Can of Whoop Ass for Iran - Editorial Maze Cartoon by Yonatan Frimer and RSL

Can Of Whoop Ass for Iran - Maze

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Editorial Cartoon Maze of a can of whoop ass for Iran with Israel and the USA debating opening it or not.

Home finale for three Vols By: Wes Rucker

Home finale for three Vols By: Wes Rucker (source article)

KNOXVILLE -- What was intended to be a simple video e-mail message to the University of Tennessee turned into cut-down comedy hour.

UT senior basketball players Wayne Chism, Bobby Maze and J.P. Prince were asked merely to speak into the camera, thank students for their support this season and encourage them to attend senior night festivities before tonight's game against Arkansas.

Part of the senior night promotion includes free headbands to students, many of whom plan to wear them awkwardly high atop their heads in a tribute to Chism's self-described "yarmulke."

But the cameraman made a mistake. He didn't give the players a script.

"Come get your free headband," Chism said. "We're all going to wear one."

Tennessee's Wayne Chism (4) shoots past Florida's Alex Tyus (23) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Sunday, Jan. 31, 2010, in Knoxville, Tenn. Chism is a senior this year. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

"Umm ... I'm not," Prince interrupted. "You couldn't pay me to wear one."

"Just because your head's too big," Maze responded. "We'd need a slingshot to get one on your big ol' head."

"My head's smaller than either of your nostrils," Prince shot back. "Your nasal strip would be bigger than my headband. When you sneeze, everyone in this arena gets wet."

Without blinking, Maze then wondered aloud whether students should get Prince's acne medication to go along with their Chism headbands.

Not to be outdone, Chism simply offered, "Y'all both ugly."

A normal video wouldn't have seemed appropriate, given the circuitous routes UT's seniors have taken to arrive at this point.

Chism, a four-star prospect and Pearl's first high-profile recruiting commitment to the Vols, is the only man left from the star-studded 2007 signing class. Tyler Smith, a Tennessee native who transferred to UT and became an All-Southeastern Conference forward and team captain, was on track to be honored tonight before getting dismissed from the program in January.

"I don't even know how to answer that question right now," Chism said regarding the losses of Smith and former classmates Duke Crews, Ramar Smith, Josh Tabb and Marques Johnson. "It's crazy, though. I mean, I came in with a lot of people, and through the times we've been here a lot of people have came and gone. Being the one left on senior night is kind of disappointing, but I know the guys are out there doing something better with their lives.

"They're still my brothers, and I still love and care about them."

Some left Chism's class, but others arrived, too.

Prince -- also a Tennessean -- transferred to UT in time to play three mostly successful seasons for the Vols.

Maze, a former Baltimore-area high school star, arrived last year after two seasons at Oklahoma and Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College.

"Everybody's got a story, but all that matters is that we came to Tennessee, we became a family and we won a lot of big basketball games," Maze said. "And those of us still here are going to leave with our heads held high."

Prince and Chism said they'd rather focus on Arkansas than get too caught up in senior night emotions.

"It's my last time playing here, but I don't want to make more out of it than it is right now," Prince said. "I've had some great times here, and we've won a lot of games in front of a lot of a great fans, and I'm going to miss it one day. But stuff like that won't hit me until years from now.

"I don't want to think about it too much right now, but you just want to leave the place better than when you came here, and I think we've done a good job of that. I'm proud of what we've done."

Chism opened up a little bit more than Prince.

"I kind of thought about it yesterday," Chism said. "I was like, 'Yeah, I'm just about to play my last home game.' It came pretty fast, so I was like, 'Wow.' But not excited."

After a slight nudge, the quirky big man said he's already seen the fruits of his UT labor.

"When you look back, you'd see all the orange seats were kind of empty back then, and you'd only see some people there at the games," said Chism, who has played more games than any Vol in history and is on track to graduate in May with a double major. "It was like, is it a D-II school or what? It's supposed to be a D-I school, it turned around when Coach Pearl got here -- and our first signees for him -- and then a lot of things changed from there. That gym became packed every game. Every game started being sold out because of the way Coach Pearl has turned this team around, and he's still doing it.

"I'm very proud. Back when I was in high school, people always said, 'Man, you shouldn't go to Tennessee.' Now when I go back home, everybody's a Tennessee fan."

Maze was the most openly emotional of the trio. That's not surprising, considering the point guard came to UT with a less-than-stellar reputation off the floor but is on pace to leave in May as a two-year starter who graduated and made the honor roll with a 3.5 senior-year GPA.

"This place means everything to me," Maze said. "Tennessee gave me a chance to change my identity and what people thought about me. When I was at Oklahoma, I was young and immature and got into a little bit of trouble and made some bad decisions. But since I've been here, there's been a total change. I haven't been in any off-the-court issues. I haven't been in any trouble. I'm going to graduate. I've changed my whole life around.

"I think of my two years here as a blessing; a changing point in life, a transition from a boy into a man. I will remember that my whole life."

But tonight ends the seniors' home careers only. They potentially have several more weeks to play.

"Nobody can ever take away that we beat the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the nation my senior year ... but we're not done yet," Maze said. "I want to come back here one day and be able to show my children hopefully a picture of my team and me, and I can tell them, 'Look what I was a part of.'

"Hopefully we can earn a big banner for this place, too."

Other contacts for Wes Rucker are www.twitter.com/wesrucker and www.facebook.com/tfpvolsbeat.

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How Wind Turbines Work...

