Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/vWg_zB0ZT3U/130730193532.htm
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Wednesday, July 31, 2013
Aquatic playground can turn water tanks into fish schools
[unable to retrieve full-text content]Raising fish in tanks that contain hiding places and other obstacles can make the fish both smarter and improve their chances of survival when they are released into the wild, according to scientists.
Afghanistan's military will need "substantial" help beyond 2014, Pentagon says
WASHINGTON Afghanistan's military is growing stronger but will require "substantial" additional training and foreign financial aid after the American and NATO combat mission ends next year, the Pentagon told Congress on Tuesday.
The Pentagon's assertion comes amid debate about the White House's reluctance to announce how many - if any - U.S. forces should remain in Afghanistan beyond 2014 to help Afghan forces hold off the Taliban.
WH: No troops in Afghanistan after 2014 "one option"
US Troops Leaving Afghanistan
Leaving no residual U.S. troop presence in Afghanistan after a planned 2014 withdrawal is "one option," White House press secretary Jay Carney said earlier this month. He said the U.S. is still negotiating the matter with the Afghan government.
In its twice-a-year report to Congress, the Pentagon said Tuesday that it will be difficult to judge whether Afghanistan can keep the upper hand against the Taliban until the exact size of a post-2014 U.S. military presence is determined.
The report painted a largely positive picture of progress in strengthening the Afghan army and police, but it offered cautionary assessments of the economic and political elements of its strategy for stabilizing the country.
"Effective government, the rule of law and sustainable economic development are all necessary for long-term stability in Afghanistan, but multiple factors continue to hinder them, including widespread corruption," it said.
The report said that the amount of Afghan territory held by the insurgents has continued to shrink. It called the Taliban "less capable, less popular and less of an existential threat" to the Kabul government of President Hamid Karzai.
On the other hand it said the insurgents still wield influence in several key rural areas that serve as avenues to attack urban areas, including districts surrounding Kabul.
"Insurgents also used violence and assassination to undermine perceptions of the Afghan government's ability to provide security," the report said, "including intimidation of tribal elders, local power brokers and Afghan government officials."
Last month, a government watchdog warned the Pentagon is spending more than three-quarters of a billion dollars to buy Russian-made helicopters and other aircraft for an Afghan aviation unit that lacks the troops and expertise to operate and maintain the equipment.
Source: http://feeds.cbsnews.com/~r/CBSNewsPolitics/~3/KGzfVADBtf8/
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Fresh fuel reignites Asperger's debate
[unable to retrieve full-text content]Children with Asperger?s Syndrome have different electroencephalography (EEG) patterns to children with autism, reveals a new study. With distinct neurophysiology, the study pours fresh fuel on the on-going debate about how Asperger?s should be classified.
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Brock Osweiler showing big improvement as Broncos QB in second NFL year
Highlight: It's only practice. But if there was a Most Improved Award from last year's Broncos training camp to this one, Brock Osweiler would be the clear choice.
"Last year I knew it from a book standpoint," Osweiler, the second-year quarterback, said Monday.
"Draw up this play, draw up this protection. I could talk you through it, I knew where everyone was supposed to be. Where this year I'm transferring from the class room so things are slowing down for me on the field."
On Monday, Osweiler was completing darts, including two to Demaryius Thomas.
"When you're not sure what you're doing and you're thinking, you're going to play a little hesitant," Osweiler said.
"That's how I was this year. But now I have some familiarity with these receivers and I'm confident in what I'm doing. I can't wait for the preseason."
Lowlight: Another padded practice. Another injury scare.
Defensive tackle Sylvester Williams, the Broncos' first-round draft pick, went down with a knee injury. He walked off the field and didn't return. Williams underwent an MRI test, which was negative. He should return to practice in a day or two.
"It doesn't appear to be super serious," said Broncos coach John Fox. "But they all could be."
Defensive end Robert Ayers pulled a hamstring and tight end Jacob Tamme was limited with a quad injury. On the previous day's practice, the Broncos lost center Dan Koppen to a season-ending knee injury.
"Never wish anything like that for anybody but things happen in this game," said Manny Ramirez, who is once again the clear starter at center. "Just keep your prayers with him."
Quarterback Watch: Chris Harris has become one of the league's top nickelbacks, but sometimes his toughest days are in practice.
There was one play Monday when Harris was jersey to jersey with slot receiver Wes Welker on a quick in-route. And Welker caught
the ball, anyway.Some of that has to do with Welker's ability to ward off tight coverage and position himself for the catch.
But ... "It's Peyton Manning, man," Harris said smiling while he shook his head.
"When I'm all over him and the ball just fits in there, it's Peyton Manning. He knows how to put the ball to where only the receiver can catch it, and Wes has great hands. So it's tough to get in there. But if it's another quarterback, I'm going to the house with that."
Position battle: With Koppen down and J.D. Walton not expected back from his ankle injury until the season's second half, the Broncos have Ramirez as their starting center.
C.J. Davis returned from injury to play back up Monday. Newly signed center Steve Vallos mostly observed Monday but the plan is for him to back up Ramirez.
"It's just being comfortable with the quarterback, with the other O-linemen," Vallos said about the challenges of joining a new team.
"It just takes time and we just have to make the most of what we have."
Next up: Broncos players are off Tuesday. Training camp resumes with a 10:25 a.m. practice Wednesday. Admission and parking will be free.
Mike Klis: 303-954-1055, mklis@denverpost.com or twitter.com/mikeklis
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Automotive Sand Technician - Neatorama
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Source: http://www.neatorama.com/2013/07/30/Automotive-Sand-Technician/
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Classified ad site Backpage in crosshairs over child sex ads?
sex-crimes 
4 hours ago
Getty Images
Backpage.com has become the Craigslist of prostitution ads in recent years since that free site stopped running the ads in 2010.
Search for "Backpage.com" on the FBI's main website and up pops eight whole pages of press releases and public announcements naming the classified advertising site as a tool for sex criminals, particularly those selling children, sex and prostitution. And in fact, Backpage was named as one of the sources law enforcement used to help gather evidence needed to coordinate a 70-city raid last weekend that resulted in the rescue of 105 teenagers and the arrest of 159 pimps.
"The fact that they were able to rescue that many children and arrest that many pimps is fantastic," Liz McDougall, counsel for Backpage told NBC News Monday. "We are glad to be a partner with and support law enforcement to make these arrests, and make them in time to rescue these children."
A partner with law enforcement? While Backpage may be the current Craigslist for prostitution ads in the United States, McDougall says the site gladly cooperates with police when they want information about those who place the ads, including the IP, or Internet protocol, address from where the ads originated.
