Collecting data manually can get tedious. It gets more challenging when you have to collect and report weather data of greater area (such as states or counties when compared to a small town or a city) to a central location which will be broadcasted for the residents of those locations. Automated weather stations were developed for this sole purpose.

Auto weather systems are intended to save labor or collect data from a remote location. they have wireless communications as their integral part as they send recorded weather data through mobile or satellite technology. The automatic weather system may or may not report real time data depending on whether or not it has Argos system or global positioning system. They have the facility of saving the data for later recovery.

Automatic weather systems are normally installed on electricity poles or masts (these arrangements generally measure wind speed or the level of solar radiation). The components of an automatic weather system is the Data logger. It logs the data for future references. The main function of a data loggers is, measuring and storing the information from every sensor. Calculating the data (such as minimum, maximum and average). A data logger can store the data in its own memory or an external memory (maybe a SD card). They communicate with their (remote) server using different protocols, GSM GPRS or CDMA or RS232 to name a few.

Automatic weather stations that have solar panels are connected parallelly with the rechargeable batteries. The solar output is at its optimum for 5 hours a day. Mounting and position plays a vital role in power generation.

Weather predictions have improved since the past decade as today’s weather stations use mathematical equations and powerful computers that collect humongous data that helps it predict weather with better accuracy.

Personal automatic weather stations are generally for entertainment and educational purposes. The data collected by some of them are aired on radio or posted on the internet. Personal radio stations might differ in the readings and accuracy as the ones collected by meteorological departments, as the instruments used might have been calibrated or placed in a different way.

In totality, weather stations play an important role in keeping a vigil on the changing weather and alerting the concerned authorities to take necessary measures.

Cord blood is the blood in the baby’s umbilical cord. It contains stem cells that can be used to cultivate blood vessels, organs, and tissues.
Cord blood banking involves collecting blood left in your newborn’s umbilical cord and placenta and storing it for future medical use. Cord blood contains stem cells that are potentially lifesaving cells.

For cord blood storage, you have two main options; You can donate your baby’s cord blood to a public cord blood bank for anyone who needs it, or You can store your baby’s cord blood in a private cord blood bank for future use.

Cord blood is collected right after birth. The collection process is painless. It has the following procedure,

Clamping and cutting the cord
After delivering the baby, whether vaginally or by Cesarean, the cord is clamped and cut in the usual way. You can delay cord clamping only for a brief period (not more than a minute or two). If cord clamping is delayed for too long, the blood will clot in the cord. And once the blood gets clotted, it’s of no benefit to anyone thus it can’t be collected for storage.

Collecting the cord blood
The medical provider then inserts a needle into the umbilical vein on the part of the cord that is still attached to the placenta.The blood (some 100 to 150 ml) drains into a collection bag. The entire process of extracting the blood from the cord takes less than 10 minutes. Finally, the cord blood is shipped to a cord blood bank, where it’s tested, processed, and preserved in the cryogenic fluid for long-term storage. Some cord blood banks now give us the option of collecting a segment of the umbilical cord in addition to the cord blood. Umbilical cord tissue contains stem cells that are different from cord blood stem cells.

Since, Cord blood is a rich source of blood stem cells. Stem cells are the building blocks of the blood and immune system. They can develop into other types of cells, so they can help repair tissues, organs, and blood vessels and can be used to treat a host of diseases.

If a person suffering from a terminal disease has a failed treatment or if the disease reoccurs, the doctors often do a stem cell transplant. A transfusion of stem cells from the bone marrow, peripheral blood (blood in the bloodstream), or cord blood from a healthy donor can help create a new blood and immune system, giving the patient a better chance of making a full recovery. It’s easier to match transplant patients with cord blood than with other sources of stem cells because the cord blood stem cells are less likely to reject the transfusion.

The United States of America has been known for its extreme weather. It has areas that are Coldest, Warmest, wettest and driest. Over the past decades, the country has experienced record breaking (minimum and maximum) temperatures and have measured rain gauge brimming rainfall. There are states that have witnessed catastrophic weather conditions.

States like Montana and Oklahoma have witnessed some land ripping tornadoes. Montana facing some of the harshest weathers like floods and tornadoes through the past decades have incurred huge losses.Oklahoma being in the tornado alley has witnessed level five tornadoes that proved to fatal at very magnitudes, let alone millions of dollars’ worth of loss.

Mississippi has had a deadly weather in the past few years. Winds with an average speed of 150 kmph hit Hattiesburg in the recent year which cost the state a huge fortune. In addition to this, the Mississippi river has been flooded to such extreme levels that had not been witnessed since the early 1900’s. Flooding of the river alone cost a state some three billion dollar worth of losses.

Nevada is notorious for its blistering heatwave. With temperatures soaring up to 115 degree Fahrenheit, this extreme weather condition has left the Nevadans susceptible to heatstroke, which has resulted in state’s higher fatality rate. The heat stroke which usually takes the form of wild fire has resulted in destruction of the state’s wild life, which also effects the state’s economy.

