Dear Colleagues,

in this newsletter you will find information for Seneca’s College AutoDesk Training courses, PEO programs and some of past technical examinations from APEGBC - The Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of B.C.

March2006Workshop.pdf

Seneca College is a registered Premier Autodesk® Training Centre (ATC), and as such is part of a worldwide network of accredited educational institutions officially recognized as centers of Autodesk Product Training. ATCs are selected by Autodesk after meeting stringent requirements established to ensure excellence in Autodesk Product Training.

For program information call Brian Adams at 416-491-5050, ext, 2399, or email brian.adams@senecac.on.ca

Subject Name	Outlines	Registration Links
AutoCAD for the Professional (AutoCAD 2006) - Level I	ATC910	Fall'05	Winter'06	Summer'05
AutoCAD for the Professional (AutoCAD 2006) - Level II	ATC920	Fall'05	Winter'06	Summer'05
AutoCAD for the Professional (AutoCAD 2006) - Level III	ATC940	Fall'05	Winter'06	Summer'05
AutoCAD Mechanical 2006	ATC917	Fall'05	n/a	n/a
AutoCAD LT 2006 Introductory Level	ATC918	Fall'05	Winter'06	n/a
3D Studio Max Introductory Level	ATC955	n/a	Winter'06	Summer'05
3D Studio Max Advanced Level *	ATC965	n/a	n/a	Summer'05
AutoCAD 2002-2006 Update	ATC966	Fall'05	Winter'06	n/a
Autodesk Inventor 10 Introductory Level	ATC967	Fall'05	Winter'06	Summer'05
Autodesk Inventor 10 Advanced Level	ATC968	Fall'05	Winter'06	Summer'05
Autodesk Land Desktop 2006	ATC969	Fall'05	Winter'06	n/a
Autodesk VIZ 2006 Introductory Level	ATC978	Fall'05	Winter'06	n/a
Autodesk VIZ 2006 Advanced Level	ATC979	Fall'05	Winter'06	n/a
AutoCAD 2006 3D Modeling and Rendering	ATC982	Fall'05	Winter'06	Summer'05
Autodesk Architectural Desktop 2006	ATC986	Fall'05	Winter'06	Summer'05
Autodesk Revit 8	ATC988	Fall'05	n/a	n/a

* Subject will be offered based on sufficient demand. For details please contact the program coordinator.

Our goal is your satisfaction. A standard evaluation of this ATC is conducted at the conclusion of each class. Your feedback is valuable and is reviewed by Seneca College and Autodesk.

In keeping with our continuing commitment to excellence in training we provide you with:

• Autodesk Certified Instructors (ACI)
• Individualized Hands-On Training
• Small Classes
• State-of-the-art Equipment
• Professional Courses that Adhere to Rigorous Curriculum Standards
• All Course Material Included in Tuition Fee
• The Most Current Software Release (topics may change as a result)
• A Professional Training Environment

Newnham Campus,

1750 Finch Avenue East,

Room A4087 and A4085.

Any comments & questions: brian.adams@senecac.on.ca

PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERS ONTARIO (PEO) PROGRAM

http://www.senecac.on.ca/parttime/Technology.pdf

Here you have the address, to find some of the past technical examinations from APEGBC - The Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of B.C.

http://www.apeg.bc.ca/reg/past-exams/past-nat-exams.htm

Last Updated Tue, 21 Feb 2006

CBC News

Willard Boyle, a Canadian scientist who helped invent a light-sensitive chip, accepted a prestigious engineering award in the U.S. on Tuesday.

Boyle and George Smith will share the $500,000 US award for the invention of the "Charge-Coupled Device (CCD), a light-sensitive component at the heart of digital cameras and other widely used imaging technologies," the U.S. National Academy of Engineering said.

Willard Boyle

Some of the best-known applications of the invention are in consumer electronics, such as digital cameras, video cameras, and scanners.

The Hubble Space Telescope, NASA's Mars rovers and surveillance satellite also use the device.

The device is more sensitive than film, and is also an essential part of medical-imaging devices used in diagnostic tests and surgery.

Boyle and Smith came up with the idea for the device while working at Bell Laboratories in 1969.