But a new effort by the National Association of Attorneys General wants to change federal law so that Internet service providers and websites like Backpage could be prosecuted by state and local governments for promoting prostitution and child sex trafficking, simply by running such ads.
It's a double-edged sword, some might say: Shutting down online ad venues for criminals and sexual traffickers seems like a good "nowhere to run" idea, but law enforcement looks to such sites to find information about the criminals they're chasing. And some argue that if you shut down one such "offending" site, another pops up anyway. Besides, there's a bigger issue at the heart of this: The same laws that protect the unsavory ads online also protect most Internet providers from liabilities of all kinds.
Backpage is specifically named in a letter from the attorneys' general group, sent last week to members of Congress, seeking an amendment to the Communications Decency Act of 1996:
Every day, children in the United States are sold for sex. In instance after instance, State and local authorities discover that the vehicles for advertising the victims of the child sex trade to the world are online classified ad services, such as Backpage.com. The involvement of these advertising companies is not incidental ? these companies have constructed their business models around income gained from participants in the sex trade.
Federal enforcement by itself has "proven insufficient to stem the growth of Internet-facilitated child trafficking," says the group, with the letter signed by 49 state and territorial attorneys general. "Those on the front lines of the battle against the sexual exploitation of children ? state and local law enforcement ? must be granted the authority to investigate and prosecute those who facilitate these horrible crimes."
It's an effort applauded by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, which works with law enforcement on sex trafficking cases.
"Classified-ad websites have made child sex trafficking an easy and profitable business enterprise for pimps," said John Ryan, the center's CEO, in a recent statement. "NCMEC urges all policymakers to explore every avenue available to bring to justice those who profit from the sexual exploitation of children."
Perhaps you're wondering why so many name Backpage and not Craigslist. In 2010, Craigslist, under pressure from more than a dozen individual states' attorney generals, voluntarily banned ads for adult services from the site. When that happened, much of the business moved to Backpage.com. (Village Voice Media, which owns the Village Voice, among other publications, also owned Backpage.com until last fall, when it became a separate company.)
Whether or not Backpage follows suit and ditches adult services, experts argue that the law itself should not be changed in order to make this happen.
Mark Rasch, former head of the Department of Justice's Computer Crimes Unit, and now an independent consultant, told NBC News he is against the proposed change, which would restrict free speech, now a key protection under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. He also says it's the "wrong way" to go after those in the child sex trade.
"Sex traffickers use the Internet to sell their wares, use the telephone lines to communicate with customers, use the banking and credit card system to obtain payment for sex services, use highways and local roads to transport minors for sex, use cars and other vehicles for the same purpose," he wrote in a recent blog post. "They use the same infrastructure established to sell toothpaste to sell illicit sex with minors. They need to be arrested and prosecuted for these crimes."
But third parties that might be accused of making those crimes possible ? whether it's ISPs or gas stations ? shouldn't be held criminally liable "for their own participation," he argues. An amendment to the law like this one means that "EBay could be held liable if someone purchased a knife online and then used that knife to kill someone, if a state passed a law making the advertisement of knives that are used for such purposes a crime."
Matthew Zimmerman, senior staff attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digital civil liberties organization, told NBC News that with the "proliferation of user-generated speech online over the past decade," the proposed amendment would be "extraordinarily harmful."
The EFF successfully defended both Backpage and the non-profit Internet Archive in a suit against the state of Washington, which in 2012 passed a law that essentially made it a crime to "knowingly" publish or display any ad for a commercial sex act, including the depiction of a minor. The EFF said that the new state law considered both sites publishers, contrary to the provisions of the Communications Decency Act. A federal court agreed, and blocked the law.
Zimmerman says it's not only "lawful speech" that would be hurt by letting states prosecute service providers and websites. "This could also lead to the loss of critical tools that law enforcement could use to investigate these and other crimes," he told NBC News.
McDougall of Backpage agrees. The arrests over the weekend are "something that wouldn't be possible if you didn't have a domestic, cooperative website involved," she said. "That's why it's important to not drive this content to offshore websites, which won't cooperate and don't have to cooperate with U.S. law enforcement. It would make law enforcement's job exponentially more difficult."
Still, there are many who'd argue that giving child traffickers one less avenue would be a win for the good guys. It's not known yet what, if any, action Congress will take on changing the Communications Decency Act. The issue is sure to be debated in the months to come.
Check out Technology and TODAY Tech on Facebook, and on Twitter, follow Suzanne Choney.
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Is The Way To A Tech Worker's Loyalty Through Their Stomach ...
Ari Dvorin was hired in May as the first corporate chef at SpareFood, a startup company in Austin, Tex. Here, Dvoring cuts suckling pig for a mockumentary SpareFoot made while recruiting a chef. Photo: Jenny Zhang/Courtesy of SpareFoot
Post by Eliza Barclay, The Salt at NPR Food (7/30/13)
The dazzling array of food options at the Googleplex campus in Mountain View, Calif., ? 25 cafes at last count ? is the much-cited example of tech world food perks. And you can peruse the menus at Airbnb and Facebook to get a taste of an equally high bar for not just free food, but worldly food that will delight and fuel employees to work better and harder.
The delectable-sounding dishes Facebook?s culinary team recently served up include hazelnut peach cheesecake and house-smoked buffalo quail with buttermilk blue cheese. Over at Zynga, employees are spoiled with pickles, yogurt, beef jerky, beer, kombucha and bread ? all housemade. That?s just the tip of the spread prepared by executive chef Matthew DuTrumble and team.
J Sider, founder and CEO of BandPage, a music platform startup in San Francisco, says that when people come for an interview he shows them the BandPage food program, and introduces them to corporate chef Callie Waldman. ?They walk in the office, which is pretty open, and they can see and smell her foods being made,? Sider tells The Salt. ?Sometimes she?ll put out fresh cookies or granola bars.?
The corporate chef trend may have started in California, but it?s now spreading to other cities with startups that are competing with each other for engineers, product developers and sales mavens.
Grub Street recent complied a list of the best food and drink perks at New York startups.
And take SpareFoot, a fast-growing company in Austin, Tex., that?s an online marketplace for consumers to find and reserve self-storage units.
?I had heard about Silicon Valley companies having chefs, yes, but more recently many Austin tech startups were doing it, too,? Chuck Gordon, founder and CEO of SpareFoot, tells The Salt in an email. ?I got a chance to check some of those out and figured we could probably pull off something pretty great at SpareFoot.?
In May, after several months of searching, SpareFoot hired Ari Dvorin, who had been the head chef at Facebook?s Austin office and also ran his own catering company. Before Dvorin came on board, SpareFoot?s 90 employees could count on the company to buy tacos on Mondays and keep a snack shelf fully stocked. But otherwise, it was basically ?fend for yourself,? says Dvorin.
