Behind every innovation within any given society there are at least two constants. The first is the network of skilled minds which enabled development of the next idea. The second is the array of support mechanisms and collaborations to implement
When we think of the economy we normally think of things like labor and capital. Labor is the workforce that enables our social and economic well-being. But there is also the thing economists call capital—in effect, the infrastructure, the machines,
It had been 0n my mind for some time. Picacho Peak is a fascinating and major focal point of the Arizona landscape, located perhaps 40 miles north of Tucson. I wanted to once again explore both the peak and its
Climate scientists are shocked by the intensity and scale of floods in Germany. In the West and Pacific Northwest of the United States, we’ve had record-breaking heatwaves. In fact, June 2021 was the hottest June on record for the United
Yes! It is hot, hot, hot… June 2021 very likely will be designated as the 438th consecutive month in which temperatures, at least nominally, were above the 20th-century average. My 32-year old daughter has—not even once—experienced normal or below normal
What if… we could harness the mechanical vibrations of everyday objects we interact with and turn it into electrical energy? What if the fibers moving around in the pockets of our favorite shirts and pants could charge our cell phones while wearing them, or the motor mounts in our cars were also energy-reaping shock absorbers that re-charged the car battery while also powering other devices?
There is an ongoing, slow erosion of the economy. . . Even as the burdens of growing waste and the cost of climate change continue to grow. The good news is that the Biden Infrastructure Plan is a step forward that might bolster our lagging infrastructure and weakened economy to a positive benefit. But it is just a down payment on the scale of effort needed if we are to succeed as a nation. Indeed, as a global economy!
All interactions of matter involve, and indeed require, energy. This is true whether the many different energy flows drive earthquakes, enable the movement of planets, or spark the various biological and industrial processes at work anywhere in the world. It
Published by – The National Council for Science and the Environment Since 1950 the U.S. population has more than doubled. It has grown from an estimated 152 million people to perhaps as many as 329 million inhabitants today. Real per capita
Waste is largely a hidden problem. But hardly without impact. Americans generate a minimum of 280 pounds of waste per person per day. It is not simply the huge quantities of materials that we consume, it is also the consequences that follow from the many forms of that waste. While waste is mostly considered to be the things we throw away each day, in reality that is only a small portion of goods, services, time, and money wasted because of the inefficient use of resources.
There is neither a law of physics nor economics that prevents us from quadrupling the productive use of energy and other resources. Rather, it is much more an issue of imagination and our political will to get it done.
– John A. “Skip” Laitner