"It was after maybe an hour's work," Boyle recalled. "We went over to the blackboard and we had some sketching there. We went down to our models lab and made one."

The prize is well deserved, say Boyle's admirers.

"I don't know of many inventions that created whole new industries," said William Wulf of the National Academy of Engineering.

Boyle is now 81 and lives in Halifax. He doesn't own a digital camera, saying things have gotten too complicated.

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Doubts_Cast_Over_Viability_Of_US_Nuclear_Energy_Plans.html

By Philip Turner
Washington DC (UPI) Feb 13, 2006
A new initiative announced last week by the Department of Energy, seeks to accelerate the use of nuclear energy to help the United States reduce its dependence on foreign sources of oil.

As part of President Bush's Advanced Energy Initiatives, Deputy Energy Secretary Clay Sell announced the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership. He said the United States hopes to work with nations such as France, Russia and Britain, which already possess nuclear reprocessing technologies, to recycle spent fuel and to eliminate the proliferation concerns about old nuclear material.

A week after Bush's statement in his State of the Union that the United States is "addicted to oil," Sell said expanded nuclear energy would help end that addiction.

"To the extent we can replace diesel and fuel oil generation for electricity with nuclear power, that can significantly affect and reduce the growth in demand for oil worldwide," said Sell.

Experts outside the government, however, do not believe nuclear energy, oil and electricity are intertwined intricately enough to end the U.S. dependence on foreign oil -- especially in the short term.

"We don't use oil to make electricity," said Jerry Taylor, a senior fellow at the libertarian Cato Institute. "This plan would have no impact on energy independence whatsoever -- zero -- it is trivial."

Other experts note that the call for energy independence is some 30 years old and a hallmark of nearly every administration since then.

"Virtually every American president since Gerald Ford has called for energy independence," said Scott Denman, a consultant for Collaborations, a non-profit organization concerned with energy policy based in Barryville, Va. "This is a mislabeling of nuclear energy. Only 2 percent of imported oil is used for electricity."

The plan to expand the use of nuclear technology is not new. It was halted in the United States in 1970 because of proliferation concerns.

Sell said nuclear energy is part of the world's future, and the United States must take a leading role in working with other leading nuclear economies. Indeed, Britain and Germany are reconsidering nuclear plants and India, Asia's third-largest economy, is also looking toward nuclear energy.

"It is our goal to develop, in partnership with these other nations, technologies that will allow for recycling of spent fuel but not separate plutonium," said Sell. "We hope to develop an international regime that will allow for fuel leasing so that fuel can be leased to a country interested in building a reactor and taking fuel, but then the fuel can be taken back to the fuel cycle country."

DOE's plan for expanded nuclear energy will receive $250 million in its first year of funding. Sell said that will be expanded in years to come -- especially in the final three years of the Bush administration.

Sell said the United States would have to ensure technologies for storing and recycling spent nuclear fuel were 100 percent secure, which will be very costly down the road.

Benefits of the nuclear initiative are years away because technology is still lacking. Also, much will need to be done with foreign nations involved to work out deals and nonproliferation concerns. Kateri Callahan, president of the Alliance to Save Energy, said more needs to be done to aid short-term goals in energy efficiency.

"Money spent on new technology is good," she said, but added it needs to be coupled with things that can be done immediately to improve efficiency. "This program is not something that can be done overnight."

Callahan said nuclear energy could have a dramatic affect on hybrid car batteries if there were a major breakthrough in battery technology.

"To the extent that we could move forward with a hybrid vehicle, nuclear energy could help - it would be great," she said, but warned it is not economically possible to gamble on a battery breakthrough.

It is expected the world's energy demand will double by 2050 as emerging nations become more technologically advanced. Sell said the fact nuclear energy is a more environmentally friendly source than fossil fuels will become increasingly important in the years to come.

Ronald Bailey, a Science Correspondent for Reason Magazine, said, "nuclear energy is the way to go if you are worried about greenhouse gasses," but like others, he said there are also significant economic issues. "There is not really anything out there that can compete with gas right now - maybe in 20 years," he said.

Taylor of Cato said the nuclear initiative is unfeasible economically.

