North Dakota clay could play role in oilpatch, initial results of study show

ScienceDaily (Oct. 22, 2012) ? Initial results of clay samples from western North Dakota show varying percentages of alumina content, a finding of interest to the North Dakota Geological Survey that commissioned the study. Scientists in a lab at North Dakota State University?s Center for Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE), Fargo, are completing analysis of the clay, often referred to as kaolin, which could eventually play a role in proppants used for hydraulic fracturing in North Dakota oil exploration.

As part of a research agreement with the North Dakota Geological Survey (NDGS) in Bismarck, N.D., the Materials Characterization and Analysis Laboratory at NDSU CNSE is completing initial analysis of more than 200 clay samples from Stark and Dunn counties in North Dakota to determine their composition and suitability for use as a component in hydraulic fracturing. ?The alumina was above 20 percent for 66 percent of the Bear Den claystone samples and 38 percent of the Rhame Bed samples,? said Ed Murphy, North Dakota state geologist. ?Roughly one third of the sites sampled averaged above 20 percent alumina for the entire exposed bed thickness.?

A final report of the study conducted at NDSU CNSE is expected in late 2012 or early 2013. ?We generated an alumina map of western North Dakota that companies can use to guide clay exploration if they determine that the alumina content is sufficiently high for their needs,? explained Murphy. ?We will publish a final report with the clay mineralogy when that information is available.? https://www.dmr.nd.gov/ndgs/Clay map/GI_158.pdf

Murphy said it was extremely useful to have specialized scientific expertise available in North Dakota to conduct the study. ?CNSE utilizes excellent analytical equipment and employs knowledgeable people with valuable experience. We have had a very good working relationship with the NDSU CNSE. We found them to be very dedicated to their work and generating a product that we could have confidence in.?

The clays show early promise for potential use as a key material known as ceramic proppant, used in the fracking process to help keep fractures open, particularly in the Bakken formation in North Dakota. ?It could potentially lead to the establishment of a ceramic proppant manufacturing plant if these claystones are determined to be suitable for this process. The chemistry and bed thickness that we are providing will answer a number of the initial questions from industry,? explained Murphy. ?If companies deem these results to be promising, they could potentially do additional exploration on their own which might ultimately lead to test manufacturing of ceramic proppant using these clays.?

Currently, proppants used in western North Dakota oil development typically come from other states or other countries. Murphy notes that companies will use approximately five million tons of proppants in North Dakota oil development in 2012. In a recent report, the North Dakota Geological Survey estimates about 1.7 billion tons of economically mineable kaolin in western North Dakota.

Researchers at NDSU CNSE use x-ray fluorescence to determine which elements and how much of those elements the samples contain. CNSE scientists also conduct analysis of clay samples using x-ray diffraction to determine the amount of kaolinite, illite, chlorite and other substances in the samples.

?We frequently partner with agencies and industry on projects,? said Philip Boudjouk, vice president for research at NDSU. ?CNSE provides specialized instrumentation and scientific expertise to a variety of research partners across a spectrum of industries.?

About NDSU CNSE
NDSU?s Center for Nanoscale Science and Engineering, Fargo, North Dakota, USA, conducts multidisciplinary research with partners in government, industry, private and university sectors. CNSE?s scientific capabilities include materials characterization and analysis, flexible electronics and materials, electronics miniaturization, wireless sensors, RFID, bioactive materials, combinatorial science, and coatings technologies. www.ndsu.edu/cnse

About North Dakota State University
NDSU, Fargo, North Dakota, USA, is notably listed among the top 108 U.S. public and private universities in the Carnegie Commission on Higher Education?s category of ?Research Universities/Very High Research Activity.? As a student-focused, land grant, research institution, NDSU is listed in the Top 100 research universities in the U.S. for R&D in computer science, chemistry, and physical sciences, social sciences, and agricultural sciences, based on research expenditures reported to the National Science Foundation. www.ndsu.edu/research

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by North Dakota State University, via Newswise.

