Blogs
New Record: Wind Powers 40% Of Spain
April 4, 2008 11:50 am | CommentsWind power is breaking new records in Spain, accounting for just over 40 percent of all electricity consumed during a brief period last weekend. As heavy winds lashed Spain on Saturday evening wind parks generated 9,862 megawatts of power which translated to 40.8 percent of total consumption.
X PRIZE Group Offers $10 Million Challenge to Auto Industry for 100-MPG Car
March 21, 2008 10:54 am | CommentsThe goal is to inspire a new generation of viable, super fuel-efficient vehicles that offer more consumer choices.
One Step Closer to Making OLEDs a Viable Option
March 12, 2008 7:46 am | CommentsGE Global Research announced the successful demonstration of “roll-to-roll” manufactured OLEDs. The company claims that this process is a key step toward lower costs of the technology.
On the Spot: Digital Power Management Drives Energy Efficiency
February 27, 2008 11:27 am | by Jim MacDonald, Zilker Labs, Inc. www.zilkerlabs.com | CommentsJim MacDonald, Zilker Labs, Inc. comments "The need for higher energy efficiency in embedded systems continues to rise on the priority list of systems developers and end users alike"
Trend Report: Energy Conservation and Sustainable Design
February 27, 2008 11:23 am | by by Jeff Uden, Newark, www.newark.com | CommentsThe concept of sustainable design started, not as a way of conserving the environment, but to prolong battery life in portable consumer goods such as cell phones, laptops and PDAs.
MIT and Texas Instruments Develop Energy-Efficient Microchip
February 4, 2008 9:45 am | CommentsResearchers at MIT and Texas Instruments (TI) unveiled a new chip design for portable electronics that can be up to ten times more energy-efficient than present technology.
Free Patents, Pending Members and Fees
January 14, 2008 10:54 am | CommentsEnergy News: IBM is leading a charge of freely available energy efficiency patents, as part of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development's new Eco-Patent Commons, officials said today. So far the commons has 31 patents, 27 being from Big Blue (not the football team). Nokia, Pitney-Bowes, and Sony also joined.
Daydream or Wild Fantasy, But Still a Good Idea
January 7, 2008 5:14 am | CommentsProductive Product: Sometimes technology ideas are so good and so obvious that we don't even dare to suggest them, for fear of being rebuffed with a sarcastic, "Yeah, right!" An example is the idea that all of life's gadgets could connect to a single universal power supply -- no more jumble
Global CFL Maker Ready to Shine
December 27, 2007 10:46 am | CommentsProductive Product: The Wall Street Journal (may require site registration) has a story about Aurora, Ohio's TCP Inc., the world's largest manufacturer of spiral compact-fluorescent light bulbs. TCP was the idea of a Chinese immigrant who is now benefitting from the Western energy-efficiency push -- they had sales of $300 million this year
It's Good to Drop the Ball!
December 27, 2007 5:10 am | CommentsEnergy News: What's worth $1 million, shines with 9,576 Philips Luxeon LEDs, and is built from 672 Waterford crystals? It's the 2008 New Years Eve ball to be dropped in New York's Times Square next week. This year is the 100th anniversary of the famed ball, now controlled by computers
Last-Minute Green Holiday Gifts
December 21, 2007 5:48 am | CommentsOp-Ed: We searched and searched, and came up with perfect holiday gifts for environmentally conscious technophiles. Here are 10 in no particular order. It doesn't matter if you celebrate a belated Bodhi, Chanukah, Christmas, Diwali, Eid-Ul Adha, Festivus, HumanLight, Kwanzaa, or anything else -- every earthy engineer loves a present. Try LED holiday lights, solar chargers, practical books, recycled wrapping, a high-tech energy meter, low-power PC, or digital ornaments.
Bobbing for Energy in the Pacific Northwest
December 17, 2007 4:50 am | CommentsEnergy News: Most of Earth's surface is covered with free, green, non-depleting energy -- the movement of ocean waves -- and scientists say that power could be a major contributor to electric grids if only it were easily captured. So, researchers at universities such as Oregon State, and at start-ups such as Finavera Renewables and Ocean Power Technologies, are experimenting with special buoys that transfer movement into energy.
Smithsonian Plans LED-Spangled Banner
December 5, 2007 6:36 am | CommentsEnergy News: The 40-ft. x 32-ft. American flag defended at Fort McHenry in 1814 was made just a few years after the dawn of the incandescent lamp, and now Smithsonian preservationists will protect it further with modern LED technology.
Inaugural Efficiency Zone Newsletter
December 4, 2007 6:31 am | CommentsIn this inaugural issue and every issue hereafter, you'll see the best news and op-ed from the cleanest, greenest, nature-friendliest part of ECNmag.com. Our goal is to help you not only save the planet by using technology, but also to save money and build smarter products. Meanwhile, we totally dig your feedback. Send your comments to our free-range, organically-grown editor Evan Koblentz and check out our links library.
Energy From Your Tranquil Pond
November 30, 2007 11:24 am | CommentsEnergy News: There are biofuel critics who say America can never grow enough raw material for the technology to be affordable and ubiquitous, but some scientists believe algae is a better option. At the University of Minnesota, they're figuring out how to make algae grow very fast, and how to get up to 15,000 gallons of oil per acre -- that is 750 percent more yield than
