One of the roadblocks to mainstream renewable energy is the fact that it’s not always available when you need it. Solar power without sun doesn’t sound very powerful, does it? I certainly don’t think so. The Solana solar station in Arizona certainly didn’t think so either. This is why they became the first large-scale solar plant with thermal storage. That’s really exciting, I know it doesn’t sound super exciting, but it is! This solar station can continue to produce power for a full SIX HOURS after the sun has gone down. Now is it sounding more impressive?!? Because of this, the solar plant is now able to better match the demand for power. It’s improvements in technology and science like this that will allow us to one day move to a more renewable energy source. To quote Aaron Paul’s character from Breaking Bad, “Yeah science!!!”
Anyone who's been on an airplane has heard the prompt before, "please turn off your electronic devices." If you're anything like me, you begrudgingly oblige, roll your eyes and power down your iPad or Kindle to prepare for take off or landing. It's one of those rules that just never made sense to me. I could never find any scientific data to prove that my handheld device I use for reading books or playing Candy Crush Saga would have the ability to send an airbus crashing out of the sky.
Good news for fellow tech and gadget obsessed brethren. The FAA has ruled that personal electronics are in fact safe for use not just during flight, but during landing and takeoff now as well. The ruling came through just the other day, however it could take anywhere from thirty days to a whole year before the new rules are applied to actual flights. Why a change like this needs so long to roll out is a whole other story I don't fully grasp. Bottom line is, coming soon you will be able to enjoy your electronics from your wait at the gate through the landing of the plane!
Fencing is a classy sport, but not a very popular one. Sure, it’s in the Olympics, but you have to tune in around 2:00am to see it on TV. It rarely gets a moment to shine. Even movies don’t have much sword fighting anymore, and if they do, it’s of the hack and slash variety. Not so much the parry and lunge type.
One man though, thanks to being in the right place at the right time, has brought some light back to fencing and made it look pretty awesome in the process. Franco Scaramuzza from Nashville, TN is a fencing coach. He was pulling into a shopping plaza when he saw two men pepper spay a couple and steal the woman’s purse. In an interview Franco stated that he thought “someone should do something about this” and then he thought, “that person should be me.” So, like any person would do…wait, nope, this next part actually isn’t what any person would do. Franco leapt out of his car, grabbed his fencing sword and chassed down the assailants. The muggers, when confronted by Franco wielding his sword, dawning his fencing gear, and screaming at the top of his lungs, got flustered, scared and eventually dropped everything they stole and took off. Police were not far behind at this point and were able to pick up the fleeing criminals.
Talk about being at the right place at the right time. As a little boy I would often fantasize about being able to bring evildoers to justice by wielding a sword, and here Franco Scaramuzza got to live out that dream. Bravo Franco, for making this world a little safer and more awesome at the same time.
There are two schools of thought when it comes to finding a backpack full of almost $42,000. One, take it and RUN! Lock yourself in your house and figure out how you’re going to launder the money. Two, you take the backpack and turn it in to the police without taking any of the cash. Both options are tempting for sure. On the one hand you’re up $42,000. On the other hand, you play the good guy and keep your morals in tact. Now to make it even more difficult of a choice, let’s change the scenario a bit. Let’s say you’re broke and homeless when you find this knapsack of dough. With that information a lot of people would walk off with the backpack and start a new life for themselves, no contemplation necessary. This was not the case for Glen James, a homeless man in the Boston area. Glen was outside of a shopping mall when he noticed a large backpack someone had left behind. He snatched it up, looked inside and found $42,000 in cash and travelers checks, along with some passports and other personal belongings. Good ol’ Glen, promptly takes the bag to a near by police officer and explains the story. That’s it, as simple as that, a man with unwavering morals. No reward money, not anything. He later was recognized for his actions by the police department, but nothing more than an “atta-boy.” That was fine with Glen, he wasn’t even looking for that much.
The news is filled with stories of tragedy, crime, and disaster. It is a breath of fresh air to see stories like this pop up from time to time. Not just to break up the other dismal stories we see each day, but rather to remind us of something. To remind us that there are always good people out there. People who aren’t afraid to do the right thing. People who put others before themselves. People, who through their actions, make this world a better place to live.
Green buildings are all the rage these days, all the cool kids are doing it. They help to save the environment by harnessing things like solar power. Architect Rafael Vinoly may not be designing green buildings per se, but he sure is harnessing the power of the sun. He designed a thirty-seven story skyscraper that stands on Fenchurch Street in London. The building sports mirrored glass windows, and a concave tapered shape. Thanks to the concave design, and the relative positioning of the sun, this building creates a beam of light that rivals the Man of Steel’s heat vision. The concaved mirrored windows focus the sun’s rays into a beam of light that has been measured at more than 230 degrees Fahrenheit! To put it in perspective, water boils at 212 degrees Fahrenheit. The building has been responsible for starting a small fire in front of a barbershop across the street, and melting the mirror and badge off of a nearby parked Jaguar sports car. The city has erected scaffolding covered in a black screen to protect nearby businesses from this virtual death ray of a building.
What’s the moral of the story? There isn’t one, except that solar power is awesome. Well, that and don’t park your car across from 20 Fenchurch Street in London.
