Category Archives: Life Extension

Photo Credit: Robert Couse-Baker / Flickr Creative Commons

The airport protesters may have gone home, but the fight for immigrant rights in the era of Trump continues. While much of the work to fight the Muslim ban is taking place in courts rather than in the streets, activists still see multiple causes for alarm and protest. Late Thursday night, the Department of Justice asked the court to review its appeal and allow the federal government to reinstate the March version of the travel ban while the appeal is in process.

At the same time those affected by the Muslim ban worry about the future of their travel ability to and from the U.S., Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrests have increased sharply, and the Trump administration has offered a much less than expected extension of a program providing temporary residency for Haitian refugees. And these are just three of the issues immigration advocates are currently concerned about.

Fear of Travel: Lingering Impacts of the Muslim Ban

While the deluge of detentions following the first Muslim ban has slowed following an appeals court decision against it, refugee advocates and citizens of the six majority-Muslim countries named in the ban, including residents of those countries who served alongside American soldiers, are still experiencing an alarming number of secondary detentions at the hands of Customs and Border Patrol agents at airports.

Theres an increasing number of strange incidents involving special immigrant visa holders, explained Elizabeth Foydel, policy counsel at the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP), in a phone interview. Theyve already gone through a pretty intense security process to get the visa in the first place. Prior to the Trump administration, Foydel had never heard of a special visa recipient being detained when they arrive.

Every case is different, she said, but collectively, we're seeing a pattern of much lengthier secondary inspection, refused entry or deportation without a lot of reason behind it. Foydel has heard similar reports from Indian passport holders, even though India was never on Trumps list. Part of the issue is that even without a specific executive order, CBP has a high "level of discretion... over who should be kept in secondary detention for a long time or even deported. Within that discretion there is potential for abuse."

That means even when detention isn't imminent, fear of it is. Camille Mackler, director of legal initiatives at the New York Immigration Coalition, explained that "people are pulled into secondary inspection, but... not necessarily because of the ban." While she's not hearing as many reports of detentions on January's scale, "people are afraid of traveling, absolutely... It was never about just the seven countries [in the original ban]. People all over the world were worried... our most frequent calls are from people afraid to travel." There's a sense, though Mackler was clear to mention it's just a guess, "that America isnot quite welcoming."

Sharp Increase in ICE Arrests

Activists are also alarmed by a sharp increase in Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrests in the first 100 days of Trumps presidency, an increase in secondary detentions at airports (despite multiple legal challenges to the travel ban) and a new end date for a program designed to protect those seeking asylum from wars and natural disasters.

ICE agents arrested 41,000 undocumented immigrants during Trumps first 100 days in office, a 38 percent increase over the same three-month period in 2016.

Those arrested during the raids are not the gang members and high-powered drug dealers Attorney General Jeff Sessions would have America believe. As the Sacramento Bee reported, arrests of those without criminal recordsof immigrants whose only violation was being in the country illegallyincreased by 156 percent, from 4,242 people in 2016 to 10,845.

Instead, they include kitchen staff at an Ann Arbor restaurant detained in the middle of a shift; parents arrested during once routine immigration check-ins; and a DREAM program recipient arrested after a press conference speaking out against Trumps immigration policies. A U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services officer even showed up at a school in Queens, New York, sending the community into an uproar. USCIS officials were quick to report that the visit was simply to confirm information reported on routine paperwork, but as Natalia Renta, a staff attorney at the advocacy organization Make the Road New York, told AlterNet, it's unacceptable to have immigration officers in school."

Advocates say that while deportation was alarmingly common under the Obama administration (a record 2.8 million people were deported), there was frequently more advance warning. As Renta explained, he had a list of people who were priorities. We could give people a good assessment... It takes a lot less... Theres definitely been a change in the sense that there are more people being apprehended, and it's more unpredictable.

As a recent NPR report explained, many undocumented immigrants were previously not in hiding: Hundreds of thousands of them report to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on a regular basis. They've been allowed to stay because past administrations considered them a low priority for deportation.

Many of Rentas clients dont even need to be in an immigration office to be in danger. She explained that a lot of these raids happen in someone's home." Even worse, ICE agents often dont have warrants from a judge, just a piece of paper that says 'warrant.' Now, during Know Your Rights trainings, Make the Road New York organizers make sure to explain that attendees understand that they dont have to open the door when someone shows up claiming to be police or ICE. Organizers also provide materials showing what real warrants look like.

The End of Temporary Protected Status for Haitians

Temporary programs are also under attack. On May 22, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly announced a six-month extension of the Temporary Protected Status designation for 55,000 Haitian citizens living in the United States. The program grants short-term work permits and relief from deportation to immigrants from nations experiencing war, natural disasters and epidemics.

Haitians received the designation following the devastating 2010 earthquake that killed approximately 316,000 people and displaced 1.5 million. The program was first renewed to Haitians following a cholera epidemic, food shortages and extensive poverty.

That first extension was set to expire in July, with advocates lobbying for at least an additional 18 months for citizens to return to what remains the poorest nationin the Western Hemisphere.

Secretary Kelly defended the small extension in a statement:I believe there are indications that Haitiif its recovery from the 2010 earthquake continues at pacemay not warrant further... extension past January 2018.

The announcement was met with fear and anger from Haitians living in America, and their advocates. We have a lot of families that are in shock right now, Nancy Trevio, spokeswoman for Haitian Women of Miami,told the Washington Post.

