Archive: Jun 2012

17-year-old tells world leaders to step up, give her a future

Seventeen-year-old Brittany Trilford says it's time for presidents, prime ministers, and corporate bigwigs to stop destroying the planet. Later this month, she may get to deliver her message in person.

The new new hydropower: Small-scale turbines have big potential

Move over, big-ass dams. Hydropower is getting a makeover thanks to a new type of hydrokinetic turbine that runs in canals and spillways.

New Agtivist: Fixing school lunch in the nation’s capital

Meet Andrea Northrup, a 25-year-old working to bring local foods into the public schools of Washington, D.C.

Ask Umbra: Are we about to wreck space, too?

A reader asks if it’s ethical to mine asteroids. Umbra takes us on a voyage of discovery.

Facebook will sell me to you, and you to me

Facebook is going to try to turn personal relationships into an advertising medium. That will be a big turn-off -- and will spur the search for better alternatives.

NYC learns to heart bicycles

Just over a year ago, New York's transportation commissioner was raked over the coals for her romance with bikes. Now, it seems the city has fallen for them too.

Detroit turns a freeway into a river

No, it wasn't an artistic statement about transportation and modern society. It was a busted water main -- just the latest in a city and state where infrastructure has been neglected for far too long.

Friday music blogging: Cory Branan

Cory Branan is hard to pigeonhole, which is probably why he’s labored in obscurity for so long. He’s a singer-songwriter, but his mix of pathos, humor, and musical variety — the closest parallel probably being Branan’s hero John Prine — isn’t exactly built for radio. I was really into Branan’s debut album, The Hell You […]

Radiohead and 350.org: Mood music for a climate movement?

The band's introspective dread may not pump you up for a protest rally. But its willingness to face despair head on might be just what climate activists need.