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Le lineup de cette année est digne de Glastonsburry (U2 en moins) ou de n'importe quel gros festival de musique international. Osheaga et MTL ont maintenant leur place dans la lignée des grands. En bon français... Checker se lineup là. juste malade. http://groupes.osheaga.com/ Cliquez pour agrandir l'affiche Ce sont les gens de St-Lambert qui vont capoter avec une semaine après Osheaga, HeavyMTL qui ont offert leur lineup la semaine passée avec les Slipknow, Marilyn Mason, System of a down, Lamb of God..... En passant, je suis un hyper gros fan de musique, je suis shazam pour la plupart du monde qui me connait, un peu hipster sur les bords, beaucoup d'indie, Jazz, classique, rétro, College radio, UK, avec même un peu de Top40 si c'est de qualité et avec bon goût, donc ce genre de chose m'excite beaucoup.

Frustrated by how difficult it is to contact Montreal's 311 service, a couple of friends and I have built this handy web app: chermtl.ca It works on desktop and on mobile. This is not a for profit project, but simply our proposed solution to what we see as a very outdated system. We take care of bundling up and forwarding reports to different instances of the city's boroughs using a partially automated system. Please give it a try and let me know what you think

Pas de Camion à Déchets dans le QDS Source: Spacing Montreal There aren’t going to be any dump trucks blocking up the streets in Montreal’s new Quartier des Spectacles. Last Wednesday, the City approved a proposition to replace public trash cans with receptacles for garbage, recyclables and compostables, all hooked up to an vacuum-powered collection system. Waste placed in each receptacle would be sucked into a network of underground tubes and transported to a central processing location (possibly located in Place Desjardins). At first glance, this system may seem unduly costly and invasive, not to mention energy intensive. But since the streets in the QDS are already slotted to be ripped up in order to replace ageing sewers, aqueducts and power-lines, throwing in the waste-collection system will only cost an additional $8.2 million (according to a planner who worked on the proposal). Under the new system, garbage collection in the neighborhood would rely on electricity rather than fossil fuels, which may not be a bad idea given the cost and environmental impacts of burning fuel. Most importantly, the new garbage collection system would also apply to residents and businesses located in the Quartier des Spectacles. For instance, the restaurants in Place Desjardins would be able to be compost food scraps, saving several hundred tons of waste from landfills each year. Although Montreal is behind cities like Toronto who offer composting for household waste, this initiative would be the first in North America to offer composting on the public domain and for businesses. ENVAC, the European company that engineers these systems worldwide, built their first trash-vacuuming system in Stockholm in 1961 and it is still in operation (it has an expected lifespan of about 50 years, although that is probably standard for sewers and other infrastructure). Teaching the hoards of drunken festival-goers and clueless tourists to sort trash from recyclables and organic waste is a challenge for the future…

http://www.theatlanticcities.com/neighborhoods/2014/03/fascinating-remains-rochesters-subway/7055/

