Alternative Energy & Sources

Alternative Energy & Sources

The modern human community is depended greatly on the use of focil fuel like coal oil, gas and Nuclear fission. as sources of energy. But these sources of energy firstly polluting our the environment very fast secondly they are getting extinct and ultimately our existance in this universe is shortened.

Energy is the ability to do work. While energy surrounds us in all aspects of life, the ability to harness it and use it for constructive ends as enconomically as possible is the challenge before mankind. Alternative energy refers to energy sources which are not based on the burning of fossil fuels or the splitting of atoms. The renewed interest in this field of study comes from the undesirable effects of pollution (as witnessed today) both from burning fossil fuels and from nuclear waste byproducts. Fortunately there are many means of harnessing energy which have less damaging impacts on our environment. Here are some possible alternatives: 1.Solar 2.Wind Power 3.Geothermal 4.Tidal power 5.Hydro power 6.Bio mass


1.Solar energy:

Solar energy is one the most resourceful sources of energy for the future. One of the reasons for this is that the total energy we recieve each year from the sun is around 35,000 times the total energy used by man. However, about 1/3 of this energy is either absorbed by the outer atmosphere or reflected back into space (a proccess called albedo)1.
Solar energy is presently being used on a smaller scale in furnaces for homes and to heat up swimming pools. On a larger scale use, solar energy could be used to run cars, power plants, and space ships (like the picture you see above) .
Click to learn more………….(A)
2.Wind power:

Wind power is another alternative energy source that could be used without producing by-products that are harmful to nature. Like solar power, harnessing the wind is highly dependent upon weather and location. The average wind velocity of Earth is around 9 m/sec. And the power that could be produced when a wind mill is facing the wind of 10 mi/hr. is around 50 watts.1


How a Basic Windmill Work
The fins of a windmill rotate in a vertical plane which is kept perpendicular to the wind by means of a tail fin. As wind flow crosses the blades of the windmill, it is forced to rotate and can be used to generate electricity. Another type of wind power generator is the two hollow half-drum-type wind collectors. This wind collector rotates in a single vertical axis, making this device independent of the wind direction, which may generate more electricity.

Here some information sites:

Wind Techology
Building the Best Windmill
Windmills at Work
Kollitz Energy Systems
Frisse Wind


3. Geothermal Energy:


What is GEOTHERMAL ENERGY ???
Geothermal energy is an alternative energy source, although it is not resourceful enough to replace more than a minor amount of the future’s energy needs. Geothermal energy is obtained from the internal heat of the planet and can be used to generate steam to run a steam turbine. This in turn generates electricity, which is a very useful form of energy.

The radius of the Earth is about 4000 miles, with an internal core temperature of about 4000 degrees celsius at the center. The mantle surrounds the outercore and is only about 45 miles below the surface, depending on location. The temperature at the mantle-surface crust boundary is about 375 degrees, celsius. (This is too deep to get to…as of today)

The centre of the Earth is around 6000 degrees Celsius – hot enough to melt rock. Even a few kilometres down, the temperature can be over 250 degrees Celsius.

In general, the temperature rises one degree Celsius for every 36 metres you go down.

In volcanic areas, molten rock can be very close to the surface.

Geothermal energy has been used for thousands of years in some countries for cooking and heating.

The name “geothermal” comes from two Greek words: “geo” means “Earth” and “thermal” means “heat”.

So…what???
So, how does this help us? It turns out that if we drill down only three miles we can reach temperatures of 100 degrees, celsius, which is enough to boil water to run a steam-powered electric powerplant. Drilling three miles through the earth is possible, but not easy, so luckily there are easier routes to access this power source, known as geothermal hotspots.

What’s a Hotspot?
Geothermal hotspots are volcanic features which are found all around the world. Basically a hotspot is an area of reduced thickness in the mantle which transmits excess internal heat from the interior of the earth to the outer crust. These hotspots are well known for their unique effects on the surface, such as the volcanic islands of Hawaii, the mineral deposits and gyesers in Yellowstone National Park, or the hotsprings in Iceland. These geothermal hotspots can easily be used to generate electricity.

How do Geothermal-Energy Systems Work?
Some systems pump hot-water into permeable sedimentary hospots found underground and then use the steam to generate electricity. Then the used steam is condensed and sent back down to the permeable sedimentary stream. Another system utilizes volcanic magma which is still partly molten at around 650 degrees, celsius, to boil water which would generate electricity. Also there is a system which uses hot dry rock, which is just hardened magma, but still is extremely hot. To recover this heat from these rocks, a system is used which circulates water through the rock and transfers the heat up to a steam generator. The first system listed here is not as useful as other methods because of the acidic nature of the fluids found under the ground. These acidities require a lot of maintenance and upkeep on the equipment, and this cost reduces the economic effectiveness of the system. Therefore, geothermal energy systems are more inefficient than other alternative energy sources because of the costs required in upkeep and the shortage of potential sites.