Assessments as recent as December 2016 indicate that conditions continue to warrant a full 18-month extension. Anything less would be irresponsible and reckless, said Tiffany Wheatland-Disu, community outreach manager at the New York Immigration Coalition, in a statement. "Our government has already failed to extend needed TPS protections to the three West African nations of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone in the wake of the 2015-16 Ebola epidemic. Forcing Haitians to return to a destabilized Haiti will impose a similar fate on the more than 55,000 Haitians currently protected by TPS."

The current ruling has impacts for additional countries. Next year, the Trump administration will determine whether 86,000 Hondurans will be allowed to stay beyond January, and 263,00 Salvadoreans beyond March.

Ilana Novick is an AlterNet contributing writer and production editor.

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The Mere Proposal of a Muslim Ban Has Made Life More Oppressive for Visa Holders and Travelers - AlterNet

WAPELLO As visitors worked their way through a handful of displays highlighting the various contributions of ISU Extension and Outreach to life in Louisa County on Thursday afternoon, they came across an unusual station: an empty room, painted in cheery mint-green and adorned with a sign.

It said dream a little.

In the coming year, that room will become the site of a business incubator, supporting and nurturing a small business.

Celebrating 100 years of service in Louisa County, staff at the ISU Extension office in Louisa County held the event to showcase their accomplishments and highlight their vision for the next 100 years.

In small counties like Louisa County, where agriculture is a major sector of the economy... extension can provide a lot for peoples homes, families and farms, said Kathy Vance, Louisa County program director. Were a big part of life in Louisa County and have been for 100 years.

And on Thursdays event, visitors learned from extension staff and volunteers about the services that the office provide, from science-centric camps that teach children to code to Master Gardner classes.

John Lawrence, interim vice president for extension and outreach, said the relationship between Louisa County and Iowa State University is a way of helping the county tackle not only the problems, but seize the opportunities.

Some of these opportunities, Vance said, include an emphasis on sustainability. Two months ago, they installed solar panels at the extension office, showcasing green energy and educating the public about it.

Solar energy, she said, can be a cost-effective way to decrease both reliance on fossil fuels and the expenses associated with consuming fossil fuels.

"Extensions job is to build a strong Iowa part of it is sustainability, Vance said.

Another priority for the extension office, she said, is tackling water quality.

Water quality is a huge issue in Iowa for agriculture and for people and in Louisa County not just clean water, but floodwater, she said. And Extension has worked extensively with Louisa County residents and the community through two huge floods in the last 100 years and we hope to never have to do it again.

Other priorities remain the same as they have since the extension office began its work, including agricultural education to help farmers increase their yields.

We still have hungry people and they need the livestock thats produced in Iowa, the crops thats produced in Iowa, so were here to help with that, she said.

The rest is here:

Louisa County ISU Extension holds centennial celebration - Muscatine Journal

Parabiosis, a nascent and unproven medical procedure that involves transfusing the blood of young people into the bodies of older people, is in the news once again.

CNBC reports that for $8,000, a startup called Ambrosia will transfuse blood from donors under the age of 25 to buyers over the age of 35.

And once again, folks are reacting with astounding contempt. You can take a look at the outrage here. In a nutshell: This is exploitation. This is vampirism. This is a profound misuse of money. This is where capitalism takes us.

We don't yet know if parabiosis reverses or even slows aging. Reason's Ron Bailey has chronicled the practice since it first popped up on his life-extension radar, after studies found that connecting the circulatory system of a young mouse to that of an old mouse "stimulates the worn-out stem cells in old mice to start proliferating again to repair damaged tissues." (Researchers are also studying the effects of umbilical cord blood plasma as a substitute for the blood of 20-somethings.)

Like Ron, I think this is fascinating and exciting science, even if it turns out to be the 21st century analog to Charles-douard Brown-Squard's experiments with the macerated testicles of guinea pigs and dogs. An elderly Brown-Squard injected said concoction into his own body thinking it would make him stronger.

His methods were sloppy and wrong, but his underlying assumption--that certain glands within the body secreted critical chemicals--were correct. Reviled across Europe and the U.S. in the late 1800s, his experiments nevertheless helped pave the way for treatments for hypothyroidism, Type I diabetes, and Addison's disease.

More than a century later, you'd think we'd be a little more tolerant of the circuitous routes that researchers take from hunch to value creation. Have you seen the Wright Brothers' first crack at a plane? It sucked. And yet, people are freaking out about parabiosis for reasons that don't stand up to scrutiny.

The blood Ambrosia uses comes from blood banks, which have always sold blood to cover their operating expenses. That means Ambrosia, and its customers, are helping offset the costs of collecting the blood that goes to people who will die without it.

The donors who provide the blood certainly aren't any worse off: According to the Red Cross, "plasma from your donation is replaced within about 24 hours. Red cells need about four to six weeks for complete replacement." I see nothing in the organization's FAQ that suggests a worse outcome for the donor if the recipient is a tech bro rather than a gunshot victim.

Might this be bad for the people buying the blood? Perhaps. Though if it's a problem for healthy people to receive vetted blood transfusions, I can't imagine it's any better for people whose immune systems have been compromised by the trauma of an accident or surgery. It is certainly not the most dangerous thing for which one can pay $8,000. (My entry would be this year's Yamaha SCR 950. Mama mia!)

Is it a scam to pay $8,000 for something that may have absolutely no effect on quality or length of life? I suspect if you have $8,000 to spend on this (it's not covered by insurance, obviously), you are also capable of conducting a cost-benefit analysis of an unproven, exploratory treatment. I don't care for Thiel, but I'm also not worried about him going broke buying blood.

