July 31, 2008
· Filed under environment, green, life, living, news · Tagged alternative energy sources, Elizabeth Redmond, energy, energy crisis, environment, green, living, news, power leap, powerleap, University of Michigan
Leave it to a student in school to be at the forefront of clever ways to deal with our energy crisis. Elizabeth Redmond is a student at University of Michigan’s School of Art and Design who has started this project to see how to capture the energy created by the human body to power electronics. She is working on developing something called the Power Leap which harnasses the energy created by people walking on the floor!!!
I have heard of this in many different places so Elizabeth might not be the only people working on it but it it is a great idea. I read about a club in Europe installing something similar that takes the power of people dancing on the dance floor to power the lights and machines at the club!!
Here is how it works:
Floor tiles generate electricity using a phenomenon known as piezoelectricity – electricity generated by applying mechanical stress to certain materials like the lead zirconate plates in the POWERleap. When these 2-inch by 1-inch piezoceramic plates are bent, a charge is produced that can be harnessed. Multiply one tile by the surface area of a subway station or even your standard grocery store floor, and you can imagine the amount of energy these tiles have the potential to generate. (source: ecogeek.org)
Check out Elizabeth Redmond’s website to see more about how this works. She hopes that this will eventually be available at your local hardware store and something that is easy enough for a do it yourselfer to install on their own. I personally wish her alot of luck… it sounds like an easy solution that could provide us with the power to at least run our computers!
July 29, 2008
· Filed under environment, green, how to, life, living · Tagged catnip, CEDARWOOD, Chemicals, citronella, deep woods off, DEET, Dryer sheet, environment, Eucalyptus Oil, garlic, geranium, green, health, homemade insect repellant, lemongrass, living, natural bug repellant, pennyroyal, standing water, tea tree oil, West Nile
One of the first environmental topics I remember arguing with people about is the use of DEET the chemical found in common bug repellant like Deep Woods Off. I had to be in middle school and I watched Dateline or 20/20 (yes, I watched and enjoyed those shows) where there was a special about people who has seizures from their body absorbing the chemicals some actually died (several military personnel died at the time of the story because the military was using a high concentration of DEET in combination with exercise). After that news story I refused to use DEET again. Years later I worked at a day camp and the camp director want me to put Deep Woods Off on the kids everyday and I refused. It was a particularly bad summer for mosquitoes but I thought even with the low risk of West Nile I would not do it. Surprising she respected my stance but just had someone else put it on the kids.
Here are the real facts about DEET:
DEET (N, N-diethyl-meta-toluamide), a powerful insecticide found in over 400 repellents. DEET can peel paint, damage rayon and spandex, and melt plastic. Up to 56 percent of DEET applied to the skin enters the bloodstream, and reactions to it include skin rashes, lethargy, muscle spasms, nausea, and irritability. An extreme reaction can cause seizures and even death. So it’s hardly worth using DEET to deter insects unless you’re someplace with high rates of insect-borne disease or you experience severe allergic reactions to bites and stings. (source: http://www.naturodoc.com/library/lifestyle/bug_repellent.htm)
There are more natural ways you can protect yourself:
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Plant Marigolds- Their strong scent helps keep all kinds of bugs away including bees.
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Eucalyptus Oil- This is “active” ingredient in natural bug replants
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Dryer Sheets- learned this when I went to camp in high school. I tied them to my shoe laces and in my hair and I got significantly less bug bites than I had been receiving before.
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Eat Garlic- It will naturally emit a scent that is excreted out of your skin that will keep the bugs away.
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No Standing Water- Make sure that you refill your birthbath’s daily and manage any other standing water you might have in your yard. Mosquito’s breed in standing water so do not give them the ability to multiply.
List of essential oils that can be used as insect repellants (all must be dilluted before use on skin):
CEDARWOOD (Juniperus mexicana)
CITRONELLA (Cymbopagon nardus)
LEMONGRASS (Cymbopogon citratus)
PENNYROYAL (Mentha puleglum)
TEA TREE OIL ( Melaleuca alternifolia)
GERANIUM (Pelargonium graveolens)
CATNIP (Nepeta cataria) – Preliminary studies have shown catnip oil to be 10 times more effective at repelling mosquitos!
EUCALYPTUS OIL (Eucalyptus globulus) – Patch test before using on your skin. Keep out of mucus membranes.
