A new source for ethanol – watermelon juice?
A study in the journal Biotechnology for Biofuels reports that juice from the thousands of watermelons left in the fields could easily help create the biofuel ethanol and other useful products.
The report reveals that 20 percent of the watermelon crop is rejected due to imperfections, odd shapes or blemishes, and ends up ploughed back into the ground. Authors of the study (Benny Bruton and Vincent Russo from the USDA-ARS, South Central Agricultural Research Laboratory, and Wayne Fish) detailed a number of potential uses for the sweet red juice. It could:
be fermented, then used as a “diluent, supplemental feedstock, and nitrogen supplement” with other biofuel crops
be used in neutraceutical production to produce lycopene important to prostrate health) and [...]
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For those of you who’ve been following my blog, thanks!
BUT you may have missed some of my articles.
I’ve given my wonderful blog host, GreenPress.com, exclusives on some of my articles. Take a look at their blog site, then keep checking back for more there too. And spread the word, won’t you?
Go to http://blog.greenpress.com/ and enjoy!
Numbers Tell the Green Tale
The now defunct Cash for Clunkers program was a resounding success. It took 700,000 gas guzzlers off the roads, an amazing testament to what hopefully is the forerunner of other “green” federal programs.
To really get the full impact of the program’s effect on the environment, you have to study the contrasts.
The average fuel economy of the trade-ins was 15.8 miles per gallon. The average fuel economy of new cars purchased was 24.9 mpg. That’s a 58% increase!
Personally, I’d have liked to see higher mpg numbers, but not bad for a first go-round with a federally run, help-the-environment program.
“This is a win for the economy, a win for the environment, and a win for [...]
Another reason to legalize hemp
There have been a number of stories in the media the past few months about the many uses of marijuana’s cousin, hemp, and their potential for revenue. Yet lawmakers have ignored the positive side of what this has to offer.
Now a hemp-based product in Europe Tradical® Hemcrete®- is trying to make it’s way to the US and its high value warrants serious consideration.
Hemcrete, made by U.K.-based Lhoist Group, is a bio-composite, thermal walling building material made from hemp, lime and water. And this new technology is carbon neutral, making it an ideal substitute for traditional concrete.
Versatile, sustainable, good looking, environmentally-friendly and 100% recyclable, Hemcrete has an amazing array of applications – from roof insulation to wall construction [...]
I can recycle that?
If you thought recycling only meant paper, plastic or aluminum cans, think again.
More municipalities and waste management divisions are expanding what they’ll accept. Many now accept glossy-covered magazines. Some are accepting used batteries and a few have begun taking back used CFL’s or compact florescent lightbulbs (the curly-cue kind). Those last two, by the way, MUST be carefully packaged separately and brought back to your recycling center, not dumped into your recycling bin.
But the list is continually growing, as are the take-back venues. For more details on this and contact links, go to http://3.ly/8C8.
Could Harry Potter’s Invisibility Cloak be real?
Okay, so this is off topic. But I couldn’t resist this fantasy meets reality technology news.
Back in October 2006 a team of American and British scientists created what could be considered a rudimentary “invisibility cloak”. They succeeded in “hiding” a copper cylinder from being detected by microwaves. The radar or other waves simply passed around the cylinder as if it wasn’t there.
Flash forward. A report released in London today says:
“An international team of physicists have revealed that metamaterials, which are currently being used to make real-life invisibility cloaks, may soon shrink cellphone antennas, leading to smaller gadgets.”
And who said truth was stranger than fiction?
Someone else (Mr. Anonymous himself) said “if you can dream it, [...]
Bug Bam: the DEET-free insect repellent
Though school’s started, there’s still plenty of hot weather ahead for backyard barbecues and lakeside weekends.
Normally reach for heavy duty insect repellent to deter pesky mosquitoes? Instead, consider Bug Bam. This DEET-free, waterproof and sweat-proof wristband, made with FDA approved ingredients and plant-based essential oils, protects without harsh chemicals. Non-toxic, food-grade, safe for babies, kids and adults, Bug Bam has a pleasant citronella – lemon balm scent.
Bug Bam’s the brainchild of Australian outdoorsman and entrepreneur Joseph Symond, President and CEO of Bug Bam Products.
Symond grew up loving fishing. But he watched his fishing gear mysteriously disintegrate and realized later that DEET (N,N-diethyl-3-methylbenzamide) bug spray was the culprit.
Considered a neuro toxin, research [...]
We’re in Hot Water all over the world!
The world’s oceans are heating up at an alarming rate.
In an article penned by noted AP Science writer Seth Borenstein, July was the hottest the world’s oceans have been in almost 130 years of record-keeping.
This translates to water temperaturs of 72 degrees off the coast of Maine and 90 degrees in the Gulf of Mexico. And worse, temperatures near the Arctic are up 10 degrees above average, creating devastating environmental consequences.
To see see a stunning map of daily sea surface temperature anomalies (differences from normal) from US Navy (in Fahrenheit) go to http://3.ly/fhs (it may say it’s not a secure site, but don’t worry). The redder it is, the hotter the temps.
If this isn’t a wake up call, what is?
Monsanto Goes after DuPont
It’s a case of the pot and the kettle really.
Monsanto – long famous for strong-arming farmers and deceptive advertising for their oh-so earth friendly GMO seeds - has accused their chief competitor in the seed business, DuPont, of covert attacks on Monsanto’s business practices.
The chairman of Monsanto, Hugh Grant (no, sorry, not the actor), has accused DuPont of using third parties to attack Monsanto, saying these activities ”were misleading to the public and a serious breach of business ethics far beyond honest competitor behavior.” He also accused DuPont of being “dishonest, disingenuous and downright deceitful.”
Now didn’t his mama tell him if you can’t say something nice, ….?
This is but one more “skirmish” in the battle [...]
Affordable solar – coming to a town near you?
A non-profit plans to launch a financing progam that will make installing solar more affordable throughout California.
The California Statewide Community Development Authority (CSCDA) will model its program after a similar one in the city of Berkeley, which sells bonds to finance residents borrowing money for solar installation, to be repaid (with interest) over 20 years through property taxes. California cities and towns will be able to join this project without having to find their own investors.
“Our program offers a good offset to the biggest hurdle for solar – the big upfront costs,” said Terrence Murphy, a program manager at the CSCDA.
CSCDA also wants to extend the project to finance home energy efficiency improvements, especially permanent installations like [...]