Archives 2017

As a way to cut back on paper waste and to aid in customer convenience, many companies are taking the route of electronic billing. Electronic billing is the process of sending bills to customers via the use of the internet or another electronic network. Customers can then view their bills online and see if there are any issues. If everything appears to be accurate, the customer can then select a form of payment and that selection will initiate a transfer of money from your bank account to the company.

Now, Electronic billing is expected to become even more popular by the year 2020. Not only is it convenient, but it also cuts back on the waste of paper. Many people feel as though all of the bills that doctors offices, dentist offices, and cable companies send to customers waste too much paper. However, by allowing customers to pay and view their bills with the use of a tablet, phone, or computer, they’re allowing their company to be more eco-friendly and efficient.

Plus, it can save these businesses money. Transferring billing to the internet or other online networks cuts the costs on printing paper bills and sending them through the mail. Customer service costs also drop with the use of e-billing because there are fewer mistakes made when using electronic transactions. It also cuts back on the time that was used to actually print and send those bills out, while customers tend to pay e-bills much more quickly than paper bills. Organizations are actually able to save an average of 11.5 cents each billing statement by using e-billing.

Simply put, e-billing is quickly becoming the norm. Even businesses who aren’t sold on the environmental benefits have a clear incentive to make the switch: fewer printing costs and less time spent waiting for customers to pay their bills.

With the market projected to keep growing through 2020, electronic billing is a thing of the present and the future. It can help cut back on the waste of paper, raise revenue, and provide customers with the convenience of paying their bills using a tablet or a phone.

The aviation industry is growing and developing very quickly, especially in the Middle East and Asia Pacific. Additionally, air travel is becoming increasingly available to a larger amount of the world’s population — the International Air Transport Association (IATA) expects air travel will double over the next 20 years.

With the growing industry, companies are preparing for issues like maintenance and operations personnel shortage. To combat potential issues, those within the aviation industry are turning to new methods to offset the environmental impact of the increasing number of flights.

Green aviation involves the consideration of environmental improvements in the area of aerospace. These methods can include things like reduction in emissions and noise, new technologies to improve efficiency, and improved fuel efficiency. Green aviation encompasses all areas of aviation, including airlines, the aerospace supply chain, and aircraft manufacturers.

With general aviation logging 24 million flight hours each year in the U.S., the pursuit of green aviation is more important than ever.

The Solar Impulse 2 became the first manned solar plane to successfully circle the earth last year. While prototypes like this are years away from handling commercial flight, manufacturers are working on finding immediate improvements.

Neste MY Aviation Solutions is one of the many organizations working towards reducing CO2 emissions throughout the aviation industry. Neste Green Hub develops a platform that allows airports, airlines, authorities, local community, and passengers to unite and contribute to more sustainable traveling.

Other organizations are continuously working towards finding green solutions. Honeywell has introduced its own Green Jet Fuel, which aims to cut greenhouse emissions by up to 85% compared to traditional fuels. The fuel alternative has proven to improve flight mileage performance while allowing no changes to be made to the aircraft.

Global shipping networks are an often overlooked polluter. Shipping goods internationally emits greenhouse gases, disrupts marine life, and contributes to water pollution. Kapco Global, an aircraft parts distributor, has helped implement the idea of globally located warehouse locations through worldwide partnerships and established facilities. This means both a faster delivery time for customers and a shorter traveling distance for supplies.

The aviation industry is also implementing modern technology in order to counteract environmental impacts, including using 3-D printing for aircraft parts.

Porsche continues with their commitment to out-braking the competition. The 2019 Porsche Cayenne’s brakes feature iron rotors coated in a thin, ultra-hard layer of tungsten carbide. This allows them to have an extra edge in performance as well as reduced wear and less dust.

While most Porsche owners ignore the occasional squeaking and dust that comes with the maximum braking performance, others have been longing for the expected stopping power with less noise and dust.

