EARTH PORTATION curated News January 15th

AIR - This scary map shows the health impacts of coal power plants in China

Air pollution from coal power plants has gotten so bad in China that it often ranks as the #1 cause of social unrest. This map shows the heavy health toll ..

http://www.treehugger.com/health/scary-map-shows-health-impa

ANIMALS - Ants protect acacia plants against pathogens

The presence of mutualistic ants greatly reduces bacterial abundance on surfaces of acacia leaves and has a visibly positive effect on plant health. Study results indicate that symbiotic bacteria colonizing the ants inhibit pathogen growth on the leaves .. ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140115113243.ht

ANIMALS - Dolphin-power sufficient for propulsion without tricks

For 60 years the world has believed that dolphins did not have enough muscle to propel them at high speed and that they were resorting to some fluid-flow trickery to pull off their impressive performance. But Frank Fish from West Chester University, USA, never believed it and now he has proved that not only do dolphins have sufficient muscle power, but also they routinely produce ten times more power than the fittest human athletes .. ...
http://phys.org/news/2014-01-dolphin-power-sufficient-propul

ANIMALS - When is an animal not an 'animal'? Research ethics draws the line

Many people are surprised to find that insects, jellyfish and sea urchins are animals. Animals are generally thought of as medium-sized four-legged creatures with two sets of eyes and ears—those with features similar to ourselves .. ...
http://phys.org/news/2014-01-animal-ethics-line.htm

BEES - European Parliament votes pollen is part of honey

After years of wrangling and a ruling by the EU's top court, the European Parliament agreed Wednesday that pollen is a constituent of honey and not an added ingredient .. ...
http://phys.org/news/2014-01-european-parliament-votes-polle

BIRDS - Birds fly in 'V' formation to save energy, study finds

The next time you see birds flying in a "V'' formation, consider this: A new study says they choreograph the flapping of their wings with exquisite precision to help them on their way .. ...
http://phys.org/news/2014-01-birds-formation-energy.htm

BOOKS - Book Review: The Novel Cure

The art of bibliotherapy as practiced by two women from The School of Life in London .. ...
http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/books/books.php?id=25

CLIMATE - How the West Virginia Spill Exposes Our Lax Chemical Laws

We really don’t know much about the chemical involved. And that’s the problem.Site of the spill on the Elk River in West Virginia. Foo Connor/FlickrThe West Virginia chemical spill that left some 300,000 people without access to water has exposed a gaping hole in the country’s chemical regulatory system, according to environmental experts.Much the state remains under a drinking-water advisory after the spill last week into the Elk River near a wa ...

http://climatedesk.org/2014/01/how-the-west-virginia-spill-e

CLIMATE - UN Climate Chief Calls for Tripling of Clean Energy Investment

Christiana Figueres says $1 trillion a year is required for the transformation needed to stay within 2C of warming. Video produced by Tim McDonnell, Climate Desk.The United Nations climate chief has urged global financial institutions to triple their investments in clean energy to reach the $1 trillion a year mark that would help avert a climate catastrophe.In an interview with the Guardian, the UN’s Christiana Figueres urged institutions to begi ...
http://climatedesk.org/2014/01/un-climate-chief-calls-for-tr

CLIMATE - “Breathtaking”: The White House Releases Its Climate Heavy Hitter on the Polar Vortex

You don’t get a more credible spokesman than John Holdren.John Holdren. Xinhua/ZUMAPRESSLast week, amid the media furor over the “polar vortex,” the White House did something pretty unusual. It released a highly produced scientific video entitled, “The Polar Vortex Explained in 2 Minutes.”In the video, White House science adviser and physicist John Holdren dismantles silly claims that cold weather refutes global warming. “The fact is that no sing ...

http://climatedesk.org/2014/01/breathtaking-the-white-house-

EARTH - The exquisitely beautiful view from the ISS at night: Our planet like you've never seen it before! (video)

Looking for beauty at night, we tend to look up at the vast universe... But it's not the only beauty to be found at night. Rather than look up, those on the International Space Station (ISS) can look down and enjoy an amazing view .. ...

http://www.treehugger.com/natural-sciences/exquisitely-beaut

ECONOMICS - 'Sourcing hub' could help create more efficient supply chain, research shows

Firms can manage their sourcing better by developing relationships not only with their suppliers but also with their suppliers' suppliers, according to two papers co-written by a University of Illinois expert in supply chain management .. ...
http://phys.org/news/2014-01-sourcing-hub-efficient-chain.ht

ECONOMICS - Accounting Wizardry Behind Banks Strong Earnings

How banks such as JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo tap loan-loss reserves to bump up earning .. ...
http://origin-www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-01-14/jpmor

