This week, we mourned the loss of senior statesman, Senator Edward M. (Ted) Kennedy, acknowledged the budding potential of housing prices and mortgage rates to reflect the increasingly potent value of energy efficiency, and sang the praises of thermal leak-detecting spiders.
Lisa's cherished and energy-saving clothesline was featured in the New York Times' Green Inc. blog, and we noted that the same principles that help kids stay healthy and perform better in energy efficient schools apply equally well to homes.
In the wake of as much chortling as self congratulation over cash-for-clunkers, there is lively talk about invoking "cash for refrigerators" in order to spur investment in energy efficient appliances. Among the concerns of detractors: that we'll buy the new but keep the old frig burning electricity in the basement to keep our beer cold. (We weren't allowed to keep our clunkers in the front lawn as outsize garden gnomes, how come we'd get to keep the fridges?)
The University of Mississippi has teamed up with SmartSynch, a smart meter startup, to install smart meters across the campus. If that's not enough, the smart meters will be tweeting, facebooking, and blogging. Ole Miss, in sum, will have electricity meters that are more tech-savvy than your mother. What do you have?
Watthead has launched an Alliance for Climate Education project, "It Began with a Few Hundred..." to get high school students involved in environmental stewardship, capitalizing on the growing and incredibly well connected base of students motivated to make change. What is your student up to? No doubt she'd like a little Moolah as she heads back to school. Check out Moolah Maker, and see if you can strike a deal.
Not just for spitting contests anymore: there is talk afoot of using ugly watermelons to make biofuel. Normally, watermelon farmers are unable to sell about 20% of their watermelon crop because the melons are just too ugly - turning these rejects into biofuel would reduce waste and provide a really fun energy source.
Finally, slime mold will have its day (hopefully, not in your basement). Scientists in Britain are aggressively pursuing a way to make robots out of mold. Now, don't get any ideas: this doesn't mean that you can neglect your air leaks, skip the ventilation and have an instant troop of robo-maids doing your dirty work. This is science, man - fully biological mold robots.
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