Making & Fitting Doors (Digital Download)

THE JEFF MILLER WOODWORKING COLLECTION - ORDER NOW !

31 Pages of Tips & Techniques

Format: Digital Magazine Single Issue 

An even gap around an inset door, the solid joinery, the array of glass or raised panels - all show off your care and craftsmanship. 

The eight articles in this digital magazine - featuring the best of Popular Woodworking Magazine and Woodworking Magazine - will help you discover ways to select, size and install the right door for you. 

In "Fitting Inset Doors," Robert W. Lang shows you how you can get your gaps to fall into place every time by using his tips for careful craftsmanship. 

Selecting and placing hinges can affect the look of a project, for better and sometimes for worse. In "Butt Hinges," you'll learn the parts of this basic hinge, how many hinges to use on a given project, and why countersinks differ in the U.S. and the U.K.

Here's the situation. You've got a face frame cabinet, and the face frame is not quite square. Don't spend hours with a handplane or sandpaper - follow Carl Bilderback's techniques to "Fit Doors with Ticking Sticks." Using this simple method, you'll learn how to use a long tapered stick, a pencil and a piece of cardboard to give doors a near-perfect fit in irregular openings. 

In "Doors & Drawers," David Thiel, gives you a solid grounding in the basics of doors - solid slab, raised panel and divided-light - as well as the joinery used. You'll also find bonus material about drawers: basic types, joinery and tips on selecting the right door or drawer for your projects. 

There's more than one way to raise a panel. Robert W. Lang, Christopher Schwarz and Glen Huey walk you through "3 Ways to make Raised Panels." Robert raises his panels with a router; Christopher goes with hand tools only, and Glen tackles his panel with a table saw. 

Discover the "Stub-tenon Door" - a great way to make small doors. Steve Shanesy teaches you two great ways to make this quick and useful joint. 

Cope-and-stick is one of the best joints to use when making doors - and Bill Hylton shows you how to adapt your cope-and-stick bits to produce frames that will house glass as well as wood panels. 

Divided-light doors can lighten a design and add beauty to almost any build. Glen Huey uses a table saw and a few spring clamps to make "Simple Divided-light Glass Doors." You'll learn how to add authentic flat muntins, mullions and glass panels to your cabinet doors.

And it's all only $3.99!

For further information log on website:

http://www.shopwoodworking.com/making-and-fitting-doors-digital-download?source=igodigital

Workbenches & Toolboxes (Digital Download)

THE JEFF MILLEE WOODWORKING COLLECTION - ORDER NOW !

10 plans to seriously improve your shop

By Editors of Popular Woodworking Magazine

Format: Download 

This collection of articles from the editors of Popular Woodworking Magazine offers 10 projects to improve your workshop including five bench designs, four toolbox plans and a mission-style tool cabinet. Plus, instructions on building a "deadman" – a forgotten bench accessory that makes it easy to deal with clamping long workpieces to your bench. You get 65 pages of pure woodworking information to help make your time in the shop more efficient and enjoyable!

For further information log on website:

http://www.shopwoodworking.com/workbenches-toolboxes-u3110?source=igodigital

ECOLOGICAL YIELD

Ecological yield is the harvestable population growth of an ecosystem. It is most commonly measured in forestry: sustainable forestry is defined as that which does not harvest more wood in a year than has grown in that year, within a given patch of forest.

However, the concept is also applicable to water, soil, and any other aspect of an ecosystem which can be both harvested and renewed - the so-called renewable resources. The carrying capacity of an ecosystem is reduced over time if more than the amount which is "renewed" (refreshed or regrown or rebuilt) is consumed.

Ecosystem services analysis calculates the global yield of the Earth's  biosphere to humans as a whole. This is said to be greater in size than the entire human economy. However, it is more than just yield, but also the natural processes that increase biodiversity and conserve habitat which result in the total value of these services. "Yield" of ecological commodities like wood or water, useful to humans, is only a part of it.

Very often an ecological yield in one place offsets an ecological load in another. Greenhouse gas released in one place, for instance, is fairly evenly distributed in the atmosphere, and so greenhouse gas control can be achieved by creating a carbon sink literally anywhere else.

Ecocide is thought by some green economists to be accelerated by debt instruments which demand a yield greater than the ecological capacity to renew. This is a major question in monetary reform.

Wikipedia 

BOOKS

Popular sustainability

The challenge of sustainable forest management: What future for the world's forests? 1993. Rome, FAO. 128 pp. US$30.00.

The ideal of sustainability has deep roots in the history of forest management but the concept has now evolved, in line with thinking in other forms of land use, to comprise not only the outturn of woody products but also management for a wide range of goods and services within the context of planned rural development as well as the reconciliation of competing interests through dialogue and partnership.

The contents of this book reflects the wide interests contributing to sustainable forest management. Chapters are devoted to: sustainability in a changing world; the world's forests (with the latest figures derived from FAO's Forest Resource Assessment 1990); why forests are important; dealing with conflicting interests; forest management options, laws, institutions and people; and the international dimension (including sections on the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, debt-for-nature swaps, genetic materials derived from forests and consumer boycotts).

