IBGerm

TAMPA, Florida —  A Florida man born without arms says a Tampa bank would not let him cash a check because he couldn’t provide a thumbprint.

It was supposed to be a quick stop at the Bank of America.

"I said, ‘I’m going to run over downtown on my break, cash the check and bring the cash back.’ No big deal," Steve Valdez said. "It turned out to be a very big deal."

Valdez said he was cashing a check from his wife, who has an account at Bank of America. But the teller told Valdez she needed a thumbprint in order to cash it — it was company policy.

It’s not that Valdez didn’t want to provide it. He couldn’t provide it, and  the teller even acknowledged it.

"’It’s obvious that you can’t give us a thumbprint.’ She goes, ‘Let me go check with my supervisor,’" Valdez recalled the teller told him.

Valdez was born without arms and wears prosthetic devices. While at the bank, Valdez said he provided two photo IDs. And still that wasn’t enough. The bank supervisor offered him two options.

"One is, you can bring your wife with you. And the other one, you can open up an account with us. And I said, no, I don’t think so," Valdez added.

Valdez said he reminded bank officials the American for Disabilities Act would have a problem with their unfair treatment, but that didn’t seem to bother them.

"You do realize this is in violation of federal law and really you haven’t heard the end of it," Valdez said. "And she goes, ‘Whatever.’"

They never let Valdez cash his check, but he said days later he received a phone call from a bank regional manager with an apology.

Bank of America spokeswoman Nicole Nastacie says the bank should have "offered alternative requirements if an individual is not able to give a thumbprint."

Valdez had a message for them too:

"They need to alter their policies and procedures, or have alternate plans should something conflict with that."

 

You would think with all the money that the government gave out, they might be a little nicer.

source: Fox news

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) –

***UPDATE***  The vulnerability that sent Microsoft scrambling yesterday and is being used by hackers now to attack Internet Explorer (IE) users may have been reported 18 months ago or more.

In the security advisory it issued yesterday, Microsoft credited a pair of researchers — Ryan Smith and Alex Wheeler — with reporting the bug. Smith and Wheeler once worked together at IBM’s ISS X-Force, although Wheeler now is at Texas-based 3Com’s TippingPoint DVLabs.

Microsoft Corp. has taken the rare step of warning about a serious computer security vulnerability it hasn’t fixed yet.

The vulnerability disclosed Monday affects Internet Explorer users whose computer s run the Windows XP or Windows Server 2003 operating software.

It can allow hackers to remotely take control of victims’ machines. The victims don’t need to do anything to get infected except visit a Web site that’s been hacked.

Security experts say criminals have been attacking the vulnerability for nearly a week. Thousands of sites have been hacked to serve up malicious software that exploits the vulnerability. People are drawn to these sites by clicking a link in spam e-mail.

The so-called "zero day" vulnerability disclosed by Microsoft affects a part of its software used to play video. The problem arises from the way the software interacts with Internet Explorer, which opens a hole for hackers to tunnel into.

Microsoft urged vulnerable users to disable the problematic part of its software, which can be done from Microsoft’s Web site, while the company works on a "patch" – or software fix – for the problem.

Microsoft rarely departs from its practice of issuing security updates the second Tuesday of each month. When the Redmond, Wash.-based company does issue security reminders at other times, it’s because the vulnerabilities are very serious.

A recent example was the emergency patch Microsoft issued in October for a vulnerability that criminals exploited to infect millions of PCs with the Conficker worm. While initially feared as an all-powerful doomsday device, that network of infected machines was eventually used for mundane moneymaking schemes like sending spam and pushing fake antivirus software.

Credit: JORDAN ROBERTSON (AP)

Once again, this is why you use Firefox and not IE, ever….

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RYANAIR boss Michael O’Leary wants passengers to STAND on the budget airline’s flights — in a bid to pack in more people and boost profits.

Passengers would pay less to huddle next to what have been described as “bar stools”, with seatbelts around their waists. O’Leary has already held talks with US plane manufacturer Boeing about designing a jet with standing room. He is now hoping to get the go-ahead from the Irish Aviation Authority before ordering a new fleet. A Ryanair spokesman said: “If they approve it, we’ll be doing it.” O’Leary got the idea from Chinese airline Spring, which put forward similar plans — estimating they could pack in up to 50 per cent more passengers and slash costs by 20 per cent. The controversial Ryanair boss is always looking for ways of saving money. Earlier this year he announced that he intended to charge passengers a pound to spend a penny on board. He also unveiled plans for planes with just one toilet instead of three, which he said would allow six extra seats to be crammed in.  There was more outrage when O’Leary considered introducing a “fat tax” for overweight passengers.