Is it bad that rich people in Silicon Valley are spending money on this, when so many people with much less money are suffering from ailments more real and troubling than the prospect of not living to 120? That, I think, is what really drives people to say awful things about it.

Last year, Inc. magazine reported that "if there's one thing that excites Peter Thiel"--Silicon Valley's most prominent supervillain--"it's the prospect of having younger people's blood transfused into his own veins." A lot of people loathe Thiel, for some very good reasons. A few weeks back on HBO's Silicon Valley, that show's most prominent villain, insanely wealthy Hooli founder Gavin Belson, was seen receiving a transfusion from a beautiful young lad, whom the show's nominal hero refers to as a "blood boy." Belson, played by Matt Ross, once threw a sloth down a flight of stairs. He is the epitome of unlikeable.

And so parabiosis has become a stand-in for the things villainous rich people can buy that the rest of us can't. It's right up there with bigger houses, hired help, immunity from prosecution, gaudy weddings, and entire elections (you'd think we'd be happier when they can't buy those).

If parabiosis is bunko, then the people who'd prefer to control how rich people spend their money should rejoice. Rich people are going to do with their money what they want (because they always have); and in this scenario, they're wasting it.

But if rich people paying for parabiosis leads to some valuable insights about improving quality of life in old age, then please consider ordering the humble pie for dessert. Age-related disorders are pressing right now, and will become more so as we journey into a future in which humans live longer, but not necessarily better, lives.

There are nearly a billion humans over the age of 60 on the planet today. There will be more than two billion of them by 2050. I hope to still be around then. I'm sure many critics of parabiosis hope to as well. If the tech bros of Silicon Valley want to offer up their bodies and their money in hopes of making that possible, why would any of us discourage them?

More:

Is It Wrong for Old People to Receive Blood Infusions From Teenagers? - Reason (blog)

Endeavour Mining (CN:EDV) has found what looks like an extension of the gold mineralisation that underpins the companys Ity gold mine in Cte d'Ivoire, just 5km to the south of the current operation.

A cross section of the Le Plaque area near Ity, Cte d'Ivoire (dimensions adjusted for web)

The miner this week reported the discovery of several high-grade mineralised trends in an area known as Le Plaque, which if economic could feed into a planned carbon-in-leach (CIL) operation at Ity.

The best intercepts were 3.08m grading 36.94g/t Au; 13.09m grading 22.36g/t Au; and 2.94m grading 61.23g/t Au.

Ity is currently operating as a heap leach operation with only three years of reserves but Endeavour published a feasibility study late last year outlining a 3 million tonne per annum gravity circuit and CIL processing route, which would deliver average production of 114,000 ounces per annum at an all-in sustaining cost of US$603/oz for an initial 14 years, based on a 1.9 million ounce reserve.

The up-front cost for the project facelift is $307 million and the build time is estimated at just over one-and-a-half years. The NPV (post-tax, 5% discount) is $411 million with an IRR of 36% based on a $1,250/oz gold price. The gold price this week was approaching $1,270/oz.

The payback period on capital invested is expected to be a shade over two years owing to the front-ending of production at a rate of 165,000ozpa for the first five years at AISC of $507/oz.

Endeavour executive vice president for exploration and growth, Patrick Bouisset, said the discoveries at Le Plaque would require more drilling but a maiden resource for the area was expected by year end.

The complexity of the geology requires more drilling and interpretation, but we are very encouraged by the multiple trends discovered which exhibit the potential to host significant resources, he said.

We are equally excited about both the ongoing exploration on the other targets located in proximity to the Ity mining complex and on conducting interpretative work to generate new greenfield targets in the wider 80km Ity corridor that was secured last year.

The Le Plaque area is of a similar size to the multiple-deposit Ity mining complex to the north at 4km2 and hosts several large high gold-in-soil anomalies. These trends stretch over 400m, with the largest a 2km-long geochemical anomaly with best values or more than 1,000ppb Au. The trends are all open along strike and at depth.

A note from investment bank RBC this week said continued near-mine exploration at Ity could provide additional high-grade ounces for the CIL project.

Read more:

Ity extension to add life - Mining Journal (subscription)

Nuclear-Armed Trident II D5 missiles rest in 44-foot long missile tubes built into ballistic missile submarines quietly patrolling the undersea domain - to ensure security and peace.

The Navy is beginning the process of evaluating additional upgrades and technical adjustments to the sub-launched Trident II D5 nuclear weapon such that it can serve for decades well beyond its current service life extending to 2040.

The Navy has already been working on technical upgrades to the existing Trident II D5 in order to prevent obsolescence and ensure the missile system remains viable for the next several decades.

The US Navy is accelerating upgrades to the nuclear warhead for its arsenal of Trident II D5 nuclear-armed submarine launched missiles -- massively destructive weapons designed to keep international peace by ensuring and undersea-fired second-strike ability in the event of a catastrophic nuclear first strike on the US.

Navy Vice Adm. Terry Benedict, director of Navy Strategic Systems Programs, told lawmakers about a long-term sustainment of the triads sea-based leg.

While our current life-extension efforts will sustain the D-5 [Trident submarine-launched ballistic missile] system until the 2040s, the Navy is already beginning to evaluate options to maintain a credible and effective strategic weapon system to the end of the Columbia class service life in the 2080s, Benedict said.

The Navy has modified an existing deal with Charles Stark Draper Laboratory has to continue work on the missile's MK 6 guidance system, an agreement to continue specific work on the weapon's electronic modules. The modification awards $59 million to the firm, a DoD statement said.