The challenge sustainable forest management presents a topical subject in an accessible manner for a non-technical audience.

The challenge sustainable forest management

It may, however, assist many foresters in the presentation of technical concepts connected with sustainability to decision-makers or the general public, and will be a useful source of further reading, since there are many references and summaries of technical information are given at the end of each chapter.

A companion volume of technical papers that synthesize current thinking on various aspects of sustainable forest management will soon be published under the title of Readings in sustainable forest management Together, the two books should make an important contribution to raising public awareness of forestry issues.

Directory of forestry research organizations

Directory of forestry research organizations. 1993. FAO Forestry Paper No. 109. Rome.
Compiled jointly by FAO and the International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO), this handy directory provides a concise guide to approximately 600 organizations in 108 countries, arranged alphabetically by country and organization.

The directory is based on a questionnaire sent to all forestry research organizations on the mailing lists of FAO and IUFRO. The initial responses were compiled in a draft directory, dated August 1992. Copies of the draft directory were mailed to all the organizations that had responded, with a request for amendments and updated information.

In addition, IUFRO country representatives were requested to help in locating research organizations that had been missed.

The format of the directory has been made deliberately simple, including postal address, telephone, fax, telex, number of graduate staff, establishment date, main areas of research and name of director. The basic data provided are intended to facilitate an initial contact; additional information can be obtained subsequently by direct communication.

FAO is aware that the directory is still not complete. Any organization that has been omitted is requested to provide information for the next edition by completing the form below and sending it to the Chief, Forest Research Education and Training Branch, FAO, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, 00100 Rome, Italy.

Directory of forestry research organizations

Country: ____________________________________________________
Name of organization: _______________________________________
Address: ____________________________
Telephone (Including country and local area code): ________________
Fax: _____________________________________________________
Telex: ____________________________________________________
Cable: ____________________________________________________
Number of staff who have a university degree: ____________________
Year of establishment: _______________________________________
Main research areas (list up to ten Items): ________________________
Name of head of organization: _________________________________
Name and designation of person completing this form: ______________

Forestry research experts meet at FAO

Proceedings of the Meeting of Experts on Forestry Research. 1993. FAO Forestry Paper No. 110. Rome.

This volume contains the recommendations and working papers of an expert meeting convened by FAO in October 1992 to deliberate on the strengthening of national forestry research; the training and development of scientists; research support networks; and global overviews of forestry research. The meeting was supported, through sponsorship of the various participants, by the Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), the Forestry Research Support Programme for Asia and the Pacific (FORSPA) and the international Union of Forest Research Organizations' Special Programme for Developing Countries.

Recommendations

The recommendations of the expert meeting are reproduced in full below:
The expert meeting recognizes that forestry research capabilities in many countries are very weak in relation to the immense task of providing necessary scientific and technological support for the sustainable management of forest resources, the rehabilitation of degraded lands, environmental protection and the long-term welfare of human communities.

A. On national forestry research, the expert meeting recommends:

i) That urgent attention be paid to the strengthening of national forestry research systems, with emphasis on those institutions mandated to implement major forestry research programmes but also involving all other relevant components of the system such as universities, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector.

ii) That, where feasible and appropriate, research components be incorporated into forestry development programmes to ensure sustained scientific support for such programmes through the strengthening of local scientific expertise and institutions.

iii) That national self-reliance and sustainability in forestry research be promoted by better identification of clients and their needs, and by increasing the internal sources of funding from the private as well as the public sector.

B. On the training and development of forestry research human resources, the expert meeting recommends:

iv) That all avenues for training, in-country as well as overseas, including part-time, full-time, "sandwich", and distance" learning courses as well as twinning arrangements, be utilized for training.

v) That the academic training of scientists be supplemented by additional training in specific practical skills, implemented through short courses, seminars and other means; such specific skills include research leadership and management, research project formulation and management, research evaluation, technical writing and publication, technology transfer and impact assessment.

vi) That the training and development of scientists be viewed as a process that should continue into mid-career and beyond so that skills are continually improved.

C. On research support networks, the expert meeting recommends:

vii) That research support networks be set up on a regional and subregional basis wherever possible in order to promote scientific interaction for the mutual benefit of the scientists and countries concerned.

viii) That, where appropriate, FORSPA be used as a networking model for adaptation to other regions and subregions.

ix) That FAO promote and support discussions with relevant national institutions on the operation of regional and subregional forestry research support networks. x) That efforts be made to explore possibilities for increasing private sector involvement in research networks and the exchange of research information.

D. On global support for forestry research, the expert meeting recommends:

xi) That CIFOR and the International Council for Research on Agroforestry, as the pivotal Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) centres for international forestry and agroforestry research, respectively, should continue to explore creative ways to complement and supplement forestry and agroforestry research support networks.

xii) That FAO, IUFRO and CGIAR centres should continue to work closely with each other and with the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) as well as other international organizations to strengthen global support for forestry research.

