solar power
-
A solar-powered cell phone charging station inspired by Occupy Wall Street
Tommy Mitchell wasn’t an Occupier, but when he visited Occupy Wall Street, he found out that OWSers were charging their cell phones at a hot dog vendor’s gas-guzzling generator, The New York Times reports. “I was like, ‘Well that’s awful,’” he said. That’s when he began thinking about inventing a device that could harness renewable […]
-
Critical List: Massive tariffs for Chinese solar panels; Bike to Work Day
The Commerce Department announced that the U.S. could put tariffs of up to 250 percent on Chinese solar panels imported into the country. It’s Bike to Work Day! First the Arizona Congress wanted crazy legislation to ban all government work on sustainability, now it’s the New Hampshire Congress. So trendy!
-
Critical List: Last 60 years were Australia’s hottest in a millennium; anti-whaling captain detained
Australia just experienced the 60 hottest years in the past millennium, according to a new report. And natural causes don’t explain the shift. China’s grid is not set up to deal with renewables. Anti-whaling captain Paul Watson, president of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, was detained in Germany for a decades-old violation of navigational regulations.
-
Solar-powered implants could help blind people see
A new research project from Stanford University bumps solar's do-gooder powers to a whole new level.
-
Going solar doesn’t mean you’re some weird pickler guy, say new ads
SunRun, a solar leasing company, has a handful of funny ads out.
-
Critical List: Head of ARPA-E resigns; Tim DeChristopher appeals his conviction
Arun Majumdar, the head of ARPA-E, the energy equivalent of DARPA, is stepping down next month. Today, Tim DeChristopher is appealing his conviction for disrupting a federal drilling auction. Europeans installed more solar power than any other kind of power last year.
-
Critical List: TransCanada reapplies for Keystone XL permit; Japan’s last nuclear reactor
TransCanada put in a new permit application for the Keystone XL pipeline. Japan switched off its last nuclear reactor. Fights over endangered species are about to get wild, as the Fish and Wildlife Service has to rule on protections for species that live in oil country.
-
In India, solar-powered ATMs use as much energy as a lightbulb
In urban America, getting money out of the bank means walking a block to the ATM. In rural India, the nearest bank branch might be a day’s journey away. But now a company called Vortex Engineering is using solar power to bring convenient banking to out-of-the-way villages. The key: The company’s ATMs are energy efficient. […]
-
India flips the switch on world’s largest solar power plant
The power plant has a field of solar panels the size of Lower Manhattan.