Despite being home to United States’ one percent population, Arkansas has recorded fatality rates that were mainly attributed to flash floods. Other extreme weather conditions such as tornadoes has resulted in tens of deaths and injuring hundreds of citizens. Extreme weather does not only kill and injure people it also effects the yield of the state. Mississippi river flooding in the Arkansas border resulted in severe crop damage.

Wyoming is one of those states that was never in the news because of extreme weather. But, due to climatic changes, it has experienced its share of extreme weather since the past few years. Wyoming has experienced multiple avalanches in Teton, snake river and Wyoming range.
Alabama has been in the news for extreme weathers in the recent years. A tornado outbreak which ripped through the state in a four day period resulted in 100’s of casualties.

Our body is a natural marvel and it is at its best form when it is surrounded by nature. And horticultural therapy facilitates to recreate that missing connection.

So, what is exactly horticultural therapy?
A horticultural therapy, unlike the regular therapy uses plants and gardening activities to engross an individual to accomplish specific recovery objectives, with the help of a qualified therapist. This form of therapy uses physical presence of flora to induce the human body to feel healthier, which eventually leads to an improvement in the mental state. The main aim of horticultural therapy is to aid the person to accept their inhibitions naturally and help them resolve whatever ordeals they are dealing with. It is an effective healing technique which can bring a purpose and a sense of belonging to the person.

How does it work?
This therapy encourages people to take up planting and gardening activities which creates a positive and a fulfilling ambience. It increases outdoor activities, concentration, motor skills, and regulates the heartbeats and blood pressure as well. Besides fostering psychological and physiological benefits, it also aids the person to boost communication in a social setting. There are certain group activities conducted which are specially designed to bring people together, which promotes the ethic of collaboration, friendship and respect. And obviously as horticulture is an opportunity to learn a new skill, it increases cognitive capabilities, happiness and self-esteem.

Who can participate in a horticultural therapy program?
Horticultural therapy is valuable for elderly, disabled, felons, and people suffering from mental disorders or terminal illnesses, and also for individuals recovering from physical trauma. But anyone can participate in the horticultural therapy to escape the maddening stress and tensions of the routine. It’s effective and safe for people of all background and ages. Apart from the fact that it uses plants to re-establish a sense of spiritual harmony, horticultural therapy is extremely inclusive about its learners. You will find that this therapy is practiced in various sorts of social settings such as hospitals, senior citizen homes, correction centers, rehabilitation homes, botanical gardens, foster homes, etc.

Are there any educational courses to be a professional horticultural therapist?
Unlike the past, horticulture in the present has evolved on a drastic level. There are many channels which have opened to make horticulture an accessible recovery program. If one is aspiring to become a horticultural therapist, there are many college programs and certifications for which one can enroll. As a horticultural therapist, individuals will get an opportunity to work in retirement centers, schools, hospitals, correctional programs, etc.

If you are looking to go fishing on a Sunday afternoon, there is one thing you must keep an eye on before heading out of home the fishing report. A fishing report is written by people who go fishing, it essentially talks about the type of fish available in a certain area, the weather conditions, tidal waves, and the intensity of the ocean current. A fishing report is ideally used by fishermen to know where they can find a certain type of fish they are looking for. It helps them determine where to cast their lines.

The water temperature can define the activeness of the fish in that area. If the temperature is high, then the fish would not move around a lot as it will be significantly hot. Similarly, if it is cold, then they will not move at all. To sum it up, unless the temperature of the water is pleasant, the fish will not indulge in a significant amount of movement. It is difficult to lure resting fish as they will not bite or chase the lure.

Another important component of a fishing report is the water conditions. Whether the water is still or moving, the pace of the movement (if any), if the water is muddy or full of debris are factors to be kept in mind. If the water is moving too quickly or there is a significant amount of mud in the water, then it will be a bad day to go fishing. The fish will not be able to exercise complete control on their movement and will not be able to see the bait if it is too muddy.

These reports are made according to different regions which help the fishermen decide when and where to go fishing. For example, fishing reports of Texas, Washington state, green bay etc. A fishing report of Texas would broadly include the weather condition, wind speed, when the fish are biting, where they are biting, and the types of bait that are effective.

Fishing report of Texas

Texas is home for Saltwater fish like Black Drum, Redfish, Spanish Mackerel, and many others. If you are going out fishing in this season you will come across Snapper (red), Spotted Seatrout, Flounder, Redfish, and Black Drum. The best time to go fishing during spring is late-afternoon and early evenings. The fish bite due to a high metabolism and digestion. The sun overhead helps the fish move around adequately.

Storm chasing came into existence when David Hoadley from North Dakota started chasing storms back in 1956. He used to collect the data (predictions) from weather stations and airport control towers. Neil Ward together with Oklahoma university played a major role in institutionalizing storm chasing. Oklahoma university together with NSSL (national severe storms laboratory) initiated the tornado intercept project in the year 1972.

Storm chasing now is more of a recreational endeavor and is seldom research specific. Its main intentions remain photography and video recording. It is one of the favorite endeavors for thrill seekers who like to live life on the edge by chasing dangers.