For more information on geothermal energy we can visit the following web sites

Geothermal Heat Pump Consortium National Information Resource Center
International Geothermal Association
Geothermal Information System
Government agencies

Click to learn more about Geothermal Energy

4.Tidal Power:




Even the power of the tides can be harnessed to produce electricity.
Similar to the more conventional hydroelectric dams, the tidal process utilizes the natural motion of the tides to fill reservoirs, which are then slowly discharged through electricity-producing turbines. The former USSR produced 300 MW in its Lumkara plant using this method.
for more information..look into Sustainable Ocean Energy Sources.


5.Hydroelectricity

Hydroelectricity comes from the damming of rivers and utilizing the potential energy stored in the water. As the water stored behind a dam is released at high pressure, its kinetic energy is transferred onto turbine blades and used to generate electricity. This system has enormous costs up front, but has relatively low maintenance costs and provides power quite cheaply. In the United States approximately 180,000 MW of hydroelectric power potential is available, and about a third of that is currently being harnessed.

Here is more imformation on hydroelectricity:

Hydroelectic Home
US Army Core of Engineers
Hydro Data for Columbia & Snake River Projects
Reclamation’s Role In Hydropower
BC Hydro Power System Map

6.Biomass Energy


Biomass is plant matter such as trees, grasses, agricultural crops or other biological material. It can be used as a solid fuel, or converted into liquid or gaseous forms, for the production of electric power, heat, chemicals, or fuels. By integrating a variety of biomass conversion processes, all of these products can be made in one facility, called a biorefinery. NREL is working to develop cost effective, environmentally friendly biomass conversion technologies to reduce our nation’s dependence on foreign oil, improve our air quality, and support rural economies. Learn more about biomass.

“It is cheaper to save energy than make energy”

“It is cheaper to save energy than make energy”


Considering a Utility Audit
Every year, Businesses, co-ops and condos in Los Angeles pay millions of dollars in utility expenses, including electric, water/sewer, gas, steam and telecom. Are you certain your business/building is paying the correct amount? What if it isn't? Without an expert audit, you may never know if your building is due refunds, savings, and credits from overcharges that appear in a surprisingly large percentage of utility bills.
A whole business sector has grown to supplement your management company's efforts and delve further into the highly specialized area of utility cost recovery to obtain funds on your behalf. The following is an objective look at whether this service is right for your building, and a primer to help you make the best selection of an auditor.
What Do I Have to Lose?
That depends upon certain factors:
Does the auditor work on a contingency fee basis? Some companies charge a fee for their service, regardless of whether they effect savings. The benefit of this arrangement is you know what the cost will be. The downside is that you pay for the service whether your building saves money or not, and there is no financial incentive for the provider to dig as deep as possible to effect savings. The auditor gets paid the same amount of money whether they save you significant dollars or no dollars at all.
Many auditors are paid only when they recover refunds, savings, and credits. In this case there is absolutely nothing to lose, with the potential - and their incentive - to secure significant savings.
Is It Too Good to Be True?
Possibly - if you don't work with a quality company. Do your due diligence; find out about the company you choose before selecting a utility auditor. Ask yourself:
• How large is their staff? What is their background?
• What technology does the company use?
• Do they look to recover funds and savings on existing structures as well as on future billings? What is their track record in each area of savings?
• Do they just recommend solutions, or do they implement them as well?
• How far are they willing to go? Would they appeal the utility companies' decisions?
• Who are their clients and how much have they saved other buildings? Get references.
• Are there any other charges?
• Finally, find out how easy is it to cancel the agreement.
Can't Our Managing Agent Do This Him/Herself?
Managers have more than a full-time job dealing with managing the building. Also, utility bill auditing and cost management is a very complex, time-consuming, and specialized field. One needs to navigate through the bureaucratic environment that envelops most utility companies and through the mass of unwieldy tariff and regulatory rules and regulations to implement your savings.
Are There Other Benefits?
A utility bill auditor should be able to provide you with a cost breakdown and understanding of your bills. They should even be able to provide reporting, in paper or electronic format, with detailed information about historical usage, billing and payment as well as graphs that set forth trends in usage. This is useful for budgeting and cost control purposes. Finally, they can help you wade through the sea of choices of third-party marketers that deregulation offers,
How Do I Choose the Right Auditor?
First, there is the choice of fixed fee versus contingency (see above).
Within contingency, there are differences in the level of the share of the savings. Typically the smaller companies with fewer resources will ask for a smaller share of the savings. They may also find fewer savings than a company with larger resources to do the following:
• Apply the services and knowledge of highly-skilled legal and tax experts, former high ranking utility executives, seasoned auditors, and tariff specialists to remove charges that are embedded in the basic rate structure and not openly disclosed in a utility bill.
• Offer proprietary advanced technology to analyze the utility data to identify utility cost savings.
• Work through all appropriate agencies or utilities to implement all changes and obtain all refunds, savings and credits available.
• File and pursue cases or complaints with the appropriate regulatory authorities or through the courts.
Your building's decision makers should focus on the magnitude of results and depth of auditing expertise a firm can offer to maximize the largest refunds, savings and credits for their building.
In Conclusion"¦
You have the potential to save tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars for your building. The risk is either a fixed cost or no cost, and a small amount of time and effort on the part of the property manager to provide the information and access necessary to allow the auditors to do what they do best. Utility auditing may be well worth a try for your building community.


