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NC State engineers patent methods for 3-D nanostructures
Jagdish Narayan and Ashutosh Tiwari, material science and engineeringMenhaden in Neuse exhibit open sores; tests begin
Joann Burkholder, botanyECU's engineering program underway
College of EngineeringNew study examines red light cameras
Institute for Transportation Research and EducationThis year, August full of wet dog days
weather service office
Tech
center gets boost from state
The legislature's appropriation allows N.C. State University to go forward
with programming for the Gateway Technology Center.
SCC to
Benefit From Major Biotechnology Grant
Biotechnology Training and Education Center (BTEC) on the Centennial Campus
N.C.
judge hears argument from former reservist
At a hearing before U.S. District Judge Louise Flanagan, Parrish's attorney
argued that an ROTC contract Parrish signed as a student at N.C. State University
obligated him to only eight years.
Ex-soldier's
case goes to judge
Parrish attended N.C. State University on a Reserve Officer Training Corps
scholarship and graduated in 1995 with a degree in civil engineering.
Not-So-Spotty
Material Breakthrough
Jagdish Narayan and Ashutosh Tiwari, material science and engineering
Best
flower arrangements come from your own garden
Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers
Around
the Country With the USGA
Lane Tredway, plant pathology
KLA
to Market, Support SIINT's Nanopics 2100
Phillip Russell, materials science and engineering
LipoScience
Founder Receives National Research Award
Dr. James Otvos, biochemistry
Hit
the Spot
Virtual Advising Center
Manure
helps to light up the big cities
Mike Williams, animal and poultry waste management
NC State engineers patent methods for 3-D nanostructures
Sept. 2, 2004
Triangle Tech Journal
By staff writer
© Copyright 2004
Nanotechnology promises to revolutionize modern life. From energy-efficient lighting that lasts for 50 years, to greater data storage capacity, to stronger metals and ceramics, the improvements attributed to the development of nanostructures seem limitless. So far, the greatest impediment to developing these advances has been creating usable nanostructures that self-assemble. Engineers at North Carolina State University recently received a patent for two processes that help break that barrier.
Dr. Jagdish “Jay” Narayan, the John C.C. Fan Family Distinguished Professor of Materials Science and Engineering and director of the NSF Center for Advanced Materials and Smart Structures at NC State, and Dr. Ashutosh Tiwari, research associate in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, developed and patented two methods for self-assembly of three-dimensional nanostructures.
Results of their research will be published in the September issue of the Journal of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology with images of the newly created structures appearing on the cover of the journal. The research was supported in part by the National Science Foundation (NSF).
The new methods are a breakthrough in nanotechnology that opens the door to creating new materials for a myriad of applications, including super-dense data storage, solid-state lighting, super-strong materials and advanced detection systems. According to Narayan, three-dimensional self-assembly is the key to being able to use the nanostructures.
“The grand challenge is to be able to use the nanounit in the form of nanodot, nanowire or nanodisc,” said Narayan. “In the past we could make only one layer of the nanostructure with these units. There was only two-dimensional self-assembly, which is not usable for applications. We couldn’t control the properties of the medium. Now, with this development, we can control the medium and do three-dimensional self-organization. More importantly, we can change the size in different layers and change the functionality at different depths.”
“National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) has created a broad base of scientific discovery and potential technological development,” said Dr. Mihail Roco, senior advisor for nanotechnology at NSF and chair of the NNI organization. “This research shows the importance of creating infrastructure because NC State University has established a strength in the area of nanostructured materials, and at this moment, we can see several results that weren’t initially planned.”
The two methods involve using pulsed laser deposition, which works with a variety of materials and reduces imperfections. The sequential growth method uses the laser pulses to ablate successive targets to create layers of nanodots in a matrix. The simultaneous growth method is based on the difference in the oxidation rate of the nanodot and matrix materials. In this method the matrix and nanodots are deposited simultaneously on a substrate. Both methods produce consistent size and shape of the nanodots and demonstrate control of the materials that cannot be achieved by previously proposed methods.
“This device is part of the first generation of passive nanostructures which illustrate how one can exploit new phenomena and behavior of materials at the nanoscale for economic advantage,” said Roco.
The patented processes can be applied to almost any material. To create nanostructures for the different applications, the material used for the nanodots and the matrix are changed. For example, to create structures for data storage, Narayan uses nickel; for solid-state applications, gallium nitride or zinc oxide is used; for superstrong materials, copper, tungsten carbide and nickel aluminide are used; and for ceramics, aluminum oxide is used.
The most interesting application may be the development of energy-efficient, low-cost, solid-state lighting. By creating a matrix of layers of varying sizes of nanodots embedded in a transparent medium such as aluminum oxide, Narayan can create a chip that glows with white light. Solid-state lighting would use about one-fifth the energy of standard fluorescent lighting and last for approximately 50 years.
The researchers are working with Kopin Corporation, which has licensed the patents from NC State to manufacture next-generation, high-efficiency light-emitting diodes for economical solid-state lighting. Kopin Corporation, in collaboration with the NC State researchers, has developed high-efficiency LED, known as Kopin’s CyberLite LED, which recently won Electronic Products Magazine’s “Product of the Year” award.
Another interesting application for the nanodots is the development of a chip that can hold 10 terabits of information - information that equals 10 million million or 10 to the 13th power bits - which is equivalent to 250 million pages of information. Narayan estimates that a chip with this storage capacity represents an increase of more than two orders of magnitude, or five hundred times the existing storage density available today.
According to Narayan, the key to moving nanotechnology from the laboratory to the consumer is keeping the cost of manufacturing low because people will not embrace a new technology if the cost is substantial. He believes that the beauty of these new patented processes is that they make it possible to build a three-dimensional matrix of nanodots that is not only more efficient but also costs less to produce. Using Narayan’s methods, all of the steps can be performed in the same processing chamber, reducing the manufacturing cost and the impact on the environment.
With further development of these new processes, copper can be created that is as strong as steel, and ceramics can be made tough enough to be used in automobile engines. The major difficulty with most materials is the problem of defects. However, when materials are reduced in size to nanoscale, the defects are reduced or eliminated, creating stronger materials that would last much longer and be less likely to fail. For example, ceramics are excellent performers at high temperatures but are currently too brittle to be used in automobile engines. Applying nanotechnology would create a ceramic material that would be able to withstand the stress that affects an automobile engine. Because ceramics perform at higher temperatures, a ceramic automobile engine could run at a higher temperature and thus run more efficiently - essentially creating a more fuel-efficient vehicle.
Other applications include spin transistors and single electron transistors. Since these new methods can create self-assembled matrices of nanodots both randomly and epitaxially, the applications are seemingly infinite. The random self-assembly method is most cost effective and would be used for storage applications. The more expensive epitaxial self-assembly method would be used to create spin transistors that use less power because heat losses are reduced or eliminated.
Narayan anticipates that the first applications of his nanodots will be available to consumers within the next five years. He predicts that data storage and solid-state lighting will be the most likely consumer applications to be developed during that time.
