Period Hessian boots.

It’s April, and no matter where you live, spring 2013 will be wet if not flooded in some areas of Canada (hello Saskatchewan). Rubber boots are your practical and stylish answer – but with environmental reservations.

Rubber boots as we know them today didn’t start as rubber boots. The style of boot derives from Hessian boots, a high style from the Regency Period. These 18th century boots were made of leather with a heel and slightly pointed toe, and decorated with a coloured tassel. This is the boot from which rubber and cowboy boots derived. (Click here for further period boot reading.)

Though also worn by Beau Brummel, the most famous of dandies, the Hessian boots were adopted by the military and favoured by officers.

One of these officers,  Arthur Wellesley, the first Duke of Wellington, modified the style and changed footwear forever. Wellesley wanted a boot tough enough for the battlefield but comfortable enough for evening wear. The resulting boot was  made of plain soft calf skin (possibly treated with wax to make them waterproof), cut closer to the leg, housing the trim stirrup trousers of the period.

Leather “Wellington” boots.

These Wellington boots became all the rage – civilians and soldiers alike wore this style to emulate their favourite war hero and statesman. It was the boot of 19th century aristocracy, synonymous with fox hunts and country life in Britain.

Rubber Revolution

According to Scientific American, rubber footwear originated with Amazonian Indians who lived amongst rubber trees in South America,  but it wasn’t until the mid-1800s that rubber boots appeared.

Natural rubber is composed of long polymer chains which, when uncured, move independently, giving an unstable substance that can get sticky when warm and brittle when cold. In the mid-19th century, Charles Goodyear discovered a process called vulcanization that linked the polymer chains, making rubber strong, elastic, and waterproof.

Goodyear used his invention to make tires and Hiram Hutchinson bought the patent to manufacture footwear, and the waterproof Wellington boot was born. (See pictures of rubber boot making in France.)

Wellingtons, wellies, gummies, gum boots, or  rain boots have been worn all over the world to keep feet dry and protected for mining, farming, fishing, food processing, chemical plants, and for those who live in wet climates.

The Chet by Hunter.

Remember the black rubber boots with red soles from your childhood?  They’re  still readily available at Canadian Tire, but for those who itch for a more stylish rubber boot, Hunter, the Scottish rubber boot company, makes all kinds of styles, long and short – featured here is their Chelsea-style rubber boot. For casual dress, Sweden’s Tretorn offers cool sporty, waterproof “rain sneakers”, along with other styles and lots of colour options. Further reading.

But there’ s a catch to these stylish waterproof numbers.

Environmental Considerations

Rubber decomposes, as anyone who grew up in the pre-Spandex era can tell you. I have a pair of lined, rubber Tretorn rain boots that cracked within two years. I don’t know if the lining had anything to do with it, but I can’t wear them anymore. Tretorn doesn’t have a recycling program. So what do I do with them?

Canadian-made Kamik rain boots.

Hunter sells care products with their boots to shine them up, but this doesn’t seem to affect the “long-term” ownership of these boots. I’ve looked at forums and blogs that complain about their wellies “crumbling” and “splitting” since the Scottish company moved their manufacture to China (read this blog for an excellent take on Hunter’s move to cheap labour).

A wonderful alternative to throw-away boots is Kamik‘s vegan footwear. The styles are similar to Hunters, but the boots are eco-friendly, and the Kamik waterproof footwear is vulcanized, unlike the China-made Hunters.  Kamik’s boots are recyclable and made in Canada. Kamik’s products can be found in Canadian Tire and various other locations throughout Canada and the U.S. Find dealers. Read more about Kamik.

Rubber boots are awesome in wet weather, so feel confident to roam the streets in the rain and splash through puddles, but do be mindful of the environmental impact of your choice in wellies.

BUT!  I sat down a couple of weeks ago during a particularly depressing moment and made my first pendant.  I needed a distraction and my clay “called” to me.  I don’t know why I didn’t finish the tree I was making.  I don’t know why I didn’t start the zombies I’ve been dying to make.  Either way, this is what I did and I thought I’d share it with you guys first.  Well, second – Cody was there when I made it.