YJay Draiman


"Paying for utility costs without using a Utility Auditor and Monitor is like driving a car at night with the lights turned off" For all you energy, telecom and utility needs “It is cheaper to save energy than make energy

Sustainability advocacy

Sustainability advocacy

A few Tried and True Strategies for Inspiring Environmental change
Many business leaders find it challenging to lead others on the path to sustainability - and not necessarily because they’re working with a tough audience (although that happens too). Rather the trouble lies in their inability to communicate in way that generates real-world action and measurable results. But certain individuals seem to have cracked the code - they’ve figured out how to turn environmental conversations into sustainable changes for their companies, and for the environment. What exactly are these leaders doing differently, and how can we learn from them?
Principle I: Emphasize the business necessity.
Aspiring change leaders must have their heads wrapped firmly around the financial implications of their pet environmental initiatives. Environmental strategy consultant believes that creating a compelling business need is by far the most critical factor for getting decision makers on board with green initiatives. The good news for aspiring sustainability leaders is that the case for business necessity is getting easier to make with every passing day.
“Customers are asking questions about environmental performance,” and “Companies like Wal-Mart will give more shelf space to those companies that can reduce their footprint. Employees demanding more from companies they work for is another clear force that creates a compelling business need - it’s tough enough to compete for the best talent without turning them off on values-driven and environmental issues.”
The take-home? When seeking to serve the sometimes elusive triple bottom line, make sure you start with the bottom-line that decision makers value most- cold, hard cash. This topic is sure to get them listening.
Principle II: Frame environmental goals in terms of the other’s self interest.
With work demands and obligations bombarding them at every possible moment, how can we get organizational leaders to make our green initiative a priority? Here’s the secret of all motivational conversationalists: Take the perspective of the person you are speaking to and frame your agenda so that it occurs to other person as highly relevant to their own personal goals.
Of course, to accomplish this requires that we do a minimal amount of homework to learn more about our audience. What are their goals? How do these goals relate to our proposal? What do they have to gain by our success? This may seem like a lot to think through up front, but if we are willing to make a habit of this sort of analysis our persuasive abilities will skyrocket.
A good example comes from environmental initiatives for one company. Which has a distinguished track record of leading change in the organization and attributes much of the success to this simple habit? “There are multiple benefits to all environmental initiatives, so the language we use to impart the message has to mirror that diversity,” “For example, if I’m promoting an energy conservation initiative such as a lighting retrofit for the facilities, I will need to alter my message based upon my audience. I need to address the financial savings on our utility bill to the finance folks, the labor and maintenance benefits to the technicians in the field, and the quality of light with clients or tenants of the facility.”
Principle III: Appeal to enlightened self-interest.
Once you’ve framed your proposal in terms of ever-pressing financial imperatives and the other person’s self-interest, feel free invoke the “better angels” of your audience’s nature. Invite them to see how jumping on board with your initiative will also serve the more high-minded planetary and humanistic bottom-lines. Sometimes the best way to do this is directly, by discussing the positive global impact that your green proposal will create in terms of waste and greenhouse gas reduction. Other times it may be preferable to first be discreet, seeking topics that evoke in your audience a feeling of selflessness and a desire to contribute.
Creating rapport through meaningful conversations. “A great tactic is to look around and find something that the person you’re talking to really cares about. I’ve found that a universally powerful topic is children. If you can get people take a second to think about their children, and the effect that their choices might have on them, they seem to open up and be much more willing to consider higher causes like the environment.” Whatever your angle, remember that - beneath the cynicism and chaos - people want to do the right thing. You are, in fact, giving them a fresh opportunity to do just this.
Principle IV: Use humor to melt defensiveness.
Unfortunately, for most people there is still a huge gap between environmental awareness and environmental action. This gap often causes them to feel slightly guilty and defensive when the topic of saving the environment is even raised. If we don’t overcome it, this subtle mental block can make our audience unreceptive and make our words more likely to fall upon deaf ears. What are we to do? How can we get past this mental filter and raise our audiences to consider new possibilities? One strong approach is with humor.
One company has turned the tactic of using humor to overcome environmental guilt into an art by designing a stylish faux legal contract called an “Environmental Guilt Waiver.” This contract bestows clients and friends with a “24-hour exemption from all existential torment in connection with the environmental crisis” for making simple positive environmental choices in their daily life. The result? After receiving the waiver, clients who might normally be resistant to discussing the environment open up more easily and take a more active interest in the topic. “Making people feel guilty doesn’t help the environment,” “People want to have fun and be part of the solution. We’re doing what we can to make saving the planet a more pleasant experience!”
Principle V: Paint an inspiring vision.
John F. Kennedy gave us the image of a man on the moon. These world leaders knew that all great accomplishments start out as little more than compelling images that capture our imagination. Granted, few people will ever reach the heights of power and influence that these historical figures attained, but each of us can nonetheless draw from that same well of wisdom when we seek to cause changes in our own work-life sphere.
Want to be a true visionary? Simply do this: envision the end result that you are seeking to cause for your organization and help others see it too. Make it vivid, make it compelling, make it believable and make it personal. What are the implications for your audience of this goal coming to fruition? How will their life - and the life of their organization - be changed as a result of small efforts made today? If you can get others in your organization to use their imagination to experience your environmental proposal in this way, you will generate astounding levels of motivation for your cause.
Principle VI: Stick with it.
Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither were our current environmental challenges. As you do your part to reinvent the wheel in a new shade of green, remember to be patient and - even more importantly - be persistent. No matter how eloquent, business savvy and sincere we may be, sometimes the only way to get through to people is with good old-fashioned repetition. Allow yourself to be the squeaky (green) wheel that gets the grease!
Someone once remarked that breaking up with someone is a lot like trying to tip over a refrigerator…you have to rock it a few times before it actually topples over. Getting people to change their environmental thinking and behaviors is the same way. So stick with it. Be persistent. After all, how much does environmental change really matter to you? Are you in it to win a popular contest or to do the right thing? Are you willing to continually raise the issues that matter to you most, even when those around you don’t seem interested? If so, you are a true leader, and success is only a matter of time.



