energy security
Faced with the growing reality that energy insecurity threatens national and international “regular” security, military organizations around the world are working to conserve energy, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adopt alternative fuels. In the US, the Department of Defense is waging an increasing aggressive “green war” that encompasses everything from
electricity
How exactly can a smarter grid make our lives better, easier, cheaper or more efficient? A first-of-its-kind report card template for utilities developed by the Environmental Defense Fund identifies several good reasons for upgrading our current electricity infrastructure: * Energy “on sale” when fewer people want it. So-called “dynamic pricing” can
energy storage
They call it “Cambridge crude,” and it could revolutionize how we store energy. Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed a new type of battery that uses an oozy black goo to store and discharge electrical energy. It’s a battery design that’s radically different from
photovoltaics
A company that makes lightweight plastic solar panels is practicing what it preaches by installing its technology at its own facility in Massachusetts. According to Konarka Technologies, the deployment in New Bedford is the largest organic photovoltaic (OPV) installation of its kind. It’s also the first-ever , semi-transparent OPV curtain
bus rapid transit
Faster than a standard bus service and cheaper (and faster) to implement than light rail, bus rapid transit (BRT) typically uses dedicated traffic lanes to transport commuters from stop to stop in busy cities. A growing number of cities around the world are adding BRT systems in an effort to
bus rapid transit
Santa Monica, California, operates a Big Blue Bus system with a fleet of more than 200 vehicles, all of them powered by alternative fuels, including liquified natural gas (LNG). Its Rapid Blue BRT (bus rapid transit) fleet has recently expanded with the addition of compressed natural gas (CNG) powered buses
bus rapid transit
Launched in 2004, Las Vegas’ Metropolitan Area Express (MAX) is considered one of the best examples of a BRT system in the US. The fleet is made up of Civis-model buses from France-based Irisbus Iveco. The articulated bus features a dual diesel-electric drive, an optical guidance system and an interior
bus rapid transit
Curitiba, Brazil, the granddaddy of bus rapid transit, implemented its first BRT system in the 1970s. It began using high-capacity, bi-articulated buses from Volvo in 1992. Volvo says it’s supplied the fleets for more of the world’s BRT systems than any other company. In addition to Curitiba, Volvo
bus rapid transit
Still little more than a gleam in Siemens’ eye (it’s in development, though) is the e-BRT, a concept unveiled at the UITP Congress and World Exhibition in Dubai in April 2011. The all-electric omnibus will recharge for 20 seconds at every stop … just long enough to get the power
oil
What is it about oil that makes us so conflicted? Oh yeah … the love-hate thing. A line from the movie “Fight Club” sums it up: “You love me, you hate me. You show me a sensitive side, then you turn into a total a..hole. Is this a pretty accurate
mass transit
Curitiba, Brazil, is the leading example of how to create a sustainable city transport system without spending billions on railways or subways. This video is in Portuguese, but closed-captioning in English is available by clicking the “CC” link at the bottom.
power outages
While big storms — winter blizzards, severe summer thunderstorms and hurricanes — are the leading cause of power outages, a host of other factors can also lead to grid failures, darkened homes, dead computers and cold showers. Some of the strangest causes ever include: 1. A 1981 trash fire at a Utah
