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WHAT'S NEW?To read archived "What's New" information, click here! Summer 2010
The Skies are getting Greener A few years ago Virgin Atlantic, a division of Virgin Airlines used its maiden flight to demonstrate a commercial airline could utilize bio fuels. Although only 20% ‘green,’ it was good start. Now Air France and American Airlines have joined in with a demonstration to deliver reductions in noise and emissions. Two flights were conducted under the US-EU Atlantic Interoperability Initiative to Reduce Emissions (AIRE) in April of this year. A Spokesperson for Air France indicated its flight saved at least 2 tons of jet fuel and cut CO2 emissions by approximately 6 tons. In addition, a representative for the airline said the procedures used during the departure and arrival phases helped minimize noise levels by up to 7dB. When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world. ~John Muir
A firm that introduced a way to harvest energy from roadways has now developed transparent solar cells which can be sprayed onto any glass surface. How do they do it? They successfully remove all metals from the solar cell, and replace them with an eco-friendly compound that is see-through! Here is what the President and CEO of New Energy Technologies, Meetesh V. Patel says about it: “The ability to spray solar coatings directly onto glass follows on the heels of our recent breakthrough which replaced visibility-blocking metal with environmentally-friendly see-thru compounds, and marks an important advance in the development of our see-thru glass windows capable of generating electricity.” For more details, click here. Every aspect of our lives is, in a sense, a vote for the kind of world we want to live in.--Frances Moore Lappe EarthCURE is a 100% FUNDED by PEOPLE LIKE YOU!
Magic Jack – Yes, It Works Magic Jack is an Internet phone that works about as well as cell phone service. So for $19.95 for the device and $19.95 a year, it is well worth it. It includes free local and long distance calls. Why is so inexpensive? Simple. The Inventor and Founder of Magic Jack, Dan Borislow knows that a signal is just a signal that travels through the air. Why pay for anything other than instrument? Well, our guess is that his investors insisted on charging something per year, otherwise the service would have been free. The best analogy of why this is so is that of a radio. When you purchase a radio, you don’t pay to change the station. It is a signal. Well, it is the same with TV network stations, cable channels, and phones. It was GREED that led companies to charge consumers for anything other than the device and when needed, maintenance. Note: The Officers of EarthCURE use Magic Jack, have eliminated land line phones, and highly recommend it. What we are doing to the forests of the world is but a mirror reflection of what we are doing to ourselves and to one another. –Gandhi
Just a few months ago if you were in Switzerland, you could have looked up and seen an unusual airplane. Called, the Solar Impulse (see photo) the airplane was built by Swiss adventurer Bertrand Piccard. The test flight lasted nearly 90 minutes, with the aircraft reaching an altitude of 1,200 meters. Making use of its massive wings, the aircraft has almost 12,000 solar cells, which feed energy to the four electric motors. Although Mr. Piccard does not believe solar is applicable for commercial aircraft, a quick search on the Internet reveals that solar planes have been around since the 1970s, and advanced solar cell technology used on satellites could easily be applied to the commercial airline industry. When we heal the earth, we heal ourselves. ~David Orr
Not another quiz! Yes, but it is just a few questions and allows you to look at transportation and your impact from a different perspective. If you decide to take it, be sure to come back and take our 1 question free web poll on our home page. Good luck! Click here for the quiz on your transportation footprint.
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Need Solar Cells? Just Spray it!
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On the Wings of Sun Shine