Sept. 1, 2004
Rocky Mount Telegram
By Tom Murphy
© Copyright 2004
A General Assembly allocation of $300,000 will provide additional funding to construct the Gateway Technology Center, said John Gessaman, president of the Carolinas Gateway Partnership.
Gessaman commended N.C. Sen. A.B. Swindell, D-Nash, for being instrumental in getting the money appropriated for the project.
"This is a terrific outcome from the General Assembly's last session," Gessaman said. "We want to thank Sen. Swindell for his efforts in moving this vital new project forward."
The legislature's appropriation allows N.C. State University in Raleigh and East Carolina University in Greenville to go forward with programming for the center, Gessaman said.
"We have been working with the two universities for some period of time and continue to do so," he said. "Now, they are in the process of working out all the details in response to the appropriation."
The technology center will cost about $4 million, said Jeremy Stratton, vice president of the Carolinas Gateway Partnership. The center will be located on 3.65 acres of land on N.C. Wesleyan College's campus.
"It will cost $3 million to construct the building and $1 million for technology," Stratton said. "We are hopeful the center will be completed by late 2005 or early 2006."
The Carolinas Gateway Partnership has $2.5 million for the project, Stratton said. The $300,000 appropriated by the legislature will be used to hire a center director and for programming, he said.
Gessaman said the the partnership has made a supplemental application to the Rocky Mount-based Golden Leaf Foundation for $1.5 million needed to begin construction of the center.
"If that request is funded, it will cover the remaining portions of the budget for the technology center," he said.
Swindell said the technology center will play a vital role in the economic and educational arenas.
"This is a wonderful opportunity to complement our businesses and industries," Swindell said. "Once this has come to fruition, we will be in line to hire a director of the center and build a strategic structure that will allow people to do work on baccalaureate and postgraduate work in the professional fields of engineering and technical classes. The center can actually have professors coming in here and teaching students from companies, including Abbott's and Honeywell."
Although people can go on the Internet and get online classes, Swindell said there is something to be said about having a setting where people can accomplish higher education goals.
"The center will have groups together taking the same class work," he said. "It will not conflict with, but complement what is being done at universities and community colleges, allowing us to network. People won't have to drive to East Carolina or Raleigh to take classes to continue their graduate education."
The center will position the Twin Counties with businesses and companies looking to locate here, Swindell said.
"That's another plus for our area," he said. "This project will be for both counties. It will be a reason why companies will come," he said. "Our county leaders and economic development folks have done a superb job. The center will be another another jewel in our area's cap and a tool to recruit business and industry. People will stay here, get an education here and continue to prosper as the area goes forward."
The appropriation comes from recurring money, said Swindell, who is co-chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee.
"We could not have done this without the support of Rep. Joe Tolson, who is co-chairman of the House Education Committee," he said. "He did a wonderful job. Rep. Bill Daughtridge, Rep. Jean Butterfield and Sen. Clark Jenkins also provided strong support in what I was trying to do."
Swindell also credited the legislature's leadership for supporting the project.
"Without the leadership in the House and Senate, things like this just don't happen," he said. "This is a story about the legislature recognizing us. It's a credit to the people who serve this area. Legislative leaders respect us. When I presented this idea, they thought it was a great thing to do. That's why we've got to continue it and look forward to how we can improve it so that we can be a showplace."
Menhaden in Neuse exhibit open sores; tests begin
Sept. 2, 2004
New Bern Sun Journal
By Pat Coleman
© Copyright 2004
A report Wednesday afternoon of juvenile menhaden covered with lesions in the Neuse River has prompted a call to the state's Neuse River Rapid Response Team.
Larry Baldwin, Neuse Riverkeeper, said the Neuse River Rapid Response Team was returning from the Outer Banks and he expected the crew to begin examining the fish today.
"What we've got this time is fish that are still alive -- basically menhaden with open sores, down to the point where you're seeing bone or raw flesh," said Baldwin.
Rick Dove, the southeastern representative for the Waterkeepers Alliance, noticed an unusual number of seagulls feeding on something in the river from his dock on the Neuse River at Carolina Pines Wednesday afternoon. He said he found several schools of menhaden swimming sluggishly and used a cast net to bring in some of the fish, and nearly 100 percent of them had open sores that ranged from the size of a pencil eraser to the size of a dime.
Dove said the sores are similar to the Pfiesteria that was found on millions of dead fish in the early and mid-1990s. He said between 20 million and 100 million fish with similar sores died in the river in 1995 and close to a billion were killed in 1991.
"They had sores on their body just like this," he said.
Dove said he planned to contact Joann Burkholder, an N.C. State professor and Pfiesteria researcher, about the fish.
Baldwin said it is not unusual to see fish kills this time of year that are attributable to low dissolved oxygen. Fish can also be killed during what is called a turning of the water column, when water with low levels of oxygen suddenly flips into an area that previously had adequate oxygen. Thunderstorms, similar to Wednesday's heavy rain, can sometimes cause such events.
However, Baldwin discounted that as a possible explanation.
"These are two entirely different scenarios," Baldwin said. "You might come up with one (with lesions) every now and then, but not like this. Basically every one of them has a sore."
The number of fish involved and a reason for the fish kill have yet to be determined.
ECU's engineering program underway
Sept. 2, 2004
The East Carolinian
By BRANT SMITH
© Copyright 2004
ECU's systems engineering program, welcoming 43 students, takes a different approach to traditional engineering curriculums in attempt to fit the engineering demands of eastern North Carolina.
The systems engineering concentration is the first of its kind in the state of North Carolina.
"We feel like we have a very unique opportunity starting a brand new program, with brand new faculty and not tied down by people who have done things a certain way for many years," said Paul Kauffmann, chairman of the department of industrial technology.
Despite receiving approval for the new engineering program late in the University's freshman admission period, we were rather successful in compiling a class Kauffman said. The current systems engineering class has 43 students enrolled, up from the initial goal of 35 students Kauffmann said.
Ralph Rogers, dean of science and technology, said a main difference in ECU's program is it gets students involved in the engineering courses earlier in their college careers, compared to different more typical engineering curriculums that delay entry to the actual program until all general requirements are met.
An important focus of ECU's engineering curriculum, laid out by the program's ICE plan is to get students involved in teamwork, and also to collaborate different areas of study within the curriculum, said Kauffmann.
Concerning the aspects of the program's initial concentration Kauffmann said a systems engineer is an individual that identifies a basic problem, puts together a team of experts, looks critically at all the issues or alternatives that could go into solving a problem and essentially implements and achieves business results.
Rogers said we are basically trying to turn out engineers that can move into new and emerging areas where their primary job will be to define problems and integrate solutions.
"These are the types of qualities we especially see in demand, both for large companies as well as small companies and organizations," Rogers said.
A main goal of the program is to create more engineers in the region of eastern North Carolina which will in turn help benefit the region as a whole.
"Most important in our mind we want systems engineers to work with the businesses and manufacturing operations of eastern North Carolina. We believe the skills and talents we are going to produce in our students to solve technical setbacks in the most cost effective way are really going to contribute to the economic development of organizations in this region of the state," Kauffmann said.
With regards to the future of the program, Rogers said the engineering program intends to gradually increase the student capacity and expand the program into other concentrations including engineering management, software engineering and biomedical systems.
