Terreform: Growing Houses

The solution to our environmental problems is going to require some out of the box thinking. This is one of the most interesting ideas I have seen in quite a while (check out the website at terreform.org):

Earth Day Photos

I know it was yesterday, but here are some of my favorites from 40 photos posted by the Boston Globe in honor of 40 years of Earth Day.

Rich = Green (not just money)

Here are two bold predictions made yesterday by John Tierney of the NYT:

1. There will be no green revolution in energy or anything else. No leader or law or treaty will radically change the energy sources for people and industries in the United States or other countries. No recession or depression will make a lasting change in consumers’ passions to use energy, make money and buy new technology — and that, believe it or not, is good news, because...

2. The richer everyone gets, the greener the planet will be in the long run.

I strongly encourage you to read the article to find out more...

Winners of the Green Innovation Challenge

Check out NewScientist's gallery showing the winners of an international competition to find innovations that could help combat climate change:

Gallery

Visualizing World Energy Use

Here's a nice graphic for you to contemplate:
click pic to enlarge

Corn Ethanol No Better Than Petroleum

Here's another nugget regarding alt. energy (SciAm.com):

Corn Ethanol Will Not Cut Greenhouse Gas Emissions

I've posted on this topic before, check out Beyond Fossil Fuels, Duckweed, Renewable Energy to the Rescue, Water vs. Energy, A Note on Biofuels and Alternative Biofuels.

Beyond Fossil Fuels

I want to direct your attention to a series that started today on SciAm.com. I am super busy with the end of school and trying to find a job, so I don't have any time to discuss it, but check it out:

Beyond Fossil Fuels
A survey of executives at companies engaged in energy alternatives to fossil fuels reveals some of the challenges facing the industry

Florida's Solar City

I already posted about this once, but for those of you who missed it, here is another article about Babcock Ranch, the first solar city in the U.S. (from SciAm.com):

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Florida utility and a real estate developer are aiming to bring the country's first solar-powered city to the Sunshine State.

FPL Group Inc's utility Florida Power & Light is working with the realty group Kitson & Partners to construct what the utility says will be the world's largest photovoltaic solar plant in a planned, environmentally friendly city near Fort Myers in southwestern Florida.

Called Babcock Ranch, the city will aim to build 19,500 houses and about 6 million square feet of retail, light industrial, and office space when it is completed, the developers said.

The entire project is expected to cost $2 billion. Read more...

Better Light Bulb?

From Green Inc.:

The pending extinction of traditional incandescent bulbs in the United States and abroad has created an enormous market opportunity for energy-efficient lighting technologies. The current shortcomings of compact fluorescent lights and pricey LED bulbs show that future dominance of the American socket is still very much up for grabs.

Vu1 (that is, “view one”), a company based in Seattle, thinks it has a shot.

The company’s tag line, “light without compromise,” suggests that it’s keenly aware of the biggest stumbling block for most next-generation lighting technologies: they don’t behave like incandescent bulbs, which is what most consumers are accustomed to. “We believe that we’ve got something here that will be much more comparable with people’s expectations than what’s been out there until now,” said Vu1’s chief executive officer, David Grieger. Read more...

Solar City to Rise In Florida: Will it Work?

From SciAm.com:

A Florida developer unveiled plans today to build the nation's first solar-powered city – a cluster of homes, offices and factories less than 20 miles from Fort Myers on the Gulf Coast.

"Babcock Ranch" would be built on 17,000 acres in Charlotte and Lee counties, with more than half of the land set aside for nature preserves, agriculture and other open space. Florida Power & Light Co. would build a 75-megawatt solar photovoltaic array to supply electricity to the development's 6 million square feet of residential, industrial and retail buildings.

The big question: If you build it in this economy, will buyers come? Find out...

Duckweed: The Newest Alt. To Corn Ethanol

Duckweed is a small aquatic flower that can convert nutrients in waste into starch. And not only can it remediate polluted water, it is actually more productive than corn. According to researcher Jay Cheng, ""Based on our laboratory studies, we can produce five to six times more starch per unit of footage." Read more...(from Wired Science)

Viral Batteries

From NewScientist:

GENETICALLY engineered viruses that assemble into electrodes have been used to make complete miniature rechargeable batteries for the first time. The new lithium ion batteries are as powerful as existing devices but smaller and cleaner to make, claim the team behind the work. The technology could improve the performance of hybrid electric cars and electronic gadgets. Read more...

100 mpg Car Contest

From NewScientist:

Last night in California a list of 111 teams was announced – one of which may hold the key to motoring's green future. They are the registered entrants to the Progressive Auto X Prize, a contest that will award prizes totalling $10 million for vehicles that can go 100 miles on the energy equivalent to that in a gallon of fuel.

Notable by their absence were the world's largest car manufacturers – bar Indian firm Tata – who don't seem interested in taking part. The list is varied spanning slick Californian start-ups with electric cars, to less-refined backyard efforts still finalising their designs. Read more...

