Join the Litterati: Crowdsourcing for a Litter Free Planet

I've been doing a lot of work in the lab with plastics. They are everywhere! and in all types, shapes, and sizes. A recent meeting with some environmental lawyers on the topic introduced me to Litterati. Litterati started on Instagram in 2012 as a hashtag, and in 2016 was launched as an iOS app.

Today, Litterati is an app that you can use on Apple or Android devices. You use the app to identify, photograph and geotag individual pieces of litter (before you pick up and dispose of them). If the litter has a company/brand label, you can tag that too. This information is added to a global interactive map showing every piece of litter that has ever been uploaded.

So what is the point? First, it provides information on the types of trash that are discarded. To date, plastic is by far the most tagged, followed by cigarrette butts, paper, cans, and then bottlecaps. Next, geotags give information on the places where litter is found and accumulates. This is used to enact change within neighborhoods and communities. Time tags can tell us the times of year that affect littering. Also, companies/brands can be contacted in areas where there products are becoming litter so that they can decide if they can take any actions.

Here is TED by Litterati founder Jeff Kirschner:



You can download the app for FREE from iTunes and Google Play. And check out the Litterati website: https://www.litterati.org/


image via Daily Express

To Eat or Not to Eat, That is the Fishy Question

I love seafood as much as the next person...well, ok, probably more. It is a healthy and delicious food source, but there is a limit to the fish in the sea. We tend to think of ocean fish and shellfish as just food on our plates, but they are wildlife. Wildlife that we hunt on a very large scale.

Humans have been fishing the oceans for thousands of years, but within the last half century technology has developed such that we are able to fish farther, deeper, and more efficiently. As such, more than 70 percent of the world's commercial marine fish stocks are either fully exploited, overfished, or have collapsed. Add to that illegal fishing, habitat damage, and bycatch and you have a serious worldwide problem. Over the past few decades aquaculture, or fish farming, has become an increasingly popular solution to the increasing pressures on marine resources. In fact, today, half of our seafood comes from farms. However, the ecological impact of farming depends on the species raised, the farm location, and how the animals are raised. What does that mean? Well, some species are easier to raise than others, some farms are closed-systems where wastes are controlled, some farms have higher escape rates which threaten native species with diseases, and some farms feed a vegetable- or soy-based diet while others feed with wild caught fish.

Alright, well, that's pretty bleak right? So what can you, the single lowly consumer, do about it? Actually, that is pretty simple. Ask questions and watch what you eat. First, there are a few ocean-friendly steps that you can take:

1. Purchase seafood from a green (or if unavailable, yellow list) or look for the Marine Stewardship Council blue eco-label in stores and restaurants. (see below about where to get and how to read seafood guides)

2. When you buy seafood, ask where it comes from and if it is farmed or wild-caught. Most reputable markets will label their fish. However, some stores and restaurants only give generic names and catch locations for their fish. Ask anyway and tell them why you care, it may prompt them to look into it. An alternative is to buy seafood through online retailers, such as EcoFish.com, who feature sustainable species and deliver right to your home.

3. Spread the word. The more people practicing safe seafood the better.

Seafood guides are a free and easy way to help you choose the right seafood. In general, the lists are broken up into three colors:

•  Green (Best) - abundant, well-managed and caught or farmed in environmentally friendly ways.
• Yellow (Good/OK) - an alternative to green but there are mixed records on how they are managed, the health of their habitat, or how they are caught or farmed.
•  Red (Avoid/Worst) - have one or more serious environmental problems such as overfishing, poor management, high bycatch, extensive habitat damage, or come from farms that allow widespread pollution, spread disease, use chemicals, or have a high escape rate.

No matter the country you live in you should be able to find a list that works for you. There are small pocket guides, larger lists, and even easy-to-use online searches. I've listed some great websites below where you can find more information about sustainable seafood and lists to help you choose wisely.

Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch
This is the best website I have found for information, guides, searches, and links.

Environmental Defense Fund's Seafood Selector
This is a great website that includes a lot of information about each of the species on each of the three lists. They also include great, free, downloadable guides.
Blue Ocean Institute's Seafood Page
This website includes a great FAQ page as well as a seafood and sushi guide.

Natural Resources Defense Council's Sustainable Seafood Guide
This guide delves more into the topic of contaminated seafood but includes a shopping guide, recipes, and health alert information.

Marine Stewardship Council
Find out what MSC products are available in your country. Find out about what it takes to get a product certified and even track a fishery.

Marine Conservation Society - FISHONLINE website
This is for you U.K. folks. You can search for a fish, get fish ratings and lists, get information on fishery/production areas and methods, and download seafood guides.

Australian Marine Conservation Society
This one is for the Aussies. They include all the information you could want about your oceans. There are downloadable seafood guides and also an iPhone app!

WWF Sustainable Seafood Consumer Guides
Not in the U.S., the U.K, or Australia? Not a problem. Check out the World Wildlife Fund's list of worldwide seafood guides. The is a link to your country's web page with link to download a seafood guide PDF. While you are there (no matter your country of origin) check out their information on fisheries and sustainable seafood.

End of the Line
This is the world's first major documentary about the effects of overfishing. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival this year and is now out on DVD. Go to their website to watch the trailer, find or organize a screening, order a DVD, and/or find links for guides.


(image from envirothink.wordpress.com)

Citizen Science. Get Involved.

Citizen science is becoming more and more popular these days. And why shouldn't it? It is an opportunity for volunteers, who may or may not have specific scientific training, to contribute to ongoing scientific research. The volunteer gets the benefit of participating in a task they are interested in and the scientist gets the benefit of many people going through very large amounts of data, allowing them to accomplish their research objectives. It is just a great way to involve the individual as well as promoting public engagement in science.

Citizen science is not a new concept, it has been around for centuries. However, with advances in technology and the rise of the Internet it has become so much easier to get people involved, especially across large geographic areas. And in most cases the human brain is much better at analyzing images and other data than a computer. Add to that the number of replications you can have when multiple people classify the same image and you can see how errors can be decreased and new discoveries made.