Students have shown positive reactions to ECU's new program. Matthew Harrell, freshmen systems engineering major said a main factor attracting him to ECU's engineering program was the program's student to professor ratio. Harrell said ECU's systems engineering program's teacher to student ratio is approximately 35 students to 11 professors compared to NC State's engineering program where the ratio is much smaller.
"When you're in close contact with your professor they can really get to know you...as oppose to being a number in the classroom," said Harrell.
Harrell said another aspect of the program that appeals to him with his involvement in the program is the fact that this is ECU's first engineering class.
"It's groundbreaking with the school...you really have a chance to make something of this department."
For more information about engineering at ECU, visit the program's web site at www.tecs.ecu.edu.
New study examines red light cameras
Sept. 1, 2004
News 14 Carolina
By staff writer
© Copyright 2004
Do red light cameras help prevent accidents at intersections?
That's what NC State and the Institute for Transportation Research and Education want to find out.
They've launched a study to examine whether the cameras have a safety benefit.
City and county leaders typically install cameras at high-collision intersections and when the numbers of accidents decrease, the cameras get the credit.
The study will try to collect evidence to back up that conclusion.
N.C. judge hears argument from former reservist
Sept. 1, 2004
Associated Press; Charlotte Observer; News & Observer; WCNC; Wilmington Morning Star; Winston Salem Journal; WTVD; WVEC, VA
By ESTES THOMPSON
© Copyright 2004
A federal judge should delay an injunction ruling in a lawsuit filed by a former Army reservist over his recall to duty in Iraq while an Army appeals board decides the man's case, a federal prosecutor said Wednesday.
At a hearing in U.S. District Court, Assistant U.S. Attorney Rudy Renfer said Todd Parrish, 31, of Cary has no legal standing as long as his case is still being decided by the military.
"The Army has delayed any activation order because he has requested an exemption," Renfer said. The delay is in effect until Sept. 26, he said.
Parrish sued the Army after he received a recall order in May. He contends that his obligation ended Dec. 19 following four years of active duty and four years in the reserves.
At a hearing before U.S. District Judge Louise Flanagan, Parrish's attorney argued that an ROTC contract Parrish signed as a student at N.C. State University obligated him to only eight years.
"It is referred to as a contract over and over again," said lawyer Mark Waple.
"The Army is suggesting somehow Mr. Parrish volunteered to remain in the reserves beyond his eight-year obligation."
Flanagan already has granted a temporary restraining order against the Army and was asked to convert it into a preliminary injunction until Parrish's lawsuit could be heard. In her earlier order, Flanagan said the Army's willingness to extend Parrish's reporting date several times shows the military will not be harmed by delaying the case until a full hearing can be held.
Flanagan promised Wednesday to issue a ruling on the injunction request in the near future.
Refner said Parrish is suing not because his obligation is up but because he doesn't want to be deployed to Iraq.
"It is convenient after the fact when something happens that he does not want to happen that he says, `Oh, I was ignorant,'" Refner said.
A military lawyer, Army Maj. Chris Soucie, argued that Parrish had to resign his commission as a lieutenant to avoid being recalled to duty and said Parrish failed to sign a resignation line on a letter asking for an update on his personal information.
Soucie told Flanagan that if Parrish succeeds in winning an order from her, it will affect the entire military mobilization of reservists for duty in Iraq and elsewhere.
"He had the option to resign several times," Soucie said.
Parrish said in an interview outside the courthouse that he did send the Army a letter resigning his commission earlier and didn't sign the line on the form from the Army because he thought he had taken care of that chore.
Soucie said outside court that the letter Parrish received was clear and stated that if he didn't update his information he could be discharged.
"He doesn't sign where he could have resigned," Soucie said. "So he made the choice."
Parrish said he was ready to be called up during his reserve time, which he began after serving as an artillery officer at Fort Polk, La., but after December he felt he was entitled to live his own life free of the military.
Parrish is a communications engineer and is married. He came to court with his wife, Colette; his mother and six or seven friends.
His lawyer, Waple, discounted a government contention that Parrish has benefited from retirement points and a security clearance.
U.S. Attorney Frank Whitney, himself a reservist, said that if Parrish wanted to get out of any military obligation, all he had to do was sign the resignation line.
"There are hundreds, maybe thousands of reservists and National Guardsmen who are deploying right now and not contesting this issue," Whitney said.
Lawyers said they expect Flanagan to rule by the end of the week.
SCC to Benefit From Major Biotechnology Grant
Sept. 1, 2004
Southern Pines Pilot
By staff writer
© Copyright 2004
Sandhills Community College is part of a consortium of schools that recently received a $1 million Golden LEAF grant to operate a BioNetwork Central Learning Center (BTEC) and Mobile Biotechnology Laboratory.
Biotechnology involves using living cells and/or biological molecules to solve problems and make products. It is an essential part of modern pharmaceutical, health care and agricultural industries.
The BTEC and mobile lab will provide education for students, professional development for faculty and staff in biotechnology related programs, and biomanufacturing training for industry managers and workers.
The center will be housed in the Biotechnology Training and Education Center (BTEC) on the Centennial Campus of N.C. State University. Sandhills joins Wake Technical Community College (the lead institution in the consortium), Central Carolina Community College, Durham Technical Community College, Johnston Community College, Piedmont Community College and Vance-Granville Community College in managing the center.
“The mobile lab and learning center provide expanded opportunities to our students to train with state-of-the-art equipment,” said Joyce Rhodes, dean of continuing education at SCC. “Collaborating with other community colleges gives the people of the Sandhills access to equipment and facilities SCC alone would not be able to provide.”
North Carolina ranks third in biomanufacturing in the United States. The Golden LEAF grants will further strengthen the community college system’s ability to train biotech workers and meet the growing employment needs of existing biotech and life sciences industry in the state.
“Much of the success of biotechnology in our state is due to our research capabilities, the availability and enthusiasm of an efficient workforce, and the content, comprehensiveness and effectiveness of a powerful training initiative in the biotech field,” said Alan Duncan, senior director of business and industry services.
The grant is one of 29 grants, totaling about $4.3 million, awarded to North Carolina Community Colleges by the Golden LEAF foundation. Funded with money from a tobacco settlement, the mission of Golden LEAF is to improve the economic and social conditions of North Carolina’s people.
Ex-soldier's case goes to judge
Sept. 2, 2004
News & Observer
By DEMORRIS LEE
© Copyright 2004
RALEIGH -- Todd Parrish slowly nodded Wednesday as his lawyer told a federal judge that Parrish would have jumped at the Army's request to return to active duty if the call had come sooner. The problem, Parrish said, is that the call came too late.
The former Army lieutenant is fighting reactivation orders from the Department of Defense because he said he had completed his obligation to the Army before he was recalled to active duty.
"I would have absolutely complied with the order," Parrish, 31, said after Wednesday's hearing. "It's not in my personality to not comply."
Parrish was ordered to report to Fort Sill, Okla., by June 13 for processing and deployment to Iraq, but legal maneuvering has delayed his reporting date five times. He is now scheduled to report by Sept. 26.