ECONOMICS - Seven Nobel Economists Endorse a $10.10 Minimum Wage

Eight former presidents of the American Economic Association are also urging Congress to pass a wage hik .. ...
http://origin-www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-01-14/seven

ECONOMICS - UK law to stop further sales of booze to drunk customers routinely flouted

Bar tenders in clubs and pubs are routinely flouting UK legislation intended to prevent further sales of alcohol to those who are already drunk, reveals a study of purchase patterns in one UK city, published online in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health .. ...
http://medicalxpress.com/news/2014-01-uk-law-sales-booze-dru

EDUCATION - Later school start times improve sleep and daytime functioning in adolescents

A psychologist and sleep expert recently led a study linking later school start times to improved sleep and mood in teens .. ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140115122215.ht

EDUCATION - Teachers Are Awesome: America's Oldest Working Educator Turns 100

New Jersey teacher “Granny” Zhelesnik celebrated her 100th birthday this month surrounded by her students. "I suppose it’s the children," Zhelesnik told NJ.Com when asked what keeps her going. "It’s a great life watching children grow up," she added. And, if you need more proof that it's never too late to follow your dreams, what's especially inspiring about Zhelesnik is that she didn't even start teaching until she was 81-years-old .. ...
http://www.good.is/posts/teachers-are-awesome-america-s-olde

EDUCATION - Thanks academia, soon I will join a generation of jobless PhDs

My friend leaned forward over the table where we were having dinner. It was a loud, busy restaurant, but she lowered her voice conspiratorially and her eyes took on a sheen of excitement, tinged with fear. "I accepted a position working with a non-profit in the South American rainforest after I graduate, but I haven't told my professor yet. If I already have a job lined up, he can't stop me, right? .. ...
http://phys.org/news/2014-01-academia-jobless-phds.htm

ENERGY - For Hydrogen Fuel Cells, Blue Is The New Green

A team of researchers at Argonne National Laboratory has figured out an efficient way to split hydrogen gas from water, using a low cost cobalt-based catalyst instead of pricey platinum. Hmmm, well, we were just wondering when hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles would start nudging ahead of plug-in EVs in the race for market share, and guess what: that’s not going to happen real soon, but the Argonne breakthrough demonstrates that it could .. ...

http://cleantechnica.com/2014/01/14/hydrogen-fuel-cells-blue

ENERGY - Google Make 15th Renewable Energy Investment In Texas

Google made big news earlier this week, announcing that they would be acquiring Nest Labs, the maker of the Nest Learning Thermostat. Google have a long history of investing in clean energy and clean technologies like Nest, and they have continued that trend, announcing Tuesday that they had invested $75 million into the Panhandle 2 wind farm in Carson County, Texas.This is Google’s second investment in Texas, and their 15th renewable energ .. ...

http://cleantechnica.com/2014/01/15/google-make-15th-renewab

ENERGY - The Grid Edge: How Will Utilities, Vendors and Energy Service Providers Adapt?

The term “smart grid” is getting a bit long in the tooth. Here at Greentech Media, we saw this as inevitable. Over the past five years, we have thus referred to it as the "networked grid," with a nod to the underlying communications networks that were a critical first step, and as the "soft grid," as data, analytics, and software applications sprouted atop the infrastructure. As we’ve continued to dig deep into the trends and technologies surrou ...

http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/the-grid-edge-ho

ENERGY - What’s Behind the 2013 Decline in Renewable Energy Investment?

Image Credit: Shutterstock Global investment in renewable energy and clean energy technologies has dropped for the second year in a row, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. Investment figures came to $254 billion in 2013, a 12 percent drop from 2012. The record high for renewable energy financing came in 2011 at nearly $318 billion, according to BNEF. Declines in Europe dragged down the whole market, but ...

http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/renewable-energy

ENVIRONMENT - DNews: Stop Worrying About Fukushima Radiation

Since the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, people have been quick to blame radiation levels across the Pacific on the deteriorating power plant. Is the radiation spreading that far, and is there any way to tell if it's actually from Japan .. ...
http://news.discovery.com/human/videos/stop-worrying-about-f

ENVIRONMENT - Does your home have high radon?

