“Fuel Up with Banana Peels,” is an article that contains a lot of wasteful product with great information. Considering our place in time and the limit of resources we have now, this article is not promoting such a bad idea. Now, it is not saying to throw banana peels into your gas tank. The idea that researchers have shown in a single step is that they can take pulverized coal or any other product that contains carbon and directly transform the fuels chemical energy into electricity by electrochemically oxidizing the carbon. The byproduct of this is carbon dioxide. Not to worry, it is emitted in such a pure form that it is easy to contain. There are many other products that contain carbon, including: banana peels, human waste, coal, coffee grounds and much more. Think of all the stuff that could produce energy for the world. There is so much human waste we could light up the whole world for years!! Obviously products for this new energy option are also very easy to find. We would finally have a place for all of the carbon based trash to go. There would not be a problem with burning trash or city dumps. Many problems would be solved. This new technology can help reduce the dependence on foreign oil as well. There are of course problems with this idea. The process is only seventy percent effective and it is very costly. Carbon fuel cells cost a lot. Plus, if it is so expensive it will be hard to find people who are going to want to switch to the new technology if the traditional energy is still working just fine. The only way that they will switch is if we finally run out of resources and they have too. Like stated in the article, it might take a decade for a carbon fuel system to pay for itself, which is probably longer that most users are willing to wait.
I believe that this technology like any technology is a great idea. The scientists are trying to find alternate ways to fuel the world are doing a great job. People are going to have to start realizing that we are running out of resources. Yes, there are down sides to the fact that it is expensive and I do not want to pay for it myself. And probably won’t have too. The financially stable will be the ones to try it out and see for them selves. Not the Imaginary goods seller. The poor will not be able to afford the new inventions, technologies and alternate ways of living. So what about them? What do they do? How do they survive? As researchers continue to research and explore new ways to keep this world surviving I am confident they will figure out something, even if it means using our own human waste to fuel our cars and light up our houses.
http://www.wired.com/news/planet/0,2782,69713,00.html?tw=rss.PLANET

Sun Powers Loon-y Pontoon Boat - A new, eco-friendly powerboat costs pennies to run and doesn't pollute. But will America's giant powerboat industry climb on board? By Stephen Leahy. [Planet Earth]

I applaud the Gisborne family for their efforts to help minimize the pollution in this world. Monte Gisborne is a man who actually cares about the future of this planet. Gisborne has made an entirely solar-electric pontoon boat which he plans to build and distribute. The Loon is a twenty foot, twin hull party boat, designed to be a leisure cruiser instead of a speed boat. When the sun is out the boat is powered by a 738-watt solar panel and when the clouds are out it is powered by several batteries. After a recent 100 mile cruise, Gisborne was glad to say that the cost of fuel was zero along with the amount of pollution his creation had released into the environment.
It is true that most people, who buy boats, buy them to go fast, but some people do not care about the speed as much as having a good time out on the water. This is the crowd Gisborne plans to market towards, the 50 and older crowd. He hopes the people who want to spend time with the family out on the lake one weekend will choose his pontoon party boat over a loud, expensive, gas guzzling power boat. Gisborne not only has converted this pontoon boat from a gas powered vehicle to a solar electric but in the winter time you can find him riding his electric snow mobile, and in the summer he rides his electric lawn tractor. Gisborne is a man with his sights on the future, and is actually doing something about it. With the rising prices of fuel and rising pollution people will soon have no choice but turn to alternate sources of energy. These people will turn to Monte Gisborne for this solution.
Boaters do not believe Gisborne will have much success with his pontoon boat due to people’s “need for speed.” With over 220,000 power boats sold each year in America, people do not care for a boat that has a top speed of about 9 miles per hour. The problem with trying to revolutionize the boating industry is people who buy boats are typically higher income families. A person who is willing to spend half a million dollars on a 45 foot power boat is not going to care how much gas costs go up, they are going to continue to buy their power boats and continue to pollute. This brings me back to the idea that the people who could have the most affect on reducing pollution do not care to do anything about it. The rich are the people who could reduce pollution the most. They have the resources to help engineer newer, cleaner forms of energy but choose not to. They also are part of the population that pollutes the most with their power boats and other large vehicles. If the higher income group of America gave up some of their unnecessary power and invest some money in people like Gisborne to help build more efficient vehicles such as the Loon, the future for this planet would be a lot brighter. People need to stop being selfish and start caring a little about the environment they live in.

