Archive for the 'Energy' Category
Australia: Man Questions Power Company Justifications for Rate Increases, Gets Threatening Letter from Law Firm
November 14th, 2012Via: Sydney Morning Herald: The thing that really irks Bruce Robertson is not just that the giant power companies are threatening to sue him but that their lawyers are demanding he pay for their costs. “It was a service I never requested,” quips Robertson, who has had to resort to black humour since the letter […]
Malaysia: ‘Smart Village’ Offers World Model for Rural Poverty Relief
November 13th, 2012I was intrigued by their food production methods. They make extensive use of Autopot hydroponic systems. This looks very impressive. Via: Press Release – Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology: An innovative, high-tech “smart village” built in Malaysia provides a potential global template for addressing rural poverty in a sustainable environment, say international experts meeting […]
Fault Under Japan Nuclear Plant May be Active
November 11th, 2012Via: AFP: Japan’s only working nuclear power plant sits on what may be a seismic fault in the earth’s crust, a geologist has warned, saying it is “very silly” to allow it to continue operating. Mitsuhisa Watanabe says the earth’s plates could move underneath the Oi nuclear plant in western Japan, causing a catastrophe to […]
Germany Ships More Power Abroad Despite Nuclear Plant Closures
November 10th, 2012Update: Germany Powers France in Cold Despite Nuclear U-Turn Somebody somewhere sent this in. It’s from February. Via: Reuters: Germany came to the rescue of France during last week’s cold snap by massively exporting electricity to its neighbour, silencing critics who slammed Berlin last year for abruptly shutting down 8 nuclear reactors after the Fukushima […]
Odd-Even Gas Rationing System Coming To New York City, Long Island
November 9th, 2012Via: CBS: New York City and Long Island are following in New Jersey’s footsteps in instituting an odd-even gas rationing system. In an effort to ease long lines associated with the the fuel crunch taking place in New York City, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced a rationing system will go into effect on Friday. Beginning at […]
Solar Panel Breaks ‘Third of a Sun’ Efficiency Barrier
November 6th, 2012Via: Gizmag: Embattled photovoltaic solar power manufacturer Amonix announced on Tuesday that it has broken the solar module efficiency record, becoming the first manufacturer to convert more than a third of incoming light energy into electricity – a goal once branded “one third of a sun” in a Department of Energy initiative. The Amonix module […]
Northeast: Heating Oil Shortage as Cold Snap Looms
November 3rd, 2012Via: Reuters: Northeast residents lucky enough to have a roof after Hurricane Sandy struck now face a new problem: a heating oil shortage and widespread power outages mean some homes may go cold as the weather turns wintry. A cold snap in the New York City area – with daily low temperatures set to drop […]
And Now… China Is Building A Huge Eco-City
November 3rd, 2012Will there be room for the Chinese elite’s secret organic gardens? Via: Business Insider: Outside Chengdu, in central China, a 78 million square foot site has been determined for an unconventional sort of construction project. It will be a city built from scratch, for 80,000 people, none of whom will need a car to get […]
Oregon: Volcano Power
November 2nd, 2012Via: Gizmag: Having successfully negotiated the challenging regulatory slopes of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Department of Energy, and a host of Oregon state agencies, the Newberry Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) demonstration project is in the process of creating a new geothermal reservoir in central Oregon. The core […]
Efficiency Breakthrough Promises Smartphones that Use Half the Power
November 2nd, 2012Via: MIT Technology Review: Powering cellular base stations around the world will cost $36 billion this year—chewing through nearly 1 percent of all global electricity production. Much of this is wasted by a grossly inefficient piece of hardware: the power amplifier, a gadget that turns electricity into radio signals. The versions of amplifiers within smartphones […]