YJ Draiman, Energy, Telecom & Water Conservation Specialist

Speech manipulated for political reasons

Speech manipulated for political reasons

One idea of our nation is that of strong, harmonious communities in which each individual is has the opportunity to grow and flourish. The wellness of the community depends on the wellness of every individual within the community, for the whole is a reflection of its parts. Thus, to insure our safety, we know that we must insure the safety of others.


Another idea of our nation is that of a divided nation, full of fearful citizens threatened by a multitude of dangers. In our fear, we follow who ever has the most might, even when it means our bondage. Nowhere is safe, for the danger lies within us and we carry it wherever we go.


We make the world as we perceive it. History has demonstrated time and again that taking on extremist beliefs comes at a high personal and national price. Are we headed there once again, this time led by conservatives and liberals alike?


The world is our classroom. The fundamental truth we come to learn is that we are not separate. We cannot destroy the truth, but we can deny it.


COMMENT

Obviously, extremists of either persuasion will be followed by those who are not willing to study and form their own informed and educated opinion. I prefer to think that those who do care enough to study and participate in our government through citizen leadership are our best guarantee for the future of this country.

Sensitivity to Others

Sensitivity to Others

1. Write four sentences on what you think sensitivity to others means.

2. What advantages are there to being sensitive to others' feelings and to what others think?
(Write at least four sentences.)

3. What do you think of people who "can't take a hint" and bother you even though you want
them to leave you alone? They are the same kind of people who follow you around even when
you don't want them to. (Again, write at least four sentences on what you think.)

4. What kinds of things happen to people who are not sensitive to other people's feelings?
5. Please write six sentences describing an example of being sensitive to others.

6. Is kicking, poking, hitting, tickling or touching other people being sensitive to them? Why or

why not?

7. If you ate what was left of a good dinner, even though one of the youth in your home had not

eaten, what are you not doing?

Why not?

8. Is letting someone borrow your pen show that you are sensitive to others? Why?

9. What does the saying "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" have to do with

being sensitive to others?

Change Your Attitude

Change Your Attitude

Unfortunately, the power of negative thoughts can be strong in times of uncertainty and strife. However, maintaining a negative attitude does more harm than good. Changing your attitude can truly change your life, and one of the easiest ways to change your attitude is through the power of prayer. Praying a short daily prayer or any of the common prayers on a regular basis will help to improve your attitude. Prayer allows for a new perspective and grants you the power to see what you can and cannot change.

In order to change your attitude, you must turn to scripture for a new perspective. In the bible, you are encouraged to "be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." Negative thoughts seem to be a result of an attachment to the past and remaining in an unproductive frame of mind. This passage calls for a renewal of your mind and thinking. Rather than being caught up with what the world expects from you, you should remember what God wants for you. Evaluate the situations that are causing you stress, as well as your corresponding attitude. Use prayer to gain strength from God and renew your point of view.

Prayer also helps you realize what you can and cannot change. If you truly want to change your attitude, this realization is essential. Many find that the Serenity Prayer helps to do this. Reciting "God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference" will help focus your mind on these issues. Most negative thinking stems from our inability to change our situations. By praying for clarity regarding these things, you will soon have a better idea of the power you personally hold. That way, you won't waste precious time with a negative attitude.

In order to change your attitude, you must make a conscious effort to use prayer on a regular basis. Prayer helps renew your point of view and realize what is or isn't in your hands. If you're looking for support with these issues, the house of prayer is a place of great strength.

