Within ten minutes of one another, I:
1) Got a call from someone with a perpetual motion machine that involves the movement of buoyant objects in water (I see at least two of these per year), and
2) Encountered this video in which U.S. Representative Jerry Anderson (R-UT) claims we need more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere – as much as twice our current levels, because a) it’s less than 0.5% of the air, b) (more…)
I just did a phone interview for a young lady writing a paper for a course she’s taking in college, which reminded me of how passionate the youth of today is about climate change and the environment more generally. She seemed really cheesed off that the IPCC (International Panel on Climate Change) is having such a tough time bringing the nations of the world together to form a meaningful and binding agreement that would limit greenhouse gas emissions.
You and me both, kid. 🙂
One person trying to become greener is great, but if they can persuade their entire neighborhood to do it we’ll all be able to make a much bigger difference.
Are you old enough to remember what neighborhoods used to be like decades ago? These days they’re completely different and this isn’t a good thing. They’re becoming a lot dirtier, but I’m not talking about the trash lying in the middle of the street. We’re wasting tons of energy and we’re polluting the environment at a frightening rate. Instead of trying to tackle our anti-green problems on your own I’m going to look at a few ways you can do it with the help of the lovely people who live in your neighborhood. (more…)
Here’s a popular video that makes an extremely important point: in problem solving – and in life in general – we tend to confirm what we believe, even though disconfirming our beliefs is so much more productive. This, of course, is reflected in the source of news we select; it explains why Fox News viewers tend to be climate change deniers: they choose a source of information that will re-enforce what they already believe.
But to be fair, am I any better? I tend to read things that confirm my belief that climate change is real and that we have an obligation to do something about it, etc. Having said that, there has been an enormous amount of work — for a variety of purposes – that’s gone into the process of disproving the concept of human-caused climate change, and, according to the vast majority of scientists who have reviewed that work, it has not been successful in discrediting the theory.
It’s the 95th anniversary of the tax on gasoline, in the U.S., at least (Oregon, 1919). Of course, its original justification was the idea that those who drove should pay for the construction of roads, which seems as reasonable today as it did back then.
Now, however, we have a whole new set of issues, associated with the externalities of burning oil, including long-term environmental damage, challenges to national security, and threats to our health. For example, the people living within a mile on either side of the San Diego Freeway out here in sunny California have cancer rates that are many times the national average.
Perhaps a larger tax, perhaps in addition to a price floor, could help defray some of these costs, when providing incentives for people to rethink their approach to transportation.
Tiny particles that penetrate lung tissue called “PM 2.5” come largely as exhaust from burning coal to generate electricity, and have been linked to hundreds of thousands of premature deaths in certain parts of China, where their concentrations are often over 500 micrograms per cubic meter, more than 20 times the levels that the World Health Organization deems safe. Small wonder these people are upset with their government. I certainly wouldn’t want to live in air that looks like you can cut it with a knife, watching my family and friends drop like flies.
The world really needs to get rid of coal as soon as possible. We need a plan in place to do that. Why can’t we have one?
Here’s an article on the solar photovoltaics industry written by my colleague Shawn Kravetz (pictured), with whom I conducted a webinar on solar investing last year. By way of introduction to the article, Shawn writes:
We wanted to share two timely and important updates on a unique investment opportunity we brought to light in recent weeks. Renewable Energy Trade Board Corporation (EBODF) is detailed in the following article, but two items merit investor attention. (more…)
South America’s energy demands can be met in different ways, but most countries lean to hydro in one form or another. One of the reasons I’m so excited about the run-of-river hydro projects I’m trying to put together in Southern Brazil is that, in their absence, that country will soon commence work on what will become the second-largest hydroelectric dam on the planet. (more…)
In the last few years, people have realised the importance of living in eco-friendly homes. With technological advancements, green homes have become a lot easier to design and build. In fact, designers and architects can even hide eco-friendly and economical features of your two storey house in a very inconspicuous way. Making your two storey house green helps not only your finances, but also your surroundings. (more…)
Had Steve Jobs survived cancer, he would have celebrated his 59th birthday today. In addition to his other merits, Jobs led a very philosophic life; he once observed, “Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.” (more…)