Source: http://hilltownfamilies.wordpress.com/2007/05/29/lemos001/
Recipe for Home-made Insect Repellant (must be dilluted, do not use at full strength and test on a small part of your skin to make sure you do not have a reaction):
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1/2 ounce citronella oil
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1/4 ounce lavender oil
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1/8 ounce pennyroyal oil
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1/8 ounce tea tree oil
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1/8 ounce jojoba oil
Do not use this blend undiluted on your skin. Follow these instructions for diluting: To make an insect repellent oil that can be used on your body, add 16 ounces of jojoba or almond oil to the base oil mixture and blend thoroughly. For an insect repellent spray, add 16 ounces of vodka to the base oil mixture, pour into a spray bottle, and shake before using. (source: http://www.naturodoc.com/library/lifestyle/bug_repellent.htm)
July 28, 2008
· Filed under environment, green, life, living, media · Tagged Al Gore, An Inconvenient Truth, documentary, energy crisis, entertainment, environment, film, global warming, green, Inconvient Truth, Leonardo DiCaprio, movies, review, The 11th Hour
I recently watched the 11th Hour which was narrated and produced by Leonardo DiCaprio. It was a fantastic documentary that had people from all fields talking about how we need to make a commitment to help save the ourselves. The movie very clearly points out that Earth will probably live on without us, but we are going to probably kill ourselves. Several experts very eloquently point out that Earth has shook off lots of other creatures through out time and people have only been around for an EXTREMELY short period of time in the life of Earth.
The movie started out with a good 30 minutes of complete and utter doomsday talk. My husband happened to call me in the middle of that part and I told him I thought we should not have kids… that depressing!! As you get further in the movie you understand that it really is that dire but there are alot of really smart and clever people out there working on fantastic things that can really help turn things around.
There were religious leaders, environmentalists, scientists, politicians, journalists, economic experts…etc. all interviewed in this movie. They all approached the topic from their area of expertise and I was amazed at the information that came out. Most people seemed to feel that we needed to take immediate action and in order to take that kind of action the government HAS to get involved. How the government gets involved is not agreed upon in the movie but it is agreed that in order to get the things moving quickly the consumer cannot be the only motivator of change. I am not sure if it was a historian or economic expert but they made an excellent point of how when the US became involved in WWII they were able to get Detroit to completely change their operations from building cars to planes and other war materials… we could easily get the business world on the energy/global warming crisis quickly with some real incentives (we already have so many incentives for oil and farming why not something this positive).
This movie is educational like an Inconvenient Truth but in a very different way. It is less about one person presenting the issues but having experts talk about the issues, the immediate need for a solution, and discuss the solution or how it can be grown in the economic environment. I liked both movies but for very different reasons. I really appreciated the expert discussion in The 11thHour, it was refreshing to hear not just scientists but even faith leaders talk about the importance of this issue from their perspective.
I recommend that you watch this movie, but I do warn you it is depressing at the beginning… stick with it and you will be happy you did!!
If you want to purchase either of these movies here are links to Amazon.com:
The 11th Hour
(cheaper than renting it to buy it!!! Only $4.99 on Amazon)
An Inconvenient Truth
July 14, 2008
· Filed under Weekly Tip, environment, green, life, living · Tagged bamboo, Clothing, environment, Formaldehyde, green, hemp, nylon, organic cotton, polyester, silk, soy, spandex, synthetic clothing, wool
As I started to iron a piece of clothing this week the minute I put the iron on it I knew I was in trouble… the iron was to hot and I was working with unnatural fabric. Luckily there was only minor damage and I was ironing it inside out. But it really hit home to me that I was basically ironing plastic or some other synthetic material that probably uses a lot of energy to make and it probably not good to begin with.
Buying cloths that are made from natural fibers are better for you, easier to maintain, last longer, and are good for the environment.
Some examples of synthetics used for clothing are polypropylene and nylon. Like organic fibers, the raw materials of synthetics may come from animals and plants. However, the synthetic ones are treated with chemicals and artificial processes. Also, the sources of its raw materials are raised inorganically. Synthetic clothing is often not decomposable and coarse in texture. It may also cause irritation on the skin due to the chemicals applied in treating it.
Clothing that is made from unnatural materials or non-organic natural materials can contain Formaldehyde and pesticides. Formaldehyde is a potent eye, upper respiratory and skin irritant. Evidence from several studies also indicates that it causes central nervous system effects, including headaches, fatigue, and depression. It also has the potential for causing asthma and inducing asthmatic attacks as a nonspecific irritant. Additionally, animal studies suggest that formaldehyde is a potential human carcinogen. Exposure to pesticides can increase the risk of cancer, diabetes, Parkinson’s Disease among a whole host of other health effects.
Organic clothing is proven to have higher quality materials than synthetic. Organic clothing can be more expensive but you paying for less impact on the environment and your health.
Some examples of natural fabrics are wool, soy, organic cotton, silk, bamboo, and hemp. Fabrics to avoid because they are not natural is polyester, nylon, and spandex. So make sure when you go out to buy new clothing you get something that is good for you and is better for the environment.
