Knoxville Times
KnoxvilleTimes.com Tuesday 9th February 2010 Issue 2119
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DJIA graph
DJI: 103.84 9908.39 1.04%
NAS: 15.07 2126.05 0.70%
FTSE: 31.41 5092.33 0.62%
Nikkei: 14.98 9936.84 0.15%

bullet Making the news corner
"It is unfair you enjoy a safe life while our brothers in Gaza suffer greatly. Our attacks will continue as long as you support Israel. "
Osama bin Laden
The al-Qaeda leader was addressing U.S. President Barack Obama in a recently-released videotape.

bullet Exchange Rates corner
$£€ United States, Dollar Euro Canada, Dollar Japan, Yen United Kingdom, Pound
United States, Dollar - 0.729 1.070 89.39 0.640
Euro 1.370 - 1.467 122.5 0.877
Canada, Dollar 0.934 0.681 - 83.49 0.597
Japan, Yen 0.011 0.008 0.011 - 0.007
United Kingdom, Pound 1.562 1.139 1.672 139.6 -

bullet More Knoxville News corner
Cameron Tatum's status for Vandy is uncertain
KNOXVILLE — The live-in girlfriend of an elderly man found dead in his South Knox County home over the weekend was charged with second-degree murder today, according t…
Man, 67, killed in West Knoxville wreck
Knox County aide being investigated for inappropriate relationship with student

bullet Technology corner
Russia lends $300 mn to Sri Lanka for arms
Major publishers to hike prices of electronic books
In Hollywood, hackers are mostly 'good guys'
China closes 'biggest hacker site', arrests three
Zardari's "shut up" video mysteriously disappears from internet

bullet The Nation corner
Dr Conrad Murray charged over Michael Jackson's death
Pitt and Jolie litigate over tabloid story
Hillary Clinton still trying to decide what to wear to daughter's wedding
NATO aware of Taliban buildup
Anti-Valentine's events in NYC to cheer up lonely hearts, love haters

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Breaking News
Woman charged with murdering her boyfriend
Detectives located Perry in Straw Plains and arrested her on theft charges after they found articles missing from Tolliver's house in her possession. She was charged with his murder after his...

Cain's 19 helps Lady Vols past Vandy, 69-60
Kelley Cain had 19 points and the Tennessee Lady Vols battled back from a seven point deficit to down Vanderbilt, 69-60. Cain had another big night for UT, adding seven rebounds and five blocks to...
Anderson erects plaque for military
CLINTON - It was a bittersweet moment Monday for Anderson County families whose loved ones died in the country's two ongoing wars. "...
More breaking stories
World News
US warned to beware terror incidents overseasUS warned to beware terror incidents overseas
Al-Qaeda has made another threat toward the...

Mogadishu residents flee impending fightMogadishu residents flee impending fight
There have been more terror attacks linked to rebel and government forces in Mogadishu,...
Terror attack averted in Pakistan
Pakistani police claim to have prevented an attack on a five-star hotel in Lahore, the country's second largest...
More international stories
Business News
Toyota receives summons from Japanese government over problemsToyota receives summons from Japanese government over problems
Toyota's president is due to brief the Japanese government on the Prius...

U.S. stocks slip into red MondayU.S. stocks slip into red Monday
U.S. stocks hovered in and out of positive territory Monday, with the bears only slightly getting the upper...
Stocks could be on a downer this weekStocks could be on a downer this week
There is a growing sense that the US stock market's rally from the lows of March 2009 has run out of...
More business stories

bullet "Deep retrofits" can cut home energy bills by half corner

Washington, November 26 : Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the US has announced plans to conduct a series of deep energy retrofit research projects with the potential to improve the energy efficiency in selected homes by as much as 30 to 50 percent.

Deep energy retrofits are renovations to existing structures that use the latest in energy-efficient materials and technologies and result in significant energy reductions.

Jeff Christian, the ORNL buildings technologies researcher heading the project, said at least 10 homes across the region will be sought to participate.

