Posts Tagged ‘America’

The Copperhead

Thursday, May 28th, 2009

Copperhead snakes are the snakes that cause the nastiest and most frequent snake-bite problems in the United States. The copperhead can be distinguished by its stout shape and its neck, which is distinct from the body as well as by its pale cross-band tan pattern that gets darker in the middle and on the sides.

Copperhead snakes have pale bellies, very similar to the the colour of the ground, but their appearance can also be whitish on occasions. There are visible spots or pits on the head of copperhead snakes that look like small dark specks and there is also a rather discolored stripe on the head behind the eyes; diffuse on the top, the stripe gets a fair bit darker towards the sides of the snake’s head.

Copperhead snakes can be found almost anywhere, from rock and pond areas to woods and the shores of streams. Their choice of habitat is dictated by the predominance of prey, as copperhead snakes live on frogs, small rodents, cicadas, lizards, caterpillars and anything else that cabe taken without too much trouble.

Among the best hide-outs for copperhead snakes, wood piles, stone slabs, walls, debris and abandoned or ruined buildings are the most common, which explains the possibility of a human encounter with them in such areas. Copperhead snakes are most active in the spring and summer months and as long as the weather stays warm, after which they enter the hibernation period.

Copperhead snakes use the dens in which they spend the winter year after year and usually there are large numbers of other individuals in hibernation together. In summer time when it is too hot outside, the copperhead will stay in the shade during the day and hunt at night. On lovely warm days, this snake will lie in the sun on rocks or wood debris. The young of copperhead snakes are born live and are not hatched; their number ranges between one and fourteen, with the mating period extending ’till mid autumn.

Immediate medical assistance is absolutely necessary in the case of bites by copperhead snakes since there is the risk of permanent scarring accompanied by really unbearable pain. The best advice you can get when encountering copperhead snakes is to avoid them, because many people get bitten when they threaten the snakes when roaming or hunting.

Snakes will not harm you unless they feel threatened, then, you will become the victim of a fierce attack by a creature that is just as afraid of us as we are of them. Statistics reveal that copperhead snakes have the highest incidence in bite frequency in the United States, because these snakes attack quite out of the blue without giving threatening warnings like other species.

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Copperhead Snakes

Monday, May 25th, 2009

Copperhead snakes are the cause of most of the snake-bite problems in the United States. The copperhead can be distinguished by its thick shape and its neck, which is quite distinct from its body as well as by its pale cross-band tan pattern that darkens in the middle and on the sides.

Copperhead snakes have pale bellies, similar to the ground on which they live, but they sometimes appear pretty whitish. There are visible spots or pits on the head of copperhead snakes that look like darker tiny specks, but there is also a rather discolored stripe on the head area behind the eyes; this stripe looks very diffuse on top but it gets brownish towards the edges.

Copperhead snakes live in all sorts of habitats: you can find them under rocks, in woods and on river banks or in areas around ponds. A specimen will choose its habitat depending on the predominant prey, as copperhead snakes feed on birds, frogs, mice, cicadas, caterpillars and almost any other small animal they manage to hunt.

The most usual hidey-holes for copperhead snakes, wood piles, stone slabs, walls, debris and abandoned or ruined buildings are the most common, which explains why people come across copperheads so often in such areas. The active months of the year for copperhead snakes are in the spring and summer for as long as the weather stays warm. After that they go into hibernation.

Copperhead snakes return to the same dens to hibernate year after year, and more often than not, there are large nests counting many individuals during hibernation. On very hot summer days, copperhead snakes will remain in cooler areas during the day and use the cover of the night to hunt. On balmy summer days, the copperhead will lie in the sun on rocks or wooden debris. Copperhead snakes do not hatch eggs, but give birth to their young live. The number of young ranges from one to fourteen and they are usually born from the summer untill October.

The bites of copperhead snakes require immediate medical care since they are not only very painful but they may also lead to permanent scarring and tissue loss. Avoid copperhead snakes when you come across them. Many people get bitten when trying to kill them or pick them up.

Snakes will not harm you unless they feel threatened, then, you will become the victim of a fierce attack by a creature that is just as afraid of us as we are of them. Statistics reveal that copperhead snakes have the highest incidence in bite frequency in the United States, because these snakes attack quite out of the blue without giving threatening warnings like other species.

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Hybrid Car Myths

Sunday, May 24th, 2009

If you are thinking about a hybrid vehicle, you may be hearing quite a bit of “gossip”. Some people think the hybrid car is the best thing since sliced bread. Some people say it’ll just pass. Yet other people again say they think they can save a packet, but you’re not sure it’s really worth it. What’s the truth, and how do you separate fact from fiction with all of the stuff that is being said to you? Below, you can read and consider the usual hybrid car myths.

Hybrid cars are just the same as electric cars: This is not true because hybrid cars are fuel-powered for the most part. They have what are called ‘battery assists’. The assist is powered by a nickel-metal hydride battery pack that is rechargeable.

