Mark P. Mills has reappeared, and remarkably is repeating some of the same wild claims that we debunked last time (circa 1999-2003). As a public service, I’ve listed the most important documents summarizing the previous controversy for the benefit of media folks and other interested parties who otherwise would
Read moreSome colleagues and I, all of whom were Google Science Communication Fellows in 2011, wrote and posted at Climate Science Watch an open letter to Eric Schmidt and Larry Page of Google about their fundraiser for Senator James Inhofe. You can read the letter here. Four of us also wrote
Read moreThis Apple patent points to the future of power management for mobile computing devices. Devices will use context-specific information (like estimating how far you are from your destination using the GPS in your phone) to help decide when to reduce power use and extend battery life. Smart everything, getting smarter
Read moreBecause of the recent heat wave around here, I’ve been trying to figure out how to keep our house from heating up so much. I started using a Maverick Laser Surface Thermometer to learn more about heat flows and temperatures inside the house. It retails for about $35 on
Read moreThis article gives a tidy summary of the key factors affecting the greenhouse gas emissions associated with data centers, and helps readers prioritize how best to reduce those emissions. The three areas for improvement are the efficiency of the information technology (IT) equipment (servers, storage, and communications), the efficiency of
Read moreBarack Obama, Climate Hawk! More context at http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2013/06/25/2213341/invest-divest-obama-goes-full-climate-hawk-in-speech-unveiling-plan-to-cut-carbon-pollution/
Read moreFor many months I struggled with what to think about the Keystone pipeline. On the one hand, my friends in the Administration and elsewhere argued persuasively (at least on first blush) that the oil from the tar sands would be sold one way or another, so whether the pipeline was
Read moreThe US State Department recently delayed their final decision about the Keystone XL pipeline, [1] which would transport heavy oil from Canada’s Alberta tar sands to US refineries on the Gulf coast. Proponents of the pipeline claim that it will create many US jobs and improve US national security,
Read moreit was an honor to follow Al Gore on stage at Google’s “How Green is the Internet?” summit last Thursday. I worked hard on the talk, and it’s posted (along with Gore’s talk, some “rapid fire” research talks, and a wonderfully passionate talk from Eric Schmidt, for
Read moreEarlier this month, my book, Cold Cash, Cool Climate: Science-based Advice for Ecological Entrepreneurs, was awarded an honorable mention in the 2013 Eric Hoffer awards, in the E-book nonfiction category. It was also a Finalist in the ‘Business: Entrepreneurship & Small Business’ category of the 2013 International Book Awards.
Read moreThe data company IDC has a report out today suggesting that tablet shipments will surpass laptop shipments this year. That’s not surprising to anyone who’s been following this space, and it’s an indication (if we needed any more) that the future of computing is both mobile and
Read moreThe short answer: no. The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists just published a feature article by Nate Hultman and me that addresses this very question. All the articles in that issue are available for free during the month of May 2013–after that they go behind a paywall. Here’s
Read moreI wasn’t able to attend Al Gore’s memorial lecture for Stephen Schneider at Stanford, but it was just posted, and it’s “must-see”. Brilliant. Moving. Powerful. Inspirational. No visuals, just a passionate and committed person speaking from his heart. Watch it: Al Gore @ Stanford | April 23, 2013 from
Read moreAfter Climate Progress reposted “If we don’t change our direction we’ll end up where we’re headed”, many people asked for the graphics associated with that post, so I put a powerpoint deck online for easy download. Joe Romm also posted high resolution versions of his temperature chart
Read moreYesterday Nature Communications published an article summarizing a new innovation in battery technology that promises much higher power AND energy densities, even for very small batteries. Batteries are usually good at delivering energy (kilowatt-hours) but aren’t as good at delivering power (kilowatts). These new batteries seem to have fixed
Read more