E. The group of experts expresses its appreciation for this timely and useful meeting and congratulates FAO for convening it; the group recommends:

xiii) That FAO continue to hold expert meetings on forestry research at regular intervals to provide an interregional forum for reviewing the state of forestry research, identifying problems and exploring options for national, regional and international cooperation and action.

Working papers

The 24 working papers together form a comprehensive survey of recent development in forestry research around the world. It is difficult to single out particular papers for special mention. However, the paper by Lundgren et al. on "Training and development of scientists for forestry research in the USA" describes what is arguably the most advanced programme so far devised for the development of scientific human resources in forestry. It is a programme worth emulating in other countries.

A paper by the FAO Evaluation Service on "Guidelines for the establishment and support of technical cooperation networks" summarizes a review of 135 networks in agriculture, fisheries, forestry and rural development, from which it draws important lessons Network managers and planners will find these lessons useful.

Papers on the state of forestry research organizations in Mexico, Burkina Faso, Morocco, Brazil, Pakistan, Malaysia and the United Republic of Tanzania provide interesting glimpses of the situation in a cross-section of countries around the world.

The state of tropical forest resources

Forest resources assessment 1990: Tropical countries. FAO Forestry Paper No 112. 1993. Rome.
Sound decisions and actions in forest management at any level, whether local or global, require reliable information regarding the situation and evolution of the resource over time. In pursuance of its mandate, FAO has undertaken periodic assessments of the world's forest resources, of which the first was carried out nearly 50 years ago in 1946 and the most recent in 1980. As reported in depth in Unasylva, 44(174), the 1990 Global Forest Resources Assessment builds on the 1980 study and has three components: the assessment for the tropical countries (presented in this Forestry Paper); the assessment of the forest resources of the industrialized countries, carried out and published jointly by FAO and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe; and the assessment for the non-tropical developing countries, which is to be published in 1994.

FAO Forestry Paper No. 112 provides comprehensive information on the current state of tropical forests, including deforestation, management, conservation and development of the resource. It addresses for the first time issues related to forest degradation, and loss of biomass and biodiversity. A new methodology has been developed for a more accurate estimation of changes in forest cover. The core of this methodology is the ability to analyse forest resource data in the form of time series. Both data that were made available by member countries and new data obtained from satellite remote sensing images have been used for this purpose. An important part of this report is the country data. To arrive at a common classification, format and reference date, original data provided by countries had to be reorganized (classifications and definitions often differ from country to country). However, it must be stressed that the standardized country results in this publication are intended only to secure a consistent global picture; they do not replace the original country statistics, which will remain a unique source of reference. This assessment is intended to satisfy most of the urgent information needs of policy-makers, the scientific community and the general public. However, the exercise has revealed gaps in information and knowledge and a need to improve national capacities to carry out their own forest resource assessments. These will be areas receiving increased attention from FAO in the future.

S.A. Dembner
Debt-for-nature swaps

Debt-for-nature swaps to promote natural resource conservation. FAO Conservation Guide No 23 1993. Rome.

The external debt liabilities of developing countries are a major constraint to their social and economic development and have resulted in a significant outflow of capital. This has limited government willingness to protect the natural resource base and to invest in social infrastructure, lowering the quality of life of large sectors of the population. The debt burden has threatened social and political stability and sometimes damaged international economic relations.

The dimension of environmental problems and external funding experiences between 1980 and 1985 clearly indicated that the resources needed to protect and manage the natural heritage called for new ideas and efficient, long-lasting mechanisms. It was against this background that the debt-for-nature swap mechanism was brought forth in Latin American countries in 1986. Although it is not a solution to the debt problem, given its sheer magnitude, the debt-for-nature swap programme is nevertheless a highly innovative and effective means of converting a financial problem into a means of supporting the conservation and sustainable development of wildlands; constructive reforestation; and a more scientific and productive management of natural woodlands.

This document sets out to describe the forms and conceptual framework of the main debt-for-nature swaps before 1990. Subsequent initiatives have not been included, nor have other instances of debt swaps for non-environmental purposes, such as debt-for-education, -industrial development and -science and technology. Nonetheless, the variety of structures and operating mechanisms involved is indicative of the potential of such swaps.

It is noteworthy that, whereas the study on which this document is based was entitled Estudio sobre el canje de la deuda externa pare promover la conservación de los recursos forestales, the focus of the final work was broadened to cover all natural resources (including forests). This provided a greater number of case-studies, as one of the main objectives of the document is to highlight the conversion mechanisms and flexibility in terms of beneficiaries and end-use options.

The inclusion of instances of debt swaps for the protection of wildlands results from a broad interpretation of forest land use, extending beyond timber extraction to include soil and water conservation as well as the protection of genetic material and scenic beauty.

The document is divided into five basic sections: an introduction; an analysis of the external debt of developing countries and the debt-for-nature swap initiative; case-studies of debt-for-nature swaps in seven countries (five in Latin America, one in Africa and one in Asia); the perspective of the industrialized countries; and prospects for the future. An annex contains the conclusions and recommendations of an FAO workshop on debt-for-nature swaps, held in Santiago, Chile, in December 1991.

