Mountain Views News          Saturday, April 30, 2011

14

THE WORLD AROUND US

 Mountain Views News Saturday, April 30, 2011


NASA Orbiter Reveals Buried Dry Ice Deposit on Mars

NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has discovered that the total 
amount of atmosphere on Mars changes dramatically as the tilt of the 
planet’s axis varies. This process can affect the stability of liquid water, 
if it exists on the Martian surface, and can increase the frequency 
and severity of Martian dust storms.

Researchers using the orbiter’s ground-penetrating radar identified 
a large buried deposit of frozen carbon dioxide, or dry ice, at 
the Red Planet’s south pole. The scientists suspect that much of this 
carbon dioxide enters the planet’s atmosphere and swells the atmosphere’s 
mass when Mars’ tilt increases. The findings were published 
last week in the journal Science.

The newly found deposit has a volume similar to that of Lake Superior—
nearly 3,000 cubic miles. The deposit holds up to 80 percent 
as much carbon dioxide as does today’s Martian atmosphere. Collapse 
pits caused by dry ice sublimation and other clues suggest that 
the deposit is in a dissipating phase, adding gas to the atmosphere 
each year. Mars’ atmosphere is about 95 percent carbon dioxide, in 
contrast to Earth’s much thicker atmosphere, which contains mainly 
nitrogen and oxygen and less than 0.04 percent carbon dioxide.

“We already knew there is a small perennial cap of carbon-dioxide 
ice on top of the water ice there, but this buried deposit has about 30 
times more dry ice than previously estimated,” said Roger Phillips 
of Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colo. Phillips is deputy 
team leader for the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter’s Shallow Radar instrument 
and lead author of the report.

“We identified the deposit as dry ice by determining that the radar 
signature fitted the radio-wave transmission characteristics of frozen 
carbon dioxide far better than the characteristics of frozen water,” 
said Roberto Seu of Sapienza University of Rome, team leader for 
the Shallow Radar and a co-author of the new report. Additional 
evidence came from correlating the deposit to visible sublimation 
features typical of dry ice.

“When you include this buried deposit, Martian carbon dioxide 
right now is roughly half frozen and half in the atmosphere, but at 
other times it can be nearly all frozen or nearly all in the atmosphere,” 
Phillips said.

An increase in atmospheric density would strengthen winds, lofting 
more dust and leading to more frequent and more intense dust 
storms. Another result is an expanded area on the planet’s surface 
where liquid water could persist without boiling away. Modeling 
based on the known variations in the tilt of Mars’ axis suggests that 
several-fold changes in the total mass of the planet’s atmosphere can 
happen on time frames of 100,000 years or less.

The changes in atmospheric density caused by the carbon-dioxide 
increase also would amplify some effects of the changes caused by 
the tilt. Researchers plugged the mass of the buried carbon-dioxide 
deposit into climate models for the period when Mars’ tilt and orbital 
properties would maximize the amount of summer sunshine hitting 
the south pole. They found that at such times, Mars’ global average 
air pressure would be 75 percent greater than the current level.

You can contact Bob Eklund at: b.eklund@MtnViewsNews.com.


Ask jai……


Ask jai is a weekly column that will strive to honestly answer your job search questions relating to job searching 
techniques, networking skills, resume writing and interviewing. The employment situation is getting better, however, 
it is still a challenge finding were the jobs are located and how to get pass the “gate-keepers”. As an Executive 
Recruiter I was privy to working directly with Corporate Recruiters and understanding their process in selecting 
which candidates to interview and hire. I will candidly answer your questions, possibly bluntly answering your 
questions, but I will be totally honest. My objective is to help you achieve your employment goal.

As Bad As It Gets 

Q: I am a bank teller, before that I was a customer service representative in the high tech industry and previous to that I was 
an administrative assistant. I am single, young and make a good income. I am considering making a change in the type of work 
I do. I have 2 dogs, a bird and 3 cats. I really love animals and obviously taking care of them. What type jobs would you see me 
fitting into? Person Who Loves Animals.