Source: Thrillist Sure, sure, sure. This war’s been waged a thousand times, but we found 10 reasons why Montreal trumps the “t-dot” (which is a stupid name, btw) and we didn’t even have to use low-blow examples like Rob Ford, Toronto's "sports" teams, or that shining moment when former mayor Mel Lastman called in the military that time it SNOWED IN THE WINTER. 1. Better bagels, poutine, smoked meat, and sandwiches. Let’s just start by getting this out of the way. Montreal is home to one of the best sandwiches in the world, the best bagels in the world, the greatest poutines, and the best smoked meat. Eat that Toronto. 2. You can drink anywhere in Montreal, all the time. Yes, you can legally drink in public in Montreal as long as you’re eating food. And since Montreal has the best Canadian food in the country, that technicality is pretty much a friendly reminder. Heck, you can’t even drink alcohol on a licensed patio in Toronto after 11p. 3. Obtaining alcohol to drink in public is easier. In Montreal, wine and beer are sold in dépanneurs, the greatest corner stores in the world, until 11p, the time most Torontonians are climbing into bed. Also? The beer here is better in general. 4. "Joie de vivre". People from Toronto don’t even know what this means, partly because it’s French, and partly because Montreal is legitimately one of the happiest places in the world, and Toronto isn't. And on that subject... 5. Fun isn’t illegal in Montreal. This is not hyperbole. Montrealers are often found frolicking joyously in parks whilst flying kites, having civilized outdoor dinner parties wherein alcohol is consumed, or joining a hippie drum circle on the side of the mountain. All of the above are literally illegal in Toronto. Toronto has a problem with fun (for those too lazy to follow that link, it's a Toronto newspaper describing how the city's denizens have to go to Montreal to have anything resembling a good time). 6. All the best parties happen in Montreal. People from around the world come to Montreal for the Jazz Fest, Osheaga, Just For Laughs, Igloofest, etc., or to just take in Montreal’s famously awesome nightlife scene. 7. Montreal has a mountain Sure it ain’t no Mt. Everest, but at least our mountain isn’t made of garbage (Chinguacousy Hill, I’m looking at you), and it means we have way better snow sports. 8. The cost of living will cost you almost nothing. Montrealers live in beautiful, penthouse-sized apartments with large balconies, and it costs them what a Torontonian pays for their monthly subway pass. And talking of the subway... 9. Montreal’s award-winning metro system actually makes sense. Who in the hell designed Toronto’s subway system? The impractical waste of money that is called the TTC basically amounts to a straight line running through a narrow “U” shape. And a monthly pass costs about twice as much as one in Montreal. 10. Montreal isn’t a sprawling suburban wasteland. The Greater Toronto Area is where Torontonians who have given up on life go move into cookie-cutter houses and burden themselves with the worst commute in North America.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/18/business/global/hip-cities-that-think-about-how-they-work.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2&smid=fb-share The story of young people, full of ambition, energy, skill and talent, moving to enticing cities that call to them like a siren’s song is as old as modern civilization. And in a world where national borders are easier to traverse, where more countries are joining the prosperous global middle class and where the cost of a one-way plane ticket is more affordable, young professionals probably have more cities to choose from than ever before. This survey is not based solely on quality of life, number of trees or the cost of a month’s rent. Instead, we examine some cities that aim to be both smart and well managed, yet have an undeniably hip vibe. Our pick of cities that are, in a phrase, both great and good: Auckland With its beaches, inlets and lush coastal climate, the Kiwi metropolis has always had great natural beauty going for it (and, now, for the first time in 24 years, it is the home to the World Cup Rugby Champions). But we digress. Currently counting 1.5 million residents , the government is projecting the city to hit the two million-mark in just 30 years. The city has recently voted to create a new central core that mixes sustainable housing and mixed-use development. The public transportation system, which includes subways, trams, busses and ferries, is constantly being expanded. Measures to increase the density of the urban landscape, meant to ultimately prevent encroachment on surrounding lands, as well as planting “green carpets” along urban roads demonstrate a keen eye toward creating a greener future. Plus, the city is expanding its free Wi-Fi coverage, according to a city official. Auckland is doing its best to “up their game with urban design,” said Angela Jones, a spokesperson for the city, turning a beautiful but provincial capital into a smart city. Berlin This culture capital combines low rents, a white-hot arts scene, good public transportation and myriad creative types — from media to design to technology — from all over the world. Known as Europe’s largest construction zone for at least 10 of the past 20 years, 4.4-million-strong Berlin has probably changed more in that time than any other large European city. And while the restaurants have become more expensive, the clothes are now more stylish and the D.J.’s have added more attitude, there is still plenty of real city left to be discovered by the thousands of artists and young professionals who move here every year to make this the pulsing center of Germany, the powerhouse of Europe. Besides radical renovations to the government center, main train station and the old Potsdamer Platz, the city recently turned a historic airport in its heart into a vast urban park. A short-term bike-rental system is in place and the old subway system, reunited after the fall of the wall, like the city itself, is as efficient as ever. Besides artists and bohemians looking for the vibe, the city — home to several prestigious universities, research institutes and many a company headquarter — is brimming with smart scientists and savvy businessmen. Barcelona Anyone who has walked down Las Ramblas on a summer evening or has stared at the Sagrada Familia for long enough understands why this city attracts planeloads of tourists. Music, good food, great weather and strong technology and service sectors compete to make this city of 1.6 million a home for all those who want to stay beyond summer break. If all the traditional charms of Barcelona were not enough, an active city government is trying to keep this city smart, too. Under its auspices, photovoltaic solar cells have been installed on many public and private rooftops. Charging stations for electrical cars and scooters have recently been set up around the city, in preparation for the day when residents will be tooling around in their electric vehicles. A biomass processing plant is being built that will use the detritus from city parks to generate heat and electricity, and free Wi-Fi is available at hotspots around the city. Cape Town Wedged between sea and mountain, Cape Town’s natural setting is stunning. Nor does the city — with its colorful neighborhoods, historic sites, and easy charm — disappoint. And while its one of Africa’s top tourist destinations, it also attracts many new residents from around the globe. The local government is trying to lead the growing city of 3.5 million with a more inclusive government and development structure, to overcome the gross inequities of South Africa’s past. Four major universities and many research institutes make Cape Town one of the continent’s bustling research centers. Named the 2014 World Design Capital last month, the city government is encouraging a cluster of design and creative firms in a neighborhood called the Fringe. The 2010 World Cup of soccer was a boon for infrastructure, especially public transportation. A new bus system, with dedicated lanes, has been rolled out in recent years to keep the many suburbs connected and alleviate crushing traffic. Under a program called Smart Cape, libraries and civic centers have computer terminals with free Internet access. Poverty and crime are still issues in Cape Town, but overall quality of life indicators rank the city as one of the best in Africa. Copenhagen Progressive, cozy and very beautiful, the young and the elegant flock to this northern light. Rents might not be as low as in other hip cities, but the social infrastructure in this metropolitan area of 1.9 million cannot be beat. Offering a prosperous blend of art, culture and scene, this highly tolerant city is attracting young professionals lucky enough to work in the center of Danish industry and commerce. A mix of stately old European buildings and modern, green-oriented architecture speaks of a city that treasures the old but loves experimenting with the new. Despite its cool Scandinavian climate, the Danish capital might just be the most bicycle-friendly city in the world. Bike superhighways crisscross the city, and statistics show that more than a third of the city’s inhabitants commute to work or school on their trusty two-wheelers. A metro system was inaugurated in the last decade for those who choose to go without. With sunlight-flooded underground stations and clean, driverless subway cars, the system looks more like a people-mover at an international airport than an urban transport system. Having committed itself to reducing carbon levels by 20 percent before 2015, some of the city’s power is generated by wind. The city has been so successful in cleaning up its once-industrial harbor that it has been able to open three public baths in a harbor waterway. Curitiba, Brazil One of the smartest cities in Latin America, Brazil’s wealthy regional capital attracts many new inhabitants with jobs in service and production sectors, and with the promise a functioning city. The 1.7 million residents have access to a bus-based rapid transport system so good that more than 700,000 commuters use it daily. Buses run on designated lanes that, because of a unique and modern urban design, have right-of-way and preferred access to the city center. A beautiful botanical garden and other city parks, along with other strong environmental measures, keep the air largely clear of pollution, despite Curitiba’s land-locked location. The city strives to be sustainable in other ways, too. According to reports, it recently invested $106 million, or 5 percent, of its budget into its department of environment. The city government makes itself integral in the lives of Curitibans, not just seeking comment and feedback on policies, but also organizing a host of events. “Bike Night” is the latest craze in the active city. Each Tuesday, residents take to their bikes and peddle through the night, accompanied by municipal staff members. Montreal With its hearty French and North American mix, this city of 3.6 million has a real soul thanks to low living costs and long winter evenings. And it is no slouch when it comes to good food, hip culture, well-appointed museums and efficient transportation. With four major universities and plenty of bars, the nightlife in this bilingual city has a well-deserved reputation. Because the winters tend to be long and cold, the city possesses an extensive underground network connecting several downtown malls and a subterranean arts quarter. When spring finally does arrive, and snow is cleared from the many bike paths, the city puts out its 3,000 short-term-rental bicycles, known as Bixi. City-sponsored community gardens are sprouting around town, giving urbanites a chance to flex their green thumb. Montreal is an incredibly active town where festivals celebrating everything from jazz to Formula One dominate the city’s calendar during the summer. Thanks to Mount Royal, a large central park and cemetery that serves as cross-country, snowshoe and ice-skating terrain in the winter and becomes a verdant picnic ground and gathering spot in the summer, Montrealers never have to leave city limits. Santiago A vibrant mix of Latin American culture and European sensibility, this Chilean city is modern, safe and smart. The rapidly growing city of 6.7 million — , which, perhaps surprisingly, was first subject to urban planning mandates in the mid-20th century — is still ahead of others in South America when it comes to urban governance. A law curtailing urban sprawl and protecting the few natural spaces close to the city is exemplary. Beautiful old cultural jewels like the library and fine art museum are dwarfed by serious commercial skyscrapers. The smell of local food, good and inexpensive, brings life even to the streets of its financial district. One of the most extensive public transport systems on the continent whisks more than 2.3 million commuters to and from work or school every day. Because of its high altitude, pollution is a problem — one that the national government is trying to curb with various green initiatives. Short-term bike rentals exist in one of the more active parts of town, and significant city funds have been used to construct bicycle lanes. For a city this modern, however, Santiago has few parks. But the ocean is just a short drive to west and the mountains to the east. Shanghai China’s commercial heart has grown tremendously in the past couple of decades. Attracting young professionals with its jobs and opportunities rather than with museums and hip nightlife, this megacity of 23 million is surprisingly smart. Its top-down urban planning approach is efficient in a city made up of separate 16 districts and one county. City coffers are put to use building enormously ambitious infrastructure, like a deepwater port, tunnels, bridges and roadways. A good indicator for the rapid and deliberate growth of the city is the metro system. First opened in 1995, it is now the world’s longest subway network, according to city officials. Adding a futuristic aspect to the utilitarian system is a Maglev (magnetic levitation) line that connects the airport to the city, and on which the train travels at speeds of up to 431 kilometers, or 268 miles, per hour. But Shanghai’s urban development is also green. The city claims that it put the equivalent of $8 billion into environmental improvement and cleanup, which include sewage treatment systems but also an impressive number of city parks. In addition, Shanghai has made its city government more accessible by running a Web site were residents can find municipal information, and read a blog entitled “mayor’s window.” Vilnius, Lithuania One of the greenest of the former Eastern bloc capitals, Vilnius has a forward-thinking city government. In a recent Internet video that spread virally, the mayor, Arturas Zuokas, is seen crushing a Mercedes parked on a bike path with a tank. Beyond the obvious political theater of the stunt, the city, whose metropolitan area population is 850,000 takes providing good public transportation seriously. A recent study suggested that some 70 percent of the capital’s citizens either walk, bike or take the bus. Vilnius, a verdant city that despite some communist architectural clunkers is charmingly medieval and surprisingly well maintained, boasts an old town that is a Unesco world heritage site. After the fall of the old regime, the city took great pains to retool its waste disposal systems, building a modern landfill in 2005. The capital attracts young professionals, and not just from Eastern Europe, who see in Vilnius a rising star in business and appreciate all that the extensive cultural scene in the little capital has to offer.