This document should be of considerable use to both developing and developed countries, international technical cooperation agencies, national and international nongovernmental organizations and development banks. The hope is that it will serve as a basis for the development and exploration of new collaborative strategies to protect the environment and use its resources sustainably while improving the external debt situation of developing countries.

For further details log on website: 

http://www.fao.org/docrep/t2230e/t2230e0d.htm#TopOfPage

Major Sources of Cholesterol

Egg yolks are high in cholesterol. Photo Credit OlgaMiltsova/iStock/Getty Images

Overview

Cholesterol, a waxy substance found in some foods and manufactured in the body, is necessary for the production of certain hormones, bile and vitamin D. Too much cholesterol, especially LDL cholesterol, can lead to a buildup of fatty deposits on the walls of the arteries and interfere with blood flow to the heart. According to the American Heart Association, dietary cholesterol, saturated fat, and trans fat all work to raise cholesterol levels in the body. High blood cholesterol levels increase the risk of stroke and coronary heart disease. The U.S. Department of Agriculture recommends that less than 10 percent of daily calories come from saturated fat, and that adults with healthy cholesterol levels consume no more than 300mg of dietary cholesterol per day.

Eggs and Oils

Exchange egg yolks for egg whites. Photo Credit Scott Karcich/iStock/Getty Images

Egg yolks are the highest source of dietary cholesterol, and consuming oils high in saturated and trans fat, such as palm and coconut oils, can significantly increase blood cholesterol levels. Exchange egg yolks for egg whites or egg substitutes, and use olive or canola oil when cooking or preparing salad dressings.

Meat and Poultry

Remove the skin from poultry. Photo Credit vikif/iStock/Getty Images

Meat and poultry are major sources of cholesterol, with a single serving containing as much as 70 milligrams of cholesterol. Organ meats -- heart, liver, brain -- are even higher in cholesterol and contain about 350 milligrams of cholesterol per serving. Removing the skin from poultry will reduce cholesterol intake, and replacing red meat with 6 ounces servings of white meat or fish will help keep cholesterol levels in check, according to the American Heart Association.

Dairy Products

Dairy products like ice cream are one of the primary sources of saturated fat and cholesterol in the U.S. diet. Photo Credit Du?an Zidar/iStock/Getty Images

Dairy products, including cheese, ice cream,and milk, are one of the primary sources of saturated fat and cholesterol in the U.S. diet, according to Harvard School of Public Health. Just 1 tablespoon of butter contains 10 percent of the daily value for cholesterol, and 1 cup of whole milk provides as much as 12 percent of the daily value, according to the FDA. Opting for low fat milk and dairy products, choosing frozen yogurt over ice cream, and using butter sparingly when cooking and eating can all help reduce cholesterol intake.

Snack Foods and Processed Foods

One doughnut contains 8% of your daily cholesterol value. Photo Credit Monkey Business Images/Monkey Business/Getty Images

Commercially prepared baked goods and processed foods are typically high in trans fat, which raise levels of LDL while decreasing levels of HDL, the good cholesterol. Harvard School of Public Health states that eliminating trans fat from the diet can significantly reduce the risk of heart disease and death. The FDA states that a single doughnut contains 8 percent of the daily value of cholesterol.

www.livestrong.com

Great American Furniture (Digital Download)

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By Popular Woodworking Editors

Format: Download 

In "Great American Furniture," you'll find 64 pages of complete and detailed plans for 11 classic projects from Popular Woodworking Magazine. You'll get step-by-step instruction and drawings for:

Shaker

• Classic Shaker Candle Stand
• Shaker Press Cupboard (Glen Huey's most popular project!)
• Hand-tool Stepstool

18th-century

• Pennsylvania Spice Box
• Simple Candle Boxes
• Butler's Tray Table

Arts & Crafts

• Greene & Greene Side Table
• Slant-arm Morris Chair

Contemporary

• Plywood Nesting Tables
• Nicolai Fechin-style Bench
• Maple Lamp with Rice Paper
• 
  

For further information log on website:

http://www.shopwoodworking.com/great-american-furniture-digital-download-u3647?source=igodigital

HERB

This article is about culinary, medicinal, and spiritual herbs. For the technical usage, see herbaceous plant. For other uses, see Herb (disambiguation).

Basil and green onions, common culinary herbs.

In general use, herbs are any plants used for food, flavoring, medicine, or perfume. Culinary use typically distinguishes herbs from spices. Herbs refer to the leafy green parts of a plant (either fresh or dried), while a "spice", is a product from another part of the plant (usually dried), including seeds, berries, bark, roots and fruits.

In botanical English the word "herb" is also used as a synonym of "herbaceous plant".

Herbs have a variety of uses including culinary, medicinal, and in some cases spiritual usage. General usage of the term "herb" differs between culinary herbs and medicinal herbs. In medicinal or spiritual use any of the parts of the plant might be considered "herbs", including leaves, roots,  flowers, seeds, resin, root bark, inner bark (and cambium), berries and sometimes the pericarp or other portions of the plant.

