Nesmith's Notes

Green Tech News

• Ecuador National Park Uses Motion Sensors To Photograph Rare Species (VIDEO)
  In this video from Reuters, Yasuni National Park in Ecuador has installed cameras equipped with heat and motion sensors to photograph unsuspecting wildlife that walk into view. Using them to capture over 30,000 images, researchers have discovered new and rare species in this particular area of the Amazon. The nearly 2.5-million-acre park is home to thousands […]
• Bob Ostertag: Floods, Fires, Hipsters: Mission Accomplished
  And so it unfolds: Record flooding in Pakistan displaces millions, kills 1200, and cholera is starting to spread. It is 106.3°F in the Ukraine. Russian President Dmitri Medvedev reports that in 14 regions of Russia "practically everything is burning." A drought accompanying the heat wave has ruined 25 million acres of grain (about the size of Kentu […]
• Poo Power: VW Bug Runs On Methane Bio-Gas Or The Waste of 70 Homes
  POO POWER! GENeco, a waste treatment company in Bristol, UK set out to prove that bio-gas could be a reliable alternative transportation fuel, so they imported special equipment to help process their waste and upgraded a VW Bug to run on methane. Read more: Green Cars, Green Car, Green Vw Bug, Green Technology, Green Transportation, Methane Bio-Gas, VW Bug, […]
• Julia Moulden: Yes, You Can Save the World at Work
  As much of the world suffers through a stifling summer, one corporate team is keeping close watch on the solar panels on their building's roof -- which quadrant is producing the most energy? It's a sign of things to come, and I want to share their story. But, first, a little background. When I began writing about the New Radicals, people who are pu […]
• Smart Grids, Smarter H20, and Mad Science
  As IBM works towards smarter cities and a smarter planet, they've got to cover all of their bases: this means factoring in everything from water conservation, to health care, to energy and smart grids. But what is a smart grid anyway? While it sounds good to us we're not entirely sure what it is, so we checked in with IBM's resident mad scient […]
• Louis Palmer: Solar Taxi Driver Plans Zero Emissions Race Around The World
  GENEVA — A Swiss inventor who last year circumnavigated the globe in a solar taxi says four teams will follow in his tire tracks next week. Louis Palmer says the teams from Australia, Germany, South Korea and Switzerland will fire up their electric vehicles Aug. 16 in Geneva in an effort to race around the world in 80 days without producing any carbon emissi […]
• The Tale of a Smarter Planet
  A butterfly flaps its wings in China and sometime later a thunderstorm occurs in Chicago? Not buying the butterfly effect? We've all heard it in some form, but IBMers are taking the concept and applying to the thousands of systems at work across the globe, showing us how interacted they are. When a natural disaster occurs on one part of the planet, it c […]
• Solar Vehicles: Innovative Transportation Designs Powered By The Sun (PHOTOS)
  From The Daily Green's Jim Motavalli: Everybody likes the idea of solar-powered vehicles, but it's easier to imagine as science fiction than it is to make real. But when an airplane recently took a 24-hour solar-powered flight - and landed safely - it got everyone fired up again. So here's a look at various forms of transportation driven by th […]
• Iceland Could Become Electric Car Capital Of The World
  Iceland -- with renewable energy almost too cheap to meter and a small, tech-savvy population -- is the perfect candidate for electric cars. The challenge is to get the world to pay attention. Read more: Electric Cars Iceland, Iceland Renewable Energy, Iceland Electric Cars, Renewable Energy Iceland, Green Technology, Green News […]
• Wax And Soap May Be Key To Better Rechargeable Batteries
  Rechargeable batteries are not all that great yet. In fact, in a question posted to Pablo Paster in our "Ask Pablo" series, the inquiry wasn't which rechargeable batteries to use, but "Why do rechargeable batteries suck?" But researchers are working on ways to improve them so they last longer per charge and have more recharge cycles […]
• Thermographic Infrared Maps Used To Highlight Energy Consumption (VIDEO)
