After getting caught cheating on Common Core exams, West Harlem school Principal commits suicide, jumps onto subway tracks, NY Dept. of Ed. says-NY Post

7/26/15, "Principal commits suicide amid Common Core test scandal," NY Post, by Susan Edelman, Amber Jamieson, Jamie Schram

"The principal of an innovative West Harlem public school killed herself the day after her students took the state Common Core exams--which were later tossed out because she cheated, The Post has learned.

Jeanene Worrell-Breeden, 49, of Teachers College Community School, jumped in front of a B train in the 135th Street station on St. Nicholas Avenue on April 17, police said.

She was pulled out from under the train and taken to Harlem Hospital, where she died eight days later. The city Medical Examiner’s Office ruled it a suicide.

The leap came at 9:20 a.m., less than 24 hours after her 47 third-graders wrapped up three days sweating over the high-stakes English exam — the first ever given at the fledgling school.

It was also the same day a whistleblower reported the cheating to DOE officials.

Parents were shocked and saddened to learn Worrell-Breeden died but were given no details at the time. It was rumored she was killed in a car crash.

Parents were in for another shock in June. Superintendent Gale Reeves told them in a meeting that all the third-grade English exams had been “red-flagged” and “invalidated.”...

In a June 22 letter to families, Reeves wrote, “The integrity of the assessment was compromised due to actions outside your child’s control.”

Parents grew frustrated. No one from the city Department of Education or the state Education Department, which administers the exams, answered questions. They asked for help from politicians, including Assemblyman Keith Wright, whose staff also hit a wall.

On Friday, the DOE blamed the dead principal.

“Principal Worrell-Breeden was the subject of allegations of testing improprieties,” spokeswoman Devora Kaye said. “An investigation substantiated these allegations, and we closed the investigation following her tragic passing.”

Kaye would not say how Worrell-Breeden allegedly tampered with the tests.

Asked whether Worrell-Breeden was told of the April 17 allegations against her, DOE officials did not answer.

The DOE invalidated all 47 English exams. Third-graders took the state math exams April 22 to 24.

Those scores will be released this summer, but Tinsley said the superintendent assured parents that all the kids would be promoted to the fourth grade.

The tough Common Core exams have raised anxiety. In 2014, only 34.5 percent of city students passed the math tests, and 29.4 percent passed English tests.

“A lot of people are getting sick and leaving the system because of the pressure the high-stakes tests are putting on them,” a veteran educator said.

But Worrell-Breeden seemed “relaxed,” Tinsley said.

“She was reassuring us parents,” Tinsley said. “Her whole attitude was that they’re going to breeze through this test, and that she had prepared them to ace any test.”

Each morning of the three-part exam--given April 14 to 16--Worrell-Breeden served the kids breakfast and held a pep rally.

“She had them run around the gym cheering to get rid of their nervousness,” Tinsley said.

A family friend described Worrell-Breeden as a driven leader struggling with personal setbacks.

“Her grandmother died last year. Her husband moved out last year. He had a child with another woman. She was under a lot of pressure at home,” the friend said.

“She was the first principal at that school so she was trying to make...a good impression. “Maybe all that pressure, added to what was going on at home, got to her.”

Worrell-Breeden, who made $135,000 a year, was the founding principal of the school, which the DOE opened in 2011 in partnership with Columbia University’s Teachers College. It promised access to Columbia facilities, student interns and researchers. While planning to grow, it served only pre-K to grade 3 last school year.

Worrell-Breeden got the job despite a scandal at her former school, PS 18 in The Bronx. In 2009, the special commissioner of investigation for city schools found she had clocked in for overtime pay while working out with a personal trainer three times a week in the school gym.

Her time card “disappeared” after investigators visited the school. 

The probe found she altered her time card and coerced subordinates to say she had offered them hundreds of OT hours first--as required--before taking them herself.

In a six-month period she collected more than $9,500 in OT pay, records say.

An arbitrator dismissed charges of a coverup. She was docked two weeks’ pay."

