2nd Green Revolution

Today at the National Bike Summit in Washington, DC Google will announce that Google Maps will now include biking directions in the United States. The easy to use Google Maps previously had directions by foot, car, and public transportation. The lack of directions for bikes was, according to TechCrunch, “the most-requested feature for the service, as some 57 million Americans ride bikes.”

Working with Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, a nonprofit group that converts old rail lines into bike trails, Google now has information on some 12,000 miles worth of trails in the U.S. Of that, Read the rest of this entry »

Whether you love him, hate him, or are indifferent, Steve Jobs has major street cred. His company makes products that are elegant, well-designed, easy to use, and revolutionary. The hype and excitement that accompanies the lead up to and release of a major Apple product is second to none. Not only that, but the products go on to be wildly successful, while turning entire industries upside down. Think the Macintosh in the computer industry, the iPod in the music industry, the iPhone in the mobile device/phone industry, and now perhaps the iPad in the publishing industry. The presence of Apple has done wonders not only for Apple but for the entire electronics sector. People are excited about seeing the next useful technology and how it is integrated into a computer, phone, or GPS system. All this begs the question: Is there someone who can lead a company to develop breakthrough technologies and integrate them in products in the clean energy sector that consumers will get excited about? Is it even possible to have that in regards to green technology? Who would be a candidate for the role? Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday KUNC, National Public Radio’s Northern Colorado affiliate reported that the clean energy economy had created 17,000 green jobs. According to GreenBiz.com

Venture capital is flowing into Colorado for green startups that see promise in the smart grid, energy storage and other clean tech technologies. “In 2008, we had $458 million of venture capital investments in Colorado. It’s just astounding,” Colorado Climate Change Coordinator Alice Madden said, noting that such investments have helped create 1,700 clean tech businesses in Colorado that provide 17,000 jobs.

The Colorado Governor’s Energy Office recently commissioned a green jobs report along with the Green Jobs Working Group (GJWG) and the American Solar Energy Society. The findings calculated that Read the rest of this entry »

Bloom Energy had the official public unveiling of their solid oxide fuel cell technology today in Silicon Valley. After years of flying under the radar as a stealth start-up, the company made it’s debut on the world stage with a bang. California governor Arnold Swarzenegger was on hand as was former Secretary of State Colin Powell, Google co-founder Larry Page, venture capitalist John Doerr, and executives from eBay, Walmart, Coca-Cola, and FedEx. These companies have been generating energy from Bloom Boxes (units that contain stacks of these fuel cells) on a trial basis. According to TechCrunch, “Five Bloom energy boxes about the size of a parking space each now provide 15 percent of the power at eBay’s campus. Walmart is testing the boxes in two locations where [they are] carrying 60 to 80 percent of the energy load of an entire store.” A video describing the technology can be found here. Below is Bloom Energy’s explanation of how their technology is more flexible and better than “hydrogen” fuel cells. Read the rest of this entry »

Green energy start-ups often promise revolutionary technology in going after the Holy Grail of clean, cheap, efficient, and abundant energy only to disappoint in the end. What makes Bloom Energy and the claims that they make any different? Well, perhaps nothing. But perhaps they will back up their talk when a mysterious countdown on their homepage is explained on Wednesday. Featured recently on 60 Minutes, the company is the product of a foray into business by former NASA engineer KR Sridhar. The origin of the technology goes back to a project to produce oxygen for astronauts on Mars. Once that program was scrapped by NASA, Sridhar reversed his design to make a fuel cell that uses oxygen and fuel to produce electricity. Read the rest of this entry »

U.S. National Debt

The $3.8 trillion budget that President Obama proposed today to Congress for fiscal year 2011 (starting October 1, 2010) is a record. With two on-going wars, money to spur an economic recovery, enormous costs for entitlement programs, and ballooning net interest payments on an estimated $1.3 trillion deficit ($12 trillion national debt) it seemed almost a forgone conclusion that this year would see the largest budget numbers ever. To be fair, this was not Obama’s making but it’s now his problem. Spending beyond our means has finally caught up to us and foreshadows an erosion of U.S. influence that will change international politics and the global balance of power. The new budget also shows the reality of how low clean energy and green technology rank in terms of priorities. Read the rest of this entry »

On one level I don’t care about global warming, because it doesn’t matter. On the other, I know it is an incredibly important concern, one that may have drastic effects on society. However, because it has become politicized and polarized, I have steered clear of it. I am a science teacher, but not entirely a scientist in the traditional white lab coat sense of the word. I like to stick to the verifiable and the quantifiable. I do not pretend to know all of the data surrounding global warming – from both sides of the argument – and do not have the background of a debater to refute seemingly specious arguments that “deniers” or skeptics make. Skepticism is one of the fundamental “Habits of Mind” for scientists (along with the incredibly important habits of “tolerating uncertainty”, maintaining “openness to new ideas”, and exhibiting “intellectual honesty”). The latter of which may have been violated in last year’s debate over hacked emails from East Anglia University’s Climate Research Unit in England. However, there is a point at which healthy skepticism may be overtaken by radicalism.

What I do care about – which should be readily apparent for those that read my posts – is ushering in an era of sustainable development. We MUST use resources wisely. Read the rest of this entry »

In finance, a good rule of thumb for managing a budget and staying out of debt is “Don’t spend more money than you make.” This same simple premise can also be applied to energy management. Take homes, for example. With efficiency gains, energy conservation, and home energy production through solar power, geothermal power (see one homeowner’s perspective) and other types of renewable energy, it is becoming possible to create or retrofit a home to be energy neutral. ZETA Communities is designing houses that don’t use more energy than they make. Partnering with the U.S. Department of Energy, ZETA’s zero energy homes

provide one of the first nationally scalable solutions to these unsustainable environmental impacts. Using a whole-systems design approach, high performance materials, and an innovative mechanical core, ZETA homes require 40%-60% less energy overall and 65% less energy for heating, cooling, and hot water than a comparable structure (based on data published by ZETA’s partner: U.S. Department of Energy’s Building America program). To achieve net zero energy, ZETA homes use grid-tied photovoltaic systems and other clean energy sources.

The Wall Street Journal has an interactive feature that shows how ZETA’s design features listed below can allow homes to produce as much energy as they consume and create a healthier environment for their inhabitants. Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday’s post about fake and real Christmas trees and menorahs developed out of several conversations during the holidays, but was precipitated by an article in The New York Times about the use of so-called rare earth elements in the manufacture of clean energy components. Cradle to cradle design would suggest that all materials used in consumer products ought to be capable of serving some function once the original purpose of the object has long passed. This design philosophy necessitates making components for consumer goods out of materials that can return to the ecosystem with toxification of the soils, water, or atmosphere. Read the rest of this entry »

There is some interesting news today from Montgomery County, Maryland. The county in which I spent two years of high school (Go, Cougars!) has decided to buy 59 new buses that use clean diesel technology. Thomas Built Buses, the school bus manufacturing unit of Daimler Trucks North America, has just received its first order for Saf-T-Liner HDX school buses equipped with selective catalytic reduction (SCR) systems. The SCR system eliminates most nitrogen oxide emissions and allow the buses to meet the 2010 emissions standards for heavier trucks. According to Thomas Built Buses, “selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR), not only reduces NOx emissions to near-zero, but Cummins testing shows a 5-9% fuel economy advantage compared to In-cylinder exhaust gas recirculation (EGR). Read the rest of this entry »