Rachel Greenfield, a marketing manager who?s been with SpareFoot for 2 1/2 years, says she used to go out for lunch, but got burned out on the nearby options. Now that Dvorin cooks lunch every day for her and her colleagues, Greenfield says, ?lunch has become a fun social moment, a gathering space with a lot of intermingling. It reminds me of school lunch, except that we?re all beyond the clique part. People don?t linger too long ? they want to get back to work, so it?s very time-efficient for us.?
When SpareFoot moved into its current space, it had no need for a chef or a kitchen. So Dvorin has to cook the lunch early in the morning at a kitchen he rents across town and transports it to the office, where he has a small space with an oven to finish cooking.
It?s tough work to get the timing right, especially since the menu changes every day for two months, he says. But he far prefers it to working in a restaurant, where ?the menu was same and you are stuck working in a 4-by-4 foot area.?
Like a lot of tech startup chefs, Dvorin is big on themes. On Monday, he serves comfort food, followed by Taco Tuesday, and International Wednesday. And every day there are fresh salads and vegetarian options.?Everyone is so appreciative of the food and dining experience,? he says.
That?s exactly what the CEOs hope to get out of investing in a chef who cater directly to employees. According to Sider of BandPage, food programs drive a lot of value to tech companies.
?What we?ve seen it?s certainly worth the cost; the chef and the food program yield productivity, stronger culture, stronger community,? he says. ?We can really see the benefits.? Eating together every day, he says, is a team building exercise: ?instead of doing trust falls we have a chef.?
Young chefs coming out of the top culinary schools also seem to be drawn to these new opportunities, according to Jan Smith, spokeswoman for the Culinary Institute of America. ?We have had a steady flow of externs at Google, and ? at least one grad who worked at Facebook,? she says.
Callie Waldman, the chef at BandPage, says working for a competitive tech company creates unique challenges.
?It?s really important to me that I?m able to cook a variety of meals so that the employees don?t feel as if they?re eating at the same restaurant every day,? she says. ?The challenge ? of constant innovation feeds my creative side and keeps things interesting for everyone, myself included.? Recently, that meant playing around with variations on Taco Tuesday: Japanese sushi tacos and Indian-style tikka masala tacos.
And, Waldman adds, it?s a lot more rewarding to cook for colleagues who you know and respect.
?I couldn?t imagine switching to the restaurant industry, cooking from the same menu every day where meals go through the double doors having no idea who?s on the other side,? says Waldman.
Copyright 2013 NPR.
Related posts
Category: bay area, chefs, food trends and technology, NPR food
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Myers and Ford Autoworld break ground on new dealerships
ANDERSON, Ind. ? Myers and Ford Autoworld executives and city officials Tuesday turned the first shovelfuls of dirt for a redevelopment project that will transform an abandoned industrial brownfield into a sleek, new automotive superstore by next year.
The new dealership buildings will occupy about 48,000 square feet of space on the former General Motors Plant 11 site at South Scatterfield Road and 32nd Street, but the total project footprint when complete next year will be about 250,000 square feet.
Autoworld President Mary Jamerson expects to invest $7.5 million in the new dealerships and eventually create up to 30 new jobs.
Flanked by key members of her Myers Autoworld and Ford Autoworld dealerships staff, Jamerson said she is thrilled to be part of a rebirth of a part of Anderson that has struggled since the departure of General Motors.
?It?s a milestone for our company and a milestone for our community that we can bring this once-prosperous land back to prosperity again for our community. We?re excited,? Jamerson said. ?I can promise you that no building in the world will be built with more loving hands than these.?
Mayor Kevin Smith said Jamerson?s decision to relocate her dealerships on industrial brownfield land actually marks the reuse of more than 200 acres that represent prime land for development on ?one of the highest traffic count roads that we have in the city.?
Jamerson?s decision to build on the former GM factory site activates the state?s last-granted CRED ? Community Revitalization Enhancement District ? zone, which has gone unused for nearly 8 years.
In a CRED district, the city can collect any sales tax that would normally go to the state ? up to a maximum annual amount of $750,000 ? and use that money to build infrastructure within the district, making it more attractive to other developers.
That?s one of the things that will occur as Jamerson?s new dealerships begin to take shape.
Anderson will invest approximately $1.5 million in improvements on Scatterfield Road, including at least three commercial access points; and will also invest $1 million to relocate electric and other utilities, said Greg Winkler, interim economic development director.
?What this project that Mary Jamerson has brought to the city allows us, as a group of citizens, to capture revenues that we would not have had otherwise,? Smith said. ?Mary Jamerson and her team are at the forefront of that.?
Jamerson said she hopes to have the dealerships under roof by winter, and open sometime early next year.
After that, the company plans to donate one of its current buildings on North Broadway to Ivy Tech Community College, which plans to use the location for its automotive training facility.
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What's next A date for construction to begin was not specified, but Mary Jamerson, president of Myers Autoworld and Ford Autoworld, said she hopes to have the dealerships under roof by winter, and open sometime early next year.
Source: http://heraldbulletin.com/local/x710302087/Myers-and-Ford-Autoworld-break-ground-on-new-dealerships
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Airbus to review integration of Honeywell emergency beacons
PARIS (Reuters) - Airbus
The European planemaker stopped short of asking airlines to inspect the devices across its fleet as Boeing
"Our records do not show any incidents of this nature," an Airbus spokesman said.
"However, as a precautionary measure, we will do an additional review of the integration of the device in order to determine whether there is a need to apply any lessons from the AAIB findings," the spokesman added, referring to Britain's air accident investigation authority.
(Reporting by Tim Hepher; Editing by Christian Plumb)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/airbus-review-integration-honeywell-emergency-beacons-105614872.html
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Quotations of the day
"We won the battle, now we need to go win the war. Today is a good day, but Bradley is by no means out of the fire." ? Attorney David Coombs after U.S. Army Pfc. Bradley Manning was acquitted of aiding the enemy ? the most serious charge he faced ? but was convicted of espionage, theft and nearly every other count for giving secrets to WikiLeaks.
___
"The place is in turmoil, obviously. We have credibility with everybody there, all the different factions there." ? Sen. John McCain after he and Sen. Lindsey Graham were asked by President Barack Obama to travel to Egypt next week to urge the military to move ahead on new elections.