What is radon? Is your home in a high risk zone? How can you test for radon? What should you do if radon levels are high? We answer your questions for radon awareness month .. ...

http://www.treehugger.com/green-home/do-you-know-how-much-ra

ENVIRONMENT - Fukushima Fuel Transfer Reaches 10% Milestone

Fukushima nuclear power station as unit 4 operations commenced (screen shot from euronews broadcast, November 11, 2013.) TEPCO announced 10% completion of the spent fuel transfer this week.Tokyo Electric Power Company has reached a minor milestone in cleaning up the mess that started at its Fukushima nuclear power station on Friday, March 11, 2011 (March 12, U.S.). A subsea earthquake off the Pacific coast of T?hoku, the resulting tsunami, .. ...

http://cleantechnica.com/2014/01/15/fukushima-fuel-transfer-

ENVIRONMENT - Top scientists ask UN leaders to act on nuclear weapons, climate change

The Science and Security Board of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists today called on the United States and Russia to restart negotiations on reducing their nuclear arsenals, to lower alert levels for their nuclear weapons, and to scrap their missile defense programs .. ...
http://phys.org/news/2014-01-scientists-leaders-nuclear-weap

FASHION - Kids Clothing that Grows with Them: Interview with Nula Kids Founders

As the saying goes, build a better mouse trap and the world will beat a path to your door. The same goes for just about any product that solves a pain point or problem for people, especially for parents. One big issue that affects the bottom line of families is their kids clothing, because no sooner do you get them clothes that fit than they grow out of them. In fact, kids clothing that is well made and affordably priced is one of those products ...

http://feeds.importantmedia.org/~r/IM-ecopreneurist/~3/jWDkS

HOMES - In praise of the Dumb Home

We need the Dumb Home Done Right before we need the internet connected smart home .. ...

http://www.treehugger.com/green-architecture/praise-dumb-hom

HOMES - Let's Build A House of Sand and Pee

Microbial manufacturing can harness unusual materials for greener concrete. Continue reading .. ...
http://news.discovery.com/tech/lets-build-a-house-of-sand-an

MOVIES - Someone's making a "romantic" remake of 1984 with Kristen Stewart

Oh my god. OH MY GOD. Okay. Deep breath. For the full effect of this news, I'm going to have to let US Magazine explain it, because I think it most effectively sells the horror of what's happening here.Read more...    .. ...

http://io9.com/someones-making-a-romantic-remake-of-1984-wit

PEOPLE - Kids coached to pitch world-changing ideas

A program launched globally on Tuesday set out to inspire children to present their big ideas for changing the world .. ...
http://phys.org/news/2014-01-kids-pitch-world-changing-ideas

PERMACULTURE - Green Business Ideas: Permaculture and Urban Farming

Green business opportunities abound in permaculture design, urban farming, and local food production, whether it’s producing veggies and fruit in your backyard (or leasing the yards of others) or turning local produce into value-added products or helping others convert their yards into food forests.If you’ve got a green thumb, love working outdoors, want to turn others on to permaculture design and principles, and enjoy turning an empty lot into ...

http://feeds.importantmedia.org/~r/IM-ecopreneurist/~3/y1YWu

PLANTS - Plants compete for friendly ants

Many woodland plants rely on ants to disperse their seeds; such seed dispersal increases the plant population's chance of survival. New research has recently demonstrated that ant-dispersed plants (myrmecochores) compete for ant dispersers by staggering seed release .. ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140114114138.ht

SCIENCE - An old mathematical puzzle soon to be unraveled?

(Phys.org) —It is one the oldest mathematical problems in the world. Several centuries ago, the twin primes conjecture was formulated. As its name indicates, this hypothesis, which many science historians have attributed to the Greek mathematician Euclid, deals with prime numbers, those divisible only by themselves and by one (2, 3, 5, 7, 11, etc.). Under this assumption, there exists an infinite number of pairs of prime numbers whose difference ...
http://phys.org/news/2014-01-mathematical-puzzle-unraveled.h

SCIENCE - Breakthrough: Now we can sequence a human genome for just $1000

It took the Human Genome Project ten years, and close to three billion dollars, to sequence the first human genome. Now, in a major milestone for biotechnology, a company has introduced a machine that it claims can sequence an entire human genome in a matter of hours, for less than $1,000.Read more...    .. ...

http://io9.com/breakthrough-now-we-can-sequence-a-human-geno

SCIENCE - DNews: 5 Surprising Uses for Gold

We all know how monetarily valuable gold is, but it could be even more valuable than you'd think! Not only does bling make you look cooler, but gold also has other helpful functions. Trace lists 5 alternative uses for gold you might not have known .. ...
http://news.discovery.com/earth/videos/5-surprising-uses-for

SCIENCE - Physicists Explain "Gravity-Defying" Chain Trick

Leaping up out of a jar in an arc before falling to the floor, the fountain-like motion of a chain of beads has puzzled millions around the world with its apparently gravity-defying behavior. Now physicists think they have an explanation. And it is far from intuitive. [More] .. ...
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=physicists-

SPACE - NASA wants to put your name on a spacecraft headed to an asteroid

Forget those dime-a-dozen "name a star" gifts -- wouldn't you rather put your name on a spacecraft that advances human understanding? NASA certainly thinks you do. It's teaming up with the Planetary Society to etch your name on chips inside its .. .. ...