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Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/X0CoHEKTV74/121022192245.htm

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German military sponsors V Corps castle tour

WIESBADEN, Germany - While giving a tour of the Castle Braunfels, Gerhard Adam paused for a moment amidst the antiques and portraits and became nostalgic.
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Adam was not pining for the days of knights and royalty, however. Instead, surrounded by a group of V Corps service members and volunteers, the Braunfels native was missing Texas.
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"If I did not return once a year to New Braunfels (Texas) and see my friends there, I think I would feel as though something was not right," Adam said, punctuating his statement with his hands. "I would miss it."
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Adam's statement was an expression not only of how deep and far back German and American friendships go, but how they continue today. In fact, it was one main reason behind the tour.
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Lt. Col. Helmut Scharfenberg, commander of the Landeskommando Hessen, said his organization sponsored the tour because he wanted to improve on already excellent German and American relations and recognize V Corps family readiness volunteers.
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New Braunfels, Texas, is a sister city to Braunfels, Germany, which is near Giessen and about an hour's drive north of Wiesbaden. New Braunfels is located near San Antonio, Texas. In fact, Prince Carl of Solms-Braunfels founded New Braunfels in 1845, and he was a member of the family that still owns the castle today.
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Scharfenberg said he knew of Braunfels because he grew up in the area and went to school there when he was younger. When he was thinking of places Americans might want to visit, Braunfels came to mind because of the castle and its historic town center. Some of the homes date back to the 1500s. The town itself is 800 years old.
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By all accounts, Scharfenberg was correct. Not only that, but he succeeded in his mission of taking German and American relations to the next level.
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Ruth Tobin, a V Corps family readiness group adviser, said she really enjoyed the company and the camaraderie of the day. Several German Soldiers, V Corps Soldiers and volunteers participated in the tour - about 20 in all.
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"I liked discovering a little village that most Americans didn't even know was here," Tobin said. "Not only that, but it has a sister city in Texas."
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Melissa Spiszer, a V Corps family readiness leader, said she also enjoyed the company, as well as Adam's charming personality.
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Throughout the tour, Adam, a former English teacher, made jokes and explained not only the history of Braunfels, but some cultural items that are found throughout Gemrany. For example, Adam said that the "X" marks on the country's timber-framed homes are a symbol that the builder wanted to bless the home with many children.
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After walking through the historic town, and explaining the town's stocks with Capt. William Noyes standing in them, Adam gave his visitors a private tour of the castle. Only half of it is open to visitors because members of the family that have owned it for 21 generations live in the other half.
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The first room contained several suits of armor, swords and horns from successfully hunted animals. One set was a moose rack from Alaska.
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Adam had Capt. Darrand Williams try on a suit of chain mail and knighted him with a sword. Adams also passed around the chain mail so people could feel its heavy weight.
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From there, the tour began to walk through several other rooms in the castle, all of which were full of portraits of family members who had lived in the castle. The rooms also included a chapel.
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After the tour, the Germany military members hosted a barbecue for the Americans at a nearby lodge. The meal featured bratwurst, salads and German cakes and breads.
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Lt. Col Theresa Straus, acting commander of the V Corps rear detachment, thanked Scharfenberg heartily for the tour and the lunch. "It was very educational," she said, adding that this was the first time Williams and rear detatchment Command Sgt. Maj. Rodney Hobbs had visited a German castle.
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The tour and lunch were a great sign of German and American camaraderie, Straus said, and everyone mixed and had a number of great discussions during lunch.
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Hobbs said he also appreciated the fact that the German-American friendship was not extended only to Soldiers, but to their family members as well.
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He also thoroughly enjoyed the castle tour, Hobbs said. "This is my third tour in Germany, and I hadn't been to a castle yet," he said, shaking his head in dismay.
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"We could have done this on our own, but to have another military do this for us shows a lot of goodwill," Hobbs said. "It shows how far German and American relations have come."
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Scharfenberg expressly thanked the V Corps family readiness volunteers for their hard work and said he hoped everyone's friends and relatives who were deployed would get home safely.
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Germans and Americans should hold more events together, Scharfenberg said.
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Tours of the castle are available to the public in October everyday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on the hour, and from November to March on weekends and public holidays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. On weekdays during these months, tours are still available, but people should call in advance. See www.schlossbraunfels.de for more information about the castle.