Montreal's metro featured for it's architecture amongst stations from the networks of Washington, Paris, Frankfurt, and Stockholm to name a few: Unreal Underground: the World’s 10 Coolest Subway Systems In urban life, the subway is synonymous with the spirit of the city. It frees the city dweller from the automobile, it moves from point to point with speed while capturing the curiosity of its passenger. From Moscow to Montreal, Paris to Pyongyang, these 10 transit systems house truly stunning subway stations across all aspects of design. So grab your transit card and head underground– get ready to explore the 10 coolest subway systems in the modern world. ... Montreal Metropolitain Another great French-speaking city is home to another great subway, the Montreal Metropolitan subway system. The Montreal Metro was born in 1966, in time for the world expo held the following year in this city. This was a vibrant time in Montreal, and the subway stations that dot this system reflect that vibrancy. Like the stations of the Moscow Metro and the Taipei Metro, this subway system is host to a collection of art galleries throughout its network. Public art ranging from fine to performance is welcomed here, far below the city it services. And with 1,100,000 riders a day, that makes it one of the most popular art galleries in the world. From the design of its subway stations to the culture it embraces, the Montreal Metro is high on our list for the world’s most beautiful subway systems. ... http://www.thecoolist.com/the-worlds-10-coolest-subway-stations/

Peu importe où l'on se trouve sur la planète, je pense qu'on pourra toujours se consoler en regardant Détroit..... http://ca.news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/mother-six-trades-98k-house-used-minivan-152424777.html

J'ai failli tomber de ma chaise...venant du Globe I’m in love. Montreal has always reminded me of an unapproachable crush – it’s arty and sophisticated, and, to me, seems to possess an impenetrable coolness. In recent years, the rise of its indie music scene, trendsetting street fashion and unapologetically rustic comfort cuisine has only added to its mystique. On previous visits, I had felt every bit the awkward outsider. I’d wander the streets of Old Montreal or take in the view from atop Mount Royal, keenly aware that those who lived here were going to the better bars, eating fabulous food and participating in all sorts of amazing activities that I couldn’t even begin to imagine. This time, I wanted to crack that barrier. So I joined a tour. Guided tours are typically the antithesis of cool. But Shea Mayer’s Fitz & Follwell Co. is a different kind of tour company. As the Montreal resident explains, his cycling tours aren’t just meant to take visitors to the most popular tourist attractions. Rather, they’re based on his idea of a perfect day in the city. “That’s how I designed the routes: What’s my favourite bagel place? Where do I think the best coffee is? What do I do when I go down to the market?” he says. His Bike & Yoga tour, for example, takes visitors through the bohemian neighbourhood of Le Plateau, with a break along the way for smoothies at his favourite juice bar and stops for yoga sessions in three of the area’s tranquil parks. His all-day Mountainside to Riverbank package offers a more challenging ride for seasoned cyclists up to the top of Mount Royal, then down along the St. Lawrence River to Saint-Helen’s and Notre Dame Islands. I chose to tag along on his ’Hoods and Hidden Gems tour, lured by the promise I would be immersed “in the local hangouts of the city’s hippest habitants.” Upon my arrival at his Mount-Royal West Avenue shop, Mr. Mayer sets me up with a sleek black city cruiser, which he has christened “Jeanne,” after the pioneering Montreal nurse Jeanne Mance. (All of the bikes at his shop are similarly named after the city’s historic figures, like “Molson” after the beer tycoon, and “Lili” after the legendary burlesque dancer Lili St Cyr.) Montreal is renowned for being a bike-friendly city, with designated cycling lanes throughout the side streets and thoroughfares. It’s also the launching pad for the now-famous Bixi, a bike-sharing system that allows users to rent a vehicle from one of the many stations scattered around town and deposit it at another station when they’re finished riding. The system has proved so popular that cities around the world, from Toronto to Melbourne, have adopted it. But because Bixi bikes are meant for only short commutes, they’re not ideal for longer, leisurely trips. My Jeanne offers a smoother ride. Mr. Mayer leads our small group through the tony francophone enclave of Outremont and Le Plateau. Along our route, he stops to point out quirky details, not always found in guide books, such as where larpers (live action role players) gather to enact their fantastical battles or where resident bohemians hold their “tam tams,” or drum sessions. We stop to pick up freshly baked bagels at the Montreal institution St. Viateur Bagel, and tote them across the street to Mr. Mayer’s neighbourhood hangout, Café Olympico, where he orders us the café’s specialty espresso coffees. La suite ici: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/travel/destinations/travel-canada/how-i-fell-in-love-with-montreal/article2192143/

