Concentrating people into high-density living arrangements is a central premise of the “smart growth” movement.  But the nature of these high density communities is what separates the truly smart developments from the merely smart.
Green buildings are designed, essentially, to require no more energy and water inputs than they are able to generate using on-site systems.  A green [...]

In our last post, “Dams & Greenhouse Gas,” we took the International Rivers Network to task for putting out a study that claimed dams are a “significant global source of greenhouse gasses.”  Because if you dug into the underlying facts, the estimated contribution greenhouse gasses make to total anthropogenic CO2 emissions are a whopping .7% [...]

Here we go again.  The International Rivers Network, based in Berkeley, California, an organization with some incredibly great ideas, now reports that dams (and the reservoirs behind them) cause greenhouse gas emissions.  Courtesy of the IRN, read “Fizzy Science: Loosening the Hydro Industry’s Grip on Reservoir Greenhouse Gas Emissions Research.”  This report (click here for full report), of [...]

This week the Los Angeles Auto Show had its 100th annual exhibition at the Los Angeles Convention Center.  In his keynote address on 11-29, Rick Wagoner, the Chairman and CEO of General Motors, congratulated the producers when he said “you have ‘arrived’ this year as one of the industry’s top international shows.”
This is more true than the distinguished [...]

First Solar, the first company to set up volume production of thin-film photovoltaics, has just gone public, and the market loves them.  According to Morningstar, by mid-day on Monday 11-20, First Solar’s stock (FSLR) has rallied 24% after their IPO on Friday 11-17.
While the U.S. has fallen behind in production of crystalline silicon photovoltaics, it appears the [...]

There are many obstacles to creating an energy future reliant on hydrogen, but it is a mistake to think the hydrogen future must include fuel cells.  In our posts critical of the hydrogen lobby we have oversimplified that point, because hydrogen can be used as fuel for an internal combustion engine.  And even when hydrogen combusts, it [...]

Today’s San Francisco Chronicle ran an article that fairly screams for commentary.  In the story entitled “Honda Rolls Out the Future - A Car Powered by Hydrogen,” the reporter informs us of the following “But by one particular yardstick, the car is special — it doesn’t run on fossil fuel. Instead, a fuel cell car uses [...]