After listening to a couple of hours of testimony and asking a few questions, U.S. District Judge Louise W. Flanagan said she would soon decide whether to grant Parrish's request for a preliminary injunction.
An injunction would let Parrish stay in Cary with his new wife and pursue a new career as a communications engineer until his lawsuit is heard.
Flanagan granted a temporary restraining order against the Army last month.
"I'm hopeful that we will have an outcome soon," said Colette Doyle, Parrish's wife, who wiped away tears during the hearing. "This has been a very emotional experience for all of us. We had no idea that he was still in a position to be called back to active duty."
An enlisted member's service automatically ends after eight years, some of which is usually served in the Individual Ready Reserve. About 5,600 members of the Individual Ready Reserve have been mobilized by the Defense Department to prepare them for service in Iraq. Unlike regular reservists, soldiers in this status don't report for periodic training but are available to fill vacancies in Army units.
Parrish attended N.C. State University on a Reserve Officer Training Corps scholarship and graduated in 1995 with a degree in civil engineering. Part of the scholarship requirement was that he spend eight years in the military. Parrish served four years on active duty as an artillery officer and four years in the inactive reserve, ending Dec. 19, 2003.
The Army argued that because Parrish was an officer, he was obligated to notify the Army at the end of the eight-year period that he no longer wanted be part of the Individual Ready Reserve. Since he didn't, he is still under the command of the Army, officials said.
"If his resignation wasn't required, there would be no need for the Army to have a procedure for people who want to stay in," said Rudy Renfer, an assistant U.S. attorney.
Parrish said in 1999, he wrote a letter to the Army resigning his commission. But Maj. Scott Soucie, who was in Raleigh from Washington representing the Army, said Parrish's resignation was not accepted.
While in the inactive reserves, Parrish filled out the yearly information updates sent to him by the Army. Those forms include a box that officers can sign if they want to resign their commission. Parrish never signed the box, Soucie said.
In November 2003 Parrish received a letter updating his security clearance, officials said. The government argued that Parrish should have known that he had to formally resign, despite the expiration of his eight-year term.
"It is convenient, after the fact, when something happens that he doesn't want to happen, to say, 'I was ignorant of these facts and I didn't know I had to resign,' " Renfer said.
Parrish's attorney, Mark Waple, said that the matter is a simple contract dispute and that nowhere in the paperwork that Parrish signed did the Army say he had to notify the Army of his resignation. Waple argued that the Army lost track of Parrish and didn't notify him that he had earned 15 points toward retirement and that he had been promoted to captain while in the inactive reserves.
Waple said the Individual Ready Reserve has two types of soldiers: those who still have some obligation to the Army and those who volunteer to remain in the group. Parrish could only be in the second group, Waple said.
"One cannot volunteer through inaction, which seems to be what the Army is saying," Waple said.
Soucie said that a ruling in Parrish's favor would jeopardize President Bush's authority and could open the door for others to file lawsuits to resist activation.
"It will question the power of the president to mobilize troops in defense of the nation," Soucie said. "Given the world situation right now, the president must have that ability."
This year, August full of wet dog days
Sept. 2, 2004
News & Observer
By THOMASI MCDONALD
© Copyright 2004
RALEIGH -- Pity the poor blokes caught singing in the rain last month. They would have had little time for anything else.
The Triangle was wetter than a wino at a wedding reception in August after a battery of tropical storms drenched the region.
Last month was the fourth-wettest August since 1944, when the National Weather Service began keeping records at Raleigh-Durham International Airport.
The weather service reported that 9.26 inches of rain fell across the Triangle in August. That nearly matches the 9.76 inches that fell in 1952 but was well below the 10.49 inches in 1955 and 12.18 inches in 1986, according to the weather service office at N.C. State University.
The record is the 13.63 inches that fell in 1908 before the weather service moved its offices to RDU, said Mike Strickler of the weather service.
Last month's rainfall amount was 5.48 inches above normal thanks to storms Alex, Bonnie, Charley and Gaston.
Gaston alone accounted for 2.05 inches, Strickler said.
The heavy rainfall during Gaston caused some flash flooding in low-lying areas and prompted officials to issue flood warnings when the Neuse River and the Lower Little River both crested slightly above flood-stage levels, the weather service reported.
The Neuse crested at 16.3 feet in Smithfield and 9.6 feet in Clayton. If the river had significantly exceeded its flood-stage levels there would have been minor flooding along the riverbanks and in low-lying areas. But the warnings were canceled after the water levels started receding.
The weather service also reported that heavy downpours raised the levels at Jordan, Kerr, Falls and Gaston lakes.
The dam level at Kerr Lake on Wednesday was 300.6 feet, well below its full pool level of 320 feet. The level for Falls Lake, at 253.2 feet, was just above its normal level of 251.5 feet. And Lake Gaston, at the North Carolina-Virginia border, was at 200 feet, just below its capacity of 202 feet.
"Even if [the lakes] reach full pool capacity, it's not a problem," Strickler said. "They're controlled by the dams that can release water and lower the elevation."
Quincy Adams, agricultural and environmental agent for the Wake County Cooperative Extension office, said all the rain has not done much damage to Wake farmers. Most crops, he said, have been harvested.
However, he said, the rainfall has hurt tobacco farmers. Plants are still in the fields, and many farmers can't get to them because the ground is so wet and muddy.
At least Hurricane Frances appears to be veering west of North Carolina. It is expected to produce, at most, about 2 inches of rain for the region.
"We won't incur any major problems," said Strickler, who quickly added that the storm was still four days away from North Carolina and that its track "was not etched in granite." He also noted that areas in Frances' direct path could be inundated with 10 to 14 inches of rain.
"Similar to what happened in Richmond," he said about the surprise flooding caused by the remnants of Gaston in the Virginia capital Tuesday.
UNC-Chapel Hill Grad Student Lands NC Beautiful Research Fellowship
Sept. 1, 2004
PR Newswire; Yahoo News; Yahoo! Finance
By staff report
© Copyright 2004
Ph.D. candidate will study effects of development on rare NC plant species.
RALEIGH, Sept. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Andrea Jones, a graduate student pursuing a Ph.D. in Ecology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, has been selected to receive a research fellowship from NC Beautiful, an organization established to promote environmental education and stewardship across North Carolina. The $10,000 fellowship, equally funded by NC Beautiful and UNC-Chapel Hill, is part of NC Beautiful's Environmental Studies Program, which each year provides financial support to North Carolina graduate and undergraduate students whose studies and research focus on enhancing the state's environment or advancing environmental stewardship.
Jones, of Summerville, South Carolina will apply the fellowship to her ongoing research on how development and land use changes could threaten endangered plants in the southwestern North Carolina mountains.
"The fellowship NC Beautiful has provided to Andrea opens the door to greater professional training of our students, and better connections between the work of our campus and the solving of environmental problems in North Carolina," said Douglas J. Crawford-Brown, director of the Carolina Environmental Program and professor of Environmental Sciences and Engineering and Public Policy at UNC-Chapel Hill.
