Living Power: Renewable Power Generation from Animals and Humans



Generating electricity from biomass is stepping to the forefront of commercial power generation and Netherlands’ chicken-manure power plant, which started working around September 2008, stands as the largest biomass power plant in the world – supplying renewable electricity to nearly 90 thousand households. And yet more fascinating is the pursuit of developing renewable power projects that are modeled on the generation of electricity from the body of living organisms. The technologies are still in their infancy but whatever results have been obtained, thus far, are no less than amazing.

Of all the animals, studied for producing electricity in or on their bodies, none has come so stunning to the scientists as the electric eel. With its thousands of electrocytes (electricity-producing body cells), a large electric eel can generate an electric potential of about 600 volts – enough to stun a horse. Yale University researchers, in collaboration with nanotechnology engineers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), are working on developing artificial cells that would generate renewable power for medical implants and charging other small devices. The findings of these researchers, as published in Nature Nanotechnology (October 2008), show that the artificial cells modeled on electric eels’ electrocytes can be improved to produce up to 40% more electrical energy in a single pulse as compared to an eel’s natural electrocyte.

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Clean Coal Technologies



When it comes to coal and environment, the issue is more of availability and affordability, and that is what keeps coal from being stricken out of the energy sources list in our times. Generally considered as a big threat to the environment, coal is known to release large quantities of carbon dioxide in the air, adding to the problem of greenhouse effect (global warming), when it is converted to electric power. But coal power generation also gives out other harmful emanations like oxides of sulfur and nitrogen.

Still, coal is, so far, the cheapest solution for the problem of generating electric power on a large scale. In the US alone, it currently accounts for over half of the total amount of electric power generation. Wind power, on the other hand, is less than one per cent of the total power generated in the US. In developing countries, replacing coal with alternative sources of power is, at this time, next to impossible due to technological and cost issues. For environmental friendly approaches to power generation, there is hardly any other choice than focusing on clean coal technology.

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Leonardo Di Caprio and his Eco Green Lifestyle



Leonardo Di Caprio is one of Tinseltown’s most sought after actors.  He has come a long way indeed from his fresh faced days as “Jack” in Titanic.  Today Di Caprio is not only an Oscar nominated actor but also an outspoken environmentalist.

To show the world his commitment to sustainable and eco friendly living, he has purchased an eco friendly apartment in New York’s Riverhouse complex.  He has also traded in is hybrid Toyota Prius for a Tesla Roadster, his first sports car.

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What is a Hybrid Car



The word “Hybrid” means a cross, or mixture of something. In this case, a Hybrid is a combination of safeness for the environment and overall a better choice car. These amazing hybrid Vehicles have been an enormous environmental impact and is the best bet to get the majority out of each tank of fuel while driving through the city. These vehicles also have reduced noise emissions in which road noises from tires and wind, things you usually hear when inside a car, are not affected by the hybrid design.

This remarkable car also reduces air pollution, unlike any average vehicle; due to lower fuel consumption. However, battery toxicity has become a concern; although car companies can recycle the batteries after their use.

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Defining ecological footprint



Ecologists have come up with the term “ecological footprint”.  What does it mean?  Our ecological footprint is the amount of land and water it takes to sustain the way we live here on our planet.  It encompasses the people’s demand on the planet with its ability to regenerate.  Studies have shown that the way we live now, our ecological footprint is 1.3.  Meaning, it takes 1.3 Earths to support our lifestyle.

With the advent of global warming, pollution and other ecological disasters plaguing our planet, scientists, ecologists and environmentalists are scrambling to find a way to make our footprint smaller.  There are a lot of ecological footprint calculators so scientists are finding a way to standardize these tests in order to obtain a more accurate and consistent measuring system.

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