Summer Mountain Stream wallpaper, Environmentally friendly organic lubricants, First Hydrogen Fuel Cell-Powered Plane

Summer Mountain Stream wallpaper

Industrial Lubricants Go Green With Ricin And Cellulose

Researchers have developed an environmentally-friendly lubricating grease based on ricin oil and cellulose derivatives, according to the journal Green Chemistry. Bonus: the new formula does not include any of the contaminating components used to manufacture traditional industrial lubricants.

Its was indicated in the story otherwise so we can assume that is that same ricin mentioned in news reports and espionage thrillers extracted from the castor-oil manufacturing waste. Ricin oil does break down in the environment and adults are unlikely to eat a glob of lubricating oil so probably poses less of a threat then the reported millions of tons of petroleum derivatives and synthetic lubricants released into our waterways and oceans every year. Organic industrial lubricants are still in the research phase, but seem to hold a lot of promise.

NASA Satellite Shows Older Arctic Sea Ice Volume Cut By More Than Half In Just Last 4 Years

NASA scientist Jay Zwally said global warming is to blame. He said rapidly shrinking sea ice in the Arctic warms the rest of the globe indirectly. Older ice is more important in the Arctic because it is thicker, surviving the heat of summer and building over time.

First Hydrogen Fuel Cell-Powered Plane Takes to the Skies

Antares DLR-H2The world’s first plane powered solely by hydrogen fuel cells took off on its maiden flight Tuesday from Hamburg Airport in Germany. The Antares DLR-H2’s 10-minute flight showed off the plane’s 105-mph-speed capabilities and quiet electric glide motor. Eventually, the German Aerospace Center-sponsored Antares will be able to hit 300 mph.

Antares DLR-H2 world's first plane powered solely by hydrogen fuel cells

The most imminent plans for hydrogen fuel cells is for commercial aircraft as a source of auxiliary power. I wonder if hydrogen fuel cell powered drones wouldn’t make for good delivery vehicles for things like mail and  packages.

Tundra and Mountains wallpaper, What’s in your expensive bottled water, Public lags on science literacy curve

Tundra and Mountains wallpaper

What’s in that bottle? Congress says water unclear

Bottled water makers make millions off people who believe their products are purer than tap water, but consumers do not realize that they are less regulated than plain old tap water, according to a U.S. Congressional report released on Wednesday.

A GAO report stated that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s authority does not include standards for bottled water. So if someone should test some water and find potentially harmful impurities, the FDA’s ability to take action is limited. Startling statistics from the same article: it takes 2,000 times more energy to transport and produce bottled water then tap water and bottled water is 1,900 times more expensive. Since there seems to be a constant stream of TV ads for bottled water – TV spots can run as high as a  hundred thousand dollars plus for a minute in prime time – much of the costs is convincing people to buy it.

Survey Shows Gap Between Scientists and the Public

On the whole, scientists believe American research leads the world. But only 17 percent of the public agrees, and the proportion who name scientific advances as among the United States’ most important achievements has fallen to 27 percent from nearly 50 percent in 1999, the survey found.

….According to the survey, about a third of Americans think there is lively scientific debate on both topics; in fact, there is no credible scientific challenge to the theory of evolution and there is little doubt that human activity is altering the chemistry of the atmosphere in ways that threaten global climate.

Disappointing, but not shocking. The general public has been behind the curve on science since Nicolaus Copernicus and his finding that the earth was not the center of the universe. In this 2007 article on scientific literacy, Scientific Literacy: How Do Americans Stack Up?, it notes

Why is it important to have a population wise in the ways of science? Miller listed several reasons, including the need for a more sophisticated work force; a need for more scientifically literate consumers, especially when it comes to purchasing electronics; and, equally as important, a scientifically literate electorate who can help shape public policy.

“Over recent decades, the number of public policy controversies that require some scientific or technical knowledge for effective participation has been increasing,” he said. “Any number of issues, including the siting of nuclear power plants, nuclear waste disposal facilities, and the use of embryonic stem cells in biomedical research point to the need for an informed citizenry in the formulation of public policy.”

To be classified as “scientifically literate,” Miller said one must be able to understand approximately 20 of 31 scientific concepts and terms similar to those that would be found in articles that appear in the New York Times weekly science section and in an episode of the PBS program “NOVA.”

The same article also says that Americans are doing better then some other countries at general science knowledge, with 28 percent of American adults rated as scientifically literate. On the other hand 28% is still an F.

Affordable green housing easily achievable

In Seattle this summer, Vulcan Real Estate proved that dense urban living can be both sustainable and affordable.