So how does this whole thing work and how can you get involved? Well, first, think about a scientific topic that interests you: ornithology, astronomy, climate change, geology...whatever. The scope of science is so big that there is likely a project that fits your interests. Next, you need to find a project. They come in several varieties. First there is the scope: international, national, regional, or local. Next there is the type of activity you want to do: field work, image or data analysis, or just contributing some of your computer's power. And finally, how long do you want to spend working on this: years, months, or hours. That sounds like a lot but once you have figured these parameters out it will make it much easier to find a projects that suits you. Once you have found a project there is typically a short training session to get you familiar with the user interface and how the data should be analyzed/recorded. Then you are all set to do some science!

I've divided some of the most popular citizen science projects down by category, giving a short description of each. Each icon is linked to take you to the project described. At the end I've linked to a couple of general, easily searchable websites that will help you find the project you want.

ASTRONOMY

This is one of the most popular citizen science fields, and the projects that make up the Zooniverse are the most popular of these projects. There are several projects within the Zooniverse to choose from including:

• Ice Hunters
•  Help find the final target of NASA's New Horizons Mission! After passing Pluto (and pending NASA approval of an extended mission, of course) the spacecraft will retarget itself for an encounter with a Kuiper Belt Object (KBO). The target won't be selected until shortly before the Pluto encounter and there will be lots of images to go through to find out where to go next. This is where you come in. Look at pictures of never seen before objects to find out which one we should visit.
• Moon Zoo
• Explore the surface of the Moon! Look through images taken by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and answer questions about what you see. Identify craters, boulders (called "Boulder Wars," LOL), or any interesting or weird features you come across.
• Galaxy Zoo: Hubble
•  There are hundreds of thousands of galaxies drawn from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope archive. In this project you get to look at the gorgeous imagery from this telescope and classify the galaxies. Are they elliptical, spiral, irregular? Or is there some new type out there waiting to be discovered?
• Galaxy Zoo: Supernovae
•  This project is similar to the project above, this time contributing data from an automatic survey in California, at the world-famous Palomar Observatory. Except here you are looking for supernovae. Exploding stars!
• Galaxy Zoo: Mergers
• Here you are looking for the merging of galaxies. From images you select simulations that look similar to the targeted merger, tuning your best matches. You can even decide which simulation wins in a series of tournament-style competitions.
• Planet Hunters
• Look for extrasolar planets (planets around other stars)! This project finds planets by identifying how the brightness of a star changes over time.
• The Milky Way Project
• This projects aims to sort and measure our galaxy. Using the beautiful infrared data from the Spitzer Space Telescope you are asked to find and draw bubbles. These bubbles identify the life stages of the stars in our Milky Way Galaxy. 
• Old Weather
• This project works to recover worldwide weather observations made by Royal Navy ships around the time of World War I. This will contribute to climate model projections, improve a database of weather extremes, and track past ship movements and the stories of the people on board.
• Solar Stormwatch
• Help spot explosions on the Sun and track them across space to Earth! Not only will you help to identify and classify activity on the Sun but you will also contribute to early warnings if dangerous solar radiation is heading toward astronauts. 

These scientists are seeking to understand a star that has been a mystery for many years. This star is epsilon Aurigae, it is located in the constellation Auriga, and it is a variable star (it changes in brightness over time). This change in brightness is called eclipse. It takes over 600 days, and it only occurs every 27.1 years. The project scientists will guide you through the process of how to observe epsilon Aurigae, how to send them your observations, and then how to see your results, analyze them, and even publish them in a scientific journal.

SETI@home is a scientific experiment that uses Internet-connected computers in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI). You can participate by running a free program that downloads and analyzes radio telescope data. It is completely safe. All you need to do is download the program and it will run while your computer is on, not disrupting any of your other computing tasks.

CLIMATE SCIENCE

This project works to produce predictions of the Earth's climate up to 2100 and to test the accuracy of climate models. To do this, they need people around the world to give them time on their computers - time when they have their computers switched on, but are not using them to their full capacity. What do you do? Not much really. You to run a climate model on your computer. It runs automatically in the background, not affecting any other tasks for which you use your computer. It is completely safe and requires no more of your time than it takes to download the program. Read more by clicking the image link or go to download the program HERE.

Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network (CoCoRaHS) works to measure and map precipitation. Each time a rain, hail or snow storm crosses your area, you take measurements of precipitation from as many locations as possible and report it on the website. These data are compiled and used to provide accurate high-quality precipitation data, increasing the density of precipitation data available throughout the country, and encourage citizens to have fun participating in meteorological science while heightening their awareness about weather.

This project aims to accurately record and analyze "ice on" and "ice off" events as well as snow depth, air temperature, and wildlife observations to learn how climate change affects our environment. You will receive instructions on how to properly IceWatch (even if you live in a warmer climate), you pick your location to observe over the winter (like a nearby lake, bay, or river), record your observations, and submit them online.



GENETICS AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY

This project is great for gamers!

Genetic sequences are difficult to understand and decipher their structure, and this project aims to compare them to detect any similar regions they may have. So they have put together a website that abstracts the multiple alignment problem to a game where the goal will be to align words made by pieces of different color instead of letters representing the genetic code (A,C,G,T). You create columns of the same color and create gaps, ultimately finding the best tradeoff between aligning color and creating gaps. You can even choose a puzzle to solve from the disease you want to treat.

Another project that is great for gamers. This project is all about protein folding. Proteins are built from individual amino acids but they don't stay all stretched out in a strand, they fold into very specific shapes. Finding the shapes and the optimal folding is the hard part though and is what this project aims to do. Knowing the structures is important to things like drug development and disease research. The problem has been put into game form. You, as the player, solve a series of puzzles to optimally pack you protein, hide the hydrophobic bits, and clear any clashes. You can play individually or form teams, competing with other protein folders around the world.

OCEANOGRAPHY

The whale shark photo-ID library...its cool just saying it. This project uses photographs of the skin patterning behind the gills of each shark and any scars to distinguish between individual animals. This helps scientists to see where individual animals are going, the abundance of whale sharks, and their distribution. If you see a whale shark while out diving you can report all kinds of information about the encounter by filling out their online form, and you can submit pictures to the library.

Do you love whales? All kinds? This project is working to classify the sounds that whales make into distinct regions. "For example, in Orcas (Killer Whales) there are over 150 identified types of call. Every time you match a pair of Orca calls, you're casting a vote for those two calls to be considered 'similar'." The more this is done the better map the researchers get of calls that are alike. This allows them to identify patterns, groups of whales, and eventually get a better understanding of how whales communicate with each other. All you do is look at a spectrogram and listen to a call and then find a matching call. Simple.

