Wind power makes strides in China

Wind power makes strides in China
(02:31) Report Reuters video

Jun 12 - China's wind power generation has doubled in the last year as the country looks for greener ways to wean itself off cheap, but dirty, coal.
Kitty Bu reports.

Is Alternative Energy a Giant Capital Pit?

Alternative Energy Is a Giant Capital Pit, Kedrosky Says: "There's No There There"
Many green energy advocates say the annual $15 billion of related spending in Obama's plan isn't nearly enough, while critics say so-collared green-collar jobs are a myth and, regardless, won't do much to help an unemployed machinist in the Rust Belt.
Investor and blogger Paul Kedrosky of Ten Asset Management says such debates miss the broader point: Unlike during the growth of computers, when the industry coalesced around the Mac and Windows OS, there is no agreed upon alternative energy platform. As a result, nobody really knows how much money we need - or don't need - to invest in clean tech, which he says is more akin to drug discovery (biotech) vs. traditional tech.

Ancient water source vital for Australia

Ancient water source vital for Australia

SYDNEY (Reuters) - An ancient underground water basin the size of Libya holds the key to Australia avoiding a water crisis as climate change bites the drought-hit nation.
Australia's Great Artesian Basin is one of the largest artesian groundwater basins in the world, covering 1.7 million sq kms (656,370 sq miles) and lying beneath one-fifth of Australia.
The basin holds 65 million gigaliters of water, about 820 times the amount of surface water in Australia, and enough to cover the Earth's land mass under half a meter of water, says the Great Artesian Basin Coordinating Committee.
And it is slowly topped up with 1 million megaliters a year as rain filters through porous sandstone rock, becoming trapped in the underground basin.
"There is probably enough water in there to last Australia's needs for 1,500 years, if we wanted to use it all," says John Hillier, a hydrogeologist who has just completed the Great Artesian Basin Resource Study. Read article...

Download - Brochure.pdf

BACKGROUND BRIEFING: The Great Artesian Basin - the next water crisis?
As concern grows about how to share around Australia’s dwindling water supply, and how much to invest in engineering solutions like recycling and desalination, are we paying enough attention to the water we can't see?
John Hiller's Presentation, http://www.aussmc.org/JohnHillier3Dec08.pdf

NISSAN | Concept Car PIVO 2

Despite its compact dimensions, Pivo 2's ultra-thin motor - jointly developed with Fujitsu General Ltd - has twice the torque output of a conventional electric motor. This is achieved by optimising the layout of its electromagnetic coils and permanent magnets, and by adopting a 3D magnetic-flux-path structure to help the flux flow efficiently. For optimum performance, the whole assembly is designed to fit within the Pivo 2 wheels.
ECO Drive Support Service provides the information to support driver's fuel efficient driving. By changing driving habit through ECO Drive Support Service, individual drivers can help contribute to reduce CO2 emission.


NISSAN | Concept Car PIVO 2
Pivo 2 takes the idea of an environmentally friendly electric urban commuter vehicle and delivers fun.