TreeHugger: 14 Things People Will Do…
July 30, 2008 · Filed under community, environment, green, life, living, news, recycle · Tagged climate change, Commentary, community, environment, green, living, news, predctions, predictions, treehugger.com
Back in 2005, TreeHugger.com created a post called “14 Things People Will Do When They Realize Climate Change is Real.” It is an amazing read that I am sure was made to be half joke and half serious unfortunately most of the predictions have come true. Below is the list with my analysis:
1. TreeHuggers get on the radical efficiency message and stay on it, forcing public officials to take seriously the “Soft Path” of Amory Lovins, et al. Multiple industry lobbies come to realize that this route is better for them than any other “one off” solution that targets only a single technology. People get behind it because it keeps jobs at home. We are not totally there with the made in the USA part of this point but we are starting to realize that buying locally is better for the environment. I think this has only started to be applied towards food in the mainstream.
2. Millions of people get really interested in Green Building. TreeHuggers get appointed to planning commissions and zoning boards, looking for off-the-web opportunities to promote it’s resource efficiencies and attractive comforts. I have personally seen this in my town. They are working on a redevelopment plan and in all the meetings with the community everyone expressed extreeme interest in having the plan include green building requirements. Even one community member researched LEED certification and spoke about it at the meeting, this particular person was not well versed in the in’s and out’s of certification but there happened to be more than one LEED certified architect in the room who could follow up on his points. This is definately starting to be important to towns as they move forward with zoning and community development.
3. Rising demand elevates the price of many eco-efficient products beyond the means of the low income households. This leads to distinct brand segmentation around price and performance. In some ways I agree with this point and in other ways I completely disagree with it. On one hand there are many green options are available to the rich like solar panels that even with tax rebates will cost at least $15,000. But now you can go to Target and Walmart and buy organic cotton t-shirts. organic milk, CFL lightbulbs…etc. that are affordable and available to pretty much everyone.
4. Renewable energy stocks, on average, steadily grow at a far greater pace than even the best fossil fuel companies, leading to an “irrational exhuberance” for alternative energy stocks on the part of Wall Street stalwarts. Solar energy stocks have been growing at a rate that is beating the street but they are highly volatile right now one day they are up big the next day the lost more than they gained in the last two days. Still solar tech stocks are still a good buy (in my eyes anyway) these days.
5. New cults appear that rely on climate change dread for recruitment and fundraising, blaming environmentalists for incurring the wrath of God, while applauding Armageddon. This will be true for any worthwhile effort, issue, catastrophy…etc.
6. Some TreeHuggers sit by, content with scapegoating. I think that there are some hippies from the 70’s sitting there saying I told you so. There are also some “green” middle class people that blame the government or big business for the reason why they have to own an SUV.
7. Voters beg government to “do something”. Consequently, a huge number of hairbrained solutions proliferate from the US Congress. Still kinda waiting to what these hairbrained ideas are but I think they are just waiting till the election is over… I do not doubt that this prediction will come true.
8. US Balance of trade is made more negative as US consumers shop increasingly overseas for the best and most beautiful eco-efficient goods. All can I say to this is Fair Trade… people think it is cool to buy overseas items made by poor people so they can feel good about giving them money… forgetting that there is a middle man and alot of fossil fuels burned to get those goods to you.
9. TreeHugger servers crash under onslaught of site visits. Probably could (or maybe did) happen.
10. Owners symbolically burn their own SUV’s in downtown streets after a brief period of gas shortage. Thankfully this has not happened… think of the environmental pollution from that!!!
11. The difference between political right and political left is blurred by the common interest in environment. “Bad Weather Friends Syndrome” fosters tremendous grass roots communication, collaboration, and organizing. Isn’t there a commerical that shows this, a bunch a polar opposite people saying they are for the environment. I cannot remember what environmental organization it is but they are trying to show that everyone should be for the environment.
12. Extensive top-of-market real estate speculation arises in regions that, long range models predict, will see relatively minor adverse impacts. With the mortgage crisis the way it is right now I am not sure this prediction could come true.
13. Rush of businesses to hire creative TreeHugger-types. I think this may be just begining. Alot of offices are going green, making green statements, and reporting to shareholders their plan to green the business. As all of these plans require employees that can help them create and impliment changes in their business.
14. Increased numbers of sham or badly designed “green products” coming to market. Green washing… I cannot say anymore than that… There is clearly alot of it out there.
Pretty amazing these predictions over 3 years ago. Lets hope that the predictions of the poles melting and water levels rising to high are more exaggerated than these predictions!!!
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