//beconfused

Grad student accidentally discovers ultra-efficient white-light LED.

White Light, Less Heat

An accidental discovery at Vanderbilt University may well be the key to making light-emitting diodes the dominant lighting technology of the century. Up until very recently, the only way to make “white” light was to add yellow phosphors to bright blue LEDs. It wasn’t quite right, though, as even the best “white” LED retained a blue tint. This week, we got the news that a chemistry grad student at Vanderbilt has stumbled on a way to make broad-spectrum white LEDs using quantum dots — and in doing so, he may well have kicked off a revolution. (Source: WorldChanging)

I hope they get this into production real soon.

Ontario high school junior Daniel Burd wanted to try to figure out if there was a way to get plastic bags to decompose faster. As it stands, it takes thousands of years for the wasteful objects to disintegrate. But by using bacteria, he figured out how to make it happen in a mere three months.

WCI student isolates microbe that lunches on plastic bags

Daniel Burd’s project won the top prize at the Canada-Wide Science Fair in Ottawa. He came back with a long list of awards, including a $10,000 prize, a $20,000 scholarship, and recognition that he has found a practical way to help the environment.

He knew plastic does eventually degrade, and figured microorganisms must be behind it. His goal was to isolate the microorganisms that can break down plastic — not an easy task because they don’t exist in high numbers in nature.

read more | digg story

Saw this in Singapore Management University’s toilet. Never really like the idea of facing a campaign notice when peeing, but well, this method of promotion is getting more popular these days.

(Say no to plastic bags, waste paper instead.)

Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) made me stayed at AIDS awareness posters for a month when I pee. One day, one day, advertisements will get into the toilets. It will not just be public service ads.

And you know… About that flyer, I really don’t get it why they choose to put the word ‘Campaign’ and underlined it instead of putting more emphasis on saying no to plastic bags. It’s almost as if someone wanted to create a campaign to tell everyone that they have a campaign going more so than creating environmental awareness. Strange sighting in toilet.

I always welcome faster speeds and better power efficiency, USB 3.0 promises 4.8 Gbps. I probably won’t need that kind of speed, but it still kinda excites me anyhow.

USB 3.0 - 10 Times Faster - In the Works for 2009

Well, USB fans, things are going to get even more interesting and soon. USB 2.0 may be fast enough right now, but with more high-definition video products arriving and bigger and bigger files being transferred, that won’t be the case forever. Enter USB 3.0, which moves the bandwidth needle from 480Mbps to roughly 4.8Gbps, 10 times faster than the current version.

The new standard, which was recently demonstrated using a new optical cable (but the same connector), will be backward compatible with older USB formats and promises better power efficiency, too, in order to decrease the load on portable devices. Possibly in the works: Better ability to charge devices over USB, some of which still require an A/C adapter or two USB connections to draw enough juice.

Specs are planned to be delivered early next year with commercial availability for 2009.

Source: Yahoo! Tech

However, power efficiency improvements are always great.

This advertisement is just brilliant. Take some time to view it, it’s quite meaningful in the end.

And he is… If you don’t get the advertisement, it’s trying to tell you that the main character has always been seem as annoying. One day, a use has been found for him. Wind Energy for the win. Epuron.

An advertisement every Tuesday

Well, he just wants to save some money so he built this windmill approved by the township but got sued instead. Too noisy, too big, too high, casts a shadow. Whatever. I hope this won’t discourage use of wind energy. Placing wind mills in your backyard just isn’t the right way to do things though.

Windmill Cuts Bills, but Neighbors Don’t Want to Hear It

BEACH HAVEN TERRACE, N.J., July 10 - Tired of paying as much as $340 per month for gas and electricity at the Cape Cod home here where he has lived for 18 months, Michael Mercurio erected a 35-foot windmill in his backyard last fall that helped reduce his bill to about $114 a year.

Some of his neighbors say it is also annoying. They say it is too big. They say it is too noisy. And some residents in this middle-class borough on Long Beach Island have gone to court to try to make him take it down, while the township has stilled it since winter.

The clash began in February when two of Mr. Mercurio’s neighbors filed a lawsuit in State Superior Court in Ocean County, charging that the township had acted improperly when it issued the permits that allowed him to build the weathered gray steel tower in his backyard.

The suit also says that the spinning blades throw ’strobe-like shadows’ on their property from noon to sunset.

Mary Kopp, 81, Mr. Mercurio’s next-door neighbor, thinks that alternative energy “is something we have to look into,” but that his yard is “the wrong place for a windmill like this.”

“I’ve heard it spinning,” Mr. Kubarewicz said. “It’s not like a helicopter or anything. But to live next to it? I don’t know.”

Source: The New York Times

It would be cool if the corridor lights can be powered by renewable energy one day. I thought putting up some windmills or solar panels are a good idea.

Good news to treehuggers:

All of EU to switch off energy inefficient lights within three years

Following on from Australia’s pledge to phase out the usage of incandescent bulbs, the 27 leaders of the European Union have decided that all member states will have to use energy efficient lighting before 2010. The switchover, which will affect all of the EU’s 470 million+ citizens, was developed with the aim of meeting targets to reduce energy usage by 20 percent by 2020 (say that three times fast): to that end, a commission will be accepting proposals for enabling the switchover “for office and street lighting to be adopted by 2008 and on incandescent lamps and other forms of lighting in private households by 2009.” No doubt there will be some that attempt to lump this decision into the euroskeptic “straight bananas” category, although the chair of the 27 nation summit, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, stated that this won’t be a case of people being forced to throw out existing energy inefficient bulbs, “but people should start looking at what’s in the shops.” Hopefully anti-EU political groups will put their views aside this time in order that this switchover goes smoothly, although something tells us lobbyists won’t be the biggest concern when it comes to changing bulbs in houses and offices across 27 different countries.

Source: Engadget

I’m feeling quite encouraged somehow. I’m been looking out of the more environmental friendly products these days. If the price is right, why not use a little effort to make the switch. Every little bit counts, consider dropping Edison lightbulbs (not on the ground of course).