Posts Tagged ‘environmental’

Hybrid Cars and Conventional Cars

Sunday, March 7th, 2010

Today, the question on everybody’s mind is, what is the significant difference between a hybrid car and a conventional vehicle? They suppose that there has to be some good reason why people are asking themselves whether hybrid cars are worth the cost and checking their wallets and bank accounts to see whether they have enough money to buy a hybrid car.

There has to be a good reason why some other people wouldn’t dream of spending their the money on a hybrid car because they feel their conventional car gets them to wherever they need to go just fine. Here are some of the reasons why a person might choose a conventional car over a hybrid car.

Hybrid cars are much more expensive than conventional cars: because hybrid cars have a much more complex internal design, they do still have a pretty hefty price tag on them. However, conventional cars, which have gotten more efficient as the years have gone on, are very affordable these days. Many people are selling their old conventional cars in favour of newer, more efficient versions.

In fact, they are so inefficient, in comparison with new models, that some people even give their old cars away. However, since most of the general populace has never owned a hybrid, there aren’t many people selling used hybrid cars yet. Therefore, a person looking to obtain a hybrid would probably have to purchase a new one from a car showroom.

Both a hybrid car and a conventional car use a similar type of battery: a hybrid car and a conventional car both use lead-acid batteries that have enough power to turn a small electric motor. These batteries are what you call “gear reduced”. That means that they can turn over this electric motor at approximately 300 rpms. Torque is generated to turn over the engine and the entire process is what starts the main petrol or diesel engine.

But even though a hybrid car uses a lead-acid battery, the battery it uses to drive the car’s electric engine is constructed differently. This kind of battery is known as a ‘deep cycle battery’ and it can be compared to the batteries that are used to power electric fork-lift trucks, milk floats or golf carts.

That’s the major difference between hybrid cars and conventional cars. However, one person might decide to buy a hybrid car because it makes them feel more secure. For example, if a person buys a hybrid car, they can feel secure because their car will be less likely to run out of fuel in the middle of nowhere and yet another person might choose to buy a conventional car because the price of gas doesn’t really figure with them all that much.

Furthermore, a conventional car provides security as well. With a conventional car, a person can be assured that they will always be able go to a scrapyard, when they need to and find old parts for their car. On the other hand, those with a hybrid car might have to pay some pretty pricey repair receipts if something goes wrong.

However, the final decision is up to you. There are risks involved with both types of cars. But those who like to try out new technology might just consider splurging out on a hybrid car.

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Minor Holidays And Occasions In America

Monday, January 25th, 2010

Hereunder is a list of minor holidays and occasions in the United States. Some of them are virtually unknown, and others are quite obscure.

April Fools’ Day – (April 1): the day for practical jokes (only before noon in the UK). Its origins are obscure, but it bears a resemblance to an ancient Roman festival for the goddess of nature.

Arbor Day – (last Friday in April): devoted to trees and their preservation. It is held on December 22 everywhere else in the world.

Armed Forces Day – (third Sunday in May): a day to honour the US armed forces.

Citizenship Day – (September 17): replaced Constitution Day in 1952 by presidential proclamation.

Daylight-Saving Time: was first proposed by Benjamin Franklin in 1784, but became the Uniform Time Act in 1966. It is not observed in Hawaii, the Eastern Time Zone of Indiana, most of Arizona (except on the Navajo Reservation), American Samoa, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Guam.

Election Day – (Tuesday after the first Monday in November): presidential elections are held in years divisible by four and elections for all members of the House of Representatives and one-third of the Senate in years evenly divisible by two.

Fathers’ Day – (third Sunday in June): was first celebrated in West Virginia in 1908, but this distinctively American holiday was not made official until 1972.

Flag Day – (June 14): was first celebrated in 1877, which was the centenary of the adoption of the modern design. Truman approved the Flag Day Bill in 1949.

Groundhog Day – (February 2): on this day the groundhog looks out of his burrow. If he sees his own shadow there will be six weeks of Winter to come, otherwise Spring is just around the corner.

Halloween – (October 31): All Hallow’s Eve is the day before the feast of All Saints. It began as a pagan custom honouring the dead and a celebration of Autumn. ‘Trick or Treat’ is purely American with no historical basis.

Kwanzaa – is a secular observance by African-Americans to commemorate their African heritage. It starts on Dec.26th when a candle in a candelabrum is lit every day for seven days. It was first practiced by Maulana Karenga in 1966.

Mothers’ Day – (second Sunday in May): was conceived by Anne M. Jarvis of Philadelphia as a way for children to pay homage to their mothers. It received presidential proclamation in 1914.