Considering this, Porsche tested low-noise, low-dust brake pads, but found them to be less than satisfactory. Instead, Porsche, working with Bosch, looked into making improvements to the rotor instead. They found that while the pads were thought to be the biggest contributor to dust, it was actually the rotors causing most of the dust.

While pads and rotors both lose thickness over time, rotors have a larger surface area — meaning the material that wears off ends up dirtying the wheels.

Porsche reduced the amount of material that wears off the rotor to reduce brake dust. Tungsten carbide can be used for a variety of applications, since it comes in over a dozen different grades. Being several magnitudes harder than steel on the Vickers scale, tungsten carbide is useful in reducing brake dust. Only a small portion of the material is needed relative to iron to provide longevity without adding weight. Each rotor consists of an iron core wearing a 100-micron-thick coating of tungsten carbide. Porsche says it will last up to 30% longer than iron rotors and will reduce brake dust by 90%.

Unfortunately, these new PSCB rotors are incompatible with traditional brake pads, so Akebono provides pads made of a new compound — all parties involved are keeping these pads in secrecy. Dealers will measure the brake’s wear and determine their replacement to ensure customer’s don’t see a distinct reduction in braking performance once the last of the tungsten carbide coating wears away.

The 2019 Cayenne might be the company’s most important launch in a long time. The Cayenne will be available at Porsche dealerships in mid-2018. The base model will start at $66,750 and the Cayenne S will start at $83,950.

The housing market is growing tighter, and with fewer homes for sale, prices are rising accordingly. As a result, remodeling has become the way to go for many homeowners who can’t find a second home. In light of this, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI) released a joint report on the 2017 remodeling market. The data shows the latest trends and the emotional and financial value that homeowners place on certain projects.

According to the report, “after completing a remodeling project 75% of owners have a greater desire to be in their home, 65% say they have increased enjoyment in their home, and 77% feel a major sense of accomplishment when thinking of their completed project. In addition, 56% felt happy when they see their completed projects, and 39% say they feel satisfied,” the report said.

The NAR president, Willaim E. Brown, said that there are a lot of reasons that homeowners are undergoing these projects, according to surveys. Whether that be to impress potential buyers, bring in better offers, or gain more equity in their homes, remodeling projects bring the most value for homeowners. For example, something as simple as bathroom remodels could bring as much as 86.4% return on investment.

NAR reports that, for exterior projects, new roofing is the most popular. The project has an average of 109% return on initial investment, more than any other exterior project. The report also stated that “though new roofing was named the exterior project that most appeals to buyers, it is followed by new vinyl windows, a new garage door, and new vinyl siding.”

“This year’s report confirms how remodeling can increase home value and day-to-day enjoyment,” said Tom Miller, President of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry. “I can’t emphasize enough how important it is to work with a contractor you can trust who adheres to a strict code of ethics and can help define a realistic budget.”

The report also had a “joy rating” system, that ranked each project on what the total enjoyment each project gives the homeowner. Projects that have a perfect score of 10 include a new master suite, which has an estimated cost of $125,000 for a full makeover, and a new steel front doors.

With the housing market getting a little tight, many homeowners are turning to remodeling and renovations. And while the majority of home remodels concern the bathroom, kitchen, or master bedroom, there are quite a few homeowners that are just looking to improve their floors. However, despite this interest in home renovation and flooring renewal, the flooring market isn’t seeing massive growth.

That is not to say that the market isn’t growing; its expected to grow more than the previous year — it’s just not growing as much as initially hoped. However, analysts say this is to be expected, as the economy had a sluggish start this year. National GDP only grew by 1.2% overall, which had an effect on the flooring market. Even epoxy, a floor coating that can last five to 10 years depending on traffic, was affected.

Economists are expecting that there will be a 2.1% growth for 2017 as a whole, which could point to a turnaround in the near future. Santo Torcivia, an economist with Floor Focus, is predicting that the flooring and floor covering market will grow by 5% by the end of the year. This is compared to the 3.1% growth that was experienced in 2016.