___
"My message to everyone is the same: This great nation needs to go forward peacefully." ? Catherine Ashton, the EU foreign policy chief, in a statement after Egypt's military allowed her to meet with ousted President Mohammed Morsi in his secret detention.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/quotations-day-070627283.html
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Israelis and Palestinians meet in Washington to resume peace talks - but few expect results
Israelis (Hebrew: ????????, Yisra'elim), are citizens or nationals of the modern state of Israel. Although Israel is a Jewish state, it has a multiethnic society, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds. The largest ethnic group is that of Israeli Jews, followed by Arab citizens, mostly Arab Muslims, with smaller numbers of Arab Christians in addition to Druze, Circassians, and others. As a result, some Israelis don't take their nationality as an ethnicity, but identify themselves with both their nationality and their ancestral origins.
Due to the multi-ethnic composition, Israel is a multicultural nation, home to a wide variety of traditions and values. Large-scale immigration in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries from Europe and Yemen and more recent Large-scale immigration from North Africa, Western Asia, North America, Former Soviet Union and Ethiopia introduced many new cultural elements and has had broad impact. The resulting cultural mix may be described as a melting pot.
Israelis and people of Israeli descent can be found internationally such as in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and throughout Europe. As many as 750,000 Israelis are estimated to be living abroad, primarily in the United States and Canada - about 10 percent of the general population of Israel.[7]
According to Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics, as of May 2006, of Israel's 7 million people, 77% were Jews of any background, 18.5% non-Jewish Arabs, and 4.3% "others".[8] Israels official census includes Israeli settlers in the occupied territories.[9] 280,000 Israeli settlers live in settlements in the West Bank,[2] 190,000 in East Jerusalem,[2] and 20 000 in the Golan Heights.[3]
Among Jews, 68% were Sabras (Israeli-born), mostly second- or third-generation Israelis, and the rest are olim (Jewish immigrants to Israel) ? 22% from Europe and the Americas, and 10% from Asia and Africa, including the Arab countries.[10] Nearly half of all Israeli Jews are descended from Jews who immigrated from Europe, while around the same number are descended from Jews who immigrated from Arab countries, Iran, Turkey and Central Asia. Over two hundred thousand are, or are descended from, Ethiopian and Indian Jews.[11]
Israel has two official languages; Hebrew and Arabic. Hebrew is the major and primary language of the state and is spoken by the majority of the population. Arabic is spoken by the Arab minority and by some members of the Mizrahi Jewish community. English is studied in school and is spoken by the majority of the population as a second language. Other languages spoken in Israel include Russian, Yiddish, Spanish, Ladino, Amharic, Armenian, Georgian, Romanian, Polish and French. American and European popular television shows are commonly presented. Newspapers can be found in all languages listed above as well as others, such as Persian.
In recent decades, considerable numbers of Israelis, estimated broadly from 653,000[12] to twice that figure, have moved abroad.[13] (see also Yerida). Reasons for emigration vary, but generally relate to a combination of economic and political concerns. Los Angeles is home to the largest community of Israelis out of Israel.
The most prominent ethnic and religious groups, who live in Israel at present and who are Israeli citizens or nationals, are as follows:
Jews[link]
Main article: Israeli JewsAccording to Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics, in 2008, of Israel's 7.3?million people, 75.6% were Jews of any background.[14] Among them, 70.3% were Sabras (Israeli-born), mostly second- or third-generation Israelis, and the rest are olim (Jewish immigrants to Israel) ? 20.5% from Europe and the Americas, and 9.2% from Asia and Africa, including the Arab countries.[15]
Arabs[link]
Arab citizens of Israel are those Arabs who remained within Israel's borders following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, and the establishment of the state of Israel, including those born within the state borders subsequent to this time, as well as those who had left during the exodus (or their descendants) who have since re-entered by means accepted as lawful residence by the Israeli state (primarily family reunifications).
In 2006, the official number of Arab residents in Israel was 1,413,500 people, about 20% of Israel?s population. This figure include 209,000 Arabs (14% of the Israeli-Arab population) in east Jerusalem, also counted in the Palestinian statistics, although 98% of East Jerusalem Palestinians have either Israeli residency or Israeli citizenship.[16]
Most Arab citizens of Israel are Muslim, particularly of the Sunni branch of Islam, and there is a significant Arab Christian minority from various denominations, as well as Arab Druze, among other religious communities.
As of 2008, Arab citizens of Israel comprise just over 20% of the country's total population. About 82.6% of the Arab population in Israel is Sunni Muslim (with a very small minority of Shia), another 9% is Druze, and around 9% is Christian (mostly Eastern Orthodox and Catholic denominations).
Bedouins[link]
Main article: Negev BedouinsThe Arab citizens of Israel include also the Bedouins who are divided into two main groups: the Bedouin in the north of Israel, who live in villages and towns for the most part, and the Bedouin in the Negev, who include half-nomadic and inhabitants of towns and Unrecognized villages. According to the Foreign Affairs Minister of Israel, currently, 110,000 Bedouins live in the Negev, 50,000 in the Galilee and 10,000 in the central region of Israel.[17]
Druze[link]
The Arab citizens of Israel include also the Druze who were numbered at an estimated 117,500 at the end of 2006.[18] All of the Druze living in what was then British Mandate Palestine became Israeli citizens after the declaration of the State of Israel. Though some individuals identify themselves as "Palestinian Druze",[19] most Druze do not consider themselves to be Palestinian, and consider their Israeli identity stronger than their Arab identity; indeed, Druze serve prominently in the Israel Defense Forces, and are represented in mainstream Israeli politics and business as well, unlike Muslim Arabs who are not required to and choose not to serve in the Israeli army.
Maronites[link]
The Maronite Christian community in Israel of several thousands resides mostly in Galilee. It is largely composed of former pro-Israeli Lebanese militia members and their families, who fled Lebanon after 2000 withdrawal of IDF from South Lebanon, though some originate from local Galilee communities, like one in Jish.
Non-Arab and Non-Jew citizens[link]
African Hebrew Israelites[link]
The African Hebrew Israelite Nation of Jerusalem is a small spiritual group whose members believe they are descended from the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel. With a population of over 5,000, most members live in their own community in Dimona, Israel, with additional families in Arad, Mitzpe Ramon, and the Tiberias area. At least some of them consider themselves to be Jewish, but mainstream Judaism does not consider them to be Jewish. Their ancestors were African Americans who after several years in Liberia migrated to Israel in the late 1960s.
African Refugees[link]
The number and status of African refugees in Israel is disputed and controversial but it is estimated that at least 16,000 refugees mainly from Eritrea, Sudan, Ethiopia and the Ivory Coast reside and work in Israel.