National Maritime Day – (May 22): was proclaimed in 1935 to commemorate the SS Savannah’s first successful transatlantic crossing by a steamship in 1819. It is also a day of remembrance of merchant mariners who died in defense of their country.

National Teachers’ Day – (Tuesday of the first full week in May): is when pupils are meant to honour the teaching profession.

St. Patrick’s Day – (March 17): has been borrowed from Ireland where it is their national saint’s day.

St. Valentine’s Day – (February 14): was originally to honour two saints martyred by Emperor Claudius (214 – 270), but has been dedicated to lovers since the Middle Ages.

Susan B. Anthony Day – (February 15): Anthony (1820 – 1906) worked for women’s rights and suffrage.

United Nations’ Day – (October 24): commemorates the endorsement of the UN Charter in 1945 by the then five permanent members of the Security Council.

Owen Jones, the writer of this article, writes on many topics, but is currently involved with researching Franklin planner pages. If you have an interest in calendars, organizers or promotional calendars, please go over to our website now at Promotional Desk Calendars

Calendar – Which Calendar?

Wednesday, January 20th, 2010

In the West, we tend to think that there is only one calendar, but there are dozens of them around the world. And what is more, there were probably hundreds of them previously. All defunct now either because ours is more accurate or because theirs did not fit in with our commercial way of life.

But that does not mean to say that people do not still use those old-fashioned, defunct calendars. Oh, no! Governments have given up their old, traditional national calendars, but in general, country folk still use to them, even if they can no longer obtain a printed version. I cannot go into all the calendars here, but I will mention five or six of them.

Lunar Calendar – There is some evidence that early man used chips on bone to track or denote the movement of time 25,000 years ago, probably measured by the Moon’s phases. A calendar can be created based on the lunar cycles; it produces a year of twelve months (the word ‘month’ is from the word ‘moon’), but only 354 days, that is, eleven short of the time it takes the Earth to revolve around the Sun. The Chinese still use a variety of the lunar calendar but they resolve this issue by adding extra moths every now and then to bring ‘time’ back into alignment with the Sun.

Solar Calendar – The ancient Egyptians were the first people to employ a Solar Calendar, although it could justifiably be called a stellar calendar. The new year began for them when Sirius, the Dog Star, the brightest star in the night sky, rose in the same place as the Sun. This more often than not coincided with the flooding of the Nile. This calendar was of 365 days; twelve months of thirty days and five holy days. Therefore, it was only one quarter of a day off the true year. However, this meant that slowly but surely, the new year did not concur with the flood. Scientists have worked out that this calendar was adopted in either 4241 BC or 2773 BC.

Julian Calendar – In 46 BC , Julius Caesar realised that various provinces of the empire were using different calendars, so he ordered the dating system to be unified. Sosigenes came up with a calendar of 365 days with an extra day every four years. Therefore, in 46 BC, the longest year on record, Caesar added days to the year to bring it back into alignment with the seasons. 46 BC was 445 days long! The immensity of the Roman Empire ensured that this calendar was the defacto calendar of the Western world.

Julian Day Count – In 1582, Pope Gregory XIII instituted a new calendar, but the year after that Joseph Justus Scaliger developed a system of counting days, not years. It starts with 1 on January 1st 4713 BC. On this date the Julian and the lunar calendars and the Roman tax dating system all coincided; something that will next happen in 3267. January 1st 2001 was Julian day 2,451,913

Gregorian Calendar – from at least 730 AD, it was spotted that the year from vernal equinox to vernal equinox was short of the 365.25 days in a year. This had the consequence that the date of Easter was moving back. So he dropped 10 days from 1582 by jumping from October 4th to October 15th and proclaiming that century years would only be leap years if they were divisible by 400. Consequently, 1900 was not a leap year, but 2000 was. This is the calendar we still use today.

Owen Jones, the author of this piece, writes on many subjects, but is currently involved with researching Franklin planner pages. If you have an interest in calendars, organizers or promotional calendars, please go over to our website now at Promotional Desk Calendars

How To Make A Fly Fishing Calendar

Wednesday, January 20th, 2010

Are you wondering what the best times to try to schedule a fly fishing expedition are? Well, when we talk about a fly fishing calendar, we are not quite referring to a printed calendar that you can hang on your wall. We are talking about focusing on and specifying the right times to fish and the right places at which to fish.

The main thing you have to think about when you are considering drawing up a fly fishing calendar is: when will the water be at the optimum temperature? That is, the temperature that is best for catching fish. The right time to go fishing will depend on the region that you are looking at for your fly fishing trip.