Image caption: "Rescue workers examine the tracks where Principal Jeanene Worrell-Breeden met her tragic end. Photo: Robert Miller," NY Post


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Donald Trump leads Republican field in new CNN poll conducted July 22-25, 2015

CNN poll dates July 22-25:  

7/26/15, "CNN/ORC poll: 2016 election and Republican debate preferences," CNN 

p. 2, "Which Republican presidential candidate do you most want to see on the stage during the upcoming debates?
  
Trump 18%, Bush 13%, Walker 8%, Cruz 7%-Based on 460 Republicans incl. 208 independent leaners 

Trump 18%, Bush 14%, Walker 7%,  Cruz 7%-Based on 419 Republicans including 230 registered Republicans and 189 independent leaners

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7/26/15, "Donald Trump, at helm of 'movement', leads Republican field in new poll," Reuters via UK Telegraph
............

"Mr Trump's support among Republicans increased 6 percentage points since late June despite criticism of John McCain's war record"
.............

"Real estate magnate Donald Trump moved to the top of the 2016 Republican presidential field in a CNN poll released on Sunday, edging out rival Jeb Bush and gaining support from Republicans in the last month despite a series of controversial statements. 

Mr Trump was backed by 18 per cent of Republicans in the CNN poll, which was conducted entirely after his July 18 criticism of Republican Senator John McCain's war record. His lead over Mr Bush, a former Florida governor who was at 15 per cent, was within the poll's margin of error.

"There is a movement going on. This is more than me," Mr Trump said on CNN's "State of the Union," saying the poll results were not surprising. "People are tired of these incompetent politicians in Washington that can't get anything done."...

Separately, two NBC News-Marist polls released on Sunday showed Mr Trump doing well in a pair of states holding key early contests in the Republican nomination race. 

In New Hampshire, Mr Trump leads the Republican field with the support of 21 per cent of potential primary voters, followed by Bush at 14 percent. In Iowa, Walker leads the Republican field at 19 per cent among potential Republican caucus participants, with Mr Trump in second place at 17 per cent."... 

  






"Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump signs autographs after speaking at a rally and picnic, Saturday, July 25, 2015, in Oskaloosa, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) Photo: Charlie Neibergall," via Sydney Morning Herald, "Donald trumps CNN poll of 2016 Republicans, says he leads 'movement'" 

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Arctic Sea Ice Extent, July 25, 2015, DMI

7/25/15, "Arctic Sea Ice Extent, The Northern Hemisphere Sea Ice coverage," DMI, Danish Meteorological Institute

"Northern Hemisphere Sea Ice extent"

"Total sea ice extent on the northern hemisphere during the past years, including climate mean; plus/minus 1 standard deviation. The ice extent values are calculated from the ice type data from the Ocean and Sea Ice, Satellite Application Facility (OSISAF), where areas with ice concentration higher than 15% are classified as ice.

The total area of sea ice is the sum of First Year Ice (FYI), Multi Year Ice (MYI) and the area of ambiguous ice types, from the OSISAF ice type product. The total sea ice extent can differ slightly from other sea ice extent estimates. Possible differences between this sea ice extent estimate and others are most likely caused by differences in algorithms and definitions."...


 
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Bayonne, NJ has to send non-functioning wind turbine generator back to manufacturer in Italy for possible repair, warranty has expired-Jersey Journal

Round trip travel from New Jersey to Italy for wind generator repair (assuming repair is possible), will spew massive amounts of CO2:

7/24/15, "Bayonne losing $25K a month with windmill generator on the fritz, officials say," The Jersey Journal, Amanda Eisenberg

"The wind turbine used to power the city's Oak Street and Fifth Street pumping stations has gone motionless, costing the city roughly $25,000 a month in energy costs, officials confirmed.

And there's more possible bad news-Bayonne may be on the hook for roughly $350,000 to replace the broken generator.

The 260-foot structure, off East Fifth Street, went into operation in June 2012, with city officials touting energy savings of up to $300,000 a year. But the wind turbine stopped working in June.

