Set-Up Windows 7 Pro Host for Multi Monitor RDP / MSTSC

Set-Up Windows 7 Pro Host for Multi Monitor RDP / MSTSC

This was connecting FROM a windows XP SP3 Laptop TO a Windows 7 Pro Desktop.

I was using an additional monitor n the lap top.

The main break through is using RDP Wrap, and piece of software that does something to allow use of multi monitor support on WIndows 7 Pro.

It Works!

Just download this and intall this on client computer.

RDPInst.exe and then Install.bat.



Then make sure you have rdp 7 or above on your XP machine, and check the box that says "use all my monitors in the display tab of the RDP program.

Microsoft have removed the patch for upgrading XP, so here is is here.

http://www.southwest-environmental.com/

Carbon Footprint of Cycling per Mile

Carbon Footprint of Cycling per Mile - Intro

Many basic graphs that compare cycling with other modes of transport rate cycling as "zero" impact.

This is fine as like walking cycling is one of the lowest carbon forms of transport available. However, when we consider the fuel that the cyclist uses i.e. the food they eat in order to gain the calories burnt in cycling does this change anything?

Carbon Footprint of Cycling per Mile - grams of CO2 per mile for a Car

Our benchmark for our CO2 per mile will be that described in "The Ecologist" of 168g/CO2/mile, for a car. 

Carbon Footprint of Cycling per Mile - grams of CO2 per mile for a Bicycle

Now consider the calories burnt cycling 1 mile on a Bicycle, this varies base don the speed and the weight of the rider, but a conservative figure might be 50 calories per mile. How does the cyclist get those calories . . . ?

Eating meat, is carbon intensive. . . a meat rich diet creates over double the CO2 footprint of a vegan diet. 

So if we we were to cycle 1 mile on a vegan diet, vegetarian or "all in" dirt we would create different emissions. 

gCO2 per mile by Diet 

So if we then apply our 50 calorie per mile number to the CO2 per calorie we get:

CO2 per mile by diet - Bicycle

Remember a mile in a car creates 168 gCO2, from burning fossil fuels.

Carbon Footprint of Cycling per Mile - Making a Comparison

Now the average person burns 68 calories per hour whilst sitting. On a single carriage way the driver of a car will burn 1.4 calories per mile. So we can add this CO2 burden to that produced by the fuel. Sp if we add in the metabolic co2 impacts we get. 

CO2 per mile by diet - Car

Carbon Footprint of Cycling per Mile - Conclusion

Cycling would appear to only save carbon if you eat a low meat diet. Please note this post is restricted to operational impacts only, and does not consider manufacturing impacts or infrastructure impacts. 

Carbon Reporting 

The Psychology of EBikes

The Psychology of EBikes

For the cyclist who is less fit, aging or wants to haul heavy loads and  EBike is an obvious choice. It will do some of the work for you whilst enabling you to do what needs to be done. Alternatively you may be opting for an EBike becuase you wish to use you car less. Each situation produces a certain set of considerations in terms of  how we may think about the Ebike.

Do you get the same buzz from riding an EBike that you do, when riding a normal bicycle?
Is an EBike better for the Environment?

The answers to these questions and therefore how you feel about the switch will depend on whether you are considering an Ebike as an alternative to a car or or bicycle  . . . or perhaps some other form of transport.

As an alternative to a Bicycle

Sense of Achievement

When returning from a 10, 15 , 20 mile ride on a normal bike you think:

"Wow I got all that way under my own steam. . . well done me"

When you do the same (or further on an EBike) how much have you achieved? In terms of effort certainly less, and therefore should you take less satisfaction from the journey?

Chill Out Time

Riding a normal bike is a very organic experience, and it is quiet too. This is relaxing.  Perhaps you will not feel the same after listening to the whine of an electric motor for 1/2 an hour.

An EBike ride is still a lot more  relaxing and invigorating than driving car, but isn't an EBike just a slow motor bike?

Environmental

I can cycle 15 miles on a pizza. However the fuel for my EBike is rather more complicated. I need to charge it up. . .where does this electricity come from. In nearly all countries around the world, some of the electricity will be provided by fossil fuels, the burning of which contribute to climate change. In france for example charging my bike will create 5 times less CO2 than in the UK.