The word "herb" is pronounced /ˈhɜːrb/ by most English-speaking countries, but /ˈɜːrb/ is common among North American speakers and those from other regions where h-dropping occurs.

Cultinary herbs

Culinary herbs are distinguished from vegetables in that, like spices, they are used in small amounts and provide flavor rather than substance to food.

Herbs can be perennials such as thyme or lavender, biennials such as parsley, or annuals like basil. Perennial herbs can be shrubs such as rosemary, Rosmarinus officinalis, or trees such as bay laurel, Laurus nobilis – this contrasts with botanical herbs, which by definition cannot be woody plants. Some plants are used as both herbs and spices, such as dill weed and dill seed or coriander leaves and seeds. Also, there are some herbs such as those in the mint family that are used for both culinary and medicinal purposes.

Medicinal herbs

Some plants contain phytochemicals that have effects on the body. There may be some effects when consumed in the small levels that typify culinary "spicing", and some herbs are toxic in larger quantities. For instance, some types of herbal extract, such as the extract of St. John's-wort (Hypericum perforatum) or of kava (Piper methysticum) can be used for medical purposes to relieve depression and stress. However, large amounts of these herbs may lead to toxic overload that may involve complications, some of a serious nature, and should be used with caution.

Herbs have long been used as the basis of traditional Chinese herbal medicine, with usage dating as far back as the first century CE and far before. In India, the Ayurveda, medicinal system is based on herbs. Medicinal use of herbs in Western cultures has its roots in the Hippocratic (Greek) elemental healing system, based on a quaternary elemental healing metaphor. Famous herbalist of the Western tradition include Avicenna (Persian), Galen (Roman), Paracelsus (German Swiss), Culpepper (English) and the botanically inclined Eclectic physicians of 19th century/early 20th century America (John Milton Scudder, Harvey Wickes Felter, John Uri Lloyd). Modern pharmaceuticals had their origins in crude herbal medicines, and to this day, some drugs are still extracted as fractionate/isolate compounds from raw herbs and then purified to meet pharmaceutical standards.

Certain herbs contain psychoactive properties that have been used for both religious and recreational purposes by humans since the early Holocene era, notably the leaves and extracts of the cannabis and coca plants. The leaves of the coca plant have been chewed by people in northern Peruvian societies for over 8,000 years, while the use of cannabis as a psychoactive substance dates back to the first century CE in China and Northern Africa.

Sacred herbs

Herbs are used in many religions. For example, myrrh,(Commiphora myrrha) and frankincense (Boswellia species) in Hellenistic religion, the nine herbs charm in Anglo-Saxon paganism, neem (Azadirachta indica) leaves, bael (Aegele marmelos) leaves, holy basil or tulsi (Ocimum tenuiflorum), turmeric or "haldi" (Curcuma longa), and cannabis in Hinduism. Rastafari also consider cannabis to be a holy plant.

Siberian shamans also used herbs for spiritual purposes. Plants may be used to induce spiritual experiences for rites of passage, such as vision quests in some Native American cultures. The Cherokee Native Americans use both white sage and cedar for spiritual cleansing and smudging.

References

1. ^ Cambridge Advanced Learners' Dictionary & Thesaurus, Cambridge University Press: headword "Herb" Online version.
2. ^ "Chinese Herbal Medicine". Retrieved 2007-12-19.
3. ^ Dillehay et al (2010). "Early Holocene coca chewing in northern Peru" p. 939–959
4. ^ Ernest Abel, Marijuana, The First 12,000 years (Plenum Press, New York 1980) [1].

External Links

•  Media related to Herbs at Wikimedia Commons
• §182.10 Spices and other natural seasonings and flavorings that are generally recognized as safe, US Code of Federal Regulations

Wikipedia 

Sprinting Vs. Long Distance Running for Weight Loss

Running can be used as a tool for weight loss, no matter your goals or your current conditioning. The speed that you start out jogging or walking depends wholly on your beginning fitness level, but will likely increase with time, endurance and practice. Either way, lacing up your running shoes and heading out the door is a step in the direction toward improved health and weight maintenance.

Running is an excellent way to lose weight, no matter your speed. Photo Credit senior man jogging image by Paula Gent from Fotolia.com

Beginning Stages of Running for Weight Loss

In the beginning of your running regimen, you can likely only run for short periods of time. Implementing a walk/jog cycle into your early stages of running will help you run further and, therefore burn more calories. Jeff Galloway, Olympian and running coach, estimates in his book "Galloway's Book on Running" that "running burns about 100 calories per mile," no matter the pace. Particularly in the beginning of your training, walk and jog to build exercise endurance.

Slow, Steady-Paced Running

As your endurance increases, you will be able to jog further for longer periods of time between breaks. The more miles you are able to accumulate during your runs, the more calories you will be burning and the more unwanted weight you are going to be able to shed. At this stage in your running, keep your pace slow and steady. Do not push yourself to go faster than you easily can, as that will keep you from running as far or for as long as you could at a slower pace.