This is the front…

I thought a lot about what I wanted to write on the pendant.  ”Strength” was too long and “hope” seemed… cliché.  Anyway, at that moment, on that day, “waiting” is what I was doing and it fit.

On the back, I added the infertility symbol.  It’s not 100% accurate, but it’s close.  I don’t know why I picked a flower; a baby foot would have worked and looked cute, but would have been too obvious.  I’m not open with my fertility issues, so if I do wear this pendant, it’s not likely to garner any questions or hopeful looks from family and friends.

I’ll probably redo this pendant.  Choose some different colors, add some different writing.  I plan to add a patina to it as well, which will bring out the writing.  All in all, I like it and I hope some of you do too.

I’d love some suggestions as well!  Instead of a flower, what would you like to see on the front?  What wording?  What colors?

beanie

The pieces can be purchased in my Etsy shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/Lorelaishop

Catalysis Research (Photo credit: EMSL)

This report by Transparency Market Research analyzes the catalysts market for petroleum refineries, chemical synthesis, polymer and environmental applications on a global scale and aims to present a comprehensive collection of data and analyses of various market parameters. The report strives to elaborate on the demand and supply characteristics of catalysts by providing historical data from 2009 and a forecast of market numbers until 2018 along with analysis of revenues and volumes.

Related articles

• Global Catalysts Market Is Expected To Reach USD 24.1 Billion By 2018: Transparency Market Research (prnewswire.com)
• Refinery Catalyst Market – New Industry Research Report is Now Available for Pre Order at Transparency Market Research (prweb.com)

AIBN SEMINAR:

Abstract: This talk will showcase some translational polymer research projects in sustainable polymer projects in agrifoods, biomedical and industrial application areas; specifically highlighting the integration of fundamental PhD studies with multisite research teams.

Bio: Pete Halley is a Group Leader in AIBN, a professor and director of research in chemical engineering, a chief investigator in the queensland advanced materials processing and manufacturing (AMPAM) centre, the director of the centre of high performance polymers (CHPP) and the captain of the AIBN staff cricket team. Pete has worked both in industry at SRI International, Sola Optical and Moldflow, in universities and with three cooperative research centres (food packaging, sugar, polymers) and is driven by translational research.

Reblogged from EconoTwist's:

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Is it really possible to identify, and calculate the severity, of potential military treats by using algorithms and open source data? The US Navy seem to think so. Moreover, the Navy wants you - researchers, coders and other creative computer  geeks - to help them write this software.

" We want to do business with educational institutions, nonprofit and for-profit organizations with ground-breaking ideas, pioneering scientific research and novel technology developments."

Read more… 1,021 more words

When asked about this discrepancy George R. R. Martin simply said that Sansa is an “unreliable narrator” This has led to much speculation by fans on what he means and intends. One thing is certain, for reasons known only to Sansa Stark, she remembers a kiss.

Towards the end of the Battle of the Blackwater Sandor Clegane, who had been broken during the fighting, finds his way to Sansa’s bedroom. He lies down on her bed falls asleep waiting for her.

Sansa eventually arrives. The Hound is very drunk, drunker than she had ever seen him. He offers to takeSansa with him as he intends to flee the city. He mentions going north somewhere. She refuses. He pushes her on her bed holds a knife to her throat and drunkenly demands that she sing him the song that she had promised him earlier. She sings, but not the song of Florian and Jonquil. Instead a terrified Sansa sings the Mother song:^[1]

ah, you’re still a stupid little bird, aren’t you? Singing all the songs they taught you…sing me a song, why don’t you? Go on. Sing to me.

The Hound falls silent and Sansa gently touches his cheek feeling the wetness that was blood and the wetness that was not blood (tears). Shortly thereafter he gets up, rips off his bloody white cloak, and leaves. Sansashakes out the torn and bloody cloak and huddles beneath it shivering. Ser Dontos eventually arrives to tell her the city is saved.