What Gives Us Happiness?

What Gives Us Happiness?

"Happiness is within us." This statement is very true. We can get up in the morning and thank God for another day that he has given us, or we can look at it and dread what we think that might happen. We have to expect for God to bless us and give us another day to celebrate life. If you expect that everything is going to be negative, then that is just what you probably will have.

Trust in the Lord to take care of problems and needs and do the very best you know how to do, and the positive things will happen. Being positive gives us strength to expand our inner self, and helps us achieve. This brings out our inner happiness, and our lives will be full of contentment.

Life is full of worries and problems, but we can not let them consume us. People will hurt us, and sometimes it is knowingly, and sometimes it is unknowingly, but we have to ask God to help us get past it, and be forgiving and go on. God has a way of taking care of people who do us wrong in His own time. Every day will not be easy, but we have a higher power that we can turn to, and he is greater than any opposition we can face.

We can lose a dear family member or friend, and we feel that life will not go on without them. Given time, we begin to see that we can make it without this person. We have to cling to our faith that someday we will again be reunited in a place where there will be no sadness and loneliness. Thinking positive brings confidence and happiness.

Being Joyful and Peaceful

Being Joyful and Peaceful

Many people today are looking for a peaceful and joyful life. Unfortunately, due to the busy schedules we all have, we sometimes forget to slow down and relax, therefore becoming stressed out and overwhelmed. This can often lead to physical and psychological problems. So how do we learn to find peace and joy in our lives?

People may not always be joyful and peaceful; however, they know the best way to get those feelings is to count on God. They remember to thank the Lord every day for the blessings they have. They are grateful for the little things in life, such as the morning sun, the birds singing, their families, and their own lives. They think of each day as a gift. The act of being grateful can improve your happiness, therefore making life less stressful. Keep track of the things you should be grateful for in a journal, then look back on it and think of how fortunate you have been.

Remember to keep things simple; if we over think or try to make things greater than they should be, it causes a lot of extra effort and time. Look for the good things in all situations. Every cloud has a silver lining, we just need to look for it. Plan ahead and keep organized; if we make a schedule and know what we need to do, it will make us less anxious about our time. All these tips will eventually become a part of your daily routine and over time you will become a happier, healthier, more grateful individual, which will inevitably make you more joyful and peaceful.

Confidence Building Techniques

Confidence Building Techniques

Confidence building techniques are often overlooked, even though they can be vital to helping someone overcome confidence issues. Confidence problems can stem from many different places but a lot of them seem to be self-imposed judgments that lack any real substance.

The first thing a person needs to do to build confidence is recognize faults and insecurities, then accept them. Nobody is perfect and we all have faults. It is important to realize this and not let it affect how you look at yourself overall. Something as simple as calling them "quirks" instead of "faults" can help you to look at them as part of who you are, not what you are. If you have trouble getting past your problems, try to look at your successes instead.

Focusing on your successes in life can help you to move past insecurities. Look back at the past and the things you have accomplished. Don't take your accomplishments lightly, you did it and that is something to be proud of. It is easy to write off your past accomplishments but don't let yourself.

If someone gives you a compliment accept it. Assume that they mean it wholeheartedly or they wouldn't be saying it. Saying things like "Yeah right" will only alienate them and make them withhold compliments in the future. Let the compliments build up your confidence and thank them graciously.

Try new things and work on talents you have already developed. If you can improve your skills then it is likely to help build your confidence. Trying new things will help you to find new hobbies and perhaps something you are extraordinary at; you never know until you try it!

If all else fails you can pretend to be confident. This may sound silly, but if you pretend long enough you may convince yourself that it is the truth. Act as if you are the most confident person you can be, and see what happens; you may be pleasantly surprised. Positive thinking is an extremely effective way of building your self-confidence as well.

American values have been declining and continue to decline

American values have been declining and continue to decline

As entertainers, corporations, and even the government pander to the lowest common denominator, American life becomes increasingly vicarious, prefabricated, and bereft of meaning. Let us examines contemporary American consciousness, considering the factors that have driven society toward gossip and sensationalism at the cost of substance and depth.

Celebrity news, video games, cookie-cutter schools, and shopping, shopping, shopping.
We should be concerned with the growing epidemic of acrimony, superficiality, attention deficit disorder, and complaints of ennui. We should ask for the reasons why American children have expressed their confused rage with deadly weapons, why a president boasts that he earned Cs in college, and why society has drifted into craving entertainment laced with violence and cheap thrills. This is a provocative subject for concerned citizens, as well as for scholars and researchers involved with contemporary American culture and society.

A lot of deep thinkers believe that Americans have come loose from their moral underpinnings, and that our basic institutions - government, neighborhoods, civic associations, schools, and, most important, our families - are coming apart as a result.

Where on earth do these social scientists get the idea that things are going so wrong?

Well, in large part they get it from listening to Americans, 87 percent of whom in one recent poll said they fear there is something fundamentally wrong with America's moral condition.