This is a project for reporting jellyfish and other marine organisms. If you have seen jellyfish, red tide, or any other unusual marine life you just go online and fill out their form and submit it. They even have a list of similar projects around the world that you can participate in.

FishWatchers is a project out of the International Game Fish Association. This website allows you to  upload your fish observations and photos through the Internet. Any fish any time. This information will then be used to create current distribution maps to assist in monitoring trends in biodiversity

TERRESTRIAL PLANTS AND ANIMALS

This is a great project from a Dutch entomologist that lets motorists report the date, time, and location of their latest outing and the number of insects that get hit (and probably smushed) by their vehicle. Not only does it give an idea about how many bugs are killed by vehicles it provides insect presence in certain locations and information about their flight patterns.

This is a network of people across the United States who monitor plants as the seasons change. It is a national field campaign designed to engage the public in the collection of important ecological data based on the timing of leafing, flowering, and fruiting of plants (plant phenophases). You can send in regular observations or just a single report. Everything is usefull. They provide good identification keys and other tools you will need to start. Not in the U.S.? I'm sure there is is similar project near you.

This is a U.S. based citizen science project that is a national animal and plant phenology observation program. You find out the plants and animals near you on a provided list, learn to select a site and observe and record what is there, and submit your results.

 eBird is a real-time, online checklist program that reports and accesses information about birds. It provides information on bird abundance and distribution at a variety of spatial and temporal scales. It is amassing one of the largest and fastest growing biodiversity data resources in existence. You enter when, where, and how you went birding, fill out a checklist of all the birds seen and heard during the outing, and submit your observations into the eBird database. They even provide tools so you can maintain your personal bird records and even visualize your personal data with interactive maps, graphs, and bar charts.

Neighborhood Nestwatch is a project out of the Smithsonian National Zoological Park and the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center. The idea is to find and monitor bird nests so scientists can compare how successful nests are in urban, suburban, and rural areas. All you have to do is keep a watchful eye out throughout the year and report your results.

 I know several people that participate in the Christmas Bird Count each year and have a really great time. From December 14 - January 5 volunteers brave the cold weather to do a little bit of bird counting. Anything from feeder-watching to active birding counts. It provides valuable information on migrating birds, bird abundances and distributions, and much more. There are many groups out there too that participate in the count and would love to have another person to help, regardless of your skillset.

 NestWatch, as you might gather from the name, is a nest-monitoring project. It aims to compile large, continent-wide databases tracking survival and reproductive success of a wide range of species and provide a unified nest-monitoring scheme to track reproductive success for all North American breeding birds. You "get certified" (meaning you learn how to properly observe a nest without jeopardizing the nest), look for active nests, monitor the nests and collect data, and enter the data online. The fact that you get to see baby birds should be a big selling point *wink*

The Backyard Bird Count is similar to the Christmas Bird Count in that it is an annual event that provides a real-time snapshot of where the birds are across the North America. The Count occurs from February 17 - February 20 and takes as little as 15 minutes on one day, or you can count for as long as you like each day of the event. When you are finished you enter your results on their webpage.

When it comes to doing science, watching the visitors to your bird feeder sure ain't bad. Project FeederWatch is a winter-long project of birds that visit feeders in backyards, nature centers, community areas, and other locales in North America. By counting birds at your feeder you help scientists to broadscale movements of winter-bird populations and long-term trends in bird distribution and abundance. You count birds at your count site that are there because of something you have provided (plantings, food, or water) and only report the highest number of individuals you see in view at one time, and then you report it online. Simple.

OTHER

 The Quake-Catcher Network (QCN )is a collaborative initiative for developing the world's largest, low-cost strong-motion seismic network by utilizing sensors in and attached to Internet-connected computers. The QCN obtains information about earthquake waves (seismic waves) by using computers that are connected to the Internet. Many laptop computers have built in sensors and desktop computers can utilize small USB sensors to collect the data. The data from these sensors are collected only when the computer is turned on and idle and is sent over the Internet. It is safe and easy. All you need to do is download the program.

 I used to take my ecology lab students out to cemeteries so we could collect data to make life tables. They were always a little squeemish at first but ended up loving the work. The Gravestone Project aims to map the location of a graveyards around the globe and then use marble gravestones in those graveyards to measure the weathering rate of marble at that location. The weathering rates of gravestones are an indication of changes in the acidity of rainfall between locations and over time and could be used as a measure of changes in climate and pollution levels. You go to your local graveyard and take a few measurements such as the lead lettering or headstone thickness.

The bodyLab is a project that researches the evolution of human body shapes and our ideas of attractiveness. All you have to do is go to the website and rate the silhouettes of women and/or men based on if you find that body shape attractive. It is so easy to do you don't even need to create an account.

The Sound Around You is building a sound map of the world as part of a new study into how sounds in our everyday environment make us feel. All you do is use your mobile phones (or another audio recording device if your phone is not compatible) to record 10-15 second clips from different sound environments, or ‘soundscapes’ from a family car journey to a busy shopping center, and to upload them to the virtual map, along with your opinions of them and why you chose to record it.

Dognition is a site that offers dog owners a series of science-based games that determine their dog's unique abilities and their relative strengths and weaknesses in various thinking skills. These skills range from empathy to cunning to memorization. As a user, you enter the results of your dog's behaviors, contributing to a data set that can be used by researchers studying dog cognition. It also offers the owners a "window into [their] dog's mind, offering a first step on the path toward improved behavior." You can tell how your dog sees the world and how they respond in different situations while at the same time contributing to science. Note: As of now this site/service has a fee.

WEBSITES FOR FINDING CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECTS

This is the best website I have found for finding a project that suits you. It has a great search engine and describes the projects very well. It also includes many local projects as well as great projects for kids.

This site is less detailed and contains fewer projects but is still a good source for citizen science.


(top image from thisgreenblog.com)

Have a Green Summer

It has been 102°F (~39°C) here for a couple of weeks now and we are all trying to think of fun ways to stay cool and still enjoy our summer. These summer activities got me to thinking about great ways to keep summertime both fun and eco friendly.

I've broken today's post into a few categories to help make the reading a bit easier. There will be all kinds of in-text links that you can click to take you to a company's website followed by my typical link list at the end of the post where you can find companies that specialize in green products of all kinds.