Anyone who's sat at a red light for minutes on end in the middle of the night when there's no cross traffic can cheer on science for proving what we already knew: lights that adapt to the flow of traffic, instead of dictating the flow of traffic, can improve the flow of traffic. A team of researchers discovered that if you let lights locally decide how to time their signals based on how much traffic they're dealing with, and then communicate that with nearby lights, you get closer to the "green wave" of lights that keeps thing moving smoothly. The issue with the centralized, top-down system of control is that it is geared to address an average traffic situation that rarely occurs as planned. The variations in rush hour traffic mean that lights are trying to apply one solution to a vast number of situations. In their trial in Dresden, Germany the team found that traffic congestion was eased by nine percent, pedestrian congestion by 36 percent, and bus and tram traffic by 56 percent. With rush hours spreading in time and distance, the proof and implementation of this can't come soon enough. Blog: http://www.autoblog.com/2010/09/23/study-traffic-lights-should-respond-to-cars-not-other-way-arou/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+weblogsinc/autoblog+(Autoblog) To tame traffic, go with the flow Lights should respond to cars, a study concludes, not the other way around By Rachel Ehrenberg Web edition : Friday, September 17th, 2010 Traffic lights that act locally can improve traffic globally, new research suggests. By minimizing congestion, the approach could save money, reduce emissions and perhaps even quash the road rage of frustrated drivers. The new approach makes traffic lights go with the flow, rather than enslaving drivers to the tyranny of timed signals. By measuring vehicle inflow and outflow through each intersection as it occurs and coordinating lights with only their nearest neighbors, a systemwide smoothness emerges, scientists report in a September Santa Fe Institute working paper. “It’s very interesting — the approach is adaptive and the system can react,” says mechanical engineer Gábor Orosz of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. “That’s how it should be — that’s how we can get the most out of our current system.” An ultimate goal in traffic regulation is “the green wave,” the bam, bam, bam of greens that allows platoons of vehicles to move smoothly through intersection after intersection. When that happens, no drivers have to wait very long and sections of road don’t become so filled with cars that there’s no room for entering vehicles when the light does go green. To achieve this rare bliss, traffic lights usually are controlled from the top down, operating on an “optimal” cycle that maximizes the flow of traffic expected for particular times of day, such as rush hour. But even for a typical time on a typical day, there’s so much variability in the number of cars at each light and the direction each car takes leaving an intersection that roads can fill up. Combine this condition with overzealous drivers, and intersections easily become gridlocked. Equally frustrating is the opposite extreme, where a driver sits at a red light for minutes even though there’s no car in sight to take advantage of the intersecting green. “It is actually not optimal control, because that average situation never occurs,” says complex-systems scientist Dirk Helbing of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, a coauthor of the new study. “Because of the large variability in the number of cars behind each red light, it means that although we have an optimal scheme, it’s optimal for a situation that does not occur.” Helbing and his colleague Stefan Lämmer from the Dresden University of Technology in Germany decided to scrap the top-down approach and start at the bottom. They noted that when crowds of people are trying to move through a narrow space, such as through a door connecting two hallways, there’s a natural oscillation: A mass of people from one side will move through the door while the other people wait, then suddenly the flow switches direction. “It looks like maybe there’s a traffic light, but there’s not. It’s actually the buildup of pressure on the side where people have to wait that eventually turns the flow direction,” says Helbing. “We thought we could maybe apply the same principle to intersections, that is, the traffic flow controls the traffic light rather than the other way around.” Their arrangement puts two sensors at each intersection: One measures incoming flow and one measures outgoing flow. Lights are coordinated with every neighboring light, such that one light alerts the next, “Hey, heavy load coming through.” That short-term anticipation gives lights at the next intersection enough time to prepare for the incoming platoon of vehicles, says Helbing. The whole point is to avoid stopping an incoming platoon. “It works surprisingly well,” he says. Gaps between platoons are opportunities to serve flows in other directions, and this local coordination naturally spreads throughout the system. “It’s a paradoxical effect that occurs in complex systems,” says Helbing. “Surprisingly, delay processes can improve the system altogether. It is a slower-is-faster effect. You can increase the throughput — speed up the whole system — if you delay single processes within the system at the right time, for the right amount of time.” The researchers ran a simulation of their approach in the city center of Dresden. The area has 13 traffic light–controlled intersections, 68 pedestrian crossings, a train station that serves more than 13,000 passengers on an average day and seven bus and tram lines that cross the network every 10 minutes in opposite directions. The flexible self-control approach reduced time stuck waiting in traffic by 56 percent for trams and buses, 9 percent for cars and trucks, and 36 percent for pedestrians crossing intersections. Dresden is now close to implementing the new system, says Helbing, and Zurich is also considering the approach. Traffic jams aren’t just infuriating, they cost time and money, says Orosz. Estimates suggest that in one year, the U.S. driving population spends a cumulative 500,000 years in traffic at a cost of about $100 billion. And the roads are just going to get more congested. The optimal way of dealing with such congestion is to take an approach like Helbing’s and combine it with technologies that deal with driver behavior, Orosz says. Car sensors that detect the distance between your bumper and the car in front of you can prevent a sweep of brake-slamming that can tie up traffic, for example. “In general these algorithms improve traffic, but maybe not as much as they do on paper because we are still human,” he says. “It is still humans driving the cars.” http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/63481/title/To_tame_traffic,_go_with_the_flow

I'm not sure if this is "urban tech", in that it probably isn't something that's applicable in a variety of scenarios, nor if it has already been talked about on this site, but regardless, i still think it's worth mentioning. -------------------- Solar City Tower for Rio Olympics is a Giant Energy Generating Waterfall by Bridgette Meinhold, 03/19/10 This renewable energy generating tower located on the coast of Rio is one of the first buildings we’ve seen designed for the 2016 Rio Olympics, and boy, is it crazy! (In case you didn’t notice, it’s also a waterfall.) The Solar City Tower is designed by Zurich-based RAFAA Architecture & Design, and features a large solar system to generate power during the day and a pumped water storage system to generate power at night. RAFAA’s goal is that a symbolic tower such as this can serve as a starting point for a global green movement and help make the 2016 Olympic Games more sustainable. The self-sustaining tower for the 2016 Olympic Games is designed to create renewable energy for use in the Olympic Village as well as the city of Rio. A large solar power plant generates energy during the day. Any excess power not used during the day is utilized to pump seawater into a storage tank within the tower. At night, the water is released to power turbines, which will provide nighttime power for the city. On special occasions water is pumped out to create a waterfall over the edges of the building, which RAFAA says will be, “a symbol for the forces of nature.” Info on the size of the solar and pumped water storage system is not available yet. Access to the eco tower is gained through an urban plaza and amphitheater 60 meters above sea level, which can be used for social gatherings. On the ocean side of the 105 meter tower (behind the waterfall) is a cafeteria and shop. An elevator takes visitors up to the top floor where an observation deck offers 360 views of the ocean and city. At level 90.5, a bungee platform is available for adventurous visitors. Link to article: http://www.inhabitat.com/2010/03/19/solar-city-tower-for-rio-olympics-giant-energy-generating-waterfall/ -------------------- if for nothing else, the renderings look kinda cool. wonder if you could have such a waterfall flowing off our own olympic tower ? or would that risk to bring in even more toilet jokes ? .. ..

(Courtesy of KDVR Fox 31) The previous topic was written by a woman from here but was published from the Globe and Mail. I found that out when I did some research on the writer.

Quebec vows to fight national securities plan RHEAL SEGUIN Globe and Mail Update September 18, 2008 at 4:11 PM EDT For the second consecutive day, the Quebec government waded into the federal election campaign against Conservative policies, lashing-out today at the Harper government's proposal to create a national securities commission. Quebec Finance Minister Monique Jérôme-Forget warned that in the event of a majority Conservative government in Ottawa bent on creating a national securities commission, all provinces and territories except Ontario will fight the decision right-up to the Supreme Court of Canada. The confrontation, she predicted, would disrupt markets and create havoc for investors. “The protection of investors is a provincial jurisdiction,” she said. “I suspect they (a Harper government) are going to come-up with legislation. They are going to implement such a securities commission. We are going to appeal. We're going to go as high as the Supreme Court. There's going to be disruption in the market.” The Minister added that Canada's financial leaders underestimate the impact if Ottawa moves to unilaterally impose changes without provincial consent. Ontario remained the only province to support the federal initiative. All the others propose to harmonize regulations through what they call a “passport” system, where companies can file a prospectus for approval in one province or territory and have it automatically accepted by all the others. There are currently 13 provincial and territorial securities commission. She predicts that a national securities commission will only create another layer of bureaucracy by adding a 14th commission, creating confusion for investors. “People won't know where to go. The market will want to know who's in charge. There will be a court challenge right up to the Supreme Court because the provinces argue is their jurisdiction,” Ms. Jérôme-Forget said. “Quebec isn't alone. You have British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, the Atlantic provinces. They are all on side.” Improvements to the current system are needed, she added, such as finding ways to accommodate restrictions imposed by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. In the past, that has created obstacles for prosecutors who want to use confidential information held by regulator bodies in pursuing criminal cases such as fraud. “We don't want to change the Charter but we have to find ways to share the information,” she said. Backed by two international studies, the Minister argued that Canada's current securities regulations are among the best in the world and that there was no need to change the system. The comments came at the conclusion of a federal-provincial meeting of ministers responsible for their respective securities commissions. Her charge against the Harper government's intrusion in a provincial jurisdiction comes on the heels of severe criticism by Quebec this week against other Conservative policies. On Wednesday, Cultural and Communications Minister Christine St-Pierre scoffed at federal Heritage Minister Josée Verner's suggestion that if Quebec wanted more funding for culture it should use its own money. “We've increased budgets (for culture) by 25 per cent. We're already doing our share,” Ms. St-Pierre said in referring to the $45-million in federal cutback in programs including those aimed at promoting Canadian and Quebec culture abroad. The cutbacks sparked widespread criticism from Quebec's cultural community including world renowned theatre artist Robert Lepage, who said the Harper government was discouraging home grown artists from seeking prominence abroad by locking them into a “cultural prison.” Ms. Jérôme-Forget also challenged the Conservative party's claim that it has fixed the fiscal imbalance between Ottawa and the provinces, especially after signing a multi-billion agreement for infrastructure projects. “Obviously for me it's not enough. Post-education (money) for all provinces has not been settled. ” Ms Jérôme-Forget said. “There was a great move done by Mr. Harper….but for post secondary education there is still room to manoeuvre.” Despite mounting tensions over a growing number of issues, the Quebec government stopped short of calling Mr. Harper's vision of open federalism a failure. “The objective of federalism isn't to say: ‘If I don't get everything, I'll slam the door.' You have to build alliances and on occasion force your position and try to influence others. It's normal to have differences,” she said.