A green electricity tariff will help lower these impacts and promote new renewable energy infrastructure.

There is also the impact of manufacturing the bike. There are few electrical components in a normal bike, whilst there are printed circuit boards, copper wire, and solder contained used in the manufacture of an EBike.

As an alternative to a Car

Sense of Achievement

You get a higher sense of achievement from making a journey on an EBike than you do than using a car. After all being out in the elements on a bike (Ebike or normal bike) is still more of an adventure than if you went in your metal box on wheels (car).

Chill Out Time

This depends greatly on your attitude, if you choose to follow a direct busy route, travelling mixed with speeding cars, then you will be worse off then if you drive.

The key here is to accept the fact that an EBike takes a long time to get anywhere, and plan to take an indirect quiet route on minor roads. This way you will get some chill out time.

Environmental

Unless you car is electric, then this is where an EBike will win hands down. A bike creates a lot less environmental impact in its manufacture then a car, and charging uses between 20% and 100% renewable energy depending on your source.

For a 1 mile trip your carbon footprint for fuel would be:

Carbon Footprint - Car vs Bike vs Ebike

However, how you fuel your body make a big difference. For example a Vegan driving a small efficient car will produce less CO2 per mile, than a meat eating cyclist. 

Conclusions

The benefits from moving away from a car to an EBike are plain to see. You should feel awesome. 

Whilst you get less exercise, and create slightly more environmental impact riding an ebike as opposed to a bicycle, don'y worry too much the differences are marginal.

Staying chilled out whichever route you are on depends on your attitude. 

Carbon Consultants

Fire Prevention Plans 

Text Only List of Canadian States

Text Only List of Canadian States 

Found it hard to find an easy list to copy without any formatting:

Alberta
British Columbia
Manitoba
New Brunswick
Newfoundland and Labrador
Northwest Territories
Nova Scotia
Nunavut
Ontario
Prince Edward Island
Quebec
Saskatchewan
Yukon

Environmental Consultants Toronto

Grain Size Triangle Chart or Triangular Diagram Geological UK

Grain Size Triangle Chart or Triangular Diagram Geological UK

Most of the triangular diagrams I can  see on the interweb are for farmers etc. So this is the one for geologists, and geology students and professionals who might find it handy when working out the soil classifications from particle size distributions.

Geotechnical Consultants

Water Quality in the River Creedy

Water Quality in the River Creedy

Below based on content from a very old report published 1995:

• Punchbowl waste disposal site was operated on the ‘attenuate and dilute’ principle which was a previously acceptable method for this type of domestic waste site. Problems with leachate contamination have been experienced in the upper reaches of the Hollacombe Water, a tributary of the River Creedy, where high ammonia and low oxygen concentrations have been frequently recorded 
• Improvements to the sewage treatment facilities at Crediton and Newton St Cyres have resulted in significant improvements in water quality in the River Creedy.
• Recent (1994) improvements to river water quality following significant improvements to the treatment facilities at two STWs mean that current water quality in the lower stretches of the River Creedy meet the proposed RQO RE2
•  Crediton STW is consented for copper, zinc and lead, and discharges to both the River Creedy and the River Yeo (Creedy). The EQS for iron was exceeded in the River Creedy and Yeo (Creedy) in 1992 due to elevated background concentrations from the catchment geology.
• The River Creedy has been identified as a Sensitive Area (Eutrophication) from Crediton STW (SS 8484 0063) to the Exe Estuary (SX 9310 9090). The qualifying STW is Crediton with a population equivalent of 12,500. Phosphorus removal is to be installed at this STW by the end of 1998. Routine monitoring will continue to confirm the Sensitive Area status.

Gradient of the River Creedy

Rivers Flowing in to Lyme Bay 

Environmental Permit Applications  

Description of Sewage / Effluent Treat Process RBC Process

Description of Sewage / Effluent Treat Process RBC Process

The RBC process involves allowing the wastewater to come in contact with a biological medium in order to remove pollutants in the wastewater before discharge of the treated wastewater to the environment, usually a body of water (river, lake or ocean). A rotating biological contactor is a type of secondary treatment process. It consists of a series of closely spaced, parallel discs mounted on a rotating shaft which is supported just above the surface of the waste water. Microorganisms grow on the surface of the discs where biological degradation of the wastewater pollutants takes place.