The Borealis Apartments project

It lists some of the particulars like Energy Star appliances and water saving fixtures, but does not say anything about energy features such as solar water heating. I got to this link through a news wire report that did not have a picture and feared the building was so dreary looking they didn’t want to show it, but as you can see from the small screen cap its has a nice clean modern look. The main site is here with a bigger photo.

Rainforest Waterfall wallpaper, Incentives could cut wind power installations by more then 50 percent

Rainforest Waterfall wallpaper

USDA Small Wind Turbine Grants Cover 25% of All Costs – Applications due July 31, 2009

Farmers, ranchers and rural business owners have until July 31, 2009 to apply for the USDA Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) grants. The grants provide funds to purchase and install small wind turbines (or other renewable energy systems). Farmers, ranchers and rural business owners are eligible for grants to cover 25% of the total installed cost of the small wind turbine system. These USDA grants, when used in conjunction with the Federal Investment Tax Credit (ITC), can help a farmer install a small wind turbine system for roughly 50% of the normal cost.

Some rural areas have power co-operatives that might also add some funds to the mix of incentives, so those that were considering investing in a wind energy system might want to check with their co-op. Some web sites that might provide further info: * USDA Rural Development Offices (http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/scrty/sdirs.html)
* Database of State Incentives for Renewable Energy (DSIRE) (www.dsireusa.org)
* American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) (www.awea.org)

New Report Cites Renewable Energy Development as Key for Growing Missouri’s Rural Economy

Among the key findings in the report:

* Wind power -the operation of 25 moderate-scale wind farms would provide thousands of construction jobs, 550 permanent construction jobs, $15 million in property tax revenues, and $75 million in ongoing positive local economic impact in Missouri.
* Biofuels – Cellulosic ethanol, which is made from crop waste and nonfood plants, is the future of smart biofuels, and Missouri is perfectly situated to become a center of its production. Biofuel produced from existing waste biomass alone could create thousands of jobs, hundreds of millions of dollars of economic activity, and $13,000 in annual gross income for the average Missouri corn farmer.
* Solid Biomass (Biopower) – Electric power that combines solid biomass (from dedicated non-food energy crops and crop residues) with coal at existing plants would be a relatively low-cost way to ramp up renewable resource usage across the state, as it avoids a massive investment in new facilities. Replacing 20 percent of Missouri’s coal usage with locally grown biomass would create an estimated 11,000 jobs.
* Biogas – Methane from decomposing manure is a powerful greenhouse gas and also a relatively clean and efficient fuel when burned for energy. Biogas production from cattle waste would be profitable at more than 200 large-scale livestock operations in 60 Missouri counties.

I’m not a proponent of biofuels, but turning bio-waste that might otherwise be simply waste for fuel is another matter. Even those who are not readers in Missouri, the same approach might apply. Currently Missouri, like many states, not only gets most of its power from coal, it has to have the coal shipped in from out of state.

First Drug Shown to Extend Life Span in Mammals

In the new study, researchers found that rapamycin given to mice as a food supplement starting at 20 months of age–the equivalent of 60 years in humans–extended average life span by 9 percent in males and 13 percent in females. “It’s particularly exciting because it works so late in life to extend life span,” says Sinclair. “The fact that you can give a drug after 20 months of age in a mouse and still see a life-span extension is striking.”

A drug that might do the same for humans is probably not just around the corner research wise. One of the problems with taking rapamycin, currently given to organ transplant patients so their body with not reject the new organs, it hobbles your immune system. Making it easier to get a potentially lethal infection.

Vivid Blue Pond wallpaper, Monkeys know their syllables

Vivid Blue Pond wallpaper

Coincidence or devious plan, either way there is a wonderful diary entry by a contrbutor at DKos here, Tiny Treasures By A Small Pond: A Photo-essay. Takes a while to load on slower connections. Lots of herons, dragonflies and other pond denizens.

Studies on monkeys have revealed clues about the evolution of language

In the journal Biology Letters, researchers said that cotton-top tamarins are able to spot if the order of syllables in a word is “wrong”.

They familiarised the monkeys with two-syllable terms, and recorded their reaction to words that were not consistent with that syllable pattern.

The team says the work illustrates how many animals use patterns that have become intrinsic to human language.

And this provides evidence of the “non-lingual” origin of certain aspects of language, the group told BBC News.

This might also help explain the evolution of people who feel their linguistic skills are so extraordinary, they’re obligated to constantly correct other people’s grammar.

