Green Options » video

Electric Car Company Aptera Releases Guided Factory Tour [Video]

Clayton B. Cornell — Fri, 02 May 2008 22:51:16 +0000

Electric and hybrid electric car manufacturer Aptera has been turning heads since the first announced their space-age looking Typ1 prototype. The sub $30,000 electric version of the Typ1 has a range of 120 miles and is expected to be ready for limited release later this year.

Take a look at the latest video from Aptera, a guided tour of their factory:

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You can also see pictures of the facility here.

Phantom Loads Adding 8% to Your Electric Bill (video)

Timothy B. Hurst — Fri, 02 May 2008 05:48:41 +0000

Did you know that over the course of a year, a microwave operating in standby mode will use about the same amount of electricity as it would if it ran on HIGH for 24 hours? Frightening, isn’t it? In fact, the average American home has 20-40 appliances plugged in at any given time, and in a year those appliances will together use what is equivalent to one month of electricity for the entire household - just sitting there. This great little short from GOOD Magazine called “Vampire Energy,” explains the costs of running your home’s appliances on standby mode, and does so with tangible examples and real numbers. Enjoy.

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More Music Meets Global Warming: “Higher Ground”

Jeff McIntire-Strasburg — Thu, 01 May 2008 20:33:31 +0000

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While we’re on the subject: good Stumbleupon friend HarleyJane18 sent this to me last week. Houston Chronicle cartoonist Nick Anderson does some great 3D animation videos with song parodies… this one is based on Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground” (specifically the Red Hot Chili Peppers cover of it).

sustainablog: Shades of Green and The Green House: by Brad Gilchrist and Peter Menice (interview)

Music Meets Global Warming: Wirehead’s “Losing Ground”

Jeff McIntire-Strasburg — Thu, 01 May 2008 14:08:58 +0000

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Musicians keep cranking out the eco-songs… and that’s a great way to bring the green message to a broader audience. Wirehead’s “Losing Ground” is a call to action that’s a little bit 80s pop-rock (they list Toto as an influence), a little bit jazz-rock fusion (think Steely Dan), and a whole lot of of environmental awareness. Thanks to Wirehead drummer Clive Edwards for sharing this…

Video: The 272 HP Electric Super Seven From Evisol Thorr

Max Lindberg — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 22:09:42 +0000

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Cool replica of the Lotus 7 with plenty of horsepower and legendary performance.

Source:

Friedman Video Blocked on YouTube - ‘Greenwash Guerillas’ Respond

Timothy B. Hurst — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 21:45:31 +0000

As we previously reported, New York Times columnist and author Thomas Friedman was officially “pied” last week, while giving an Earth Day Lecture at Brown University. Friedman was ambushed just as he began his talk, entitled “Green is the new Red, White & Blue.” The group that claimed responsibility call themselves “The Greenwash Guerillas.” In a statement issued today, they said they targeted Friedman…

“Because of his support for U.S. military intervention in the Middle East, neo-liberal economic policies that harm the world’s poor, and especially for promoting bogus solutions to the global climate crisis.“

“We sought to expose the hypocrisy of allowing Friedman, who is known for his influential support of U.S. wars for oil in the Middle East, to call himself an environmentalist,” said Margaret Little, the Brown University student responsible for the creamy projectiles.

In the statement, the Greenwash Guerillas object to Friedman’s support for nuclear power, coal power, industrial biofuels, and carbon trading markets. “These false solutions are smokescreens, intended to generate massive corporate profits while creating global humanitarian and environmental disasters.”

Video of the pie throwing incident was posted on YouTube along with a couple of environmental blogs (including this one). The video had received close to 70,000 views in 36 hours on YouTube, before it was removed without warning or comment by YouTube. The Greenwash Guerillas have now reposted the clip at their blog.

Ms. Little was suspicious of the disappearing video on YouTube, as she indicated in the statement:

“Given the many other pieings on YouTube, the removal of the video can only be understood as an act of political censorship. One has to wonder whether billionaire Friedman has more influence than “you” on YouTube.”

The statement indicates that Little faces University disciplinary hearings, which could potentially lead to expulsion. Colonel Custard, Little’s male accomplice is still “at-large” (although he is listed as the media contact and was probably responsible for emailing us the statement - so he’s probably not that hard to find).

See also:

“Opposition for Opposition’s Sake?” :: Red, Green, and Blue (4/2008)

“The Geo-Green Alternative” :: Sustainablog (1/2005)

Photo: .Larry Page

Amory Lovins: “Senseless Energy Policy” (video)

Timothy B. Hurst — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 22:31:30 +0000

Short video and interview with Amory Lovins. I’m so jealous of that guy. He grows bananas…in Aspen! Running time: 2:46

Best quote:

“We do have a national energy policy - it’s basically to keep wasting lots of energy; import it at whatever price, by whatever means necessary; keep stealing from our kids and keep screwing up the climate.”