And you thought US domestic air travel was bad!! This guy is crazy!!

 

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The Federal Reserve warned local governments, state contractors, and other potential recipients of the state of California issued IOU’s. Sacramento  issued IOU’s back in 1992, most banks accepted the IOU’s then.

The Fed warned to check with banks about details about the IOU’s before depositing the IOU warrants. $3.4 billion dollars in IOU’s will be handed out. If the IOUs were not handed out California would run out of cash by the end of July.

These are desperate attempts from Californian politicians that are facing a growing budget deficit. The IOUs will add to the growing debt with interest that will amount in the millions.

http://www.sco.ca.gov/5935.html

 

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The following comes courtesy of the Courthouse News Service wire:    

PORTLAND, Ore. (CN) – A woman says Major League Soccer player Nate Jaqua sexually assaulted her when she was attending the University of Oregon on a soccer scholarship. On July 1, 2007, the college soccer player and other members of the team met Jaqua at the popular college hangout Rennie’s Landing, according to the woman’s lawsuit in Multnomah County Court. Jaqua, whose real name is Jonathan Jaqua, discussed the differences between college and professional soccer with the plaintiff and her friends, the lawsuit says. The plaintiff says she trusted Jaqua because of his Major League status. At midnight, she headed home alone, but says Jaqua insisted on walking with her for several blocks. That’s when Jaqua attacked the plaintiff and “subjected her to a brutal, forcible sexual assault,” the lawsuit claims. The plaintiff says she had to quit the soccer team because of her memories, is afraid to be alone and is scared of men. Represented by Randall Vogt, she demands $10 million in damages.

Jaqua has played for Los Angeles Galaxy and the Houston Dynamo. He currently plays with the Seattle Sounders.

What do you think? Guilty? Did he do it? Is she just going after money?

 

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How It Works

Boiled down to its simplest principles, a wind generator´s rotating blades convert the wind´s kinetic energy into rotational momentum in a shaft. The rotating shaft turns an alternator, which makes electricity. This electricity is transmitted through wiring down the tower to its end use.

The blades use engineered airfoils, matched to the alternator, that capture the wind´s energy. Most modern wind generators use three blades, the best compromise between the highest efficiency possible (one blade) and the balance that comes with multiple blades. Together, the blades and the hub they are attached to are termed the rotor, which is the collector of the system, intercepting winds that pass by. Most turbines on the market today are upwind machines—their blades are on the windward side of the tower. A few downwind machines are available, but neither configuration has a clear performance advantage over the other.

In most small-scale designs, the rotor is connected directly to the shaft of a permanent magnet alternator, which creates wild, three-phase AC. Wild, three-phase electricity means that the voltage and frequency vary continuously with the wind speed. They are not fixed like the 60 Hz, 120 VAC electricity coming out of common household outlets. The wild output is rectified to DC to either charge batteries or feed a grid-synchronous inverter. In most designs (up to 15 KW in peak capacity), the rotor is usually connected directly to the alternator, which eliminates the additional maintenance of gears. In systems 20 KW and larger, as well as some smaller wind systems (like the Endurance, Tulipo, or Aircon), a gearbox is used to increase alternator speed from a slower turning rotor.

The blades must turn to face the wind, so a yaw bearing is needed, allowing the wind turbine to track the winds as they shift direction. The tail directs the rotor into the wind. Some sort of governing system limits the rotor rpm as well as generator output to protect the turbine from high winds. A shutdown mechanism is also useful to stop the machine when necessary, such as during an extreme storm, when you do not need the energy, or when you want to service the system.

How Wind Turbines are Rated

Wind turbine rating is a tricky affair. While solar-electric module or microhydro-electric turbine production can be predicted fairly realistically based on rated output, this number is very misleading with wind turbines. Why? Because rated output is pegged to a particular wind speed, and different manufacturers use different wind speeds to determine rated output. Also, the power available in the wind varies with the cube of its speed, so small increases in wind speed result in large increases in power available to the rotor. A 10 percent increase in wind speed yields a 33 percent increase in power available in the wind. Conversely, this means that a turbine rated at 1,000 watts at 28 mph might produce only 125 watts or less at half that wind speed, 14 mph.

