chinese language is illusive to English speaking world, almost seems to be a complex mystery intimidating to unravel and to understand. If you wish to learn Chinese, then approach it delicately and thoroughly as a bridge to not only communication with this beautiful culture, but learn Chinese to harvest the history and ways of their world as well.
If you are soon to visit China, then you probably would want to know at least minimal amount of the language to be able to communicate your needs while in their country. This would require a little more in depth teachings, because speaking Chinese is a lot more difficult than the English language. The phonetics, and tonal components require a little practice.
For those wishing to learn Chinese worldwide has tripled in the last decade, making it an increasingly popular language to learn. With that, a standard form of Chinese instruction used these days is called "Hanyu Pinyin", or simply, Standard Mandarin. It is a universal form of teaching used worldwide to help people learn Chinese. Without it, learning this language might seem to difficult to commit to.
The Chinese language is undoubtedly a intricate and diverse language to comprehend, with characters, phonics, tones, meanings and speaking so different from the language native to each of us. However, with the proper teaching tools and discipline, learning Chinese can be a eloquent and beneficial goal. Today's world demands multi cultural merging in communications, especially with business and now, internet as well.
Your value doubles if you have successfully picked up a second language, more career doors open as a result. And with the world becoming so much smaller in business and communications, thanks to the internet, learning Chinese as your second language may be exactly to your advantage.
What to learn in the Chinese language is all up to you. If you are just seeking soul meaning for your next tattoo, then exploration into Chinese characters is where to begin. If amusement is your calling, there is a fun online site called mandarin tools which takes your name and applies the mandarin form of your name, meaning included. Seeing your name have such a deep essence is push enough to want to continue learning even more of the Chinese language.
If you wish the more private, unscheduled form of learning, then optimally the online courses are designed for you. This articulate language is easier understood by listening to someone who is native to the Chinese language. By hearing the phonetics and tone involved, may make learning Chinese easier. Tutors and private instructors can be hired to teach you proper speaking of Chinese. Also available are online courses which include lessons that let you hear how words are put together or spoken, so you are able to learning Chinese online. The most difficult part to master when you learn Chinese language is all the characters, but the grammar aspect will be a cinch for most as it is not nearly as complex as is the grammar used in English language.
The Chinese language is without a doubt a striking art form as well as it is a language and we are hungry to understand what it all means when we look at the characters written on a page or on art hanging on a wall next to us. Our curious nature draws us that much closer to discovery of the Chinese culture and deepens our appreciation for it when we finally choose to teach ourselves more and more about it. To learn Chinese is another journey began.
If you are soon to visit China, then you probably would want to know at least minimal amount of the language to be able to communicate your needs while in their country. This would require a little more in depth teachings, because speaking Chinese is a lot more difficult than the English language. The phonetics, and tonal components require a little practice.
For those wishing to learn Chinese worldwide has tripled in the last decade, making it an increasingly popular language to learn. With that, a standard form of Chinese instruction used these days is called "Hanyu Pinyin", or simply, Standard Mandarin. It is a universal form of teaching used worldwide to help people learn Chinese. Without it, learning this language might seem to difficult to commit to.
The Chinese language is undoubtedly a intricate and diverse language to comprehend, with characters, phonics, tones, meanings and speaking so different from the language native to each of us. However, with the proper teaching tools and discipline, learning Chinese can be a eloquent and beneficial goal. Today's world demands multi cultural merging in communications, especially with business and now, internet as well.
Your value doubles if you have successfully picked up a second language, more career doors open as a result. And with the world becoming so much smaller in business and communications, thanks to the internet, learning Chinese as your second language may be exactly to your advantage.
What to learn in the Chinese language is all up to you. If you are just seeking soul meaning for your next tattoo, then exploration into Chinese characters is where to begin. If amusement is your calling, there is a fun online site called mandarin tools which takes your name and applies the mandarin form of your name, meaning included. Seeing your name have such a deep essence is push enough to want to continue learning even more of the Chinese language.
If you wish the more private, unscheduled form of learning, then optimally the online courses are designed for you. This articulate language is easier understood by listening to someone who is native to the Chinese language. By hearing the phonetics and tone involved, may make learning Chinese easier. Tutors and private instructors can be hired to teach you proper speaking of Chinese. Also available are online courses which include lessons that let you hear how words are put together or spoken, so you are able to learning Chinese online. The most difficult part to master when you learn Chinese language is all the characters, but the grammar aspect will be a cinch for most as it is not nearly as complex as is the grammar used in English language.
The Chinese language is without a doubt a striking art form as well as it is a language and we are hungry to understand what it all means when we look at the characters written on a page or on art hanging on a wall next to us. Our curious nature draws us that much closer to discovery of the Chinese culture and deepens our appreciation for it when we finally choose to teach ourselves more and more about it. To learn Chinese is another journey began.