  Thermographic infrared maps are being used in Antwerp, Belgium to put the spotlight on buildings' energy consumption, Reuters reports. The birds-eye view offers residents the ability to compare their energy conservation with that of their neighbors, and often prompts those with poor findings to seek out home remodeling efforts that will better conserve […]
• Whiskey Biofuel Created By Scottish Scientists Can Be Used In Conventional Cars
  LONDON (AP) -- How about a whisky to go? Scientists said they have developed biofuel for cars from waste produced in distilling Scotch whisky. Researchers at Edinburgh Napier University produced a type of fuel called butanol using "pot ale" - the liquid residue from copper stills - and "draff," or leftover grain. They said it can be used […]
• Cameron Brooks: Water Management: The Path to a Better Future
  Last year, I read a Wall Street Journal report that water managers in 36 states expect shortages by the year 2013. Why? The reasons are complex, but in a nutshell, the supply can't keep up with the demand. The world's population tripled in the 20th century, and according to the World Water Council, the use of renewable water resources has grown six […]
• Anna Bullus Recycles Chewing Gum Into Rubber That Could Replace Plastic
  Designer Anna Bullus read the statistics of the gum problem in London -- that the government spends £150 million annually to clean up gum, over 30,000 pieces of which end up stuck to Oxford street alone each day -- and she decided there must be a better way to deal with the problem. So, she headed to the laboratory and came up with a way to transform chewed […]
• David Sandalow: Electric Cars Are 'Patriotic' Says Department Of Energy Assistant Secretary
  WASHINGTON — David Sandalow starts his five-mile commute each day by unplugging an orange extension cord connecting his Toyota Prius hybrid to an outlet in his brick carport. His Prius, which was converted two years ago to allow him to recharge the battery from an electric outlet, gets more than 80 miles per gallon and lets him drive 30 miles on a single cha […]
• The Kestrel: Hemp Electric Car Being Developed By Motive Industries Inc.
  An electric car made of hemp is being developed by a group of Canadian companies in collaboration with an Alberta Crown corporation. Read more: Electric Car Hemp, Pot Car, Hemp Car, Cannabis Car, Motive Industries, Green Technology, Kestrel Hemp, Kestrel, Marijuana Car, Kestrel Electric Car, Hemp Electric Car, Motive Industries Kestrel, Kestrel Car, Kestrel […]
• 1 Bryant Park Tower Gets LEED Platinum Certification (PHOTOS)
  From Inhabitat.com: One Bryant Park in midtown Manhattan was already being called the greenest skyscraper in the world when it opened last year, and now it's taken that title even further by achieving LEED Platinum certification! Designed by Cook+Fox Architects and built by Tishman Construction Corporation, the tower is now not only a marvel of innovati […]
• Plant Plastic Made From Waste Stronger And More Sustainable Than Corn-Based Plastics
  One of the major sticking points for making plastics from plants such as corn is that it takes a lot of fossil fuel and resources to grow a crop, just to turn it into plastic that is still difficult to recycle. The pros of plant-based plastics don't really out-weigh the cons. But what if bioplastic could be made from plant waste that is on hand anyway? […]
• Electric Sports Car Drives From Alaska To Argentina (VIDEO)
  A group of British students has set out on a 15,000-mile road trip, taking their electric sports car across the Pan-American Highway, a series of roadways stretching from Alaska to Argentina. The team hopes their journey will change negative perceptions people may have about electric cars. "A lot of people think electric vehicles are slow, or they' […]
• International Space Station Scientists May Grow Space Crystals For More Efficient Solar Cells
  Scientists are planning to use the space station to grow a new kind of crystal for use in solar cells by 2013. They say the vacuum conditions in space improve the quality of thin film crystals, giving them properties that are unachievable on Earth. Read more: International Space Station, Iss Crystals, Space Crystals, Space Station Crystals, Molecular Beam Ep […]

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