Articles
Energy
Compact Fluorescent Lighting Tips
Some Tips based on my experience with compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs). Fluorescent lights, when properly used, can save you (and the rest of the world) on the expenses of electricity.The Coal Question
COAL - It's the rock that built the industrialized world. Now, as we begin to realize the limited potential of petroleum in meeting our future energy needs, there is a powerful movement to revert to coal for meeting nearly all of our energy needs - from electricity to transportation. The coal industry promises bountiful, cheap and CLEAN(?) energy lasting for "250 years." We should be asking - "Is it the right way to go, to base society upon another fossil fuel, one which has the capacity to be many times more destructive than oil and gas?"Why the Energy Industry Loves the Internal Combustion Engine
Another possible reason for the historic resistance by Big Energy against the adoption of electric vehicles over internal combustion models. This theory goes all the way down the the thermodynamics of each system.The Exergy Crisis
Why we are running out of energy in a sea of energy, and how the Second Law of Thermodynamics is actively kicking stupidity, ignorance, and our futuristic consumer-capitalist aspirations in the butt!The Global Warming Spiel
The concentrated energy from fossil fuels has given human beings great power and an apparent reign over the universe and the laws of thermodynamics. With high-grade energy, no more is man tied to the light and heat of the sun and weak power of his own muscles. Unfortunately, fossil fuels also happen to be part of Earth's carbon cycle and its atmospheric mixture of thermally insulating gases. Fossil Fuels gave us the power to build and multiply as well as the capacity to mess up the only home we have.Hydrogen Oblivion
Hydrogen is not a magic bullet. Contrary to popular belief, hydrogen is not a new source of energy, it is simply a storage medium for energy, like a battery. All people must understand this before we begin to our energy economy upon hydrogen.The Very Viable Alternatives to Coal
As environmentalists we are often criticized as having no solutions to the problems we denounce. The opposite is quite true, as there are hundreds of different solutions which can play a part in helping to ensure our balance with ecology. Contrary to what the energy industry would like you to believe, the world will not be plunged into darkness, the economy will not crash, jobs will not evaporate, and we will not go back to the Dark Ages just because we stop building coal-fired generating facilities and begin building truly clean and efficient renewable and cogeneration facilities. There is absolutely no need for more coal!
Waste
Environment and Society
Wood Gasification - Cleaner Energy For The Developing World
Gasification of Wood and other biomass in primitive and easily-built gasifier units and stoves can help bring more efficient energy to developing nations. Gasification offers a cleaner and more sustainable alternative to directly burning wood and dung.Questioning the Sustainability of the "American Dream"
Six percent of the world's population uses over twenty-five percent of the world's resources. What if everyone tries to live like this? The "American Dream" is in trouble.A Continuous Spectrum
Humans love quantifying everything they see around them. We make lists, categories, types, terms, files, measurement standards and piles and piles of units for them, databases and statistics about everything we see in the world. We try to organize the world by dividing masses of chaos into convenient units that are easy to remember, understand, and work with. We have even discovered over the years that all matter and energy is quantified into tiny particles (the basis of quantum physics). What is left to categorize?Techno-Fixes to Extend the Fossil-Fueled Oblivion
Often, we believe that we can maintain the status quo simply by using technology. While this may be possible in the short-term, it doesn't hold much promise for long-term sustainability.
Information Technology
What is PMPO? It's An advertising gimmick!
PMPO is a measure of audio amplifier power output. It is deceiving because it considers an amplifier's power output under perfect conditions and only for a short instant.
Frugality and Home Economics
Sodium Bicarbonate (Baking Soda) Dry Cleaning
Instead of wasting time, energy, money, and water laundering clothes after a single wearing, try baking soda dry cleaning.Last Modified: January 29, 2010. 21:24:54 pm