Source: http://www.army.mil/article/89765/German_military_sponsors_V_Corps_castle_tour/

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Canada Geese Lift Off - Portland Ontario - Reuters/Gary Cameron

"HarvestHeart" ? HarvestHeart aka "La Boheme, The Libertine". Phoenix, Arizona ... Be humble, for you are made of the earth; Be noble, for you are made of stars - Serbian proverb. ... Here will be scientific marvels, incongruities, things of beauty, all things nature, and some things that make you laugh, wonder and ponder a while. Enjoy. ...Harvest_heart@yahoo.com ...(Talmud quote) "For the unlearned, old age is winter, for the learned, is it the season of the harvest." .... I own pictures that contain "HarvestHeart" on the image. All other materials (photos, stories, art, quotes), are things I enjoyed or found interesting. If you choose to re-blog, please re-blog full post with credits. All contents posted on this blog are copyrighted ? to their respective owners and creators. ---------

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Amazon's Cloud Goes Down, Taking Out Reddit ... - Business Insider

Amazon's cloud went down again today. As we write this, sites like Reddit, Airbnb and Flipboard are fully or partially offline.

Other sites affected including GitHub, Heroku, GameFAQs, Imgur, Turntable, Coursera, Branch, Foursquare and MongoLab.

The problems are with Amazon's East Coast region. Experts say that companies using Amazon should consider spreading themselves across multiple regions. It drives up the costs to use Amazon's cloud but it should also help the site stay open when Amazon fails.

Amazon says its working on the fix right now, according to its status page, which also notes that the outage has been going since about 10:40 Pacific time.

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-cloud-goes-down-taking-out-reddit-airbnb-netflix-flipboard--2012-10

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Makeup, Fashion, Music and Life = Me: Product Review: Avon Ultra ...

Hello ladies! I am back with another product review!?

I have been addicted to lipsticks for quite sometime now and as a matter of fact my first lippies are from Avon. Avon is quite known for their lipsticks and I am surely a fan of it. Their lipsticks are pigmented and the colors are just perfect for Pinay skin- whether you are fair or tanned.

I will be reviewing the Ultra Moisture Rich Lipstick that I got a couple of months back. Sorry if the picture is not that good. I was using a camera phone back then I think.?

Packaging wise, I like that its sleek and classy which is great if you like your make up have that subtle elegance into it. The thing that bothered me though is when I tried to twist the bullet up, it seems to be quite hard which is okay actually.?

I got the shades knock out pink and Lava love.Both lippies are satin finishes which is nice if you don't like too much gloss on your lippies. I have personally prefer matte to satin finishes on my lips since they last a little longer than other lipsticks. If we are talking about lasting power, the avon ultra moisture rich lipsticks do last around 6 hours which is nice. It does transfer easily so you have to re-apply as soon as you finish eating or drinking. ?

You can buy this at any Avon representative at around 300+PHP or if its on sale which is around 250PHP.

Knock Out Pink actually looks pretty dark on the bullet which made me think how the heck can I rock this lip color? But when I applied it on my lips its actually not that dark and its pretty decent. Its creamy but not to the point that its greasy on the lips. I love how the color is nice to use for daytime. I wouldn't wear this for a night out though because the color doesn't really show up, but it does make my lips like this is its natural color.
Lava Love on the other hand is a reddish orange-y color that is quite bright for me. I really need to wear reds more to get use to them. I like the pigmentation of this one and I've receive a lot of compliments one time when I attended a soiree. The color is much better to sport in a night event or if you want your look to stand out more. Over all these lipsticks are actually great to use for both day and night. These lipsticks are wickedly pigmented so a couple of swipes is enough for you for sure.

Things I like about it.
- Cheap and affordable.
- Great from fair skin to morena skin.
- Classy packaging.
- Great color selection.
- Wickedly pigmented.
- Smells yummy!

Things I don't like about it:
- Doesn't last long if you are going to eat and drink a lot.
- The cap doesn't come off easily, you better have a good grip in removing the cap.

Verdict:
I love it!! I seriously love it but because I have tons of product to finish, I prefer to keep it in the mean time.

Will I repurchase?
Maybe. I still have lots of lipsticks in my collection so better finish them up first before buying new ones.