In some places, like California, the fishing is pretty good all the year round. Whereas in other locations, such as Washington, you will have to stay away from the water in the winter as the freezing temperatures will stress the fish and they will not be as plenteous.

Generally speaking, the fly fishing calendar shows that the best fly fishing is in the spring and summer periods. Early autumn will also find some places showing good fishing as well. Almanacs can be helpful to guide you towards the best fishing times and places as can continuously updating Internet web sites that are run by keen local fishermen.

Many locations will give weekly, and sometimes even daily fishing reports on their websites. They can tell you where the fish are biting and where the best locations in the river are to cast your line. They generally keep these areas of their web sites up-to-date pretty regularly. So you can get quality reports just by looking at what other anglers have to say about their fishing experiences.

Usually, fish like warmer water, although, there are other species like salmon and steelhead that thrive in colder water. However, in general, warm water will attract more fish. Nevertheless, if the water is too warm, the fish will be sluggish and will swim to locations where the water is cooler.

The fly fishing calendar used most often by experienced fishermen has been compiled over a lengthy period of time. They expend a considerable quantity of effort to estimate where and when the best fishing will take place. Then they share it with others. That is one of the best things about fly fishing – the camaraderie and the sharing that can come about because of a mutual affection for the sport of fly fishing.

You can create your own fly fishing calendar with a little time and effort. Just do your homework and keep plenty of notes. When you see a trend, you will know that it is time to go fishing! Then you should be certain to help your fellow anglers by passing on the information via a local club or the Internet, if you are proficient at it, because others will be trying to work out what you already know. You know that most fly fishermen would do the same for you, do you not?

Owen Jones, the author of this article, writes on many subjects, but is currently involved with researching Franklin planner pages. If you have an interest in calendars, organizers or promotional calendars, please go over to our website now at Promotional Desk Calendars

Hybrid Cars and Plug-in Hybrid Cars

Tuesday, January 19th, 2010

Hybrid cars are on everyone’s lips these days. Twenty, forty, or fifty dollars for a tank of gas? Who in their right mind really wants to pay that sort of money? But, frustrated, the fuel customer sighs, but pays up. However, hybrid vehicles are being applauded for the little amount of petrol they need to operate, and they are being driven off the forecourts of car dealerships each and everyday in ever increasing numbers.

So, what about a plug-in hybrid? Most users have heard that these cars are great too. Then, someone might be asking him or herself, what exactly a plug-in hybrid is? How they work, and what the difference between a plug-in hybrid and a regular hybrid is?

Plug-in hybrids are able to run solely on batteries, but they use petrol also. These kinds of hybrid cars have some of the characteristics of hybrid vehicles. They are also are very similar to electric vehicles.

Plug-in hybrid vehicles need to be recharged externally by connecting a plug to an electrical power source. The combustion engine in plug-in hybrid vehicles is used only as a back up. These cars can run only on batteries if desired, but it is expected that these types of hybrid cars are recharged daily.

Hybrid cars travel just as many miles as a conventional car. Designed to go the extra mile where gas-mileage is concerned, hybrids can be driven on the highway, in cities, or wherever else a person needs to drive.

On the other hand, plug-in hybrids are meant to handle commuter-length distances, meaning between twenty and sixty miles. Used in this way, the plug-in hybrid does not have to make use of its back up combustion engine, but plug-in hybrids can go further using fuel as well.

Hybrids help to reduce pollution, but they do still pollute the atmosphere. Compared with plug-in hybrids, hybrid cars still have a long way to go as far as pollution is concerned. Because plug-in hybrid cars can run solely on their battery power, they don’t have to emit waste gases at all.

Plug-in hybrids actually do cut total greenhouse gas emissions and plug-in hybrids use practically no oil at all, imported or not. Studies have revealed that electric hybrids emit at least 67% less greenhouse gases than petrol cars. Since the electric used to power plug-in hybrids is completely renewable, the difference in greenhouse gas emissions may be even greater than the study determined.

So there you have it – those are the major differences between plug-in hybrids and regular hybrid cars. It could make a big difference, but you would be surprised at how little it actually matters at the moment, but that’s only because plug-in hybrids are not being marketed to consumers yet! But this article should make you enthusiastic about the fantastic plug-in hybrid car, coming soon to a dealership near you.

And it’s going to be a great debut too. People already really like regular hybrid cars, but they haven’t seen anything until they see the new plug-in hybrid cars. However, for now, maybe they should just be satisfied with what they have, because who knows? Before plug-in hybrid cars come out, something even better might be introduced onto the market.

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