Speed Work

As your body acclimates to running, your pace will likely increase naturally. According to authors Michael Mejia and John Berardi in their book "Scrawny to Brawny," high-intensity running burns approximately 1,323 calories per hour and low-intensity running burns approximately 514 calories per hour in a 150-pound person. The harder you push, the greater the calorie-burn, even if you have to take breaks between high-intensity run intervals.

The Fast vs. Slow Debate

Fast or slow, you will be burning essentially the same number of calories per mile when running. The harder the effort, the fewer miles you will be able to cover, and vice-versa. Keep in mind that your body tires of doing the same workout every day, no matter the sport. If you head out to run three miles every day at the same pace your body will slow its response to your efforts, and your weight loss and performance will likely plateau. Change your training up from day to day, incorporating fast and slow days into your weekly run plan, and your body will continuously respond to your training.

Running for Weight Loss

Galloway states that in order to mobilize fat and lose weight, "it is better to run 40 to 60 minutes three times a week, than 20 to 30 minutes six times a week." These longer training sessions help you to lose unwanted weight while building endurance and overall fitness. You can incorporate 40 to 60 minute runs into your training through long, slow distance or speed work with periodic rest breaks, and your body will respond by burning calories and losing weight.

www.livestrong.com

Applications of biotechnology in the forests products industry

Report by Francois Woldaardt
Assessed on 30 April 2016

Biotechnology is the application of biological systems in technology that can only be achieved through an integration of the biological, physical and engineering sciences. The current approach of biotechnology, in the forest products industry is to apply biological products such as enzymes rather than live cultures. Enzymatic action is very specific and also easy to control. This paper considers biotechnological applications in different operations including forestry, wood preservation, pulping, bleaching, deinking, papermaking and water treatment. The benefits of biotechnological applications are: improved product quality, production rate or diminished environmental impact. Utilisation of enzymes will become more widespread as biological products become less expensive through large-scale production.

INTRODUCTION

Biotechnology has been defined as the integrated use of biological, physical and engineering sciences in order to achieve technological application of biological systems. The goal of technological application implies that biotechnology excludes fundamental research and that it must be relevant to industry. Fundamental studies do, however, play a crucial role in the development of the applicable biotechnological processes. Recombinant DNA technology can, for example, be used to exploit or enhance the properties of natural biological systems for industrial purposes.

Most biotechnological processes make use of microorganisms such as bacteria, yeasts and filamentous fungi, but vascular plants, algae and even animal tissue can also be utilised. Classical biotechnological processes have been used for ages in the production of food and beverages such as bread, cheese, beer and wine. These processes are characterised by the direct application of live organisms and the in situ production of enzymes and other products. New biotechnology has a stronger focus on the application of biological products or enzymes and these are often produced ex situ. The advantages of the new biotechnology over classical biotechnology are that mass balances are easier to solve and process control is improved.

The forest products industry is based on the processing of biological raw material and it is, therefore, well suited to the introduction of biotechnology. Biotechnological processes have been developed for most of the unit operations of the industry and a number of them are commercialised. The aim of this paper is to examine the potential of different biotechnological processes and their integration into conventional operations of the forest products industry.

BIOTECHNOLOGY APPLICATIONS

Forestry

Biotechnology can be applied in forests and especially plantations to improve fibre production and to protect trees. When exotic tree species were initially planted in South Africa, it was observed that stunted growth occurred due to the absence of mycorrhizal symbionts. Soil, containing these fungi, was then introduced into the country to improve growth of trees. Today, it is believed that fibre production can be improved by inoculating seedlings with more efficient mycorrhizal fungi. Mycorrhizal fungi enhance plant growth through improvement of mineral and water absorption, protection against pathogens and even secretion of growth enhancing hormones (1).
Tree protection can be achieved by using biological control agents such as fungi or bacteria. The biological control agents (BCAs) are most effective against root diseases and especially where they are applied in an enclosed environment such as seedling trays. These BCAs act by competing with pathogens for nutrients and space, by secreting toxic substances or by direct consumption of the pathogens (2).

Treatment of Timber

After felling, logs can be treated with fungi to improve debarking or to protect the wood against blue staining and decay. Inoculation of softwood logs with the white-rot fungus Phlebiopsis gigantea leads to rapid colonisation of the logs during transport or storage. The fungus is able to loosen bark, reduce pitch and protect the wood against sap staining (3). The loosening of bark is accomplished during the degradation of cambial cells by the fungus. The best-known biological agent to protect timber against blue staining is the fungus Ophiostoma piliferum. A white mutant of this fungus has been selected and the inoculum is produced commercially as Cartapip® (4). The fungus is a primary coloniser of wood and is able to utilise sugars and extractives in the wood without affecting the strength of the wood. These characteristics enable the fungus to out-compete any sap-stain fungi that subsequently infect the wood.