"Rhetoric is cheap but action is costly," he said, adding Bush's talk of energy independence would remove the United States from the world market.

Many nations, however, are prepared to work to expand nuclear energy. Sell said he met with leaders in London, Paris, Moscow, Beijing and Tokyo to discuss nuclear partnerships.

DOE Secretary Samuel Bodman said the nuclear initiative "brings the promise of virtually limitless energy to emerging economies around the globe."

Edward Lyman, a senior scientist in the Union of Concerned Scientists Global Security program, said the program is being labeled as too many things.

"They are making it a nonproliferation initiative, a nuclear waste disposal problem and a resource issue," said Lyman. "It can't be all of these things."

Source: United Press International

Related Links

http://em2-engineering-consultants.com

http://www.electricitybook.com

http://www.ans.org/store/index.cgi?i=690060&gclid=CKC72K_ipIMCFQE0PgodD1O1cg

http://www.chernobyl-international.org/2020.html

by Gabrielle Grenz
Washington DC (AFP) Feb 10, 2006

Bottled water consumption, which has more than doubled globally in the last six years, is a natural resource that is heavily taxing the world's ecosystem, according to a new US study.

"Even in areas where tap water is safe to drink, demand for bottled water is increasing, producing unnecessary garbage and consuming vast quantities of energy," according to Emily Arnold, author of the study published by the Earth Policy Institute, a Washington-based environmental group.

Arnold said although in the industrial world bottled water is often no healthier than tap water, it can end up costing 10,000 times more.

"At as much as 2.50 dollars per liter (10 dollars per gallon), bottled water costs more than gasoline," the study says.

It added that the United States was the largest consumer of bottled water, with Americans drinking 26 billion liters in 2004, or about one eight-ounce (25 cl) glass per person every day.

Mexico was the second largest consumer at 18 billion liters followed by China and Brazil at 12 billion liters each.

In terms of consumption per person, Italians came first at nearly 184 liters, or more than two glasses a day, followed by Mexico and the United Arab Emirates with 169 and 164 liters per person respectively.

Belgium and France follow close behind and Spain ranks sixth.

The study said that demand for bottled water soared in developing countries between 1999 and 2004 with consumption tripling in India and more than doubling in China during that period.

That has translated into massive costs in packaging the water, usually in plastic bottles made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which is derived from crude oil, and then transporting it by boat, train or on land.

"Making bottles to meet Americans' demand for bottled water requires more than 1.5 million barrels of oil annually, enough to fuel some 100,000 US cars for a year," according to the study. "Worldwide, some 2.7 million tons of plastic are used to bottle water each year."

Once the water is consumed, disposing the plastic bottles poses an environmental risk.

The study, citing the Container Recycling Institute, said that 86 percent of plastic water bottles in the United States end up as garbage and those buried can take up to 1,000 years to biodegrade.

In addition, some 40 percent of the PET bottles deposited for recycling in the United States in 2004 ended up being shipped to China.

The study warned that the rapid growth in the industry has also ironically led to water shortages in some areas, including India where bottling of Dasani water and other drinks by the Coca-Cola company has caused shortages in more than 50 villages.

It said that while consumers tend to link bottled water with healthy living, tap water can be just as healthy and is subject to more stringent regulations than bottled water in many regions, including Europe and the United States.

"In fact, roughly 40 percent of bottled water begins as tap water," the study says. "Often the only difference is added minerals that have no marked health benefits.

Source: Agence France-Presse

Related Links

http://www.hedwin.com/products_blowmolded.asp?refH=goog&t=hpbC

http://www.sweed.com

http://www.norlandintl.com

Since its inception in 1932, the annual convention of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada has been a gathering place for people and companies involved in the search and development of new mineral deposits. Today, the PDAC International Convention, Trade Show and Investors Exchange has become the most important event in the world of exploration, bringing together a wide-range of players involved in the field from all over the globe. The Trade Show and Investors Exchange - Mining Investment Show are dedicated solely to the mineral industry.

The trade Show is always been a place to meet a Colleagues, advertise yourself, look for new jobs and see the base of the moving stock market, make the next hit into your investments or just great experience to meet people from all over the world looking for gold, diamonds and oil.

