Topic: Science & Technology

Steve N. Lee's "An Inconvenient Doofus" shows ordinary people how to fight deforestation, pollution, poverty, human/animal rights abuses and climate change, and thus save the Amazon, feed the starving and free the oppressed.

Author Steve N. Lee is giving away An Inconvenient Doofus, a 62 page, 21,500 word book on tackling green issues.

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What makes An Inconvenient Doofus so different? Not only is it crammed with ideas with which anyone can truly make a difference to climate change, poverty and rights, but most of the ideas are not only simple, but will actually save readers money.

How many times must we watch the west burn? Holistic Management International says goats and sheep should be used to help prevent fire damage.

“The millions of dollars in damages from the recent California wildfires – including the Thanksgiving flare-up in Malibu - could have been reduced or even eliminated if goats had been used to diminish the risks,” says Holistic Management International (HMI) COO Peter Holter.

When doing good can cause harm - an unintended consequence of cleaning toxic PCBs from the harbor in New Bedford, Mass. is PCB contaminated tomatoes.

The dredging and excavation of New Bedford Harbor’s contaminated sediments has cleaned up the sediments but has also led to polychlorinated biphenyls from the sediments on garden tomato plants. This issue was studied in the latest issue of Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management.

The widespread damage to Gulf Coast forests inflicted by Hurricane Katrina poses a significant setback in the battle against global warming, according to Tulane researchers led by Jeffrey Chambers, assistant professor of ecology and evolutionary biology.

Researchers led by biologist Jeffrey Chambers of Tulane University have determined that the losses inflicted by Hurricane Katrina on Gulf Coast forest trees are enough to cancel out a year’s worth of new tree biomass (trunks, branches and foliage) growth in other parts of the country.

It seems that wind energy may not be 100 percent environmentally friendly. Nocturnal birds and bats, including songbirds protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, are becoming prey to the turbines.

Wind energy is one of the fastest growing sectors of the energy industry, but not without environmental consequences. Nocturnally active birds and bats have become prey to turbines, yet little guidance could be found for assessing impacts of wind energy on this group until now. A new article published in the latest issue of The Journal of Wildlife Management gives guidance about the methods and metrics of this subject.

Recent wildfires have forced many to drastically alter their way of life. Learn how to prevent such a tragedy by strategically planting fire-resistant trees.

Why does one house burn while its neighbor goes untouched?

A unique ecosystem is restored as a site on the shore of an urban lake begins to produce a sustainable energy crop.

The Solvay Settling Basins, the scene of years of industrial pollution on the shores of Syracuse’s Onondaga Lake, is the setting for a novel approach to restoring brownfield sites for beneficial use.

Tree stumps at the feet of Western Canadian glaciers are providing new insights into the accelerated rates at which the rivers of ice have been shrinking due to human-aided global warming.

Tree stumps at the feet of Western Canadian glaciers are providing new insights into the accelerated rates at which the rivers of ice have been shrinking due to human-aided global warming.

A survey of Israeli scientists, which explored their personal relationship to the creative process, indicated a high correlation between spirituality and creativity. Over 60% of the respondents expressed a strong belief that they had "experienced creativity as a spiritual process." The survey, the first of its kind in Israel and possibly the world, was commissioned by the Project Mind Foundation.

A recent survey of Israeli scientists, which explored their personal relationship to the creative process, points to a high correlation between spirituality and creativity. The survey, the first of its kind in Israel -- and possibly the world -- solicited over 3300 scientists in universities and research institutes to probe their perception of the role of creativity in their professional pursuits. Over 60% of the respondents, 237 in number, indicated a strong belief that they had "experienced creativity as a spiritual process."

Innovations like Google, TiVo, iTunes and GPS-equipped phones can be handy, but they also force users to forfeit some privacy, a University of Iowa professor warns in his new book, "iSpy: Surveillance and Power in the Interactive Era."

Author Mark Andrejevic, associate professor of communication studies in the UI College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, says that the data trail left by technology users allows public and private monitoring agencies to track users' locations, preferences and life events for purposes including consumer marketing, targeting groups of voters for campaigns, background checks and government surveillance.