Green Options » GPS

Robot Fish to Better Monitor Water Quality

Zachary Shahan — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:32:10 +0000

An ecologist and an engineer at Michigan State University are working together to create robot fish that can better monitor various factors in aquatic environments.

Combining the brilliance of nature with some top-notch engineering, these two scientists are on to something and getting the funding for it.

The researchers are breaking ground with this and looking to raise water monitoring to another level.

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NAVTEQ Announces Use of GPS Can Reduce Emissions by 21%

Beth Graddon-Hodgson — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 20:57:21 +0000

Many commuters have GPS installed in their cars, or have purchased portable devices to try to get them where they’re going. A recent study by NAVTEQ, a data provider for navigation systems has demonstrated that using a GPS device can not only save drivers time spent in traffic, it can also reduce emissions from vehicles by up to 21%.

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How Robotic Farming Could Enhance Agricultural Sustainability

Steve Savage — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 18:45:20 +0000

If you picture a grain farmer out tending a field, you might imagine someone sitting on the metal seat of a tractor like the one in the picture above, moving slowly across a field - perhaps the farmer has a straw hat. That image seems attractive as long as you are not the farmer. Fortunately, this isn’t the real situation in the developed world or we wouldn’t get anyone in our rapidly aging population to do full-time farming on the multiple thousand-acre farms that are typical of a modern, Midwestern family farm.

Today, a progressive farmer will typically be working in an enclosed, air-conditioned cab with surround sound, a cell phone, and an internet connection for tracking commodity futures or catching up on email. Increasingly, the tractor is driving itself by computer and GPS except for occasional intervention. I’ve carried on a number of protracted interviews with farmers who were in just this setting. I know one farmer that ran much of his state senate campaign from a tractor or combine. These new, sophisticated, farm vehicles are not just about keeping the farmer comfortable and multi-tasking. They are important tools for making farming more sustainable.

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More Ways Electronics Technology Can Help Green the Earth

Brenda Keener — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 19:56:20 +0000

For years, the consumer electronics industry has taken a bad rap with the green community - and deservedly so. Cheap electronics components eat up considerable natural resources, need cheap labor to produce, and until recently, have been designed to be “throw-aways” when the latest and greatest widget comes along.

Nothing is ever black and white, or all bad without traces of good. The world is full of grey areas, and electronics also create positive change.

When driving to an new destination the other day, I noticed that I used much less gas because of my GPS than I normally would. In the old days before Google maps and GPS technology, I used to get lost at least once, call on my cell phone or stop at the gas station to get directions, and generally take more time and fuel than necessary.

Some will say this is just spatial ineptness - but I am willing to bet that others have had this problem too!

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8th Grader Builds Solar-Powered Bike With GPS, iPod Dock

Jerry James Stone — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 16:34:12 +0000

Eighth-grader David S. Dixon–along with his dad David G. Dixon–has built a street-legal quadricycle powered by a solar-charged electric motor. The bike not only carries his dog and three friends, but it has also has an iPod dock and GPS. Ya, it’s that cool!

Coined as the Solar Human Hybrid (SOHH), the vehicle was launched as part of David Jr.’s middle school project for the Novato Charter School.

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When a House Is Not a Home:The Homeownership Myth

Fred Etcheverry — Wed, 06 May 2009 22:39:41 +0000

According to a recent US Census report, fewer Americans are moving since such records began in 1948 (NYT). Many homeowners are stuck in a falling real estate market, unemployed, facing foreclosure, and unable to move to new jobs. They are unable to lower mortgages on their houses since the Senate, in response to the mortgage banker lobby, voted against cram-downs. Banks are bulldozing foreclosed houses.

Hopefully, the future will record that we had a crisis, but sized the opportunities afforded by the mounting promises of renewable energy and rode them to success. Hopefully, the future will not record that we were bogged down by the narrow interest of lobbyist and missed this golden opportunity.

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Honda Hydrogen CB750 Motorbike Concept

Jerry James Stone — Sat, 02 May 2009 06:25:53 +0000

Powered By A Four-Cylinder Liquid Hydrogen Engine, This CB750 Is Controlled By An OLED Touch Screen With Wifi, GPS And 3G!

If Honda wishes to bring back the CB750, look no further than Igor Chak’s Hydrogen concept.