The rotating packs of disks (known as the media) are contained in a tank or trough and rotate at between 2 and 5 revolutions per minute. Commonly used plastics for the media are polyethylene, PVC and expanded polystyrene. The shaft is aligned with the flow of wastewater so that the discs rotate at right angles to the flow with several packs usually combined to make up a treatment train. About 40% of the disc area is immersed in the wastewater.

Biological growth is attached to the surface of the disc and forms a slime layer. The discs contact the wastewater with the atmospheric air for oxidation as it rotates. The rotation helps to slough off excess solids. The disc system can be staged in series to obtain nearly any detention time or degree of removal required. Since the systems are staged, the culture of the later stages can be acclimated to the slowly degraded materials.

The discs consist of plastic sheets ranging from 2 to 4 m in diameter and are up to 10 mm thick. Several modules may be arranged in parallel and/or in series to meet the flow and treatment requirements. The discs are submerged in waste water to about 40% of their diameter. Approximately 95% of the surface area is thus alternately submerged in waste water and then exposed to the atmosphere above the liquid. Carbonaceous substrate is removed in the initial stage of RBC. Carbon conversion may be completed in the first stage of a series of modules, with nitrification being completed after the 5th stage. Most design of RBC systems will include a minimum of 4 or 5 modules in series to obtain nitrification of waste water.

Biofilms, which are biological growths that become attached to the discs, assimilate the organic materials in the wastewater. Aeration is provided by the rotating action, which exposes the media to the air after contacting them with the wastewater, facilitating the degradation of the pollutants being removed. The degree of wastewater treatment is related to the amount of media surface area and the quality and volume of the inflowing wastewater.

The system is typically covered but not enclosed; air can circulate through the white vents visible in the above photographs. Intermittent odours will also be produced be from irregular activities such as the bi-quarterly de-sludge, where displaced air from tankers being filled will constitute the most likely source. 

Ship Recycling Page

The Real Danger of Shale Gas - Fugitive Emissions

The Real Danger of Shale Gas - Fugitive Emissions - Intro

To many the thought of shale gas or fracking is unpleasant, after all shattering the earth to release gas seems drastic, and  many are upset at the thought of the "go anywhere" mineral rights that allow fracking companies grab resources.

There is also the question of are continued use of fossil fuels, and their contribution to global warming. Burning the gas (methane) releases CO2, which has been proven to raise global temperatures.

It is all rather ugly.

But these observations pale in comparison to the real risks generated from production of methane in this way, and that is  Fugitive Emissions.

The Real Danger of Shale Gas - Fugitive Emissions - What are Fugitive Emissions?

Fugitive Emissions are when methane that has been released from the rocks in which it has been trapped for millions of years, leak out in to the atmosphere, instead of be collected up for use as energy.

The main aim if fracking is to extract as much shale gas a s possible from the ground, but inevitably large quantities will escape, migrating to the surface.

The Real Danger of Shale Gas - Fugitive Emissions - Why is this  Problem?

Methane has 72 times the global warming potential of CO2, per unit is holds in 72 time more heat than CO2.

In the UK Shale Gas Extraction / Fracking is still very small scale, but in the US where it is a large concern very high volumes of methane leak in to the atmosphere. Recent studies indicate 30 - 60% of methane from human sources comes from Shale Gas Exploration in the US alone.

Imagine the impacts if the rest of the world were to begin extraction at the same level. . . 

"The Aliso leak (US Fracking Well) spewed enough methane into the atmosphere to equal the greenhouse gases emitted by more than 440,000 cars in a year."

It is impacts like this that lead many experts to believe that shale gas is worse than coal when it comes to global warming. 

The Real Danger of Shale Gas - Fugitive Emissions - Future of UK Fracking

Even before we burn shale gas in a power station or to cook our pasta, it has already done a great deal of damage.

A report has been written by the climate change quango in the UK (CCC), which likely contains these doubts, yet the Conservative Government have  purposefully delayed its release, until after the issue of the first fracking license in the UK. . . .

The current conservative government seems to take its environmental responsibilities very lightly, and unless they come under significant pressure from the public the fracking industry in the UK will likely continue to grow.


Methane from Meat Production