Olson’s Observations

Regardless of what you believe about global warming this video will get you to think about the problem (or lack thereof depending on what you believe) from a different angle. In this video you will see a simple risk analysis performed with regards to global warming.

The end result: Even if global warming isn’t actually caused by humans reducing our emissions and such won’t hurt us at all (in fact, it will help us either way). However, if we ignore global warming and take the bet that we aren’t hurting the planet and that the warming is cyclical and down the road it turns out we’re wrong we’ll be in for a world of hurt.

Simple risk analysis says we should take the bet that we’re hurting the planet and lower our footprint because the risk is much lower than any other alternative. Enjoy the video. It really is entertaining and, I think, spot on.

Yes, you read right. There is a car being developed that runs on compressed air (called the Mini-CAT or City Cat). I almost didn’t believe it when I first saw it but it’s true. The engine was developed by a former F1 engineer and Tata Motors, a large car company based in India, has decided to use the technology in a new vehicle.

I know what you’re thinking and the answer is that this car can go up to 200km (125 miles) on one tank of air and can reach speeds of up to 110kph (about 70mph) with a fill-up cost set at around $3 (i.e. $3 gets you 125 miles of travel). Not too bad eh? (Woah, just slipped into a Canadian feel there…). “Refuelings” only take a few minutes as well which is no more time than it takes to fill a car with gasoline.

While the car is a zero emissions vehicle it is of course not 100% zero emissions. The air compressors that fill the tank run on electricity which is generated via a number of methods including coal and nuclear and there is a carbon footprint associated with actually manufacturing the vehicle.

However, I figure that the footprint of this car will be far less than hybrids, plug-in hybrids and, of course, gasoline powered cars (ethanol is also a joke… while better than gas from am emissions stand point it has so many other draw backs like its inefficient use of farmland). I haven’t done the research there so if that is off base please let me know in the comments.

It’s great to see interesting innovation coming about by applying old principles to new problems. I am a big fan of the air car and I would probably buy one if they were available in the U.S. That said, the design isn’t too, how should I put this, sexy and the car is probably not the safest one to drive around in. It’s only about $7,000 though!

To learn more about the car and hear from the designer please check out this video over at the BBC.

As an addition to this blog I thought I would start adding “Food For Thought” posts. These posts will usually contain a couple of links and some quick commentary. Unfortunately I don’t have enough time to write full posts on everything I want to but this should help me get some quick thoughts out there. First off (well, second off, as I did do one of these for Thanksgiving) here are a couple interesting stories relating to clean energy - another passion of mine.

IBM Study Shows Consumers are Willing to Pay a Premium for Green Energy (via EcoGeek.org)

It turns out that consumers would be willing to pay more for green energy if they could receive more information about it and see the link of their use of green energy to real change (lowering emissions of greenhouse gases, etc.). As we all know, information is crucial. However, this kind of information is difficult to pull together and then disseminate to each individual consumer. Perhaps there is room for a web app to help in this effort. The more information we can get out there about energy and general sustainability efforts the more good choices people will make.

Supercomputer Powered by Bicycles: MIT Cycling Team Sets New Record (via Gizmag)

Admit it. You guys all thought I was a little crazy after I wrote that post about gyms powering themselves with energy created by exercising and perhaps even producing power that gets pushed out onto the grid (hell, even I thought I was going a little nuts). Then you (and I) continued to think I was crazy when I posted a follow up about how to make your own bike powered generator. Well, sometimes you have to be a little crazy. Looks like the MIT Cycling Team went ahead and powered a supercomputer for 20 minutes using just five bicycles. Pretty cool stuff. It was also record breaking - this was the largest Human Powered Computation in history. Hello Guinness Book of World Records. Check out the full article by clicking the bold headline above (here are even a few pictures). Maybe this gym idea could work in some form or another.

I recently finished up a book entitled Simple Prosperity that was written by David Wann, one of the co-authors of Affluenza (in fact, it was so interesting I blew through it in two sittings). In Affluenza, David and his co-authors diagnosed the debilitating disease of over-consumption that is effecting America and other parts of the world. Simple Prosperity picks up where Affluenza left off and shows us how we can make a change for the better and increase our quality of life.