HACKING THE HYBRID VEHICLE

Yet another answer to the high gas prices is the hybrid car (ex: CalCars, EDrive); an automobile that can alternate between battery charged-electricity and fuel. The creation of an alternate plug-in vehicle is not new news, as it was created and rejected by consumers in the past. As mentioned with the high gas prices, hybrid technology is stepping up to the market plate with confidence that their products will hit home with consumers. The production of new hybrid prototypes will be created within the next year! The future for these batteries does not look very bright, however, due to the risk involved with selling them and the lack of interest in a new way of replenishing the fuel for a car.

One reason why hybrid cars won’t take off in the marketplace is because distributors will not trust the potential for an already failed experiment. Even though gas prices are high, financiers will always keep in mind that consumers are usually very stubborn in changing to a new device. Prices are bad for gas, but not bad enough to hinder drivers from changing their views on transportation and riding a bike or taking the bus for work; the number of “on-the-road” drivers has almost been unaffected by the increase in gas! The testing for the vehicles have made the experts a tad sketchy with the practicality of the vehicles as well. Perry Carter, an associate professor at BYU who witnessed the tests, explains the impracticality of the battery type for the hybrid (the ultracapictor), “the drag racer used $22,000 worth of ultra capacitors for a 14-second run on a track." Apparently, the hybrid will save customers money but only under certain conditions concerning the endurance of the trip and the speed desired. Consistent, simple car drives with the hybrid will save money with customers who had used gasoline, but other driving scenarios may change the price comparison.

Not only do hybrid batteries have a bad reputation for failing in the market, but people seem to prefer burning fuel over recharging fuel; the idea of recharging a car battery every night does not sound appealing to a lot of customers. As lazy as it sounds, the use of ultracapacitors seems like too much of a mental hassle for the typical customer. In my opinion, this battery reminds me of some of the wind-up cars that motorists would have to use. Even if batteries become popular, they might become a small fad to that of 3-D glasses and people will move onto a cheaper fuel-type (whenever that comes around). Once more efficient, aesthetic, fuels are developed and marketed, people will return to a more familiar engine-charging type.

Although the hybrid car seems dissatisfying to potential consumers and financiers, I do believe that the hybrid battery does have a promising life with truckers (18-wheelers and cross-country shipping vehicles). These motorists do not have much time for pleasure cruising, and the battery suits their automobile needs: they’ll be driving for weeks and then take long breaks (a good schedule for a 5-week, rechargeable, battery). This will also benefit the truckers financially (whether or not the cash for gas comes directly from their paychecks), because they will not have to rely on the VERY expensive diesel fuel at the gas station.

In the article “Machine Makes Dishes on Demand” there are some amazing ideas on new kitchen appliances that would save bundles of energy. There were a few that particularly struck my fancy; the first was the machine that makes dishes on demand. According to the article it can make up to 150 pieces so you would never have to worry about dinner parties or anything. You go over to the machine, that is the same size as a dishwasher, and put in the number of whats you want and it produces them. That seems like a genius idea! To never have to worry who unloads the dishwasher, what a concept. Also, if you want to keep your ceramic dishware for a really fancy dinner party, you can still have it and just use it every now and then. But just imagine the amount of pantry space you could save; it would be amazing! As it mentions there are problems with it still, but I am guessing if they have come this far it is only a matter of time before they complete the idea.

Another invention that I found to be very useful would be the x-ray refrigerator. My kids sit in front of an open fridge and just look at it. That makes my energy bill go way up! If they could sit outside it and just see a picture that was taken the last time it was open, they would still be doing the same thing and not wasting any energy. Now the idea of the living cabinet, where you put food in and it continues to grow without roots, is a little out there. I understand how it could be useful, but I rather have fresh food not grown in my cabinet. They said that one of their invention is already being used, a microwave that reads the barcodes on the product so it knows how long it needs to be heated for. Well isn’t that just one of the smartest things I have ever heard. No more guessing how long to put in a can of soup, or waiting around to make sure you aren’t burning your food. But how would the reheating of food work, like for bringing it home from restaurants? Would you type in a certain code? That is the only thing I could possibly see wrong with this invention.