The Bayonne Municipal Utilities Authority which owns the windmill, and United Water, which maintains and operates it, have not determined what went wrong, or who is responsible for repairing or replacing the expensive equipment.

Boyle said a new generator could cost up to $350,000.

Municipal Utility Authority Executive Director Tim Boyle said he was told these types of generators are supposed to last 20 years. The city got three years out of its generator, which he doesn't expect to be repaired or replaced until at least November.

That would cost the city roughly $125,000 in extra energy expenses.

"The generator's official warranty has expired," Boyle said, who noted that the plan is to ship it back to the manufacturer in Italy, where it will be inspected
.
United Water spokesman David Johnson said UW, the company that monitors and maintains the windmill under a 40-year deal, was maintaining it on a monthly basis prior to June. A service contract between the parties was signed after the generator stopped working, he said.

One portion of the contract states "any construction or manufacturing defects relating to the wind turbine" count as "Excluded Liabilities" that aren't part of the "Assumed Liabilities" of United Water -- suggesting it's the MUA's responsibility to repair or replace the wind turbine if it's not running due to a "construction or manufacturing" defect. 

MUA workers detected vibrations coming from the turbine in June and the manufacturer shut off the generator remotely and then sent a representive to inspect it, Boyle said.

For the past two years, the turbine has produced about 3.3 gigawatt hours of electricity per year, enough to power 600 single-family homes for a year.

The expected five-month shutdown will cost the city an estimated $125,000 in enegry savings, but Boyle said it will not directly impact taxpayers.

"It will have zero effect on anyone other than city management," Boyle said. "It's a burden for the city's revenue stream that's being interrupted.""

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2010 article: Italian mafia enjoys lucrative global warming wind turbine handouts:
 
9/5/2010, "Mafia cash in on lucrative EU wind farm handouts-especially in Sicily," UK Telegraph, by Nick Squires in Trapani, Sicily, and Nick Meo

"An ill wind is blowing over Italy's green revolution, as the Mafia seek to capitalise on generous grants for renewable energy."

""Nothing earns more than a wind farm," said Edoardo Zanchini, an environmental campaigner who has investigated Mafia infiltration of the industry. "Anything that creates wealth interests the Mafia."... 

"Renewable energy seems like a good thing, run by saintly people saving the world," said Jason Wright, a senior director with Kroll, which performs background checks on renewable energy schemes on behalf of legitimate investors, and which has documented a sharp rise in the number of wind farms with suspect ownership."... 

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2009 article: Even president of Italy’s National Association of Wind Energy was arrested:

11/17/2009, "Mafia Ties to Wind Fraud in Italy Investigated," environmentalleader.com

"Italian finance police have arrested two prominent businessmen — including one with ties to a former investor in the Cape Wind project in Nantucket — in the wind energy sector on charges of fraud. Arrested were Oreste Vigorito, head of the IVPC energy company and president of Italy’s National Association of Wind Energy, and Vito Nicastri, a Sicilian business associate, according to the Financial Times.

Anti-mafia prosecutors in Sicily also have launched a parallel investigation, reports the Financial Times.

Local officials, Mafia crime gangs and entrepreneurs have been tied together in schemes for fixing permits for wind farms that were constructed with local subsidies, then sold to foreign firms, according to an earlier Financial Times article.

In the most recent arrests, according to the European Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow, Oreste Vigorito has ties to Brian Caffyn, a former investor in the Cape Wind project, which has been criticized as a poor investment for taxpayers, reports Dakota Voice.

Vigorito once owned IVPC with Brian Caffyn, founder of Cape Wind and First Wind, according to the Boston Herald. Caffyn sold his interest in Cape Wind in 2002 and sold his interest in IVPC in 2005. Vigorito has never had any involvement in Cape Wind, according to Mark Rodgers, Communications Director for the Cape Wind project.

