[motor]cycles and music

The song that accompanied the slides was Arlo Guthrie's Motorcycle Song.

Ecocats

African Greenhouse _ The good effect

For the next couple of weeks I’ll be focusing on yet another third-grade science project that I’ve never taken the time to look at so closely. I actually appreciate all those long days in elementary-school science class where each teacher drilled day after day about the importance of science. Well, now I’m listening, and now I can do something about it. I’m maintaining a terrarium; a small-scale, clear dome for the sustaining of plant-life. It’s rather amazing really, it needs about a half a cup of water, sunlight, and then just left alone. It’s the advertiser’s version of a garden, in this case at least.
My plant has yet to develop, as I just began the process, but all of these projects show terms of real results on a large scale. In other words, how can an extremely large outdoor terrarium, or green house, effect the crop development in most or all of sub-Saharan Africa? Well, the problems that are currently happening are obvious. The soil is terrible, the water is rare to be found, and there is an abundance of sunlight drying up what little soil and water the African farming community has, (Khamsi). The truth is that this part of the nation is very forward about thinking in terms of their current predicament. Parts of the continent have taken to harnessing the powerful solar energy to provide electricity and detract from using harmful substances like coal or other chemical products. Basically, the way to identify a positive step for energy use is a group of people that attempt to use anything, or create power without the production of chemicals. Food development and growth should be the exact same thing.
Ideally, there are many things that this underdeveloped continent is in desperate need of, but handling one element at a time is probably wiser. Many countries have the solar power in place to provide electrical needs. I think it’s time that money being raised actually saw it’s way to the area. Building greenhouses on designated land, and then providing the necessary materials for able farmers to produce within the greenhouses would begin farming that reacts to favorable technology. With technology being one of the supposed backslides of the nation, there’s no need to reintroduce industrial processes that failed countries like the U.S. I see more progress in only introducing processes that sustain everything from resources to money. Money is generally the main reason to do anything half as well, and deliberately introduce harmful processes for the sake of efficiency. It’s time to work harder to create solutions for the present and the future. It’s also time to answer an immediate call for help.




Bibliography

Khamsi, Roxanne. Soil Health Crisis Threatens Africa’s Food Supply. . March 31, 2006.
NewScientist. Sept. 30, 2008. <>

Musical Report

My Music - Apples Falling From Your Head

For my musical report, I wrote a song and played it in the student center. You can listen to / download it here.

Lyrics:

I will not be intimidated,
No one's less afraid than me to fall.
Though my strength is underrated,
Oh my size will never make me small.

And I'd try to tell you something,
But I cannot know as well as you.
No one needs to move a mountain,
Cuz you're smart enough to just get through.

Da da da da.

Do not be intimidated,
No one said you had to know it all.
Sat inside your house and waited,
For the apples in your head to fall.

All you ever wanted lies inside your unencumbered potential.

All you've ever wanted you will meet it,
So get up get down get tall.

Da da da...

Low-Light Plants

Hey guys,

If you haven't found your plants for your ecosphere yet, I thought I'd share some information I found about a few plants that work in low light and a few places you might try getting them at.

There's also this pretty neat website made by the BBC that has an interactive visualization of how ecospheres work and the variables involved. Visit it here.

Low Light Plants + Herbs:

◦ broadleaf thyme - Plectranthus amboinicus
◦ Mint
◦ Mother-in-Law-Tongue
◦ culantro - Eryngium foetidum
http://www.caribbeanseeds.com/culantro.htm
http://www.richemporium.com/culantro.html
◦ Parley
◦ angelica
◦ chives
◦ lemon balm
◦ bamboo
◦ Aloe
◦ Dracaena
◦ baby tears
◦ maidenhair fern
◦ miniature ivies
◦ sansevieria


Where to Get Them:

Midwest Plant Works Inc
(612) 338-0447
International Market
Minneapolis, MN

Plantique
(612) 722-3155
5152 Hiawatha Ave
Minneapolis, MN

Landscape Alternatives Inc
(651) 488-3142
Saint Paul, MN

Ecogarden Supply
(651) 647-1896
1553 Como Ave
Saint Paul, MN

If anyone has any info they've found and would like to share, go for it!

Farming Reports

The hit remix of Dust In The Wind

MUSIC / SAMPLING / PRODUCTION

Here is the link to the PDF of the entire booklet. I choice to do research on Samplers and music production with them. 

Sampler Product Design 

First water report: Greenland Melting

The first water report I did on the Greenland ice caps melting and what a team from Discovery channel tried to reverse it.