Biopulping

Biopulping is a solid-substrate fermentation (SSF) process where lignocellulosic materials are treated with fungi prior to pulping in order to reduce energy during mechanical pulping or to reduce chemical consumption during chemical pulping processes. Research has focussed on the utilisation of lignin-degrading fungi for biopulping, but the only commercial process currently available, utilises O. piliferum. Wood chips have also been treated successfully with fungal enzymes to improve the penetration of pulping liquor (5).

The aim of bio-thermomechanical pulping is to reduce the energy consumption during pulping and to improve pulp strength (6). The beneficial effects of fungal treatment on mechanical pulping can be ascribed to the reduction of the binding capacity of fibres and improved fibrillation. During bio-chemical pulping, the lignin content of the pulp or pulping time can be reduced (7). These benefits are the result of increased lignin solubility that is caused by fungal degradation (8). Depitching is one application of biopulping where Cartapip® is applied to stored wood chips and the pitch in the wood is reduced by the fungus metabolising it (9). It is evident that different fungi are suited to different pulping processes, but these processes must be adapted to achieve the full potential of an environmentally friendly technology. 

Pulpwood Preservation

Cost of wood contributes more than 80 % to the variable cost of unbleached chemical pulp. Contaminating organisms that degrade cellulose or cause staining of wood can, therefore, have a significant impact by reducing yields of chemical pulp (10) or necessitating bleaching of mechanical pulp (11). Biopulping fungi are inoculated at high dosages and incubated under conditions that favour their ability to colonise and compete with undesirable organisms. These fungi are thus able to protect pulpwood against decay and staining organisms.
Biobleaching

Two different approaches have been used to enhance bleaching through enzymes. The first method utilise hemicellulolitic enzymes such as xylanase. These enzymes are unable to degrade lignin, but cause limited degradation of hemicellulose in kraft pulp to expose lignin to further attack by bleaching chemicals. Xylanase pre-bleaching is used at several kraft mills worldwide. In 1994, eight percent of Canada's bleached kraft pulp production was treated with xylanase (12). This technology holds environmental and economic advantages, especially since the enzymes have become less expensive as result of increased market size. 

The typical chemical saving associated with the use of xylanase is more than 15 % active chlorine. Unfortunately, the limit of approximately 20 % in chemical savings cannot be exceeded. The second approach to enzymatic bleaching is the utilisation of oxidative enzymes, mainly laccase and manganese peroxidase (MnP) to delignify pulp. Of these enzymes, laccase is preferred, because MnP requires hydrogen peroxide, manganese (II) ions and a chelator. Laccase can cause delignification of pulp under slight oxygen pressure, but is considerably more effective when mediators are added (13). The most important obstacles to commercial application of laccases are the lack of sufficient enzyme stocks and the cost of mediators. Marked progress has been made over the last two years to solve these problems and it is expected that biobleaching with laccase will be able to compete with other TCF bleaching processes. 

Enzymatic Deinking

Enzymatic deinking can be applied on old newsprint and office waste, but it is more effective on the latter, because it contains large amounts of laser and xerographic inks that are more difficult to remove by conventional methods (14). The commercial cellulases used, are able to hydrolyse fines to release ink particles. The ink can then be removed by chemical or air flotation. A secondary benefit of the enzyme treatment is that the stripping of fines from fibres results in improved drainage (15) without reduction in strength properties (16). 

Improvements in Paper Making

Most of the applications of enzymes to improve the papermaking characteristics of pulp are aimed at the improvement of secondary fibre. Application of cellulases and hemicellulases to modify fibres has resulted in the following benefits (16):

• Improved beating to save energy;
• higher freeness;
• enhanced drainage;
• improvement of certain strength properties;
• decreased disintegration time of recycled pulp, and
• reversal of hornification.

In other applications, enzymes are used to remove the non-fibrous fractions of secondary fibre that hamper drainage. A good example of such material is residual starch that is especially abundant where old corrugated containers are used as raw material. Amylases can be applied to degrade remaining starch that would not contribute to the web characteristics, but would restrict drainage. In one mill, application of amylases resulted in a 6,9 % increase in production of paper (17).

Control of Microbial Fouling

Microorganisms in mill water systems cause slime or biofilm build-up, odour and corrosion. The consequences of the contamination are increased web breakages, holes and spots in paper as well as increased cost of maintenance. Biocides are generally used to control microbial build-up, and deposits are removed during boilouts by sodium hydroxide or dispersants. Inoculation of water systems with competing microorganisms or bacteriophages have been proposed, but the most feasible biotechnological approach appears to utilise enzymes to prevent aggregation of biofilm-producing organisms and degrade extra-cellular polysaccharides (18). These enzymes include proteases and carbohydrate-degrading enzymes and combinations of these enzymes are often applied. The enzymes also expose microorganisms to toxins by reducing protective polysaccharides, and are usually dosed in combination with biocides. 

Effluent treatment

The oldest application of biotechnology in the pulp and paper industry is probably that of wastewater treatment. Biological processes are usually employed in secondary or polishing treatments that follow sedimentation or other primary treatment. Biological treatment processes include: Aerated stabilisation basins, activated sludge, oxygen-activated sludge, trickling filters, rotating biological contactors, anaerobic lagoons, upflow anaerobic sludge blankets, anaerobic filters and anaerobic fluidised beds (19). These systems are all characterised by a complex microbial community that is responsible for the improvement of water quality.