Afterwards Sansa comes to remember this scenario slightly differently, remembering that the Hound also kissed her.

All of this was borrowed from http://awoiaf.westeros.org/ <–Great site!!!

It came in a large block of 210mm*150mm*50mm giving me plenty to prototype with before making the final one.

Lathing away until I have some fully functioning bar ends.

Cheers for looking

Murdochdesigns

It came in a large block of 210mm*150mm*50mm giving me plenty to prototype with before making the final one.

Lathing away until I have some fully functioning bar ends.

Cheers for looking

Murdochdesigns

English: Schematic of an ionic polymer-metal composite (IPMC). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Electroactive Polymer (EAP) is a generic term for a multitude of synthetics which share the common characteristics of changing their shape under an applied electrical voltage or charge. Technological developments in the electronics and semiconductor industries have led to the creation of polymers that change shape on the application of voltage. The biggest application for electro-active polymers (EAPs) lays in their use in antistatic and electronic applications which is expected to drive its market growth. Among all EAP applications market, the actuator segment is witnessing high R&D activity and medical devices and robotics will be the largest applications of EAP actuators. Actuators and sensors open up a huge spectrum of applications in the fields of electronics, healthcare, sensing, and solar energy generation. With the growing market for each of these applications, EAP is set to become a mainstream market in the next five years. However, the technical specifications for each application differ widely, and extensive research and investments are still needed for developing application-specific EAPs.

Electric discharge showing the ribbon-like plasma filaments from multiple discharges from a Tesla coil. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The global electro-active polymers product market is expected to be worth US$3.4 bln by 2017 and is forecast to grow by a CAGR of 7.7% from 2012–2017, as per a report by marketsandmarkets.com. North America is the largest market for electro-active polymers with an estimated 65% of the global market revenue share in 2011 and is estimated to reach US$2.2 bln by 2017. The conductive plastics segment contributed approximately 84% to the overall electro-active polymer market in 2011, mainly due to its extensive application in electrostatic discharge and electromagnetic interference. As the EAP market is still in the early phase of its growth, it presents many advantages for the early movers. As there are not many players in the market, detailed knowledge of the competitors will be crucial for the success of each company. Based on the applications, the global Electro-active Polymers Market is segmented as antistatic packaging, protection against EMI/ESD, capacitors, batteries, sensors, solar cells, actuators, organic transistors, plastics coated with electrostatic paints, and textiles and fabrics. Electro-active polymers market has been gaining importance with its major application in the areas of ESD/EMI (electrostatic discharge/electromagnetic interference), medical devices and biomimetics. The major devices used for the application of electro-active polymers are medical devices, smart fabrics, digital mechtronics, and high strain sensors.

English: Took this picture of the first organic semiconductor active electronic device myself, before sending it off to Smithsonian. Peter H Proctor (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The increasing need for greater sophistication in the automation industry and in electronics protection is driving the market for low-cost, light weight, and low driving voltage materials. Advances in electronics and polymers manufacturing technology have given rise to the concept of electroactive polymers, as per Research and Markets. These polymers began to be used as base materials for motion control and protective applications as the use of mechanical moving parts reduced efficiency and increased wear and tear. When compared with conventional motion-generating devices, electroactive polymers provide equally good efficiency and lower costs and power consumption. The global electroactive polymers market was at US$1.7 bln in 2008; and is expected to grow exponentially at a CAGR of 8.3% from 2009 to 2014 mainly due to the already existing demand for new applications be commercialised in the next five years, as per Research and Markets. The electroactive polymers market is segmented into conductive plastics, inherently conducting polymers and inherently dissipative polymers. The electroactive polymers market holds a lot of scope for improved material commercialisation as it is still in its nascent stage, and as high temperature resisting polymers are yet to be developed. The expected applications of electroactive polymers, such as full-page displays and biomimetics, are expected to boost the overall market.