Storm chasing can also be used for scientific work is generally cited as a goal. Direct participation in such work is almost always impractical except for those collaborating in an organized university or government project. Storm chasers are also storm spotters. They report observations of hazardous weather to the concerned authorities. As these are real time reports, they benefit real-time warnings with practically seen information as well as science which increases the reliability of severe storm databases used by weather stations and climatologist.

Storm-chasing is generally done using light vehicles that can maneuver on difficult roads. Normally they are trailed along with an RV that has make shift radars and other weather-tracking gadgets that are used to spot changes in weather and probable development of a storm in the nearby area.

Storm chasers are not generally paid to chase, with the exception of television media crews in certain television market areas, video stringers and photographers, and researchers such as a handful of graduate meteorologists and professors. An increasing number do sell storm videos and pictures and manage to make a profit.

You don’t need a specific qualification to be a storm chaser. Local National Weather Service offices do offer storm spotter training classes, which are usually held during the spring.

Storm chasers come from a wide variety of occupational and socioeconomic backgrounds. Chasers may be professors, scientists from other fields, engineers, programmers, students, teachers, pilots, medical doctors, postal workers, laborers, photographers, or from any other totally unrelated background. A large majority of chasers are male. Although the ages range from teenagers to those in their 60’s, the average age is probably around 35. Many of these storm chasers possess college degrees and a large number of them live in the central and southern region of The United States.

In the ever-growing field of technology, the need for clean and sustainable power generation go hand in hand. With the ever-depleting natural resources that we have been using since the first sprout of evolution, it is becoming more and more difficult to garner clean energy. That’s when solar technology came into existence. Solar technology uses sun energy that can power up things, from toy car to a whole city. It can be stored in a simple photovoltaic cell or solar panels depending on the purpose.

Solar panel is a collection of solar cells. The more light hits the cells the more electricity is produced. There are different types of silicon present for almost 90% of the World’s photovoltaics today are based on some variation of silicon. The silicon used in Photo voltaic cells has many forms. Efficiency should not be your primary concern. As cost and space efficiency are the determining factors for most people.

For people having space constraints for thin film solar panels, in order to limit the amount of space photo voltaic system takes up, crystalline-based solar panels can be a good option. Although there are not a whole lot of solar panel system installers that offer thin-film solar panels for residential use at this point.

The 180, 200 and 220 watts rated solar panels are usually of the same size. They are manufactured exactly the same way, but yield different results when tested, hence they end up in different categories for power output. It is recommended to go for the highest rated power output for a particular physical size.

Both mono and polycrystalline solar panels are good choices and offer similar advantages. Even though polycrystalline solar panels tend to be less space efficient and monocrystalline solar panels tend to produce more electrical power, this is not always the case. It would be nearly impossible to recommend one over the other, as different locations have different requirements.

Like for instance, monocrystalline solar panels are slightly more expensive, since they are slightly more space-efficient. A solar panel system made up of one polycrystalline and one monocrystalline solar panel, both rated 220-watt, would generate the same amount of electricity, but the one made of mono-crystalline silicon would take up less space Lowest Costs materials used in solar panel systems. If you want the lowest costs per rated power, or in other words, pay as little as possible for a certain amount of and electricity. At the end it depends on what appliances you are choosing to run on solar power. So consider takinng an opinion from a solar panel installer before deciding to install one for your home.

We have grown up listening to our favorite rock artists strumming away on their expensive guitars, melodies and tunes of yesteryear’s that we keep shut up in a box of memories. In that very box, in addition to the fond smells, sights and sounds of younger days are some long forgotten, half fulfilled desires.

These desires have something to do with the rockstar and his expensive equipment- his electric guitar! As a child, many of you must have harbored the desire of owning a guitar. Some enthusiastic and passionate ones among us may have also taken the leap of faith and bought one. If you weren’t lucky enough to get one when young, go ahead and rekindle your teenage romance with the enigmatic electric guitar and escape into the bygone awesome days of freedom and harmony! If you are a budding musician hoping to make it big, read on to know all about getting the right pick!

Almost every guitar player who picks up the hobby, most often than not, does so after seeing her/his favorite artist look awesome with their best buddy (the electric guitar) on stage. Although, you may want to buy the very same guitar, it is important that you consider your long-term intent and utility. To fulfill the aesthetic purpose, you could turn to your choice of artist for inspiration and decide the look (of the guitar) you want to go for. This would help you choose easily from a wide range of guitars and you would be a step closer to getting the desired pick.

A beginner who wants to buy a guitar must make sure that it is properly sized, sounds great and matches perfectly with your taste and desire. Full sized electric guitars vary immensely in size and weight. The right pick would be the one that comfortably fits you. Make sure the neck of the guitar feels comfortable in your hands.

For people with some hands on playing experience, considerations vary slightly. It is important that you do some pick-up, bridge and intonation examinations before buying. With experience comes a desire for quality, therefore, it is only wise to pay more for the guitar that is right for you. Chances are high that you have a choice of guitar already in your mind, if you do, you must just go for it.

The biggest consideration before buying any musical instrument is to identify the utility you want to draw from it. Once that is set, you are free to choose the one that satisfies your aspiration!