http://www.surfacetension.org The Environment & Technology Blog Thu, 23 Apr 2009 15:17:28 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en You may recognize author Paul Roberts from the documentary Who Killed the Electric Car? (I did, at least :) ) I have just finished reading his excellent book, The End of Oil: On the Edge of a Perilous New World, which will now be added to our book list. Here are ... http://www.surfacetension.org/?p=111 Rei at Daily Kos is currently running an interesting series analyzing the economics and feasibility, as well as current state and future outlooks of electric vehicles. Rei possesses considerable technical knowledge on the subject, and is confident that EVs are the answer, based on well-backed arguments and facts. The gist of ... http://www.surfacetension.org/?p=110 In the past couple of weeks, I coincidentally came across some related pieces about a major shaping force of the relatively affluent population groups in the world today: suburban living. With the recent oil price hike, it turns out that the trend is becoming less popular in the United States ... http://www.surfacetension.org/?p=109 Did you know that in 2005 alone, all the network controllers (in computers, switches, routers, etc.) in the United States consumed 5.3 terawatt-hours of energy, sufficient to keep 6 billion 100-watt lightbulbs shining for a full year? As the May issue of IEEE Spectrum reports, a major reason for this ... http://www.surfacetension.org/?p=108 The BBC reports that Dubai is to build towers that rotate continuously, so they will "never look the same, not even in a lifetime". The towers consist of 80 floors, and each floor is a seperate apartment. Obviously, this will only be the playground of the rich and famous (expected ... http://www.surfacetension.org/?p=107 It was widely reported that LS9, a startup company in Silicon Valley, claims to have genetically modified E.coli to excrete crude oil, and they further claim the process is carbon negative: LS9’s bugs are single-cell organisms, each a fraction of a billionth the size of an ant. They start out as ... http://www.surfacetension.org/?p=106 I have added a new Books page, and I'm opening the floor with an excellent book by Paul Hawken, The Ecology of Commerce. You can read a full review on the Books page, but here is one from the Editor-In-Chief of Inc. magazine, that does a better job: This book, like ... http://www.surfacetension.org/?p=105 Carmakers in the US are currently scrambling to meet the demand for hybrids and smaller, fuel efficient vehicles, as gas prices continue to surge. Trucks and sport utility vehicles accounted for 47% of Ford's sales as recently as February but only 34% in May, as consumers opted for compact and subcompact ... http://www.surfacetension.org/?p=103 General Motors made international news recently by closing four of its truck and SUV plants across the US, Canada and Mexico, as part of a rapid move to embrace the demand for smaller vehicles in the US. The world's largest carmaker said it was making the moves "to aggressively respond to ... http://www.surfacetension.org/?p=102 TIME Magazine has an interesting piece in its April 28 issue where it equates the energy crisis facing the US with a war like any other. They compare it to the Great Depression, the construction of the railroads, the space race, the fight against polio, and so forth. If the ... http://www.surfacetension.org/?p=101 TreeHugger has compiled some facts related to the positive effects of the new 35mpg mileage requirements introduced by the US. The numbers are quite impressive, and illustrate that many Americans may easily overlook the beneficial effects of such initiatives for their country as a whole, as their only concern is ... http://www.surfacetension.org/?p=100 In his year-end speech, Honda's CEO has announced the company's vision to make hybrid vehicles responsible for 10% of its global sales by 2010. This would require 400'000 units to be hybrids - quite a lofty target. In 2006, hybrids represented a mere 1.5% of global sales. Their success will depend ... http://www.surfacetension.org/?p=99 At $3'600, the Sun Table might be a bit ridiculous, but it will definitely impress your friends and could be an stylish addition (albeit quite decadent) to outdoor workstations on remote sites, where laptops are used. Capable of charging electronic devices and providing lighting, the device can also do away ... http://www.surfacetension.org/?p=98 A handful of days after the BBC reported the US government's decision to offer exploration rights for oil and gas in Alaska, George W. Bush has further boosted the initiative, to the horror of environmentalists. Bush has lifted a ban on drilling in Bristol Bay, an area known for its ... http://www.surfacetension.org/?p=97 Carectomy brings word of a poster in Muenster, Germany, that illustrates the difference in space taken by Cars vs. a Bus vs. Bicycles. Whereas they clearly zoomed in in the first shot to emphasize their point, it doesn't make any difference to the truth. In addition to polluting our air, contributing ... http://www.surfacetension.org/?p=96