Electro active polymers global market growth, Technological developments in electronics, semiconductor industries, electronics, healthcare, sensing, solar energy generation, North America, conductive plastics segment, EAP market, antistatic packaging, plastics coated with electrostatic paints, electrostatic discharge, electromagnetic interference, polymers manufacturing technology, biomimetics, Actuators and sensors, protection against EMI ESD, capacitors, batteries, solar cells, organic transistors, plastics coated with electrostatic paints, textiles and fabrics, medical devices, smart fabrics, digital mechtronics, high strain sensors

Watch them grow! In your digestive tract.

Here’s the thing: if you make something that’s brightly colored and looks like candy, kids are going to eat it. Water Balz and other similar expanding, water-absorbing polymer toys seem pretty fun, and are also bright and shiny and look like candy. The problem comes when a pet or a child who is too young to understand gets hold of one of these delicious treats and eats it.

They expand rapidly in water, but also expand in the presence of small amounts of moisture, obstructing a child’s breathing when caught in an airway. An 8-month old girl in Texas ate one of the toys and it expanded, blocking her small intestine and requiring surgery. Expanding polymer toys are now banned in Italy and in Malaysia, where one child has died and many more needed surgery after eating the toys.

The Consumer Products Safety Commission is currently investigating all polymer ball toys. The Dunecraft versions specifically marketed to small children have been recalled, which we included in our December Recall Roundup.

Polymer balls raise alarm [Consumer Reports]

English: Cross link of polymer chains. Français : Réticulation de chaînes polymères. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

New “paintable” semiconducting polymers can be brushed over a surface to create a thin-layer film capable of carrying an uninterrupted charge. This is for the first time a thin-layer, conducting, highly aligned film for high-performance, paintable, directly writeable plastic electronics.

Semiconductors are the key ingredient for computer processors, solar cells and LED displays, but they are expensive. Inorganic semiconductors like silicon require high temperatures in excess of 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit and costly vacuum systems for processing into electronics, but organic and plastic semiconductors can be prepared on a basic lab bench. The trouble is that charge carriers, like electrons, can’t move through plastics nearly as easily as they can move through inorganic semiconductors. Part of the reason for this is because each semiconducting polymer molecule is like a short wire, and these wires are randomly arranged.

A new method for controlling semiconducting polymers has been devised by University of Michigan engineers that could pave the way for cheaper, greener, “paint-on” plastic electronics. Jinsang Kim, U-M professor of materials science and engineering, who led the research published in Nature Materials.

Charge mobility along the polymer chains is much faster than between the polymers. To take advantages of the good conduction along the polymers, research groups have been trying to align them into a charge-carrying freeway, but it’s a bit like trying to arrange nanoscopic linguine. Kim’s group approached the problem by making smarter semiconducting polymers. They wanted a liquid polymer solution they could brush over a surface, and the molecules would automatically align with one another in the direction of the stroke, assembling into high-performance semiconducting thin-layer films.

Polyphenilsulfone polymer units (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

First, they designed the polymers to be slippery — ordinary polymers glom together like flat noodles left in the fridge, Kim said. By choosing polymers with a natural twist, the team kept them from sticking to one another in the solution. But in order to align during the brushstroke, the polymers needed to subtly attract one another. Flat surfaces would do that, so the team designed their polymer to untwist as the solvent dried up.

They stopped the unaligned polymers from forming large chunks by adding flexible arms that extended off to the sides of the flat, wire-like polymer. These arms prevented too much close contact among the polymers while the bulkiness of the arms kept them from snagging on one another. Polymers with these properties will line up in the direction of an applied force, such as the tug of a paintbrush.

The team established a complete molecular design principle of semiconducting polymers with directed alignment capability. The team made molecules that matched their design and built a device for spreading the polymer solution over surfaces such as glass or a flexible plastic film. The force from the silicon blade, moving at a constant speed across the liquid polymer, was enough to align the molecules. The team then built the semiconducting film into a simple transistor, a version of the electronic components that make up computer processors. The device demonstrated the importance of the polymer alignment by showing that charge carriers moved 1,000 times faster in the direction parallel to the silicon blade’s brushstroke than they did when crossing the direction of the stroke.