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See also:

“Can Low-Hanging Fruit Be Sexy? Two Energy Efficiency Stocks” :: CleanTechnica (4/2008)

Could We Grow 100,000 Gallons of Oil per Acre? Yes, Says Vertigro Algae Biofuel [Video]

Clayton B. Cornell — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 18:56:10 +0000

I happened across this video on algae biofuel today: a company I’ve never heard of, Valcent Products, claims they can grow algae to produce oil yields of 100,000 gallons per acre. That’s the upper range of estimates I’ve seen for algae production—an absolutely phenomenal amount of oil—which Valcent attributes to their ‘high density vertical bioreactor’ system. Check it out (more video after the jump):

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If you want to hear more from Glen Kertz, CEO of Valcent Products, see him discuss the details of the Vertigro system:

Video: The Legacy of Earth Day 1970

Timothy B. Hurst — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 06:49:17 +0000

An introduction to how Earth Day 1970 got its start, and the framework of environmental policy it left in its wake [courtesy of Project Butterfly - running time is 4:41].
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Video: Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (clock included)

Timothy B. Hurst — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 06:27:04 +0000

I took this short video of a new, small vertical axis turbine at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, CO. Despite the fact that it sounds quite windy in the video, it really wasn’t. [try to ignore the sounds coming from my very excited dog]. Running time: 50 seconds.

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Safe Hydrogen Fuel System Ready for Market and Your Car!

Max Lindberg — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 19:11:39 +0000

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Put six-gallons of water in your fuel tank and drive anywhere you wish. The only thing you’ll need to replace, is a bit more water.

Last May, I wrote about Jim Hunt, a student at Carl Sandburg College in Galesburg, Illinois concerning his plasmatic induction system that turns water into hydrogen gas to fuel your vehicle.

Today, the system works, and Jim is looking for a company to manufacture and market his invention. His patent is secure, the system is proven and now ready to produce.

The YouTube video above shows Jim and his crew burning a hole in a stainless steel bowl with the hydrogen gas produced by his system.

His workshop is located on four acres of property in Monmouth, Illinois, and Jim says he’s been running cars and an old fire engine around the property using hydrogen produced by his invention. He also runs a 16 KW diesel engine generator with the system.

I interviewed Jim on Planetsave, where he talks about his invention and its future.

Boeing Successfully Tests First Manned Hydrogen-Cell Battery Airplane
Algae Could Be Major Hydrogen Fuel Source
Chevy Volt’s Lithium-Ion Batteries Road- Tested By Month’s End
Green Gasoline? Scientists Produce $1/Gallon Gasoline From Non-Food Plant Material
Without Clean Electricity, Plug-In Vehicles aren’t So Hot
Mercedes 40-MPG Diesel Hybrid: Cleanest SUV on the Planet

Video: Obama on Climate and Energy

Timothy B. Hurst — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 17:50:19 +0000

If you ask me, one of the best things about this election season thus far, is that voters who never thought their state’s caucus or primary would actually matter in deciding a presidential nominee, are finding out that they do matter - quite considerably. Our friends over at EnviroWonk did an excellent job of covering the recent presidential candidates’ whirlwind visits to Missoula, Montana. As a digital media addendum, I’ve posted a 3-minute clip of Barack Obama speaking on climate and energy policy from Missoula. A couple of nuggets from the Obama stump:

“Exxon Mobil made $11 billion last quarter; last quarter! And we’re melting the polar ice caps in the bargain. It’s a bad deal all around - unless you’re ExxonMobil”
“There doesn’t have to be a contradiction between good environmental policy and good economic policy.”

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Should Recycling be Mandatory?

Gavin Hudson — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 04:14:29 +0000

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Should recycling be a feel-good choice or a legal requirement? CNN and EcoWorldly compare recycling in South Korea and the United States of America. Take a look at some of the benefits that South Korea has reaped as a country through its successful recycling program.

See the video on CNN.

Related reading: Korea Excels at Recycling.

Boeing Successfully Tests First Manned Hydrogen-Cell Battery Airplane

Max Lindberg — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 00:43:49 +0000

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It’s the first time a plane powered by a hydrogen cell has left the ground with a pilot at the controls. Boeing said there’s still a lot to do before hydrogen fuel cells will power commercial airliners. As the technology progresses, Boeing says traditional jet fuel will be phased out as renewable sources take its place.

Source

Road Awareness Test: Are You a Safe Driver?

Gavin Hudson — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 14:44:51 +0000

“He just came out of nowhere. I didn’t see him.” Most of the 700 automobile drivers who hit and kill a bicyclist in the US each year say something similar. (In France, they say, “Je ne l’ai pas vue.”)

If you are an automobile driver and you fail this test, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re an unsafe driver, but please, remember to stay aware of bicyclists and pedestrians.

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The Secret Life of Cell Phones

Jennifer Lance — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 20:37:19 +0000

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President Albert Gore Jr. (in a parallel universe)

Timothy B. Hurst — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 16:40:46 +0000

Very funny video clip from Saturday Night Live showing Al Gore giving a Presidential address. One of the best lines is when he says that there is no need to worry about hurricanes and tornadoes because of the “anti-hurricane and tornado machine I was instrumental in helping to develop.”

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Video: Stream-Fed Micro Hydropower in Action

Timothy B. Hurst — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 07:50:21 +0000

Very short and very simple. I am very envious.
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e2 energy: Community-Based Wind Energy

Timothy B. Hurst — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 20:30:06 +0000

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Kid Hosts Wanted for Whole Foods Video Podcasts

Jennifer Lance — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 22:13:47 +0000

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