The home selection process is yet to be finalized, and homeowners will have to pay most of the costs-about 10 dollars per square foot of living space-and agree to allow their post-retrofit energy consumption to be monitored.

But Christian said that costs can be recovered in as little as 10 years, and energy bills potentially can be cut in half.

"Most important, data from the project can provide huge incentives for more deep retrofits across the region," he said.

"Deep retrofit is a fairly expensive upfront proposition, but can be one of the best investments available to many homeowners," said Christian.

"We're targeting homes that are 15-35 years old-homes that are ready for new windows, heating and cooling units, appliances and maybe even solar panels to push their homes closer to near-zero energy consumption," he explained.

"Then we want to monitor these homes, analyze their energy consumption and celebrate the progressive vision of this region," he added.

The retrofits are part of an energy-efficient systems approach that involves making the building more air-tight; weatherizing the attic, crawl space and windows; upgrading heating and cooling units, water heaters, appliances and lighting; and installing solar panels.

In a retrofit house, insulation is removed from the attic floor. The roof and sides of the attic are sealed with insulating foam, and a high-efficiency heat pump is installed in the attic.

The result is huge energy savings in heating and cooling because the entire HVAC system is inside the insulation layer.

Also, the system provides thermostats on both floors, but instead of operating two separate heat pumps, a single smarter unit directs heating or cooling where it's needed. This project connects our research to the surrounding community," Christian said.

"We're hoping that this demonstration stimulates enough interest among members of the public that it will become self-sustaining-growing the number of houses with deep retrofits," he added.


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The Knoxville Times is essentially a local Knoxville newspaper, but with a national and international perspective, designed to provide readers with a one-stop shop for Knoxville, national US, regional, and world news coverage, weather and sports information, with live updates on breaking business stories, and what's happening in the financial markets.

The biggest advantage we have is that we are an online newspaper, which means we are constantly refreshing our stories as more and more information comes to hand. Often when a story breaks the initial details are sketchy.

We and our sources around the world work hard to gather more information, verify facts, and provide a perspective of the major stories. Expert opinion often accompanies our articles to better inform readers, and provide a more complete understanding
of the news we deliver.

Financial markets and business reports are regular features as we pin down what's happening, and constantly refresh stock market indice readings, dollar currency rates, and breaking business news reports. Our world sports coverage is a priority, as is our regional news.

We like to think if you're looking for breaking news out of Knoxville, Tennessee, the United States, or the world, you'll look for it first at the Knoxville Times.

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    bullet Knoxville Weather corner
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Now 37.8°F/3.2°C Snow
    Tuesday 43°F/6°C Snow
    Wednesday 32°F/0°C Chance of Snow
    Thursday 40°F/4°C Partly Cloudy
    Friday 40°F/4°C Partly Cloudy
    Saturday 38°F/3°C Partly Cloudy

    Tennessee State Weather

    bullet Movie Review corner

    bullet US Business corner
    Finnish phone company to defend US lawsuit
    US bonds safe for investors says Geithner
    Japan Airlines will stick with American Airlines

    bullet Tennessee State News corner
    Palin mocks Obama for using teleprompter, reads notes off her hand
    Palin says she could run for president in 2012
    Authorities: Girlfriend charged in death of 77-year-old Knox man
    Three Kids Hospitalized After Car Crash

    bullet Record Your Vote corner
    Stock markets around the world are falling again. How do you think they will fare by the end of the year?


    bullet Hotel Review corner
    Crowne Plaza, Los Angeles International Airport
    Crowne Plaza, Los Angeles International Airport

    I needed a hotel overnight near LAX and decided on the Crowne Plaza, a 4 star recently-renovated business class hotel on West...


    bullet Editorials corner
    Lawyer: U.S. Baptists Not Guilty
    Japanese Media: Toyota Nearing Recall of Prius Cars
    'Snow Rate' Seats at a Premium On Planes, Trains Leaving D.C.
    GOP to Bring Road Map on Health Care Reform
    Iran Moves Closer to Warhead Capacity