Apparel

Show off that summer style with some eco friendly clothes and accessories. Start with some glasses frames for over at Herrlicht that are made 100% from wood. Go over to Dragon Alliance for cool, edgy sunglasses and goggles made from 100% renewable origins. Clothes made from organic products are becoming increasingly popular with both the average wearer and the fashion forward. You know those comfy jeans that you love to wear? There are several organic options for denim that you will love. Among the companies offering eco friendly clothing are Mission Playground, Nau, Loomstate, Rawganique, Mar Y Sol, and many others. And ladies, check out these cute, simple summer dresses to keep you looking cool when the weather is hot. Pair them with cute shoes made from recycled materials from Faye, Melissa Shoes, ecosandles, Simple shoes, and El Naturalista.

Lawn and Garden

Outdoor furniture can be stylish, comfortable, and eco friendly. You can get a variety of chairs like this one from Room & Board. It is made from recycled high-density polyethylene (HDPE) which is a plastic made from petroleum. It comes in multiple colors and even has a bottle opener under the right arm.

Did you know that lawnmowers can be bad for the environment? It’s true. These engines contribute to more smog-forming emissions than cars on a gallon-for-gallon basis. What does that mean? A gasoline-powered lawnmower run for one hour puts out the same amount of emissions as 40 new automobiles run for one hour. Consider an alternative like a hand lawn mower or an electric lawn mower from companies you know such as Black & Decker and Bully.

Don’t have a yard? Use pots and planters instead. There are all kinds of containers made from recycled plastics like these from Rotoluxe. There are some very interesting options out there too, like these upside-down sky planters from Boskke.

Cooking

Having a cookout, or BBQ, is one of my favorite summer pastimes. But it does generate a large amount of garbage: paper plates, plastic cups, napkins, plastic utensils, cans, bottles, etc. One of the easiest things you can do is set up easy to see and use recycle bins for those cans and bottles. Also, exchange those paper, plastic, and styrofoam plates, cups, and napkins for biodegradable and compostable alternatives. Some of these alternatives include the Disposable Bamboo Utensil set and Seventh Generation natural napkins and paper towels. The Jaya Biodegradable Utensil Combo Pack is microwave and freezer save, impermeable and non-toxic. Heavy duty dinner plates and bowls from Stalkmarket are made from sugar cane fiber, a waste product of the sugar refining process.

If you are on grill duty you can fill your grill with sustainably produced charcoal briquettes. There are a variety of brands out there including Wicked Good Charcoal which is made from industrial scrap wood. If you use propane then you already produce half the emissions of regular charcoal.

Food. Food. Food. Summer is the perfect time to get a garden going. Plant some native plants in your backyard to grow fruits and vegetables. They are inexpensive, plentiful, fresh, and oh-so-delicious. If you are like me and don’t have a yard then check out when your local Farmers’ Market is being held and go there to get some great in-season and local produce.

You can also use reusable containers to store that extra food. For everyday you can use items like Lunch Skins reusable sandwich pouches. These are made from thick cotton fabric coated with food-safe polyurethane liner. They are BPA and phthalate-free and are dishwasher safe. Carry your sandwiches and other yummy summer goodies in a tote bag like this one from Branch Home that even includes a picnic set.

Even the liquor in your fruity summer drink can be green. Vodka360 is the first green vodka. It is made using a unique distillation and filtering system using high quality, local grains. The bottles use 85% recycled glass and even the label is made of 100% recycled paper using water-based inks. They also come in more flavors like 360Cola and 360DoubleChocolate. Or you could try some great organic wines. Go over to Organic Wine Find to find the brand that suits you. But remember, kids, no underage drinking. And adults, hug your friendly neighborhood designated driver. And buy them lunch.

Transportation

Consider public transportation. Buses, trolleys, light rail, trains, ferries, subways. There are so many options. They are usually inexpensive alternatives that save fuel, reduce city congestion, support your local economy, and reduce our carbon footprint.

Or you can run on your own steam. Or bike on it. I guarantee that there is a bike out there made just for you. There are even organic bikes like the Vestige from Schwinn, made from organic flax fiber. It was introduced at Eurobike 2010 and won its Gold Award. If you are looking for something truly original then take a look at the Shadow eBike from Daymak. This is a wireless electric bike that sports either a 250W or 350W electric motor and a 36V 10AH lithium-ion battery that can run for 12 to 25 miles just on motor power, 22 to 25 miles if you use the pedals. It can also charge your wireless devices on its own USB port.

Don’t want to put down the cash for your own bike? More and more bike rental programs are lauching in cities around the world. Companies like Bike and Roll have programs that allow people to rent bikes and return them to any of the company’s locations around the city. These bike sharing programs are popular with residents and tourists alike. Look to see if you have one in your city.

I’m not sure if this one counts as transportation but it sure looks fun. It is the AquaSkipper from Inventist, Inc. It is an ultra light watercraft that transforms a rider’s hopping motion into forward thrust. Fun!

Fun in the Sun

Fun in the sun is the name of summer. But a sunburn and irriating insects can ruin a good time. Try ditching the chemicals with toxin-free insect repellant from greenfeet and Bert's Bees and healthy sunscreens from companies like Nature’s Gate, Jason, and Soleo.

With all that heat, don’t forget to hydrate! For that you need a great, reliable and stylin’ water bottle. There are lots of 100% recycled, BPA-free bottles out there for you to choose from. Scroll through the options over at PrintGlobe, Sigg, and the Container Store.

I don’t go anywhere without my tunes. Imagine my surprise when I came across these electricity free bamboo iPod speakers. The iBamboo is a natural speaker made from, that’s right, bamboo. The natural resonance of bamboo acts like an echo chamber, amplifying the sound. And keep all your gadgets charged with the Freeloader Solar Multicharger that can power any hand held device. It can power an iPod for 18 hours and a cell phone for 44 hours!

If you play sports look for eco friendly sports equipment like this Eco Soccer Ball from Fair Trade Sports. This ball meets international ball standards in weight and size and is eco certified. You could also use a good pair of running shoes. There are some great green choices like the VivoBarefoot, Bare-Grip by Inov-8, Sir Isaac by Newton, the Kigo Edge, and the Columbia Amphibian by Sockwa.
Looking for something big and expensive and fancy to show off to your big and expensive and fancy friends? Then you need the Emax Excalibur solar hybrid luxury yacht. It is built from Kevlar and carbon, is covered in solar panels, and is completely carbon neutral. Ohhh yeah.

