Clipmarks | Aribeth's 'environment' clips

Urban Gardener Thinks Higher: A Rooftop Garden for Room to Grow

Tue, 06 May 2008 14:53:35 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife
clipper's remarks: Why should you consider a rooftop garden?

* Increase access to private outdoor green space within the urban environment
* Support urban food production
* Promote individual, community, and cultural diversity
* Improve air quality and reduce CO2 missions
* Delay stormwater runoff
* Increase habitat for birds
* Insulate buildings
* Increase the value of buildings for owners and tenants alike
* Create job opportunities in the field of research, design, construction, Iandscaping, gardening, health, and food production

Clip Source: www.thegrowspot.com

Clip Source: usahomeandgarden.com

Clip Source: adaptivereuse.net

Clip Source: www.greenroofs.com

Clip Source: www.iht.com

Clip Source: www.marigreen.cz

Clip Source: www.margueritegardens.com

Clip Source: environmentkrishna.blogspot.com

Tags: roof, green, environment, heat island, farm, community garden

Sound The Alarm: Landscapes in Distress Enviro-Exhibit

Sun, 04 May 2008 10:30:26 GMT

clipped by: Aribeth

Clip Source: www.inhabitat.com

This carefully curated photography and painting exhibition at Wavehill’s Glyndor Gallery in the Bronx is strikingly powerful

Set amidst a lush garden estate and thriving cultural center, Sound the Alarm: Landscapes in Distress is proof that ‘interpreting’ nature and our relationship to and with it, is perhaps better understood while in the throes of nature and all its eco-messiness rather than in a gallery’s sleek, sanitized, white box.

features an impressive roster of international photographers who have painstakingly documented the state of our environment - in all is fragility and resilient robustness

Alarming enviro-circumstances from the Artic to the Equator are boldly represented as are man-made imprints like rock quarrying, wildfires, burnt farmland, subterranean coal mines, and peoples displaced by some serious climate shift.

Biomonitors like moss and lichen are also shockingly off-color in the photos displayed

and

communities

seem to be a former charred shadow of their vibrant selves

Clip Source: www.wavehill.org

Tags: environment, green, photography, exhibition

Is Humanity Destined to Self-Destruct?

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 22:31:01 GMT

clipped by: Sheroug
clipper's remarks: Interesting read. The article is divided into several parts, I only clipped a bit from Part 1.

Clip Source: www.indiana.edu

"Is Humanity Destined to Self-Destruct?"

by Lynton Keith Caldwell

"In remaking the earthly environment, modern society has failed to take into account the full significance of resulting changes in the circumstances of life on earth."

Aided by science and science-based technology, modern humanity has achieved great material success. But scientific findings also suggest that in pursuit of this achievement human society may inadvertently be putting its future at risk.

The capabilities that have enabled modern humanity to attain present levels of civilization may be insufficient to overcome the risks incidental to this achievement.

science and technology have enabled humans to reshape the world more rapidly than has growth in understanding of the risks as well as the benefits of these advances.

For centuries humans lived within the parameters of nature, benefitting from its beneficence, adapting to its rhythms, and coping with its adversities.

Earth-Friendly Architecture

Sun, 27 Apr 2008 07:39:02 GMT

clipped by: Lubaska

Clip Source: www.divinecaroline.com

Ten Innovative Green Homes

In an attempt to create a more sustainable domicile, some homeowners use energy-efficient light bulbs, swap out normal showerheads for low-flow ones, or put on a sweater so they can turn down the thermostat. However, others are taking sustainability—and their homes—to the next level. These ten innovative designs move the owner off the grid, into the trees, and toward a more environmentally-sound future.

Earthbag House

Build Local, Build Green

Modular Earthship

Project BioDome

Tree House

Clip Source: www.divinecaroline.com

Lightweight Concrete House

A Yurt to Call Home

Green Roof Strawbale Home

That Roundhouse

Tags: home, architecture, green, design, environment

Animal senses humans don't have

Sat, 26 Apr 2008 17:25:56 GMT

clipped by: Aribeth
clipper's remarks: You might think you're smart, but none of your senses rival the keenest abilities in the animal world. Animals see in the dark, sniff prey miles away, and detect electrical output from muscle twitches in hidden meals. Read on, so you don't become one of those meals.<<

Clip Source: www.livescience.com

Amazing Animal Abilities

Bats

avoid obstacles and nab insects on the wing by emitting ultrasonic squeaks and interpreting the echo the sound waves make after bouncing off objects in the environment

biological sonar

echolocation

Sharks

special cells in their brains

sensitive to the electrical fields other creatures generate

can find fish hiding under sand by the weak electric signals their twitching muscles emit

Boa

Temperature-sensitive organs

sense the body heat of their prey

perceive depth and strike with deadly accuracy

Hummingbirds

attuned to wavelengths of light outside the visible range

Cats

tapetum lucidum

a mirror-like membrane in the backs of their eyes

lets them hunt and move in almost complete darkness

Snakes

use its tongues to collect particles wafting in the air

odors get processed and translated into electrical signals

Moths

detect

pheromones

Rats

By whisking the hairs across objects

form mental pictures of their surroundings

Drum Fish

hear

using

air bladders

Migratory birds

a form of synesthesia

Earth Day Celebrated Around the Web

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 18:29:05 GMT

clipped by: Charolastra

Clip Source: cybernetnews.com

Today is April 22nd which means it’s Earth Day in many countries around the World. It all started in 1970 when the first Earth Day was celebrated to coincide with the environmental movement. Around the web you’ll find a handful of different sites celebrating the day by changing their logo. Social Web Browser Flock even launched a new “Eco-edition” of their browser just in time for the day. It’s got lots of green and comes with some pre-loaded content for those that are conscious of the environment.

