Environment
07/27/2009 14:18
With Nissan unveiling an electric car iPhone app before the actual electric car, I thought I would add a link to all the latest electric car happenings as seen on Engadget. Of particular interest is MIT’s rapid charge program that aims to strap almost 8000 lithium iron-phosphate batteries to...
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03/11/2009 08:23
It's here, and I've been waiting some time for this. Smarthome just picked up an inexpensive whole house power consumption meter. The device consists of a strap-on sensor/transmitter for your outdoor meter and a wireless receiver. After a short calibration, the display unit will...
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01/21/2009 13:29
Not that I advocate the end of Christmas, but one benefit is the dramatic price reductions of Christmas lights, specifically LEDs. I managed to find the saturday supersaver price on a set of white LED lights for around $10 (although I heard the 75% off sales had them down to $3). My...
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12/02/2008 08:49
The solar water heater has been a staple in places like Tel Aviv since I can remember. Few residents (except in the high rises) actually use electricity to take a hot shower. But for some reason, this technology has been completely unused here in the States, so much so that it is...
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11/02/2008 12:07
In the late 80's and early 90's, I was an advocate of big nuclear power plants. Back then, the major concern was over nuclear accidents, radiation, and meltdowns. We learned enough in engineering school to understand the operations of those plants and the safety...
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10/31/2008 16:45
I met Mr. Ron Williams today. He is the energy manager for NASA Johnson Space Center. They had a booth promoting conservation so I stopped by and asked why JSC leaves virtually all of their lights on 24 hours a day. The problem, apparently, comes down to the lack of...
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10/29/2008 15:21
If we can provide an inexpensive method for the average consumer to monitor home power usage, I expect a reduction in consumption. A simple photoelectric receiver monitoring a standard meter can easily provide this. Tie it to a wireless transmitter and you have an inexpensive reporting...
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10/20/2008 10:48
Ohio State researchers have synthesized a new solar cell material that is capable of capturing solar energy over the whole spectrum of visible light. The material excites the electrons off the atoms in two states, dubbed singlet and triplet. The great news here is that the electrons in...
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10/01/2008 23:07
I'm going to start this log with what is perhaps the best news I've heard this year. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has announced they have achieved an efficiency of 40.8% conversion for their latest gallium arsenide solar panels. While the exact design is not known to...
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