Here are some websites where you can order great green products you can enjoy all summer or anytime:

greenfeet
Eco Citizen Boutique
Nvey eco organic cosmetics
The Ultimate Green Store
Green Toys
Nature's Gate
Bambeco
Ecouterre

(image from surterreproperties.com)

Flexible Furniture

When I see a link for a website called FlexibleLove I want to make sure my computer's virus protection software is up-to-date and am wary about opening it at work. In this case, though, it is actually a pretty cool site. This is a company that sells expandable furniture...weird and cool all at the same time. The furniture has an accordion-like design with a honeycomb structure and is made from recycled paper, recycled wood paste, and it is produced using pre-existing manufacturing processes in order to reduce environmental impact. The name "FlexibleLove" is derived from "flexible love-seat" because it can expand to hold anywhere from one to sixteen people. Crazy!

Check it out: http://www.flexiblelove.com/

Happy Earth Day!

Happy Earth Day, ya'll!

Today, April 22, marks the birth of the environmental movement in 1970 in the U.S. During the early 1960's the attitudes of many Americans concerning the environment began to change. No longer were they thinking of the Earth's natural resources as limitless and using them as without consequences. This was particularly evident with the controversy that erupted after the publishing of marine biologist Rachel Carson's Silent Spring in 1962. When the Apollo astronauts photographed the Earth from space in 1968 the image brought home the fragile nature of the planet. Close on the heals of this event was the 1969 industrial accident in Ohio Cuyahoga River, where the industrial runoff caught fire and spurred many to action. This action resulted in the U.S. Congress passing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) that established a national policy that encouraged harmony between man and nature. The U.S. involvement in the war in Vietnam added yet another layer, no so much to the environment itself but instead challenging the status quo on public policy and human rights. When you boil it down, the environmental movement includes conservation and green politics and actions. It advocates for sustainable management through public policy and individual behavior. And while there is no central organizing force behind it there are various organizations, in a range of sizes, that promote awareness, work with local and national figures, and educate the public through events.

Earth Day started with Gaylord Nelson, a U.S., senator from Wisconsin. Nelson was a conversationalist who had witnessed the ravages of the massive 1969 oil spill in Santa Barbara, California, and was someone who knew how to inspire the youth of America into action. In late 1969, he announced there would be a national "environmental teach-in," which resulted in 20 million Americans taking to the streets, parks, and auditoriums to protest against oil spills, industrial pollution, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides, habitat loss, and other environmental degradation. It was the first Earth Day event. It was a nationwide demonstration for concern for the environment involving thousands of schools and communities. It was followed by the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1970, then the Clean Air Act, then the Clean Water Act in 1972, and the Endangered Species Act in 1973. During this time new groups such as Greenpeace, formed in Canada in 1971, and existing organizations such as The Nature Conservancy, formed in 1951, the Sierra Club, and the National Audubon Society adopted and/or promoted these principles as well as bringing legal action against companies that destroyed the land and resources. By the late 1980's, individuals had gotten into the movement by living greener and establishing things like local recycling programs. Earth Day had a resurgence in the 1990's, this time it was global, with the participation of 200 million people and 141 countries. In 1992, at the United Nations Conference on Environmental Development (UNCED), or Earth Summit, an unprecedented number of governments and NGO's agreed on a program to promote sustainable development, and then U.S. President Bill Clinton was prompted to award the Medal of Freedom (the highest honor given to civilians in the U.S.) to Gaylord Nelson. In the early 2000's the environmental movement focused on global warming and clean energy, using the Internet or organize activists. Today we find ourselves embroiled in controversy once again with climate change deniers, lobbyists, reticent politicians, and a disinterested public. But concern by many for the environment and especially interest in green energy is keeping the movement alive.

Want to know more about Earth Day events near you, no matter what part of the world you live in? Check out the EPA's Earth Day page:
http://www.epa.gov/earthday/

Here are a few more Earth Day websites I recommend checking out:
http://act.earthday.org/
http://www.earthday.org/
http://earthday.envirolink.org/history.html

Learn more of the history behind Earth Day here:
http://www.earthday.org/earth-day-history-movement
http://www.wten.com/Global/story.asp?S=5963519

(image from healing.about.com)

Project Solar

The Solar Decathlon is a challenge created by the U.S. Deparment of Energy where 20 collegiate teams design, build, and operate solar-powered houses that are cost-effective, energy-efficient, and attractive. To win the competition a team has to blend affordability, consumer appeal, and design excellence with optimal energy production and maximum efficiency. The program started in 2002 and occurs biennially. It is considered one of the most prestigious solar competitions on the globe. It is open to the public free of charge and allows visitors to tour the houses for ideas that they can impliment in their own homes, learning about energy-saving features that can help them save money. It also educates students about clean energy and trains them to enter a clean-energy economy. The Solar Decathlon has been a successful program, involving 92 collegiate teams, instituting a multidisciplinary approach to designing and constructing the houses, and providing hundreds of thousands of house visits from the public.

This year the competing teams include Appalachian State University, Florida International University, Middlebury College, New Zealand: Victoria University of Wellington, The Ohio State University, Parsons The New School for Design and Stevens Institute of Technology, Purdue University, The Southern California Institute of Architecture and California Institute of Technology, Team Belgium: Ghent University, Team Canada: University of Calgary, Team China: Tongji University, Team Florida: The University of South Florida, Florida State University, The University of Central Florida, and The University of Florida, Team Massachusetts: Massachusetts College of Art and Design and the University of Massachusetts at Lowell, Team New Jersey: Rutgers - The State University of New Jersey and New Jersey Institute of Technology, Team New York: The City College of New York, Tidewater Virginia: Old Dominion University and Hampton University, University of Hawaii, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University of Maryland, and The University of Tennessee.

If you want to learn more about the Solar Decathlon, including how to apply for your school or how to visit one of the projects, then check out the U.S. Department of Energy's website at http://www.solardecathlon.gov/.

Additionally, here is an article via the Mother Earth News website on the project:
http://www.motherearthnews.com/the-solar-homestead/the-solar-homestead-project.aspx

Feel Useful

This is a really creative ad that I think you'll enjoy:

Yummy, Carbonated Light

On the topic of biofuels, solar technology developer Joule Unlimited, Inc. announced yesterday that they have been issued a U.S. patent (#7,794,969, titled "Methods and Compositions for the Recombinant Biosynthesis of n-Alkanes") covering its new energy conversion process. The process converts sunlight and waste carbon dioxide (CO2) into liquid hydrocarbons that the company claims are fungible with conventional diesel fuel. So unlike making traditional biofuels (where you turn sugar or algal or agricultural biomass into alcohol - see story below), this technique is a direct, single-step, continuous process requiring no raw material feedstocks. The company claims that this could be incredibly efficient and cost as little as $30 per barrel equivalent.