See a gallery of some of the vehicles entered into the Auto X Prize

NYT: The Green Home

The NYT has an ongoing series called The Green Home (pretty self-explanatory). For your convenience (because we're all lazy when it comes down to it), I have provided links below to the articles that have been published so far:

A Lawn as Healthy as It Looks

In honor of spring and the continuing quest for the perfect lawn, here are some tips on achieving an attractive yard without wreaking environmental havoc.

Don’t Sweep It Under the Rug

Jeffrey L. Carrier, who heads the sustainability effort for the Carpet and Rug Institute, discusses the environmental impact of carpeting.

Five Beginners’ Steps to a Greener Home

The author of “Green Building & Remodeling for Dummies” distilled a vast amount of green advice into five must-do steps.

Recycling Gadgets When They Go Pffft...

Jason Linnell, the executive director of the National Center for Electronics Recycling, discusses how to dispose of old electronics.

When It Comes to Detergents, What’s the Least Irresponsible Choice?

Investigating whether cleaning products labeled “organic” and “natural” really are better for the environment.

Baseball Stadiums Going Green

From SciAm.com:

At the Cleveland Indians home opener on April 10 crowds can expect to hear super fan John Adams pound away on a bass drum in left center field as he has in virtually every home game since 1973. Over by the first base side of the field—and commanding a bit less attention—game- goers may also notice another distinguishing feature at Cleveland's Progressive Field: an upper deck solar panel array. The Indians were the first American League team to install an alt-energy power source in 2007, making it a member of the growing number of ball clubs whose stadiums are going green.

"We view ourselves as a civic leader, so it's our duty not just to think and act green, but to try to influence fans and the community, as well," says Curtis Danburg, a spokesperson for the team. The franchise put up $100,000 toward the $180,000 panels, with two grants covering the rest. Danburg says the panels generate 8.4 kilowatts, or "enough to energize the 400 televisions we have in the ballpark." Read more...

Plan B for Energy: 8 Revolutionary Energy Sources

From SciAm.com:

Plan B for Energy: 8 Revolutionary Energy Sources

If efficiency improvements and incremental advances in today's technologies fail to halt global warming, could revolutionary new carbon-free energy sources save the day? Don't count on it—but don't count it out, either

Editor's Note: We are posting this feature from our September 2006 issue in light of the Obama administration's renewed focus on how to power the country without overloading the atmosphere with greenhouse gases.

To keep this world tolerable for life as we like it, humanity must complete a marathon of technological change whose finish line lies far over the horizon. Robert H. Socolow and Stephen W. Pacala of Princeton University have compared the feat to a multigenerational relay race. They outline a strategy to win the first 50-year leg by reining back carbon dioxide emissions from a century of unbridled acceleration. Existing technologies, applied both wisely and promptly, should carry us to this first milestone without trampling the global economy. That is a sound plan A.

...

Sooner or later the world is thus going to need a plan B: one or more fundamentally new technologies that together can supply 10 to 30 terawatts without belching a single ton of carbon dioxide. Energy buffs have been kicking around many such wild ideas since the 1960s. It is time to get serious about them. “If we don’t start now building the infrastructure for a revolutionary change in the energy system,” Hoffert warns, “we’ll never be able to do it in time.”

But what to build? The survey that follows sizes up some of the most promising options, as well as a couple that are popular yet implausible. None of them is a sure thing. But from one of these ideas might emerge a new engine of human civilization. Read more to find out what they are...

New All Electric Vehicle

From 60 Second Science:

After providing some teaser shots, Tesla Motors yesterday let everyone get an eyeful of the new Model S, the company’s $57,400 all-electric new prototype vehicle. Like its sports car cousin, the $109,000 Roadster, the Model S relies on lithium ion batteries for its juice, giving the auto a top range of 300 miles (482 kilometers) after a 45-minute charge, the company says. The need for speed has not been neglected: The Model S reportedly revs up from zero to 60 in 5.5 seconds. Read more...

Turning Off Computers at Night Could Save Billions

From 60 Second Science:

The computer you're reading this on may not seem like a huge energy waster, but the power consumption adds up when joined by the other PCs worldwide (Stamford, Conn., research firm Gartner estimates there are more than 1 billion). A study released last week puts a finer point on this assertion, reporting that U.S. workers waste $2.8 billion annually in energy costs by failing to shut off their PCs at the end of the work day. What's more, machines left on during off hours may emit up to 20 million tons of carbon dioxide (C02) this year alone, roughly the equivalent impact of four million cars. Read more...

Combined Feed (New Scientist)

I have too much fricking work!!! Which means no time for blogging, and you get a combined post with all the coolest most interesting new stuff from NewScientist.com:

Flowers on the Moon?

A firm that has designed habitats for plants and animals living in microgravity now hopes to grow the first flowers on the moon, the company's founders announced on Friday.