The Environmental Studies Program is funded by donations to NC Beautiful from businesses and individuals across the state. "This program is part of NC Beautiful's 37-year commitment to the educational development of our state's future environmental leaders," NC Beautiful Managing Director Jane Rogers said. "This initiative is an excellent example of a partnership between higher education in North Carolina and the people who provide funding for environmentally focused study."
Crawford-Brown added, "It is especially exciting that, through this program, our students will be introduced to the major players in environmental decisions in this state, and will take the first steps toward becoming the next generation of environmental leaders. We are extremely grateful to NC Beautiful for this opportunity."
Jones joins eight students from NC State University and the University of North Carolina at Asheville as 2004 NC Beautiful Environmental Studies award recipients.
Not-So-Spotty Material Breakthrough
Sept. 1, 2004
Science Daily
By staff report
© Copyright 2004
Using pulsed lasers, researchers have coaxed the metal nickel to self-assemble into arrays of nanodots – each spot a mere seven nanometers (seven billionths of a meter) across – one-tenth the diameter of existing nanodots.
Because the method works with a variety of materials and may drastically reduce imperfections, the new procedure may also bolster research into extremely hard materials and efforts to develop ultra-dense computer memory.
The researchers are working with an industry partner to apply the technique to development of next-generation light-emitting diodes (LEDs) – the small, bright lights seen in traffic signals and luxury automobile brake lights. The experimental LEDs are already more efficient than existing devices, potentially lasting decades and using a fraction of the power of fluorescent bulbs.
Jagdish Narayan and Ashutosh Tiwari, both of North Carolina State University and the National Science Foundation’s Center for Advanced Materials and Smart Structures, invented the new materials and manufacturing processes.
They announced their findings in the September, 2004, issue of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology.
Narayan and Tiwari used a pulsed excimer laser to create conditions under which nickel self-assembles into 3-D, ordered arrays within aluminum oxide and titanium nitride matrices. Applying similar techniques to gallium nitride and zinc oxide, the researchers are hoping to further improve the efficiency of their LED devices.
Computer applications are further away, as many additional hurdles need to be cleared before the nanodots become actual chips. However, since every nickel-metal nanodot could theoretically store a single bit of information, the researchers believe that a one-inch chip using that technology could eventually store 10 Terabits of data.
According to the researchers, the chip would theoretically have several hundred times more storage than conventional microchips of the same size. Five Terabits could fit on, coincidentally, a nickel. If nanodot memory chips eventually succeed, the entire contents of the Library of Congress could fit onto a pocket full of "change."
From the researchers:
"The grand challenge is to build, efficiently and reliably, a nanostructure using nanounits. But nature doesn’t like to create nano-sized units of uniform size—they are at a higher energy state." – Jagdish "Jay" Narayan, John C. C. Fan Family Distinguished Chair in Materials Science at North Carolina State University and Director, NSF Center for Advanced Materials and Smart Structures
"Controlled processing and self-assembly in three dimensions are required because you cannot create these structures and then assemble them. They are too small. So to be able to use this technology, you must have self-assembly and it must be 3-D." – Jagdish "Jay" Narayan
"In the past we could make only one-layer structures and 3-D self-assembly wasn’t possible. We couldn’t control the medium. Now, with this development we can control the medium and do 3-D self-organization. More importantly we can change the size in different layers and can change the functionality at different depths." – Jagdish "Jay" Narayan
"The research provides the basic framework for nanostructured materials for information storage, spin transistors, single-electron transistors and hydrid devices, superhard coatings, and novel biomaterials." – Jagdish "Jay" Narayan
"In the 6-10 nm dots created so far, we have the ability to control the spin patterns – the spin is what stores the bit of information. Assuming a 7nm magnetic nanodot will store one bit of information, we can achieve over 10 trillion bits per square inch, which is close to 500 times the existing storage density." – Jagdish "Jay" Narayan
From experts at NSF:
"Narayan has used the basic concepts of self-assembly to create a 3-D array of nanodots which may have significant applications in lighting, lasers, spintronics, and optical devices. If developed for practical applications in the next 2-3 years, the nanodot lighting systems may have significant environmental, economic and energy-saving advantages." – Mihail C. Roco, Senior Advisor for Nanotechnology, NSF
"The study shows the importance of basic research and encouraging technical innovation. This device is part of the first generation of passive nanostructures and illustrates how one might exploit new phenomena and behavior of materials at the nanoscale for economic advantage." – Mihail C. Roco
"In a way, this is an illustration of a general objective of United States’ National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) – the systematic control of the nanoscale in order to obtain new properties and functions." – Mihail C. Roco
"We are creating infrastructure: NCSU has established a strength in the area of nanostructured materials, and at this moment, we can see several results that weren’t initially planned." – Mihail C. Roco
"The expansion of infrastructure for nanoscale research has created a huge base of scientific discovery and potential technological development. A similar trend can be seen in education. From 5 universities with graduate programs in 1999, we now have about 270 academic institutions with undergraduate and graduate programs related to nanoscale science and engineering." – Mihail C. Roco
Best flower arrangements come from your own garden
Sept. 2, 2004
Bradenton Herald, FL
By DENISE COWIE
© Copyright 2004
A class in floral arrangement looked like an easy "A" to Doug Croft when he was wrapping up his horticultural studies at Virginia Tech.
"I thought it wouldn't tax me too much," he recalled recently, as he led a group of aspiring floral designers through the gardens at Chanticleer in Wayne, N.J.
Though he didn't expect that class to have any impact on his new career, it turned out to be one of the most valuable.
"The elements of design and the principles of design you learn in floral arranging can be applied to designing a garden, too," he said. And to get the best out of flowers in the garden and the vase, it helps to know a thing or two about plants and their maintenance.
Not all flowers work well as cut flowers, Croft told participants in "The Arranger's Garden," a class sponsored by the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. The class, which sold out so fast it had to be repeated a second evening, explored the joys of using your own cut flowers in floral arrangements.
That's where the concept of a cutting garden comes in - even if you think you don't have space for one.
"The philosophy used to be that the cutting garden should be on the 'back nine,' " Croft said. "The idea was that people didn't want to put all that effort into a garden and then cut the flowers," so they kept it separate.
But few people today have the luxury of tucking a cutting garden away out of sight, which means they are gradually disappearing.
"I think there has been a pretty steady decline" in the numbers of dedicated cutting gardens over the last 20 or 30 years, said David Ellis, director of communications for the Virginia-based American Horticultural Society, because today's homeowners have less time and space.
But people still want to be able to pick flowers from their own gardens. "There is a feeling of satisfaction you can get from being able to run out on short notice and gather up . . . flowers for your own house, or to take to somebody else's house," Ellis said.
Croft suggests integrating a cutting garden into the regular garden by planting sweeps of some perennials that can be judiciously thinned and annuals that will bloom again after cutting, and by using garden maintenance to harvest material that can be used for arrangements.
Prunings from a Hydrangea paniculata "Unique," for instance, became part of a fireplace arrangement in the gallery at Chanticleer last week. Or you might use the grasslike trimmings from amsonia when you whack it back by two-thirds after it flowers, or the flower stalks of hosta that are mainly a textural statement in the landscape, or the purple foliage of Physocarpus opulifolius "Diablo," which may be in need of a trim by late summer.
