The discovery and first extractions of Shale Gas are dated back to the late 1800’s but it was eclipsed by larger conventional gas reservoirs and its cheaper extraction costs. With global natural gas reservoirs running low and technological advancements to Shale Gas extraction which made it cheaper and more profitable, the gas is now high on the agenda of many Governments around the globe.

This Shale Gas Rush started in America after the development of an extraction process called “Fracking” which uses chemicals and millions of gallons of water to release gas trapped deep underground. Over the past decade American production tripled and Shale Gas accounts for 20% of all natural gas produced in the country and if analysts predictions are correct it could account for as much as half of the gas production in the US by 2020.

As expected other nations started to seek Shale Gas basins in their own territory. Right now there are 48 Shale basins in 38 nations to the EIA (Energy Information Administration), totaling 6,622 trillion cubic feet of technically recoverable Shale Gas resources worldwide.

The biggest reserves are located in China (1,275 trillion cubic feet), United Stated (862 trillion cubic feet), Argentina (774 trillion cubic feet), Mexico (681 trillion cubic feet) and South Africa (485 trillion cubic feet).

There is no doubt could will cause a stir on the global energy markets. Nations that have discovered such reserves will reduce or cut down completely their dependence on LNG and natural gas imports causing prices to drop.

But one of the biggest issues is extraction also known as “Fracking”. Many environmentalist advocate the procedure can contaminate underground aquifers and that the chemicals used are potentially hazardous to humans and wildlife. It is known that “Fracking” uses around 80 different chemicals that are injected on the ground the liberate the gas, these gases return o the surface as flow back, bringing with them heavy metals, radioactive materials and other substances harmful to life.

Recently in the UK, “fracking” was even associated with small earth tremors, earthquakes of low magnitude, but the claims were dismissed. We can be certain of one thing, mass scale shale gas extraction is on its early days and studies and regulations must be developed in order to create a safe and harmless extraction process.

Just like it happened with oil extractions Shale Gas extraction should be properly regulated by international bodies to guarantee that even though it proves to be a profitable “fuel” it doesn’t do more harm than good to global economy and above all to our environment.

I’ll leave you with the initial question: Shale Gas Rush: Good or Bad for the Global Economy? Share your views in the comments below.

About the Author

Energy broker specialised in business energy procurement with emphasis on business electricity and business gas contracts for UK businesses.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6735655

Touch typing is an essential life skill learnt at primary school age these days and the earlier you learn the faster you will type with time. But if you are like me who self taught yourself how to touch type and still not happy with your typing speed here are some tips to increase your touch typing speed.

It is rather frustrating to see your nephews and little cousins flying through the keyboard typing hundreds of keywords per minute without looking at the keyword, isn’t it? Yes, I know the feeling I’ve been there once.

Or at work when your boss asks you to digitalise a document and you take ages to do it because you can’t look at the paper and type at the same time.

Worry no more, your hunting and pecking days are over after you follow my tips to increase your touch typing speed you’ll be typing as fast as those little devils that were making fun of you.

Considering that you are already familiar with the keyboard place all ten fingers over the keyboard in a way that both thumbs are over the space bar. This is way you will start using all ten fingers when typing.

Customise your keyboard, this might sound childish by it does help improve your speed. Now a written text place it next to you and start typing only looking at the paper, you are allowed to occasionally look to the screen but not the keyboard. Aim for 40 words per minute and move yourself up as you feel more confident.

To make things a little harder, cover your keyboard with a piece of cardboard in a way that you can type but can’t see the keys. Repeat the same process as before with the written text.

Consider a touch typing tutor; don’t be ashamed of referring to one. There are touch typing programs specifically made for older people just like you and me. These tutors will help you increase your typing speed as well as improve your literacy as the senior versions of these software’s use more complex words than the ones used in their junior versions.

Computer games are very useful to help one increase speed, despite not using all keys when play they help your finger become more agile and since you can’t look at the keyboard while playing you develop the confidence you need to type without looking at the keyboard.

Going back to those typing tutors most of them offer “Speed Boosters” which are computer games aimed to help you increase your speed while having a bit of fun.

Last but not least we have practice. Despite everything suggested in this article only with daily practice you will increase your touch typing speed.