The Herald reports that Caffyn was surprised to learn of Vigorito’s arrest:

“I read about it in the papers, and I was very surprised,” Brian Caffyn said from Hong Kong, where he is now building wind-energy farms in China and the Philippines.
“I know of no fraud with (former partners) Oreste (Vigorito) and IVPC,” said Caffyn, a Cape Cod native and Babson College graduate.

The “Gone with the Wind” sting operation, started in 2007, netted 11 others who were charged but were not arrested. Italian police told Financial Times that the fraud charges are related to obtaining millions of dollars in public subsidies to construct wind farms that never worked. Police confiscated seven wind farms with 185 turbines in Sicily linked to IVPC, according to the article.

The anti-fraud team also is investigating IVPC’s sales of wind farms to foreign companies, and already has sent requests for documentation to five companies located in the Netherlands and Spain, as well as IVPC’s Italian affiliates in Ireland and the UK, according to the article.

Fraud appears to be an emerging problem in the nascent clean energy sector. Most recently, two clean energy auditors — SGS UK and DNV — were accused of not properly auditing projects in carbon trading markets.

Meanwhile, the UK is dealing with carbon trading credit scams that could cost millions of dollars. In Australia, to prevent bogus carbon offset schemes, federal police agents can now enter company premises and request paperwork to monitor their emissions."

----------------------
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Most of Bayonne Italian wind turbine, $4.7million, paid for via US taxpayer via Obama 2009 stimulus:

6/18/2009, "Uncle Sam paying most of Bayonne's windmill tab," Jersey Journal

"The lion's share of the money for the $5.5 million windmill that's to run Bayonne's sewage pumping station will come from President Barack Obama's stimulus package, officials said.

Roughly $4.7 million is earmarked for the 260-foot-high windmill and turbine in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and will be administered by the New Jersey Environmental infrastructure Trust, officials said....
...............
More on Uncle Sam paying most of windmill's tab in today's Jersey Journal."

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French government bows to fossil fuel riches, slaps Nature in the face, allows Saudi King and 1000+ entourage private use of public beach for 3 weeks while banning French citizens-BBC

7/25/15, "Petition as French Riviera beach closed for Saudi king," BBC

"More than 100,000 people have signed a petition against the closure of a beach on the French Riviera to allow Saudi King Salman to holiday in private.

The petition insists the public beach in Vallauris should be "available for the benefit of all".

Authorities sealed off the beach early on Saturday to prevent any protesters from occupying it as King Salman was due to arrive in the area.
...................

The Saudi monarch is expected to stay at his villa for three weeks.
................

He and his entourage of about 1,000 people arrived at Nice airport on Saturday on board two Saudi Arabian Airlines Boeing 747s.
..................

The king's inner circle is staying at the villa - between Antibes and Marseille - while about 700 others will stay at hotels in Cannes.
................

Michel Chevillon, president of an association of Cannes' hotel managers, said the visit was "clearly good news" for hotels and the local economy.
.................

"These are people with great purchasing power," he said.
....................

However, the closure of a section of La Mirandole beach beneath the king's villa has outraged many local residents.
...................

"We recall that this natural zone, like all maritime public estates, is an intrinsic public property that should be available for the benefit of all, residents, tourists, French, foreigners or people passing through," the petition says.
..................

"We ask the state to guarantee the fundamental principle of the equality of all citizens before the law."
...............

The mayor of Vallauris has also written to President Francois Hollande in protest at unauthorised work carried out at the property.
..............

A cement platform has been poured on to the beach to provide a lift up to the king's villa, although the Saudis have promised to remove it when they leave.
............

"We understand the security reasons and the nation's greater interest. But nobody can exonerate himself from the laws of the land," Mayor Michelle Salucki wrote.
.................

There is also a ban on coming within 300m of the villa by sea.
..................
 "We're sick and tired of this messing around," one local woman said, quoted by AFP news agency.
................