How wind turbines work

Electricity from the wind - how turbines work Wind turbines offer part of the solution to the world's renewable energy sourced electricity needs, and in some countries currently represents over 10% of the electricity supply. This percentage will no doubt increase in the years ahead and the sight of wind turbines scattered across landscapes will become an increasingly common occurrence. It's all a part of the battle to reduce global warming induced climate change and to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. While we're likely most familiar with the huge turbines that crank out electricity for hundreds or thousands of residences, there are now many smaller options available for residential use. Wind and solar energy connection It's important to understand that wind is actually a form of solar energy - so by saying that a wind turbine harnesses solar power isn't totally incorrect. Wind is a phenomenon that occurs caused by the uneven heating of the Earth's surface in combination with the spinning of the planet on its axis. Turbine design A wind turbine, instead of operating like a fan in your home that uses electricity to create wind, uses wind to create electricity. The blades of the turbine are shaped in such a way that wind causes them to rotate, which spins a low speed shaft with a gear at the end which is connected to another smaller gear on a high speed shaft that runs through a generator housing. The generator creates electricity using much the same principle as the alternator on your car (depending on the turbine type). A magnetic rotor on the high speed shaft inside the generator housing spins inside loops of copper wire that are wound around an iron core. As the rotor spins around the inside of the core it creates "electromagnetic induction" through the coils that generates an electrical current. That current is then regulated and fed into the grid (or a residential grid connect system) after some modification so that it can be used in our homes or routed into a battery bank for storage. Where a battery bank is used, a regulator prevents overcharging. The most common wind turbine is the horizontal-axis, which looks somewhat like a traditional windmill, but there are also vertical-axis designs that look similar to an egg-beater or paddle wheel laid on its side. horizontal axis wind turbine farm - large scale electricity production Horizontal and vertical axis wind turbine models for home use Image courtesy Energy Matters Australia - Wind Turbine Specialists In the horizontal-axis type, a yaw mechanism in the turbine shaft is utilized to turn the wind turbine rotor into the wind, increasing efficiency. In most cases with wind farm turbines, this is a powered by a small electric motor and computer monitoring. Turbine size and output Wind turbines for commercial electricity production usual range from 100 kilowatts to 5 megawatts. At the time of writing, the largest wind turbine in the world had a rotor diameter of 126 m (390 feet) and the potential to generate enough electricity for 5000 households. A wind turbine for home use has rotors between 8 and 25 feet in diameter and usually has the potential to generate between a few hundred watts and 6 kilowatts of electricity. Some wind turbines can be used in conjunction with a grid connect system. For every kilowatt hour of electricity produced by wind energy or other green means, approximately 1.5 pounds of carbon is prevented from going into the atmosphere if that electricity had been sourced from coal fired power plants. Carbon dioxide is a major contributor to global warming induced climate change. Wind speeds needed A wind turbine usually needs wind speeds of around 10 miles an hour (16kmh) to start generating electricity and optimum wind speed for large turbines is approximately 30 miles per hour ; so they aren't really an option if you're located in an area where winds are usually light and variable, although some models are now being produced that can generate electricity with as little as 5 mile per hour wind speeds - particularly vertical axis models. Wind speed usually increases with height and where there are no natural or man-made obstructions and this why you'll often see them on hilltops or perhaps in the middle of wheat fields. The wind energy industry has been a boon for many farmers as they can still crop their land with little interference and also generate an income from allowing the turbines on their property. Increasing numbers of wind farms are also being erected offshore. The blades of a wind turbine rotate at a rate of between 10 to 50 revolutions per minute. In a situation where wind speeds are excessive, for example if there's a gale, the turbine automatically shuts down to prevent damage. Turbine lifespan The lifespan of a modern turbine is pegged at around 120 000 hours or 20-25 years, but they aren't totally maintenance free. As they contain moving components, some parts will need to be replaced during their working life. From what I've researched, the cost of maintenance and parts replacement is around the 1 cent USD/ AU per kWh or 1.5 to 2 per cent annually of the original turbine cost. Environmental impact Wind turbines aren't overly noisy - mechanical noise is minimum these days and you'll mostly hear the swoosh of the blades passing the tower. Of course, if you're living close to a large wind farm, it could present some noise issues; but most countries have regulations regarding the placement of wind farms in relation to residential areas. Wind turbines are created from fiberglass, plastics, aluminium, copper, steel and various other metals, so they do have an impact on the environment in that respect and there's also the energy used to to manufacture the turbine. Many turbine parts are recyclable and it's my understanding the amount of energy used in manufacture is balanced out within six to eight months after being commissioned. Wind farms do have an impact on birds - there have been recorded cases of birds being killed by rotor blades when they fly into them; but there's a great deal of research being carried out to try and minimize the problem. It's also an issue taken into consideration in most countries when choosing a location for a wind farm in relation to bird migratory patterns. Costs and regulation for residential turbines Turbines used in residential situations are much quieter than their wind farm counterparts, but you'll need to check with your local authorities as they are still not permitted in some areas - this being the case, your best options for renewable energy is solar power. If you do meet resistance with your local council, talk to them about vertical turbine options as these emit lower noise, have a lower profile and are considered to be generally more aesthetically pleasing than their horizontal axis counterparts. As local government tends to be behind the times with technological developments in renewable energy, it doesn't hurt to raise the possibility of that alternative. Wind turbines for home use vary in price and greatly depend on your electricity needs vs. wind availability, but you can expect to pay around $12,000 to cater for the average home. However, bear in mind that cost can be greatly offset by renewable energy rebates offered by many governments. Many people think that wind turbines are ugly, and I tend to agree; but I feel that way about most things man made that are added to a natural landscape. Aesthetics aside, the other point that people should bear in mind that if we want to maintain the level of comfort we've grown accustomed to in our modern lives, there will always be some sort of price to pay beyond dollars and cents. If I had to choose between living close by to a wind farm or a coal fired electricity generation plant, I'd certainly opt for the wind farm and I'd definitely consider a residential model turbine if wind was a reliable factor in my area - there's nothing quite like the feeling of gaining independence through your own electricity generation :).