In fact, as another reviewer put it, Simple Prosperity will take you through a lot of what researchers have learned about stress, happiness, community, etc. The one thing it won’t do is show you how to make more money. It’ll show you that the money you have may already enough.

In the book Wann relates a lot of personal stories that tie into his message of consuming less and being happy with what you have. There are a lot of interesting points in the book relating to happiness which is one of the main themes. Specifically Wann tells us, and backs it up with studies and other anecdotes, that the things that make us happy are the things we always knew made us happy. Those things being friends, family, a sense of community, healthy food to eat, civic work and purpose.

One piece of information that I found interesting was a study referenced by Wann in the book that mentioned that any incremental money we earn over $50,000 per year doesn’t necessarily make us any more happy. In fact, it most likely lowers our happiness level since we need to spend more time working to make each additional dollar rather than spending that time with friends, family, doing civic work and doing the things we love, our hobbies.

Of course I am sure you need to adjust that dollar amount for certain cities (NYC is super expensive for example) but you get the idea.

Another main theme of the book was our throw away culture. Wann wonders why we spend so much time and money buying cheaply made goods that end up owning us through continued maintenance, etc. Then, at the end of a short life span we just throw them away. He suggests we would be better off to spend a bit more and purchase quality goods that last. This hearkens back to my previous post on Etsy and handmade goods. If Etsy’s success is a barometer for the rest of the nation then it would seem a lot of other people feel the same as Wann. This idea also extends to produce and other foods.

Wann argues that spending a bit more for organic produce is worth it since it tastes better, provides more nutrients and isn’t covered in poisonous pesticides. I agree with him on that one. It hurts the wallet sometimes but I always feel better after a good piece of fruit or an outstanding veggie. What always stunns me when I think about it is that 100 years ago - and further back from there - we always ate organic. It has only been in the last 100 years that things have changed so drastically.

Even though there is a lot more to this book I want finish this post up by touching on Wann’s thoughts on the internet (figured I would try to tie this into the blog’s subject matter!).

Good news, he loves the internet and sees it (rightly I would say) as an unprecedented platform for spreading ideas and connecting the world.

However, one thing I found interesting was the fact that Wann mentions multiple times in the book that he really dislikes advertising. In fact, he tends to blame advertising for a lot of the over-consumption in America (not sure I can disagree 100% with him there although I would suggest we all have free will).

Why is that interesting to me you ask? Mainly because he loves the internet - and even specifically mentions that he loves Google - but most of the internet, including Google, is paid for via advertising. It seems like there is a little misalignment there. You can’t have your cake and eat it too.

Update: In thinking about it more and speaking with the publisher it seems that what Wann was really getting at with advertising is that he didn’t like the execution of most ads (i.e. he’s not against advertising in general). He is upset that many ads share fear-driven, consumptive messages urging you to buy things to fill holes in your life rather than being informative and creative. I would agree with that which is why I joined BuzzFeed. We’re looking to change ads to be more about other people talking about the products they love rather than the companies touting themselves (plug!).

That said, I really enjoyed the book and Wann’s vision on what we could do for the environment and our society if we all just put in a little more thought and effort. Wann has done a lot to further the cause of sustainability over his career and his efforts should be commended.

Now is a crucial time for our society and for the planet. It’s time to start thinking about sustainability and about what makes us truly happy. We can make a change for the better. I have no doubt in that.

Side Note: This book is being released in January but you can pre-order - and even get an earlier release date of December 26th - on Amazon. Check it out and get some ideas on how you can make a difference for yourself and for the world.

Google has always been an environmentally conscious company but they are starting to take more strides toward leaving less of a footprint on this planet as of late. Today at Google Press Day in Paris they announced that they will be carbon neutral by the end of 2007. That is an amazing step forward and I hope other large companies (and small companies alike) take the plunge. If you’d like to learn more about Google’s plan for going neutral please check this out.

Google’s plug-in hybrid initiative is also moving ahead. As long time readers know I am a big fan of plug-in hybrids. They are the bridge that will get us toward a petroleum free driving future. It’s good to know Google likes them as well and is spending a lot of time and money trying to further the cause.

Of course I am now a Googler so I am a bit biased but I can honestly say that if I weren’t part of the company I’d still be equally as excited about these initiatives. Hopefully other companies will take Google’s lead and get green.