“Each year, oil and fuel spills are caused by accidents involving tankers, barges, pipelines, trucks and storage facilities. When oil leaks into water, it spreads out rapidly forming a thin layer called a sheen. It can be harmful to birds, mammals, fish and plant life, and it can foul beaches and coastal areas. Search here to see some of the cases handled by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Emergency Response Division, which provides technical and scientific help when oil spills into waterways.”
In one of the classic understatements of aviation history, Eric Moody turned on the flight intercom of his British Airways 747 and reported to his 248 passengers:
Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. We have a small problem. All four engines have stopped. We are doing our damnedest to get them under control. I trust you are not in too much distress.
The date was 24 June 1982, and Moody’s 747 was south of Java, en route from Heathrow to Auckland, amidst an ash cloud from Mount Galunggung in Indonesia. At first it looked as if the only hope was to ditch the plane in the ocean. However, the crew was able to glide the plane (let’s all nod now to engineers who managed to create a jumbo jet that descends only one meter for every 15 flown without power) until successfully restarting three of the four engines, but the damage from the cloud made for a harrowing landing over the mountainous terrain around Jakarta. In 1989, another 747 temporarily lost use of all four engines due to a volcanic plume (from Alaska’s Mt. Redoubt).
Not surprisingly, since the British Airways incident, volcanic plumes—previously studied more closely for their climatic effects—have become a preoccupation of weather forecasters. The world meteorological and aviation communities have collaborated on the International Airways Volcano Watch, whose advisories Thursday led to the cancellation of flights across northern Europe due to the eruption of Iceland’s Eyjafjalla volcano. It will be hard to overstate the consequence of this eruption for travelers around the world; it is already being compared to the no-fly days after 9/11.
The Science and Engineering Library hosts a number of databases that will give you access to the peer-reviewed literature dealing with the effects of volcanic eruptions on climate and weather.
The American Mathematical Society, the American Statistical Association, the Mathematical Association of America, and the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics have announced that the theme for Mathematics Awareness Month, April 2010, is Mathematics and Sports.
It is a very good news to us in the Science and Engineering library to hear that Richard Kerekes is to receive the 2010 TAPPI Gunnar Nicholson Gold Medal Award.
From the UBC Applied Science press release:
The award recognizes an individual who has created a pre-eminent scientific and engineering achievement that has proven of commercial benefit to the world’s pulp, paper, board and forest products industries.
“Dr. Kerekes’ contributions to research, technology and education for our industry over a 38-year period are exemplary and make him a deserving recipient for TAPPI’s highest honor,” said Larry N. Montague, President of TAPPI. “He has made numerous significant contributions to papermaking technology during his career, including founding the Pulp and Paper Centre at The University of British Columbia where he established a research program between UBC and Paprican.”
“To a remarkable degree, he has contributed to most all of the unit operations in papermaking, from stock chests to calenders,” said Gary A. Baum, 2009 Gunnar Nicholson Gold Medal Winner, who nominated Kerekes for the award. “His research has been characterized by a blend of solid science and the application of fundamental principles to the solution of practical problems.”
To see some of Prof. Kerekes publications in the Web of Science database (around 70 articles) , please use this search:
Subject Heading=(MULTIDISCIPLINARY SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY OR PHYSICAL SCIENCES) AND Author=(KEREKES R*) AND Institution=(UNIV BRITISH COLUMBIA OR PULP PAPER RES INST CANADA OR PAPRICAN)
The earliest article dates back to 1974 and the newest was published last year.
Relief was the order of the day for Canadian scientists on Thursday as the federal government brought down its fiscal blueprint for 2010-11.
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty moved to partially offset scheduled cuts in the budgets of the nation’s three granting councils, though they’ll still take a blow and there’ll be tighter competition for research operating grants.
I have a personal interest in geoengineering and I tend to read many publications that discuss these topics. Lat week Science had a short article about geoengineering that I found interesting:
. Eli Kintisch (26 February 2010). Science327 (5969), 1070-b. [DOI: 10.1126/science.327.5969.1070-b]
