environment

Aug 20th - Telescope Captures Stunning Image of Newborn Star and Vivid Stream

a few big open spaces remain—like the Rift floor in Queen Elizabeth Park  read more »

*update* 8 Aug 2014
In Copenhagen, where bicycles outnumber people and nearly 40% of residents cycle to work, bike-friendly infrastructure is key

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[July 8, 2013] 12,000 electric cars are to move on the roads in Greater Copenhagen by 2015. 12,000 electric cars are to move on the roads in Greater Copenhagen by 2015. This is the target set by The Capital Region of Denmark and their new project Copenhagen Electric. Today there are not even 1 500 electric cars in the whole of Denmark. Copenhagen Electric is to encourage municipalities, hospitals and enterprises to purchase more electric cars for their car pools. - We’re starting with the municipalities, says Kåre Albrechtsen, head of Copenhagen Electric that is run by the Capital Region of Denmark. The region is investing 12 million Danish kroner in the consulting project Copenhagen Electrics over a 3-year period. The municipalities in Greater Copenhagen now have 274 electric cars, which is eight percent of the entire municipal car pool. The aim is to increase this share to 25 percent in only two years’ time. (News Øresund)  read more »

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*update*
Sat May 25, 2013 - At least 4 people, and possibly up to 55, were exposed to radiation when radioactive material leaked during a laboratory experiment in Japan

24 May 2013 - Japan must continue efforts to deactivate Fukushima nuclear plant – UN agency  read more »

To the Health of the Earth - healthy we cannot be unless the earth is.

#1 most popular, all time (as of April 20, 2013) - 489,898 reads
"SOS Amazon": every second we lose 1.5 acres of rainforests once covering 14% of earth land surface, now a mere 6%

#2 most popular, all time (as of April 20, 2013) - 342,276 reads
Zoo Atlanta celebrates arrival of baby panda, 2nd cub of mother Lun Lun and only panda born in US in 2008 so far

#3 most popular, all time (as of April 20, 2013) - 314,515 reads
Solar system moving 100000 mph faster than thought; 15% speed increase translates to doubling of mass of Milky Way

Image courtesy of www.amazonwatch.org, Thomas Marent, impactlab.com, wikipedia, Sipa Press / Rex Features, Atlanta Zoo / AP Photo, John Spink / Atlanta Journal-Constitution, scienceclass.ning.com, lns.mit.edu, and gcsescience.com

*update* 13 March 2013
For urban gardeners in New York City, the mildness of this winter has produced some startling results. We do not fear the snow -our gardens are now snug below their customary winter blankets.A late crop of beets was pulled from the soil in early January...And kale, one tough Brassica, keeps giving and giving to the roof-top gardener.
Boston’s 1st rooftop farm - 40,000 square feet of soil atop the Boston Design Center “There are acres of rooftops, blacktop, in cities that are sucking up heat... so we’re using more energy to cool down cities". this amazing green roof that produces food and has these great environmental benefits, helping to mitigate climate change.

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Over 6,000 pounds of food per year, on 1/10 acre located just 15 minutes from downtown Los Angeles. The Dervaes family grows over 400 species of plants, 4,300 pounds of vegetable food, 900 chicken and 1,000 duck eggs, 25 lbs of honey, plus seasonal fruits throughout the year.

From 1/10th of an acre, four people manage to get over 90% of their daily food and the family reports earnings of $20,000 per year. (AFTER they eat from what is produced). This is done without the use of the expensive & destructive synthetic chemicals associated with industrial mono-cropping, while simultaneously improving the fertility and overall condition of the land being used to grow this food on. Scaled up to an acre, that would equal $200,000 per year!  read more »

"Without courage, wisdom bears no fruit." - Baltasar Gracian
*update* March 7, 2013 -

*update* February 21, 2013 - Japan halts whale hunt after Japanese factory ship rammed Sea Shepherd ships one after another, and 4 times rammed/damaged their own supply tanker, S Korean Sun Laurel" Video - Nisshin Maru rams Bob Barker, Steve Irwin, and Sun Laurel (now oil spill in S Ocean - Antarctic Whale Santuary)

Feb. 20, 2013 “I don’t think we have ever had a more eventful few hours in the 9 years we have been opposing the whaling in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary and certainly there has never been a day when all of our ships were rammed one after another,” writes Paul Watson on Facebook. “It is also the first time we have ever been rammed by the Nissin Maru, and to top it all off, the Japanese factory ship four times rammed and damaged their own supply tanker, the Sun Laurel.”  read more »

"The world is too much with us; late and soon,
Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers:
Little we see in Nature that is ours;
We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!
The Sea that bares her bosom to the moon;
The winds that will be howling at all hours,
And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers;
For this, for everything, we are out of tune;
It moves us not.--Great God! I'd rather be
A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn;
So might I, standing on this pleasant lea,
Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;
Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea;
Or hear old Triton blow his wreathed horn."

~ William Wordsworth

from ebook Poem in Art and Story Collection 1