Maryland Leader
MarylandLeader.com Thursday 29th July 2010 Issue 305/2010
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bullet Making the news corner
"Those who commit war crimes must face justice. We must not allow difference to be a license to kill, and vulnerability an excuse to dominate. "
George W Bush
The former president was speaking at the White House, August 3 2001.

bullet Exchange Rates corner
$£€ United States, Dollar Euro Canada, Dollar Japan, Yen United Kingdom, Pound
United States, Dollar - 0.764 1.036 86.63 0.641
Euro 1.308 - 1.356 113.3 0.838
Canada, Dollar 0.964 0.737 - 83.59 0.618
Japan, Yen 0.011 0.008 0.011 - 0.007
United Kingdom, Pound 1.559 1.192 1.616 135.1 -

bullet More Maryland News corner
Man Indicted In State Trooper's Murder
Long-Awaited Rosedale Streetscape Project Complete
Sources: Orioles Hire Showalter As Manager
State Suspects Hot Weather In Deep Creek Fish Kill
Man Indicted For His Involvement In Maryland State Trooper's Death

bullet Lifestyle corner
Tendulkar gets his fifth double ton after six years
Scoreboard: India vs. Sri Lanka, Day 4, Second Test
Tea scoreboard: India vs. Sri Lanka, Day 4, Second Test
Lunch scoreboard: India vs. Sri Lanka, Day 4, Second Test
Remove recreation centre from river

bullet Arts corner
London to host Emirati musical play
Photog sues Will Smith, Jay-Z's Broadway musical FELA
Four Indians advance in world junior squash
Kylie Minogue joins Scissor Sisters onstage for Aussie show
Aretha Franklin, Condoleezza Rice perform for charity concert

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State Gives Baltimore $7.1M To Fight Crime
The state is providing Baltimore with three crime-fighting grants worth a total of $7.1 million. The money is intended to get more police officers on the street. Gov. Martin O'Malley said violent...

Car stolen from Annapolis auto shop
ANNAPOLIS, MD - Annapolis Police are investigating a car theft from an auto shop parking lot on Forest Drive. An employee of the Annapolis Tire and Auto shop located at 1210 Forest Drive told police...
Baltimore Co. Fire Holds Training Exercise
reports the exercise was designed to train dozens of firefighter recruits. The one-alarm house fire in Woodlawn spread quickly. "It's a toxic atmosphere.  They'll be under high heat...
More breaking stories
Document leaking methods defended by Wikileaks ownerDocument leaking methods defended by Wikileaks owner
The Australian-born founder of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, has defended the placement of tens of thousands of classified US military files on his...

First global warming islands will soon be goneFirst global warming islands will soon be gone
Residents of the Carteret Islands off Papua New Guinea have been pleading for help from the international community since their homes began sinking into the...
Moscow blanketed in smog as fire surrounds cityMoscow blanketed in smog as fire surrounds city
Heavy smog has been covering Russia's capital due to forest fires which have been raging for three...
More international stories
U.S. stocks struggle to gain momentumU.S. stocks struggle to gain momentum
U.S. stocks lost ground Thursday although losses were...

Some California state workers to take unpaid leaveSome California state workers to take unpaid leave
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger of California has given an executive order for some state workers to take three unpaid days off per month starting in...
Greek truck drivers get back to work order from governmentGreek truck drivers get back to work order from government
The Greek government, using a rare law, has ordered truck drivers back to...
More business stories

bullet Boffins developing 'smart' metal to help you save on electric bills corner

Researchers at the University of Maryland are developing a new "smart" metal that could help cool homes or refrigerate food 175 per cent more efficiently than current technology, allowing users to save a great deal on electric bills.

The new "thermally elastic" metal alloy also promises far greater efficiency and reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.

The researchers will soon begin testing of a prototype system, with economic stimulus funding from the US Department of Energy. The new grant is part of a program designed to bring "game-changing" technologies to market.

"Air conditioning represents the largest share of home electric bills in the summer, so this new technology could have significant consumer impact, as well as an important environmental benefit," said Eric Wachsman, director of the University of Maryland Energy Research Center (UMERC).

"The approach is expected to increase cooling efficiency 175 percent, reduce U.S. carbon dioxide emissions by 250 million metric tons per year, and replace liquid refrigerants that can cause environmental degradation in their own right," Wachsman added.

The lead researchers on the project, Ichiro Takeuchi, Manfred Wuttig and Jun Cui, materials science engineers in Maryland's A. James Clark School of Engineering, have developed a solid coolant to take the place of fluids used in conventional refrigeration and air conditioning compressors. They claim their system represents a fundamental technological advance.

In the next phase of research, the team will now test the commercial viability of their smart metal for space cooling applications. The 0.01-ton prototype is intended to replace conventional vapour compression cooling technology. Instead of fluids, it uses a solid-state material - their thermoelastic shape memory alloy.

This two-state alloy alternately absorbs or creates heat in much the same way as a compressor-based system, but uses far less energy, the Maryland team explained. Also, it has a smaller operational footprint than conventional technology, and avoids the use of fluids with high global warming potential. (ANI)


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    bullet Maryland Weather corner
    Baltimore, Maryland
    Now 89.1°F/31.7°C Thunderstorm
    Thursday 94°F/34°C Thunderstorm
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    bullet Movie Review corner

    bullet Sports corner
    Abbas overlooked for Pakistan's CWG and Asian Games squads
    Tendulkar, Raina help India take lead
    India end fourth day at 669/9, take 27 runs lead

    bullet Computers corner
    GlobalFoundries wants New York to decide assessment
    Job cuts cause SureWest Q2 loss
    Quasar Aerospace posts name change
    House approves $534,000 for Kentucky Air National Guard building
    First federal suit filed over ADC sale

    bullet News Survey corner
    Do you think ageism is a problem in the modern world?


    bullet Hotel Review corner
    Venetian Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas
    Venetian Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas

    In the middle of the Strip, and opposite the Mirage and Treasure Island is the Venetian, adjacent to its sister hotel The...


    bullet Space corner
    Man City striker Tevez dating 'Ugly Duckling'
    Massive asteroid could hit Earth in 2182
    Sydney 'dead running' buses equivalent to making 50 trips to the moon
    Chinese space junk to buzz past space station
    Molycorp Plunges 14% on First Day After Chopping Rare-Earth IPO