"I can see it's normal that you need to guarantee their security, but they should let us go for a swim.""
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Image caption: "Notices of the beach closure have been posted, amid tight security for the royal visitor," BBC


 
 
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40 million tons of Sahara Desert dust yearly onto Amazon rainforest credited for maintaining soil nutrient balance. Amazon soil is shallow, poor in nutrients, almost without soluble minerals-NASA study, Oct. 2006

Sahara dust across Atlantic, NASA, June 13-21, 2001

10/30/2006, "The Bodélé depression: a single spot in the Sahara that provides most of the mineral dust to the Amazon forest," Environmental Research Letters, iopscience.iop.org, Ilan Koren¹, Yoram J Kaufman², Richard Washington³, Martin C Todd⁴, Yinon Rudich¹, J Vanderlei Martins^2,5,6 and Daniel Rosenfeld<sup>7

"Abstract 
 
About 40 million tons of dust are transported annually from the Sahara to the Amazon basin. Saharan dust has been proposed to be the main mineral source that fertilizes the Amazon basin, generating a dependence of the health and productivity of the rain forest on dust supply from the Sahara. Here we show that about half of the annual dust supply to the Amazon basin is emitted from a single source: the Bodélé depression located northeast of Lake Chad, approximately 0.5% of the size of the Amazon or 0.2% of the Sahara. Placed in a narrow path between two mountain chains that direct and accelerate the surface winds over the depression, the Bodélé emits dust on 40% of the winter days, averaging more than 0.7 million tons of dust per day....</sup>

3. Discussion

Using satellite data and reanalysis wind fields we have identified a remarkable connection between the Amazon forest and a single dust source in the Sahara: the Bodélé depression and its wind regime. A unique combination of global wind pattern and topography forms a vigorous dust source that emits an average of more than 0.7 Tg of dust per emission day and is active mostly during the winter–spring, which is different from most other Saharan dust sources. We estimate that between November and March, the Bodélé depression sends more than half of the dust that is deposited annually in the Amazon forest. Our direct measurements are consistent with a recent modelling study showing that the Bodélé is responsible for (more than) 40% of dust optical depth over the Amazon in the winter season [25]. The soil of the Amazon tropical rainforest is shallow, poor in nutrients and almost without soluble minerals. Heavy rains have washed away the nutrients in the soil obtained from weathered rocks. The rainforest has a short nutrient cycle, and due to the heavy washout, a stable supply of minerals is required to keep the delicate nutrient balance [26]. Kimmins [27] showed that any change in the nutrient supply will convert tropical forests to 'wet deserts'...

1. Introduction

Satellite observations show continuous dust transport across 5000 km from the Saharan sources to the Caribbean Sea and North America in the Northern summer and to the Amazon basin during the Northern winter [1, 2]. Due to the annual cycle in winds over the Sahara, the winter Saharan dust sources are different from the summer sources [3]. In the summer, dust fluxes reaching the Tropical Atlantic shore originate mainly from the northwest and central-west parts of the Sahara. During winter, strong surface winds (the Harmattan winds) occur along the southern border of the Sahara, activating sources on the border of the Sahel, notably the Bodélé depression in Northern Chad."...
 
^"1 Department of Environmental Sciences, Weizmann Institute, Israel
² NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
³ Climate Research Lab, Oxford University Centre for the Environment, UK
⁴ Department of Geography, University College London, UK
⁵ Joint Center for Earth Systems Technology, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, USA
⁶ Institute of Physics, University of Sao Paulo, Brazil
⁷ Institute of Earth Sciences, The Hebrew University, Jerusalem 91904, Israel"... 
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Animated image above from NASA article, 6/26/2001, showing Sahara dust blowing across Atlantic, "All the World's a Stage...for Dust," science.nasa.gov, Sahara dust blows across Atlantic, June 13-21, 2001.  (Not provided with ERL 2006 study above).

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NASA map below shows China dust blowing across the Pacific (right) to the US (left). A 2001 Asia dust cloud blew completely across North America and continued into the Atlantic Ocean:

China dust to US, NASA animation, April 2001

 
6/26/2001, "All the World's a Stage...for Dust," science.nasa.gov: 

"This TOMS aerosol movie [above post], which spans the interval June 13 through 21, 2001, shows a cloud of African dust crossing the Atlantic and raining bits of the Sahara Desert over the Caribbean. Click on the image to view a larger 450 kb animation, which includes a color table and legend. See also the latest TOMS maps and more information about the color-coded aerosol index....