My Second Report on water, creating wells in India

My second water report on building water wells in India.

Water Report number Three

My third report about the Watercone!

The water tasted good!

I wanted to make one of those water cones, so i went to ikea and bought a glass bowl, used the top of skillet pan, traped the salt water inside, and voila!

Farming Reports

Report #3

Farming Reports

Report #2

Farming Reports

Report #1

Singing in Science Class

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Here is a song about solar energy.

Solar Power Rag

Joan Maute, Ed.D.


Shine, shine, shine on down,
Shine upon the city and the town.
Sun shine on you and me
Warm us up and make us free.

We got to catch it, got to magnify it;
Gonna stretch it, any way we'll try it.
Build your windows facing the south,
You need a wall to keep the north winds out.

Shine, shine, shine on down,
Shine upon the city and the town.
Sun shine on you and me
Warm us up and make us free.

You can save that warmth in a water wall,
Dark brick, rocks, anything at all.
When the sun goes down and the sky is black,
they'll give you all the warm air back.

Shine, shine, shine on down,
Shine upon the city and the town.
Sun shine on you and me
Warm us up and make us free.

You see solar panels on a satellite,
Collection panels at a building site.
Solar water heaters, ovens and cells,
Where it'll end you never can tell.

Shine, shine, shine on down,
Shine upon the city and the town.
Sun shine on you and me
Warm us up and make us free.

So use the principles the sun respects;
Dark absorbs and light reflects.
Low winter sun should shine in your house,
Overhang'll keep the summer out.

.Shine, shine, shine on down,
Shine upon the city and the town.
Sun shine on you and me
Warm us up and make us free.

Canal Taxis

Big Buses: Not So Bad

A Close Up : on reefs

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London Bikes

Fighting For a Third

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Desalination

My first try at desalination involved the use of electricity and a stovetop. I tied a small glass to the inside of a lid and put it on a pot of salt water. I boiled the water three different times but each time the glass fell off the lid either while boiling or as I was trying to take it out.

On my next try, I opted for candles as a heat source instead of electricity. I bought a teapot and glass jar from Savers and a cord to attach the two. I put four candles beneath the teapot and the glass jar was placed in a small container of ice. I let the candles burn for three hours and the entire surface of the teapot was hot but no water was in the glass jar. I replaced the candles and let them burn for another three hours, but still no water. Maybe there was too much water to boil or evaporate. Maybe the teapot, hose, jar, or connections weren’t airtight. There are many possibilities as to why this system didn’t work.

I attempted desalination again with the same idea as my first try, but I replaced the small glass with a bowl about the size of the lid. I thought this would gather more of the condensation than the small cup and would be more likely to stay in place. It did stay in place, but it didn’t gather any water.

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solar power

After many failed initial attempts at using the solar panel to power a number of objects, I realized the output was too low to power even a tiny LED. After experimenting with a few other solar panels, I realized I had the wiring correct because the larger panel would illuminate the bulb, but the small panel did not. So I combined the larger and smaller panel to create a circuit with enough energy to power a low voltage object. I first tried a small mp3 player that ran on one AAA battery, but no music played. There should have been enough energy output in the panels combined, so I imagine I wired it incorrectly. Then I tried something simpler. I attached a small fan I bought from Ax-man to the circuit. At first nothing happened, but then the sunlight came out from behind thin clouds and I gave it a couple spins manually. Then it kept spinning for about 30 seconds with the power supplied by the solar panels and it stopped spinning as the sun went behind clouds again. So even three panels combined need direct sunlight to supply power. My idea for application of this solar fan is to, on the small scale, use it in vehicles as an alternative to air conditioning and reduce greenhouse gases emitted by current vehicles. Small steps like this are something consumers can grasp and embrace without being overwhelmed. 

Sweden's tumultuous relationship with wind: More love than hate

Wind energy has come a long way from a new energy source to the mature, and for the most part, accepted energy source it is now. It has found use in a lot of different countries in a very big way. Germany generates five percent of its energy through 20,000 wind turbines, with the United States and Spain completing the top three for use of wind turbines for energy. However, as it has matured, so has the criticism. From what was once mainly faulted for being an eyesore, now the turbine is being looked at in terms of its shortcomings as a practical energy source. After all, the wind isn’t constant, and the prime locations for wind farms usually place them far away from the places that need the most electricity. Already, wind-energy pioneers like Germany and Denmark are faltering in growing their wind industry; as of yet it’s just too unreliable.

