Neutrino project approved at Bodi West Hills in Theni

After denying permission to the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) to locate the India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO) at Singara in Nilgiris district in Tamil Nadu ( The Hindu, November 11, 2009), the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) on Monday accorded both environmental and forest clearance for locating the project in the Bodi West Hills (BWH) in Theni district, also in Tamil Nadu.

The INO will be a major underground experimental facility to study the elusive and nearly mass-less fundamental particles of nature called neutrinos,

“The approval,” said a Ministry press release, “is subject to the conditions that there will be no cutting of trees and damage to the forest cover; that measures will be taken to minimise the effect of tunnelling and disposal of rock debris and that the environmental management plan prepared by the Coimbatore-based Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History (SACON) will be fully implemented.”

The site is situated in a reserved forest (RF) area.

The Singara site which, according to scientists, is the best spot to locate the INO, was rejected by the MoEF on the grounds that it was not cleared by the Tamil Nadu Forest Department (TNFD). It was stated to fall in the buffer zone of the Mudhumalai Tiger Reserve. The site being close to the elephant corridor between the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats was also a consideration.

It should, however, be pointed out that the declaration of the region as a tiger reserve was made only in 2008, two years after the DAE applied to the TNFD for clearance. While rejecting it, the Ministry suggested that the project be moved to a site near the Suruliyar falls in Theni district.

Though scientists had considered Suruliyar and Thevaram, they finally chose a huge sheet of monolithic rock hill near Pudukkottai village in Pottipuram Panchayat for the project. While Suruliyar is to the east of the Cumbum Valley, BWH lies west of the valley, very close to the Tamil Nadu-Kerala border.

The actual site is two km from Pudukkottai, 14 km from Bodi and 110 km from Madurai. A serious shortcoming of the site, however, is lack of water and electricity. Power has to be sourced from Rasingapuram, which is 10 km away. A feasibility study for sourcing water through pipelines is being processed by the Tamil Nadu Water and Drainage Board (TWADB).

Two-km tunnel

The proposed massive neutrino detector will be built in a cavern set in massive charnockite rock (group of igneous rocks found in South India with those in Tamil Nadu known to be the hardest). The cavern will be excavated by drilling a tunnel of 1.9-2 km in length under the peak designated as 1589 so that there is vertical overburden of about 1,300 m. For a good neutrino detection facility, a vertical cover of at least 1,000 m is required so that the observed neutrino events are not contaminated by unwanted particles that will be absorbed by the overburden.

The forest types in the area vary from scrub jungles to montane grass land. While the underground facility may go under forest land in one spot, there will be no over ground occupation of forest land, according to scientists. The portal for the site will, in fact, be located outside the RF boundary in revenue land along with other surface facilities.

The application for TNFD clearance was submitted in January 2010 and the TNFD gave its approval early this month. A Rapid Environment Impact Assessment (REIA) is over. The draft report of the detailed EIA was presented to the Ministry on Monday before the final clearance.

Since the project was sanctioned under the XI Plan, scientists hope to start the construction of the facility by 2011. The total cost is now pegged at about Rs. 1200 crore, which will include, besides the Rs. 950 crore for the facility itself, the costs for laying roads, electrical and water lines and other infrastructure. The Detailed Project Report is also nearly ready, according to the spokesman for the project, Noba K. Mondal of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR).

The INO includes nearly 90 scientists from 25 institutions, with the TIFR as the nodal institution. Scientists now await a formal letter from the MoEF to the DAE, which will be presented to the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) for its formal and then the Cabinet for its clearance. Since this is a project already approved under the Plan there should be no problem in securing these.

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Power Transmission | Bearing maintenance tools enhance sustainability with rotating equipment — Reliability goes green for rotating equipment: Four innovations can help you meet sustainability goals | Plant Services

Power Transmission | Bearing maintenance tools enhance sustainability with rotating equipment — Reliability goes green for rotating equipment: Four innovations can help you meet sustainability goals | Plant Services

ESA Portal - Water mission reveals insight into Amazon plume

ESA Portal - Water mission reveals insight into Amazon plume

SUMMARY FOR REVIEW OF CANON 500D & NIKON D5000 DSLR / HD VIDEO CAMERAS

CANON 500D:

1. Full HD up to 720p Video Capture with resolution of 1920 x 1080 @ 20 FPS.
2. 15.1 MP.
3. DIGIC 4 Processor (same as that of 50D).
4. Creative Auto Mode for auto aperture & shutter speed setting.
5. Well built and good construction. Hard Cast Rubber and Aluminium Alloy body.
6. Solid performing Li-ion 1080 mAh battery.
7. 18-55 mm Lens good for wide angle to medium telephoto lengths, but limiting for long distance shooting.
8. But Lens is pretty descent for travelling photographers since it is lighter and faster.
9. Under bright light sources, picture gets overexposed with unusual contrast.
10. Display: TFT; 3” Size and 100% capture of frame.
11. Optical View Finder: 95% capture of frame. Most of the settings can be viewed.
12. Good Auto Focus System.
13. Good in low light.

Pros:

1. HD video quality is excellent
2. Exceptional ISO performance
3. Accurate color and dynamic range
4. Great kit lens

Cons:

1. Slow to focus in low light
2. Smudge-proof screen isn't smudge proof
3. Massive image files out of the camera
4. Slow AF in video mode

NIKON D5000:

1. 12.9 MP.
2. EXPEED Processer (same as that of D90).
3. 11 Point Auto Focus.
4. Tilt and Swivel Display.
5. Active D Lighting: Prevents overexposure and is fantastic.
6. Shutter tested for 1,00,000 Cycles.
7. 3D Color Matrix Metering II.
8. Li-ion Battery (Lasts upto 510 shots).
9. HD up to 720p Video Capture with resolution of 1280 x 720 @ 24 FPS.
10. Ergonomical to handle.
11. Display: 2.7” and 100% coverage of frame
12. Optical View Finder: 95% coverage. Magnification is smaller compared to D40X and D60.
13. Auto Focus extremely good in bright light; rapid focus in dim light.
14. Flash recharge time is only 4 seconds.
15. Accurate color reproduction, contrast and sharpness.
16. Video Limitations: Distortion of vertical objects while panning during video shooting. Video Length of 5 minutes and 2 GB only possible as a single shot. No Auto Focus to video.
17. 12 inbuilt White Balance settings.