Engineering firm Paragon Space Development plans to build a greenhouse to fly to the moon. It is set to travel on a lunar lander designed by Odyssey Moon, a competitor for the Google Lunar X Prize, a $30 million contest to send an unmanned lunar rover to the moon. Read more...

Locked Drugs

Future drugs could feature built-in security to prevent them reaching the wrong tissue inside the body, says an international team of biochemists.

The researchers have developed a light-activated "combination lock", a molecule that only becomes active when exposed to two distinct colours of light in the right order. It could provide a way to ensure that small packages of drugs deliver their payload only exactly where and when it is needed, says Joakim Andréasson at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden. The lock was developed with colleagues at Arizona State University.

Molecular locks have been made before. But they used chemicals as the trigger, which makes for a sluggish system, says Andréasson, because they diffuse slowly through the body. Using pulses of light is much faster and also allows the lock to be opened and closed repeatedly, because there are no chemical residues to foul the molecular mechanism. Read more...

Artificial Baby Butter Increases Healing

AN ARTIFICIAL version of the buttery coating that protects and nurtures a fetus's developing skin could find a use outside the womb, in speeding up wound healing and treating eczema.

Natural vernix caseosa contains a mixture of fatty compounds that waterproof the fetus. Crucially, it also contains dead cells called corneocytes, which store large amounts of water and ensure that the fetus does not get dehydrated. Vernix may also act as a barrier to infections. Read more...

California Considers Ban on Blacks (cars that it)

News that California may ban the sale of black cars for climate protection reasons raised the hackles of many a petrolhead yesterday.

At the root of the stir was a presentation (pdf) by the Environmental Protection Agency's Air Resources Board (CARB). The Cool Paints initiative suggests that the state should set a minimum level of reflectivity for all car paints and windows.

More reflective vehicles, goes the idea, could stay up to 10 °C cooler in the sunshine state - this in turn could reduce the need to have air conditioning on and thereby cut greenhouse-gas emissions. Read more...

Climate Changes Borders

Italy and Switzerland are planning to redraw their shared alpine border, as global warming is melting the glaciers that originally guided the line. Although peaceful, the move raises fears of future conflicts over shifting borders and resources.

Glaciers and ice fields around the world are melting as temperatures rise, with Europe's high mountains particularly hard hit. Read more...

e²: the economies of being environmentally conscious

If you don't already know about the PBS series of series, e², get with it.

By PBS's description:

e² is an ongoing PBS series about the economies of being environmentally conscious...with a combination of policy, technology and ingenuity...from energy consumption to building efficiency...it chronicles global efforts to solve pressing ecological challenges

So far, the series have covered architecture and design, energy, and transport; while future series will cover water, food, and cities.

You can access trailers and excerpts from the episodes, as well as the series of Web-exclusive video podcasts that accompany each episode from here. Some full length episodes from the design and energy series can be found here.

Below are the PBS descriptions for the series that have aired:

e² design

e² design is an ongoing PBS series about the pioneers and innovators in the field of sustainable architecture, and how their work is producing solutions to pressing environmental and social challenges. Now entering its third season, the series features compelling stories from around the globe: Beijing to Nova Scotia, Ladakh to New York. Each episode examines the built environment's effects — both ecological, and social — and the design innovations that can reduce buildings' contribution to climate change.

e² design is narrated by Brad Pitt.

There have been three seasons of e² design with six episodes per season.

e² energy

Global in scope and comprised of six 30-minute chapters filmed in HD, e² energy features the engineers, policymakers and innovations that are transforming energy availability and consumption. Each episode covers viable policy and technology alternatives to the fossil fuel culture. Episodes explore: California as a world leader in emissions control; transportation and the need for greater efficiencies; ethanol in Brazil and its future in the United States; distributed solar energy as a means to poverty alleviation in Bangladesh; community wind in Minnesota and its role in regional economic development; and the role of coal and nuclear power in our future energy mix. Solutions-oriented, the series illustrates the trials and trade-offs that any evolution in our global energy system will demand.

e² energy is narrated by Morgan Freeman.

e² transport

The most recent installment of the e² series – e² transport – examines sustainable transportation alternatives with potentially far-reaching effects. The series introduces a broad range of ideas to address the crises of automobile culture and fossil fuel dependence: from existing technologies, to long-term urban planning, to economic incentives. The six e² transport episodes explore: the transformation of London into a transit-efficient capital thanks to visionary mayoral leadership; Paris’ ambitious public-private Vélib’ bike initiative, which encourages residents to forgo cars for bikes and public transportation; the potential for local food production to lessen the environmental impact of the global food market and – as renowned author Michael Pollan elaborates – build healthier, more sustainable communities; the effort to reduce traffic and pollution in Seoul, Korea by restoring the Chonggyecheon Stream as a center of public life; Portland, Oregon, as a global model of transit-oriented development and urban “livability”; and the efforts made by aerospace corporations, technology firms and administrators to make the aviation industry more efficient.

e² transport is narrated by Brad Pitt.