Yahoo

Ask.com

Google

YouTube

AOL

Facebook

Flock

Know of any other sites around the web that are celebrating Earth Day? Let us know!

Tags: earth day, web, logo

The Green Ad Effect

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 08:29:11 GMT

clipped by: Aribeth

Clip Source: www.divinecaroline.com

The Green Ad Effect

A recent survey from Burst Media revealed that green advertising has a stronger than average impact with consumers. Good, right? Well they have higher recall, but they aren’t necessarily buying into the messages. Maybe that’s due to the overwhelming amount of green claims consumers have been hit with.

The survey showed the most popular online green content is recycling information and healthy recipes. These are followed by information on alternative energy sources, natural remedies, eco-friendly cleaning products, green technologies, nature/outdoor recreation, tips for simple living, gardening/organic gardening, and organic foods.

Some of the most powerful ads have come from environmental organizations like the World Wildlife Fund and Greenpeace. Some retailers have also decided to take a stand with their brands with strong green messaging. Here are number of my favorites.

Clip Source: www.divinecaroline.com

Tags: environment

Why we may overlook extra-terrestrial life

Thu, 17 Apr 2008 10:59:58 GMT

clipped by: Aribeth
clipper's remarks: Ammonia, for example, has many of the same properties as water. An ammonia or ammonia-water mixture, stays liquid at much colder temperatures than plain water.Hydrogen fluoride methanol, hydrogen sulfide, hydrogen chloride, and formamide have all been suggested as suitable solvents that could theoretically support alternative biochemistry. All of these “water replacements” have pros and cons when considered in our terrestrial environment. What needs to be considered is that with a radically different environment, comes radically different reactions. Water and carbon might be the very last things capable of supporting life in some extreme planetary conditions. In any case, it is not beyond the realm of feasibility that our first encounter with extra-terrestrial life will not be a solely carbon-based occasion.

Clip Source: www.dailygalaxy.com

Non-Carbon Lifeforms -Why We May Overlook Extra-terrestrial Life

Carbon is great molecular glue—there’s not doubt about it. Just add water and you’ve got life. Well, maybe it’s not quite that simple, but carbon and water do seem to be a winning combo, at least on planet Earth. That may be why we’ve been limiting ourselves in our search for . The carbon/water combo has worked so well for our own conditions, that we simply can’t imagine anything else supporting life.

other options do exist besides water and carbon

there are several atoms and solvents that could potentially spawn life

Various elements become more stable and capable of forming complex molecules when under strange (from a human perspective) thermal and atmospheric conditions.

silicone-based chemicals would be more stable than equivalent hydrocarbons in a sulphuric-acid-rich setting

counter-intuitive elements such as arsenic

Chlorine and sulfur

Nitrogen and phosphorus

Isn’t at least water essential to life? Not necessarily.

Tags: science, chemistry, biochemistry

Masters Of The Japanese Print

Sat, 22 Mar 2008 06:50:56 GMT

clipped by: BartendingBear
clipper's remarks: Asian art... always worthwhile.

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

The cult of celebrity and the commercialization of art are not unique to the West. In 19th-century Japan kabuki actors and high-priced geishas were idolized by commoners, and the sale of colorful woodcut prints portraying them became a big, competitive business.

In 1842, fearing an erosion of national moral fiber, the government reacted to the mania for kabuki and for ukiyo-e, the paintings and prints that depicted the fleeting pleasures of life in the entertainment sectors of major cities. Laws were created to limit the extravagance of kabuki theater and to prohibit yakusha-e (actor prints) and bijin-ga (pictures of beautiful women). It was as if the United States had clamped down on Hollywood movies, paparazzi and the tabloids.

Looking at Japanese prints today, you might not realize what a rough-and-tumble commercial world they came out of. Their formal elegance, poetic beauty and technical refinement suggest a more serene, creative environment.

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

Zimbardo's Stanford Prison Experiment: "We are all capable of evil" - Are we?

Fri, 14 Mar 2008 13:58:35 GMT

clipped by: Johanna_G

Clip Source: www.independent.co.uk

First he devises an experiment that turns peace-loving students into brutal thugs. Then he defends a soldier accused of abuse at Abu Ghraib. Philip Zimbardo explains why his life is dedicated to darkness

© Winni Wintermeyer

Zimbardo says he is now 'ashamed' of his 1971 experiment, but he admits that at the time there was 'no guilt and no remorse'

one of the most infamous episodes in American academic history, the Stanford Prison Experiment – a study Zimbardo led in 1971 into the psychological and behavioural effects of imprisonment that swiftly descended into scenes of cruelty and degradation.