As part of the technical improvements to the missile, the Navy is upgrading whats called the Mk-4 re-entry body, the part of the missile that houses a thermonuclear warhead. The life extension for the Mk-4 re-entry body includes efforts to replace components including the firing circuit, Navy officials explained.

Navy and industry engineers have been modernizing the guidance system by replacing two key components due to obsolescence the inertial measurement unit and the electronics assembly, developers said.

The Navy is also working with the Air Force on refurbishing the Mk-5 re-entry body which will be ready by 2019, senior Navy officials said.

Navy officials said the Mk-5 re-entry body has more yield than a Mk-4 re-entry body, adding that more detail on the differences was not publically available.

The missile also has a larger structure called a release assembly which houses and releases the re-entry bodies, Navy officials said. There is an ongoing effort to engineer a new release assembly that will work with either the Mk-4 or Mk-5 re-entry body.

The Trident II D5, first fired in the 1990s, is an upgraded version of the 1970s-era Trident I nuclear weapon; the Trident II D5s were initially engineered to serve until 2027, however an ongoing series of upgrades are now working to extend its service life.

The Navy is modernizing its arsenal of Trident II D5 nuclear missiles in order to ensure their service life can extend for 25 more years aboard the Navys nuclear ballistic missile submarine fleet, service leaders said.

The 44-foot long submarine-launched missiles have been serving on Ohio-class submarines for 25 years,service leaders explained.

The missiles are also being planned as the baseline weapon for the Ohio Replacement Program ballistic missile submarine, a platform slated to serve well into the 2080s, so the Navy wants to extend the service life of the Trident II D5 missiles to ensure mission success in future decades.

Under the U.S.-Russia New START treaty signed in 2010, roughly 70-percent of the U.S. nuclear warheads will be deployed on submarines.

Within the last several years, the Navy has acquired an additional 108 Trident II D 5 missiles in order to strengthen the inventory for testing and further technological development.

Trident II D5 Test

Firing from the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida last year, a specially configured non-armed test version of the missile was fired from the Navys USS Maryland. This was the 161stsuccessful Trident II launch since design completion in 1989, industry officials said.

The missile was converted into a test configuration using a test missile kit produced by Lockheed Martin that contains range safety devices, tracking systems and flight telemetry instrumentation, a Lockheed statement said.

The Trident II D5 missile is deployed aboard U.S. Navy Ohio-class submarines and Royal Navy Vanguard-class to deter nuclear aggression. The three-stage ballistic missile can travel a nominal range of 4,000 nautical miles and carry multiple independently targeted reentry bodies.

The U.S. and UK are collaboratively working on a common missile compartment for their next generation SSBNs, or ballistic missile submarines.

The 130,000-pound Trident II D5 missile can travel 20,000-feet per second, according to Navy figures. The missiles cost $30 million each.

The "Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists" futher describes the weapon -- "The Trident D5s carry three types of warheads: the 100-kiloton W76/Mk-4, the 100-kiloton W76-1/Mk-4A, and the 455-kiloton W88/Mk-5 warhead, the highest-yield ballistic missile warhead in the U.S. arsenal."

Read more from the original source:

US Accelerates Upgrades for its Arsenal of Nuclear-Armed, Submarine-Launched Trident II D5s - Scout

With missile threats dominating the headlines, missile defense, modernization and posture continue to anchor strategic funding for the United States in recent budget requests.

With missile threats dominating the headlines, missile defense, modernization and posture continue to anchor strategic funding for the United States in recent budget requests.

Citing recent geopolitical and missile operations by Russia, China and North Korea, Rob Soofer, deputy assistant secretary of defense for nuclear and missile defense policy, alerted Congress to a Pentagon comprehensive Nuclear Posture Review that is expected to be completed by the end of this calendar year during his testimony earlier this month before the House Armed Services Strategic Force Subcommittee on the presidents budget request for fiscal year 2018.

That review comes at a time of renewed interest for strategic missile operations.

Frank Klotz, administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) told lawmakers at the same hearing, Our [fiscal] 2018 budget request accounts for the significant tempo of operations at NNSA that in many ways has reached a level unseen since the Cold War.

The request, he notes, adds more than $3 billion across the Future Years Defense Plan relative to the previous years' request to continue improving the health of the DoD nuclear enterprise.It includes funding to repair and replace infrastructure at national laboratories and production plants and improves workspace for the scientific, engineering and professional workforce, he says.

The request includes; $10.2 billion for weapons activity appropriation, a 10.8 percent increase over 2017; $1.8 billion for defense nuclear nonproliferation, about the same as the previous years about $1.5 billion or a 4.2 percent increase over 2017, for the Naval reactors program; and $418 million for federal salaries and expenses, or an 8.1 percent compared to 2017.

Klotz points out the NNSA budget request is nearly $1 billion over the fiscal 2017 omnibus level, enabling the agency to tackle infrastructure recapitalization projects, such as the uranium processing facility at Y-12 in Oak Ridge, Tenn.

The Pentagon expects nuclear recapitalization costs to total $230 billion to $290 billion over more than two decades, Soofer sys.

Navy Vice Adm. Terry Benedict, director of Navy Strategic Systems Programs, says the funding will help with long-term sustainment of the triads sea-based leg, including the life-extension efforts will sustain the D-Trident submarine-launched ballistic missile system, which the U.S needs to last until the 2040s.

The budget request also includes about $7.9 billion in 2018 to continue to develop reliable, increasingly capable and state-of-the-art defenses against ballistic missile threats for the nation, deployed forces, allies and international partners, Gary Pennett, Missile Defense director of operation, told reporters.

