Environmental News Network
Environmental News Network
Lasers and Trains
by Andy Soos, ENN
21 May 2012 at 8:00am
A laser is a device that emits light (electromagnetic radiation) through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term laser originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. The emitted laser light is notable for its high degree of spatial and temporal coherence, unattainable using other technologies. Laser systems can be used to implement highly precise and ultra-fast measuring processes. Railway measuring technology has a huge worldwide need here. One prerequisite for its use is that nobody is damaged or suffers irritations by the laser. Dr. Heinrich Höfler and Dipl.-Ing. Harald Wölfelschneider from the Fraunhofer Institute for Physical Measurement Techniques IPM in Freiburg have worked with their team to develop a 3D laser scanner. It can be used outdoors without hesitation. Extremely fast and precise, it is able to spatially measure and monitor the position of the contact wire or the track from a train traveling at up to 100 kilometers (62 mph) per hour. If the scanner is stationary, it can capture passing trains and check for loads that might have slipped.
Charcoal for African Cookstoves, What's the Story?
by Jen Boynton
21 May 2012 at 7:10am
You may have seen pictures of women in Africa cooking their daily meals on a small cookstove. These cooking implements look remarkably similar to the portable charcoal grills an American family might bring to the beach for an afternoon of grilling hot dogs and hamburgers. Imagine using one of these at your kitchen table to prepare nearly every meal of your life.
In Mozambique (a coastal nation in Southwest Africa, just north of South Africa), the average lifespan is 47 years, the average income is $1 per day ? minimum wage is a little more than double that, but high unemployment cuts the average in half. Charcoal is the cooking element of choice. Among market shoppers and sellers we met, charcoal was deemed to be the best cooking option because it is easily available and "not dangerous."
Earthquake Hits Northern Italy
by Discovery News/AFP
20 May 2012 at 8:43am
A powerful earthquake shook Italy's industrial and densely populated northeast early Sunday, killing six people and felling homes and church steeples around the historic city of Ferrara.
Emergency services said at least 50 people were injured in the 6.0-magnitude quake, which struck just after 4 a.m. (10 p.m. ET Saturday), sending thousands of people running into the streets in town and cities from the Emilia-Romagna region to Venice.
Authorities said the quake's epicenter was the commune of Finale Emilia, 36 kilometers (22 miles) north of Bologna.
A 29-year-old Moroccan man was killed by a falling girder when a factory building collapsed in the small town of Ponte Rodoni di Bondeno.
Lose Weight While You Sleep!
by NOCAMELS TEAM
19 May 2012 at 9:00am
Want to lose weight but find it hard to hit the gym three times a week or eating 1,500 calories per day? You might not have to do either. New research suggest sleeping more could be enough to keep the flab away.
Research into the circadian clock that regulates our sleep-wake cycle shows disruptions to the clock may be linked to metabolic disorders such as obesity and type-2 diabetes.
And researchers say sleeping for eight hours a night and eating during daylight hours could be as important in controlling weight gain as diet and exercise.
Gad Asher, clinician and medical researcher from the Department of Biological Chemistry at Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, presented research to a Garvan Institute seminar on obesity in Melbourne last night that found every cell in the body has a circadian clock.
Happy, Happy Parents!
by Andy Soos, ENN
18 May 2012 at 12:20pm
Raising a family can be a difficult matter. But does it make one happy or miserable? Of course part of the answer is that it depends... Contrary to some scholarship and popular belief, parents experience greater levels of happiness and meaning in life than people without children, according to researchers from the University of California, Riverside, the University of British Columbia and Stanford University. Parents also are happier during the day when they are caring for their children than during their other daily activities, the researchers found in a series of studies conducted in the United States and Canada.
EPA: Protect Yourself from the Sun this Summer!
by David A Gabel, ENN
18 May 2012 at 8:51am
The warming temperatures will bring many people out into the sun to get a little color on their skins. The sun, while being the source of all life on Earth, is also quite lethal if exposed for too long. As summer approaches, it is good to remember a few things about protecting your skin from the great ball of fire in the sky. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has teamed up with the National Council on Skin Cancer Prevention, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and National Park Service (NPS) in a joint effort to spread the word. They have designated the Friday before Memorial Day as "Don't Fry Day" to highlight the important message.
New Jersey Takes Slow, Steady Approach to Offshore Wind
by Peter Asmus
18 May 2012 at 8:21am
The international wind power industry is watching Washington, DC to see if lawmakers will extend the federal production tax credit (PTC) for wind power. But their eyes are also focused on Trenton, the state capital of New Jersey, to see if state regulators there will help launch America's long-awaited offshore wind energy industry.