For the last four years, Croft has been in charge of Chanticleer's cutting garden, which supplies most of the flowers for the displays created by a handful of staff horticulturists for the garden's public spaces. (Savvy visitors make a point of visiting the rest rooms to check out the imaginative flower arrangements, which feature seasonal fresh flowers.)
"It was always important that the cut-flower garden be aesthetically appealing," Croft said, "but the flowers growing in it weren't always suitable for arrangements." That has changed under the leadership of R. William Thomas, who took over as director of the garden last year.
Now, Croft said, he is designing the garden in a more formal manner, using rows and blocks, and all the flowers growing in it have to be useful as cut flowers.
What does that mean? They have to be flowers that don't wilt easily, so they'll have a long vase life, and they have to have strong, long stems.
It means no more growing morning glories on the garden's lovely rustic trellises, for example, because their blossoms are fleeting. Instead, Croft is planting clematis and unusual annual vines such as the aromatic Vigna caracalla, or snail flower.
"Those are the biggest criteria," Croft said, but there are also texture, color, and fragrance, "which is not essential, but it certainly does make an arrangement more enjoyable."
To make sure Chanticleer stays on the cutting edge, Croft joined the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers, an industry group that conducts growing trials through North Carolina State University, to see how different species and cultivars perform as cut flowers.
This year, the cutting garden at Chanticleer became a trial garden, giving Croft access to the newest and best - such as Lobelia speciosa "Fan Blue," a floriferous new cultivar he used in last week's design class.
So what's growing in the cutting garden? Everything from A (astilbe) to Z (zinnias), including such difficult-to-grow charmers as double lisianthus and workhorses like Helianthus x multiflorus "Flore Pleno," a sturdy double yellow sunflower that usually doesn't need staking, though the plant is more than six feet tall.
This season, there's also a row of asparagus, which provides great greenery for floral displays (and is also doing a good job of attracting Japanese beetles away from the dahlias).
"Don't just think of ferns when you're looking for greenery," Croft told the class, suggesting holly, azalea, yew, helleborus, coleus and hosta as alternative sources. And don't always go with the obvious. If you've trimmed greenery from your Magnolia virginiana, for instance, you can turn it around to feature the leaves' silvery underside in your arrangement.
Croft doesn't stop at the cutting garden when he's looking for design inspiration. The neighboring vegetable garden, also in his charge, provided an entire arrangement for last week's class: leaves from two kale varieties; rosemary; purple ornamental peppers; rhubarb stalks; and red okra pods, which echoed the color of the rhubarb.
"Some people say that's the best use ever for okra," joked fellow staffer Laura Aiken. Okra is actually in the hibiscus family, Croft added, but its pretty yellow flowers would close up quickly if cut.
Color is all many gardeners think of when they choose flowers for an arrangement. But that's just one factor. How about form, texture and line?
Let your structure guide you, urged Croft. Consider the shape of the arrangement you have in mind, its function, and where it might be placed - whether it's for the table, where guests will see all around it but need to see one another over it, or for the foyer, where they might see just the front. And when you begin creating your design, take your cue from the garden.
"I'm trying to re-create the beauty of what's in the garden, but on a smaller scale," Croft said. "I am trying to create a combination of flowers, foliage, and container that is pleasing to the eye and accomplishes a sense of balance and harmony throughout. ... I try to do this by combining different plant materials that work well together, and placing them such that the arrangement feels sturdy and each element can be appreciated in its own right and as a whole."
The result doesn't have to be complex.
Croft told the class of a dinner party he once planned, starring his own floral arrangement in a prized old family vase. When he set it on the table, however, water leaked everywhere - the vase was cracked.
After a frenzied search for an alternative container, Croft settled for a shallow bowl filled with water. He cut the heads off some flowers, floated them in the bowl, and added a candle.
"Everybody loved it," he said.
TIPS FROM A FLOWER ARRANGER
• If you use floral foam such as Oasis, soak it in a bucket to absorb water before use. Putting it under a tap can create air pockets that can deprive stems of water.
• Cut stems on an angle for better water uptake.
• Make sure stems stay in contact with saturated Oasis. Pulling a flower up even a little after it's inserted leaves the stem in an air pocket. Instead, remove the flower and reinsert it.
• To hide stems (or Oasis) in a glass vase, line the vase with a large leaf from canna, hosta or banana plants. This can add color and texture to your arrangement.
• Strip all foliage from flower stems. Left on, foliage can steal water from flowers, or decay.
• To encourage longer vase life, make a conditioning solution of one part aspirin and one part sugar (or lime soda) to five parts water.
• Cut the heads off flowers that would be too top heavy for upright arrangements and float them in a bowl of water for an instant display.
SOURCE: Doug Croft, Chanticleer staff horticulturist
MAKING THE CUT
All plants aren't equal when choosing what to grow in a "cut flower garden." Chanticleer's Doug Croft suggests:
Hydrangea
Achillea
Antirrhinum
Ageratum
Iris
Rudbeckia
Dahlia
Gladiolus
Zinnia
Around the Country With the USGA
Sept. 2, 2004
Golfdom Insider
By staff report
© Copyright 2004
From the Mid-Atlantic Region, Keith Happ reports that excessive rains over the past 21 days have led to a significant outbreak of algae on greens in his region. He recommends increasing fertilizer levels temporarily in addition to chemical controls for the problem.
Despite a mild summer, some superintendents in the Mid-Continent Region are having trouble keeping their greens healthy, says Bud White. Significant amounts of rain and cloudy days set back bermudagrass growth three weeks, stunting rhizome growth and root progress throughout the summer growing season.
An unknown bentgrass disease is wreaking having on greens in the Southeast Region. Patrick O'Brien and Chris Hartwiger say North Carolina State University professor Lane Tredway is on the case and outlines the researcher's current suggestions for treatment.
KLA to Market, Support SIINT's Nanopics 2100
Sept. 1, 2004
Electronic News
By staff report
© Copyright 2004
KLA-Tencor Corp. and SII NanoTechnology (SIINT) a subsidiary of Japanese company Seiko Instruments, have formed a partnership to distribute SIINT's Nanopics 2100 atomic force profilometer outside of Japan.
Under the terms of the agreement, San Jose-based KLA-Tencor will sell the Nanopics 2100 as a joint product in North America and Europe and provide characterization and applications support.
SIINT's 2100 is a compact tabletop system that combines the characteristics of an atomic force microscope and a surface profiler, according to SIINT. The tool can provide nanoscale three dimensional surface imaging with a maximum scan size of 0.8mm by 0.8mm, and a vertical range an order of magnitude greater than that of traditional atomic force microscopes, the company claims. Small-area scans can be acquired in 30 seconds; the largest scans can be completed in five minutes.
"Until now, we have had to use both a stylus profilometer and an AFM to obtain complete crater measurement information, a time consuming and cumbersome process," Phillip Russell, professor of materials science and engineering, and director of the Analytical Instrumentation Facility at North Carolina State University, said in a statement. "Using the Nanopics 2100, we have been able to acquire highly accurate depth and surface profile measurements of very shallow craters with one instrument."