2009年3月4日星期三
SEO for CEOs - Search Engine Optimization Unmasked for CEOs
If you're like most other CEOs, the term "search engine optimization" will mean very little. Either that or it means expense! But it doesn't have to be that way. If you feel like you're standing in a dark room handing money to strangers to get you in the search engines, then this article is for you.
This is an article written by a business owner for other business owners and CEOs. It explains Search Engine Optimization (or SEO) in layperson's terms. It won't make you an expert, but it will give you some insight into what you're spending your money on, what you should be spending your money on, and just as importantly, what you shouldn't.
But before launching straight into an explanation of SEO, let's talk a bit about search engines. Approximately 75%-80% of website traffic comes through search engines. What's more, research shows that most people don't look beyond the first 2 pages of search results. This means if your website doesn't rank in the first 2 pages of the major search engines, it's only receiving 20% of its rightful traffic. and revenue. (And remember, being ranked number 1 when you search for your company name or web address doesn't count. You need to rank highly for the words your customers use at search engines.)
The biggest concern for search engine companies like Google, Yahoo, etc., is finding content that will bring them more traffic (and thus more advertising revenue). They do this by using complex algorithms to determine whether a site is useful and should be included in their search results.
This is where SEO comes in.
SEO is the art of ranking in the search engines. Nothing more, nothing less.
SEO means creating your site such that the search engines consider it useful. The two main weapons in your arsenal are:
. Keywords
. Links to your site
KEYWORDS
Figure out what words your customers are looking for at search engines, and use those words at your site. By frequently using keywords that are important to your customers, you tell the search engines what you do. These keywords are used in your copy and in the code behind the page. Generally speaking, the more you use the keywords, the more relevant you are to searches in that field.
Keywords in Your Copy
The use of keywords in your copy is easy to understand. But it's not easy to do. You can't just pepper your site with a meaningless array of words. The trick is using the most important keywords a lot without compromising the readability of your copy. It's a balance between writing for the search engines and writing for your reader.
TIP: If you find this too time consuming, a website copywriter can take care of it for you. And if you know your keywords already, it should cost you no more than normal web copy.
Keywords in Your HTML Code
The use of keywords in your HTML code is harder to understand, but it's easier to do. There are four main places these keywords are used:
. Keywords
. Description
. Alt
. Title
TIP: When you hear people talking about meta tags, this is what they're talking about. To see how meta tags are used in practice, go to Google and pretend you're a customer. Search for something your customers would search for. e.g. If you're in car audio, search for "car audio". Click on the first couple of results to bring up their website. Right-click on the home page, and select "View Source". You'll see a whole lot of code. You can ignore most of it. What you're looking for are the following.
Meta name="KEYWORDS" CONTENT="keyword 1,keyword 2,keyword 3"
Meta name="DESCRIPTION" CONTENT="Meaningful description of page using the main keywords"
This is an article written by a business owner for other business owners and CEOs. It explains Search Engine Optimization (or SEO) in layperson's terms. It won't make you an expert, but it will give you some insight into what you're spending your money on, what you should be spending your money on, and just as importantly, what you shouldn't.
But before launching straight into an explanation of SEO, let's talk a bit about search engines. Approximately 75%-80% of website traffic comes through search engines. What's more, research shows that most people don't look beyond the first 2 pages of search results. This means if your website doesn't rank in the first 2 pages of the major search engines, it's only receiving 20% of its rightful traffic. and revenue. (And remember, being ranked number 1 when you search for your company name or web address doesn't count. You need to rank highly for the words your customers use at search engines.)
The biggest concern for search engine companies like Google, Yahoo, etc., is finding content that will bring them more traffic (and thus more advertising revenue). They do this by using complex algorithms to determine whether a site is useful and should be included in their search results.
This is where SEO comes in.
SEO is the art of ranking in the search engines. Nothing more, nothing less.
SEO means creating your site such that the search engines consider it useful. The two main weapons in your arsenal are:
. Keywords
. Links to your site
KEYWORDS
Figure out what words your customers are looking for at search engines, and use those words at your site. By frequently using keywords that are important to your customers, you tell the search engines what you do. These keywords are used in your copy and in the code behind the page. Generally speaking, the more you use the keywords, the more relevant you are to searches in that field.
Keywords in Your Copy
The use of keywords in your copy is easy to understand. But it's not easy to do. You can't just pepper your site with a meaningless array of words. The trick is using the most important keywords a lot without compromising the readability of your copy. It's a balance between writing for the search engines and writing for your reader.
TIP: If you find this too time consuming, a website copywriter can take care of it for you. And if you know your keywords already, it should cost you no more than normal web copy.