Armenians[link]
About 4,000 Armenians reside in Israel mostly in Jerusalem (including in the Armenian Quarter), but also in Tel Aviv, Haifa and Jaffa. Armenians have a Patriarchate in Jerusalem and churches in Jerusalem, Haifa and Jaffa. Although Armenians of Old Jerusalem have Israeli identity cards, they are officially holders of Jordanian passports.[20]
Assyrians[link]
There are around 1,000 ethnic Assyrians living in Israel, mostly in Jerusalem and Nazareth. Assyrians are an Aramaic speaking, Eastern Rite Christian minority who are descended from the ancient Mesopotamians. The old Syriac Orthodox monastery of Saint Mark lies in Jerusalem. Other than followers of the Syriac Orthodox Church, there are also followers of the Assyrian Church of the East and the Chaldean Catholic Church living in Israel.
Circassians[link]
In Israel, there are also a few thousand Circassians, living mostly in Kfar Kama (2,000) and Reyhaniye (1,000).[21] These two villages were a part of a greater group of Circassian villages around the Golan Heights. The Circassians in Israel enjoy, like Druzes, a status aparte. Male Circassians (at their leader's request) are mandated for military service, while females are not.
Gypsies[link]
Some Eastern European Roma are known to have arrived in Israel in the late 1940s and early 1950s, being from Bulgaria or having intermarried with Jews in the post-WWII displaced persons camps or, in some cases, having pretended to be Jews when Zionist representatives arrived in those camps. The exact numbers of these Romanies living in Israel are unknown, since such individuals tended to assimilate into the Israeli Jewish environment. According to several recent accounts in the Israeli press, some families preserve traditional Romani lullabies and a small number of Romani expressions and curse words, and pass them on to generations born in Israel who, for the most part, are Jews and speak Hebrew.[citation needed] The Romani community in Israel has grown since the 1990s, as some Roma immigrated there from the former Soviet Union. A community related to the Romanies and living in Israel and the Palestinian territories and in neighboring countries are known as Dom people.
Samaritans[link]
The Samaritans are an ethnoreligious group of the Levant. Ancestrally, they claim descent from a group of Israelite inhabitants who have connections to ancient Samaria from the beginning of the Babylonian Exile up to the beginning of the Common Era. 2007 population estimates show that 712 Samaritans live half in Holon, Israel and half at Mount Gerizim in the West Bank.
Vietnamese[link]
The number of Vietnamese people in Israel is estimated at 200. Most of them came to Israel between 1976 and 1979, after prime minister Menachem Begin authorized their admission to Israel and granted them political asylum. The Vietnamese living in Israel are Israeli citizens who also serve in the Israel Defense Forces. Today, the majority of the community lives in the Gush Dan area in the center of Israel.
Others[link]
Smaller prominent ethnic and religious groups, who currently live in Israel and who are Israeli citizens or nationals, include:
- Non-Jewish immigrants from the former Soviet Union many of whom are ethnic Ukrainians and Moldovans who were eligible to immigrate due to having, or being married to somebody who has, at least one Jewish grandparent. A very small number of these immigrants also belong to various ethnic groups from the Former Soviet Union such as Tatars, Poles and Siberian Yupiks (Siberian Eskimos) among others which can also be found in different towns in Israel
- Some naturalized foreign workers and their Israeli born children: predominantly from the Philippines, Nepal, Nigeria, Romania, China, Cyprus, Turkey Thailand, India, and Latin America.
- Some former British Mandate soldiers who married Israeli women prior to or after the declaration of the state and their descendants
- Ethiopian Christians
- Copts
- Haitians
- Approximately 100-200 Refugees from Bosnia, Kosovo and Kurdistan who were absorbed in Israel as refugees, most of them were also given Israeli citizenship and currently reside in Israel
Israeli diaspora[link]
Through the years, the majority of Israelis who emigrated from Israel went to the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.
For many years definitive data on Israeli emigration was unavailable.[22] In The Israeli Diaspora sociologist Stephen J. Gold maintains that calculation of Jewish emigration has been a contentious issue, explaining, "Since Zionism, the philosophy that underlies the existence of the Jewish state, calls for return home of the world's Jews, the opposite movement - Israelis leaving the Jewish state to reside elsewhere - clearly presents an ideological and demographic problem."[23]
Among the most common reasons for emigration of Israelis from Israel are most often due to economic constraints, economic characteristics (U.S. and Canada have always been richer nations than Israel), disappointment of the Israeli government, Israel's ongoing security Issues, as well as the excessive role of religion in the lives of Israelis.
United States of America[link]
Many Israelis emigrated to the United States throughout the period of the declaration of the state of Israel and until today. Today, the descendants of these people are known as Israeli-Americans. According to the 2000 United States Census as many as 106,839 Israelis lived in the United States in 2000.[24]
Canada[link]
Many Israelis emigrated to the Canada throughout the period of the declaration of the state of Israel and until today. Today, the descendants of these people are known as Israeli-Canadians. According to the Canada 2006 Census as many as 21,320 Israelis lived in the Canada in 2006.[5]
United Kingdom[link]
Many Israelis emigrated to the United Kingdom throughout and since the period of the declaration of the state of Israel. Today, the descendants of these people are known as Israeli-British. According to the United Kingdom 2001 Census as many as 11,892 Israelis lived in the United Kingdom in 2001. The majority of Israelis in the UK live in London.[25]
The first account of an Israeli nation is a state which dominated the modern land of Israel, the Kingdom of Israel; its latest capital was known as the Davidian city (Jerusalem). According to the biblical account, the United Monarchy was formed when there was a large popular expression in favour of introducing a monarchy to rule over the previously decentralised Israelite tribal confederacy. Increasing pressure from the Philistines (originally from Greece)[citation needed] and other neighboring tribes is said by the Bible to have forced the Israelites to unite as a more singular state.
Palestine was part of the Ottoman Empire until it was taken by British forces in 1918. The British establishment of colonial political boundaries allowed the Jews to develop autonomous institutions such as the Histadrut and the Knesset.[26] Since the late nineteenth century, the Zionist movement encouraged Jews to immigrate to Palestine and refurbish its land area, considerable but partially uninhabitable due to an abundance of swamps and desert. The resulting influx of Jewish immigrants, as well as the creation of many new settlements, was crucial for the functioning of these new institutions in what would, on May 14, 1948, become the State of Israel.[27]
The largest cities in the country Haifa, Tel Aviv, and Jerusalem are also the major cultural centers, known for art museums, and many towns and kibbutzim have smaller high-quality museums. Israeli music is very versatile and combines elements of both western and eastern, religious and secular music. It tends to be very eclectic and contains a wide variety of influences from the Diaspora and more modern cultural importation: Hassidic songs, Asian and Arab pop, especially by Yemenite singers, and Israeli hip hop or heavy metal. Folk dancing, which draws upon the cultural heritage of many immigrant groups, is popular. There is also flourishing modern dance.