“By combining the established molecular design principle with a polymer that has very good intrinsic charge carrier mobility, we believe it will make a huge difference in organic electronics,” he said. “We are currently developing a versatile fabrication method in order to realize high-performance and paintable plastic electronics in various length scales from nanometers to meters.”

English: The basic structure of a CNT-incorporated polymer solar cell. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Kim believes that the technique will work equally well with atomic-scale pen nibs or large trowel-like applicators for making electronics of all sizes such as LED displays or light-absorbing coatings for solar cells.

The work is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy. Two authors of the paper were partly supported by National Science Foundation and WCU program of National Research Foundation of Korea.

New paintable semiconducting polymers, thin-layer film, highly aligned film, high-performance thin film, plastic electronics, Inorganic semiconductors, semiconducting thin-layer films, paint-on plastic electronics, nanoscopic linguine, liquid polymer solution, flexible plastic film, LED displays, light-absorbing coatings solar cells

Drug-eluting stents (DES) have widely open the field of research in interventional cardiology. These devices are no longer “simple metallic springs” with minor and subtle differences in cell or strut geometry. Their platforms differ in material and architecture. There are many possible variations in polymer composition or durability, even it may be absent. New cytostatic drugs are used in different dosages and release patterns. There is not definitely a class effect for DES. Given all this, the need for multiple comparative trials is imperative. The newcomer DES has to be compared with the “gold standard” DES of the moment. However, the clinical differences between the new DES are becoming really narrow and large and quite expensive trials are needed. Finally when the trial is done, the restrictions to the inclusion limit its applicability. On the other side the penetration of new DES in practice is fast and precedes the availability of evidences from the trials. Off label usage is usual and may reveal new problems not previously noted in the trials. This has been the case for the new DES addressed in our study, the Promus Element. Some cases of longitudinal compression or shortening have been described with these stents and bench testing studies have reported particular mechanical properties.

Given all this, we need independent clinical trials initiatives. We have compared two DES sharing drug and polymer but differing in the platform. We are aware of the limited size of our randomized study but the trial scenario was really an “all comers”. We have observed in this sample a quite similar performance for both DES and no mechanical issues were appreciated for the new Promus Element stent. These results suggest that, even though these alterations are possible, their incidence will still be very low and with a very limited clinical impact. This is only a minor piece of knowledge, but it is better than nothing.

Further reading: Hernandez et al / April 2013 / Journal of Invasive Cardiology   A Real All-Comers Randomized Trial Comparing Xience Prime and Promus Element Stents

Read more:

Drug-Eluting Stent Strut Distribution: A Comparison between Cypher™ and Taxus® by Optical Coherence Tomography  Yoriyasu Suzuki, MD, Fumiaki Ikeno, MD, Alan C. Yeung, MD

 Comparison Between Sirolimus- and Paclitaxel-Eluting Stents for the Treatment of Chronic Total Occlusions   Jae-Sik Jang, MD, Myeong-Ki Hong, MD, PhD, Cheol Whan Lee, MD, PhD, Duk-Woo Park, MD, Bong-Ki Lee, MD, Young-Hak Kim, MD, PhD, Ki-Hoon Han, MD, PhD, Jae-Joong Kim, MD, PhD, Seong-Wook Park, MD, PhD, Seung-Jung Park, MD, PhD

Comparison of Multiple Drug-Eluting Stent Percutaneous Coronary Intervention and Surgical Revascularization in Patients with Multivessel Coronary Artery Disease: One Year Clinical Results and Total Treatment Costs    Elisabetta Varani, MD, Marco Balducelli, MD, Giuseppe Vecchi, MD, Matteo Aquilina, MD, Aleardo Maresta, MD

Comparison of Stainless-Steel Stents Coated with Turbostratic Carbon and Uncoated Stents for Percutaneous Coronary Interventions   Jürgen Haase, MD, PhD, Hans Störger, MD, Manfred Hofmann, MD, Claus-Eberhard Schwarz, MD, Harald Reinemer, MD, Franz Schwarz, MD, PhD