So what´s a wind turbine buyer to do? Ignore the peak output and the power curve. Look for the monthly or annual energy numbers for the turbine, estimated for the average wind speed you expect or measure at your site. These will be given in KWH per month (or year) in the manufacturer´s specifications for each turbine. Energy is what you´re after, not peak power! If, for example, you are looking for a turbine that can produce 300 KWH per month, and you know that you have a 10 mph average wind speed at the proposed turbine height, you can shop for a turbine that is predicted to generate that much energy in that average wind speed.

If you can´t get energy production estimates from the manufacturer or a turbine owner, look for a different manufacturer. This is basic information that any manufacturer should supply. However, knowing a turbine´s swept area may also help you calculate the annual energy output for the wind turbine. All other things being equal, ″there´s no replacement for displacement.″ Hugh Piggott gives a rough formula for calculating output based on average wind speed and swept area in his HP102 article. Jim Green at the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) developed a similar formula: annual energy output (AEO) in KWH = 0.01328 x rotor diameter (ft.) squared x average wind speed (mph) cubed.

A turbine´s revolutions per minute (rpm) at its rated wind speed can give you some idea of the relative aerodynamic sound of the machine, and also speaks to longevity. Slower-turning wind turbines tend to be quieter and last longer. High rpm machines wear out components, such as bearings, much faster. In addition, the faster blades move through the air, the greater the possibility that they will waste some of that energy as sound from the blades.

How To Choose A Wind Turbine

Trying to keep an inexpensive wind generator running can be an uphill battle that you´ll soon tire of. But expect to pay more for a better machine—it´s a tough job to design and manufacture a long-lasting, small-scale wind generator.

The bottom line: Buy a turbine that has a very good track record and a good warranty—five years is preferable but not always available in the small wind industry. A warranty is one indication of the manufacturer´s confidence in their product, and their intention to stand behind it.

Real-world reports from users carry even more weight than a warranty, so search for people who own the model of turbine you´re considering buying, and get the straight scoop from them about performance, durability, reliability, and maintenance issues.

Note that a number of the wind turbines listed here are relatively new introductions with not very much customer run-time in North America. These turbines include the ARE, Eoltec, Kestrel, and Skystream. We recommend that you contact either your local wind turbine installer, or the manufacturers or importers and find out how many of these machines are actually operating in North America. Then contact the owners, and inquire about their experience and satisfaction with both the machine and the manufacturer or importer.

Some manufacturers make only battery-charging machines, and may offer a variety of turbine voltages. Others produce machines intended to connect to grid-synchronous inverters without batteries. One machine even includes an inverter integrated with the turbine itself. Make sure you´re buying a machine that is appropriate for your intended use.

When you look at prices, keep in mind that just buying a wind turbine will not get you any wind-generated electricity. You´ll also need most or all of the components mentioned elsewhere. Also budget for equipment rental, like a backhoe and crane, concrete and rebar, electrical components, shipping, and sales tax. Unless you do all of the work yourself, also factor in installation labor expenses. These costs can add up significantly, so make sure that you research and understand all of the associated expenses before committing to a purchase. Many people are quite surprised to learn that the wind turbine cost can range from only 10 percent to as much as 40 percent of the entire wind system´s expenses.

Small-scale wind energy is not for the half-hearted, uninvolved, or uncommitted, and probably not for folks who never change the oil in their vehicles (or are willing to spend the bucks to hire someone to do the tower work). The North American landscape is littered with failed installations: Designs not fully thought-out or tested, machines bought because they were cheap, and installations that required more time and money for repairs than they ever yielded in electricity generated. Many of the failures were the result of wishful thinking and too little research. That said, there are tens of thousands of happy wind-electric system owners. These owners did their homework—purchasing, designing, and installing rugged and well-thought-out systems on adequately sized towers. In addition, they are either committed to maintaining the systems, or to hiring someone to do this regular work.

While many first-time wind turbine buyers may be looking for a bargain, second-time wind turbine buyers are seeking the most rugged machine they can afford. You can avoid a painful “learning experience″ by focusing on durability, production, warranty, and track record, and not on price alone, or on peak output. You don´t want to depend on the low bidder for something as important to you as your long-term energy investment.

Credit:

http://www.homepower.com