A California issue, but as water for domestic, agricultural and business uses increase, the kind of silliness many localities may find themselves having to deal with, The Budget-Busting Peripheral Canal and the Three Big Lies

Big Lie #1: No Dams for 30 Years

The false contention that no dams or water infrastructure have been built since the 1970’s was the “Big Lie #1″ used in the summer of 2007 by Schwarzenegger and the water barons to promote the peripheral canal. “Do you know that for 20 years, well, actually since the late ’70s, they have not built a dam?” Schwarzenegger stated at a town meeting in Bakersfield in July 14, 2007. “I mean, think about that. They have not built a dam.”

Actually, numerous dams, reservoirs and groundwater banks have been built in recent years, amounting to 6,200,00 acre-feet of water since 1990, according to data compiled by Spreck Rosecrans, a economic analyst for Environmental Defense. Some of the surface storage reservoirs constructed during this period include:
• San Justo Reservoir in Hollister
• Los Vaqueros Reservoir (100,000 acre feet of water) in Livermore
• The Metropolitan Water District’s massive Diamond Valley Reservoir (800,000 acre feet of water) in Southern California

However, virtually all of the economically and environmentally feasible dam sites in California have been already been used. The two dams that Schwarzenegger and his allies are proposing, Sites Dam in the Sacramento Valley and Temperance Dam on the San Joaquin River, are not considered to be economically feasible for the amount of additional water storage they would provide.

When thinking about water storage and redirection of that water, dams are not the only offenders. Canals built specially to redirect water to farms is common practice. The rivers from which this redirected water is siphoned do not magically create new water to replace the bleed off water.

To me best aspect of Google’s Chrome operating system is the potential to make computing and net access more affordable, Five Things Google’s Chrome OS Will Do for Your Netbook.

Summer Ocean wallpaper

Canoe on Lake wallpaper, Saving the salmon and the 500 other species, Largest sandstorm in modern history

Canoe on Lake wallpaper

Saving the Columbia and Snake river salmon

Throughout this stalemate, fish counts have continued to fall, and the underlying science is clear: In river after river where dams have been removed, native fish populations have rebounded and thrived. As the government’s former chief aquatic biologist, Don Chapman, concluded, dam removal is the most effective strategy for saving endangered native fish stocks from extinction.

….Dozens of reports by natural resources economists have agreed. Among other things, they describe the dams as economic sinkholes, which produce less than 3% of the region’s power, do nothing for flood control, irrigate only a handful of big farms and subsidize transportation costs (at the expense of taxpayers and salmon) for wheat farmers in Idaho and eastern Washington.

The Columbia-Snake corridor is the salmon’s only option for survival, and Redden is probably their last hope. He is the one person in this entire drama who is legally obligated to use science and the law to protect the fish from extinction and from the whims of politicians.

It borders on heresy to even suggest dam removal. Once built they tend to stay for generations. So long that people forget the land that had to be bought to build it, the easements that required compensation, the land that was there is no longer usable, the incredible expense to build them and the citizens displaced. Then once built they do produce relatively cheap electricity(though in generations past we were awful at doing cost-benefits analysis of such big water diversion projects) and benefit a few people (sometimes in other states). Despite the protests of one person cited in the report, the EPA in conjunction with other federal and state agencies can began the process to remove a dam. Though it is considerably more difficult to remove a dam in terms of bureaucratic processes, then to build one.

Sandstorm In Middle East May Be Largest In Modern History

Dust plumes hovered over most of Iraq on July 3, 2009, as the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite passed overhead. This true-color image shows thick dust between Syria and the Iraq-Iran border. Over northwestern Iraq, the dust takes on a strangely textured appearance: a combination of small bumps and curving waves. Air currents likely sculpted the upper layer of the massive dust cloud.

Sandstorm In Middle East July 2009 NASA photo

Sandstorm In Middle East July 2009

One of those natural phenomenon that has the wow that’s so cool effect, combined with feeling bad for the folks that have to live through it.The sand cloud is covering the entire country of Iraq and a good chunk of Iran and Saudi Arabia.

The Great Barbecue Debate – Is charcoal bad for the planet?

* There is going to be more carbon emissions from charcoal then natural gas

* Charcoal emissions might be offset if you buy charcoal that is made from sawdust that comes from tree stands that are replanted. Its often difficult to tell from the package labeling. Slate mentions Wicked Good Charcoal.

* If you use natural gas, once used its a resource that is gone for good. If you use charcoal, besides the particulate matter from the coals emitted into the air, most people use a lighter fluid which also adds to the pollution side of the equation. They mention using a  chimney starter rather then fluid. That stills leaves you with the issue of ash disposal. Ash can be a good addition to your compost, but that ash will contain some contaminants.