Author: Jeremy Cooley (Page 1 of 2)

Ocean Acidification Quantified

Climate Change and Ocean Acidification

Something that has really concerned me about climate change is its potential effect on the ocean. Unlike other effects that climate change has caused, ocean acidification is one that has left scientists really confused; scientists honestly have no clue as to what further ocean acidifiction will cause in terms of ecosystem harm, or environmental damage. Nevertheless, one fact surrounding ocean acidification has surfaced and it is not good: “The scientists pointed to a mysterious mass extinction from natural causes called the Paleo-Eocene Thermal Maximum, which occurred around 56 million years ago. The fossil record suggests it took around 100,000 years for calcifying organisms to recover from the acidification shock” (AFP). This fact cannot be good especially if nothing is done to prevent further carbon emission. If a mass oceanic extinction were to happen it would not only kill the economy of world, it would also lead the very foundations of world ecosystems to crumble due to the amount of oxygen producing algae found in the ocean. In summary this just makes me concerned, people need to realize that ocean acidification may not be as well studied as other climate change externalities, but that does not mean it is not the most  potentially damaging for society. An immediate solution to ocean acidification needs to be found probably before any of the other problems associated with climate change.

Solar Breakthrough in Australia

This recent solar breakthrough in Australia was not that impressive in terms of discovering a new technology, yet the finding by a solar panel group in Australia has found a way to increase the efficiency of panel cells from 33% on average to 40%. This additional 7% was achieved by breaking single cells into 4 separate cells that work in unison and by reworking the placement of the panels. The scientists believe that their finding will be extremely useful especially for roof-top panel systems.With that being said the group also was quoted as saying that solar energy will surpass coal within the next decade. The optimism surrounding solar energy is growing and it is apparent globally. Looking towards the future the world needs to get on the same page in terms of solar energy by matching the current optimism with  global policy support that will only sustain development and implementation.

The Future of Elevators

This may change how cities are built; revolutionary

In this article by the Huffington Post, the author explores the possibility that the future look of cities may be different than what most expect because of this developing technology in the elevator industry. Why this technology is extremely relevant is because in the next century urban communities will be where roughly 80-90% of the world’s population and elevators play an imperative role in urban society. Furthermore, elevators have allowed humanity to built up rather than across, which has arguably hurt the environment by expanding society’s footprint.

In their current cable system elevators use a lot of electricity to function and are actually not all that efficient at doing their jobs. In this new proposed system, elevators would be run entirely by magnets (lower energy costs) and would cut down on time spend on the elevator. It is really hard to explain exactly why these new elevators would shift the shape of buildings, but as can be viewed by the above image it is extremely unique and unlike anything I have very seen before. In conclusion be prepared the elevator is in the process of evolving.

Halliburton’s Relationship with North Dakota

Currently, North Dakota is the epee center for fracking in the United States. This boom in the fracking industry has lead to North Dakota having the lowest unemployment and fastest growing economy of any state in the US. The economic growth fracking has brought North Dakota is unprecedented in their history and actually many of its citizens even with the harms of fracking being made more apparent still strongly support the industry. Even more perplexing many of these supporters are the ones experiencing the most environmental externalities like severe air and water contamination. Nevertheless, the scene has begun to change rapidly since a 2013 oil spill in the town of Tioga. Researchers now believe the hydraulic fracking site at Tioga is the largest land oil spill in the history of the US and has contributed to the many corresponding towns having extreme water contamination.  This fiasco has caused many residents to form a coalition of people trying to get Halliburton and other fracking company’s out of North Dakota, but their efforts have not been to successful yet due to a lack of power. It’s now important to wonder how much will it take for North Dakota to realize the harms of the Fracking Industry and actually do something on a governmental level.

Solar Energy in China

In this recent New York Times Interview, they sit down with the man currently leading the charge for solar energy development in China, Li Hejun. Hejun believes that once solar energy gets to the point where it rivals coal in terms of cost, it will lead to a new economic revolution globally. With this being said, Hejun also makes the point that China’s solar energy technology is actually a lot better than most people give them credit and believes China is essentially the third highest country investing and developing solar technology. If this is true then all the power to Hejun and his company Hanergy because it will take alternative mindsets like his to move China past coal-powered technologies, so that they can correct the immense environmental degradation they have caused. Also in wake of Obama’s most recent agreement with China, company’s like Hanergy make me believe China will be able to hold up to their end of the bargain.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdLCMtvm43M

The tragedy that is the recent Eric Gardner verdict has spurred a lot of anger towards the government and  civil rights anguish  because many believe the case should have at least went to trial. In truth most people believe the courts got this one wrong, there was enough video evidence to at least justify a trial unlike in the Michael Brown case. With that said their are many who still believe what the cop did was right. One of those people, being the notorious Sean Hannity. In a recent video he fights with another conservative Rand Paul over the verdict and honestly by the end it left me speechless because its hard to believe a person could support such unnecessary police brutality like that. Even more appalling Hannity doesn’t even agree to the fact Eric Gardner did not need to die. In conclusion watch the video and become just as concerned about how stubborn people like this still exist in society.

