computers
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Like your dinner, your gadgets come from somewhere
While writing about food politics on my Dell "Latitude" laptop, I often daydream about a sleek new MacBook Air or MacBook Pro. (And an iPad, and maybe an iPhone.) Or at least I did -- until I read about the conditions of the workers who make them. Why do we spend so much time thinking about where our food comes from, while ignoring the origins of the latest tech craze?
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IBM lets you use your laptop to solve the global water crisis
Your laptop can join IBM's Worldwide Community Grid, a global network of linked personal computers that's doing important water experiments.
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Ask Umbra on the word “green,” DIY laundry detergent, and computer batteries
Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, Whenever I read the word “green” in quotation marks, I get the same sensation as when I hear nails on a chalkboard. Can you help me understand how this practice came about and what differentiates something as being “green” vs. just plain old green (sans quotation marks)? […]
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Ask Umbra on keyboard cleaners, automatic composters, and book club
Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, I work in an office that is fairly environmentally conscious. However, we have a coworker who religiously sprays keyboard cleaner. How do I confront my coworker without sounding like an eco-turd? I’m just not thrilled about becoming infertile or dying. Suffocating in Seattle A. Dearest Suffocating, Is […]
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Ask Umbra’s pearls of wisdom on sleeping
Dearest readers, Yawn. Goodness me, I could use a nap — perhaps a nice long eight-hour nap to celebrate National Sleep Awareness Week and prep for Daylight Saving Time starting on Sunday (don’t forget to spring forward!). While I go catch a few z’s, enjoy my troll through the archives to snag slumber-related suggestions. Got […]
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Apple’s new iPad is deep green, but a planet saver? Nope.
The iPad.Photo: Apple This post is reprinted courtesy of GreenerComputing.com. The day that gadget-lovers have been waiting for with bated breath for months if not years has finally arrived. On Wednesday, just after 10 a.m., Steve Jobs unveiled the iPad — something along the lines of a blown-up version of the iPhone. Weighing 1.5 pounds, […]
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Cash for … other things!
So Congress approved and President Obama signed an extension of the hugely popular (and not-really-so-green) cash-for-clunkers program. Woohoo! We can think of some better “Cash for …” programs the government should be funding … Cash for computers—Think of the power savings. Not to mention the peace of a Twitter-free life. Cash for cookies—Your sweet tooth […]
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Power Down for the Planet video contest issues challenge for greener computing
As an online-only publication using tree-free pencils (also known as “computers”), Grist is familiar with the energy-sucking pitfalls of internet technology. Which is why we think it’s so swell that the Climate Savers Computing Initiative (CSCI) is ganging up with the EPA’s ENERGY STAR program for some new-fashioned video contest fun a la Power Down […]
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Letting your electronics contribute to climate change is so offensive
If you're reading this, you probably spend a decent amount of time in front of your computer each day, hitting the refresh button in hopes there will be a new Gristmill post to light up your otherwise meaningless life. Now you can further your contribution to the world with a few more simple clicks, thanks to new software available at localcooling.com.