energy
In an earlier post, we asked if it would be possible to power the world with clean energy. The United Nations believes it’s possible. So does the International Energy Agency (IEA). So what’s the problem? Why aren’t we there yet? It’s not money that’s standing
sustainability
As if the year 2012 doesn’t already portend challenges enough, what with all the Mayan prophecy baggage … now the United Nations wants to saddle it with the responsibility of being the “International Year of Sustainable Energy for All.” An admirable goal, sure. But is it possible? A report last
fossil fuels
Think about spending time in a state park, and what images come to mind? Camping under the stars, perhaps. Or maybe fishing on a pristine, mirror-flat lake at dawn. Whatever you imagine, an oil rig probably isn’t part of the picture. But oil drilling is what more and more
climate
Cutting emissions of black carbon pollution and the greenhouse gas methane could do more than help control the planet’s rising fever, according to a new study led by NASA. It could also prevent millions of premature deaths and boost the world’s crop yields, the research finds. “Protecting public
energy efficiency
A common complaint in the “new normal” aftermath of the global financial crisis is that banks, despite receiving massive bailouts, aren’t lending … especially not to small-business owners or individuals. But would they be more likely to issue loans if they could be guaranteed repayment not by billing customers directly
energy
Critics of environment- and efficiency-focused government regulations like to portray such laws as trampling on people’s freedoms: the freedom, for example, to buy the most inefficient light-bulb possible or to drive gas-guzzling “autos on steroids,” if that’s what they want. It’s a libertarians-gone-wild type of thinking that
transport
Friction is a fickle friend for motorists. On the one hand, you wouldn’t want to find yourself without it while barreling down the highway at 75 mph and suddenly needing to apply the brakes. On the other hand, it could be costing you up to $20 on every $60
networking
One of the most advanced power-grid control systems in the world has quietly switched on in the northeastern US. Its focus: to reduce risks to electricity supplies and enable the transition to a smarter energy grid. Late last year, PJM Interconnection — a regional transmission organization (RTO) that handles energy trading
The author of the first-ever university textbook on carbon capture says it might one day make sense to pull carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere and store it away somewhere to minimize the risks of climate change. For now, though, chemical-based carbon “scrubbing” of the air would be insanely expensive
data centers
If you think the amount of data your organization has to deal with is overwhelming now, you ain’t seen nothing yet. The oncoming “Big Data” flood could swamp many businesses if they don’t start working fast to put new technologies and data center capacity in place. “(M)any
Technology
Leadership failure on a global scale threatens to sow “the seeds of dystopia” — a future beset by rising economic inequality, shredded social contracts, high and chronic unemployment of the young and an aging population left dependent on cash-poor governments. Corrupt or hapless politicians aren’t the world’s only worry,
It’s that time of year again, when the Sugar Plum Fairies have put away their dancing shoes, and the season’s stage — in Las Vegas, anyway — becomes home to a whirling mass of technotopian dervishes. Yes, the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is back again. Never mind US unemployment,