This fact hasn’t seemed to phase the Swedes however, who in 2007 only received less than one percent of their overall energy from wind sources. Currently, Sweden derives all of its energy mainly from two sources: hydro and nuclear. The reasoning for expanding their wind industry comes from a want to develop a third leg of energy production, therefore strengthening the resilience of their energy network. Residents near possible wind farm sites still resist the idea to a certain point, due to the eyesore factor, but the green legislation and the more overall acceptance of wind turbines as a sign of modernity help to keep the projects on track.

But Sweden isn’t keen on simply using wind energy as a straight to the grid energy source alone. They’ve already innovated on the ways in which they can compensate for some of the faults of wind energy. One of their most prominent is using wind energy to pump water from underground into elevated reservoirs, which can then be used for hydroelectric energy production. This both minimizes the inconsistent flaw of wind energy, while strengthening the supply of hydro energy, showing that a more diversified sustainable energy grid can be used to solve many reliability issues.

Another interesting aspect of the application of wind energy, and a more recent example at that, is the advent of using wind energy to supply power to docked cargo ships. Currently the ships use a bunker fuel, which is leftover residue from refining oil, to power themselves at dock. However, the bunker fuel actually create effluent that trap heat and can accelerate the melting of arctic ice, in addition to the fact that the particulates of this substance aggravate respiratory diseases, cardiopulmonary diseases, and can even contribute to lung cancer. Also, the shipping industry is responsible for twice the amount of emissions as aviation, and yet undergoes little scrutiny and is very slow to change. The change started eight years ago however, when a Swedish company called Stora Enso collaborated with the ports and the government of Sweden to devise a way to improve their environmental profile. Switching to a wind supported power grid while at dock is a little more expensive, but in the end cuts most emissions down to near zero percent. Which is acceptable to Stora Enso, who believe their customers would like it better this way. Now isn’t that lovely policy?

Wind Turbines and the Generating of Rainfall in Desert

Benefits of Wind as a Renewable Energy Source

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, wind energy is one of the most favored new electricity generation sources by energy companies. Wind energy provides the lowest cost of any generation resource, and avoids risk of increasing fuel prices.
Wind farms in rural areas generate energy that can then be sent to urban areas. Because these wind farms need to be built in flat, rural areas, farmers and land owners can profit from allowing the government to build wind turbines directly on land usually used for growing crops or livestock, which can occupy areas right up to the base of the wind turbines. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, farmers can receive as much as $4000 annually per wind turbine.
Wind energy can also increase local tax bases in areas where wind farms are placed. This often creates an increase in revenue for schools and counties.
Completely renewable, wind energy creates an abundant energy that, unlike depleting fossil fuels, will allow future generations to use.
Environmentally, wind energy produces no emissions: global climate change, mercury contamination, acid rain and other negative environmental contributions are not produced through wind energy production. Wind energy turbines also don’t consume any water. Electric generation and Irrigation consume approximately 77% of all U.S. fresh water use. Wind energy turbines in dryer, drought areas create an energy source with out using water.
Overall, wind energy can power businesses, farms, homes and establishments alike.

Sustainability Victoria / Developtment of Wind Farms

What is Sustainability Victoria?

Sustainability Victoria is an organization in Australia, focusing on sustainable resources, including reducing negative environmental impacts, becoming more efficient in using natural resources, and educating people in order to better support both community and economy. Sustainability Victoria offers a variety of programs, including but not limited to:

-A general design program (Susd)
-The Design or Sustainability Partnership (a partnership between Sustainability Victoria and the Design Institute of Australia)
-ResourceSmart Recycling
-Energy and Water Task force (a program helping low income households save both energy and water through educating and making free home improvements)

Sustainability Victoria is responsible for much of Australia’s renewable energy resource research and education, including:

-Bioenergy
-Solar
-Hydro
-Wave
-Geothermal
-Wind



Sustainability Victoria and Wind as a renewable energy source:

Because wind farms are a relatively new technology to Australia, Sustainability Victoria has worked on introducing the concept to many communities. Sustainability Victoria offers information on wind farms on their website, directly addressing many skeptics issues or concerns with wind farms, including information on:

-Green house gas
-Cost
-Community benefits
-Livestock and wildlife
-Safety
-Noise

Victoria’s energy demand grows every year by over one and a half percent. Since Sustainability Victoria has begun its research, the Victorian Government has developed more renewable energy policies, including “the Victorian Renewable Energy Scheme”. The Victorian Renewable Energy Scheme has boosted investments in renewable energy projects, specifically wind power. Victorian Government has developed recent plans for future wind developments, as wind serves as one of the most cost effective sources of renewable energy in the world.