Alright. Cool. So what exactly is happening here? Well, Joule has these microorganisms (they don't say what kind) that function as biocatalysts that use only sunlight, waste CO2, and non-fresh water to produce hydrocarbons that are diesel range and chemically distinct from biodiesel. Oh, and they are compatible with the existing infrastructure. Wanna add some more good news? Apparently they are sulfur-free and ultra-clean.

Do I sound a little skeptical? Probably because I am a little skeptical. After all, this info is coming from a company press release. So I looked up the patent number to try to fill in a couple of holes in the story.

One of these holes is the microorganism they are using to convert the light and CO2 into fuel. Apparently they are using an engineered cyanobacterium that "comprises a recombinant acyl ACP reductase (AAR) enzyme and a recombinant alkanal decarboxylative monooxygenase (ADM) enzyme; and exposing said engineered cyanobacterium to light and carbon dioxide, wherein said exposure results in the conversion of said carbon dioxide by said engineered cynanobacterium into n-alkanes, wherein at least one of said n-alkanes is selected from the group consisting of n-tridecane, n-tetradecane, n-pentadecane, n-hexadecane, and n-heptadecane, and wherein the amount of said n-alkanes produced is between 0.1% and 5% dry cell weight and at least two times the amount produced by an otherwise identical cyanobacterium, cultured under identical conditions, but lacking said recombinant AAR and ADM enzymes."

Mmm-hmm, that's a lot of "said's." I would refer to the patent itself (link below) if you are interested in details like the actual amino acid sequences of said (*smile*) enzymes. Another hole is the productivity and/or efficiency of this process, and this is where I would again point you to the patent itself because it is a while lot of numbers. Although there are some figures that help to simplify the information. Based off of what I know of biofuels (which, admittedly, isn't all that much) it seems kinda impressive. That is, of course, if it works.

Another concern, or hole, they left, at least in their press release, was their plans for mass production. In my opinion, on of the problems with biofuel production is not just the efficiency (or lack of) of the process but actually scaling up the process to make an affordable product that anyone can buy anywhere. And that, I think, will be the thing to watch for with a story like this: Will we, average people, ever see this easily available to us?

Look up the patent using the U.S. Patent Number 7,794,969 at this website:
http://patft.uspto.gov/netahtml/PTO/srchnum.htm

This is the press release from Joule:
http://www.jouleunlimited.com/news/2010/joule-awarded-patent-renewable-diesel-production-sunlight-and-co2

This is where I originally found the story, but it says basically the same things as the press release:
http://www.newenergyworldnetwork.com/renewable-energy-news/by-technology/solar-by-technology-renewable-energy-news/joule-awarded-us-patent-for-liquid-fuel-from-the-sun-technology.html

(image from organiclightsculptures.com)

Cellulotastic

A colony of the fungus Neurospora crassa (left) growing on cellulose and the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Sugar transporters from Neurospora that have been inserted into the yeast are tagged with green fluorescent protein. (Image: Jamie Cate and Susan Jenkins, UC Berkeley & EBI)

Reseachers at the University of California, Berkeley have been working on how and what yeast can digest. They have taken genes from a grass-eating fungi (Neurospora crassa) and put them into yeast. This new set of genes allows the yeast to produce alcohol from cellulose, a material that is normally indigestible. N. crassa is one of the rare yeasts that can digest cellulose because its preferred diet is fire-damaged plants. The genes were located by doing a genome-wide systems analysis to see which genes are turned on when the fungus grows on cellulose. The researchers were able to locate a family of genes which produces proteins that transport sugars into the Neurospora cell to be used a fuel and some transporters, in particular, that allow the cell to import a few types of cellodextrins (specifically cellobiose, cellotriose, and cellotetraose), simple-ish sugars.

Why should we care what yeast are able to digest? The biofuels industry has been struggling to make cellulosic ethanol economically feasible. Right now the industry is using brewers yeast, the single-celled fungus (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) to turn sugar or other simple carbohydrates into alcohol. So far cellulose has been a bit of a problem as it is a pretty tough molecule; it is composed of glucose (simple sugar) molecules all linked together into long chains. Its a molecule that you can find in abundance in various materials such as corn stalks, leaves and cobs (and the US uses a whole lotta corn!) as well as paper waste or any other plant material. Normally these long chains have to be broken up into smaller cellodextrins by enzymes called cellulases using a method called saccharification. Then another enzyme called beta-glucosidase is added to break down the cellodextrins into their simple sugar components. That's all before the yeast even get introduced to the system! If the N. crassa genes (cellodextrin transporters) can be inserted into the industrial strains of yeast that are currently being used for ethanol production the efficiency of the fermentation process can be greatly improved.

The paper appeared in this weeks ScienceExpress:
Galazka, Jonathan M., et al. (2010) Cellodextrin transport in yeast for improved biofuel production. Science: published online. (DOI: 10.1126/science.1192838)

Here is UC Berkeley's new article about the paper:
http://berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2010/09/09_neurospora.shtml

Learning Green

Its that time of year again: back to school. Whether you are in school, have kids in school, work/teach at a school, or just feel like being a little greener in your home or office you can find some great green deals on the Internet.

If you are truly interested in buying recycled supplies you should first look into what the word recycled really means. It can be kinda like going to the grocery store and trying to figure out the difference between 'reduced fat' and 'less fat.' But, basically, most recycled paper products are made of wood chips and mill scraps, not what's called post-consumer waste paper (PCW). This PCW is the stuff that we throw away and using it is what keeps it out of the landfills and saves trees. The EPA requires a minimum of 30% PCW to constitute recycled paper. So its better to buy a product with a higher PCW percentage rather than the chlorine-bleached, virgin-fiber paper sold at mega office supply stores.

Think of this as kind of a link-a-polooza. I've tried to break things down by subject, including in-text links in addition to my typical link-list at the end. Hopefully that will keep things straight with so many hyperlinks running around. If the link is broken for some reason then just type the company name and/or product into your favorite search engine and you should find it. The link-list at the end includes sites/companies that have a whole range of products and I recommend clicking around on their websites to see what they have to offer.