As many of you know the Ferguson verdict was released today. The verdict ruled that no further action, or indictment would be made against the police officers that were involved in the shooting death of 18 year old Michael Brown. This verdict has left many African Americans perturbed and upset, but as of yet the protest currently being done have been only peaceful. I think this peaceful take towards direct action shows a particularly new face to the civil rights moment and is almost reminiscent of the direct action tactics read about in Guha; the activists do not want to cause any more pain through violence rather they want to convey their message through other mediums like blockades and tactics that hurt other areas of society not just other citizens.

In my book was the verdict correct? I think from all the surfaced details the court made the honest decision. Yes, the decision has left the civil rights movement and the African American population furious and disheartened, but the details supported the cops in this situation. The courts are their to administer the truth/justice and I support their decision in this case.

Over the past week, or so I have been really interested in US Drone policy because of a topic in another class and having watched the first episodes of the new season of Homeland that is centered around yet another drone attack that kills many Pakistani civilians. From both these I have been begun wondering does the drone program currently being implemented create the problem, or is it not necessarily the program and the problem lies deeper within the technology itself. After reading a few articles from the Huffington Post and a government document on Drone policy the problem may lie in both.

A major problem in US drone policy is that attacks do not need to be Whitehouse approved. This means military officials can act on instinct, which in many cases has resulted in the 2,400 deaths the program has accounted in the 5 years of its existence. The drones are good at taking out terrorist individuals, but high costs with regards to innocent life. For example the majority of people killed from drones in Pakistan are roughly between 416-987 innocent civilians, half of which is thought to be children. Furthermore, in most cases the drones killed more good people than bad people, which in large parts does more harm for society than good; killing innocent people only breeds more hate and anguish towards the United States, which in the long-run only enhances terrorist group power and continuity. A change in policy that makes more controls before a attack is done needs to be drafted because in my opinion a lack of inputs has resulted in many unnecessary attacks.

Another problem I see is the technology itself because it cuts out the intimacy and responsibility of warfare because the person carrying out the drone strike that kills 12 people is literally a hundred thousand miles away and therefore does not immediately have emotional registration for their actions; in some cases these attacks almost do not seem real and feel like a video game. There is definitely something wrong with treating human life as if it were a video game especially innocent lives.  In the longer run I think the US should move away from attacks and focus more on the surveillance aspect of drones, which in most cases have been applicable both globally and domestically. Using drones for only surveillance purposes is the necessary move because people deserve better.

A year, or two ago I remembered watching a 60 minutes piece on the growing issue of urban animal populations. The most interesting of these during the piece was the problem going on in India’s leopard population. Even with the lost of habitat space and food sources the leopard population has not shrunk and instead has adapted to many large urban landscapes. Furthermore, it is not uncommon to spot a leopard roaming the city at night in India. Obviously, this top predator has scared the population (for good reason) and now the Indian government is prepared to make a re-evaluative decision on the matter because the issue has resulted in many preventable injuries and deaths.

It’s a hard problem to swallow because its not the leopards fault for moving into our urban areas, but something needs to be done to curve the risks associated. A healthy, top predator population usually signals to scientists that an ecosystem is good and working, yet can this problem be resolved without hurting the the top of the ecosystem? My answer is that it cannot be and the leopards will be eventually hunted  because preserving human safety is the underlying topic here and human safety is always prioritized. (Below are two articles I read on recent examples of this urban problem)

The city of Meerut’s cat problem 

Leopard Populations already dwindling in India

I remembered Drew said something in class about a breakthrough in Hydrogen renewable energy. The two sources that I found below are exactly what he was talking about. The new findings may very well in the next decade put renewable energy at the forefront of the fuel industry.

http://www.sciencemag.org/content/345/6202/1326.abstract?sid=5f0a71b8-de9d-48b9-b4d0-e436349dd866

http://www.natureworldnews.com/articles/9051/20140916/cheap-green-energy-possible-with-hydrogen-breakthrough.htm

What they discovered is a new more efficient way to  first get hydrogen and then use it for energy. This new method would almost entirely take fossil fuels out of the picture because electricity would not be needed anymore to generate the energy to start electrolysis which is the process of separating hydrogen from water by shocking it. Up until now electrolysis could only be initiated through energy intensive processes. Nevertheless, now they have this new super redox mediator liquid that can now complete electrolysis at a very low power level; lower than what we currently do to generate electricity. This is finding is possibly world changing because it may make hydrogen fuel cheaper than any form of fossil fuel. Price has always been the issue with renewable, but with this breakthrough that may be changing.