And this is no short-term blip triggered by President Clinton's extramarital adventures. According to Daniel Yankelovich, an icon of American public opinion polling, huge majorities of Americans have for some time believed that the nation is ``in a long-term moral decline."

A widely held belief has emerged that this decline threatens democracy itself, since freedom without morality quickly deteriorates into a society filled with violence and perversion, which increasingly seems to be what we have.

The Civil Renewal council's Call, called for making divorces harder to get, giving benefits to parents who stay home with their children, making it easier for ``faith-based" organizations to provide social services, allowing tax credits for donations to social service agencies, ending state-sponsored gambling, providing more education about the arts and more choices for parents in selecting schools, not to mention curtailing sex and violence on television.

There's much in what he says. The Call's argument that freedom without morality inevitably becomes merely the liberty to perpetrate evil is complex and subtle.

America was losing ``the habits of the heart" that once protected the nation against the wretched excesses democracy might normally entail, such as the atomization of society into hedonistic individualism, or the tyranny of the majorities.

Our contention that today we may be forgetting those protective habits fits a lot of available evidence of civic and social decline, such as the drop in voter participation, the rise in divorce, and the surge in youth violence.

Overall, we found that Americans were doing less of just about everything together, and were, quite possibly as a result, becoming more distrustful of their government - and one another.

Former Judge Robert Bork takes perhaps the darkest view in Slouching Toward Gomorrah, contending that America's slide into the moral abyss is probably irreversible, and questioning the optimistic premise about the basic goodness of human beings on which the nation was founded.

All the indicators of social health continued to decline. I looked back and saw that they had been declining for thirty years or more, no matter what the economy was doing or who was president.

Livability and Sustainability Framework

Livability and Sustainability Framework

Many people talk about “going green,” but how do you actually make it happen? New solutions are popping up and it is difficult to sort through the many choices available. How do you know where to turn?

The answer is often found in your own community.

The Livability Project knows how to help community stakeholders figure out what they really want to achieve and then rally them around tangible goals on the path toward sustainability. We call our approach The Livability Framework. It’s a comprehensive way of thinking about sustainability issues, formulating a plan and then achieving your community’s goals. As a Livability Project client, we take you through each of the following twelve phases of the Livability Framework.


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Module 1. Assessing the Community

The Livability Framework starts with a Community Assessment process. This involves gathering information and analyzing the unique attributes, players and dynamics of your community. . This discovery process help you to create a plan specific to your community. Beyond identifying and recruiting champions, you will better understand your community around the following five key attributes: Leadership, Relationships, Assets, Gaps and Resources.


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Module 2. Envisioning the Future

From your work in Module 1, Assessing the Community, you will gain a better sense of where to best focus your efforts. This next step in the Livability Framework – Envisioning the Future – will help you to refine this nascent vision. You’ll form a mission with your group, develop a project action plan, create a brand and define expectations for the project.


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Module 3. Establishing a Sustainable Structure

Once you have completed Modules 1 and 2, you are ready to begin the process of establishing a sustainable structure, one that will enable your project goals to come to fruition and bring your community together.

This module will help you determine several operational issues such as: How will your initiative will be organized and structured? Who are the key leaders for the board and what should each contribute? What income streams are needed to sustain the organization and its programs? How can you ensure the mission is inclusive of all your different stakeholders?


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Module 4. Building Organizational Capacity

This module will take the intentions articulated in your planning work and bring much of it to reality through the creation of working groups and the launch of the community’s initiative. You will also learn techniques for managing and facilitating working groups and for developing strategic partners and in-kind service providers. We will also provide an introduction to the importance of a developing a relationship management system.


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Module 5. Developing a Green Action Plan

At this point in the process, you will have several ideas and programs ready to begin. This module will cover the development of a green action plan, which involves identifying existing products, programs and organizations; leveraging resources and partnerships, and getting started with the real work outlined in your livability initiative’s mission and vision statement. We will help you develop a variety of programs such as:

•Recycling programs
•Cooperative procurement or. group buying for local businesses
•Urban District-wide green certification and branding
•Create more walkable spaces
•Create a biodiesel or alternative energy program
•Establish an events and seminar series
•Create demand for home and business energy audits

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Module 6. Engaging the Entire Community

Now that your initiative is up and running, it’s time to reach out beyond your Board and volunteers to engage the entire community. This module will discuss general awareness building including public relations, competitions and events, as well as business and citizens outreach and partner and liaison programs.


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Module 7. Providing Education and Events

Education and Events are a key part of any community initiative’s mission. Events may include presentations by local experts and authors, movies, roundtable and panel discussions, workshops and ad hoc networking for community building. This module will also provide an overview of how to establish a speakers’ bureau and online education program and how to plan and manage events.