Airborne microbes and pollen in Florida or Brazil might have come from Africa. Mineral dust in the soils of India could have blown over from Iran....

The Americas frequently inherit huge volumes of dust from Africa and Asia, while countries of the Far East like India and China get sprinkled with dust from the Middle East.

African dust plumes begin their trans-Atlantic journey with storm activity in the Sahara Desert region. The dust, originating from fine particles in the arid topsoil, is transported into the atmosphere by winds and may be carried more than 10,000 feet high. Dust clouds cross the Atlantic Ocean and reach the Caribbean and the Americas in about 5 to 7 days....

"In some cases, such as in the Caribbean islands, much of the dust in the top soil is from Africa," says Jay Herman, principle scientist for aerosol detection by TOMS at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. "Over generations, lots of it piles up there. The top soil has been analyzed on these islands, and it's definitely of African origin."

Northern spring also brings massive dust clouds blowing east over the Pacific Ocean from China and Mongolia. The largest Asian dust cloud on record blew all the way across North America earlier this year (2001), traveling as far east as the mid-Atlantic Ocean before finally disappearing from view."...

"These springtime dust storms give visible evidence of a "conveyor belt in the sky" that ferries air from Asia to North America in the spring. Invisible pollutants are also carried across the Pacific Ocean by this conveyor, according to Daniel Jaffe, professor of atmospheric sciences at the University of Washington.

Based on air quality measurements at Cheeka Peak at the westernmost tip of Washington state and later airplane-based measurements, Jaffe's research group has shown that a steady trickle of air pollution comes across the Pacific from Asia -- at least in the spring -- punctuated by a surge of pollutants once or twice a month. 

These surges are presumably due to the wholesale movement of air from Asian urban areas across the Pacific. This prevents the pollutants from being diluted by mixing with cleaner air. During these surges, the air entering the West Coast can have pollution concentrations as high as 75 percent of federal air quality standards, Jaffe said. "...

(continuing): ""The huge amount of dust blowing off Asia recently is kind of a new phenomenon," Herman says. 

"It's apparently due to increased desertification brought about by a change in the dryness of the area and increased land use."
...
The raining of dust into the Pacific Ocean may be important for the productivity of fisheries in the North Pacific, an important source of seafood for much of the world. Photosynthetic microbes in the top layer of the ocean form the foundation of the food chain. Often the concentration of dissolved mineral nutrients (particularly iron) controls the abundance of these microbes. Some of the minerals in the dust might help boost microbe populations and, therefore, fish populations. Scientists are still working to verify this effect, however.

Airborne dust clouds can also affect local weather by suppressing rainfall. Cloud droplets form around the minute dust grains, but some kinds of dust limit how big these droplets can become. Because droplets must reach a certain size before they'll fall to Earth as rain, dust clouds can leave dry weather in their path.

In addition to dust, the TOMS instrument detects volcanic ash, pollutants, smoke, ozone concentrations and ultraviolet light intensities. Most of these data are available online in near real-time....

A new TOMS instrument is scheduled to launch on August 10 aboard the QuikTOMS satellite. This satellite will replace the aging TOMS instrument currently in orbit, and while both instruments are functional, the redundant data will help NASA scientists to calibrate the new one. QuikTOMS's expected mission life is 3 years.

Thanks to TOMS and its successor, we'll continue to have a front row seat on the global stage of migrating dust for years to come."

.........
Caption for animated image at top of this post above 6/26/2001 article: In addition to Sahara dust blowing across the Atlantic, "This TOMS image shows a record-setting Asian dust cloud beginning its journey east across the Pacific. Click on the image to view a 440 kb animation of the dust cloud migrating to North America. Remember that as the dust disappears from the satellite's view, it's raining out of the air onto the ocean and the land. See a similar Asian dust cloud from 1998 in this animation [still image below]:"

Above image, 1998 dust cloud blowing from China to the US, NASA, animation.