SIINT introduced the 2100 one year ago in Japan, where more than 100 systems have been sold to date. KLA-Tencor has already received multiple orders for the system, the company said.
LipoScience Founder Receives National Research Award
Sept. 1, 2004
PR Newswire; Yahoo News; Yahoo! Finance
By staff report
© Copyright 2004
RALEIGH, N.C., Sept. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- LipoScience, Inc. founder Dr. James Otvos has been recognized by the Lipoproteins and Vascular Disease Division of the American Association for Clinical Chemistry (AACC). The annual award was initiated by the AACC and Pacific Biometrics Research Foundation to recognize and encourage major improvements in laboratory testing.
Based on his research in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, Dr. Otvos founded LipoScience, a clinical and research laboratory that provides cardiovascular testing. LipoScience developed the NMR LipoProfile(R) test, the optimal diagnostic test for managing risk in patients who are at moderately high to high risk for developing heart disease and assessing these patients' response to therapy. To date, LipoScience has performed over 1.2 million NMR LipoProfile tests.
"This award recognizes significant contributions to the science of laboratory medicine," stated Dr. G. Russell Warnick, head of the Pacific Biometrics Research Foundation. "Dr. Otvos, instrumental in developing the NMR method for quantitation of lipoprotein subclasses, has pioneered an innovative technology that will likely have other important applications in improving medical diagnostics. We are honored to recognize his contributions through this joint award with the AACC."
Using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, the NMR LipoProfile test directly measures lipoprotein particles and provides unique information about a person's risk for heart disease that cannot be determined using a lipid panel or advanced cholesterol test. Lipoprotein particles are the minute, spherical "containers" that transport cholesterol throughout the body. Medical researchers have learned that measuring the numbers of "bad" lipoprotein particles (LDL-P(TM)) in blood gives a much better indication than"bad" cholesterol (LDL-C) measurements of the risk of developing heart disease. Increased numbers of LDL particles indicate an increased risk of heart disease even if cholesterol levels are normal. The level of risk is further mediated by the size of the particles with smaller LDL particles conferring a higher risk than larger particles. With the new cholesterol targets recently established by the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) for patients at moderate or high levels of risk, the same principle remains true -- an increased number of LDL particles is the direct measure of CHD risk.
Dr. Otvos began his research at the University of Wisconsin in 1988. The North Carolina Center for Biotechnology recruited him for a position at North Carolina State University, where he continued his research in 1990. Later that year, he received a grant from the National Institutes of Health to continue his research.
Dr. Otvos received his Ph.D. in comparative biochemistry from the University of California-Berkeley in 1976 and did his postdoctoral training in molecular biophysics at Yale University. In addition to his role as executive vice president and chief scientific officer at LipoScience, Dr. Otvos also serves as Adjunct Professor of Biochemistry at North Carolina State University.
About LipoScience, Inc.
Headquartered in Raleigh, N.C., LipoScience Inc. develops and markets new
clinical applications of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy in the
areas of cardiovascular disease and metabolic disorders. Introduced in 1999,
the NMR LipoProfile test is a simple blood test used by physicians to directly
measure the number of atherogenic LDL particles (LDL-P) and VLDL particles,
as
well as protective HDL particles. It is ideally suited for patients who are
being considered for or who are currently on LDL-lowering therapy - patients
considered to be at moderate or high risk for having a cardiovascular event.
This information helps physicians assess and manage a patient's risk of
cardiovascular disease that is often missed by a standard lipid panel.
Founded in 1994, LipoScience markets and sells the NMR LipoProfile test to
physicians, other healthcare professionals, commercial diagnostic laboratories
and clinical research clients. To date, over 1.2 million NMR LipoProfile
tests have been performed.
About the AACC Lipoproteins
and Vascular Disease Division
The Lipoproteins and Vascular Disease Division
of the AACC provides a
focus for interaction among AACC Members with interests in lipids,
lipoproteins and vascular diseases and a forum for communication among
laboratorians, clinicians, other scientists and representatives of the
industry; promotion of activities lead to improvements in the general level
of
knowledge in measurement technology, in standardization of methods and in
interpretation/usefulness of lipid/lipoprotein results.
About the Pacific Biometrics Research Foundation
The Pacific Biometrics Research Foundation ( http://www.pacbio.org ) was
established in 1990 to improve clinical laboratory testing in the assessment,
detection or measurement of risk associated with cardiovascular disease,
diabetes, osteoporosis and other related disease entities. The Foundation is
affiliated with the prestigious Cholesterol Reference Method Laboratory
Network, coordinated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The
Foundation's headquarters are in Seattle, Wash.
Sept. 1, 2004
TechWeb via Yahoo! News
By Sam Diamond
© Copyright 2004
Without an effective way to search content, potentially valuable resources remain just that: potentially valuable. Simple keyword search technologies that deliver long lists of references containing a word string fall short because they force end users and contact center agents to wade through too much information.
A new generation of search- and knowledge management-driven customer-service technologies is guiding customers to better, more concise results. These solutions optimize customer service and minimize costs by speeding access to the right content for the problem, thereby lowering contact center costs and enabling Web-based customer self-service.
What's the payoff in faster customer service and self-service? Broadband access provider Advanced Fibre Communications (AFC) is saving an estimated $400,000 per year by resolving more issues on the first call. Employee benefits firm LifeCare has implemented natural-language search, andcan add suggestions that employees might not have considered. North Carolina State University (NCSU) has built a Virtual Advising Center that counsels an average of 185 students each day with only two full-time advisors.
Handling Support With a Single Agent
Customer service calls were no simple matter for agents in AFC's technical assistance center, which handles some 12,000 calls per year from the broadband provider's telecommunications company customers. AFC's first-tier agents entered case information and forwarded calls to highly trained second-tier agents. Delays were built-in and costs were an estimated $120 per call for second-tier agents.
To help first-tier agents find the right support information, AFC implemented a knowledge management application from Kanisa in May 2004. The system interfaces with AFC's existing CRM system, and then spiders other repositories, including user documentation, data sheets and PDF files. Content is indexed according to the system's knowledge dictionary, which presents a customizable parameter hierarchy.
Agents narrow searches by selecting from parameters such as activities, products, symptoms or objects. If a customer calls with a specific question, the agent can select specific symptoms from a list. The system responds with a narrowed list of resources that combine the specific symptom and product type. Additional parameters can be added until the agent reaches a tightly focused subset of information that resolves the question.
"[In one recent example,] the agent was initially presented with 300 results," says Mark Fisher, customer service support solutions manager. "After selecting a symptom, the list was narrowed to 40 results. After selecting a second symptom — the third mouse click — nine results were left. These were easily reviewed by the agent, and the customer issue quickly resolved."
First-tier agents are now empowered to resolve cases, so call volume to second-tier agents has been slashed. Customers get quick answers, and the technical assistance center can handle increasing call volumes without hiring. Most importantly, first-tier agents now handle about 50 percent of all calls, and costs are headed toward the $50 per-call average for first-tier agents. Savings of $400,000 per year are expected along with improved customer satisfaction.