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Module 8. Generating Multiple Income Streams

The continued success of your local sustainability initiative will be highly dependent on generating ongoing revenue. In our experience, you will want to grow your organization to be as self-sufficient as possible. Because of our unique model leveraging local business, government, and citizens groups, each of these will have a stake in the outcomes of your initiative and thus will want to share in the success and excitement of the enterprise. Your initiative has the potential to become a hub of activity focused on local economic development. Therefore, we believe some or all of the following income streams will help defray the cost of operations and pay for the program:

•Sponsorship programs;
•Government, Corporate and Foundation grants;
•Affiliate and Partner programs;
•Event fees;
•Advertising; and
•More…

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Module 9. Creating an Online Presence

Your organization’s online presence is critical not only to its image, but to recruit volunteers and supporters and enable opportunities for others to share information and communicate. This module will cover:

•Building and maintaining your website;
•Distributing an e-newsletter;
•Pros and Cons of Blogging;
•Leveraging Social Media (FaceBook, MySpace, Linked-In, Twitter and More); and
•Online Mapping.

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Module 10. Forming a Livability Center

Online activities and community meetings are important, but integrating the vision and programs into the fabric of your community will be accelerated with the development of a Livability Center. Part Community Center, part Sustainability Education Center, part Green Jobs Incubator and local hang-out, a Livabilty Center is a place where people can connect to advance your initiative’s agenda. This module will cover issues such as financing and sponsorship models, build-out, launch, and operation.


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Module 11. Documenting and Measuring Feedback

With all of this activity, considerable progress will be made in achieving your livability project’s goals. This module will discuss how to measure effectiveness, update and monitor plans vs. progress, and share best practices.


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Module 12. Celebrating Successes

Some may be tempted to dismiss this module as just the “fun stuff.” While there is a lot of fun to be had in celebrating your successes, you need to understand how to do it appropriately and how to use these celebrations as a tool for building community spirit, pride, and soliciting more participation from stakeholders.. This module will cover tactics such as Annual Reports, Leadership Awards, Volunteer Rewards Programs, and Community Celebrations.


Compiled by: Draiman

Dye-sensitized solar cell

Dye-sensitized solar cell

Third generation solar cell: dye-sensitized solar cell

　Magic plant photosynthesis, is expected to help mankind to achieve the dream of clean energy. Recent years the researchers are trying to use this feature to make the extremely low-cost and real green solar cell: Third generation solar cell: dye-sensitized solar cell (DSC).
Dye-sensitized solar cell was invented by Michael Grätzel and Brian O'Regan in 1991.

Dye-sensitized solar cells separate the two functions provided by silicon in a traditional cell design. Normally the silicon acts as both the source of photoelectrons, as well as providing the electric field to separate the charges and create a current. In the dye-sensitized solar cell, the bulk of the semiconductor is used solely for charge transport, the photoelectrons are provided from a separate photosensitive dye. Charge separation occurs at the surfaces between the dye, semiconductor and electrolyte.
The dye molecules are quite small (nanometer sized), so in order to capture a reasonable amount of the incoming light the layer of dye molecules needs to be made fairly thick, much thicker than the molecules themselves. To address this problem, a nano-material is used as a scaffold to hold large numbers of the dye molecules in a 3-D matrix, increasing the number of molecules for any given surface area of cell. In existing designs, this scaffolding is provided by the semiconductor material, which serves double-duty.
The most attractive advantages for the dye-sensitized cells are the low-cost raw materials and simple manufacturing process. It is estimated that dye-sensitized cell is equivalent to the cost of silicon solar panels only 1 / 10. At the same time, it has low requirement of the light, even in the room; the photoelectric conversion rate will not be affected significantly.
In order to operate the practical application, we need overcome some drawbacks of the dye-sensitized cells:
- Improve the transformation rate, recently, dye-sensitized cells can reach about 11%, but the normal traditional silicon cell is more than 15%.
- solve the problem: more big size, efficiency will weaken.
- Improve the useful life.

Compiled by: Draiman Yj

We must become independent — not just of imported oil, but of oil itself.