Dear Person Who Loves Animals:

You should look for employment in the Pet/Animal Care industry because it is the upmost booming industry next to the healthcare 
industry that needs people to fill their numerous and various positions. That’s right, the Pet Care industry is always seeking 
people to hire. I could write a book about the infinite number of employment opportunities in the Pet Care Industry. The employment 
opportunities in this industry should be so obvious to those seeking employment and loves animals, but for some reason it 
isn’t. Therefore, a lot of positions go unfilled. According to a recent article published by Investor Place, April 25, 2011, a survey 
conducted by American Pets Products identified that 62% of U.S. households own a pet – 72.9 millions homes. The total price tag on 
all those doggie bowls and leashes and chew toys totaled a cool $50 billion (Billion!) last year, about double what it was 10 years ago. 
The animal care industry is an ideal industry for those of you who are unemployed seeking an alternative industry or career change. 
who love animals to successful use any skill set, education and previous work history to successfully find employment. Your work 
history suggests that you like working with people and providing service, those are excellent transferable skills to apply for numerous 
positions in the pet care field. Here are some career or employment suggestions: Veterinarian, Registered Veterinary Technician, 
Veterinary research and development areas, Professional Dog Trainer, Dog Daycare Attendant, Vacation Pet Sitter, Kennel Attendant, 
Veterinarian Hospital Manager, Pet Groomer and Bather, Mobile Pet Groomer, Staff, Cashier or Management in a Pet Store 
or Specialty Boutique, sell Pet Insurance, design Pet Clothing, coordinate Pet events or shows. Let’s not leave out entrepreneurship. 
This is a great industry to start your own business. The list and range of careers and job opportunities is almost endless. Animal care 
positions can also be found with the US Government, state and local agencies. Look into the Zoo industry and employment opportunities 
by visiting the following websites: www.aazk.org; www.wazo.org and www.aza.org for information. Become a Certified 
Pet Groomer or Pet Hygienist visit these websites www.petgroomingtraining.net/groomingcertificate for information and a training 
school near you. Additional websites to research the pet care industry for training and employment: www.animalbehaviorcollege.
com; www.appma.com; www.becomavetassistant.com; and www.becomeagroomer.com. Let’s not forget the really fun and unusual 
side of the animal care industry by seeking out employment with the circus, carnivals, aquariums and family resorts (i.e., Disneyland 
or SeaWorld), film and TV. Some animal care positions only require High School education, others college degree or special certified 
training. So, if you have the passion and desire to work with animals go for it! 

It seems like just about every week there’s another breaking news story featuring a 
security breach that has resulting in the loss of personal user information to online 
thieves; this week was yet another of those weeks. The Sony Corporation reported a 
security breach that may affect upwards of 70 million users of the Sony PlayStation 
Network and could possibly go down as one of the largest customer data losses ever.

PSN allows users to interact in on-line games and also functions as an online store 
for the purchase of games and gaming-related merchandise and an outlet for exclusive 
content distribution online. The popular gaming network is one of the pioneers in the 
field of online gaming and services millions of users worldwide. 

The details of this security breach haven’t been fully released but this already appears 
to be a classic case of ‘as-bad-as-it-gets’. Signs of trouble began to appear for users of 
the PSN on April 20th of this month, when Sony shut the network down to investigate 
evidence of an intrusion that was suspected of occurring somewhere between April 
17th and April 19th of this month. Sony called the shutdown “Emergency Maintenance” 
at the time but later revealed that the service interruption was due an “External 
Intrusion”. On April 26th of this month Sony finally announced that personal user data 
had been compromised during the breach and that users’ names, full addresses, birth 
dates, email addresses and passwords were all part of the data stolen. Sony has yet to 
confirm or deny if credit card information was also taken during the breach, but the 
strong possibility exists that it was. As a precaution, Sony has warned users that have 
ever used their credit card to make purchases from and through the network to monitor 
their accounts for signs of suspicious activity. Sony has also warned its users to be 
on the alert for scams that ask them to provide personal information such as credit 
card numbers, Social Security numbers or any other personally identifiable information. 
As of this writing the Sony PSN is still down and the company has yet to provide 
an estimate for a return to full service. Users of the PSN have already begun to post 
reports of fraudulent credit card activity on various forums around the internet. Eight 
(8) days offline and counting, with no return to service in sight, is literally forever in 
online time. It will be quite a feat in terms of PR, Marketing and technical know-how 
to bounce back from an episode of this magnitude. 