 Comparison of Nonuniform Strut Distribution between Two Drug-Eluting Stent Platforms Takao Hasegawa, MD, Junya Ako, MD, Fumiaki Ikeno, MD, Katsuhisa Waseda, MD, PhD, Yoriyasu Suzuki, MD, Yasuhiro Honda, MD, Peter J. Fitzgerald, MD, PhD

Mid-Term Results of Everolimus-Eluting Stent in a Japanese Population Compared With a US Randomized Cohort: SPIRIT III Japan Registry With Harmonization by Doing  Shigeru Saito, MD, Shigeru Nakamura, MD, Kenshi Fujii, MD, Masato Nakamura, MD, Takaaki Isshiki, MD, Haruo Hirayama, MD, Tadashi Kikuchi, MD, PhD, Hiroshi Fujita, MD, Hiroshi Nonogi, MD, PhD, Kazuaki Mitsudo, MD, Takeshi Kimura, MD, Keiichi Igarashi, MD, Kumiko Saito, MS, MPH, Alexandra J. Lansky, MD, Gregg W. Stone, MD, Yasuhiro Honda, MD, Katsuhisa Waseda, MD, PhD, Peter J. Fitzgerald, MD, PhD, Krishnankutty Sudhir, MD, PhD

A Randomized Comparison of Direct Stenting Versus Stenting with Predilatation in Native Coronary Artery Disease: Results from the multicentric Crosscut study  Flavio Airoldi, MD, Di Mario, MD, PhD, Giorgio Gimelli, MD, Antonio L. Bartorelli, MD, Francesco Bedogni, MD, Carlo Briguori, MD, PhD, Arian Frasheri, MD, Luigi Inglese, MD, Nino Rubino, MD, Angela Ferrari, PhD, Bernhard Reimers, MD, Antonio Colombo, MD

Extensive Thrombus of Distal Anastomosis of Saphenous Vein Graft  Javier Martín de la Torre-Hernández, MD, Dominick J. Angiolillo, MD, Rosana Hernández-Antolin, MD, PhD

We will never really EXCEL until we IVUS  By Scott Murray, MD

Chronic Total Occlusion Intervention: A Novel Antegrade Guidewire Probing Technique   Raymond Chi-Yan Fung, MBBS, FHKCP and Chi-Kin Chan, MBBS, FRCP (Glasgow), FRCP (Edinburgh)

De la Torre-Hernández JM, Alfonso F, Hernández F, et al., for the ESTROFA study group. Drug eluting stent thrombosis: Results from the multicenter Spanish registry ESTROFA. J Am Coll Cardiol 2008;51:986–990.

De la Torre-Hernandez JM, Sainz-Laso F, Burgos V, et al. Comparison of C-reactive protein levels after coronary stenting with bare metal versus sirolimus-eluting stents. Am J Cardiol 2005;95:748–751

The deal follows months of screening and careful selection by Pertamina and this point marks a major success for PTTGC.

Pertamina will hold a controlling 51% stake in the plant and PTTGC will hold the remaining 49% under the heads-of-agreement deal.

The facility is to house an olefin plant that will be capable of producing one million tonnes per year, a downstream polymer plant and a refinery.  According to Pertamina President and CEO Karen Agustiawan the olefin plant will be operational by 2017.

PTTGC Chief Executive Anon Sirisaengtaksin said that the plant will service the Indonesian market, particularly in polymer, as the Indonesian Government is seeking to reduce the total cost of imports.

Particularly given the magnitude of the deal this is a glowing endorsement for the product and technology (particularly olefin) but also the region.  Several of the recent posts on this blog have focused on South East Asia and this is continuing a clear trend that should attract the wise-eyes in the coming months and years.

By Pankaj Oswal

I’ve seen these ‘springy’ rings from Balenciaga in several fashion magazines…finally found a good photo! Not sure if this is a ‘we can do this’ item or not…still trying to wrap my brain around that. (My brain is a tad tired after the Easter weekend with the whole family under our roof.)