(Courtesy of CBC News)

California Cities Face Bankruptcy Curbs By BOBBY WHITE MAY 28, 2009 As California seeks more funds from its cash-strapped cities and counties to close a $21 billion budget deficit, some state legislators are pushing a plan that could compound municipalities' pain by making it tougher for them to file for bankruptcy. The bill would require a California municipality seeking Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection to first obtain approval from a state commission. That contrasts with the state's current bankruptcy process, which allows municipalities to speedily declare bankruptcy without any state oversight so that they can quickly restructure their finances. The bill, introduced in January, has passed one committee vote and could reach a final vote by mid-July. The bill was sparked by the bankruptcy filing last year of Vallejo, Calif., just north of San Francisco. Vallejo's city leaders partly blamed work contracts with police and firefighters for pushing the city into bankruptcy, and won permission from a bankruptcy court in March to scrap its contract with the firefighters' union. That spurred the California Professional Firefighters to push for statewide legislation to curtail bankruptcy, said Carroll Willis, the group's communications director. "What we don't want is for cities to use bankruptcy as a negotiating tactic rather than a legit response to fiscal issues," he said, adding that he worries cities may work in concert to rid themselves of union contracts by declaring bankruptcy. If the bill passes, it could hurt cities and counties by lengthening the time before they can declare bankruptcy. That creates a legal limbo during which a municipality is more vulnerable to creditors. The proposed state bankruptcy commission would be staffed by four state legislators, which some critics worry could politicize the bankruptcy process. "This bill is impractical," said John Moorlach, a supervisor in Orange County, Calif., which filed for bankruptcy in 1994. "In many instances, haste is important. If you can't meet payroll but have to delay seeking protection, what do you do?" California towns and counties face a catalog of troubles. Earlier this month, voters rejected five budget measures, sending the state deficit to $21 billion. To overcome the gap, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed borrowing $2 billion from municipalities, using a 2004 state law that lets California demand loans of 8% of property-tax revenue from cities, counties and special districts. But that proposal lands as California municipalities are already facing steep declines in tax revenue because of the recession. Dozens are staring at huge deficits, including Pacific Grove and Stockton, which have publicly said they are exploring bankruptcy. Assemblyman Tony Mendoza, a Democrat who introduced the bankruptcy bill, said the initiative is needed to protect the credit rating of California and its ability to borrow and sell bonds. Mr. Mendoza added that he wants to avoid bankruptcy's repercussions on surrounding communities by offering a system that examines all of a municipality's options before filing for bankruptcy. "Municipalities should have a checks and balance system in place based on the fact that all economies are interconnected," he said. Dwight Stenbakken, deputy executive director for the California League of Cities, a nonprofit representing more than 400 cities, said the group is lobbying against the bill because "there's nothing a state commission can bring to the process to make this better." Write to Bobby White at bobby.white@wsj.com

Les éleveurs de bétail touchent des prix dignes des années 40 pendant que les abattoirs dominent le marché et empochent les profits Pour en lire plus...

Ottawa boosts mortgage buyout by $50B Eoin Callan, Canwest News Service Published: Wednesday, November 12 TORONTO - After a sustained lobbying campaign by Bay Street executives that culminated in a breakfast meeting with senior government officials in Toronto Wednesday, Ottawa agreed to the most pressing demands of Canadian banks squeezed by the credit crisis. "We had asked for four things and we got all four," Don Drummond, a senior vice-president at TD Bank Financial Group, said after Ottawa unveiled co-ordinated measures to buy up to $75-billion worth of mortgages, facilitate access to capital markets, provide extra liquidity and loosen reserve requirements. Jim Flaherty, the Finance Minister, said the moves meant Canada was making good on a pledge he made during talks with his international counterparts to collectively bolster the banking system ahead of a summit on the financial crisis this weekend in Washington. The actions were a sign of the "commitment" of Ottawa to ensure the country's financial system remained strong, said Gerry McCaughey, chief executive of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, which, along with TD, is thought to be among the main beneficiaries of new looser rules on minimum capital requirements. But executives who participated in the process cautioned state interventions to ease the credit crisis had proven to be more art than science, as the United States Wednesday ditched an earlier plan to buy up toxic assets at the same time Ottawa was expanding its own scheme to buy mortgage-backed securities by $50 billion. Executives said it remains to be seen if the interventions finalized at Wednesday morning's meeting would succeed in lowering the premium banks pay for medium-term financing, which is about five times higher than before the credit crisis. In a bid to ease funding pressures, executives persuaded the Conservatives to reduce to 1.1 per cent from 1.6 per cent the fee to be charged if banks invoke a special new government guarantee when they borrow money in international capital markets. Banks argued the previous higher rate had actually encouraged lenders to nudge up the premium they were charging banks at a time when other countries were offering more generous terms. The Finance Minister said he would resist new global initiatives that might put Canadian institutions at a competitive disadvantage during the weekend summit in Washington. But he said Ottawa's ability to influence the outcome was being undermined by the absence of a federal securities regulator in Canada, which is alone among major industrialized nations in not having national oversight of financial markets. "It is difficult for us to go abroad and say governments should get their house in order when there is a glaring omission at home," he said. Flaherty said a key objective of the moves announced Wednesday was addressing "concerns about the availability of credit" for business borrowers, adding that "the government stands ready to take whatever further actions are necessary to keep Canada's financial system strong among external risks." The Bank of Canada also said it would boost the availability of affordable credit in the banking system by $8 billion, using new rules that mean institutions can bid for cash using almost any form of collateral. Banks also welcomed a move late Tuesday by the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions to allow them to top up their capital reserves with securities that are a hybrid of debt and equity. The regulator clarified Wednesday that a related measure on treatment of money lent by banks to other financial institutions under the government guarantee of interbank lending "would have the effect" of "increasing their regulatory capital ratios, all else being equal", but would "not count as regulatory capital." Bank analysts said the interventions were positive for Canadian banks, but warned they would be squeezed further in the coming months as the global economic slowdown hit home and losses on bad loans mount. Ian de Verteuil, an analyst at BMO Capital Markets, cited as an example how falling demand for coal could by next year jeopardize more than $10 billion in bank loans made to finance the acquisition by Teck Cominco of Fording Canadian Coal Trust. Royal Bank of Canada, Bank of Montreal and CIBC each have about $1 billion in exposures, while TD and Scotiabank each have $400 million of exposures to the deal, which the companies expect will be viable. But bank executives remained bullish Wednesday, with TD chief executive Ed Clark saying he was still on the hunt for U.S. acquisitions.