Religion in Israel[link]
According to Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics, at the end of 2004, 76.2% of Israelis were Jewish by religion (Judaism), 16.1% were Muslims, 2.1% Christian, 1.6% Druze and the remaining 3.9% (including Russian immigrants and some ethnic Jews) were not classified by religion.[8]
Roughly 12% of Israeli Jews defined as haredim (ultra-orthodox religious); an additional 9% are "religious"; 35% consider themselves "traditionalists" (not strictly adhering to Jewish Halakha); and 43% are "secular" (termed "hiloni"). Among the seculars, 53% believe in God. However, 78% of all Israelis (and virtually all Israeli Jews) participate in a Passover seder.[28]
Unlike North American Jews, Israelis tend not to align themselves with a movement of Judaism (such as Reform Judaism or Conservative Judaism) but instead tend to define their religious affiliation by degree of their religious practice.
Among Arab Israelis, 82.6% were Muslim, 8.8% were Christian and 8.4% were Druze.[8]
The Bah?'? World Centre, which includes the Universal House of Justice, in Haifa attracts pilgrims from all over the world.[29] Apart from a few hundred volunteer staff, Bah?'?s do not live in Israel.
| Religion | Population | % of total |
|---|---|---|
| Jewish | &100000000054359000000005,435,900 | 76.0% |
| Muslim | &100000000011420000000001,142,000 | 15.9% |
| Christian | &10000000000120000000000120,000 | 1.8% |
| Druze | &10000000000115200000000115,200 | 1.7% |
| Unclassified by choice | &10000000000302400000000302,400 | 4.6% |
Official figures do not exist as to the number of atheists or otherwise non-affiliated individuals, who may comprise up to a quarter of the population referred to as Jewish. According to a 2004 Israel Central Bureau of Statistics Study on Israelis aged over 8% of Israeli Jews define themselves as haredim (or Ultra-Orthodox); an additional 9% are "religious" (predominantly orthodox, also known in Israel as: Zionist-religious, national-religious and kippot srugot); 12% consider themselves "religious-traditionalists" (mostly adhering to Jewish Halakha); 27% are "non-religious traditionalists" (only partly respecting the Jewish Halakha), and 43% are "secular". Among the seculars, 53% say they believe in God. Due to the higher natality rate of religious and traditionalists over seculars, the share of religious and traditionalists among the overall population is even higher.
Due to its immigrant nature, Israel is one of the most multicultural and multilingual societies in the world. Hebrew and Arabic are the official languages in the country, while English and Russian are the two most widely spoken non official languages. Georgian, Yiddish, Romanian, Ukrainian, Amharic, Armenian, Bulgarian, Ladino, French, Persian, Hungarian, Spanish, German, Vietnamese, Thai, Tagalog and Polish are the most commonly used foreign languages.[citation needed] A certain degree of English is spoken widely, and is the language of choice for many Israeli businesses. Courses of Hebrew and English language are mandatory in the Israeli school system, and most schools offer either Arabic, Spanish, German or French.
- ^ "63 to Israel: Population of Israel". Ynet!. 8 May 2011. http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-4066153,00.html. Retrieved 8 May 2011.?
- ^ a b c d "Palestinians shun Israeli settlement restriction plan". BBC. 25 November 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8379868.stm. Retrieved 23 December 2010.?
- ^ a b United Nations (2008). Yearbook of the United Nations 2005: Sixtieth Anniversary Edition - Towards Development, Security and Human Rights for All (Hardcover ed.). United Nations. p.?524. ISBN?92-1-100967-7. http://books.google.com/books?id=o2Va21wfwvIC&pg=PA524&dq=%22Israeli+settlements+in+the+occupied+Syrian+Golan+Heights,+housing+an+estimated+20000+Israeli+settlers%22&hl=en&ei=iKYSTf-OFYOs8gOTs-iBBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCMQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22Israeli%20settlements%20in%20the%20occupied%20Syrian%20Golan%20Heights%2C%20housing%20an%20estimated%2020000%20Israeli%20settlers%22&f=false.?
- ^ http://www.census.gov/prod/2004pubs/c2kbr-35.pdf
- ^ a b http://www40.statcan.gc.ca/l01/cst01/demo24a-eng.htm
- ^ "Country-of-birth database". Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/18/23/34792376.xls. Retrieved 2008-12-23.?
- ^ Eric, Gold; Moav, Omer (2006) (in Hebrew), Brain Drain From Israel (Brichat Mochot M'Yisrael), Jerusalem: Mercaz Shalem - The Shalem Center, The Social-Economic Institute, pp.?26, http://www.knesset.gov.il/committees/heb/material/data/mada2006-06-28.doc?.
- ^ a b c Central Bureau of Statistics, Government of Israel. "Population, by religion and population group" (PDF). http://www1.cbs.gov.il/shnaton56/st02_01.pdf. Retrieved 2006-04-08.?
- ^ http://cbs.gov.il/reader/shnaton/templ_shnaton_e.html?num_tab=st02_06x&CYear=2010
- ^ Central Bureau of Statistics, Government of Israel. "Jews and others, by origin, continent of birth and period of immigration" (PDF). http://www1.cbs.gov.il/shnaton56/st02_24.pdf. Retrieved 2006-04-08.?
- ^ http://www.cbs.gov.il/reader/shnaton/templ_shnaton.html?num_tab=st02_23x&CYear=2005
- ^ http://cbs.gov.il/reader/newhodaot/hodaa_template.html?hodaa=200801157
- ^ Andrew I. Killgore."Facts on the Ground: A Jewish Exodus from Israel" Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, March 2004, pp.18-20
- ^ [1], Monthly Bulletin of Statistics, CBS
- ^ Statistical Abstract of Israel, 2009, CBS. "Table 2.24 ? Jews, by country of origin and age" (PDF). http://www.cbs.gov.il/reader/shnaton/templ_shnaton_e.html?num_tab=st02_24x&CYear=2009. Retrieved 22 March 2010.?
- ^ "Selected Statistics on Jerusalem Day 2007 (Hebrew)". Israel Central Bureau of Statistics. 14 May 2007. http://www.cbs.gov.il/hodaot2007n/11_07_084b.doc.?
- ^ The Bedouin in Israel: Demography Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs 1 July 1999
- ^ Table 2.2, Statistical Abstract of Israel 2007, No. 58.
- ^ Yoav Stern & Jack Khoury (2 May 2007). "Balad's MK-to-be: 'Anti-Israelization' Conscientious Objector". Haaretz. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/854636.html. Retrieved 29 July 2007.?For example, Said Nafa, a self-identified "Palestinian Druze" serves as the head of the Balad party's national council and founded the "Pact of Free Druze" in 2001, an organization that aims ";to stop the conscription of the Druze and claims the community is an inalienable part of the Arabs in Israel and the Palestinian nation at large."
