Climate Technology
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The trucks of the future will have skirts, tails, and fins
This month, the White House announced the first-ever fuel efficiency standards for heavy trucks — heavy pick-ups, work vans and trucks (think the Frito-Lay delivery guy), and tractor-trailers. The people who make these behemoths have never had to think about fuel economy before, but now they do. And there's lots of room for improvement.
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Critical List: Hurricane Irene headed for East Coast; EPA totally creates jobs
East Coasters may not know what do in an earthquake, but a hurricane's coming, too. That, we know about.
The Obama administration is looking into "leasing" nuclear fuel from other countries, which would let American plants use the uranium, then return it for disposal once the fuel is spent. It’s like a bottle-return program, but with much higher stakes.
Chinese consumers want cars, not those namby pamby EVs.
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You shouldn’t be able to buy soda with food stamps
The USDA has rejected New York City's proposal to block the use of food stamps to buy soda. Anti-hunger advocates joined the soft-drink industry in rejoicing, but they've got it all wrong.
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Do your clothes contain toxic chemicals?
Chemicals in clothing can break down in water into hormone-disrupting nonylphenol (click the infographic to embiggen). If you want to avoid dumping this crap in the waterways, you have two choices: One, never wash your clothing -- which, on top of being gross, will probably not be that effective, since wastewater discharges from textile plants sluiced nonylphenol out into the waterways before your clothes even hit the store. Or two, opt for clothing from companies that don't use nonylphenol-producing chemicals (called nonylphenol ethoxylates, or NPEs). According to research from Greenpeace, though, that might be tough. Of the 15 brands they tested for NPEs, only Gap had zero positive results.
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Critical List: Climategate scientist cleared; Halliburton exec drinks fracking fluid
The National Science Foundation found Michael Mann, a scientist at the center of Climategate, did nothing wrong. You don’t say.
Ford and Toyota are going to be working together on technology for hybrid trucks and SUVs.
Apparently Michele Bachmann wants to the United States to become an Iran-like state where oil is government-subsidized. How else to explain her continued, irrational insistence that gas will be $2 per gallon during her presidency? -
One billion cars clog traffic worldwide
India and Brazil are also helping to accelerate worldwide auto sales -- and greenhouse-gas emissions.
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The New York Times thinks the tar-sands pipeline sucks. Here’s why.
The New York Times has come out with an editorial position on the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline, and it’s unusually definitive, considering that we still have news media trying to represent “both sides” of the climate change “debate.” Here’s how they break it down.
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How old is your phone? I bet mine is older
Planned obsolescence is morphing into desired obsolescence: Customers want gadgets to wear out so they'll have a good excuse to buy a new one. But some of us cheapskates aren't playing along.
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Google's open-source, wireless, smartphone-controlled lightbulb
Google continues to roll out new details about its wirelessly-controlled “smart” lightbulb, which gets around all the problems usually associated with making a home energy-aware. The latest: the company is working on open-source software that will run on the lightbulbs themselves.
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Why Michele Bachmann thinks she can get gas under $2 a gallon
Michele Bachmann isn't crazy -- she's just horribly misinformed. At least in this particular instance: When Bachmann promised that if she became president, gas would be under $2 a gallon, her statement was entirely consistent with the voodoo alternate energy universe she and countless right-wing conspiracy theorists happen to inhabit.