Job listings can also be found at www.monster.ca and www.infomine.com

http://www.ospreycareers.com
http://www.pdac.ca/pdac/members/senior-corporate-members.html

 http://www.angloamerican.co.uk/
http://www.barrick.com/
http://www.bhpbilliton.com
http://www.cameco.com/
http://www.falconbridge.com/
http://www.goldcorp.com/
http://www.inco.com/
http://www.kinross.com/
http://www.teckcominco.com/
 

 http://www.aurresources.com/
http://www.iamgold.com
http://www.inmetmining.com/
http://www.ivanhoe-mines.com/
http://www.ivanhoe-mines.com/
http://www.northgateminerals.com/
 

http://www.aurizon.com/first.html
http://www.crystallex.com/
http://www.dundeeprecious.com/
http://www.fnxmining.com
http://www.imperialmetals.com
http://www.ivernia.com/
http://www.klgold.com
http://www.uranium1.com/
http://www.quadramining.com/
 

 http://www.glencairngold.com
http://www.firstnickel.com
http://www.xnord.com/
http://nevadapacificgold.com
http://www.standrewgoldfields.com/
 

By: Jane Werniuk

http://www.canadianminingjournal.com/issues/table_of_contents.asp?PC=&Rtype=&issue=12012005

Related Items

Companies

	Diavik Diamond Mines Inc. http://www.diavik.ca
	HRA Investments Ltd. http://www.hrausa.com
	Rio Tinto plc http://www.riotinto.com
	Tahera Diamond Corporation http://www.tahera.com
	Diamonds North Resources Ltd. http://www.diamondsnorthresources.com
	True North Gems http://www.truenorthgems.com

Photos In This Story.

Three-dimensional mapping software analyzes and maps the diamond crystal at HRA's factory in Vancouver.

This 20-carat octahedral diamond from the Diavik mine was cut by HRA, yielding an 8.00-carat H VS2 polished diamond worth about US$ 20,000.

The diamond industry encompasses far more than just finding the kimberlites and mining the stones. At the same time Canada is developing expertise in the exploration and mining of diamonds, it is also developing a downstream industry of cutters and polishers.

One of the most productive of these factories is found in Vancouver.

HRA Investment Ltd.'s facility is the most technologically advanced diamond cutting and polishing factory in North America today. And it manufactures only stones mined in Canada.

Built in 2001 as a private business, with no government subsidies, the factory in Vancouver has only 14 employees "but is manufacturing at a production strength of well over an 80-person factory because of the robotics," according to HRA's marketing director Itay Ariel.

The Vancouver facility cuts and polishes more than 2,500 carats a month or 30,000 carats of rough diamonds a year (worth more than Cdn$25 million), making it one of the largest factories of diamond product in Canada. As a core client of Rio Tinto plc, HRA sources its rough for the Vancouver factory exclusively from the Diavik mine, 300 km northeast of Yellowknife.

Automated cutting and polishing

The process is almost 95% robotic, using machinery made on a very exclusive basis in Antwerp, Belgium. Three-dimensional mapping software analyzes and maps the diamond crystal. The factory manager uses the 'map' to decide the ideal shape to cut the stone, at which point the 3D software identifies how to cut the stone. The rough stone is mounted on a bruting machine and ground to a round shape. It is dismounted and placed (by a human) onto an automated arm where it stays until the robotics have completed the polishing job, which, in the case of a round stone, will add 58 facets.

"What normally would take two days--for a diamond to be cut by hand by an experienced diamond cutter--the robotic arm can do in just under two hours from start to finish, including the bruting," says Ariel. It takes the same time whatever size the stone is.

The reduced labour results in cost savings, but there is a very substantial capital cost--well over US$1.5 million worth of robotic equipment--in the Vancouver factory. Even so, the return on investment is very acceptable, says Ariel.

