Latest Articles
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Republican Congressional candidate says main priority is energy reform
While Oregon Sen. Gordon Smith (R.) tries to fuzz his ties to the GOP and his unswerving devotion to the Bush agenda (in between lurches to the center around election time), at least Oregon voters in the First District have a choice that's actually interesting: either Democrat David Wu, considered a huge disappointment and one of the least effective members of Congress (he's so lame that even the Oregonian, who typically only stops endorsing incumbents after they've been six feet under for months, endorsed his primary opponent) or this guy.
I don't know if that guy's got any of the right answers, but he's sure got the right questions.
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Manufactured Landscapes is as good as they say
Obviously I need to watch movies faster. Almost a year ago today I posted about wanting to watch Manufactured Landscapes, featuring the work of photographer Edward Burtynsky, mainly shot in China. I finally got around to it.Not only is the movie visually arresting, but it is very, very disturbing.
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Friday music blogging: Sigur Ros
I have a soft spot in my heart for Icelandic band Sigur Rós (pronounced see-gur rose). I was listening to their second album Ágætis Byrjun frequently when my wife was pregnant with our first child. We used to watch ultrasound videos with it playing along as a soundtrack (highly recommended). It was playing in the […]
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Mercedes to offer a petroleum-free lineup by 2015
In the next seven years, Mercedes-Benz wants to eliminate petroleum-powered vehicles from its lineup. According to AutoblogGreen, "The German giant is working on a variety of technologies that will help provide crude oil free transport such as battery electrics, fuel cells and highly efficient internal combustion engines that can operate on biofuels."
The automaker already has two new powertrains in either the concept or trial stages of development. The concept F700, which debuted in Frankfurt in fall 2007, is powered by a DiesOtto engine that combines Homogenous Charge Compression Ignition with spark ignition to get nearly the same efficiency as a diesel engine. According to the EcoGeek post, "The engine can run on biofuels, and we may have a purchasable vehicle by 2010."
Last week, Phil Lanning of the Sun (U.K.) gleefully reviewed the F700 on the track in Seville, Spain.
Of more interest to auto consumers on the left side of the pond: Mercedes also intends to offer an electric Smart ForTwo. Currently, one hundred of these adorable multi-colored vehicles scampering around London are already electric (and getting free parking -- but not for long!). Yet the official market release will not occur until 2010. Mercedes intends to offer an electric version of another model but has been tight-lipped about which one. Rumors, however, abound.
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A weekly roundup of greenish news from the Capitol
Some political news debris from this week: • The League of Conservation Voters announced today that they’ve created the first green bundling site. This allows folks to donate en masse to green candidates around the country. LCV will direct the funds to the candidates it will support this year in Senate and House races. • […]
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Snippets from the news
• Feds recommend 4,400 new natural gas wells in Wyoming. • New Jersey utilities get MTBE settlement. • States shorten work week to save gas. • Delegates choose not to ban toxic waste exports. • Oil hits record high.
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From Yellin’ to Melon
Are you yella? Kids driving you crazy? Steer ’em onto this trike: the louder they scream, the farther away they’ll go. The shitty by the bay San Franciscans will flush with pride when they honor the nation’s Number One with a building that filters their number two. The soon-to-be George W. Bush Sewage Plant is […]
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What drove the dramatic retreat of arctic sea ice during summer 2007?
Funny you should ask. That is the title of an analysis published this month in Geophysical Research Letters ($ub. req'd) by four scientists from the Polar Science Center, Applied Physics Laboratory, College of Ocean and Fishery Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle. What did they conclude?
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How the organic movement can regain its relevance
Buying organic makes you feel good … but does it make you think? On June 25, I spoke at the Organic Summit in Boulder, Colo., to an audience consisting largely of people who work in the organic food industry. This column is an adapted version of my talk. In his wildly popular satirical blog Stuff […]