You are guaranteed to save money with a hybrid car: If you are doing town motoring, you may save gas and you may not. The same goes for highway driving. There are just many different factors. It has been said that if everyone bought hybrid cars, the gas consumption would drop by only 10%. That’s not a very big difference.

A hybrid vehicle’s battery can run flat: A hybrid car battery should not run out when you are actually driving it. The engine in a hybrid car does not idle when stopped (at a red light for instance). What does it do then? Well, it recharges its battery. So there’s no need to worry about a hybrid car stopping on that score.

The hybrid vehicle’s rechargeable battery only lasts for two years: A hybrid vehicle certainly would not be worth purchasing if this was the case. A hybrid vehicle’s rechargeable batteries usually come with an 8-year guaranty.

If I run out of gas, I can continue driving on the hybrid car battery: Keep in mind, a hybrid car’s battery is an assist. That means that hybrid car’s still run on fuel. After you run out of gas, the battery could keep the car running for a short while. However, the car will cease running pretty soon.

Hybrid vehicles will soon put normal car dealers out of business: I’m sure that this won’t happen anytime soon. The reason for the delay has to do with the how much a hybrid cars cost. Many people simply can’t afford one. Furthermore, people just aren’t too sure whether they will actually save money on a hybrid car. Therefore, they are slow to join the rush of people who want to own a hybrid car.

Hybrid cars will only save you about $88 a year: I did hear something on the news about this one day, but it may be untrue. If there’s something you really want though, and there’s a lot of smoke surrounding it, you simply have to start digging and do some of your own research. There are many different models of hybrid vehicle, and many different manufacturers make them. This means that there may be many more variables involved than the ones discussed here. A hybrid car may help you, and it may not, but the final decision is all yours.

So, please don’t worry a great deal about what other people tell you. They probably have only heard others passing on rumours. Do your own research and think it out for yourself. Try the Internet to get your information. The manufacturer’s literature is also quite useful, if you stick to reading the facts and skip over the hype. Check that whatever the literature claims is also in the guarantee.

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Hybrid Car Battery Packs Info

Monday, May 11th, 2009

Those considering purchasing a hybrid car may be more than a little concerned about what is under the hood. Hybrid cars have partially battery-powered motors. Since a battery-powered motor is not something that typically comes to mind when people think about what’s driving a car, it’s a good idea to get a good understanding of hybrid car battery packs. Below you will find a few facts about them.

Hybrid car battery packs do not need to be replaced like torch batteries do. They are made to last over the lifetime of the vehicle, and therefore a hybrid car’s guarantee covers the battery pack for a time period that lasts between eight and ten years. In terms of mileage, a hybrid car battery pack is expected to last between 150,000 and 200,000 miles, and it probably will last even longer than that.

The toxicity of hybrid car battery packs is a worry, but not a major problem, since hybrid car batteries use NiMH batteries, not the cheaper rechargeable nickel cadmium ones. Nickel cadmium batteries can be detrimental to the environment if not disposed of professionally, but the NiMH batteries that are used in hybrid car battery packs are safe and fully recyclable.

Hybrid car battery packs consist of hundreds and hundreds of cells. Several hundred cells means that hybrid cars have a complex battery structure beneath their bonnets, and, it is true, complexity usually translates into expensive, but with the generous guarantee hybrid car manufacturers are giving on their vehicles, there is not much risk of additional massive expense from the battery pack involved in buying a hybrid car.

The number of hybrid car battery pack failures reported has been really very low. When I say low, I mean negligible. If failure does happen, it is usually before the hybrid car even leaves the salesman’s garage. Toyota has even stated that some of its first Prius hybrid models have battery packs that have gone more than 300,000 miles.

The cost of replacing hybrid car battery packs isn’t really even an issue It isn’t an issue because the hybrid car battery packs are built to last. The Department of Energy looked into hybrid cars, but stopped its test when the capacity was “just like new” after 160,000 miles. So very few people really seem to know for sure what it costs to replace hybrid car battery packs.

Hybrid car battery packs are evolving very quickly. If we look into the near future, we can see the next generation of hybrid car batteries is already in development. The goal is, naturally, to develop the technology so that it gives loads of power, outlives the hybrid car’s lifetime, and costs less to make than it does today.

If your hybrid car battery pack does run out, there is an easy solution. Toyota has put out some advice on what to do, should your hybrid battery pack run out after the guarantee has expired. Their advice is to have the battery reconditioned. This solution works well because if something does go wrong, the problem usually lies with only one of the 28 modules that make up the battery.

So, if you simply replace the problematic module with one that matches the chemistry of the other hybrid car battery pack’s 27 modules, your hybrid car’s battery should be back to new(ish). You can find a matching module by getting a battery pack from another car that has a similar mileage and age.

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