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GOP rep hopes to shatter his own lightbulb legislation

Republican Fred Upton is pushing the repeal of his 2007 lightbulb efficiency measure after the Tea Party attacked it.

Umbra takes on 25 dares in 25 days

Ask Umbra takes on a new sustainable living dare every day for 25 days.

Germany says auf wiedersehen to nuclear power

Some see Germany's nuclear phase-out as an overreaction to Fukushima, but really it's a smart move toward a low-carbon economy.

Do you live near America's Fukushima?

This infographic from 1BOG.org — click for the much bigger original, which has details about all the plants — shows at-risk nuclear facilities in the United States. Most of the ones situated in high-population areas (the larger gray circles) don't coincide with the high seismic risk areas (yellow and red), so that's comforting … but […]

Going rogue: USDA may have just opened the GMO floodgates

Did the USDA just open the floodgates to unlimited, unregulated planting of new genetically engineered crops? It sure looks that way.

Think you're so smart, humans? Even fish can use tools

Tool use: It's not just for humans anymore. Actually, it hasn't been just for humans for a long while -- yet another form of homo sapiens exceptionalism we're having to learn to do without. But now it's not just for humans, apes, monkeys, certain birds, and possibly octopuses: There's documented evidence that fish can use tools too. Take that, practically everything except fish! You're not so smart after all.

Strip-mining the Moon: Bad idea, or the worst idea?

As a millennial, I don't share boomers' enthusiasm for the power of science to solve all problems. So when someone says that strip-mining the Moon for rocks rich in helium-3, heating the rocks to harvest the helium, and using that helium for nuclear fusion will solve the world's energy problems, I am inclined to say, “Ha! You power-mad old person, you are living in a science fiction story.” But that, in fact, may be the direction humanity is heading in, moon-wise.

 

Why do cities drive us crazy?

Studies have repeatedly shown that rates of mental illness are higher in cities. We still don't know exactly why, but neuroscience is on the job.

DuPont herbicide may have caused mysterious tree plague

Millions of dollars worth of spruce and pine trees across the country have mysteriously withered and died in the past few months. The likely culprit is an herbicide marketed as a way to control lawn pests like dandelions.

The herbicide is Imprelis, a new product from DuPont. It was supposed to be better for the environment than its predecessors and has been sold at a premium to professional landscapers. DuPont claims it "may not have been mixed properly or was applied with other herbicides." Landscapers just want to know if they're going to have to pay to replace the trees that died on their watch.

Thomas Edison would have loved energy-efficient bulbs

Thomas Edison's great-grandson, David Edison Sloane, is not mincing words when it comes to the GOP wanting to repeal energy-efficiency standards for light bulbs:

As an inventor, Edison would have no interest in turning back the legislative clock. The wizard of Menlo Park dedicated himself to advancing human comfort, not freeze life as we knew it in 1879.

Oh snap! Edison's great-grandson just called you retrogressive.