July 8, 2013 from Science Daily — Green spaces, trees and bodies of water are must-have design features for future development in Sydney's suburbs after researchers found that by 2050 global warming combined with Sydney's urban heat island effect could increase temperatures by up to 3.7°C.
The researchers from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate System Science found new urban developments, such as the multitude of new estates on Sydney edges expected to house more than 100,000 residents, were prone to the greatest temperature increases. "Interestingly, we found that overnight temperatures increased far more than temperatures during the day," said lead author from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate System Science Dr Daniel Argueso. "This has implications for health problems related to heat stress accumulation and at an economic level where the higher energy consumption needed to p…Floating Wind Turbine In Maine A Game Changer
Image: The world’s first full-scale floating wind turbine, Hywind, being assembled in the Åmøy Fjord near Stavanger, Norway in 2009, before deployment in the North Sea.
Offshore wind turbines could more than quadruple the United States’ wind energy production, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Until now, the United States has lagged behind countries like Denmark and the U.K. in installing offshore wind turbines, despite the vastly larger shorelines. That situation will likely change with the recent installation of a floating wind turbine off of the coast of Maine, the first such device in North America.
About the floating wind turbine project
The U.S. Department of Energy and the University of Maine teamed up to create the first North American floating wind turbine, situated just off the coast of Castine, in south-central Maine. Maine is particularly well-suited for generating wind energy because of the prevailing northeasterly winds that blow almost constant…
Read more
New: Businesses Find Benefits in Going Green
As a new media outlet, the mission of GreenBusinesses.com is to showcase what eco-friendly businesses are doing right. Studies show their products and services are paying off in new and scalable ways. See how green can work for you by checking out these forward-looking business models. We'd love to hear your comments below.
by Joanna L. Krotz of BusinessOnMain
Incentives to go green have moved way beyond lowering utility bills.
“Cost savings are evolving into revenue generation,” says Lauren Kelley Koopman, a director for PwC’s Sustainable Business Solutions practice. “Sustainability is next-generation business thinking because it creates value, attracts customers, retains employees and improves capital and funding.”
In 2012, an Office Depot tracking poll found 61 percent of small businesses were trying to go greener, while 70 percent anticipated going green over the next two years.
If you’re still on the fence, consider how these four companies are energizing …
Read more
Want Great Beer? You Need Clean Water
by Peter Lehner
Some archeologists think humans learned how to make beer before bread—beer is that fundamental to human civilization. We know they were making beer at least 7,000 years ago, in what is now Iran. Ancient Sumerians, about 5,000 years ago, spiced their beer with cardamom and coriander. In 16th century Belgium, monks flavored their brew with bitter orange peels. I’ve always favored Belgian beer myself--my mother is Belgian—but I confess I’ve never sampled this version.
Back then, beer (or ale) was sometimes a safer alternative to water, especially if you didn’t know where your water was coming from—heating during the brewing process would kill off most pathogens. Today, modern brewers rely on clean water to make their product. Because no matter how carefully craft brewers tweak their malt and hops and strains of yeast, at the end of the day, beer is about 90 percent water. That’s why craft brewers across the country are rallying behind the Clean Water Act, o…
Read more
14 Best Links to Latest EV and Hybrid News
Aching for some more electric vehicle (EV) and hybrid news? Aching for more Tesla news, Toyota Prius news, Fiat 500e news,… Tesla news? Scroll through the links below:
Electric Vehicles & Hybrids
Mobile Apps For Electric Cars On The Rise
Tesla Wins In New Hampshire & North Carolina
Forget The Prius Effect — Here Comes The Matrix Effect
Cadillac PHEV Targeting Driving Dynamics
Lighting Motorcycles Beat Out Gas-Powered Competitors At Pikes Peak
Monster Tajima Sets New EV Record At Pikes Peak
Toyota 2015 Fuel Cell Car Aims For 300-Mile Range
Whodunnit? Did Tata’s Nano Kill Jag’s Hybrid Supercar?
Free Tesla Model S Lease When You Buy This $1.3 Million Home
2013 Fiat 500e First Impression
EV Lease Scheme Launched In London With 50 Leafs
Tesla Motors Opens More Superchargers For 4th Of July
Interview With Lightning Motorcycle’s Richard Hatfield, Winner At Pikes Peak 2013
Breaking: 2014 Honda Fit Hybrid Leaked In JDM Brochure
Other Clean T…
Read more
Oops: 2014 Honda Fit Hybrid Leaked in Brochure
Honda’s new for 2014 Honda Fit Hybrid (it’s sold as the Honda “Jazz” outside the US) was leaked when photos for Japanese-market dealer brochures were uploaded to an Indian website earlier this week. Those photos, shown here, clearly show the 2014 Honda Fit Hybrid instrument cluster, as well as the compact’s slick new styling and interior upgrades.
Will the 2014 Honda Fit Hybrid Get a 3-cyl.?Interestingly, there seems to be mention of a small, three-cylinder engine similar in displacement and layout to Ford’s 3-cylinder Ecoboost motor. Most likely, though, the US-bound examples of the new 2014 Honda Fit Hybrid, Fit EV, and “regular” Fit will make use of the current 1.2 and 1.4 liter units, as well as the current electric motors for the EV models.
We’ll post more updates as we get them, but you can head over to AutoExpress’ UK site for a more detailed “design analysis” of the Fit’s deeply creased…
