Obama is Bringing Change

Barack Obama’s campaign was based around the idea of change and now that he’s been elected it looks like he’s getting around to changing things. Yesterday he lifted the ban on stem cell research that Bush put in place.

“Today, with the executive order I am about to sign, we will bring the change that so many scientists and researchers, doctors, and innovators, patients and loved ones have hoped for, fought for these past eight years,” Obama told reporters at a news conference at the White House on Monday.

“We will lift the ban on federal funding for … embryonic stem cell research.”

The long-promised move will allow a rush of research aimed at one day better treating, if not curing, ailments from diabetes to paralysis — research that has drawn broad support, including from notables like Nancy Reagan, widow of the late Republican president Ronald Reagan.

Under Bush, taxpayer money for that research was limited to the 21 stem cell lines that were created before Aug. 9, 2001. But researchers have said that these lines have, in many cases, had some drawbacks that limited their potential usability.

Good Colourful Contrails

We’ve all seen contrails in the sky from heavier than air transportation on wings, but now a design collective has taken contrails to the road. Instead of using giant pollution machines to create clouds (which ironically could help delay global warming) the designers are using chalk to add colour to the road and make drivers more aware of the cyclists.

THE ROAD: A bicyclist on the road often feels that they are under assault by passing vehicles. Particularly in cities where bicyclists seem rare, motor vehicles aggressively dominate the road, discouraging potential bicyclists from joining in.

THE CONTRAIL: Contrail is a small bright bike accessory that allows bicyclists to color in their own space on the road. It’s like playing with sidewalk chalk, but faster.

THE WORKS: Contrail holds 200 grams of chalk, enough for about 20 miles (32km) of riding. It functions much like a carpenter’s chalk line: A small amount of powdered chalk is filtered through a brush inside the device and picked up on a felt wheel. The felt wheel transfers this chalk onto the rear tire leaving a fine layer. As chalk builds up, the tire leaves a faint line of color on the roadbed. This is you contrail. It is a colorful and ephemeral representation of your path.

Footprint Science

There’s already a lot of websites out there that help you asses your carbon footprint and that’s good, but now there are sites taking the footprint science to the next level. The Global Footprint Network is looking into the details behind making and living with a small footprint.

How can we all live well and live within the means of one planet?

This is the research question of the 21st century. If we are serious about sustainable development, there is no way around this question. If we do not design ways to live within the means of one planet, sustainability will remain elusive.

Institutionalizing the Ecological Footprint at the national level requires that statistical offices, policy advisors, academia, and businesses trust the methodology and data underlying the Footprint, which is comprised of 150 National Footprint Accounts.

National Footprint Accounts measure the ecological resource use and resource capacity of nations over time. Based on approximately 5,400 data points per country per year, the Accounts calculate the Footprints of 150 nations from 1961 to the present. These accounts provide the core data that is needed for all Ecological Footprint analysis worldwide.

How To Reuse Plastic Bags

Plastic bags aren’t good news, after all they are very wasteful. Well, if you do have to use plastic bags make sure you use them more than once. eHow has a list of creative ways to reuse plastic bags.

Here’s a humorous one — use your plastic shopping bags to make an instant tie-down rope for your car. Now, do not use it with extra heavy items, but it is durable enough to keep things in place. How?

Take 2 bags and take one handle of the first bag and put it through a handle of the second bag. Loop the first bag over the handle of the second bag and pull it through it’s own handle. This makes a strong tie.

Next, gather the rest of one bag and loop it into a knot just below the other, unused handle.

Continue to loop bags and tie them up until you have the length that you need. Do this to make two ropes, and then twist the two “ropes” together. If it needs to be stronger, then make it three ropes.

Tie a knot at each end of your doubled or tripled rope. Use it to secure your items on the go!