Latest Articles
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Suburban commutes are money-losers
A study of Washington and 27 other metropolitan areas by the Center for Housing Policy found that the costs of one-way commutes of as little as 12 to 15 miles -- roughly the distance between Gaithersburg and Bethesda -- cancel any savings on lower-priced outer-suburban homes.
More below.
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On climate denialists and Nuremberg
There are people and institutions knowingly disseminating falsehoods and distortions about global warming. They deserve to be held publicly accountable.
As to what shape that accountability would take, my analogy to the Nuremberg trials was woefully inappropriate -- nay, stupid. I retract it wholeheartedly.
More -- much more -- later.
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LEED is expanding to neighborhoods, and Doug Farr is leading the way
Doug Farr was heading into The Grind, a local fair-trade coffee spot in Chicago’s swanky Lincoln Square neighborhood, when he ran into Peter Nicholson, the organizer of the city’s monthly Green Drinks. The two well-heeled unofficial flag-wavers for the local green scene exchanged enthusiastic greetings, and began discussing the latest goings-on. Doug Farr. “Ugh. I’m […]
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Grist for the Military
Navy divers clean up coastal messes Navy divers are the latest crazy hippies clamoring to clean up coastal messes. For problems too expensive or vast for civilian government agencies to handle, military divers provide cutting-edge technology and finely tuned abilities — and in turn, they get to sharpen their diving skillz. This summer, Army and […]
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Axis of Upheaval
Wobbly earth may contribute to extinction of mammals, study finds Natural shifts in the earth’s orbit and axis correspond to the periodic emergence and extinction of rodents and likely other mammals as well, says a study published today in Nature. Researchers studying 22 million years of rodent fossil records in central Spain found that certain […]
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Drop Goes the Diesel
Most of U.S. diesel-fuel supply to be cleaner by next week Diesel fuel will get a major makeover this weekend, thanks to rules drawn up during the Clinton administration and set to take effect on Sunday. (The Bushies would like to get some credit too, for not quashing the rules, like they did so many […]
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The history of tree-hugging, and the future of name-calling
Anyone who ever sympathized with Eric Cartman‘s declaration, “I hate hippies! … I want to kick ’em in the nuts” probably finds the word “tree-hugger” useful — and plenty of other people dig the word, too. Maybe you’d rather be a vile SUV-cuddler? Photo: iStockphoto At this point, it’s hard to imagine the vocabulary of […]
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Is wood-framing a green building material?
Talk about "framing" these days, and many people will think about author and linguist George Lakoff, and the post-2004-election brouhaha about how to communicate, or "frame," political ideas.
But apparently, there's much more obscure debate going on about another kind of framing -- the kind of framing that goes into building a house.
It's a bit arcane, really. But the crux of the debate is this: should traditional wood-framing count as a "green" building technique? Or is something else, such as steel or concrete, a more environmentally friendly choice?
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Umbra on synthetic fabrics and kids
Dear Umbra, I have just recently learned about all these plastic-awareness issues and now wonder about polyester clothing, or any human-made fabric for that matter, on my children (three girls: 3, 5, and 7 years old). If plastics can leach out into their bodies, can clothing also affect them? Julie Roberts Nevada City, Calif. Dearest […]