Tiré du site de Nikon: Le reste sur Nikon: http://nikon.ca/en/product.aspx?m=17090 Ce qui est bien, c'est qu'elle hérite de la qualité d'image des D300/D3, dont leur incroyable gestion des ISO. J'ai aussi vu des exemples de vidéos avec la nouvelle fonction et c'est assez impressionnant. Le boîtier seul est 1119$ apparemment chez Lozeau.

Canon EOS 50D Tuesday, 26 August 2008 04:00 GMT Pre-Photokina2008: No surprises to hear that Canon has launched the much anticipated EOS 50D, an upgraded version of EOS 40D. On the surface it looks almost similar to its predecessor. However, there are quite a few significant improvements; fifteen megapixel CMOS sensor, faster DIGIC 4 processor, 3.0" VGA LCD monitor with Live View mode offering 3 AF modes, ISO sensitivity expandable to 12800 and an HDMI connection for high Quality Image viewing. It also includes a new Quick Control screen which shows the most commonly used settings and Creative Auto mode for automatic focus and exposure.We're expecting to be able to bring you a full in-hands preview later today. Features at a glance: 15.1 Megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor 6.3fps continuous shooting, max. burst 90 JPEGs with UDMA card DIGIC 4 processor ISO 100-3200, expandable to 12800 9-point wide area AF 3.0” Clear View VGA LCD with Live View mode & Face Detection Live AF Magnesium alloy body, with environmental protection EOS Integrated Cleaning System HDMI connection for high quality viewing and playback on a High Definition TV Full compatibility with Canon EF and EF-S lenses and EX-series Speedlites Jump to: Press Release Specifications Additional images Press Release: Outstanding speed and resolution for the discerning photographer: the EOS 50D Amstelveen, The Netherlands, 26 August 2008: Canon today strengthens its EOS range with the addition of a powerful new digital SLR: the EOS 50D. With a 15.1 Megapixel CMOS sensor, 6.3 frames per second shooting and Canon’s latest DIGIC 4 image processor, the EOS 50D delivers unparalleled speed and resolution at a price point that is unique in today’s market. Outstanding, clean images A newly designed 15.1 Megapixel CMOS sensor delivers ultra-detailed, low-noise images – ideal for large-scale reproduction or creative cropping. New manufacturing processes, plus redesigned photo diodes and microlenses, extend the light gathering capabilities of the sensor – allowing more pixels to be fitted on the CMOS sensor without compromising image quality. These changes ensure improved high ISO performance and low noise. High-speed, low light shooting is enabled by ISO levels of 3200, expandable to an ultra-sensitive 12800. The EOS Integrated Cleaning System – including the improved Self Cleaning Sensor Unit with a new fluorine coating – increases protection of image quality by helping to reduce, repel and remove unwanted dust from the sensor. Stubborn particles can be removed automatically in post-production with Dust Delete Data and Canon’s included Digital Photo Professional software. Rapid-fire performance Canon’s new DIGIC 4 processor is fast enough to allow up to 6.3fps continuous shooting, in bursts of up to 90 JPEGs with a UDMA card. Used with Canon’s wide area AF system, which locks onto subjects with 9 individual cross type sensors, stunning action sequences can be captured – even in low-light conditions. This makes the EOS 50D particularly suited to sports and wildlife shooting. DIGIC 4 works with the CMOS sensor to deliver 14-bit image processing, for smooth gradation and natural-looking colours – as well as ensuring ultra-fast startup times and near-instant image review after shooting. See everything A new 3.0” Clear View VGA LCD provides extra-large and wide angle-of-view image review, with plenty of clarity for accurate focus checks in playback. By switching to Live View mode – which displays a real-time image on the LCD – photographers can enjoy simplified shooting from awkward angles, or connect to a PC for remote shooting. Live Mode now offers three ways to auto focus: Quick AF, Live AF, and new Face Detection Live AF, which optimizes focus based on faces detected in the frame – for fast, spontaneous portraiture. Control and ease The famously intuitive EOS menu system includes a new Quick Control screen, for instant access to the most commonly-changed settings. A new Creative Auto mode offers automatic focus and exposure – while still allowing creative ‘tweaks’ to settings such as background sharpness. “For advanced amateurs and semi-professionals – or professionals looking for a powerful backup model – the EOS 50D stands alone,” said Mogens Jensen, Head of Canon Consumer Imaging, Europe. “No other camera in this price bracket offers a comparable combination of speed and image quality.” Technologies Explained CMOS Canon’s CMOS technology is one of the company’s key competitive advantages, with noise reduction circuitry at each pixel site delivering virtually noise-free images. In comparison with CCD technology, the lower power consumption characteristics of Canon’s CMOS sensors also contribute to longer battery life. Signal conversion in Canon’s CMOS sensors is handled by individual amplifiers at each pixel site. Unnecessary charge transfer operations are avoided, vastly speeding up the process of getting signal to the image processor. Noise generation is reduced, power consumption is limited and faster frame rate potential is increased. DIGIC Image data captured by the CMOS sensor is processed by Canon’s purpose-built DIGIC image processors before being written to the camera's memory card. DIGIC technology uses advanced image processing algorithms to ensure precise, natural colours, accurate white balance, and advanced noise reduction. Ultra-fast processing speeds result in highly responsive camera operation and near-instant start-up times. DIGIC chips work with a high speed DDR-SDRAM image buffer – reading, processing, compressing and writing image data fast enough to keep the buffer clear during long continuous shooting bursts. And because DIGIC integrates all key processing functions, power consumption is kept to a minimum. EOS Integrated Cleaning System The EOS Integrated Cleaning System combats sensor dust in three important ways: Reduce, Repel and Remove. Reduce - Internal camera mechanisms are designed to minimise dust generation. The redesigned body cap prevents dust generation through wear on the cap itself. Repel - Anti-static technologies, including a special fluorine coating, are applied to the low-pass filter covering the front of the sensor so as not to attract dust. Remove - A Self-Cleaning Sensor Unit uses hi-frequency vibrations to shake dust from the infrared filter for a period of approximately one second after each start up. For instant shooting after power up, this feature is disabled immediately the shutter release is depressed. Canon has also developed an internal Dust Delete Data system, which can map the position of visible dust on the sensor. This can then be deleted automatically after the shoot with the latest Digital Photo Professional software. Picture Style Picture Style pre-sets simplify in-camera control over image qualities. Picture Style pre-sets can be likened to different film types – each one offering a different colour response. Within each selectable pre-set, photographers have control over sharpness, contrast, colour tone and saturation. The camera’s factory default configuration is set to deliver immediately-usable JPEG images without need for additional menu settings. Picture Style presets applied to a RAW image can be revised with Canon’s Digital Photo Professional software. The six pre-sets are: Standard – for crisp, vivid images that don’t require post-processing Portrait – optimises colour tone and saturation and weakens sharpening to achieve attractive skin tones Landscape – for punchier greens and blues with stronger sharpening to give a crisp edge to mountain, tree and building outlines Neutral – ideal for post-processing Faithful – adjusts colour to match the subject colour when shot under a colour temperature of 5200K Monochrome – for black and white shooting with a range of filter effects (yellow, orange, red and green) and toning effects (sepia, blue, purple and green). Software Digital Photo Professional Software Digital Photo Professional software provides high speed, high quality processing of lossless RAW images. Processing with Digital Photo Professional allows real-time display and immediate application of image adjustments, giving control over RAW image variables such as white balance, dynamic range, exposure compensation, noise reduction and colour tone – plus the ability to view Auto Focus points on an image. The Lens Aberration correction tool allows precise correction of different types of distortion caused by certain cameras. Images can be recorded in camera with sRGB or Adobe RGB colour space. Digital Photo Professional supports sRGB, Adobe RGB, ColorMatch RGB, Apple RGB and Wide Gamut RGB colour spaces. ICC (International Colour Consortium) profiles can be attached to TIFF or JPEG images when converted from RAW. This allows faithful reproduction of colours in software applications that support ICC profiles, such as Adobe Photoshop. For improved efficiency, a set of image adjustments can be saved as a recipe and applied. EOS Utility The latest version of EOS Utility provides essential support for Live View remote shooting, camera configuration and image transfers. Tightly integrated with Digital Photo Professional, EOS Utility can be configured to monitor ‘hot’ folders, automatically renaming and moving incoming images to a structured file system. Users can also tag their images with EXIF data, including copyright information. Picture Style Editor Picture Style Editor allows users to create individual Picture Styles that fit with their personal requirements. Each Picture Style contains detailed information on how specific colours should be represented within an image. Once new Picture Styles have been created, they can be uploaded directly into the camera and applied to JPEG or RAW images. When working with RAW files in DPP, both personal Picture Styles and the 6 predetermined Picture Styles can all be adjusted. Additional images