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Source: China air entering US West Coast can have "pollution concentrations as high as 75 percent of federal air quality standards."

May 17, 2001, "The Pacific Dust Express," science.nasa.gov 

"North America has been sprinkled with a dash of Asia! A dust cloud from China crossed the Pacific Ocean recently and rained Asian dust from Alaska to Florida."...

NASA caption for map showing China dust entering US west coast including Alaska: "While much of the dust cloud remains over the Pacific Ocean, the leading edge has reached as far east as the American Midwest by April 13 (2001)," NASA 




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Tens of thousands of jobs cut by mining companies with large South Africa and South America work forces, falling prices of iron ore, platinum, copper cited. South Africa Nat. Union of Mineworkers shocked-BBC

7/24/15, "Mining companies slash tens of thousands of jobs," BBC

"Mining companies Anglo American and Lonmin are cutting tens of thousands of jobs as commodity prices fall. 

 

Anglo said it would cut 6,000 posts from office and other roles not directly related to production.
 
The company, which has some 150,000 workers worldwide, said employee numbers would fall by 35% after the cuts, which will be accompanied by asset sales.
 
Anglo posted a pre-tax loss of $1.9bn (£1.2bn) for the six months to 30 June. 
 
The miner has been hit by multibillion-dollar write downs on the values of its assets following commodity price falls.
 
Iron ore was down 41%, platinum has fallen 19%, and copper is 18% lower.
 
Chief executive Mark Cutifani told analysts: "Quite frankly we didn't expect the commodity price rout to be so dramatic and in all likelihood the next six months are going to be even tougher. We have pulled costs out of the business but we need to do more because prices continue to deteriorate."
 
Most of Anglo's workforce is in South America and South Africa, with just 2,000 in Europe.
 
Profits from its De Beers diamond mining business fell by $189m to $576m.
 
Shares closed up 0.2% at 808.1p, valuing the company at £11.3bn. The stock is half the value of a year ago.
 
Meanwhile, Lonmin said it would cut 6,000 jobs as the fall in the platinum price forced it to scale back operations in South Africa.
 
In a quarterly production statement the miner warned it was heading for an annual loss at current platinum prices.

The price of platinum has fallen by 14.4% from $1,126 an ounce in March to $964 on Wednesday.
 
Shares plunged 17.4% to 62.3p, valuing the company at £366m. The stock traded at more than £10 a decade ago.
 
Lonmin said it would mothball several platinum mines to cut costs, which would create a "smaller more sustainable and agile business".
 
The miner added it expected normal platinum production over the next two financial years to fall by 100,000 ounces. 
 
"Our objective is to save the majority of the positions in the company and create a sustainable business by taking urgent action and maximising liquidity to protect the business. 
 
"All costs, not just labour costs, have to be reduced and productivity improved if the business is to be sustainable," Lonmin added.
 
The miner added it was reviewing the capital structure for the company given the "new pricing environment" and was considering the whether to refinance its debt.
 
Platinum sales for the quarter were 231,778 ounces. That was in line with refined production expectations and compared with sales of 206,039 ounces for the same period a year earlier.
 
But Lonmin said despite the increase in production the weaker price of the precious metal and the weakness of the South African rand had continued to hurt profits.
 
The platinum US dollar price decreased by 23.2% the same period a year earlier. 
 
South Africa's National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) said on Friday it was shocked by the decision to cut so many jobs.
 
"As the NUM, we are going to fight against any job losses. It is very painful to see that these mining companies take the decisions of cutting jobs easy," the union said. ...........  

  The mine closures come three years after 34 people were killed after police opened fire on striking Lonmin miners in what has become known in the country as the "Marikana massacre". .............  

  The Lonmin-owned platinum mine became the centre of a violent clashes between police and strikers following a pay dispute with Lonmin that was exacerbated by tensions between two rival trade unions." 








 











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