The amount includes $1.5 billion in fiscal]2018 for the ground-based midcourse defense program, or GMD.

Thirty-six ground-based interceptors, or GBIs, are in place today, and the agency is on track to expand the fleet to 44 by the end of 2017, Pennett says.

The 2018 request for Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) is $1.7 billion and, Pennett says, includes sustaining the deployed SM-3 fleet.

MDA will buy 34 SM-3 Block IB missiles for deployment on land at the Aegis Ashore site in Romania and later in Poland, and at sea on Aegis BMD ships, according to the budget. This will bring the total number of SM-3 Block IB missiles to 287 by the end of 2018, Pennett says.

The Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, element gives the BMD system a globally transportable, rapidly deployable ability to intercept and destroy ballistic missiles inside or outside the atmosphere during their final, or terminal, phase of flight, keeping enemy weapons from reaching the ground, he says.

A THAAD battery consists of a truck-mounted launcher, eight interceptors per launcher, the worlds largest air-transportable X-band radar, and fire control.

Pennett says the THAAD budget request is $797 million and that in 2018 MDA will support seven THAAD batteries.

"This budget procures 34 THAAD interceptors in [fiscal] 2017, bringing the total to 349 by the end of [fiscal] 2018," he says.

The budget request of $147 million in fiscal 2018 for Israeli programs continues MDA's longstanding support of U.S.-Israeli cooperative BMD programs, Pennett says, including procurement of the Iron Dome weapon system and the co-development of the David's Sling upper-tier interceptor and Arrow weapon system improvements.

MDA is requesting $259 million for the multi-object kill vehicle, and has accelerated its risk-reduction and product-development phases to achieve a demonstrated capability in 2025, he says.

For hypersonic defense, MDA requests $75 million, he says.

The agency is requesting $54-million to continue developing and scaling a low-power laser demonstrator, he says, as well as $52-million request for space efforts will fund space tracking and surveillance system, or STSS, satellite operations and sustainment.

"STSS consists of two satellites operating in low-earth orbit and provides risk-reduction data for a potential operational BMDS tracking and surveillance constellation," Pennett says. "This FY '18 request will also complete on-orbit deployment of the space-based kill assessment sensor network."

----Michael Fabey -- Scout Warrior Senior Contributor

---- Michael Fabey can be reached atFabeyships@aol.com

--- Fabey is the author of an upcoming Scribner book "Crashback" - The Power Clash Between the US & China

---For Information on Fabey's Book Crashback - CLICK HERE

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New Threats: Pentagon Revs Up Missile Defense - Scout

COLLEGE STATION Texas cotton is in a varied state of production, but one thing is common for most producers, especially dryland growers: Rain is needed to improve soil moisture levels, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service experts said.

Seth Byrd, an AgriLife Extension agronomist in Lubbock, said cotton producers around the state experienced favorable weather patterns last year but there is some concern 2017 could be problematic, especially for dryland producers. Some cotton fields are yet to be planted, while others are flowering, according to regional reports.

John Nielsen-Gammon, state climatologist in College Station, said long-term forecasts show conditions could be drier and warmer than normal and many areas in the state are relatively dry for this time of year.

Byrd said cotton acres in the region will rise as producers switch from corn and sorghum for a more favorable market option. Cotton is also a more drought-tolerant planting option.

Other options arent out there because of the state of the markets, he said. Theres always a risk no matter what you plant, but cotton looks less risky.

Regional cotton fields are about 50 percent dryland and 50 percent irrigated, though additional irrigated acreage in the northern part of the region historically dedicated to corn and sorghum will be planted in cotton, he said.

Conditions were good two weeks ago, he said, so some producers took advantage and planted.

But soil moisture levels, especially the first 3 inches of topsoil, dried significantly due to high temperatures and windy conditions in the region, he said. The region has not received rain in almost two weeks, though some was expected.

There is some dry planting going on, he said. Its not ideal, but the seed is not going to swell and rot. Theyre counting on the rain in the forecast.

In the Coastal Bend and Rio Grande Valley, Dr. Joshua McGinty, Agri Life Extension agronomist, Corpus Christi, said most dryland fields needed a good rain within the next few weeks or cotton could be in trouble.

Most fields were planted in February and March and were already flowering and looked OK for now, he said.

McGinty said the past few years were easy as fields received adequate rain and required little to no irrigation and faced few pest and disease issues. This year, the soil profile was not as accommodating, and producers decision to stick with cotton rather than rotate to corn or sorghum led to an increase in disease pressure, including nematodes, which are atypical for the region.

Usually if you start with a good soil moisture profile you can make a crop, he said. This year weve had enough moisture to get the crop started, but we need a good rain in the next few weeks or the cotton crop could be in trouble. The profile is dry to 2 feet or more in some areas and it wont be long before roots cant access moisture.

McGinty said producers in the Rio Grande Valley were irrigating heavily this year due to arid, windy conditions, but the water is salty and of poor quality. A good rain is needed to improve soil moisture levels and flush the salt out of fields.

Cotton is the only thing growers think they could make a profit on, he said. The last few years we got lucky, but then a few years before that it was bad in some areas, so it is hit-or-miss. It all depends on the rain.

AgriLife Extension district reporters compiled the following summaries:

Small amounts of rain as well as severe thunderstorms, high winds, tornadoes and hail were common. More rain was expected and needed because the area was becoming very dry. Pasture conditions should improve. Wheat harvests were underway. Hay was baled, and cotton was re-planted in some areas. Sorghum and corn crops were doing better than average. Cattle and other livestock were in good condition. Stocker calf producers were shipping cattle off winter grazing pastures. Daily temperatures continued to warm, and cool-season annuals such as ryegrass continued to dry down and offer less grazing. With fertilizer, Bermuda grass pastures will green up after rainfalls. Counties were reporting good soil moisture. Most counties reported good overall crop, livestock and rangeland and pasture conditions.