One of the key driving factors for the flooring business this year will be the housing market. Numbers are continuing to change from month to month, but housing sales are predicted to be around 1.2 million for the year. This is an increase from the year prior, though still fewer sales than two years ago. The biggest issue for the market is that there is a shortage of homes for sale overall.

A shortage of ready-to-build lots and skilled labor is driving this shortage. Compared to two years ago, the market took a 2.3% dip in the sale of homes.

The nation’s growth is currently below the 3% to 4% that President Trump had originally intended. It will take time for the president’s changes to taxes and infrastructure to occur, meaning that things are not likely to change much in his first year in the White House.

For now, the sluggish but steady economic growth that has characterized the previous few years is here to stay.

New data shows wealth to be the key factor driving children’s participation in sports. According to the Aspen Institute’s Sports and Society program, children between the ages of six and 12 whose household income totals less than $25,000 are three times more likely to be inactive in sports compared to children whose household income totals more than $100,000.

“Sports in America have separated into sports-have and have-nots,” said Tom Farrey, the Sports and Society program’s executive director, to The Atlantic.

Children in low-income areas are also less likely to be exposed to organized sports activities such as track and basketball because such sports are typically associated with parks. Other sports such as swimming or ice hockey require facilities, which are costly to own or rent.

There has been much concern over children in sports in recent years due to physical exhaustion and injury. However, The Atlantic reports that children from low-income housing suffer more enduring losses from missing out on sports opportunities. Youth athletics offer children regular exercise, which in turn leads to improved physical health, better grades, and longevity. They also offer children lessons in teamwork, resilience, and discipline.

According to Time Magazine, the business of youth athletics has turned into a $15.3 billion industry, driven by the idea that achievement on the field may increase a child’s chances to attend college. Yet, only higher-income households are capable of affording these sports programs and the equipment they require.

Forbes reports that one in five American parents spends up to $1,000 on sports equipment per child. In the United States, up to 209,000 girls and 284,000 boys play high school soccer. That comes to a total of $493 million for sports equipment for America’s high school soccer teams alone. Compare this to the $1.5 billion the nation spent in total on camping equipment as a family in 2014.

Low-income schools have been dropping free physical-education classes and are beginning to require athletes to pay for their sports programs. As a result, up to 70% of children leave youth athletics by the age of 13.

This loss of opportunity especially affects female athletes, who have been shown to benefit highly from sports programs. Female athletes have been shown to be more likely to be business executives and politicians. They’re also less likely to develop breast cancer and self-esteem issues.

Self-esteem especially has become a distressing factor as of late. A Dove study on body confidence recently found that up to 89% of women would cancel an important event due to their appearance. In another study, up to 60% of women hair loss sufferers said they would rather have more hair than either friends or money.

“Kids who are excluded for socioeconomic reasons are missing out on all of [these positive opportunities],” said Mark Hyman, an assistant professor at George Washington School of Business. “Sports would help them develop more fully as people.”

Not only do sports help children become more successful later in life both in terms of self-esteem and job opportunities, but they also help to create integration between children who may not otherwise come together due to racial and economic differences.

“Before football, I had never like had different friends of different races,” said one football player to Canadian researchers in an interview. “And in football, everyone’s just, yeah your Jamaican kids, Somalian kids, people from Singapore, some Italians. So it really helps you learn … how to make friends, diverse friends.”

The Sports and Society program’s Tom Farrey is hopeful of movements being made to help improve the lives of low-income children such as the Aspen Institute’s Project Play Summit. “There’s a great desire for solutions in this space,” Farry said. “It’s something that government and the private sector … should be subsidizing because they all benefit.”

The number of reported cases of black lung, a lung disease found in coal miners, has been on the rise in Australia. According to Bloomberg, up to 25 cases of the illness pneumoconiosis have been confirmed in the state of Queensland.

Black lung disease is caused by the inhalation of coal dust over extended periods of time. Bloomberg reports that the illness’ sudden onset is most likely due to the limited control of dust in Australia’s coal mines and the poor use of modern mining technology.