Backpacks and Lunchboxes:

Bookbags are tough as most of them are made of synthetic fibers, specifically PVC (polyvinyl chloride). If you are looking for the lesser of evils then try to find polyester or nylon rather than PVC. Its best to try to find a natural fiber backpack if you can. One option is hemp backpacks which can be found at Nextag, Rawganique, and EcoChoices. The Ultimate Green Store has some nice and pretty good looking backpacks to chose from as well. Yet another option is bookbags from Dante Beatrix. What if you want to go high tech? Take a look at this backpack from Voltaic Systems. Its solar!

Lunchboxes, like backpacks, often contain a lot of PVC, so metal is a better choice. Take a look at the Shiva lunch box or recycled Bazura Bags (they're even insulated!) over at Reuseable Bags. And at Reusit they have some nice and very affordable lunch bags, too.

Binders, Notebooks, and Paper:

Nakedbinder sells binders that are 100% recycled. They come in several types and are very aesthetically pleasing. Another good place for binders is Jorgel, who makes their binders from cardboard. For your composition book needs take a look at the Greenline Paper Company, they are also good for notebook paper and index cards. Tactile Creations even has a notebook made from recycled sugarcane! A company called Ecopaper has a good (if somewhat hippie looking) selection of journals, sketchpads, and papers. And over at Ecojot you can find notebooks, sketchbooks, calendars, and notecards all made out of 100% recycled paper. How about something a little strange that will intrigue kids especially? Take a look at this: paper made from elephant dung!

Pencils and Utensils:

A company called TreeSmart makes some very neat, pretty cool pencils made from recycled newspapers. Forest Choice makes pencils from unfinished, smoothly sanded, incense cedar wood which has the added benefit of a great smell. And Green Earth Office Supply recycles blue jeans for their pencils! They also have the Wheely pen, a flexible ball point pen made from 50% post-consumer rubber tires and 10% pre-consumer recycled plastic, and they are refillable and imprintable. Over at Pilot Pen: Begreen you can find gel ink, rolling ball, and ball point pens as well as mechanical pencils, permanent markers, and whiteboard markers. All of these products are made from at least 70% recycled material. When it comes to art supplies go over to Clementine Art to find natural paint, modeling dough, and markers.

Other:

A staple-free stapler can be found at the CB2 website. It is finger safe, never needs refilling, and is environmentally friendly. It works by cutting out tiny strips of paper and 'stitching' them together. A similar model is the EcoStapler. Greenline Paper Company sells paper clips made from 100% recycled steel. Need a ruler? Check out the rulers over on the GreenRaising site, they are made from bills (yep, money) retired from circulation and plastic. You can even get recycled pushpins over at Green Earth Office Supply.

Here are some good stories about buying green school/office supplies:
http://www.care2.com/greenliving/best-cool-green-school-supplies.html#
http://www.naturemoms.com/green-school-supplies.html
http://blissfullydomestic.com/2010/the-best-green-school-supplies-for-back-to-school-time
http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/green-school-supplies-44071008

Also check out these websites:
http://www.ecoproducts.com/
http://www.dolphinblue.com/
http://www.newleafpaper.com/
http://www.naturallyyourstore.com/
http://www.recycledproducts.org/
http://www.seventhgeneration.com/
http://www.treeco.com/
http://www.treecycle.com/
http://www.seejanework.com/
http://www.simpleshoes.com/

A good, but sometimes overlooked, website for school supplies is Amazon.com, they have some great choices on pencils made from recycled materials.

(image is of recycled newpaper pencils from TreeSmart)

Saving Some Green

As someone who works many hours in the forests of North Carolina, forests that have been at a humid 100+ degrees these past few weeks, I feel that I am more qualified than some to enjoy the cool wonderfulness that is air conditioning. Also, as someone who loves her job and as such is willing to accept the pay of a research technician, I feel that I am just as qualified as most to look for ways to reduce my electric bill (which has doubled with the mega-hotness) without sacrificing my comfortable coolness.

Taking that into mind, here is an article from The Daily Green called "13 Ways to Save Money on Air Conditioning." And ok, admittedly some of these are common sense, or should be, but it is always nice to be reminded. Also, many apply to you home-owners rather than us apartment-renters, but you'll get the idea.

Here's the countdown:

13. BUY ENERGY STAR
This applies to appliances like ovens and refrigerators, sure, but also consider an Energy Star central air conditioner. Did you know you could even qualify for a tax credit worth 30 % of the cost? That's up to $1,500! An Energy Star central air conditioner saves 86% energy and a room air conditioner 90% of the energy compared to a non-Energy Star product. Its nice to save some green in your wallet as well as on your planet.

12. THINK SMALL
Cooling one room requires less energy than cooling an entire house. So, if you have the option, pick a room or two to cool, ones you spend lots of time in hopefully, and do that instead.

11. PUT UP AWNINGS
Think shade, my friends, shade is your friend. Like trees or shrubs, awnings shade your abode from the sun's rays.

10. ATTIC INSULATION
Attic fans are good, and if you have one and aren't running it then perhaps you should. But they don't do all the work. If you insulate your attic then you keep all that bought-cool air from escaping out through the top of your house. Got central air? You need to seal those ducts too. Did you know you can get a tax credit for this too? Yep, covering up to 30% the cost of the insulation. That's another $1,500! Are we keeping a tally? Cuz that's $3,000 so far (not counting the decrease in your energy bill).

9. PLANT SOME STRATEGIC TREES
This kinda feeds back on the awnings one. Its all about the shade again. In this case, plant deciduous trees (that's broadleaved or hardwood trees to those of you out of the science-jargon loop) on the east and west sides of your home. Why this type of tree and not a nice ole pine or cedar? Well, in the summer it blocks the sun, but when all of the leaves fall off in the winter the sun can reach and warm your house. And they are a landscaping bonus as they are an aesthetically pleasing addition to your yard and attract wildlife like birds. Also, its not a bad idea to plant them next to driveways and walkways as these materials absorb lots-o-heat. Ever walk barefoot down your driveway in the summer? Ouch!

8. GET AN ANNUAL CHECKUP
Good for the body, good for the air conditioner. Get a professional to come out and take a look at your system. Stop problems before they become problems. Sure you gotta pay for the pro but odds are that bill will be much less than buying an entirely new system.