We must become independent

— not just of imported oil, but of oil itself.
A determined pack has begun to race its engines and to try to shoulder us off the road toward energy independence. It’s time for those determined to stay on the track to drive aggressively.
The energy-independence question is really about oil — the rest of U.S. energy use presents important issues, but not the danger of our being subject to the control of nations that “do not particularly like us,” as the president put it. Some of the engine racers have an economic interest in keeping our transportation system 97-percent oil-dependent. Less understandable are the authors of a recent Council on Foreign Relations report accusing those working for such independence of “doing the nation a disservice.”
The authors of that report and their followers define “independence,” contrary to both Webster’s and common sense, as essentially “autarky” — i.e. complete self-sufficiency, or not importing oil even though we remain dependent on it. Such a Pickwickian definition captures none of the thinking of serious advocates of reducing our oil dependence: The point of independence is not to be an economic hermit, but rather to be a free actor.
It is true that some who promote oil independence spice their remarks by implying that we might substitute oil from domestic sources or from our near neighbors for cheap Middle Eastern imports, and somehow manage to insulate ourselves from the world oil market.
But speechwriters’ tropes shouldn’t be taken as serious policy proposals. Geology will not cooperate in any such fantasy. There is no reasonable way that we can leave oil in place as the near-exclusive fuel for the world’s transportation systems and simultaneously wall ourselves off from the world oil market. If we want to end dependence on the whims of OPEC’s despots, the substantial instabilities of the Middle East, and the indignity of paying for both sides in the War on Terror, we must define oil “independence” sensibly — as doing whatever is necessary to avoid oil’s being the instrument of despotic leverage and foreign chaos.
Those who won our independence as a nation didn’t just fling imported tea into Boston harbor — they did whatever was necessary to wrest themselves from British control. We need not call out the Minutemen, but to avoid the consequences of dependence we must become independent — not just of imported oil, but of oil itself.
Does this mean that we cannot use oil or import any? Of course not. Oil is a useful commodity that can readily transport energy long distances. It already has competition from natural gas in industry and from gas and electricity for heating. But in transportation it brooks no competition — it is thus not just a commodity but a strategic commodity. Oil’s monopoly on transportation gives intolerable power to OPEC and the nations that dominate oil ownership and production. This monopoly must be broken. To tell us that in following this path we are doing a “disservice to the nation” and should resign ourselves to oil dependence is like telling us we should not urge an alcoholic to stop drinking, but should rather impress upon him the health advantages of red wine.
Not long ago, technology broke the power of another strategic commodity. Until around the end of the nineteenth century salt had such a position because it was the only means of preserving meat. Odd as it seems today, salt mines conferred national power and wars were even fought over control of them.
Today, no nation sways history because it has salt mines. Salt is still a useful commodity for a range of purposes. We import some salt, so if one defines independence as autarky we are not “salt independent”. But to most of us there is no “salt dependence” problem at all — because electricity and refrigeration decisively ended salt’s monopoly of meat preservation, and thus its strategic importance.
We can and must do the same thing to oil. By moving toward utilizing the batteries that have been developed for modern electronics we can rather soon have “plug-in hybrids” that travel 20-40 miles on an inexpensive charge of night-time off-peak electricity at a small fraction of gasoline’s cost. (After driving that distance plug-ins keep going as ordinary hybrids.) Dozens of ordinary hybrids converted to plug-ins now on the road are getting in the range of 100 mpg of gasoline. And millions of flexible-fuel vehicles are also now in the fleet. Producing them adds costs well under $100 and they can use up to 85-percent ethanol (before long to be made from biomass rather than corn) — methanol, butanol, and other alternative fuels produced from grasses and even waste.
A flex-fuel plug-in hybrid that gets 100 mpg and, when it needs liquid fuel, uses only 15-percent gasoline, is approaching a utility of 500 mpg. Other oil-breaking technologies are coming. When Cornwallis surrendered at Yorktown, the newly-independent Americans asked their band to play “The World Turned Upside Down.” Get ready for a reprise.

Sustainability & Energy Independence

Sustainability & Energy Independence

For the benefit of mankind, in order to maintain the quality of life and preserve the tranquility of world population. Water resources must be preserved to sustain humanity. We should utilize solar and or other source of renewable energy to operate desalinization projects from the oceans. As world population increases the scarcity of water will become a cause for conflict, unless we take steps now to develop other sources of water for drinking, rainwater harvesting and gray-water utilization.
To preserve the future generations sustainability, we should look into urban farming – vertical farming. The term "urban farming" may conjure up a community garden where locals grow a few heads of lettuce. But some academics envision something quite different for the increasingly hungry world of the 21st century: a vertical farm that will do for agriculture what the skyscraper did for office space. Greenhouse giant: By stacking floors full of produce, a vertical farm could rake in $18 million a year. This concept will save on transportation costs will absorb and reduce some of the pollution. As we all see, today’s natural disasters and conflicts affect the costs of energy and the supply of goods needed to complete production for various industries.
“Energy is vital to every sector of the U.S. economy. As our economy and population grows the demand for energy rises”.
I believe what America needs are cool headed government leaders who understand how markets function and can work with consumers, labor and oil industry leaders to develop a viable energy strategy that will help and not hinder as our nation transitions to our new energy reality.
For German Homeowners Renewable Energy is No Longer a Choice
All new homes built in Germany from January 1st 2009 will be required to install renewable energy heating systems under a new law called the Renewable Energies Heating Law
"To succeed, you have to believe in something with such a passion that it becomes a reality."

YJ Draiman, Energy/Utility Auditor/Consultant

Northridge, CA. 91324
March 31, 2011

P.S. I have a very deep belief in America's capabilities. Within the next 10 years we can accomplish our energy independence, if we as a nation truly set our goals to accomplish this.

I happen to believe that we can do it. In another crisis--the one in 1942--President Franklin D. Roosevelt said this country would build 60,000 [50,000] military aircraft. By 1943, production in that program had reached 125,000 aircraft annually. They did it then. We can do it now.