So how does automation stack up against hand-cutting? "We manufacture from very, very high-end product to mid-range here in Vancouver," says Ariel. Using the diamond classification of four C's--colour, cut, clarity and carat--the quality of the cut ranges from 'very good' to 'fair made stone', depending of the quality of the rough. "The best cut in the world today is an ideal-cut hearts and arrows," says Ariel. "Very few manufacturers in the world can produce to that exact standard. We feel very privileged that we're the only manufacturer in Canada manufacturing Canadian ideal-cut hearts and arrows."

The factory produces a range of product under a variety of brand names to fill the orders placed by its customers, who are large retail chain stores in Canada and the United States as well as large wholesalers and manufacturers in Canada.

"We distribute directly under the Canadian Diamond Certificateї, which is the most widely-accepted Canadian diamond product in the marketplace, seen at over 600 stores," says Ariel. The girdle of each stone sold under this brand is laser-etched with a maple leaf and its own unique registered number. HRA spends over $300,000 a year promoting the brand.

The factory also produces the Ikuma diamond for the Ben Bridge retail jewelry chain based in Seattle--the largest Canadian diamond jewelry program in the United States. ("Ikuma" is an aboriginal word meaning "to light on fire".)

The Canadian diamond is not a hard sell. "We see the future for Canadian diamonds as favourable; the market is only growing," says Ariel. "I think people appreciate identifying a source for where their diamonds are coming from. There's a genuine interest with diamonds coming from the Arctic. It's cold, it's icy: from a marketing standpoint there are a lot of visuals that can be heightened to really exemplify the product."

HRA has global operations. Besides buying Diavik diamonds for its Vancouver factory, the company is a diamond site-holder of the Diamond Trading Co. It has two robotic cutting and polishing facilities in Antwerp. It also owns the largest cutting and polishing factory in Southeast Asia--a hand-cutting plant in Viet Nam with over 650 employees that manufactures close to 13,000 carats of diamond per month. In total the company manufactures well over Cdn$200 million in rough per year.

Visit www.thecanadiandiamond.com for more information about Canadian Diamond Certificateї and locations where these diamonds can be purchased, or call Itay Ariel at 604-669-9562.

---

 

EUROPA - > European Commission > Growth and Jobs

It is vital that Member State and EU measures complement each other to create a powerful growth and jobs engine.

http://europa.eu.int/growthandjobs/index_en.htm

http://www.arc.online.bg

---

 

Info ABEC

ENGINEERING.com February 2006 Communiqué

ENGINEERING.com COMMUNIQUÉ

The latest news, technology advancements and events in the world of engineering.

Distributed Monthly.

http://www.engineering.com/content/community/newsletters/communique_archive.jsp

---

 

Galina Todorova wrote to us:

Recently I've found the information about the engineering week in Toronto. You could pass this link to everybody, could be useful and interesting.

 

http://www.engineeringweek.on.ca/

 

March 05, 2006

The McMichael Canadian Art Collection offers its visitors a unique and truly Canadian experience. From the art within its walls to the surrounding landscape, the McMichael is the perfect gallery for an introduction to Canada’s art, its peoples, their cultures and their history.

McMichael brings you wonderful musical performances on most weekends and at special times of year.

Sunday Concert Series

The popular Sunday concert series features talented ensembles and solo artists, whose repertoires range from instrumental jazz and classical to blues, folk and classical vocals.

Location

McMichael Canadian Art Collection
10365 Islington Avenue
Kleinburg, Ontario, Canada
(Islington Avenue north of Major Mackenzie Drive on the east side)
Information: (905) 893-1121 or toll free 1-888-213-1121

Part of Sunday Concert Series 2006

A wonderful jazz trio:

Richard Whiteman Trio

http://www.richardwhiteman.com/recordings.htm

More Information

http://www.mcmichael.com http://www.mcmichael.com/apps/index.cfm?page=program.detail&programEventId=226&areaId=12

---

 

Membership fee, due for 2006 year is $50 per year. Please send cheque (making it payable to ABEC)

To our Treasurer at the address:

Mrs. Tonya Bojkova,

903 – 91 Cosburn Ave,

Toronto, ON, M4K 2G2

---

 

New Members are welcome!

Best Regards to all ABEC Members,

Pauline Loultcheva Lawrence

President of ABEC

(905) 832-4451

p_lawrence@abec.ca

pauline_m_lawrence@hotmail.com