Rain fell across parts of the district with amounts varying from a trace to more than 3 inches. Some hail was reported but no reports of significant damage. Wheat harvests were underway before the rain. Cotton planting started, and a high percent of cotton was expected to be planted after wheat harvests end. Some producers planted cover crops behind wheat, and more was planned. Canola was ready or was harvested with one county reporting disappointing yields. Livestock were in good condition. Rangeland and pastures were in good condition.

Rain was needed in most areas, other than the northern portion of the reporting area. All crops, other than cotton, were showing signs of stress due to lack of moisture. Early planted cornfields were nearing dent stage. Fleahoppers caused some damage in cotton. Sugarcane aphid pressure was apparent in many sorghum fields and treatments were being applied. Producers started flooding rice fields. Livestock were mostly in good condition. Beef producers began marketing younger calves due to declining pasture conditions. Rain was in the forecast, and some producers applied fertilizer to forage and hay pastures in anticipation.

The region continued to receive rainfall although amounts varied. San Augustine County received very little rain while Upshur County reported large amounts. Warm-season forage growth remained slow due to cool nighttime temperatures. Anderson County reported large amounts of weeds in pastures and hay meadows. Producers were fertilizing hay meadows. Pastures around the region were in good condition. Subsoil and topsoil remained in mostly adequate condition. Ryegrass was cut and baled. Cherokee County hay production was in full swing. Shelby County was harvesting its first cutting of hay. Wild pig activity was up. Anderson County reported an active timber harvest. Vegetable crops were looking good. Harvest of onions, tomatoes, potatoes, plums, peaches, pea, sweet corn, squash and watermelons started. All cotton was planted in Anderson and Jasper counties. Oat conditions in Jasper County were good. Livestock were in good condition.

Topsoil and subsoil moisture levels ranged from mostly adequate to short. Daytime temperatures were in the 80s, and nighttime temperatures were in the low 60s. Some rain was received over the weekend with amounts ranging from about 0.25-1 inch but more was needed. Corn looked very good and was rapidly growing. Most other crops including cotton, grain sorghum and soybeans were planted and emerged. Pastures also looked very good. Ryegrass hay was harvested, and meadows were prepared for Bermuda grass. Wheat harvests started with about 15-20 percent completed. Fly numbers increased on cattle

.

Temperatures and conditions were seasonable early in the reporting period with isolated storms, heavy rainfall, winds and hail reported later in the reporting period. More rain was needed in all areas. Stock ponds were drying out as high temperatures and high winds reduced soil moisture levels. Wheat harvests were underway in most areas with average and below-average yields reported. Some producers worked at full speed to get wheat out before rains arrived. Farmers have Sudan up and growing for summer grazing and hay production. Irrigated corn and sorghum were doing very well. Dryland sorghum was off to a slow start but should pick up after the rains. Cotton planting was delayed due to dry conditions. Planting was expected to begin in the next few weeks following the rains. Rains helped pastures and Coastal Bermuda grass grow. Rangeland and pasture conditions remained fair to good, but were showing signs of moisture stress. Most cool-season annuals matured and played out. Recent rainfall should help pastures achieve good growth. Livestock remained in fair to good condition. The cattle market was active and holding steady.

In Chambers County, organic rice fields were being planted. A little conventional rice was left to plant, as well. Most fields were dry and required extra water to be pumped onto them to prevent rice from getting too dry. Weekend rains helped conditions and more rain was in the forecast. Pastures declined significantly over the past two weeks and needed the moisture. Brazos County experienced heavy rains. Some creeks flooded. Soil moisture conditions in Montgomery County were very poor until light showers were received, with more than half an inch in some areas. Overall conditions were good for the moment. Soil-moisture levels throughout the region ranged from short to very short. Rangeland and pasture ratings varied from fair to poor with fair ratings being most common.

Temperatures continued to rise throughout the district, continuously reducing soil moisture and browning rangeland and pastures. Most areas remained dry. Scattered rain was received in some areas, and heavy rainfall with localized flooding from heavy downpours of 3-5 inches was reported in the southwest corner of Jim Hogg County near the Starr, Zapata county line. Temperatures were warm with high winds throughout most of the district.

Gardeners continued to harvest potatoes and corn. Cornfields were in the silking stage and sorghum was in the heading stage. All cotton fields emerged throughout the district. Irrigation continued where needed. Peanut planting started. Pasture and rangeland conditions continued to dry out in most areas due to strong winds and lack of rainfall.

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Moisture levels a concern for some cotton producers - Waco Tribune-Herald

Floyd is a horticulturist with Texas AgriLife Extension Service. He can be reached at 498-4071 in Ector County or 686-4700 in Midland County or by email at Jeff.Floyd@ag.tamu.edu

Floyd is an Agri-Life Extension agent for Ector and Midland counties. To learn more, call the Ector County Extension office at 432-498-4072, or the Midland County Extension office at 432-686-4700, or email jeff.floyd@ag.tamu.edu.

Posted: Sunday, May 28, 2017 3:00 am

GARDENING: What makes a tree, a tree? By Jeff Floyd Odessa American

What is a tree and why is it so unique among plants?