Zimbardo hoped he would never see Americans behave so abominably again.

Eager to explore the way that "situation" can impact on behaviour, the young psychologist enrolled students to spend two weeks in a simulated jail environment, where they would randomly be assigned roles as either prisoners or guards.

[Video]

Zimbardo's book The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil

Tags: behavior, evil, abu ghraib, zimbardo, stanford prison experiment

Creative ways to recycle ordinary objects

Thu, 13 Mar 2008 20:31:26 GMT

clipped by: Aribeth
clipper's remarks: Recycling doesn’t have to be limited to helping the environment: it can also be a challenge and opportunity to ingenious designers who work with materials most people would consider waste to create amazing things. Some of the above designs serve multiple purposes: illustrating the material possibilities of what most would consider trash while also maximizing the aesthetic potential of what would otherwise be considered waste objects. Clothes become rugs, airline trolleys become furniture, cardboard becomes bridges and sewage turns into building blocks!

Clip Source: ecoble.com

The Volksware designers have provided an interesting alternative way of recycling clothes

By stitching them and rolling them they have created a simple carpet system that can be cut to length and fit to a space.

Bordbar

began appropriating and adding splashes of design to

airplane trolleys

and reselling them to the public as useful (if odd) multipurpose mobile furniture

Sumer Erek has been working on

reusing newspaper as interior decoration and insulation in a house.

The Remarkable product design team has created a series of colorful and useful versions of traditional products made out of unusual recycled materials.

This bridge is composed over over 250 recycled cardboard tubes with recycled paper and plastic comprising the stairs.

Architect Shigeru Ban

The BituBlock

is made from post-consumer recycled products including ash, glass and, yes, sewage

The Remida Center appropriates scrap materials from all kinds of local businesses

decorative or practical purposes in gardens

coin purses

Marcella Foschi

Tags: environment

Epilogue - Art Galleries

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 23:26:05 GMT

clipped by: skwirlinator
clipper's remarks: Become a member

Clip Source: www.epilogue.net

	Get the Epilogue Newsletter!

	Spread the word! Link to Epilogue

Epilogue is all about Fantasy Art. We are an online art gallery and community of today's most talented artists and illustrators, specializing in science fiction and fantasy art. Founded by artists for artists, our sole purpose is to help fellow artists to become more successful through high-quality exposure and community interaction. Epilogue offers a uniquely diverse and creative environment for artists of all levels to learn and grow in their craft.

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Tags: artists, galleries, epilogue

2 Mile high Eco Tower

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 02:25:44 GMT

clipped by: wildcat

Clip Source: io9.com

A Two-Mile High Eco-Tower to House One Million People, 12 Lakes, and a Vertical Train

Eugene Tsui's design for a two-mile high, one-mile wide eco-topian tower that houses one million people and contains its own ecosystems seems like something out of a Robert Silverberg novel. But Tsui is dead serious -- and he's got the architectural chops to make it happen.

It's not so much a building, Tsui says, it's a living environment. A vertical train will take people from the ground floor to the top in about 10 minutes.

Tags: architecture

Discover the origin of universe

Sun, 11 Nov 2007 16:19:09 GMT

clipped by: kandalf

Clip Source: www.tgdaily.com

Cosmology@Home launched, searching for origins of universe

Champaign (IL) - University researchers have created a new distributed computing environment which will join the ranks of many other such endeavors. It will allow theoretical models of the universe to be tested against real, observed data. The goal is to use a brute force method to find out which theory best matches up with the observed data. It's called Cosmology@home, and is available to anyone who wants to participate. Could your computer be the one that discovers the origin of our universe?

The BOINC software is used to run Cosmology@home. Here is a sample screenshot of the software in operation.

Tags: cosmology, universe

How do we replace a friend?

Mon, 05 Nov 2007 16:23:12 GMT

clipped by: lullofish
clipper's remarks: Some days ago, a friend of mine died. Tina was very sick, since many years, but so calm and quite that to stay near her was like to stay under a tree in a summer day. There is no way to replace a friend like her. I'm sad, but today I want to say that I'm grateful I met her.

Clip Source: www.balancedlifecenter.com

How Do You Replace A 2000 Year Old Tree?

We have managed to dwindle the Redwood forest down to 1% of its original size.

When a Redwood takes 2000 years to grow to its magnificent height and girth, can we replace it?

If we can manage to destroy an ecosystem so indigenously resilient, what does that say about our sense of connection? I’m not one to nurture nature at my expense. However, I do see a correlation between our sense of disconnect from each other and our Selves, and our disregard for the environment in which we live.

Just for today, I will pay attention to living things around me - the trees, birds, squirrels, ants, bees, dragonflies. The living things in my environment which I take for granted. Those plants and flowers with the diverse spectrum of colors. The ones that not only enhance my aesthetic life, but also help me to survive without my interference or knowledge.

Today, I am grateful for my natural surroundings. What are you grateful for?

Tags: friendship