“It is a ticking time bomb for the industry in Australia,” said David Lennox, a resource analyst in Sydney. “It’s a crisis that’s been a long time in the making and, over a long period of time, it will ultimately take lives.”

Since Queensland announced the resurrection of the illness, thousands of coal miners both retired and active have been seeking medical examinations for the disease.

As of 2014, there were a total of 66,211 lawyers actively working in Australia compared to the 1,268,011 practicing lawyers in the U.S. in 2012. According to Stephen Smyth, president of the Construction, Forestry, Mining, and Energy Union, these active lawyers are preparing for the vast number of workers compensation claims certain to be filed.

“No one gave it much of a thought, to tell you the truth,” said Keith Stoddart, a 68-year-old retired coal miner. “When I started in 1970, they said there was no more black lung in the mines.”

Many seniors and younger workers know what to look for work-related illnesses such as musculoskeletal disorders or dermatitis. Even symptoms of common deadly ailments that aren’t work-related are often known such as heart disease, which kills up to 84% of seniors over the age of 65.

Symptoms of rare diseases such as black lung are typically unknown. For this reason, Stoddart reportedly shrugged off the pain he felt in his back until 2015 when he coughed up a black substance as well as blood.

Jason Bing, a 46-year-old coal miner who’s been working in Queensland for nearly 13 years, has also been diagnosed with the disease. Bing is currently in the process of suing previous employers including Anglo American, the third largest coal exporter in the world.

Bing’s lawsuit calls for $2 million AUS in compensation for failing to provide adequate protective equipment and ventilation that would make it safe to work in the mines. However, what makes the case so difficult to argue is that it can take up to “http://www.dnrm.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0010/383941/pneumoconiosis-facts.pdf”>10 years for symptoms of black lung to appear. Yet, the failure to detect the illness may be the fault of Australia’s medical professionals rather than the illness itself.

“The connection between exposure and disease has been known for many decades,” said Tim Driscoll, a professor at the University of Sydney. “So, there seems to me to have been a failure of exposure control.”

According to Driscoll, the disease was most likely left undetected by medical professionals due to poor quality x-rays, poor communication, and x-rays never being reported. It’s for mistakes such as these that home health care businesses, as well as other medical professionals, are recommended to know about five types of insurance including Professional Liability Insurance.

The Queensland state government has since dedicated up to $25 million toward the improvement of coal mining conditions. “The Palaszcuk government’s focus has always been to eradicate this insidious disease that does not belong in the 21st century,” said Mines Minister Anthony Lynham.

A new study by Mayo Clinic disproves a previous assumption that sleeping with your furry friends at night is bad for your health. According to the study, those who sleep with their dogs in their bed were determined to have an average satisfactory sleeping quality of 80%.

The study followed 40 adults and their dogs over a series of seven nights during which both the adults and canines wore motion-tracking devices. Evidence suggests that those who sleep with their pets in bed don’t suffer from poor sleep quality.

However, those who slept with their pets in their room rather than in bed still slept more efficiently with a score of 83%. Why the 3% difference?

The study determined the reasoning behind the lower sleep score was due to the dogs’ movements in their human companion’s bed. The dogs’ movements resulted in more disturbances throughout the night causing interruptions to the owner’s sleep cycle.

This may be due to the fact that dogs’ sleep cycles tend to be shorter than humans. According to Time Magazine, human sleep companions weren’t as disturbing of each other’s sleep cycles.

“Presumably, humans accommodate the needs of their bed partner in an effort to promote sleep in a manner that even the most well-trained dog does not,” said lead author Dr. Lois Krahn in the study.

A single dog or cat in a bed may have the best sleep results, Krahn said, but it’s when multiple animals sleep on the bed that the owner’s sleep may become unhealthily disrupted. Even just one extra hour of sleep is valuable up to 82% of Americans.

It should be noted, however, that the study only analyzed the households of middle-aged, healthy women. And, because there was no control group, the researchers were unable to officially determine whether there was a difference in sleep quality and the size or breed of the dogs.

