My first video (Blog Post)

I've watched hundreds of hours of videos through this site; it seems about time to throw my hat into the ring. Here is my first travel video, in fact my first production of any kind since the days of VHS. I shot all this on a Canon G11 in February 2012. Enjoy!

Wildlife of Costa Rica - A trip around the Osa Peninsula 

 

Surveys are fun! (Blog Post)

http://bit.ly/aIWKdG

A friend is in need of a few good survey participants.

The goal is to better understand attitudes towards the management of protected areas under climate change.

Sifters' perspectives would be appreciated!

The survey consists of 40 easy questions and will take about 10 minutes, once you're registered up.

 

You can take the ‘Protected Areas and Climate Change’ survey via this link:

http://bit.ly/aIWKdG

 

Throw in a comment below if you take it, I'd be curious to hear what you think.

Google making inroads into meatspace (Blog Post)

Google wants to bring smart energy metering to millions of homes.

 http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/009422.html

The PowerMeter "will show consumers their electricity consumption in near real-time in a secure iGoogle Gadget," according to the organization's website.

As we all know, their product is rarely the same as their revenue stream. Cringely identifies the other side of the coin in this post: http://www.cringely.com/2009/02/power-to-the-people/

Listen Bob's rundown:

 

Design e2 (Blog Post)

PBS webcasts some fantastic documentaries, which are unfortunately not embedabble. The latest one I came across is design:e2 (already in its 3rd season!)

design:e2 (the economies of being environmentally conscious) is an original six-part series that explores the vitality of the environment through eco-friendly architecture. Narrated by Brad Pitt, the series introduces us to the inventive leaders and technologies driving sustainable practices worldwide in the design of buildings where we live, work, and play.

In six parts the first series chronicled the changes that underway right now in cities worldwide, changes instigated by planners who want to improve quality of life through environmental design.

You can watch segments of the series online here: http://www.design-e2.com/

Expand for episode descriptions:

Part 1 - The Green Apple

The first episode begins in New York, a city that is leading the charge to green its industrial skyline with several groundbreaking projects. New York combats the urban myth of the bustling city as a 'concrete jungle'. The 'Green Apple' explores some of Manhattan's most prominent and technologically advanced structures like One Bryant Park and The Solaire, as well as the innovative minds behind them. The episode illustrates how the ubiquitous skyscraper can surprisingly be a model of environmental responsibility.

Part 2 - Green for All

'Green for All' follows architect and activist Sergio Palleroni as he continues his mission to provide architectural and design solutions to regions in social and humanitarian crisis. Palleroni already has four global initiatives underway aimed at providing architecture students with hands-on field experience building housing for the poor. This episode finds him in East Austin, Texas and in Mexico, where he and his student team are helping threatened communities build thousands of homes while teaching residents to be resourceful in cutting costs and using local materials.

Part 3 - The Green Machine

In 'The Green Machine', Mayor Richard Daley takes viewers on a tour through Chicago, and showcases his mission to make it 'the greenest city in America'. Chicago already demonstrates a remarkable commitment to green design and construction, with over 40 buildings registered for LEED certification, an integrated solar-powered public transportation system with a biker commuter station and over two million square feet of green roofs, including City Hall.

Part 4 - Gray to Green

'Gray to Green' takes the notion of the three R's (reduce, reuse, recycle) to grand proportions by looking at Boston's 'Big Dig' and the massive amount of waste created by the $15 billion public works project. Paul Pedini, a civil engineer on the project, had the idea to build his own home from the Big Dig waste. The success of this project sparked plans to create an office complex in Massachusetts from the same recycled material. These innovative projects serve as prototypes to demonstrate to city officials that there is value in recycling on such a grand level.

Part 5 - China: From Red to Green?

The series moves to China, whose soaring population and rapid industrialization have created a boom in urbanization that is unprecedented in human history. To try to tackle this global issue, 'China: From Red to Green?' explores green design solutions in both theory and practice, including Steve Holl's Linked Hybrid project, which will have the largest residential geothermal heating/cooling and grey-water recycling system in the world upon completion. William McDonough shares his innovative plans to make China an entirely sustainable country and the ways architecture can be both profitable and environmentally intelligent.

Part 6 - Deeper Shades of Green

Design:e2 ends with a look to the future. 'Deeper shades of Green' focuses on remarkable thinkers and designers of our time: Ken Yeang, Werner Sobek and William McDonough. Nothing short of geniuses, these architects are challenging society and environmental design philosophically, psychologically, technically, aesthetically, politically, and culturally. Each is radically changing the face of not only architecture, but of environmentalism. 

 

Herman Daly on the Financial Crisis (Blog Post)

Herman Daly on the Credit Crisis, Financial Assets, and Real Wealth

 Ecological Economist Herman Daly has a decidedly different take on the cause of the recession, and why it was inevitable.

 A teaser from the article:

The current financial debacle is really not a “liquidity” crisis as it is often euphemistically called. It is a crisis of overgrowth of financial assets relative to growth of real wealth—pretty much the opposite of too little liquidity. Financial assets have grown by a large multiple of the real economy—paper exchanging for paper is now 20 times greater than exchanges of paper for real commodities. It should be no surprise that the relative value of the vastly more abundant financial assets has fallen in terms of real assets. Real wealth is concrete; financial assets are abstractions—existing real wealth carries a lien on it in the amount of future debt. The value of present real wealth is no longer sufficient to serve as a lien to guarantee the exploding debt. Consequently the debt is being devalued in terms of existing wealth. No one any longer is eager to trade real present wealth for debt even at high interest rates. This is because the debt is worth much less, not because there is not enough money or credit, or because “banks are not lending to each other” as commentators often say. 

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