CONCLUSIONS

Biotechnology is applied on a commercial scale in many operations of the forest products industry. Application of enzymes has become very prominent recently, because they are highly selective in their action and have a negligible environmental impact. Wider application of these enzymes are restricted by cost and availability of the enzymes. This problem will soon cease to exist, given that the cost of enzymes has decreased considerably over the last decade as the market increased. A number of companies are now also producing enzymes specifically aimed at the pulp and paper market. One remaining hurdle, is the perceived incompatibility of biotechnology with conventional processes. This problem is more difficult to solve since it is largely due to a lack of understanding of biological systems and a lack of acceptance that biological products are expected to work under extreme conditions in mills. It is, therefore, clear that biotechnology can only be developed through integration and understanding of biological as well as physical sciences.

LITERATURE CITED
 

1.	Linderman R.G. Vesicular-Arbuscular Mycorrhizal (VAM) fungi In: The Mycota V Part B. Plant relationships (Carroll & Tudzynski, Eds.) pp.117-127. Springer Verlag 1997.
2.	Baker K.F. Evolving concepts of biological control of plant pathogens. Ann. Rev. Phytopathol. 25 1987 pp67 – 85.
3.	Behrendt C.J. and Blanchette R.A. Biological processing of pine logs for pulp and paper production with Phlebiopsis gigantea. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 63(5) 1997 pp1995 – 2000.
4.	Blanchette R.A., Farrell R.L., Behrendt C.J., White-McDougall W. and Held B.W. Application of biological control agents in the forest products industry. FRI Bulletin No. 204 1997 pp81 – 85.
5.	Jacobs C.J., Venditti R.A. and Joyce T.W. Effect of enzymatic pretreatments on conventional kraft pulping. Tappi. J. 81(2) 1998 pp143-147.
6.	Akhtar M., Lentz M.J., Swaney R.E., Scott G.M., Horn E. and Kirk T.K. Commercialization of biopulping for mechanical pulping. Proceedings of the 7thInternational Conference on Biotechnology in the Pulp and Paper Industry, Vancouver, Canada. Vol. A. 1998 pp55-58.
7.	Oriaran T.P., Labosky P. and Blankenhorn P.R. Kraft pulp and papermaking properties of Phanerochaete chrysosporium-degraded red oak. Wood Fiber Sci. 23(3) 1991 pp316-327.
8.	Messner K., Masek S., Srebotnik E. and Techt G. Fungal pretreatment of wood chips for chemical pulping. In: Biotechnology in the pulp and paper industry: Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Biotechnology in the Pulp and Paper Industry. (M. Kuwahara & M. Shimada, Eds.) pp.9–13. Uni Publishers Co. 1992.
9.	Blanchette R.A., Farrell R.L., Burnes T.A., Wendler P.A., Zimmerman W., Brush T.S. and Snyder R.A. Biological control of pitch in pulp and paper production by Ophiostoma piliferum. Tappi J. 75 1992 pp102-106.
10.	Zabel R.A. and Morrell J.J. Wood microbiology: Decay and its prevention 325pp. Academic Press Inc. 1992.
11.	Haller T.M. and Kile G. Cartapip® treatment of wood chips to reduce pitch and improve processing. Tappi Pulping Conference pp. 1243-1252. Tappi Press, 1992.
12.	Tolan J.S., Olson D. and Dines R.E. Survey of mill usage of xylanase. In: Enzymes for pulp and paper processing (T.W. Jeffries and L. Viikari, Eds.) pp.45-55. American Chemical Society 1996.
13.	Paice M.G., Bourbonnais R., Reid I.D., Archibald F.S. and Jurasek L. Oxidative bleaching enzymes: a review. J. Pulp Paper Science 21(8) 1995 pp280 – 284.
14.	Prasad D.Y. Enzymatic deinking of laser and xerographic office wastes. Appita 46(4) 1993 pp289 – 292.
15.	Rutledge-Cropsey K., Klungness J.H. and Abubakr S.M. Performance of enzymatically deinked recovered paper on paper machine runnability. Tappi J. 81(2) 1998 pp148 – 151.
16.	Jackson L.S., Heitmann J.A. and Joyce T.W. Enzymatic modification of secondary fiber. TAPPI J. 76(3) 1993 pp147 – 154.
17.	Lascaris E, Lonergan G. and Forbes L. Drainage improvement using a starch degrading enzyme blend in a recycling paper mill. Tappi Biological Sciences Symposium pp271 – 277Tappi Press, 1997.
18.	Johnsrud S.C. Biotechnology for solving slime problems in the pulp and paper industry In: Advances in biochemical engineering biotechnology (L. Scheper, Ed.) pp. 311-328. Springer Verlag 1997.
19.	Springer A.L. Bioprocessing of pulp and paper mill effluents – past, present and future. Pap. Timber 75(1) 1993 pp156 – 161.

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