Keywords in Your HTML Code
The use of keywords in your HTML code is harder to understand, but it's easier to do. There are four main places these keywords are used:
. Keywords
. Description
. Alt
. Title
TIP: When you hear people talking about meta tags, this is what they're talking about. To see how meta tags are used in practice, go to Google and pretend you're a customer. Search for something your customers would search for. e.g. If you're in car audio, search for "car audio". Click on the first couple of results to bring up their website. Right-click on the home page, and select "View Source". You'll see a whole lot of code. You can ignore most of it. What you're looking for are the following.
Meta name="KEYWORDS" CONTENT="keyword 1,keyword 2,keyword 3"
Meta name="DESCRIPTION" CONTENT="Meaningful description of page using the main keywords"
US private sector cuts 697,000 jobs in Feb
US private sector job losses accelerated in February, according to a report by ADP Employer Services that suggests hefty employment declines are on the way in the government's payrolls report due on Friday.
ADP said on Wednesday that private employers cut 697,000 jobs in February versus a revised 614,000 jobs lost in January. The January job cuts were originally reported at 522,000.
People search for jobs on computers at the California Employment Development Department in San Francisco, California, February 27, 2009. [Agencies]
It was the biggest job loss since the report's launch in 2001 and showed the misery of declining employment spreading broadly and evenly throughout the economy.
The service sector, which often resists the grip of recession longer than other areas, accounted for more than half of the total losses, reflecting the rapid deterioration of the economy in recent months.
"None really escaped the sword here," Joel Prakken, chairman of Macroeconomic Advisers, whose firm jointly developed the ADP report, said about the service sector.
Economists had expected 610,000 private-sector job cuts in February, according to the median of 23 forecasts in a Reuters poll.
The forecasts in the poll ranged widely from a drop of 730,000 to losses of 500,000.
Still, on Wall Street, stock futures held onto earlier gains. Government bonds, which generally benefit from weak economic data, extended their losses.
"I was actually expecting it to be a little worse. Every month we've had data come in worse than expected," said Dan Faretta, senior market strategist at Lind-Waldock in Chicago.
"Until we get positive news about housing or industry or anything like that, the numbers will continue to get worse. The numbers keep weighing on all the markets."
Economists expect Friday's payrolls report, which gives a more comprehensive picture of the labor market, to show the economy shed 648,000 jobs in February and the unemployment rate rose to 7.9 percent from 7.6 percent.
The US jobless rate is likely to push well above 8 percent by mid-2010 and may even top 9 percent, Prakken said.
Prakken added that the unemployment rate would top 10 percent without the government's economic stimulus plan.
Prakken also told a teleconference of journalists that he expected the US economy to lose 3 million jobs this year even with the stimulus plan in place. He said he expected the economy's contraction in the first quarter to be similar to the drop in gross domestic product seen in the fourth quarter, when the economy shrank at its fastest annual rate since 1982.
ADP said on Wednesday that private employers cut 697,000 jobs in February versus a revised 614,000 jobs lost in January. The January job cuts were originally reported at 522,000.
People search for jobs on computers at the California Employment Development Department in San Francisco, California, February 27, 2009. [Agencies]
It was the biggest job loss since the report's launch in 2001 and showed the misery of declining employment spreading broadly and evenly throughout the economy.
The service sector, which often resists the grip of recession longer than other areas, accounted for more than half of the total losses, reflecting the rapid deterioration of the economy in recent months.
"None really escaped the sword here," Joel Prakken, chairman of Macroeconomic Advisers, whose firm jointly developed the ADP report, said about the service sector.
Economists had expected 610,000 private-sector job cuts in February, according to the median of 23 forecasts in a Reuters poll.
The forecasts in the poll ranged widely from a drop of 730,000 to losses of 500,000.
Still, on Wall Street, stock futures held onto earlier gains. Government bonds, which generally benefit from weak economic data, extended their losses.
"I was actually expecting it to be a little worse. Every month we've had data come in worse than expected," said Dan Faretta, senior market strategist at Lind-Waldock in Chicago.
"Until we get positive news about housing or industry or anything like that, the numbers will continue to get worse. The numbers keep weighing on all the markets."
Economists expect Friday's payrolls report, which gives a more comprehensive picture of the labor market, to show the economy shed 648,000 jobs in February and the unemployment rate rose to 7.9 percent from 7.6 percent.
The US jobless rate is likely to push well above 8 percent by mid-2010 and may even top 9 percent, Prakken said.
Prakken added that the unemployment rate would top 10 percent without the government's economic stimulus plan.
Prakken also told a teleconference of journalists that he expected the US economy to lose 3 million jobs this year even with the stimulus plan in place. He said he expected the economy's contraction in the first quarter to be similar to the drop in gross domestic product seen in the fourth quarter, when the economy shrank at its fastest annual rate since 1982.
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