StoneDimensions

BY Larry Mcshane
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

One of the secrets of Stonehenge is solved — and the answer surprised even the British scientists who made the discovery.

Many of the stones at the famous 5,000-year-old attraction came from a site 160 miles away in an outcropping at Craig Rhos-y-felin in Pembrokeshire, the BBC reported.

Dr. Richard Bevins and colleague Dr. Rob Ixer made the discovery by matching samples from Stonehenge’s bluestones with those from the other site.

The pair compared the mineral content and textures of the two sets of stones and found the connection to Stonehenge. Ixer, of Leicester University, called the discovery “quite unexpected and exciting.”

But the mysteries of Stonehenge were not entirely resolved by the duo and their intensive nine-month project.

Four of the towering Stonehenge rocks were not from the other location. And the question of how the stones were moved from Pembrokeshire to their permanent spot in Wiltshire remains unanswered.

“Many have asked the question over the years,” Bevins told the BBC. “Was it human transport? Was it due to ice transport?”

The scientists said they hope the discovery of the rocks’ site of origin will prompt other investigators to dig deeper into the mysteries.

lmcshane@nydailynews.com
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/british-scientists-id-source-stonehenge-rocks-article-1.994801#ixzz1hI43Mlq3

WASHINGTON, Dec. 20 - Production of new single-family homes and apartments rose 9.3 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 685,000 units in November, according to figures released by the U.S. Commerce Department today. This marks the fastest pace of housing starts since October of 2008.

"While we still have a long way to go back to normal, the latest numbers are one more indication that housing is slowly turning the corner," said Bob Nielsen, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder from Reno, Nev. "In scattered markets across the country, buyers who have long sat on the sidelines are starting to take advantage of today's very attractive prices and interest rates, while others are making the move to a new apartment. This nascent trend would be stronger if not for the very restrictive lending environment that continues for both building and buying new homes."

"Along with recent gains that have been registered in builder confidence and other economic measures, the improvement in new-home production and permitting shown in this latest report provides further evidence of the gradual strengthening that we expected to see in housing markets toward the end of the year," said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe. "We anticipate continued, slow improvement in housing starts and sales through 2012."

The 9.3 percent gain in combined starts activity resulted from improvements in both the single- and multifamily sectors in November. Single-family starts posted a 2.3 percent gain to a 447,000-unit pace, which was their fastest rate since June of 2011. Meanwhile, the more volatile multifamily side surged 25.3 percent to a 238,000-unit pace - the fastest since September 2008.

Combined housing starts were up in three out of four regions in November, with the Northeast posting the biggest gain of 53.8 percent, the West posting a 22.6 percent increase and the South registering a 4.1 percent gain. The Midwest was the exception to the rule, with an 18.2 percent decline.

Permit issuance, which can be an indicator of future building activity, rose 5.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 681,000 units in November - the best pace since March of 2010. Single-family permits rose 1.6 percent to 435,000 units while multifamily permits rose 13.9 percent to 246,000 units, which was their strongest pace since October of 2008.

Regionally, combined single- and multifamily permits gained 32.8 percent in the Northeast and 21.4 percent in the West, but declined 1.9 percent in the Midwest and 2.6 percent in the South in November.

The Marble Institute of America has announced that Chuck Muehlbauer, the association's technical director, has been elected to chair the ASTM Committee C18 on Dimension Stone. With Muehlbauer, Michael Lewis of Façade Forensics, Cincinnati, OH, has been elected to serve as the committee's vice chairman; Kurt Hoigard of Raths, Raths, & Johnson, Inc, Willowbrook, IL, has been elected to serve as the committee's secretary.  The new slate of officers will begin serving their terms on January 1, 2012.

ASTM Committee C18 on Dimension Stone was formed in 1926 to promote knowledge, stimulate research, and to develop specifications, methods of test, definitions and nomenclature, and recommended practices relating to dimension stone. The committee currently has a multinational membership of approximately 125 members representing 14 countries.  C18 has jurisdiction of over 25 standards, published in the Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Volume 4.07. The committee has 5 technical subcommittees that maintain jurisdiction over these standards. These standards have and continue to play a preeminent role in all aspects important to the effective standardization of dimension stone, including, testing, specifications and construction practices.

Muehlbauer started his career in the stone industry after graduating from technical college in 1981, and has been an active member of the ASTM Committee C18 on Dimension Stone since 1989. He has previously served as chairman of Subcommittee C18.08 on Stone Selection and Committee C18 Secretary. He has written and edited papers published by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), ASTM, Cold Spring Granite Company, and the Marble Institute of America.

MIA Executive Vice President and CEO Garis Distelhorst said, "Chuck's election as chair of the ASTM C18 further solidifies the notion that the Marble Institute is a clear leader in the natural stone industry, particularly in its technical knowledge and information. His history and his reputation as one of the stone industry's most technically proficient experts, first with Cold Spring Granite Company and for the last seven years with the MIA, earned him this opportunity to assume the leadership of this critically important ASTM Committee.  The entire MIA membership is proud to call Chuck one of ours."

MIA President GK Naquin added, "Chuck's commitment to the natural stone industry and the Marble Institute of America once again has been validated through his election as committee chairman of the ASTM C18 on Dimension Stone. Chuck has made a positive difference representing our industry within ASTM. We look forward to his continued guidance as chairman."