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Sustainable Housing and Green Building News - ENN
Sustainable Housing and Green Building News - ENN
Highlights of Cleantech in Dubai
by Shawn Lesser
11 May 2012 at 6:10am
The United Arab Emirates, much like some of the other countries throughout the Middle East, is doing what it can to ensure it becomes much more energy efficient and starts using more renewable sources of energy. Dubai, much like its neighbor Abu Dhabi, is doing what it can to ensure the entire state becomes much more clean technology friendly. This includes adopting initiatives, creating organizations dedicated to renewable energy and energy efficiency, and creating new project to help the state reach its renewable energy and energy efficient goals. Listed below are just ten of the highlights of clean technology in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
1 ) Dubai Targets Five Percent Renewable Energy by 2030. A majority of the existing power supply in Dubai comes from natural gas and the energy demands in the state have increased over the last ten years because of megaprojects as well as a growth in high-rise buildings. In 2010, officials announced new power types to diversity energy sources in Dubai. One of the latest plans is to have five percent of the power supply come from renewable sources of energy by the year 2030. This will help the United Arab Emirates? overall goal when it comes to renewable energy use.
Microsoft Moving Towards Carbon Neutrality
by Leon Kaye
9 May 2012 at 8:50am
Microsoft has committed to become carbon neutral beginning on July 1, the start of the company's new fiscal year. The shift results from three years of internal discussions within the company to improve Microsoft's carbon footprint and environmental performance. The company will roll out the new changes, including a new accounting system, across its operations in over 100 countries. The new accounting system at Microsoft will be based on an internal carbon fee that the company's finance department will charge to all of the company's business groups. Each division will be tasked with finding a more efficient way to offset the carbon emissions associated with their fuel consumption and air travel.
Getting Instant Cash...Off the Grid
by David A Gabel, ENN
8 May 2012 at 9:14am
Many of us in the West take for granted our state-of-the-art banking systems, which make it very easy to deposit and withdraw cash. Every little town has a bank, and in the city there is practically one around the corner. Unfortunately, not every country has such luxury. In India, for example, personal banking requires travelling to the nearest branch, often in far-away cities, requiring nearly a full day to do so. However, thanks to an innovation in ATM technology, all this is going to change. Vortex Engineering, a start-up sponsored by Chennai's Indian Institute of Technology, has created an energy-efficient solar power ATM machine. This will bring the ability to do banking to even the most remote Indian Village.
Major Apartment Air Quality Issue: Tobacco Smoke
by David A Gabel, ENN
4 May 2012 at 9:26am
One of the reasons that smoking has been banned in so many places in cities like New York is because the population density is so high. There are people everywhere you look, many of whom feel their right to privacy is violated by someone else's smoke blown in their breathing zone. One place where this right is overlooked is in apartments, where many people live in close proximity to smokers. A new study from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) shows that tobacco smoke can seep from one apartment to another. Along with noisy neighbors and odorous cooking smells, unwanted tobacco smoke ranks high as a major indoor environmental issue in apartments.
Are there toxic chemicals in your gardening equipment and supplies?
by Akhila Vijayaraghavan
4 May 2012 at 6:45am
Spring time is here and a lot of people are indulging in gardening. But did you know that there are a lot of chemicals that may be harmful to your health in your gardening supplies?
According to Ann Arbor-based Ecology Center, high amounts of lead, phthalates and the toxic chemical BPA were all found in the water of a new hose after it sat outside in the sun for just a few days.
Maharishi University of Management's Sustainable Living Center Net Energy Pro...
by Editor, ENN
3 May 2012 at 2:01pm
Maharishi University of Management's new Sustainable Living Center, which opened recently, has the distinction of being one of the few net-zero energy buildings in the country?it will produce as much if not more energy than it uses.
Sustainable Living Center To Be "Net-Zero Energy Building"
The building is designed to eventually be completely off the grid, including for water usage and waste treatment, as more funds are available. However, it will initially be connected to the grid, using electricity as needed during extreme weather conditions. At those times when the solar arrays and wind turbine produce more than the building uses, it will feed excess energy into the campus grid for use in other buildings.
Annually the building will produce more energy that it will consume.
Ford to EV Dealers: Meet Environmental Requirements
by Leon Kaye
1 May 2012 at 8:55am
An environmentally friendly car dealership? Like "responsible drinking," or "Walmart organic food," that term at first may sound like an oxymoron. Ford Motor, however, is not only rolling out new electric vehicles (EVs), but has committed to greening its entire supply chain. This is just one example of the changes Detroit is undergoing as the Big Three rack up impressive quarterly numbers. For now, EVs are only a small part of the auto industry's resurgence as they slowly win acceptance from skeptical commuters. To that end, Ford is requiring its dealerships selling EVs to resemble businesses that would sell...EVs.
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