What I like about these inventions is that they are going to be useful in daily life. They are not out there ideas that would never apply to the common person. It may still be a little while before I have dishes being made in my kitchen, but I am willing to wait for such a clever invention. It saves energy and is so much more convenient. Once they get to the waterless dishwasher they have accomplished one of the biggest things. Saving energy and water would make bills much cheaper. As they said their ideas are not meant to be the final products, that is up to the manufacturer who uses the idea. So I think we should get the ball rolling on some of their inventions.

http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,69113,00.html?tw=rss.PLANET

Huge Solar Plants Bloom in Desert - Giant, power-generating farms will soon sprout in California, using large solar dishes and a 200-year-old engine design. They may finally make solar a viable alternative to coal and gas plants. By Will Wade.Plus: Truckers Choose Hydrogen Power [Planet Earth]
Huge solar-powered power plants seem like a fantastic solution to the shortage in fossil fuels. Two California companies plan to build two sun-powered power plants in the middle of California’s desert. These plants will be able to compete with traditional coal or gas powered plants. The larger of the two is estimated to produce 500 megawatts and the smaller will have the capacity to produce 300 megawatts. It amazes me that we have known for such a long time that we are slowly running out of fossil fuels, and it has taken this long for someone to think of and actually use an alternate source of energy. Of course many tests have to be run before the actual building of the plants begins, but if all goes well construction of both plants will begin in 2008.
I am simply amazed that it has taken so long for someone to think to find a way to innovate solar power. Photovoltaic cells are how solar panels work but these new plants will be powered differently. The sun’s light will be reflected off a dish and focused into a Stirling engine, which is a closed system with hydrogen that expands from the heat of the sun light, which in turn powers the engine. This is a much more efficient way of using solar power. These engines can convert 30% of the sun’s energy into electricity which is two or three times more efficient than conventional photovoltaic cells. The strange thing is the Stirling engine is not a new invention, as a matter of fact the design for this engine dates back to 1816. Now I ask myself, why did it take so long to finally decide to use the Stirling engine? If this engine truly is two or three times more efficient than other solar powered panels, why did we not think to use them sooner?
People do not understand that we are funning out of oil and other fossil fuels at a very fast pace, and soon there will not be any left. I believe it is great that these two California companies are finally planning to do something about it but look how long it has taken, and how much longer it will actually take. The plans for construction do not begin until 2008 and are estimated to take up to four years to complete. These plants should have been built years ago, but companies did not care to look into other sources of energy at the time because of loss of profit. Now that fossil fuels are becoming more and more expensive companies are looking for a way to produce energy cheaply. People do not care about the Earth; they care about making a profit and coming out on top. This planet is slowly dying and we are not doing enough to help save what is left. There are solutions staring us in the face but we look away for the sake of making a dollar. People need to open their eyes and see the big picture and see what is really important in this world, our future.

"Science Behind Acts of God"

During the time before the earthquake in Pakistan and after Hurricane Katrina was still hot on everyone's lips, Simon Winchester was all talk about earthquakes. Many individuals were a tad appalled at his ignorance towards the hurricane issue, but his concerns were well placed; they showed the similarities between our conceptions with hurricanes/tornadoes and earthquakes. Although hurricanes are more popular in the news, earthquakes are equally unpredictable, un-respected, and both are studied in underappreciated fields.

One of the main similarities between the two natural disasters is that they are both unpredictable. Even though Geologists have satellite images to keep track of the tectonic plates and meteorologists can keep track of wind currents with the Doppler radar, we still can not fully predict when and "at what strength" a natural disaster will occur. In regards to a personal experience, my uncle and aunt were given a warning that some remaining hurricane winds would hit Houston (their place of residence). Houston, however, was only hit by a small mist, hardly worthy of the word "rain!"

A rather unhealthy similarity between the two disasters is that they are both overlooked and underestimated, until a natural disaster occurs (e.g. Hurricane Katrina). Although the film Dante’s Peak was hardly a reputable movie, it hit home with the fact that people often act lazily upon disaster callings in regards to seismic activity; whenever there is potential for dangerous weather or seismic disturbances, there is usually little done about it. As mentioned earlier, scientists still can not determine the stength or the time at which these catastrophes attack, therefore, people will often hesitate whenever a warning (tremor or volcano) is made. Winchester states, “It will be a very brave geologist who advises a mayor that an earthquake is on the way. And a very brave mayor with the nerve to call for a full evacuation.” This proves another problem between weather and tectonic disasters in regards to misinformation or lack thereof; not only will people underestimate the potential for disaster but forecasters will possibly be secretive about potential natural disasters occuring because of the lack of evidence and the lack of desire to cause panic.