Search Adds the Power of Suggestion
Customers searching the Web site of LifeCare, a Connecticut-based employee benefits organization, were presented with too-long hit lists — even though the company's full-text search engine couldn't crack the company's frequently asked questions (FAQs) or PDF-based documentation.
"Our customers [had] no access to resources that could provide them with significant benefit, and [they had] to spend a lot of time wading through volumes of data that had no relevance," says Jay Hartley, chief technology officer.
In early 2004, at a cost of about $150,000, LifeCare implemented OneStep natural language search from iPhrase Technologies. LifeCare's customers can now type in questions rather than keywords. The system responds with a list of potentially relevant content, but also generates a thread of inquiries. If a customer asks about childcare, for example, OneStep responds with a list of all potentially relevant documents along with a question asking if the customer is interested in daycare, babysitting, nursery school or au pair services. With each successive question, the list of potentially relevant content is narrowed.
This self-service-oriented solution also customizes search results. Some customers, for example, don't want employees to have access to au pair services, so OneStep doesn't present questions that could lead to those results.
"We have more than 1,200 companies as clients, and each of their employees can see different information resources," Hartley says. "We can even tailor the way information is provided to reflect current events."
Hartley cites the interest in 529 college savings plans. "Many customers inquiring about 529 plans are completely unaware that there are many other college savings alternatives available," he explains. "When we ... narrow searches, we try to highlight [all college savings] alternatives, even though they would not normally appear in a request for 529 information."
Hartley says this guided search approach lets customers sort through tailored information iteratively in much the same way the company's counselors would during an in-person contact center call.
"The end result is that the information accessed targets the true underlying intent of the customer question," he says.
Students Consult Virtual Advisors
When your customer is a college student, you don't have to worry as much about resistance to using the Web, but you still have to make sure they can quickly find the right support information. NCSU didn't have the budget to hire more full-time student advisors, so it decided to move more of the simple FAQs to an online environment where its 29,000 undergraduate students could help themselves.
"The problem we faced was that to keep our Web content manageable, we had always kept our FAQ list short," says Jackie Gottlieb, a Web content developer that supports the university's Virtual Advising Center (VAC) . "Students who couldn't find the information they needed on this abbreviated list [had] to either e-mail us directly, phone us or come in for a face-to-face meeting."
To meet student needs and budgetary restrictions, the university implemented a customer support application called RightNow Web Self-Service from RightNow Technologies. The system was used to build a Web-accessible, easily updated repository of questions and answers.
"We no longer have to worry about keeping our FAQ list short because the system's search capabilities can quickly find whatever specific information students need and deliver a focused answer to a specific question," Gottlieb says.
The VAC is accessed by an average of 185 students per day, and the FAQ system has been so well received, it has been extended to four other departments — Undergraduate Admissions, New Student Orientation, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences and Office of International Scholar and Student Services.
Manure helps to light up the big cities
Sept. 2, 2004
Financial Times
By Bernard Simon
© Copyright 2004
The 36,000 cattle being fattened forslaughter at Highland Feeders' feedlots east of Edmonton, Alberta, produce about 70,000 tonnes of manure a year. For now, Highland's owners, brothers Bern and Mike Kotelko, spread some of the stuff on their nearby corn fields and sell the rest to neighbouring farms.
Within the next two years, however, the Kotelkos plan to turn much of the manure into enough electricity to heat every home in the nearby town of Vegreville, with its population of 5,000.
A mini-power station - comprising two digesters that resemble oil storage tanks, plus an Austrian-made generating unit - is under construction a few hundred metres from the cattle pens. The first phase of the C$7.9m ($6m) (£3.3m) project is due to start transmitting small amounts of electricity to the provincial power grid in October.
The Highland Feeders' project is one of several responses to widening concern in North America about the impact of modern livestock operations on the environment.
Instead of roaming on pastures, millions of cattle, pigs and poultry are now confined to pens and "factory farms", leaving humans to dispose of their waste. The number of pigs raised in North Carolina, one of the biggest pork producing states in the US, has almost quadrupled since the late 1980s, to 9.6m a year. Most are kept in barns holding about 900 to 1,200 animals.
Their waste falls through slatted floors and is then typically flushed into big clay-lined pits, known as lagoons. Bacteria break down the pollutants and the mixture is then sprayed on nearby fields.
The lagoons have become an environmental flashpoint. Besides the stench, the risk of polluting surrounding waterways and growing evidence of health problems in nearby communities have intensified pressure on politicians and livestock producers for tighter controls. North Carolina imposed a moratorium on new pig barns in 1997 after leaks from several lagoons.
Mike Williams, director of the animal and poultry waste management centre at North Carolina State University, says: "There is no question that the long-term sustainability of the industry will require new types of waste treatment technology."
According to Mike Kotelko, the Alberta feedlot operator: "It's a matter of time before every significant operation is going to have to process manure. Within the next 10-15 years, you won't be able to spread raw manure on land."
Smithfield Foods, one of North America's biggest pork producers, began work earlier this year on a $20m
(£11m) facility in southwest Utah that will convert waste from 23 pig farms into methanol. The methanol will be blended with soybean oil, animal fats and used cooking oils to produce a clean-burning diesel fuel.
In the process developed in Alberta, hot water is added to the manure and the mixture is kept at a temperature of about 55°C. It then releases methane gas, which is used to fire a power generator.
The North Carolina university research centre unveiled two technologies last month that offer a substantial improvement on lagoons. Both processes reduce odours and harmful bacteria by separating solids from liquids. The waste water is purified, while the solids are processed into fertiliser. One process also produces gas that can be used to meet a farm's electricity or heating needs.
Kam Tejwani, chief executive of Environmental Power Systems, a New Hampshire-based maker of digesters, predicts that about 15,000 US farms will need to install similar systems over the next few years to comply with tightening regulations. Whether that prediction comes true is likely to depend more on economics than on technology.
Smithfield and another big North Carolina pork producer, Premium Standard Farms, have agreed to switch to a new disposal system within three years of Mr Williams' centre certifying an "environmentally superior technology". But these companies own only one- tenth of the state's 4,000 pig operations. Others are likely to be persuaded only by cost or by legislation.
The cost argument has yet to be made convincing. All the new technologies developed so far are more expensive than existing methods.
Furthermore, manure provides only about half the energy of natural gas. Donald Klass, president of the US Biomass Energy Research Association, acknowledges that, as a means of power generation, manure is no more than "a blip on the horizon".
Moreover, governments in North America have yet to offer tax or other incentives to turn manure into electricity, unlike some other renewable power sources such as wind power.
The Alberta Research Council, a provincial agency, is paying about half the capital cost of the Highland Feeders power project. The plant will be able to store electricity for up to eight hours, allowing sales to be timed to maximum demand from utilities. Mr Kotelko says the real profit will come from selling fertiliser pellets made from the manure residue, and using surplus energy to heat greenhouses.
According to Mr Williams in North Carolina, financial incentives will be essential if such technologies are to be widely adopted. One of his top priorities, he says, is to stimulate a public policy debate - unless another big lagoon spill does the job for him.