- ^ Joyce M. Davis. Jerusalem?s Armenian Quarter. Catholic Near East Welfare Association.
- ^ "Circassians in Israel". Circassian World. http://www.circassianworld.com/Israel.html.?
- ^ Henry Kamm. "Israeli emigration inspires anger and fear;" New York Times January 4, 1981
- ^ Stephen J. Gold. The Israeli Diaspora; Routledge 2002, p.8
- ^ http://www1.cbs.gov.il/www/hodaot2009n/11_09_208b.doc
- ^ http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/18/23/34792376.xls
- ^ Migdal, p. 135
- ^ Migdal, p. 136
- ^ Religion in Israel: A Consensus for Jewish Tradition by Daniel J. Elazar (JCPA)
- ^ "The Bah?'? World Centre: Focal Point for a Global Community". The Bah?'? International Community. http://info.bahai.org/article-1-6-0-5.html. Retrieved 2007-07-02.?
Source: http://article.wn.com/view/2013/07/30/Israelis_and_Palestinians_meet_in_Washington_to_resume_peace/
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Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Palm Center, known for DADT research, receives $1.35 million for trans military service studies
On July 30, 2013, it was announced that the Palm Center, best known for its extensive research that revealed the discriminatory and baseless nature of the so-called "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT) policy, will receive $1.35 million in grants from the Tawani Foundation to conduct studies on transgender service in the U.S. military.
The director of programs at the Palm Center's Transgender Military Initiative, Indra Lusero, has recently commissioned eleven studies over a period of three years to investigate the various policies that must be in place in order for transgender personnel to openly serve in the armed forces. According to the Palm Center's Call for Proposals, these eleven studies will "seek to answer questions related to readiness, morale, welfare, personnel requirements, and management" for transgender service members. The research provided will cover a wide range of key, transgender-specific military issues from gender-based discrimination and how it is currently dealt with according to military law, to physical and medical standards of care that will need to be in place for transgender military personnel to openly serve in the military.
One proposed study in particular aims to investigate the effect of transgender inclusion on the combat readiness of other countries' armed forces, in efforts to see "whether and how the US armed forces could [also] include transgender troops without undermining readiness." Currently, it is widely known that Australia, Great Britain, and Canada, among other US allied nations, have had longstanding policies of transgender inclusion in the armed forces.
United States transgender service members are at present prohibited from openly serving, and risk discharge from the military if they are identified as trans or gender-nonconforming. Along with the pervasive discrimination that transgender service members must face while closeted and in service, antiquated regulations and documentation policies make it difficult for transgender members of the armed forces to receive the federal benefits they deserve. Research from institutions like the Palm Center may provide the means to effect real change for trans people in the armed forces.
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Protein surfaces defects act as drug targets
![[ Back to EurekAlert! ]](http://www.eurekalert.org/images/back2e.gif){kind=small}
Public release date: 30-Jul-2013[ | E-mail |
Share ] Contact: Sophia Grein
sophia.grein@springer.com
49-622-148-78414
Springer
Drug designers now have a new way of designing drug candidates suitable for dislodging unstable water molecules
New research shows a physical characterisation of the interface of the body's proteins with water. Identifying the locations where it is easiest to remove water from the interface of target proteins could constitute a novel drug design strategy. The candidate drugs would need to be engineered to bind at the site of the protein where interfacial water is most easily dislodged. These findings, based on the work of Mara Beln Sierra from the National University of the South, in Bahia Blanca, Argentina and colleagues, were recently published in EPJ E.
The challenge is to describe the protein-water interface without a nanoscale model for water. Previous research tended to regard water as a continuum medium even at interfaces. However, these are inadequate for nanometric scale events occurring on the protein surfaces. Instead, the authors prefer a discrete model describing water molecules' partial confinement on the proteins' surface.
Beln Sierra and colleagues pursued a novel strategy for correlating interfacial water mobility with so-called packing defects in the protein structure. Proteins typically fold in ways that will keep part of their interface with water dry, in order to carry out their biological function. However, some of the paper's authors have previously discovered that the protein's water seal typically has some defects, called dehydrons. These are like crevices on the protein surface permitting access to water molecules.
The water molecules become heated up because they cannot interact with their neighbours as fully as they do in bulk water. These interfacial water molecules are thus unstable and easily expelled. The authors' findings thus pinpoint the exact location of these unstable water molecules. This, in turn, could be useful in selecting future drug candidates that would dislodge these water molecules upon association with the protein on the defect sites.
###
Reference
M. Beln Sierra et al. (2013), Protein packing defects "heat up" interfacial water, European Physical Journal E 36: 62, DOI 10.1140/epje/i2013-13062-7
For more information visit: http://www.epj.org
The full-text article is available to journalists on request.
[ | E-mail | Share ] ?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Public release date: 30-Jul-2013[ | E-mail |
Share ] Contact: Sophia Grein
sophia.grein@springer.com
49-622-148-78414
Springer
Drug designers now have a new way of designing drug candidates suitable for dislodging unstable water molecules
New research shows a physical characterisation of the interface of the body's proteins with water. Identifying the locations where it is easiest to remove water from the interface of target proteins could constitute a novel drug design strategy. The candidate drugs would need to be engineered to bind at the site of the protein where interfacial water is most easily dislodged. These findings, based on the work of Mara Beln Sierra from the National University of the South, in Bahia Blanca, Argentina and colleagues, were recently published in EPJ E.
The challenge is to describe the protein-water interface without a nanoscale model for water. Previous research tended to regard water as a continuum medium even at interfaces. However, these are inadequate for nanometric scale events occurring on the protein surfaces. Instead, the authors prefer a discrete model describing water molecules' partial confinement on the proteins' surface.
Beln Sierra and colleagues pursued a novel strategy for correlating interfacial water mobility with so-called packing defects in the protein structure. Proteins typically fold in ways that will keep part of their interface with water dry, in order to carry out their biological function. However, some of the paper's authors have previously discovered that the protein's water seal typically has some defects, called dehydrons. These are like crevices on the protein surface permitting access to water molecules.
The water molecules become heated up because they cannot interact with their neighbours as fully as they do in bulk water. These interfacial water molecules are thus unstable and easily expelled. The authors' findings thus pinpoint the exact location of these unstable water molecules. This, in turn, could be useful in selecting future drug candidates that would dislodge these water molecules upon association with the protein on the defect sites.
###
Reference
M. Beln Sierra et al. (2013), Protein packing defects "heat up" interfacial water, European Physical Journal E 36: 62, DOI 10.1140/epje/i2013-13062-7
For more information visit: http://www.epj.org
The full-text article is available to journalists on request.