Finally, the most vital similarity is that both geology and meteorology are underappreciated fields of study. Would you place geology on equal standings with Math? I certainly wouldn't. As for meteorology, many people associate the study with weather forecasters on T.V. and account for it as a necessary yet trivial study. Winchester states that geology will start to popularize more as seismologists study the field. He states that as a “young” field of science, Geology is underestimated and overlooked like a younger brother among the older and more popular fields of Astronomy, Quantum physics, and, of course, mathematics. Although earthquakes do not occur as often as hurricanes and tornadoes, they are just as unpredictable, if not more, and just as dangerous.

In conclusion, the two disaster types share similar concepts on how they are thought about and delt with. What is tragic about the policy of natural disasters, is it takes an incident like Hurricane Katrina to bring public notice and concern towards weather study and meteorology; people will only concern themselves after there has been a catastrophe concerning the subject. Mr. Winchester states that geology is slowly gaining a larger following within the field, but I believe that it will not become as popular as meteorology until a Katrina-sized incident occurs within the country. As for the earthquake in Pakistan, there has been little buzz in the American media, even though many Pakistani homes and lives were affected by the earthquake. Apparently whether or not the disaster occurs at home plays a big part on popularizing the field as well.

The article “No Green Acres? Try Skyscrapers,” takes a look at the future of agriculture. It also solves the problem of taking empty storage containers that are stacked in towers in New Jersey and turns them into miniature organic farms. The crops would be grown with artificial lighting, servers, sensors and robots. The produce is grown without soil, free of pesticides, are kept in a positive air pressure and fertilizers and water requirements are one-third to one-fifth the needs of soil grown lettuce. (Lettuce was the produce used as an example in the article). I am in favor of some parts of this plan. The one part I am not if favor of, is the part when you actually buy the product. The price is expensive. Organic food is normally expensive but this is going to be higher. The reason is because of the way the product has been so delicately taken care of. Because of all the treatments and there are no hazards to the product the price needs to go up. The company doing this is also in favor of saving energy. They have a plan to use artificial sunlight but when able, they plan to use real sunlight as well. It is free. Plus they are trying to save money by placing these mini farms where the produce will be eaten. Cost will be reduced by keeping it local and not having to be relocated. What I can figure is if you are using a green house no matter where you live, you are still producing and making money. No matter what time of year it is. When it is winter you can use artificial and during summer you can resort back to natural light, while using technology and progressing in science. Other countries have tried this program and it seems to be working just fine. They are progressing in technology (robots) and agriculture. I think we should follow and try the new idea. Think of all the produce that can be grown and distributed through out the United States. This is a whole new wave of agriculture. There is only complaint that I would have. If this idea was to take off, would it eventually put out all of America’s farmers? Agriculture and farming is all that some families have to rely on as income. It is all that they know how to do. Besides that, I think that this is a great idea; it is cost effective, especially in the long run. If you were to compare the money that we would have spent on distributing the goods, labor, fertilizer and everything else that goes into working and developing a farm and its produce, it probably has spent a lot more money than the new idea. Placing these mini farms in many locations and feeding in central areas in a lot cheaper. A comment made at the end of the article was, “Agriculture is a very wasteful industry right now,” “"It might turn out that the only way to make agriculture truly sustainable is to stop farming the crops and start manufacturing them." I don’t agree that agriculture is a wasteful industry, but I do think manufacturing will not hurt the industry. What do you think?
http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,68888,00.html?tw=rss.PLANET

Grim Outlook for Africa's Future - Africa accounts for only a tiny percentage of the fossil fuel emissions that contribute to global warming, but the continent's poverty leaves it hard-pressed to deal with the coming catastrophic effects of that warming. [Planet Earth]