7. GO FOR A SWIM OR TAKE A COLD SHOWER
Its amazing what a little cool water can do. It reduces your body's core temperature, and once you get out the water evaporates and cools you further. Don't feel like upping your water bill? Use some ice cubes on your pulse points (wrists, neck, etc) to cool you down.

6. CLEAN THE AIR FILTER
Funny how often people forget this one, but a dirty air filter reduces air flow through the system and costs you money. A change every three months is probably good, especially if, like me, you own a pet that sheds more than its body weight in fur. Filters are really cheap and super easy to change.

5. SHUT OFF THE LIGHTS
Light bulbs, even the modern compact fluorescent and LEDs, produce a lot of heat. And although buying Energy Star rated bulbs can reduce the emitted heat by up to 75%, it is still to your benefit to just shut off the lights. Now I'm not saying you should sit in the dark (unless you like that sort of thing), but just turn off lights in rooms you aren't using and when you leave the house. That goes for electronics too!

4. COOK A COOL MEAL
The article recommends drinking a "nice cool cocktail," and I can't say I disagree (ahem, make sure you're of age there kiddies). But any kind of cooling food or drink - fruits, salads, iced beverages - all cool your core body temperature. Kinda like that cool swim/bath from earlier. Also, using the microwave or grill instead of the oven helps keep your casa cool.

3. ADJUST THE THERMOSTAT
One day....one day I'll live somewhere with a programmable thermostat. *sigh* But until that day comes I either adjust the one I have to stay at a higher, but still comfortable, temperature or adjust the temperature for when I'm home versus when I'm not. If you are lucky enough to have a programmable thermostat then set it for warmer when you are away or at work, cooler for when you are awake and at home, and slightly warmer for when you sleep.

2. USE FANS STRATEGICALLY
It is one of my favorite sayings when I'm out doing field work that sweat doesn't work unless there is air to move across it. Evaporation is your friend. And ok, none of us really wants to sit at home, where we are supposed to be comfortable, and sweat, fan or no. But even if you aren't sweating, just a fan pointed in your direction will cool you off. Still too warm? Simulate sweat by moistening the skin on your face and wrists and allowing the fan to blow across them. Also, as you might have already figured out, fans move air. So find a cool source of air and set your fan in front of it. Get that cool air moving through your house. Have an older house? Its layout may be such as to maximize air flow for the weather conditions in your region. After all, there wasn't always the bliss that is air conditioning.

1. CLOSE YOUR FRICKIN' WINDOWS
Oh all right, so I added the "frickin'." Opening your windows can make your house warmer not cooler. I see this on a daily basis as my downstairs neighbor constantly has her windows open regardless of the outside temperature. As a result, her cats are always on the porch looking for a little reprieve. If you need to open your windows then do so at night, preferably with a fan. But only do that if the air outside is cooler than the air inside. Also, anything you can do to shade your windows is key. Yep, back to shade again. Close blinds, add curtains, or even just put some houseplants in front of windows to help block the sun.

As I currently am an apartment dweller and a member of the I-can't-afford-it club, oh yeah and a scientist, I am constantly looking for additional ways, besides these, to save some green. One thing that I've looked into, heard great things about, but have not yet tried is window films. These are completely clear, removable films that you put on your window that block UV rays and help you save energy. They cost about $30 a roll (depending on the size of your windows you can use a roll for more than one window) and I'm very interested in giving them a try. If you, or someone you know, has tried them I would love to hear any comments.

Overall, I would say that regardless of your political beliefs or whether or not you even think climate change is real or whatever, everyone likes to save money. And saving energy saves money. Think about it.

Here's the article:
http://www.thedailygreen.com/syndication-yahoo/save-money-air-conditioning-0708
 
(image from senatesite.com/blog)

On the Rails

High speed trains. You ask me, I say they are a wonderful idea as long as someone is willing to pony up the money to build the infrastructure. That money thing seems to be the problem in the U.S. at least (how many light rail laws have passed with no actual trains being built?). Anyway, take a look at this proposed train in Britain.

The Mercury Train is a design of Paul Priestman and Priestmangoode, the designer of Britain's widely used Virgin Pendolino train cars. Priestman is determined to convince Britain that a high-speed, high-tech train such as this is the key to achieving sustainable, low-carbon transportation which will invigorate the economy.

The train is a 400 meter long double-decker that travels at 225 mph. Such speed is thanks in part to the extended nose of the train.It houses commuter seats outfitted with entertainment systems, private compartments, a play area for kids, and a bar and lounge.

Here are some links:

http://www.priestmangoode.com/

http://www.2dayblog.com/2010/07/16/the-mercury-train-concept-might-be-your-favorite-train-yet/

http://gizmodo.com/5587918/britains-train-expert-unveils-his-next-transportation-icon

http://www.dezeen.com/2010/07/14/mercury-high-speed-train-by-priestmangoode/

Green Screen

I have a small (some of my friends would say big) addiction to movies. And if you have crawled out from under that rock I mentioned in Fish Fry then you've probably noticed that 3D movies are the newest thing in Hollywood (I'll avoid the word 'trend' as they are probably here to stay). Along with 3D comes the computing power necessary to shoot or convert the films. We're not talking just a 3D video camera, we're talking computer servers the size of 4-8 parking spaces. Computers of any size, particularly ones that large, generate a lot of heat. All that heat must be cooled. So now you have all the energy to run the computers and the energy to run the AC units.

Just out in theaters is the movie Despicable Me starring Steve Carell. This new film is an 3D animated movie by Illumination Entertainment. This small company approached IBM to develop a customized server-farm using the iDataPlex system, green technology that allowed them to cut away the AC system and the associated cost. That's a lot of energy, about 40% less energy compared to traditional server farms.

So how does it work? Well, the iDataPlex system is "a flexible configuration that doubles the amount of systems that can run in a single IBM rack and the ability to run an ambient temperature room." This flexible configuration also decreases the space needed for the server farm, using only 4 parking space sized spots rather than 8. And although this system has been available for over a year, Illumination Entertainment is the first studio to use it for an animated film.

Green movies: Good idea.

http://gizmodo.com/5583881/how-a-small-studio-pulled-off-a-major-3+d-film-using-energy+saving-technology
and
http://www.2dayblog.com/2010/07/12/despicable-me-made-from-green-technology/#more-17272