I wrote a post for CleanTechnica on December 6, 2011 concerning something I’d never before heard about, integral fast reactors — you guessed right, nuclear reactors. Titled, “Our Nuclear Trash Heap Needs IFRs,” I wrote about a 2008 book by environmentalist, Tom Blees, “Prescription for the Planet.” When I posted this story, I was soundly […]
Integral Fast Reactors: Nuclear’s Forgotten Clean Energy Solution Read More 👉
For those who are following the economics involved in energy benchmarking practices, this story from the Institute for Market Transformation (IMT) is worth reading. Energy Benchmarking Key to Realizing $9 Billion in Savings in Apartments and Condos: Benefits for Owners and Renters (via Green Building Elements) This information on energy benchmarking has been provided by
I learned about Iron Edison last July when I posted this story on Clean Technica. I was impressed because owners Brandon Williams and his wife offer “off-gridders” and others a viable energy storage solution that allows many renewable plants run on a 24/7 basis. And since the storage question remains one of the fundamental drawbacks
Iron Edison Provides Viable Storage Solutions for Solar or Wind Read More 👉
It is refreshing watching cities like San Francisco take a leadership role on issues like controlling the amount of energy that is used in the city’s commercial buildings. Recently the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) announced it was providing detailed energy usage information for some 300 municipal buildings in the city – part of
Measuring the Economics of Energy Consumption in San Francisco Read More 👉
Part 7 in a series on planned obsolescence Too much of a good thing will sometimes get dressed for the party wearing the wrong clothes. The most significant difficulty with disposable plastic has nothing to do with its practicality or usefulness – as it happens to be remarkably useful in a stunning number of formulations
The Evolution of Planned Obsolescence: Innovation’s Litter – Part 7 Read More 👉
In short order the name of Bic was equated with the rising popularity of inexpensive disposable products – a n emerging trend. The list of wares ran the gamut, from razors to disposable cameras. Unlike Brooke Stevens’ adage involving a product that was newer and slightly better, the world of disposables simply involved low cost and the ability to produce at a massive scale.
Planned Obsolescence and the Bic Effect – Part 6 Read More 👉
Best intentions aside, there is no economy here, just the imagination that someone brushed on canvas some time ago. In one quaint town, the doors of the small restaurant are locked shut; it is the same at the hardware store and gas station on the corner. The remaining clothing store with an “Open” sign in the window must be run by wealthy hobbyists in need of a write off or by one of the few churches that’s still open.
Unplanned Obsolescence & the Texas Back Roads: Part 5 Read More 👉
By the time this century hit, real estate was now considered by many to be a great short-term play that could yield as much as 10 or 20 percent. Commonplace homes and condominiums, priced from $125,000 to $150,000, were said to return tidy profits in less than two years. No muss, no fuss; just let inflating prices happen. All one needed to do was buy a ticket on the real estate train and make sure they were on board.
Planned Obsolescence & the Bubble That Burst: Part 4 Read More 👉
At that time, Intel co-founder Gordon Moore, a man donning a pair of visionary goggles and a remarkable engineering aptitude, boldly predicted that the number of transistors on a chip would double about every two years. His prediction turned out to be accurate – even if few understood what he was saying at the time – and came to be known as Moore’s Law.
Moore’s Law & Planned Obsolescence Construct a Technology Traffic Jam: Part 3 Read More 👉
Part II: Whether it was smart or not, by the late 1950s, planned obsolescence had become a practice many people understood, even if it might sometimes be contrary to the idea of long-lasting product quality. By the late 1950s, planned obsolescence had become a practice many people understood, even if it might sometimes seem contrary
The Freight Train for Planned Obsolescence Jumps to High-Speed Tracks – Part 2 Read More 👉
His thinking, while simple in concept, was absolutely radical, especially during the hard times of the Great Depression. If at the beginning of a factory year, General Motors were to introduce new products that might be perceived as upgrades for car-driving consumers, and if these upgrades represented something consumers might feel were essential as they climbed the economic ladder – something they needed to buy – then Sloan and his design engineers would have bet on the winning racehorse.
The Greatest Invention: Planned Obsolescence – Part 1 Read More 👉
For us sneering at the notion of plastics and biodegradability, it is time to stand back and jump up! Arizona-based ENSO Bottles, LLC is now producing plastic drinking bottles that will not only biodegrade in the dark, anaerobic environment of a landfill, the microbes that ingest it then create methane which can be captured and
Biodgradable Plastic Bottles Get Shipped Read More 👉