Despite these drawbacks, Krahn’s message remains the same. “My main recommendation is for people to take a look at their setup and carefully consider whether it is truly working or not,” Krahn said. “And not allow loyalty to their pet to blind them to consequences that aren’t desirable to their sleep.”

According to 47% of adult campers, it’s the joy of camping itself that’s the biggest motivator to pitch up a tent in the great outdoors and enjoy a hot s’more around the fire.

However, citizens of Salem, Oregon didn’t quite share that joy when the city opened its parks to campers for the August 21, 2017, eclipse.

“Over the years, we’ve literally had people pee in our fence,” said Claudia Howells to the Statesman Journal. “And we’re not alone.”

Howells, who’s lived near Bush’s Pasture Park since 1984, was just one of the many Salemers concerned over the use of bathrooms in the park. Citizens were also concerned over general respect for the park and surrounding area.

“I was very negative about it,” Irene Longaker, who’s lived across from the Park for 41 years, said to the Journal.

However, after the eclipse, the campers proved to be gracious about their temporary stay in the park.

The City of Salem provided campers with port-o-potties for bathroom facilities, made signs for proper disposal of garbage, and limited traffic by prohibiting RVs and other vehicles from parking on the grass. According to USA Today, tailgating and fire pits were also forbidden.

Bush’s Pasture Park horticulturist, Tom Beatty, said approximately 1,500 to 2,000 visitors camped in the park the day before the eclipse. The campers were courteous and for the most part cleaned up after themselves. Even Jeff Schumacher, the chair of the South Central Association of Neighbors, who was initially apprehensive of the Salem campers and critical of the free event, was happy to find people enjoying the park responsibly on Sunday night.

Schumacher told the Statesman Journal that the city should be urging visitors to use their hotels and RV parks in order to increase revenue and feed the local economy. However, Salem officials had chosen not to charge for camping in Bush’s Pasture Park in order to provide better crowd control in the morning when the eclipse would bring about larger crowds.

Longaker approved of the parameters set forth by the city. “I’m about to write the city and say they couldn’t have done a better job.”

A group of boy scouts helped bring light to a Danville Township. On Wednesday, August 17, Dalton Rolinitis and three other Boy Scouts from Troop 234 installed solar panels along a series of utility poles along Illinois Route 1’s east side.

Rolinitis, 16, thought of the project back in May as a part of his final step to becoming an Eagle Scout. A high school sophomore, Rolinitis often bikes between Home Gardens and Westville on a mile-long sidewalk between Lete Lane and Lyons Road along Illinois Route 1. The stretch of road is incredibly dark, the lights having been removed years ago.

According to Commercial News, the power poles that were placed along the road were torn away by an F2 tornado in 2013.

“Ameren replaced most of the poles,” reports Commercial News, “but not the lights.”

Without the street lights, the stretch of land was extremely dangerous for those who walk, jog, or bike between Westville and Home Gardens. Pedestrians were at risk of being hit by passing motorists and other pedestrians have been injured after colliding with one another.

Rolinitis and his friends aren’t the only aspiring Eagle Scouts who have embraced green energy. The Boy Scouts of America have become far more eco-friendly over the years, and the group encourages learning about conservation and the human impact on the environment.

Most Americans are aware that fluorescent light bulbs are five times more energy efficient than incandescent bulbs. However, LED lights are considered to be more eco-friendly than fluorescents because of their lack of mercury.

Rolinitis chose to use the latter for his project, opting to use LED lights powered by solar panels as an eco-friendly and inexpensive way to provide the township’s joggers with the light they need.

The lights, 18 in total, cost the township only $306. With the help of fellow scouts Donnie McMasters, Kenny Clarkston, and Kacy Clarkston, the boys attached the 5″x8″ lights to blocks of wood before attaching them to the utility poles 12 feet off the ground. While the light is dim, it brightens as a pedestrian or motorist approaches, and the light will stay on in the dark for up to eight hours.

Should any of the lights break in the future, the township will replace them. For now, the lights will be maintained by the Rolinitis family.