In the article, “Grim Outlook for Africa’s Future,” the effects of global warming on Africa are discussed. Ok, so we all know global warming is a major issue that needs to be taken care of as soon as possible, but for Africa it needs to be taken care of now! They are having problems left and right and are unable to do anything about them. Like it is said in the article, forty percent of the people live on less than a dollar a day. So they are not able to really help fix what is going on. With the African animal life decreasing because of global warming, many of their native species are going away. That is not good at all! It is happening because of everyone’s global warming. There needs to be a new way to get energy and stop burning so many fossil fuels. If something does not happen soon there will be no more beautiful reefs in eastern Africa, there will be no more cool safari tours to take your kids on to explore Africa, there will be no more of anything that makes Africa unique if global warming continues. For goodness sake, the top of their tallest mountain is starting to melt! In the article it says, “Rising temperatures at higher altitudes could also quadruple the number of South Africans at high risk of malaria by 2020.” They already cannot afford to treat their smaller diseases now, and AIDS is a huge epidemic over there, so what is going to happen to the population with more people being infected with malaria? Something needs to be done. Also, “With weather becoming more erratic, communities are finding themselves with little time to recover from one disaster before being hit with the next.” We thought hurricane Katrina was bad, look at their flooding. They do not have the resources to evacuate into new places of shelter and the availability to just move from one place to the next. It is going to take them much longer to recover from their natural disasters because they happen so often and have no time to fix the old and prepare for the next disaster. Another problem for them is going to be what they produce. They have been producing maize for a very long time with the weather being pretty stable with a lot of rainfall. Well they are going to have to find something else that can grow in theses new hotter and drier conditions if they want to continue to have a staple crop. This does not seem fair to the people of Africa. The effects of what has been going on for the past year will continue to hurt the world for an extended period of time. But if we find alternative sources for fuel there is hope that one day global warming will be eliminated. We need to do something now, no matter how much it costs, because you cannot put a price on the world.

NuWind, a new system of fuel that could be more cost-efficient than gasoline, will make headway for new kinds of hydrogen-based fuels for hydrogen-powered vehicles in the future. Whether or not the company's new kind of fuel will be marketable is another question. NuWind will probably never continue into production because of marketing and inevitable competition with other hydrogen fuel innovations in the near future.
Alistair Miller, one of the scientists/inventors of the NuWind fuel, believes that her fuel will be a cheaper and more manageable alternative than gasoline; NuWind should be able to successfully compete with gasoline products. NuWind, however, deals with a new kind of fuel, which needs its own transportation and distribution system. Energy market analyst Roberta Gamble states, "The problem is the transportation of the fuel, the integration into the fuelling system, and then whether or not it would ever be used." As Mr. Gamble would imply, investors are not willing to gamble on a new potential fuel fad if people might not accept it; even if it has more benefits than the average fuel type. If NuWind wants to get its foot in the door with investors, they will need to analyze their product with audiences and learn how to market their product successfully.
Another dilemna for NuWind is that investors are willing to wait for new innovative hydrogen fuel types to be invented. Investors understand that fuel-cell cars, vehicles that run on hydrogen cells, are still limited in production and are still very expensive for the mass majority. Manufacturers will probably wait a decade (at least) before feeling comfortable with the idea of selling these cars at a more massive rate. As the manufacturing of fuel-cell cars progesses, Hydrogen fuel innovations are progressing at a steady and quick pace (especially after the "success" of NuWind). Sadly, due to this dilemna, investors are gambling that by the time these cars become bankable, a new, cheaper, and "safer" fuel type will be invented. Many investors are sketchy about NuWind because of the use of nuclear energy within the product. Although the managers of NuWind feel that Nuclear Plants will not be necessary in producing the fuel, investors still fear the health risk involved with nuclear energy (e.g. explosive nuclear reactors, poisoning nearby water supplies).
Even though gas prices are increasing (especially with the transportation demands of "post-Katrina") fuel investors will continue to bank on gasoline-related fuels; Even though NuWind would POTENTIALLY be providing a fuel healthier for the environment as well as a cheaper fuel supply, investors are still willing to wait. In regards to the fear of using nuclear energy as a fuel, NuWind managers believe that these fears are falsely based. The problems with working a nuclear powerplant are mostly irrelevant (e.g. terrorist attacks, nuclear waste disposal).

http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,69456,00.html?tw=rss.PLANET