This really is ‘as-bad-as-it-gets’.

Everything you ever wanted to know about how to get a job ….but did not know who to ask. ASK jai. Send your 
questions to: jai@resumeandcareerservices.com or visit website www.resumeandcareerservicesc.


Happy Tails

by Chris Leclerc.

Canyon Canine Dog 

Walking & Pet Sitting Services

THE PLIGHT OF PROHIBITIVE 
PET CARE COSTS


PEEPS SHOW!

During a recent conversation with a friend, our dialogue 
eventually turned to a discussion about our pets, as 
it typically does. My friend and his wife have two darling 
dogs whom they love very much and treat like family. 
They spend lots of time with their dogs, and enjoy their 
company more than the average pet owner. In the course 
of our conversation, my friend mentioned that he had 
taken one of their dogs, the older of the two, to the veterinarian 
a week before, and even with the senior citizen 
discount his vet applies, he still ended up paying just 
short of an arm and a leg for a few lab tests and a quick 
exam. He was quite surprised at how pet care costs have 
sky-rocketed these days and when he told me how much 
the bill was, it took me very much by surprise as well. 
Listening to his story, I thought of how many pet-owning 
senior citizens probably find themselves in a similar situation, 
met with the difficulty of covering the costs associated 
with caring for their pets. Most seniors are retired 
with a very limited income, and if that is not challenging 
enough, our present-day economy is making it even 
more difficult for them to make ends meet. Nowadays 
many of the seniors who were fortunate enough to have 
put money away for later years while working, have had 
to use their nest-egg savings just to keep their homes and 
pay off their own medical bills. Retirement is when most 
people finally have time to spend with a pet, and perhaps 
when they need that kind of companionship more than 
ever before, so it seems ironic and quite a shame to think 
that the cost of a vet bill could prohibit them from caring 
for their pet properly, or heaven forbid in the saddest 
case scenario, force them to euthanize to avoid the high 
cost of keeping their pet alive. Later that day, I was still 
thinking about the subject we had discussed and I could 
not seem to get that conversation out of my mind. Being 
a dog walker and pet sitter, I guess it struck a tender 
spot in my heart. I decided to look into what, if any kind 
of assistance might be available for senior citizens who 
cannot afford the high costs associated with caring for 
their animal companion. What I found was that there are 
several programs in place that offer pet vet bill and/or pet 
care assistance to senior citizens who qualify. Here are a 
few of the programs and services I found:

Actors and Others for Animals is a California non-
profit corporation dedicated to the humane treatment of 
animals. Their main mission is to curb the pet overpopulation 
problem by subsidizing spay & neuter surgeries 
along with other vital services to help pet guardians living 
on a low and/or fixed income, care for their beloved 
companions. One of their programs is SpayCalifornia, a 
state-wide referral network/database to connect people 
throughout the State of California with participating 
programs and veterinarians offering low cost spay/neuter 
services. For more information, you can link to their 
web site at: http://www.actorsandothers.com/.

PAWS/LA was founded in 1989 in response to the 
companion animal-related crises faced by residents of 
Los Angeles county who were financially and physically 
debilitated by HIV/AIDS. Since that time, the agency 
has expanded its scope to assist low-income seniors 
and any low-income individual living with a chronic or 
life-threatening illness. Their PACE Program (Preserving 
Animal Companionship for the Elderly) assists seniors 
by providing assistance with pet care. It has been 
documented through numerous scientific studies that 
the positive correlation between seniors and animals improves 
emotional outlook and health stability and PAWS/
LA wants to help. Visit them at: http://www.pawsla.org/.

The Pet Fund is a non-profit association that offers 
financial assistance to owners of domestic animals who 
need veterinary care. Their purpose is to work towards a 
future where decisions about companion animal medical 
care, need not be made on the basis of cost. Perhaps 
most importantly, they provide information about preventative 
care, pet insurance programs and financial services 
to help the pet owner develop resources on their 
own and avoid future emergencies through proper care 
and planning. Such information is often hard to find and 
The Pet Fund provides a user-friendly, easily accessible 
starting place for this purpose. For more information, 
contact The Pet Fund through their web site at: http://
thepetfund.com/.

