A simple addition to the standard wind turbine setup called a wind lens can double, or even triple, the power output.
Professor Prof. Yuji Ohya of the Kyushu University research institute for applied mechanics (RIAM) has been working with a team to improve the efficiency of wind turbines. Combining an inlet shroud, a diffuser, and a brim into a wind lens, power output has been improved by a factor of 2 to 5 times in several experiments. Turbine noise is also decreased.
Thanks Greg!
Sea Shepherd has succeed in its goal to stop Japan from whaling. The stoppage is a result of Sea Shepherd actively hindering the ability of whalers to kill whales, nobody has been harmed by the organization but Japan is calling for the group to be banned by other nations.
Japanese whalers seem intent on whaling again this year but for now let’s take a moment to rejoice that the needless slaughter of whales is not happening for the rest of the winter.
Japan has suspended whaling in the Antarctic after repeated harassment by conservationists, says a government official.
Sea Shepherd Conservation Society ships have been chasing the whaling fleet for weeks in the icy seas, trying to block Japan’s annual whale hunt, planned for up to 945 whales.
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The Australian Greens said late last night that the Japanese decision was “truly a cause for celebration”.
Read the full article.
Check out Sea Shepherd.
Japan’s notorious killing spree of whales has been challenged by Sea Shepherd for years and this past year Sea Shepherd literally saved whales.
Japan’s whaling ships have returned from the Southern Ocean with their smallest catch in years, prompting the fleet’s leader to blame harassment by the Sea Shepherd marine conservation group for the shortfall.
The Nisshin Maru, the fleet’s mother ship, returned to Tokyo harbour yesterday with just 507 whales, a little over half the target catch of 935, according to the fisheries agency. The haul of minke whales and a single finback was well down on last year’s catch of 680.
The fleet said Sea Shepherd’s attempts to sabotage the hunt had deprived it of 31 days’ whaling.
The annual confrontation between the two groups reached its height in January with the sinking of Sea Shepherd’s high-tech powerboat, the Ady Gil, after a collision with the Shonan Maru 2 harpoon boat.
Iceland and Norway also participate in annual whale killing.
Let us not forget that Bluefin Tuna is endangered and we need to protect them too.
Here’s a real story about a real whale and a real thing that happened on the internet as told by the founder of Reddit. A great four minute story about how the internet got Greenpeace to have a good time and in turn save a whole lot of whales from a Japanese assault.
The Tokyo International Film Festival has rolled out a green carpet made of recycled plastic bottles to show their support for the environment. You can read about their Green Carpet Club here and the Globe and Mail has a short article on the festival, which is also showing The Cove (trailer below).
The theme of the nine-day festival, which started Saturday and will feature more than 100 movies, is ecology. Films include The Cove , a documentary that depicts an annual hunt of dolphins in Japan. Festival organizers added it at the last minute in part because of pressure from overseas.