The article “Solar Power Biz Heats Up,” is discussing solar power energy. We all know that our energy sources are on the down slope these days and people all over the world are trying to figure out what do about it. The article makes stabs at what solar power does to taxes, investments and even supplies to households.
On a normal circumstance I would be all for the notion to help the environment and find an alternate way of energy. But not this one. They say that tax incentive at the state and federal level and a boom in construction have boosted the solar energy industry in the past year. Well good for them. Well, who is paying for this? I believe we are. We get these panels on these house they build. The cost of installing solar electric systems is high. This is keeping me and many homeowners from buying the systems. The article says that tax breaks have been promised for people who put in the systems. However, who’s to say that the cost of the tax break is even worth the system being put in. Let’s see… $2000 for the tax break versus $20,000-30,000 for installation. I do not think so. Except, the system is supposed to pay off in the long run. You don’t have to pay for energy bills. How long will that take. The rest of your life. Instead you will be paying off the installation of your brand new solar electric system, sitting on top of your house. Just waiting to get destroyed by a tornado, thunderstorm, or some other disaster. Who besides High Economic Status families can afford this feature anyway? And even if all of those people purchased, installed and operated the system, it still would not make a significant difference. Plus, not everyone needs the panels. Someone who lives in Hawaii would benefit more than someone who lives in Seattle. The article mentioned that the demand for polysilicon, which is generated from refining quartz or sand and growing into fine crystalline ingots, has been rising rapidly. This is used to make the key component photovoltaic cells. This would make the prices go up in the near future. People who buy this system better like long term investments. Plus, why would they even use something that will probably run out quick or make the prices go up soon? Just like life, the prices just keep going up! Japan is currently the best known manufacturer and leading supplier of photovoltaic panels (rooftop panels). I think that we need to find out why it is working so well over there. As for the article, they also decide that maybe the best solution is to wait. They think that some power conduction plastic can be incorporated in to portable devices. This will be launched in the near future. That will be a whole lot cheaper to make and to sell. Plastic is wonderful. If plastic does not work we should all just go back to when there was not electricity and sit in the dark with candles. It was all much more simpler back then! One comment that I think is a little confusing that could leave people to discuss is, “That’s where our largest increase in energy demand is coming from: the iPods and cell phones and portable devices we carry.”

http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,68840,00.html?tw=rss.PLANET

Truckers Choose Hydrogen Power - Fuel cells are so last year. A bolt-on, hydrogen-burning engine add-on is catching on among truckers. It saves tons of money, cuts pollution and allows for more-powerful acceleration. By Stephen Leahy. [Planet Earth]

Recently, the trucking industry has begun to test and use hydrogen to help power their diesel engines. Canadian Hydrogen Energy has helped solve a lot of problems for trucking companies with the invention of the HFI system, which is a hydrogen fuel injection system. The problem with hydrogen vehicles in present time is the fact that we do not have hydrogen fill stations and carrying large amounts of it in canisters can be a hassle and very expensive. With the HFI system Hydrogen is produced while the truck is driving using electricity from the alternator and small amounts of distilled water. The HFI system not only improves gas mileage but it also increases horsepower, and of course cuts down on pollution. After testing the HFI system on four trucks the president of Great Plains Trucking, Sherwin Fast, has decided to order twenty five more. Fast was quoted saying, “’We're saving $700 a month per truck on fuel.’”
I believe the Canadians have the right idea, unlike many other corporations they decided to make a small step towards better fuel economy and reduction of emissions. Too many people are coming out with cars powered by fuel-cells which are not feasible to mass produce with the technology available today. Along with smarter steps such as this HFI system people also need to realize they are slowly killing this planet and do something about it. Americans have become lazy and instead of walking when it is a short distance, they choose to drive their SUV or pick-up trucks, which burn huge amounts of gasoline. Canadian Hydrogen Energy’s Steve Gilchrist points out that California Officials are willing to spend one million dollars for a single prototype fuel-cell vehicle. Each HFI system costs in the range of four thousand and fourteen thousand dollars, a million dollars would buy many HFI systems. This in turn would provide a lot less pollution than one fuel-cell vehicle.
Although technology is steadily advancing, and I am sure one day we will have vehicles that will produce very little or no pollution at all, I still believe that people need to take more responsibility in saving this planet. Not only will walking or riding a bike for small errands help save the planet it will also help your health. Not enough people exercise and children no longer play outside. Technology claims to be slowly saving the world but at the moment I feel it is ruining it. People are careless and lazy; children would rather be on the internet on a sunny day than outside playing in the yard. People are slowly coming around, and the ones that have not yet began to turn around to these problems soon will. I trust that man kind will do what is necessary to save this planet, and help restore it to the beautiful land it should be. All I ask is walk instead of drive on a nice day or even car pool if you can, but help do your part to preserve the earth.

