USA

A Patently Good Idea

- Adam Clare

Over at Slashdot there is an interesting discussion about a not for profits wanting comapnies to give them access to the companies unused patents. Even state governments (in the USA) support this.

I think this is a great idea because having patents just sitting around stifles the economy and creative development; all the patent holders get out of this is a lack of competition.

Countless patents — including the one used to start up Kotecha’s company, Yokit — sit unused when companies decide not to develop them into products. Now, not-for-profit groups and state governments are asking companies to donate dormant patents so they can be passed to local entrepreneurs who try to build businesses out of them.

Roundabouts Save Fuel

- Adam Clare

Some research in the USA that examined intersections that switched from stoplights to a roundabout proves that roundabouts are greener.

Intersections with roundabouts generated between 55% and 61% less carbon dioxide, depending on the time of day. Emissions of hydrocarbons, also greenhouse gases, dropped by between 62% and 68%. His paper, which is admittedly a bit of tough read, is here.

Good news for the lonely…

- sohorobin 1 Comment

If you need a good laugh here’s a piece of news to warm your heart, especially in the Valentines season… These are the funniest personal ads you’ll ever see and they’re posting in an English newspaper. Let me give you a sample:

Shy, ugly man, fond of extended periods of self-pity, middle aged, flatulent and overweight, seeks the impossible.

Eager-to-please woman, 36, seeks domineering man to take advantage of her flagging confidence. Tell me I’m pretty, then watch me cling.

Net Metering in the USA

- Adam Clare

Net metering is a novel concept that allows property owners who produce their own energy to sell surplus power back to the electric grid. There are many, many, many reason why this should be adopted and the International Business Times looks at people are selling energy back to the grid not for profit, but for philosophical reasons. The profit must help the decisions though.

“Net metering essentially allows people to become mini-power producers. Programs vary state to state, but they are typically coupled with financial incentives that make it easier to invest thousands of dollars for photovoltaic panels, windmills or fuel cells. Since sun and wind are intermittent, customers still rely on the grid for steady service. The meter runs backward when more energy is produced than a customer consumes.”

Mine Heat for Energy

- Adam Clare

MIT researchers have come to the conclusion that geothermal energy is a good thing! They figure that a “significant” amount of energy that the USA uses can be produced using the earth has power.

“The goal of the study was to assess the feasibility, potential environmental impacts and economic viability of using enhanced geothermal system (EGS) technology to greatly increase the fraction of the U.S. geothermal resource that could be recovered commercially.”

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