Quebec already has power to be an international player: Charest KEVIN DOUGHERTY, The Gazette Published: 9 hours ago Canadian federalism already allows Quebec to negotiate international agreements on its own, Premier Jean Charest said yesterday, commenting on a federal minister's declaration that Ottawa would give provinces more power to act on the international stage. Charest said Quebec needs to play an active international role to thrive in the global economy. "I see it as an occasion for the emancipation of Quebec," he said of the province's international relations. Charest called Transport Minister Lawrence Cannon's declaration, on the eve of a federal Conservative caucus meeting in Quebec this week, "a positive signal." But as things stand, Charest added, Quebec has more powers to make international agreements on its own than France has as a member of the European Union. Quebec's position is that "what is in Quebec's jurisdiction at home is in Quebec's jurisdiction everywhere," he said. The Canadian constitution gives Quebec jurisdiction over education, health, language and culture. The proposed agreement between France and Quebec on mutual recognition of professional qualifications is within Quebec's powers. "We have the powers to do that," he said. "In fact, when I proposed the project to President Sarkozy, I think it was about a year ago when I did it, I didn't call Ottawa to ask them permission to do it. "I proposed it. We did it and we started negotiating." Some consider Cannon's statement a betrayal of a more centralized vision of Canadian federalism. "There will always be these people in English Canada and elsewhere, even in Quebec, who fear the future of the federation if we ever question their way of exercising federalism," Charest said. "The Canadian federal system is a very decentralized system, by choice," he said. "It is not an accident of history that we have a decentralized federal system. It is one of the conditions that permitted the creation of the country."

Montreal projects get $17M The Gazette Published: Monday, June 16 International Science and Technology Partnerships Canada Inc. today announced $17 million in research and development funding to support three Montreal-based projects involving Canadian and Indian companies. Beneficiaries include CAE Inc., Pratt & Whitney Canada Corp. and McGill University, according to an announcement today by Foreign Affairs Ministers David Emerson. The three projects include the application of biofuels for aviation, the design and development of a new generation of regional transport aircraft and an improved system for storing dangerous materials in aboveground tanks. "Our government understands the importance of establishing international research partners and the critical role science and technology plays in the new economy," said Emerson. "These joint projects will enhance the collaboration between our scientists and commercialize their discoveries." http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/business/story.html?id=d92f9f3c-9ed2-48f3-a340-ded06146a499

Quebec opposes Harper proposals to alter Senate BILL CURRY From Thursday's Globe and Mail June 5, 2008 at 5:12 AM EDT OTTAWA — Quebec is threatening to haul Ottawa before the Supreme Court of Canada over what it believes are unconstitutional Senate reform measures proposed by the Harper government. Raising the ghost of the failed Meech Lake accord, Quebec Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Benoît Pelletier said the Senate reform proposed by Brian Mulroney in 1987 was preferable to Stephen Harper's two Senate reform bills, which require provincial residents to elect candidates from which Ottawa would pick. The Meech agreement gave provincial governments the power to fill Senate vacancies as an interim measure toward larger reform. Appearing before a House of Commons committee studying the proposed changes, Mr. Pelletier said the Meech model would be more in line with the Senate's original mandate to represent provincial interests. All three parties in Quebec's National Assembly oppose the two federal Senate reform bills and want them scrapped immediately, he said. Failing that, Mr. Pelletier said Ottawa should at least clear up questions of the measures' constitutionality with a reference to the Supreme Court. As a last resort, Quebec will consider taking the issue before Canada's highest court. "It's an option we have to look at," he said, pointing out that Quebec would not have joined Confederation had it not been for the assurance of a strong Senate voice. "It's an institution that goes to the heart of the federal compromise of 1867," Mr. Pelletier told MPs. The government legislation, known as Bill C-20, spells out a system in which elections would be held in each province to produce a list of names for the federal government to choose from in appointing senators to fill vacancies. It is separate from a second Conservative bill, C-19, which seeks to replace the current system where senators are appointed with term limits of eight years. Quebec's presentation in Ottawa on Senate changes took place the same week the province slammed the Harper government over its policies on climate change. Quebec Premier Jean Charest and Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty announced they would be going it alone with a cap-and-trade system aimed at reducing greenhouse-gas emissions. The increasing polarization between Central Canada and the federal government is in contrast to recent developments in Western Canada. Premier Brad Wall's new conservative-minded Saskatchewan Party government recently said it hopes to introduce legislation this fall that would allow for provincial elections of Saskatchewan senators. The process would be similar to the one already in place in Alberta, which has already sent two elected senators to Ottawa. The NDP government in Manitoba is also moving in that direction, with plans to hold provincewide hearings to consult residents on how to elect senators. British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell has said he'd prefer to see the Senate abolished, but could support Senate elections provided Ottawa pays for them. The one elected Alberta senator who is still in the second chamber, Bert Brown, has been touring provincial and territorial capitals to get others onside. Mr. Pelletier later told reporters that even if the Conservative bills go nowhere, Quebec's concerns could materialize if many other provinces start holding their own Senate elections to produce names from which the Prime Minister would choose. "That would completely change the Senate and would confirm our point," he said. "This reform is so important that it should follow the formal rules of the Constitution." http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080605.wsenate05/BNStory/National/home

