Health & Lifestyle

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Fukushima, Japan. Highly dangerous and unprecedented removal of highly radioactive nuclear fuel rods begins on Nov18
The fuel assemblies are in a 32 x 40 feet concrete pool, the base of which is on the fourth story of the damaged reactor building. The assemblies - which contain plutonium, one of the most toxic substances known - are under 23 feet of water.

If the fuel rods - there are 50-70 in each of the assemblies, which weigh around 661 pounds and are 15 feet long - are exposed to air or if they break, catastrophic amounts of radioactive gases could be released into the atmosphere.

The 1,331 used fuel rod assemblies contain radiation equivalent to 14,000 times the amount released in the atomic bomb attack on Hiroshima.

“Full release from the Unit-4 spent fuel pool, without any containment or control, could cause by far the most serious radiological disaster to date,” say independent consultants Mycle Schneider and Antony Froggatt in a recent World Nuclear Industry Status Report.

28 Signs That the West Coast Is Being Absolutely Fried with Nuclear Radiation from Fukushima
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8. One test in California found that 15 out of 15 bluefin tuna were contaminated with radiation from Fukushima.  read more »

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How Energy Efficient Is Your City?
A new report ranks 34 major US cities by their energy-use policies.
Does your city have a plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions dramatically? Is it seeking to reduce car use through bike share programs and public transit subsidies? Does it partner with utility companies to help small businesses and homeowners save energy? And does it lobby for statewide energy-efficiency legislation?

Those are just a few of the policies that have made Boston the top-ranked city for energy efficiency, according to a new report from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy. Portland, Ore., placed second, followed by New York, San Francisco, and Seattle.

ACEEE ranked 34 major American cities—the 25 most populous incorporated ones, plus the central cities of nine other major metropolitan areas—according to their efforts to promote energy savings. The report looked at building codes, community-wide energy initiatives, transportation policies, energy-saving programs involving public utilities, and efforts to improve the efficiency of government building. You can see where each city ranked on the map above.

The 10 Most Energy-Efficient Cities In The U.S.  read more »

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[Daily Infographic] - The first time I ate a fresh pear, I was roughly twelve years old. The flavor concerned me, and I asked my mom if there was something wrong with it. You see, I grew up on Hamburger Helper, Kraft macaroni and cheese, and Dole fruit cocktail in heavy syrup (still a favorite of mine–the maraschino cherries!). It wasn’t till my twelfth year that my parents finished grad school and finally had the time and money to introduce fresh foods into mine and my sister’s diet. It was a bit of an adjustment. Even at school we were used to eating processed foods.

My sister and I still give our younger brother and sister a hard time for being born a decade after us and getting to take advantage of dad’s newfound love for cooking. This is something that I talk to my dad about a lot, and he says that not finding ways for us to eat healthier earlier is one of his biggest regrets. It has taken me a while, but I have slowly but surely introduced every variety of food into my diet and learned how to cook along the way. Eating and preparing fresh foods brings me so much joy and keeps me healthy. The infographic above discusses the importance of educating children on food, and not just any food, real, healthy food.
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Image courtesy dailyinfographic.com

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Huffington Post - Lavabit Founder Ladar Levison On The Shutdown Of Email Service (LIVE VIDEO)

Washington Post - Lavabit, Silent Circle shut down e-mail: What alternatives are left?

PC Magazine - Google is making headlines this week for a court filing that some have interpreted as an admission that Gmail users should have no expectation of privacy while using the service.

Fox News - House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi called the latest reports "extremely disturbing."

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Image courtesy ciphersend.com and techzane.com

*update* 8 Aug 2014
In Copenhagen, where bicycles outnumber people and nearly 40% of residents cycle to work, bike-friendly infrastructure is key

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[July 8, 2013] 12,000 electric cars are to move on the roads in Greater Copenhagen by 2015. 12,000 electric cars are to move on the roads in Greater Copenhagen by 2015. This is the target set by The Capital Region of Denmark and their new project Copenhagen Electric. Today there are not even 1 500 electric cars in the whole of Denmark. Copenhagen Electric is to encourage municipalities, hospitals and enterprises to purchase more electric cars for their car pools. - We’re starting with the municipalities, says Kåre Albrechtsen, head of Copenhagen Electric that is run by the Capital Region of Denmark. The region is investing 12 million Danish kroner in the consulting project Copenhagen Electrics over a 3-year period. The municipalities in Greater Copenhagen now have 274 electric cars, which is eight percent of the entire municipal car pool. The aim is to increase this share to 25 percent in only two years’ time. (News Øresund)  read more »