Jay Gaulard Blog

Stonehenge, Solar Power, Global Warming, Energy and Noise

Monday, June 2nd, 2008

Now that’s a pretty impressive tombstone. New research suggests that Stonehenge was used as a cemetery for more than 500 years, much longer than previously thought. The new findings also show that people used the area as a burial site long before placement of its trademark stones (or sarsen stones) was complete.

How to harvest solar power? Beam it down from space!

The satellites would electromagnetically beam gigawatts of solar energy back to ground-based receivers, where it would then be converted to electricity and transferred to power grids. The floating power plants could provide round-the-clock clean, renewable electricity.

Scientists Invent Machine to Suck CO2 & Fight Global Warming

Scientists say they have invented a machine that can suck carbon dioxide out of the air – potentially creating a vital weapon in the war against global warming. The blueprint for the CO2 ’scrubber’ raises the prospect of a generation of machines which would help reduce the billions of tonnes of greenhouse gases being pumped into the atmosphere.

The Coming Energy Wars - A Bargain at $200

Oil prices could hit $200 a barrel in the next few months. How the spike changes everything. This spring, America hit a historic point. With average gas prices per gallon edging toward $4, America’s notoriously profligate ways started to change fast. Americans are driving less, using mass transit more, buying fewer gas guzzlers.

How Man-Made Noise May Be Altering Earth’s Ecology

The contamination of biophony may soon become a serious environmental issue — Scientist Bernie Krause says that man-made sounds are already wreaking havoc with animal communication. We worry about the carbon emissions from SUVs and airplanes; maybe we should be equally concerned about the racket they cause.

Biodiesel, Brains, Hybrids and Vista

Thursday, March 27th, 2008

Top 15 Unexpected Uses For Biodiesel

While virtually everyone is familiar with the use of biodiesel as a substitute for diesel fuel, there are a few novel uses that may not have crossed your radar. Biodiesel can produce hydrogen, clean up oil spills, degrease your tools, heat your home, and more.

Does the Human Brain Possess Potential Super-Powers?

Some of the most incredible minds on Earth lack the ability to filter irrelevant facts and can retain information at incredible rates. Somehow their brains are able to store & access incredible loads of info, even perceiving & relating to this info in an entirely different way. Some scientists even believe that our brains could possess super-power.

Top 10 2008 Hybrids

Hybrid rankings have often been simplistic: Most are little more than lists of the highest-mileage models on the market. Here, we ranked hybrids based on how much fuel savings they get when compared to their non-hybrid version, as well as how much all that saved gas is going to cost you.

Vista SP1: Threat or Menace?

But given how customers who have upgraded from XP have struggled with driver and application incompatibilities, it’s no surprise that many are gun-shy of the latest update.

Paint on Solar Power!

The idea is to coat every piece of steel cladding with a solar cell paint. As steel is passed through the rollers multiple coatings of of the solar cell system are applied to it. Based on the preliminary research, the materials that are being applied are suited to capturing low level solar radiation, which means that they should work just as well.

Daylight Savings, Marathons, Solar Film and the Universe

Friday, March 7th, 2008

Daylight savings is found to waste energy

For decades, conventional wisdom has held that daylight-saving time reduces energy use. Now a university study of a unique situation in Indiana has provided compelling evidence challenging that view. Daylight savings may actually waste energy.

101 Year Old Man Runs 13 Mile Marathon & Stops for a Beer

Martin says that in the last weekend, he’s completed a 13-mile half marathon that took him a little more than five hours. It would have been faster, he says, but he says he stopped for a beer and a cigarette.

Startup Makes Cheap Solar Film Cells With Inkjet Printer

This year could bring the Silicon Valley-funded renaissance in solar power we’ve all been waiting for. First, San Jose-based Nanosolar began delivering its affordable thin-film solar coating, followed by a construction boom in American solar thermal power plants—essentially the reflective equivalent of geothermal power.

The Universe is 13.73 +/- .12 billion years old!

New results just released from the WMAP probe have nailed down lots of cool stuff — literally — about the Universe.

5 Vital Rules For Web Site Design

When it comes to building a web site that attracts visitors and performs well, it is important to pay close attention to every detail. It’s not difficult to do and if you follow these five simple rules, you’ll have a web site that people enjoy coming to and hanging out at.