It pleases me to know that there are so many people 
who care enough about domestic animals and their owners, 
to invest their time, money and energy in developing 
programs that can help maintain a healthy relationship 
between the two. It serves as a reminder to look for the 
proverbial “rainbow after the storm“. Let’s face it, if this 
article had ended where the conversation between me 
and my friend ended, it would have been quite bleak. 
Fortunately, however this tail has a happy ending. It 
serves as a reminder that where you find a friend in need, 
you will most likely find a friend in “deed”!

Well, it’s May 1, “May 
Day,” which I recently 
learned is a holiday for 
labor unions and other 
socialist groups, in addition 
to the spring 
celebrations originating 
from European paganism. Hmm… 
Communist demonstrations and May 
Pole dances, don’t know how those two 
got related. Besides the day’s cultic and 
political connotations, it’s also one week 
after Easter. Therefore, any Easter candy 
remaining in your house is either a tribute 
to your self-restraint, or it belongs to the 
class of “rejected candy” (see Halloween 
article on Candy Corn).

Yes, Easter is a holiday with 
many favorite confections - 
chocolate bunnies, malt ball 
eggs, pastel M&Ms, and, everyone’s 
downfall, Reese’s peanut 
butter eggs. So, I’m guessing 
your remaining candy 
hostages are either jellybeans 
(not to be confused with the 
popular and expensive “Jelly 
Bellies”), off-brand chocolate, 
or Peeps.

I’m certain you know what Peeps are, 
but in the unlikely case you don’t, they’re 
brightly colored, sugar-encrusted marshmallows 
shaped like rabbits and hens. 
Peeps are always referred to in the plural 
because each one is joined at the hip with 
its neighbor. As glorified marshmallows, 
Peeps belong to the category of “rejected 
candy,” along with the jellybeans, off-
brand chocolate, etc.

I visited the Peeps site, and am now actually 
a Peeps member (had to join in order 
to send Peep e-cards). Besides Easter, 
the Peep horizon has broadened to include 
other holidays. Some of the many 
new marshmallow manifestations include 
Christmas snowman Peeps and evil-looking 
cat Peeps for Halloween. A couple 
highlights of the Peeps site are the recipe 
and crafts sections. Suppose a recipe is 
for cupcakes or lollipops; you make the 
cupcakes/pie according to its directions 
and place Peeps on top. Or for the lollipops, 
you skewer a Peep on a stick. Voila! 
Essentially any food can become a Peeps 
recipe by topping it off with a Peep. There 
are no Peeps reduction sauces or Peeps 
and chicken recipes, but that’s probably 
a good thing. Among other works of 
marshmallow engineering, the crafts section 
instructs viewers on how to make 
Peeps centerpieces and candle holders. 
Like gingerbread houses, you can’t help 
wondering whether the structure will be 
infested with ants or maggots overnight. 
Even more frightening is the realization 
that the amount of chemical preservatives 
in this edible artwork will most likely ensure 
that your Peeps wreath will last for 
many Christmases into the future.

Peeps intrinsically 
beg creativity; the 
crafts section of 
the Peeps site itself 
attests to this. Perhaps 
you’ve seen 
the Peeps art movement 
publicized in 
recent years on the 
Internet. If not, let 
me enlighten you. 
A significant group 
of people sees these bunnies and hens as 
material for artistic expression and social 
commentary. Once a year, Peepists across 
the nation create detailed scenes reflecting 
current politics, social fads, and pop culture. 
This year’s award went to a model 
of the Chilean miners’ rescue. Although 
well constructed, I found the subject a bit 
insensitive. Other entries included a Lady 
Gaga Peep in a clear egg being carried by 
Peeps to the music awards. Justin “Peeper” 
was also a popular contestant, complete 
with his signature bangs. I fondly remember 
a diorama parodying Octo-mom, with 
a painfully pregnant Peep mother and a 
rampant host of miniature Peep offspring. 
That was funny! A Charlie Sheen Peep 
with Peep goddesses would’ve been good, 
but I didn’t see one. And if the artistic 
potential of Peeps doesn’t make you a fan, 
you might enjoy the new chocolate covered 
holiday Peeps, which might be just 
be enough to rescue them from the ranks 
of “rejected” candy.