Category Archives: Environment
More From Less
More From Less is a book about dematerialization Demawhat? No, it’s not some sort of Star Trek transporter technology. Dematerialization is the phenomenon of producing the same goods from less material and energy. It’s real, it’s important, and Andrew McAfee … Continue reading
Growth
People used to think growth was a good thing. Politicians, economists and business leaders brag about healthy or robust growth in jobs, GDP, and profits. But that’s changing. These days, growth is often described as excessive, uncontrollable, and unsustainable. In … Continue reading
Losing Earth
Losing Earth By Nathaniel Rich Farrar, Strauss and Giroux, New York, 2019 The Sunday New York Times Magazine devoted its entire August 1, 2018 issue to a single article called Losing Earth: The Decade We Almost Stopped Climate Change by … Continue reading
Origin Story
Every religion, every culture, and every nation has its origin story. Origin stories tell us who we are, where we come from, how we got here, and how we should live with one another. They give us a common understanding … Continue reading
Blackfish City
Blackfish City By Sam J. Miller HarperCollins, New York, 2018 A warrior woman comes to the city of Qannaq in a small skiff accompanied by an orca and a polar bear. Who is she? Why has she come? What’s her … Continue reading
Video: What the Future of Energy Means for Canada
A link to this panel discussion cane across my FB feed and I wanted to share it here in a brief post. http://singularityucanadasummit.org/event/debate-future-energy-means-canada/ The context is Canadian but the perspective is definitely global. Really intelligent, though-provoking discussion about the energy … Continue reading
Crosscut Festival
I spent yesterday attending the Crosscut Festival at Seattle University. I’ve gone to so many conferences through work that I can’t seem to break the habit of taking and writing up notes. So here they are. The conference was organized … Continue reading
The Grid: The Fraying Wires between Americans and Our Energy Future
A PhD in cultural anthropology might seem like an odd background for someone writing a book about our national electricity grid. But Gretchen Bakke sees the grid as more than just generating plants, transmission wires, substations, poles, meters, outlets and … Continue reading
State-wide Blackout in South Australia
Yesterday the entire state of South Australia, about 1.5 times the area of Texas, suffered an electricity blackout due to a severe storm that knocked out major transmission lines. Photo: Electranet Network Services Here’s an interesting report on the causes … Continue reading
The Chemistry of Burning Stuff
Whenever we burn fossil fuels, be it gasoline, natural gas or charcoal, one of the byproducts is carbon dioxide ( CO2). That’s a big worry these days because the huge amounts of carbon dioxide we’re putting into the atmosphere is … Continue reading
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