I think that New Orleans is a disgusting place. It is inhabited with many diseases and germs and it is not place for people to be, especially kids. Since the city is a bowl, all of the toxic waste that has entered into the city cannot get out. They say it will be around for years and it is not going to go away—well duh! Of course some of it got out from the pumping, but for the most part that city is in need of a major clean up. Right now I am willing to bet that there are more diseases just sitting around everywhere waiting to be picked up by the person who accidentally walks by and touches the side of an old building. I agree with the article when it says that there will not be a major outbreak of some weird disease, but I do think that the overall disease rate will go up and people will get sick more often with a more intense version of the sickness. For example, instead of someone catching the regular flu for a week, they will get it for longer and be more sick during it because of the atmosphere they are living in. If you are living in a constant state of filth, like the residents of New Orleans, it is hard to stay healthy. When kids start going back to school they are going to catch things from others and bring it home. There is no way around it. Eventually the bacteria will go away but there will still be a bigger problem that will linger on, mold.
The mold in the city is going to be their biggest long term problem. Unless they completely rip down every building and rebuild it, there will be mold all over the place. The problem is the humidity of New Orleans with it being pretty much built on a swamp itself. Mold thrives in damp and hot weather, so looks like it is paradise for it in New Orleans. According to Tierno, "Even if it dries out, they'll still always be there. The spores will remain until the next humid point in time. You're going to have these things waxing and waning." So this seems like a problem without a cheap answer. Mold creates more sickness and health problems. I think they need to just go through all the buildings and rebuild them for the safety of everyone. I understand New Orleans needs to become a functioning city again, but if it doesn’t fix its problem then in the long run it will drive off many more people than it will ever bring in. The city needs a complete make over, from head to toe and from the inside out. Obviously this is the only way to make the city attractive to people who want to live there again one day, but if they do not want to fix the city and want to let it rot, I guess it is their choice. I mean who wants to be in a city where they know there were piles of gross, possibly toxic, goo that has not been completely cleaned up with tons of germs in it and that has mold all over the place? Who wants their kids playing outside in the dirt that has oil, gasoline, chemicals, feces and who knows what else in it? Certainly not me! It may not be as bad as they predicted, but that does not mean it is a safe place either.

http://www.wired.com/news/hurricane/0,2904,68889,00.html?tw=rss.PLANET

Almost everything about me is old-fashioned, which can be traced back to my high school days. I am a very ethical man who likes to believe people will do the right thing. I was raised on the Honor Code system and in a way still base a lot of my life on the Honor Code. I first came in contact with the Honor Code in High school at a very competitive private school. Of course, I encountered many opportunities to cheat, but I asked myself if I wanted to live an “inauthentic life” and decided to abide by the Honor Code.
Physically, I am a middle aged man with thinning hair and a full beard. I am a wise, solemn, and trusting man that wears glasses and carries around an old leather bag instead of a new briefcase. Being a college professor, I typically dress casual, instead of a suit and tie every day.
I strongly believe in the protection of intellectual property and believe copyrights should be enforced. At the same time, I understand how advanced technology is, and have turned to a different solution than most copyright holders, trust. I believe this is one of my defining characteristics. It can be viewed as my greatest strength because I am trying something new and trusting the public, but at the same time it might be my greatest weakness because people may take advantage of the “free” information.
On the weekends I can be found in a museum, admiring priceless pieces of history. Or in my study quietly writing another article or working on my lectures for class.

