more corporations going green (12/4/07)

google's trying to save the planet(and go figure, al gore's involved), are you? 
http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/biztech/11/28/google.green.power.ap/index.html 
notice they believe that goals "could be reached in a matter of years, not decades"

back on lighting (12/5/07)

so i've learned some more about the lighting situation, and it seems

like for all those out there scared of the trace mercury content in

CFLs, there's some new options out there.  LED lighting has been in

use for quite some time now for low-light situations such as

decorative lighting, but now is becoming available in higher-power

models capable of producing 40W of lighting on 5W of power.  and,

they last 50,000 hours.  50x longer than incandescent bulbs, half the

energy use of CFLs, no mercury.

only problems (that i know of):

cost - these are pricey still.  a 40W bulb is almost $30

directionality - these bulbs aren't great for lamps as the project

light in a certain direction, not all around.

light intensity - i'm pretty sure 40W is about as strong as these

lights get right now.

at the moment i'd rather keep buying CFLs for a few bucks and just

handle them carefully, since i could light almost half of my

apartment with CFLs for the price of one or two LEDs.

BUT, where these lights will be entering my life is in the form of

christmas lights!  you can buy strands of christmas lights with LEDs

instead of incandescents for about $5 more.  you would pay off the

difference in energy in the few weeks of running them this holiday

season.  i know home depot and target have a large stock of these

lights, and i'm sure there are more retailers out there who do as well.

be well and actualize change FOGS,

jimmy

positive feedback loops abound (11/27/07)

yet another positive feedback loop related to our rapidly warming climate is being investigated here at CU - Boulder.

fyi - positive feedback loops (not necessarily "positive") are mechanisms by which a certain action affecting a system serves to perpetuate the conditions it started and continue perturbations in a system.  these feedbacks send systems into states of chaos - amplifying the original perturbation.  this is the opposite of a negative feedback, in which perturbations are held in stable equilibrium.  these various feedback loops are riddled within our global climate system, and provide the basis for much research (and arguments) concerning climate change.

http://www.dailycamera.com/news/2007/nov/27/no-headline---27anoa/