Clean & Green
« Older Entries | Newer Entries »The Tango: It Takes Two (And That’s About All)
[ Comments Off ]Posted on December 13, 2008 by admin in Clean & Green, Technology
Saturday, December 13th, 2008Lane-Splitting Prevents Brain-Splitting Headaches
If you’ve ever been in a traffic jam in L.A., you’ll appreciate the idea of the almost comical-looking Tango electric car zipping between the cars in the part-time parking lot often referred to as “The 405″. Which reminds me of a question no-one’s ever answered to my satisfaction: why do Californians have the weird habit of referring to their freeways with the definite article? In any case, as odd as the Tango looks, it apparently does 0-60MPH in 4 seconds, and can give a Tesla a run for its money on the quarter-mile. All of which doesn’t matter much if you need to cart the kids to soccer games and pick up lumber at Home Depot, but that is clearly not the intention of the car’s producers. It’s designed as a commuter vehicle, and besides the cute lane-splitting trick (legal in some states, not all) it will park nose-in to the curb, and fit in most motorcycle spaces. Worried about safety? It has a full steel roll cage that meets SCCA/NHRA rules; in theory you (or at least the roll cage!) should be able to survive a 200mph crash. With its current $100K+ price tag, only George Clooney can afford one, but they plan a price-drop in 2009. For a Tango-eye view of a traffic jam, here’s another YouTube clip (no sound).
Will Greentech Equal Greenbacks?
[ Comments Off ]Posted on December 3, 2008 by admin in Clean & Green, Technology
Wednesday, December 3rd, 2008Don’t burst my energy bubble
I was talking to a friend today who was reconsidering her possible future in environmental work because of quite reasonable concerns about what may happen to the economy in the near future. I hope that in spite of (or maybe because of) these economic concerns, she and others stay focused on the idea of developing a clean & green future for America. I personally believe that our current economic woes could be the motivation to shift the paradigm and put the country back on track as a leading innovator. It seems I’m not totally crazy; Barack Obama promised during his campaign (and stayed on message in his recent radio/web address) that he intends to invest $150 billion to “build an American green energy economy” in the belief that as well as creating 5 million jobs, it is in fact the only way forward in the current energy/economic environment. It’s nice to see that there seems to be an international consensus – Brazil is committing to reducing Amazon deforestation by 70%; in Hawaii (that’s a country, isn’t it Sarah?) there are plans for an electric car network; BMW is looking for 500 lucky field testers for their Mini EV, and in the general picture, green technologies have enjoyed an astounding 1400% increase in investments since 2001. There are so many great ideas busting out (and nice sites like CleantechGreentech.com with great info on the topic) that it’s almost impossible to keep track. Some of these ideas are really simple, but game-changing. Things like Crowdsourced Green Venture Capital Funds. Anybody have a positive story about greentech economics to share?
Theo Jansen’s Eerie Beach Beasts
[ Comments Off ]Posted on November 22, 2008 by admin in Clean & Green, Technology
Saturday, November 22nd, 2008Life is indeed a beach
If technology has ceased to amaze you, get ready to rediscover amazement. The clip at left is the trailer for a film about Dutch artist, engineer, and visionary Theo Jansen. Using primarily electrical conduit tubing, Jansen creates disturbingly life-like machines that are meant to “populate” the coasts of Holland, “feeding on wind and fleeing from water” as he puts it. The trailer featured here gives a quick glimpse into what his creations are about, but for a fascinating few minutes, check out his talk on TED.com. His creations are sort of like a real-world Sodaconstructor, the Java-powered, kinetic, on line tinkertoy. Sodaconstructor is a little difficult to figure out, but kind of addictive once you master the basics.
Taking Some Wind From The Sails Of Peak Oil Doomsayers
[ Comments Off ]Posted on November 13, 2008 by admin in Clean & Green, Technology
Thursday, November 13th, 2008Or is that taking some sales from the wind
It’s nice to know that while the big three beg for bailouts and utility executives try to raise alarm about the dangers of switching from coal, innovative thinking and a desire to make money are showing some tangible results in the clean tech movement. Apparently electric car innovator Fisker Automotive (Warning: melodramatic string music) is setting up shop – although only a couple hundred actual jobs – in Michigan. On the energy production front, even Texas is ramping it up; with its current growth in windpower generation, the state could be able to generate all of its energy from wind in the near future, with a surplus to put back into the grid. Maybe some of these survival-product pushers masked as loony prophets of oil doom will be put out of business.
Earth From Above – Photos By Yann Arthus-Bertrand
[ Comments Off ]Posted on October 7, 2008 by admin in Clean & Green
Tuesday, October 7th, 2008The big picture. Literally.
On those pesky days when the world begins plunging into financial chaos and despair, it’s probably a good idea to try to remember we live on a REALLY big planet, and very little of it is made of money. As imaginary trillions turn into worthless pieces of paper, maybe some of those imaginary trillionaires will take a break from trying to horde the remnants of their empires, and take a look around. French photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand has been looking around the world since 1994. In an attempt to inspire people to think globally about sustainable living, he has taken astoundingly beautiful photographs from the air in over 150 countries. These are not simply nature photographs; often the subjects are the sad results of industry, technology, or war. Who would think, for instance, that the waste produced by a copper mine could be beautiful? Referring to the resulting collection of images, Arthus-Bertrand suggests: “Though it invites us all to take our own responsibilities, this testimony remains resolutely optimistic. Each portrait, be it of the Earth or its inhabitants, aims at showing the best in order to appeal to what is best in us. For the will to protect is indeed strongest towards that which one has learnt to understand and love.” Which I guess will be a bit of a problem for those who have primarily “learnt to understand and love” their wealth.