The bike — which ran in production from 1969 to 2003 — was an unprecedented piece of machinery. It was the first to offer a front disc brake and an straight-4 engine with an overhead camshaft all on one affordable, production bike.

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Extremely Rare Capture of a Wild Jaguar in Arizona

Jake Richardson — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 20:32:41 +0000

Officials from the Arizona Game and Fish Department captured a wild, live jaguar in an area southwest of Tucson.

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How to Find Green Businesses with Your Phone

Paul Smith — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 20:52:28 +0000

GPS enabled phones such as the iPhone, Android, and Blackberry have made getting around so much easier, and in the case of geocaching, more fun. But what if you’re a green minded individual, in a city you’ve never been to before, or even in your own town, and want to know what businesses have got what you want?

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When Bicyclists and Opportunity Collide: A Green Marketing Innovation

Paul Smith — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 21:55:03 +0000

What do you get when you’re in a town where bike riders rack up 8 times the US national average for bike commuting? An opportunity. Ads On Bikes is a Portland, Oregon based company that may have hit on a phenomenal way to make companies, bikers, and the environment all happy.

In a pair of sentences I doubt you’ll see anywhere else, they say, “We can show you the time and place your ads have been seen along with the value we’ve assessed for a particular route. If cyclist’s route is less relevant to the needs of your campaign, you’ll pay less.” To Ads On Bikes, relevancy means they “…look at a variety of factors including proximity to your business, pedestrian foot-traffic and the time of day the cyclist was riding.”

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Another Boost to Public Transport in Delhi, Buses Fitted With GPS, Stops Announce ETA

Govind Singh — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 19:28:22 +0000

With a population nearly as much as that of Australia, and having more automobiles on its roads than all the other three India metropolitan cities put together adding approx. 1,500 new cars to the road each day, the traffic situation in the city of Delhi is shockingly scary. The situation is fortunately been taken note of by the administration and a push to promote public transport in the city has been there since a long time now.

The city has seen the launch of a state-of-the-art Metro Rail which is now the pride of Delhi and carries lakhs of commuters daily. The city also saw the launch of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system which, owing to several reasons, did not go down well with the public (and/or the media). Now, the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and the Delhi Integrated Modal Transport System (DIMTS) have launched a GPS enabled Public Information System (PIS) to not only enable the commuters waiting at the bus stand to find out the estimated time of arrival (ETA) of the bus they are waiting for, but also check the status of buses online!

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Mark Your Spot without Leaving a Trace: Bushnell BackTrack GPS

Courtney Carlisle — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 20:16:10 +0000

One of the hardest things about camping is leaving everything the way you found it. Well, Bushnell is trying to make one part of that as simple as possible with the Bushnell BackTrack GPS Navigation System that lets you digitally mark your starting location and find your way back without leaving a trail of bread crumbs to follow.

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Erasing Electronics Buyer Remorse

Paul Smith — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 21:39:57 +0000

Recycling as an everyday practice has become more and more common these days. But what about all those gadgets you accumulate? What happens to them? There are many options out there, but for most, they involve more cost, effort, and time then our busy schedules or motivation will allow. Sure, there are some newer options such as Second Rotation, the company I profiled in January that quotes you a value for your product based on the condition you claim it’s in, then they inspect it, and either give you that amount, or a different agreed upon one. But even there, with the free shipping and the possibility of getting cash rather then spending it to recycle, it’s based on current market value, a wildly fluctuating amount, as the new half price twice the speed iPhone exemplifies.

What if you could guarantee exactly how much you’d get, based on how long you’ve owned it, at the time of purchase? This is now a reality, via the company Tech Forward. You can buy a product at any store you like, then purchase their Guaranteed Buyback service, which covers a wide range of electronics, from MP3 players to desktop computers.

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Scientists Use GPS to Spy on Whale Watch Tours, Uncover Ugly Secret

Levi Novey — Fri, 30 May 2008 04:18:17 +0000

Approximately 1 million people paid for tickets to go on whale watching cruises off the coast of Massachusetts and Maine in 2006. These sales generated around $21 million dollars for the companies who operate the boats: no small change. While the public might have been enjoying the experience of seeing and learning more about endangered whales and other animals that sometimes use the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration were concerned that perhaps the tours were affecting the whales negatively. Using spies armed with GPS receivers and high-tech binoculars, they set out to see if whale watch tour companies were upholding what are commonly referred to as “voluntary conservation agreements.”

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