STRIKE BANS In Montreal, a civilizing effect INGRID PERITZ April 29, 2008 MONTREAL -- Once upon a time in Montreal, public-transit strikes seemed as common as Stanley Cup parades. They occurred almost annually, with devastating results. There was a month-long walkout during Expo 67; another in 1974 that dragged on for 44 days. In 1977, workers walked off the job for four days, then walked out again during Grey Cup festivities. Each time, Montrealers fumed. These days, strikes have become almost as rare as hockey playoff victories and when conflicts arise, the effects are diminished, thanks to Quebec's Essential Services law. Basic transit service is guaranteed in Montreal during strikes, a fact that brings a measure of civility to the city's turbulent labour relations. "The Montreal system, with predictable essential-services rules, has been a good system," said Allan Ponak, professor emeritus at the University of Calgary who has co-authored a book on the subject. "Predictable rules like you have in Montreal are better than ad hoc rules created in an urgent situation." The justification used by the Quebec government for declaring public transit an essential service in 1982 went like this: If everyone drove cars during a strike, traffic jams would threaten the safe passage of emergency vehicles. The law not only had a dissuasive effect on strikes - there have been only two in the past two decades - but it softened their impact when they did occur. Last May, for example, 2,200 maintenance workers went on strike to press for a new contract. The Essential Services Council ordered full bus and subway service during morning and afternoon peak hours, as well as late at night. "There's no question that public transit is an essential service just like hospitals," said Reynald Bourque, director of the School of Labour Relations at the University of Montreal. "The system is beneficial because it balances the rights of the striking workers with the rights of users." Unions have also come around to realizing they need public opinion on their side during conflicts - Quebec has floated the idea of restricting or abolishing the right to strike for public transit unions. So unions, too, have come to live with essential-services rules, a specialist says. "We really have succeeded in civilizing the right to strike in public transit," said Michel Grant a professor at the University of Quebec in Montreal. "It's a model, and if they'd had had it in Toronto there wouldn't have been a problem and they wouldn't have needed a special law." Maintenance employees and drivers in Montreal belong to separate unions. Montreal's bus and subway drivers, who belong to the Canadian Union of Public Employees, voted overwhelmingly in February for a new five-year contract. As for maintenance workers, their strike last May ended in only four days. They voted to return to work to dodge the threat of a government-imposed settlement, but remain without a contract. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080429.TTCMONTREAL29/TPStory/TPNational/Ontario/

Cette camera deviens une serieuse candidate pour etre ma prochaine caméra si Canon ne sorta pas la 5D v2. ------------------------------------------------------ The world’s fastest D-SLR – remastered EOS-1D Mark III: The new benchmark Canon today sets new standards for professional photography with the launch of the EOS-1D Mark III. Delivering 10 frames per second at 10.1 Megapixels for a maximum burst of 110 Large JPEG images (30 in RAW), the EOS-1D Mark III replaces the EOS-1D Mark II N as the world’s fastest digital SLR. Dual “DIGIC III” processors drive the camera’s high speed, high resolution performance, and bring 14-bit image processing to the EOS series for the first time. A ground-up redesign introduces a host of new features and advancements to Canon’s flagship EOS-1 series, including a 3.0” LCD with Live View mode, EOS Integrated Cleaning System, new auto focus system with 19 cross-type sensors, and 63-zone exposure metering. The camera’s APS-H size (28.1 x 18.7 mm) CMOS sensor enables a wider 100-3200 ISO range as standard, expandable to L:50 and H:6400. “The EOS-1D Mark III represents a complete reappraisal of everything Canon has learned over the past 20 years of EOS development,” said Tsunemasa Ohara, Senior General Manager, Camera Development Center, Canon Inc. “In building this camera, we started with a blank canvas. Every facet of the photographic process has been refined, every design decision re-evaluated to bring us to this point: a camera that combines familiar EOS ergonomics with a vastly enhanced specification. Our engineers are overjoyed with the result.” Key features 10.1 Megapixel APS-H CMOS sensor 10 fps continuous shooting for up to 110 frames Dual “DIGIC III” processors New auto focus system with 19 cross type sensors EOS Integrated Cleaning System ISO 3200 (expandable to H:6400) 3.0” LCD with Live View mode Wider, brighter viewfinder Picture Style1 The choice of professionals The EOS-1D line has enjoyed massive popularity among the world’s leading sports, reportage and wildlife photographers, with international wire agencies AFP, Getty and Reuters choosing Canon for their photographers. “The people at Canon are great to work with because they listen to photographers. It’s their attention to detail and the pace of innovation that makes EOS the system of choice,” explained Stephen Munday, Director of Operations – Editorial, Getty Images. Exceptional image quality Canon’s dual “DIGIC III” processors deliver unprecedented levels of speed, responsiveness and image quality. Ready to shoot within 0.2 seconds of power on, the EOS-1D Mark III can capture and process over 100 Megapixels of image data per second, rapidly clearing the image buffer to allow up to 110 frames in one burst. Images are processed at 14 bits for a total colour depth of up to 16,384 tones per pixel, compared to 4,096 tones from 12 bit images. The third generation CMOS sensor incorporates a new pixel design that works together with on-chip noise reduction circuitry to ensure high image quality at ISO 3200. The option to expand to H:6400 will benefit professionals working in news and sports locations where the use of flash is not permitted or desired. Greater precision, more control Canon has redesigned its auto focus system to include 19 cross-type sensors with sensitivity up to f/2.8, spread out across the AF area to better accommodate off-centre subjects. An additional 26 AF assist points are used to aid AF tracking for improved accuracy. Responding to professional photographer requests, a dedicated AF button on the back of the camera allows users to instantly switch auto focus on or off while keeping their eye on the viewfinder. The viewfinder is now brighter and offers a wider angle of view. The camera’s new 63-zone metering system gives photographers greater level of control over exposure. New LCD with Live View The bright 3.0” LCD monitor provides 230K pixels resolution for precise framing and reviewing of shots. New to EOS, Live View mode enables photographers to frame without having to look through the viewfinder – particularly useful for shooting from awkward positions. The menu system on the EOS-1D Mark III has been completely redesigned to take advantage of the LCD size – menus are easier to read and use. A choice of 57 custom functions gives photographers more options for customising camera settings to their daily working requirements. A new My Menu option allows photographers to store frequently used settings on a separate menu for faster access. Settings for new accessories such as the Speedlite 580EX II and Wireless File Transmitter WFT-E2 – also released today – can be controlled directly from the LCD. Total reliability The EOS-1D Mark III incorporates a range of practical enhancements for the working photographer. Shutter durability has been increased by 50% to 300,000 cycles. The body is protected by a magnesium alloy casing with dust and moisture resistant seals. The EOS Integrated Cleaning System provides further reliability by reducing sensor dust, minimising the need for manual cleaning on assignment. To avoid corruption of captured images, a warning appears on the LCD and an alarm sounds if the memory card door is opened while images are still being written. Interfaces include video out (for display in both NTSC and PAL formats) and USB 2.0. Compatibility and accessories Canon is marking today’s launch with the release of several additions to the professional EOS system: EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM – A fast, ultra wide-angle zoom lens delivering exceptional image quality throughout the aperture range. Speedlite 580EX II – An update of the Speedlite 580EX that offers weather resistance when attached to the EOS-1D Mark III. Wireless File Transmitter WFT-E2 – Smaller, lighter and more versatile than its predecessor, the WFT-E2 speeds up workflows by allowing photographers to transmit images wirelessly during the shoot. Original Data Security Kit OSK-E3 – Verifies the authenticity of images taken with the camera and supports image encryption for additional security. Software The EOS-1D Mark III is supplied with a comprehensive software suite to help the photographer’s workflow. This includes Digital Photo Professional (DPP), a powerful RAW converter that provides complete RAW image processing control. DPP integrates with cameras features such as the Dust Delete Data and Picture Style. The camera also comes with EOS Utility, ImageBrowser/Zoom Browser and Photostitch.

Highway/Freeway - 6-8 lanes (both ways) Roads/Blvd/Ave - 4 lanes (both ways) Would probably takes 25-50 years to fix everything on the island of Montreal. Also overhaul the metro system, like one person invisioned for 2100. If not that atleast a monorail system between the airport and the financial district. Thats all I can think of for the transportation bit It's true we need to expand our highways wider because even back in 50's/60's we had problems with congestion. Hopefully with doubling the lanes we might be able to cut down on congestion. Also have the city of Montreal, Quebec and Canadian government help pay for doubling the bus and metro cars to run 24/7 and split waiting times in 1/2.