Pros:

1. Good image quality and performance
2. HD video capability
3. Essentially a D90 for less money

Cons:

1. HD video time limited
2. No AF for video
3. Too expensive for an entry-level camera

SHOOTING PERFORMANCE:

Global warning: Arctic glacier breaks up

Image: A section of the Petermann glacier in Greenland in July 2009 © Greenpeace / Nick Cobbing

A massive chunk of ice, over 87 kilometres in size, has broken off the Petermann Glacier in northern Greenland. Scientists are warning that loss of the ice from this glacier is almost certain to speed up the rate at which ice from the Greenland icesheet melts into our oceans.

Melting in the Arctic, forest fires in Russia and flooding in the Himalayas are all in keeping with the predictions of climate scientists of what a warming world will look like. Nature is telling us that it is time to act, that it's time to go beyond climate changing fossil fuels and give ourselves the green and prosperous future our children deserve.

Into Universe With Stephen Hawking : About Show : Discovery Channel

Into Universe With Stephen Hawking : About Show : Discovery Channel

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Bt Brinjal: why we should not make a mash of it | Centre for Science and Environment

Sunita Narain

SUNITA NARAIN, director of CSE and editor of Down To Earth, an environmentalist pushing for changes in policies and practices and mindsets

The minister for environment and forests has announced his decision on Bt-brinjal – whether the world’s first genetically modified vegetable should be given permission to be grown and eaten in the country. And before I discuss the issues further, let me also make my own bias clear. I am not an anti-GM-person. In other words, I have no ideological problems with the use of genetically modified technology to improve crop yields. But I am anti-Bt-brinjal and believe the minister is right in not giving clearance.

My reasoning is as follows: first; this is a case of the first genetically modified vegetable: A common food of near daily use that is eaten in all our homes often uncooked. So, therefore, we cannot judge this vegetable at par with Bt-cotton, which is at most used as fodder or processed in the cottonseed oil we use. In fact, all other GM crops, used widely across the world are either eaten in processed form (like soya) or as after industrial refining (like corn or rapeseed oil). So simplistic correlations cannot be applied here that genetically modified crops are safe or known.

Second, the jury is out and arguing still about the tests that have been done to establish the safety of this gene-modified vegetable on our health. The debate centers around two issues: one, if enough has been done to study the chronic impact of eaten this daily use vegetable on our bodies and our health and two, who has done these studies.

The list of studies done by MAHYCO – the owner company – show that most studies have looked at acute toxicity – lethal dose 50 or more – the dose at which there would be mortality of 50 per cent or more. Or have conducted studies on allergic reactions and skin irritation. There are also studies on sub-chronic toxicity – 90 days on rats, rabbits and goats – and the question is if studies are good enough to understand the long-term impacts of ingesting Bt-brinjal. The company says yes, maintaining that 90 days of a rat are roughly equivalent to 20-21 years of humans. The opposing scientists say no, as chronic impacts need a different protocol of study.

Furthermore, there is the still open issue of how the Cry1Ac toxin breaks down in the food and in our bodies. The company says it has data to show that the protein breaks down in cooked food and in our digestive system, but admits it remains active in an alkaline medium. The opposing view is that brinjal is often eaten raw and that even our digestive system is mildly alkaline. The jury is arguing still as I said.

Then there is the big issue if you and I who will now eat this vegetable can ‘trust’ the research, which has largely been conducted by the company, which stands to gain the most if the go-ahead is given. Currently, we know that all research is funded by companies and then presented to the regulators for clearance. It is not surprising then that there is an enormous lack of credibility – people do not believe what they say has been done. And given the horrific and scandalous track record of private research misguiding policy in the case of drugs or food, why should this be surprising? It is clear that we need a new system: research must be publicly funded and openly scrutinized. The money must come from companies, but in the form of a cess collected into a fund.

My third reason for rejecting Bt-brinjal is more basic and fundamental. The fact is that I want the right to decide if I want to eat Bt-brinjal or not. But the country has no labeling system to distinguish the GM-hybrid from its more-lowly ordinary cousin. You and I will have no choice.

This is further complicated because labeling demands that the country must have a laboratory network and a functioning regulatory system, so that GM-content can be analyzed and told to consumers. This is far from the set up we have in the country. We tried to get edible oil checked for GM traces and were turned away by most laboratories in the country, because either they could not test or had such limited facilities that these were expensive and unavailable. So, once again we want the ‘modern’ technology without the ‘modern’ facilities to ensure safety and regulation. A deadly combination.

Over and above this there are concerns about what this ‘foreign’ introduction will do to the biodiversity brinjal in the country – we are the centre of origin of this vegetable, which has over 2500 varieties grown in the country. While the company scientists say that the Bt-brinjal will not contaminate other varieties, research also shows that cross-pollination is definitely possible in this vegetable. Can we take the risk or losing these varieties – long, short, round or twisted - on our table?

To me the outcome is clear: Bt-brinjal is not worth the risk and uncertainty it presents. This is not a verdict on GM crops. It is a verdict on a vegetable that we want our choice to eat or not to eat. The Minister’s decision must be supported.