We the people of planet earth will abide by the following ammendments in our blogging:
•Each person reads a different article for their two page blog entry decided on Tuesday during class previous to due date
•They are due Friday November 18, Friday December 2 and Wednesday December 7
•Responses due by the end of class on Tuesday November 22, Tuesday December 6 and Friday December 9
•Each response from the blog entry is a total of 200 words
•Teacher commentary is valued but not required

Amy Robinson is an advice columnist who has been writing for years. Her column appears in many newspapers around the country, she is very well known. When Amy was first introduced it was the way “Abby” she gave the impression saw she was as a stay at home mom with an idea that sparked from being the advice person in her community. She is a relatively young woman, in her late thirties or early forties. Amy has a vivacious personality and is very friendly. She thinks she knows everything but accepts the fact that people will not always take her advice. Since she has kids, whenever she gives advice to people about children it is usually on the side of the parents when it comes to the child’s safety. She does think that people should have their own privacy, but when it comes to safety that is what matters most. Her main goal is to be a good mother, but with being an advice columnist her other priority is helping people with their problems. She dresses comfortably but with a hint of sophistication, always looking nice wherever she goes. She likes to write and tell people how to act, but does not like closed-minded or stubborn people. Amy has a way with writing that makes the advice appear to be very apparent and reassures the reader of what they already know. She can communicate well to other people but has a hard time compromising with other peoples ideas. She likes to go to the park with her kids while she writes. She also likes to hang out with the other women and gossip about what is going on in their community. She is a typical loquacious woman, always giving advice even when it is or is not needed.

Ms. Dibbell takes a sip of her coffee and provides a satisfied smirk in the direction of the monitor of her Windows XP ‘95 version. She realizes that she has earned enough money from her online job as a seller of gamer items in order to pay for her annual income tax. She can now spend the rest of her income with her daughter of three years. Julian Dibbell raises her stylish, bottle-framed, glasses and calls to her daughter, Llewyn. Once Llewyn comes, Julian explains the situation and brags about her success. Julian hopes that her adopted daughter will think of her as a woman who makes the shots on her own terms. She also hopes that her daughter will be inspired by her unconventional success to be creative and inventive in her future days as a grown-up. Julian is surprised by Llewyn’s response, although she does not show it. What is surprising about her response is that she does not ask for any of the luxuries a young girl her age would typically want. Instead, Llewyn desires a new computer program that is comparable to a Sims game. Dibbell is very strict on not over-indulging her daughter. Therefore, Dibbell asks Llewyn whether or not she is sure she would want such a gift, explaining that she would only buy her one gift at a time. Llewyn answers in a very confident tone of voice, “Yes, I’m very sure.” The two companions shake hands in agreement to buying the gift, and decide to leave their apartment immediately. Dibbell answers her emails, while Llewyn puts on her shoes and raincoat. She responds to the messages as professionally as she would respond to her daughter. Her emails are from college professors and the others who would desire Ms. Dibbell to make lectures in front of an audience.
Before leaving, Dibbell takes a book with her so that she can read while Llewyn shops at the mall. Ms. Dibbell would usually read published and un-published works on the liberal issues that stepped outside of the mainstream. Today, however, she was going to spend her leisure time with her guilty pleasure, fantasy novels. She had a bookshelf full of fantasy fiction, which stood beside her office. She had the epiphany that her fantasy stories were extensions of her real life; she would become immersed with the protagonist of the story and feel like she was in a virtual world of her own liking.

My name is Teshi Gigabite and I stand gazing out of my store window onto the busy street of a sunny day in New York City. With my right hand I eat an overly ripened passion fruit, the left I stroke the tangles out of my brown hair. Hundreds of people are out today, shopping with family and friends. People laughing, playing and buying extravagant purchases. The air outside is perfect, clean for New York. There is not a cloud in the sky. In the We Buy and Sell Imaginary Goods store, it is not so pleasant. It is dull and the lights are flickering, with nothing at all to enjoy in the whole entire place. I am medium height, pear shaped, dark brown eyes, and glasses. Every day, I wear the companies logo t-shirt, “If you can’t touch it, we sell it!” and a black knee length skirt, along with her black slip on shoes. You see, I , do not want to work very hard in life so I thought I would open a store that could sell gaming imaginary goods or any other kind of imaginary good online for a small price for the public. While I am not busy I could play games and listen to music, which I am tired of doing so much. Except nobody comes to the store because there is nothing in it, and people either do not understand the concept or do not agree. I totally dislikes having to pay for things, and having to work hard, I am very laid back and takes one step at a time. I do like online gaming, chatting and traveling to Brazil. I have strength for persuasion and digging up anything on the internet. One weakness is that I try to hard to be liked. If you can not find me at his store then you can find me at the book store on the corner engulfing in cyberspace readings or at the local internet café talking about the web, trying to make friends and trying to get people to like me. Since I have not made any money with the business, it will be shutdown soon.