Latest Articles
-
![]()
![]()
Embattled teen genius actually better, smarter than most people
Back in August, the Internet discovered Aidan Dwyer, a 13-year-old go-getter who worked out a way to make solar panels more efficient. Because nobody likes a 13-year-old go getter, the Internet basically told him NO YOU'RE WRONG.
Okay, so he should have measured power instead of voltage when testing his solar panel design. But it turns out Dwyer is totally getting the last laugh here, and is proving that nerdy 13-year-old go-getters actually are just better at life than most people on the Internet. Dwyer's spoken at PopTech's annual innovation conference and is scheduled to speak at the World Future Energy Summit. -
![]()
![]()
The birds and the weeds: A farm conservation love story
A recent study shows that weeds on farms are crucial to keeping birds and other wildlife alive.
-
Midas Triumphant: The Climate Year in Review
Events of 2011 show that no matter how solid the science, some people will never accept that humans are causing global warming. So how can we cut the Gordian Knot that is manmade global warming? by Auden Schendler, reposted from the Atlantic One version of the myth of King Midas holds that he was not […]
-
![]()
![]()
Paris had the High Line before the High Line was cool
Oh, New York. You think that you've got a cool new idea, but always (always!) Europe beats you to it. NYC’s been getting all kinds of excited about its High Line park, an abandoned train platform converted into a wonderland of local plants, awesome places to sit and people-watch, and hibiscus ice pop vendors. But at TreeHugger, Alex Davies points out that NYC is just a couple decades late to the elevated park party. For almost 20 years, Parisians have been enjoying a stroll above city streets on the Viaduc des Arts. And just like the High Line, the elevated platform is a converted rail line.
-
![]()
![]()
Photos: What America looked like before the EPA
In 1972, the year-old EPA had photographers traverse the country to document the (often dire) state of the environment. This project, Documerica, was "the visual echo of the mission of the EPA," according to one photographer. Now, 40 years later, archive specialist Jerry Simmons has unearthed the photos and put them online at the National Archives website and on Flickr. It's a time capsule of life before the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts.
-
Critical List: Patagonia becomes a Benefit Corporation; oil industry threatens Obama
Patagonia has become a Benefit Corporation, which means it can prioritize goals other than profit.
The oil industry is sending a message to Obama: Approve the Keystone XL pipeline, or face the political music in 2012.
It is possible to avoid earthquakes when disposing of fracking wastewater. It's just really, really expensive.
The U.S. isn't the only country leery of the EU's carbon trading airline scheme: China's protesting, too. -
![]()
![]()
Get your green New Year’s resolutions right here
Still deciding how to enhance and eco-ify your life in 2012? We rounded up resolutions from Grist readers and staffers to give you some ideas.
-
![]()
![]()
What the Times’ organic tomato story missed: Golf courses
Farming organic winter tomatoes in Mexico definitely has its problems, but Del Cabo's Larry Jacobs says water isn't one of them.
-
![]()
![]()
My New Year’s resolution
I'm an analyzer, dissector, chopper-upper, drawn to flaws and inconsistencies like itches that need scratching. But there are limits to that sort of thing.
-
![]()
![]()
Goths are the darkest treehuggers ever
Goths have been communing with nature since way before all you hippies. They commune with nature in much the same way as they commune with gravestones, i.e. by draping themselves over it in corsets and taking pictures. Maybe I just love the Goths Up Trees Tumblr because I've committed a goth-in-a-tree photo or two in my time, but also it's hilarious.