Are you a knock out pink or a lava love girl?

Let me know on the comment box.

Talk to you next time!

Much Love!

xx Alice

Source: http://photoescape06.blogspot.com/2012/10/product-review-avon-ultra-moisture-rich.html

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Slate asks the question "Does the U.S. military still use bayonets?" http://bdto...

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Source: http://www.facebook.com/bdtonline/posts/541375322543206

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Breast Cancer in Men

Many men don?t know it, but they can get breast cancer.

The most recent American Cancer Society estimates in U.S. men show nearly 2,200 new cases of invasive breast cancer in men this year. More than 400 men will die from the disease.

Missy Burkett is the breast nurse specialist at the Breast Health Center at Athens Regional Medical Center and said in her career she personally has only worked with one man diagnosed with breast cancer.

?The man had a palpable breast mass, or lump, and went to his doctor, who said he needed a mammogram and an ultrasound,? she said. ?This patient had a biopsy done that came back as cancer, and his initial reaction was surprise; eyes-wide-big surprised. He wasn?t expecting a diagnosis of breast cancer because he thought that just happened to women.?

Once he knew the problem, he went into ?let?s fix it? mode and told the doctors to do what they needed to do to get rid of it, Burkett said.

?He had a great attitude. He didn?t go into shock,? she recalled. ?Some men will go into major shock and will go through the same emotions that women do, but the shock a man would go through is always more severe than a woman?s because women always know there?s the possibility they could get breast cancer.?

The man Burkett worked with did very well in his treatment and currently is living his normal life.

Breast cancer is 100 times less common among men than women.

For men, the lifetime risk of getting breast cancer is about one in 1,000.

The number of breast cancer cases in men relative to the population has been fairly stable during the last 30 years.

Ashley Woodall, breast health educator at St. Mary?s Health Care System, has helped two male patients diagnosed with breast cancer in her career.

?The male breast cancer patients I have worked with have seemed to have a sense of embarrassment,? she said. ?There also is much disappointment and slight anger.?

To help her patients, Woodall offered as much emotional support as possible and tried not to make them feel different just because they were men.

?I was able to follow them through the whole process from imaging to biopsy, to diagnosis, to surgical referral, to the day of surgery and beyond,? she said. ?I offered them a manual on breast cancer in men, and on the day of surgery, I presented each male patient with a breast cancer bag, which included information, breast cancer magnets, pens, lapel pins, chapstick, a massage and a masculine breast cancer survivor comfort pillow. I called to check on the patients after surgery and gave them my contact information in case they needed any support in the future.?

Men typically discover they have breast cancer after they find a lump or have breast swelling or nipple discharge, nipple inversion, sores on their nipple or the areola (the darker colored ring around the nipple), soreness or enlarged lymph nodes under the arm.

?When men experience any of these (symptoms), it?s important that they go to the doctor right away to have it evaluated, but there are a lot of men that don?t understand that breast cancer can occur in men and will ignore the symptoms,? Burkett said. ?The longer they ignore it, the further the cancer will progress.?

Usually by the time men go to the doctor to have a lump checked, their cancer is at a more advanced stage than would be found in a woman, who are more apt to immediately see a doctor.

?It?s not masculine to have breast cancer, and they feel like it?s not macho to have something going on with their breasts,? Burkett said. ?What they need to realize is that they don?t need to be macho about this. If you have a problem or find something new in your breast, you need to admit it and go see a doctor and have an examination.?

The main difference between breast cancer in men and women is that men usually develop ductal carcinoma, a cancer that forms inside a milk duct.

The cancer treatments for men and women are similar, but when it comes to the surgery, women often have the option of having a lumpectomy.

Doctors typically perform a modified radical mastectomy on a man to remove all of the breast tissue and the nipple, but leave the chest wall muscle.

Woodall and Burkett suggest that men do self breast exams, especially if they have a history of breast cancer in their family.

If the only relatives affected by breast cancer were women, men still need to take the threat of breast cancer seriously.

? Follow faith, health and Blueprint reporter April Burkhart at www.facebook.com/AprilBurkhartABH.

Source: http://onlineathens.com/health/2012-10-22/breast-cancer-men

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