On the surface, asking what a tree is appears to be a silly question but you might be surprised how often horticulturists argue about the precise definition of a tree. While most generally agree that trees are woody plants that live for many years, not all can agree whether multiple trunks should be called trees. Another point of contention is their height. Is there a minimum height necessary for classifying a plant as a tree?

Perhaps the most useful definition was offered by the late U.S. forest pathologist Alex Shigo who described trees as ....woody, long-lived, compartmentalizing perennials. Shigos definition of a tree embraces both single-trunk Redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens) sometimes towering more than three-hundred feet above the humid coastal forest floor of Northern California, and multi-trunk Havard oaks (Quercus havardii) which scarcely rise more than five feet above the parched Southwestern sands of Texas, New Mexico and, Arizona.

If we didnt use this more flexible standard, we wouldnt be able to call many small to medium sized multi-trunk species trees. For example, popular Texas landscape specimen such as crepe myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica) and Texas mountain laurel (Dermatophyllum secundiflorum, syn. Sophora secundiflora) among others would otherwise be considered shrubs and in fact many horticulturists argue that these are shrubs. Botanists are a more precise bunch and usually argue less than horticulturists. They often set the minimum height for classifying a woody plant as a tree at sixteen feet.

If youre wondering whether that is a tree or shrub in your landscape, contact the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension office at 498-4071 or email jeff.floyd@ag.tamu.edu and well bring along a botanist to argue the point. All youll need to do is sit back and enjoy the show.

Posted in Gardening on Sunday, May 28, 2017 3:00 am. | Tags: Texas A&m Agrilife Extension Office, Jeff Floyd, Pecans, Pruning, Prune, Soft Landscape Materials, Landscape, Gardening, Gardener, Food, Integra, Repeat Applications, West Texas

Original post:

GARDENING: What makes a tree, a tree? - Odessa American

On Tuesday, May 23, the Trump administration released its Fiscal Year 2018 (FY2018) budget request. I am doing a three-part analysis of the National Nuclear Security Administrations budget. That agency, a part of the Department of Energy, is responsible for developing and maintaining US nuclear weapons. Yesterday we focused on The Good, today we have The Bad, and The Ugly is still to come.

The NNSAs most important task is to ensure that the weapons in the US nuclear arsenal are safe, secure and effective. As part of that work, the NNSA is simultaneously undertaking four different programs to extend the lives of four different warheads in the US stockpile: the W76 warhead deployed on submarines, the B61 bomb deployed on aircraft, the W88 warhead deployed on submarines and the W80 warhead for the proposed new air-launched cruise missile. The NNSA has not had such a confluence of work in decades.

That leads many observers to worry about how well the NNSA will manage such a heavy workload, especially when it is also trying to build one major new facility for uranium metal work and ramp up the new approach to dispose of excess plutonium.

Those concerns are only increased when a new president comes in talking about the need to greatly strengthenand expand the US nuclear capability. As described in The Good, this budget does not hint at any such effort.

Trumps budget does, however, reveal rising costs for the existing warhead life extension programs initiated under the Obama administration. For the B61 and the W88, the Trump budget requests significantly more than what the Obama administration projected would be required for FY2018. For the B61, the Obama administration projected in the FY2017 budget that $728 million would be required in FY2018, an already large 15 percent increase above the FY2017 request. But the Trump administrations request is $789 million, a 22 percent increase above FY2017. For the W88, a planned decrease of $30 million to $255 million (a 9 percent cut) became a $50 millionor 15 percentincrease, to $332 million.

The FY18 budget request offers relatively mundane explanations for these rising costs, including unexplained increases. They are particularly troubling, however, when considered in tandem with a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on the life extension programs.

That report cites internal NNSA cost estimates showing the B61 will cost $10 billion, or $2.6 billion more than the NNSA currently predicts, and take an extra two years to produce the first new B61-12. Another internal NNSA estimate found that the W88 update could cost $1 billion more than previously expected. The GAO report also cites yet another internal NNSA estimate that the W80-4 warhead, being developed for the proposed new nuclear-armed cruise missile, may be underfunded by $1 billion, while a proposal to update the warheads secondary could add another $250-300 million to the total cost. That could bring the W88 program to over $10 billion as well.

Cost increases like that will mean increasing trouble for the NNSA. The Weapons Activities budget line, which funds all work on nuclear warheads, has already benefited from eight straight years of rising budgets averaging over 5% annually. The Trump budget seeks a 10% increase above the final level of funding Congress approved in the FY17 omnibus appropriations bill. If the numbers the GAO cites are correct, even larger increases will be needed in the future.

Another complicating factor is very tight timelines. The GAO notes the W80-4 is operating on an accelerated, compressed schedule, while officials have said the B61 may no longer meet certification requirements if there are any further delays producing new bombs. It looks more and more like the intersection of multiple warhead life extension programs, rising costs, and rushed production schedules could lead to a train wreck for NNSA.

And that is before the NNSA even starts work on its most far-reaching plan to develop a suite of new warheads to replace the existing ballistic missile warheads (but more on that in The Ugly).

In its final budget, the Obama administration proposed a modest increase in fundingfrom $52 million in FY2016 to $69 million in FY2017for dismantling warheads that have been retired from the US nuclear stockpile. The result would be that the long line of weapons already in the queue for dismantlement would be taken apart more quickly, thus allowing the warheads retired under the New START agreement with Russia to be dismantled sooner as well.

Those in Congress who supported the Obama administration proposal pointed out that increasing dismantlement in the near term actually benefits life extension programs in the mid-term. Bringing on new employees and training them to dismantle warheads will help prepare them for the coming work on the B61 and the W88, which will entail dismantling the warheads, replacing aged components and reassembling them.

