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Cities and power: Might is set in stone
Lucy Wallwork Construction & Building MaterialsThose in power have throughout history understood the visceral psychological and emotional impact that the built environment has on us. We all feel this as we pass under the shadow of a corporate skyscraper or across a windswept military parade ground. Only those in the most remote locations do not have their lives interrupted daily by buildings.
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Bed bug dust increases histamine levels in infested homes
Lynn Hetzler Medical & Allied HealthcareThere are plenty of reasons to hate bed bugs. These parasitic insects pop up unexpectedly in even the cleanest locations, are tough to get rid of and have a voracious appetite for human blood.
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Where is LEED having the most impact in the US?
Scott E. Rupp Facilities & GroundsThe U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) recently released its annual list of the Top 10 States for LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), the world's most widely used green building rating system. The list ranks states in terms of certified square feet per resident in the previous year, and it highlights the latest developments throughout the U.S. that are making significant strides in sustainable design, construction and transformation.
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Efficiency of buildings increase, with a focus on facility managers
Scott E. Rupp Facilities & GroundsIn 2010, the U.S. building sector generated 45 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions in the country — that's right, nearly half of all carbon emissions came from the places Americans live, shop and work in every day. Much of this is because of the fact that residential and commercial buildings use 75 percent of all electricity produced in the U.S., for lighting, pumping, heating and cooling.
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Google offers global geospatial analysis for the masses
Bill Becken Science & TechnologyA plethora of global remote-sensing technologies acquire terabytes of environmental data minute by minute. Much of it is routed to and through the cloud. This was not the case perhaps a decade ago.
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Negotiating commercial leases: Avoiding letters of credit
Dale Willerton and Jeff Grandfield RetailFor many commercial tenants, negotiating a good lease or lease renewal against an experienced agent or landlord can be a challenge. While an entrepreneur focuses on marketing and managing, savvy real estate agents and brokers are specialized salespeople. Their job is to sell tenants on leasing their location at the highest possible rental rate.
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Europe prepares for perfect storm over F-Gas
Andrew Gaved ManufacturingI promise not to make every dispatch this year an update on the general alarm surrounding the EU F-Gas regulations, but having declared a crisis back in January, I feel duty-bound to keep you abreast of what I believe the TV newsrooms call a developing situation.
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Design collaboration is not design by committee
Susan Mulholland Interior Design, Furnishings & FixturesHave you ever heard that phrase "design by committee" when someone talks about a building or an object like a car or piece of furniture that doesn't quite make sense? It usually means there are some good parts and some bad parts, but overall it's just not good design.
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Will cryptocurrency help or hurt Puerto Rico’s rebuilding efforts?
Michelle R. Matisons Science & TechnologyCryptocurrencies like bitcoin and ethereum have been all over the news lately, as they have generated lots of new wealth for investors. Now, a group of innovators has descended upon Puerto Rico in the hopes this tax-free haven will be the perfect home for their activities.
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Can Trump sell apprenticeship programs to America?
R.V. Scheide ManufacturingChances are that more Americans are familiar with "The Apprentice," the reality TV show formerly starring the current president of the United States, than they are with apprenticeship programs. Today, graduates from such programs constitute just 0.2 percent of the labor force.
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