http://www.engadget.com/2014/01/15/nasa-puts-your-name-on-sp

SPACE - The Man Who Takes "Selfies" of Earth for NASA

NASA is well-known for its lunar landings and missions to Mars. But the agency makes major use of its space expertise running satellites that monitor the Earth, its climate and its weather. [More] .. ...
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=the-man-who

SUSTAINABILITY - 10 Low-tech tactics for living more sustainably

While advances in energy technology and smart home apps and devices have given us additional tools for living more sustainably, low-tech and simple solutions can make a difference too .. ...

http://www.treehugger.com/clean-technology/10-low-tech-tacti

TREES - Oldest trees are growing faster, storing more carbon as they age

In a finding that overturns the conventional view that large old trees are unproductive, scientists have determined that for most species, the biggest trees increase their growth rates and sequester more carbon as they age. An international research group reports that 97 percent of 403 tropical and temperate species grow more quickly the older they get .. ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140115132740.ht

URBAN - Farming the rooftops of Brooklyn

New York's skyline is getting greener and a whole lot more productive too .. ...

http://www.treehugger.com/sustainable-agriculture/rooftop-fa

URBAN - Grain silo homes like Bucky Fuller's are still being made

Sukup Safe-T Homes are weather, termite, and fire proof. And cheap .. ...

http://www.treehugger.com/modular-design/grain-silo-homes-bu

URBAN - Inhabitat Reviews IF YOU BUILD IT, a New Film About the Power of Design

IF YOU BUILD IT is a new movie about the power of design and how it can change an entire community for the better. The documentary-style film follows design innovators Emily Pilloton and Matthew Miller on their journey to empower students in rural Bertie County, North Carolina through what, at first, seems like a simple shop class. Inhabitat recently had the chance to check the film out at its premiere in NYC – click the link below to see our ful ...

http://inhabitat.com/inhabitat-reviews-if-you-build-it-a-new

URBAN - Mathematician drafts urban nuclear shelter guide

A scientist published a guide Wednesday to help authorities limit deaths from fallout after a city is hit by a nuclear bomb .. ...
http://phys.org/news/2014-01-mathematician-urban-nuclear.htm

URBAN - Submit Your Architecture Projects to the 2014 Holcim Awards – $2 Million in Prize Money Awarded!

THE HOLCIM AWARDS IS NOW ACCEPTING ENTRIES!Since accepting its first application back in 2005, the Holcim Awards has recognized more that 150 innovative architecture projects from across the globe that have advanced sustainability in the built environment. Now in it’s eighth year, the Holcim Awards has become one of the most important international design competitions, highlighting exceptional work from global minds that want to contribute to a g ...

http://inhabitat.com/submit-your-architecture-projects-to-th

URBAN - UK Rises Above 500,000 Solar Homes, Prices Keep Dropping (Infographic)

The UK has now risen over 500,000 solar homes. CompareMySolar.co.uk decided to make the following infographic in order to commemorate the milestone. Check it out:Check out more UK cleantech or overall solar news here on CleanTechnica. Subscribe to our solar or general cleantech newsletter for daily updates.UK Rises Above 500,000 Solar Homes, Prices Keep Dropping (Infographic) was originally published on: CleanTechnica. To read more from Cle .. ...

http://cleantechnica.com/2014/01/15/uk-rises-500000-solar-ho

WATER - Coral reefs in Palau surprisingly resistant to naturally acidified waters

Ocean researchers working on the coral reefs of Palau in 2011 and 2012 made two unexpected discoveries that could provide insight into corals' resistance and resilience to ocean acidification, and aid in the creation of a plan to protect them .. ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140115113510.ht

WIND - Australian Low Cost Wind Energy — Graph

Originally published on RenewEconomyGiven that the renewable energy target is going to be the subject of yet another review, and pages and pages of press speculation, commentary and, sadly, misinformation, we thought that these graphs might be useful.They come from a report prepared by Frontier Economics for the UK government last year, which wanted to know how its support mechanisms for onshore wind energy compared with other countries. Th .. ...

http://cleantechnica.com/2014/01/15/australian-low-cost-wind

WIND - BBC On China’s Massive Wind Power Push (VIDEO)

Unfortunately, we don’t have the video production budget that BBC has. Fortunately, BBC recently dove into the wind power push in China in order to create a 2-minute video about that. It’s quite good, so have a quick watch:And share with others! Awareness breeds action.For more along these lines, also check out:China Accounted For 35% Of Global Onshore Wind CapacityWind Energy Surpasses Nuclear As China’s 3rd Largest Source Of Electrical Po .. ...
http://cleantechnica.com/2014/01/14/bbc-chinas-massive-wind-