PlanetsaveGet involved and take action to save the planet. Share commentary and ideas on the environmental challenges we face, and the potential solutions to these crises.Giant Kangaroo Rat Will Be the First Endangered Species Monitored from Space- September 22, 2008 A scientist named Tim Bean, who is a PhD student at the University of California Berkeley writes the following on a website: &8220;I expect that &8216;Counting Rats from Space,&8217; the proposed title of my thesis, will become an international phenomenon, spawning everything from a board game to a Top 40 dance hall burner.&8221; His dream might soon come true. Bean is one of the primary researchers on a project that will use images from Israeli defense satellites to obtain an accurate...http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/planetsave/com/~3/399316716/ Amish Increasingly Accepting of Solar Power, But Still Shun iPods- September 21, 2008 Known for a living in a culture that typically disapproves of modern technology, some members of Amish communities are now bucking their traditional ways by increasingly turning to solar power to meet their energy needs. Philly.com highlighted this transition among the Amish in an interesting article that was published on their website this weekend. What is most surprising to me is that the Amish have fewer doubts about using solar power for purposes that relate to work, than they do for use...http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/planetsave/com/~3/399083029/ Seeing the Forest for the Trees: Evolution and Evaluation in Green Living and the Green Movement- September 21, 2008 If you are reading this blog, it is likely that you consider yourself &8220;green,&8221; or, at least, you are trying to do your part to be more environmentally minded, environmentally sensitive and environmentally responsible. Whether you are aware of it or not, you are a part of the green movement. And each part makes the green movement what it is &8212; the entity it is &8212; (on the global scale, the national scale, the regional scale, the local scale, and the personal...http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/planetsave/com/~3/398836229/ Japanese Schools Serve Whale Meat Despite Toxic Mercury Levels- September 19, 2008 Japanese schools are serving whaleburgers and whale nuggets dipped in sweet and sour sauce. Some schools take children on field trips to view whale slaughtering. Although whale meat can have toxic levels of mercury and many believe whaling is inhumane, the Japanese government contends that it is part of their culinary cultural tradition. An International Whaling Commission&8217;s moratorium on commercial whaling has in place since 1986, but has not stopped this practice. The Japanese...http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/planetsave/com/~3/397400991/ Toyota Donates 5 Hybrid Cars and $500,000 to Grand Canyon National Park- September 19, 2008 Toyota is donating 5 hybrid cars and $500,000 to help support Grand Canyon National Park&8217;s educational programs and safety efforts. The donation is part of a larger initiative that the company is sponsoring to help support the National Park Service. In total, Toyota will donate $5 million and 21 hybrid vehicles to help support five different parks. Read more of this story &187;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/planetsave/com/~3/396823267/ New Analysis Predicts Planet Warming Will Lead to Massive Loss of Biodiversity- September 18, 2008 Under a scenario that is nothing short of fairy tale-optimistic and unrealistic, a pair of authors from Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego has predicted a minimum warming of 2.4 C (4.3 F) above pre-industrial levels. And even an increase that is seemingly that small, falls within the IPCCs (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) threshold range of temperature increase that would see a massive loss of biodiversity, deglaciation and a variety of other negative...http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/planetsave/com/~3/396350552/ Ecological Sustainability Requires a Cultural Revolution, Too- September 18, 2008 There&8217;s something that&8217;s been made increasingly apparent to me living in an ecovillage for the past year: environmental sustainability requires a change in culture. Society cannot achieve this sustainability through simplified living alone. Growing organic food, using renewable energy, and decreasing one&8217;s ecological footprint are all positive things, no doubt, but true, holistic sustainability comes along with a culture that values cooperation and community. At Dancing Rabbit...http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/planetsave/com/~3/396318829/ High-Fructose Corn Syrup is Good for You, Aphrodisiac- September 18, 2008 High-fructose corn syrup: is it hemlock, or the nectar of the gods The Corn Refiners Association (CRA) believes the latterthat the dreaded syrup is really Aphrodites bathwater. Sure, they claim that high fructose corn syrup has the same amount of calories as sugar and has no artificial ingredients. You have probably seen the commercials combating the urban myth; Eve offers Adam a cherry-colored popsicle and he initially denies it out of unbridled piety to the American Heart Association and...http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/planetsave/com/~3/396030143/ Bipartisan Senate Bill To Extend Renewable Tax Credits- September 18, 2008 After much arm wrestling, the Senate came to an agreement on energy tax breaks which are set to expire later this year. Both Sens. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), of the Senate Finance Committee, made the announcement on Tuesday. The tax package will provide $17 billion in renewable energy tax breaks. It will also adjust the alternative minimum tax, extend tax credits for children and create several business tax cuts. It will also set aside $7 billion in tax relief for those.http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/planetsave/com/~3/395940776/ Book Review: Blue Planet RunThe Race to Provide Safe Drinking Water to the World- September 18, 2008 Required reading gets thrown out a lot in environmental circlesin all reading circles for that matter. Any time anyone reads a book that moves them they declare to the world (read: anyone who will listen) that book X should be required reading. The problem is, if you do it too often people stop listening, ie.The Boy Who Cried Wolf (should be required reading). So I am here to clean my slate of the books I have declared in the past that should be required reading. Wipe Rule of the Bone, The...http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/planetsave/com/~3/395732944/ |