A study published in Energy Research & Social Science warns that failure to lower the energy use by Bitcoin and similar Blockchain designs may prevent nations from reaching their climate change mitigation
Beijing pollution risky for endurance athletes By Nick Mulvenney BEIJING (Reuters) - Endurance events at the Beijing Olympics could pose a health risk if they are staged on heavily polluted days, the International Olympic Committee said on Wednesday, although it was prepared to reschedule such events. Hein Verbruggen, chairman of the IOC coordination commission, said there was a small chance of athletes suffering some damage to their health if they took part in events lasting longer than an hour, such as the marathon and cycling road races.
GM plans 1,000 fuel cell cars in California By Nichola Groom SACRAMENTO (Reuters) - General Motors Corp plans to have 1,000 hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in California between 2012 to 2014 to comply with the state's goal to put thousands of cleaner cars on its roads. GM has about 60 Chevrolet Equinox fuel cell vehicles in Southern California now, the automaker's vice president for research & development and planning, Larry Burns, said at the National Hydrogen Association conference here.
Bangladesh has begun producing environmentally friendly yarn from cotton waste to save foreign currency on imports, a local company said on Wednesday. "We have set up the factory to produce cotton yarn by using waste from ready-made garment products to export to foreign markets," said Anwar-Ul-Alam Chowdhury Parvez, managing director of Evitex Polycot Limited (EPL). EPL is 49 percent stake owned by Swiss firm Texta A B. Its plant, 60 km (38 miles) north of Dhaka city, will produce up to 5,000 tonnes of yarn a year, he told Reuters.
When parents think about their children's exposure to environmental risks, they might think of lead, pesticides or grass pollens. In fact, the greatest environmental exposure for most children is television. They spend more time watching television than in any other wakeful activity, and it affects their health and well-being in significant ways. For too long parents and even pediatricians have asked: "Is television good or bad?" Television is inherently neither; it's time to move beyond such black or white thinking.
After earning an Oscar and Nobel Prize, Al Gore knows that when he speaks, people listen. Now his voice is even louder. The Gore-led Alliance for Climate Protection, an all-out marketing blitz, launched on Monday with plans to "ignite' Americans into taking action on global climate change. "When people unite and call for action, change is inevitable,'
- A nationwide survey of nearly 700 people suggests that Americans would prefer more money be invested in technology to solve the nation's energy ailments than to cure cancer or other diseases. Some 37 percent of respondents to the poll, conducted by the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority in Virginia, said they would rank spending to raise energy efficiency and develop alternative fuel technology a top priority for future investment. That compares with 30 percent who ranked more cash for medical breakthroughs as most important.
Even breathing in a little ozone at levels found in many areas is likely to kill some people prematurely, the National Research Council reported on Tuesday. The report recommends that the Environmental Protection Agency consider ozone-related mortality in any future ozone standards, and said local health authorities should keep this in mind when advising people to stay indoors on polluted days.