Led by the House Armed Services Committee, however, Congress ended up rejecting most of the increase, allowing only an additional $4 million in FY2017. For the House, anything proposed by the Obama administration that smacked of disarmament was too much, even if it was only taking apart weapons that have already been retired.

And now the Trump administration has dumped any thought of dismantling weapons sooner, noting in the FY18 budget that it is eliminating the planned acceleration stated in the FY 2017 budget request.

Posted in: Nuclear Weapons Tags: arms control, budget, dismantlement, missiles, nuclear disarmament, nuclear weapons, nuclear weapons budget, obama administration

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Th Bad: Post #2 on the NNSA's FY2018 Budget Request - All Things Nuclear

WASHINGTON, May 25, 2017 Modernization and replacement programs for elements of the U.S. nuclear triad are the first priority for the Defense and Energy departments, the Air Force and the Navy in fiscal year 2018, officials and military officers told a House panel this morning.

Testifying before the House Armed Services Strategic Force Subcommittee on the presidents budget request for fiscal year 2018 were Frank Klotz, administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration, and Dr. Rob Soofer, deputy assistant secretary of defense for nuclear and missile defense policy.

Joining them to offer testimony on 2018 priorities for nuclear forces were Air Force Gen. Robin Rand, commander of the Air Force Global Strike Command, and Navy Vice Adm. Terry Benedict, director of Navy Strategic Systems Programs.

The NNSA, which Congress established in 2000, maintains the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile, helps reduce the global danger from weapons of mass destruction, provides the U.S. Navy with nuclear propulsion and responds internationally to nuclear and radiological emergencies.

Recapitalizing Nuclear Infrastructure

Klotz said the NNSA budget request, which is about half of the Energy Department budget, is $13.9 billion, nearly $1 billion over the fiscal 2017 omnibus level. We're very grateful for the level of spending that has been proposed in the president's [fiscal 2018] budget. It will allow us to tackle some of our very important infrastructure recapitalization projects, such as the uranium processing facility at Y-12 in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, Klotz said.

We expect to complete design this year and actually start construction next year, he said, adding, We didn't get into the situation we face with aging and in some cases crumbling infrastructure overnight, and we're not going to get out of it in a day.

Klotz told the panel that the 2018 budget request is vital to ensuring that the U.S. nuclear force remains modern, robust and tailored to 21st century threats and to reassure U.S. allies. Elements of the request are as follows:

-- Weapons activity appropriation: $10.2 billion, a 10.8 percent increase over 2017.

-- Defense nuclear nonproliferation: $1.8 billion, consistent with 2017.

-- Naval reactors program: Nearly $1.5 billion, a 4.2 percent increase over 2017, and

-- Federal salaries and expenses: $418 million, an 8.1 percent over 2017.

Our [fiscal] 2018 budget request accounts for the significant tempo of operations at NNSA that in many ways has reached a level unseen since the Cold War, Klotz said.

The request includes long-overdue investments to repair and replace infrastructure at national laboratories and production plants, he added, and improves workspace for the scientific, engineering and professional workforce.

Ultimate Deterrent

In his remarks to the panel, Soofer said that for decades U.S. nuclear forces have provided the ultimate deterrent against nuclear attacks on the United States and its allies.

Effective deterrence requires a deliberate strategy and forces that are structured and postured to support that strategy, he said, noting that strategy, forces and posture also must be flexible enough to maintain stability while adjusting to gradual and rapid technological and geopolitical changes.

Russia has taken aggressive actions against its neighbors, threatened the United States and is modernizing a diverse nonstrategic nuclear weapons force, for example. China's increased assertiveness suggests a desire to dominate the Asia-Pacific region, and North Korea's leaders have been willing to accept economic countermeasures and international isolation to advance its nuclear capability, he said, among other threats.

Against this backdrop, Soofer said, the president directed DoD to conduct a comprehensive Nuclear Posture Review that is expected to be completed by the end of this calendar year.

As we conduct the NPR, [Defense Secretary Jim Mattis] has directed that we continue with the existing program of record for recapitalizing our aging nuclear forces, he said.

DoD expects nuclear recapitalization costs to total $230 billion to $290 billion over more than two decades, Soofer said.

The president's budget request for [fiscal] 2018 fully funds DoD nuclear recapitalization programs and provides for nuclear force sustainment operations. It also adds more than $3 billion across the Future Years Defense Plan relative to the previous years' request to continue improving the health of the DoD nuclear enterprise, he said.

Long-Range Strategic Forces

In his remarks, Air Force Gen. Robin Rand, commander of Air Force Global Strike Command, highlighted the need for modernization efforts across Air Force Global Strike Command.

Fiscal constraints, while posing planning challenges, do not alter the national security landscape or the intent of competitors and adversaries, the general said. Nor do they diminish the enduring value of long-range strategic forces to our nation.

Navy Vice Adm. Terry Benedict, director of Navy Strategic Systems Programs, addressed long-term sustainment of the triads sea-based leg.

While our current life-extension efforts will sustain the D-5 [Trident submarine-launched ballistic missile] system until the 2040s, the Navy is already beginning to evaluate options to maintain a credible and effective strategic weapon system to the end of the Columbia class service life in the 2080s, the Benedict said.

At SSP we are looking long term and across the spectrum, from our workforce and infrastructure to our industry partners and geographic footprint, he added.

(Follow Cheryl Pellerin on Twitter: @PellerinDoDNews)

Read more:

Modernization, Replacement Programs Constitute Nuclear Deterrence Priority - Department of Defense