[ | E-mail | Share ] ?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-07/s-psd073013.php
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SunCoke Energy Partners: A Special Kind Of MLP
This one of a kind master limited partnership offers investors a stable cash flow generative business with little to no competition. SunCoke Energy Partners (SXCP) produces metallurgical coke for integrated steelmakers using blast furnace technology. Basically, the company makes coke for the steel industry. While SXCP's customers are highly concentrated by numbers, they are inherently stable.
Company overview
So what is coke?
(click to enlarge)
SXCP is the coke producing industry's first publicly traded master limited partnership. The MLP has an intimate relationship with SunCoke Energy (SXC). The SXCP general partner is SunCoke Energy Partners GP LLC, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of SXCP's sponsor, SunCoke Energy. SXC is the largest independent producer of metallurgical coke in the Americas.
SXC holds a 55.9% limited partner interest and a 2.0% general partner interest in SXCP, while the public will hold the other 42.1% limited partner interests. SXC owns 35% of SXCP's Haverhill and Middletown (both in Ohio) facilities.
All in all, SXCP has an interest in 300 coke ovens amongst its 65% owned two facilities, with total nameplate capacity to produce 1.7 million tons of coke per year. The first facility is Haverhill, built in two phases. The first phase was commissioned in 2005 and the second in 2008. Now the plant has 200 cokemaking ovens and produces 1.1 million tons of coke annually. The Haverhill operations supply coke to ArcelorMittal (MT) and AK Steel (AKS).
Haverhill facility
SXCP's other major facility is Middletown. This facility began operations in 2011 and has 100 cokemaking ovens and produces 550,000 tons of coke per year, which is sold to AK Steel.
Middletown facility
Its Middletown facility also has a cogeneration plant that uses the hot gas produced during the cokemaking process to generate electricity. It generates approximately 45 megawatts of electrical power per hour, which is sold to AK Steel.
Company tailwinds
Long-term contracts. Outlined below are SXCP's key facilities, with the first contract expiration not coming until 2020.
(click to enlarge)
SCXP has a heavy concentration in two customers. Last year, AK Steel was the company's largest customer and accounted for 67% of contracted capacity. Meanwhile, ArcelorMittal accounted for 33%. But the beauty about its sales is they are covered via long-term take-or-pay contracts with an average remaining life of around 13 years.
What's more is that SXC (SXCP's sponsor) will purchase all of its coke production not taken by customers through 2018 following the offering at existing contract terms.
The contracts also have pass-through components for operating costs where certain operating costs are either passed through subject to annual negotiated budgets or is a fixed amount subject to an annual adjustment based on an inflation index.
As far as early termination goes, only its Haverhill (phase two) allows early termination. AK Steel can terminate at any time after January 1, 2014, with two years prior written notice if AK Steel has permanently shut down Ashland operations and has not replaced it on whole or in part. Yet, there are significant termination fees required to be paid by AK Steel if it terminates at any time prior to January 1, 2018.
Strong leadership. Fritz Henderson is at the helm as CEO for SXCP. Henderson is also the CEO for SXC. Henderson was the SVP of Sunoco before the company spun off SXC in 2011. Prior to Sunoco, Henderson held a variety positions across his 25-plus year career at General Mills, including COO, CFO and CEO.
Newer facilities. SXCP has much newer facilities relative to its peers, meaning operating expenses and maintenance CapEx should be lower for the company. The company believes that around 27% of the total cokemaking capacity in the U.S. and Canada (some 19 million tons) are produced via facilities that are over 40 years old.
The real advantage here is that many of these facilities will need to be replaced in the near- to interim-term, where, with its new facilities (average age of 10 years old versus the industry average of 38 years old), SXCP can grab some market share from peers.
Other growth opportunities include the potential to snatch up existing facilities owned by steel mills or competitors. The company believes that there could be over 4 million tons of cokemaking capacity in the U.S. and Canada up for grabs over the coming years.
Strong distribution. Its current dividend yield 7.2% and the MLP plans on growing this distribution at a 7% CAGR up to its February 2014 payout. Based on a $0.4415 anticipated payout, SXCP's yield would be over 7.5%.
Recent Events
Suncoke Energy Partners just increased its quarterly cash distribution by 2.4%. The cash distribution rate is now $0.4225 per limited partnership unit.
SXCP announced the distribution increase along with its quarterly results. Second quarter net income attributable to SXCP increased $4.1 million to $15.8 million compared to last year's second quarter. CEO Fritz Henderson cited sustained strong operations at the Haverhill and Middletown facilities.
SXCP just reached an agreement to purchase Lakeshore Coal Handling Corporation for $29.6 million. Lakeshore provides coal handling and blending services to Suncoke Energy's Indiana Harbor cokemaking operations. SXCP plans to maintain Lakeshore's current operations and staff. The Lakeshore acquisition is expected to boost distributable cash flow per unit by about 6% on an annualized basis.
CEO Fritz Henderson said of the Lakeshore acquisition:
"The acquisition of Lakeshore is consistent of our overall vision to grow SXCP by increasing our presence across the steel value chain. We expect this acquisition will be accretive to SXCP's cash flows and earnings, supporting future increases in distributable cash flow per unit."
Industry overview
Steel demand has a big bearing on the coke producing industry. CRU International has pegged coke demand in the U.S. and Canada at 19.5 million tons in 2011, but is expected to grow by 2 million tons, or 11% by 2016. The industry looks solid for future growth, with rising GDP lifting auto sales. S&P expects that auto sales will be up to 15.6 million units in 2013, up from 14.4 million in 2012.
Financials
We think that SXCP offers stable revenues, which translates into solid distributable free cash flow. Based on its projected distributions, the company has a solid distribution coverage ratio. The payout of distributions to distributable cash flow should remain around 85% over the next couple years.
(click to enlarge)
Bottom line
SXCP offers investors an impressive dividend yield at over 7%, not to mention it's trading at less than 5.5x EV/EBITDA. For MLP investors looking for a new type of investment, SXCP is a great choice, being the first cokemaking MLP.
The cokemaking business has a lack of competition and solid/stable customer base. We also think the five-year window that SXC will guarantee cash flow provides an inherent floor for the stock. Thanks to its agreements, SXCP is also able to pass down any unforeseen increases in operating costs. We also like how SXCP is expanding its presence across the steel value chain. Look for further strategic acquisitions to boost distributable cash floor similar to the Lakeshore acquisition.
Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
Source: http://seekingalpha.com/article/1581622-suncoke-energy-partners-a-special-kind-of-mlp?source=feed
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