TAG: Human activity

Forcing Change For The Future

Technology Forcing Change

Generally, technology forcing standards can be defined as the formulation in legislation, of a requirement to achieve a certain standard of operation within a specified time period. This can be achieved by using technologies that have not yet been developed for widespread commercial use, but have been shown to be feasible on an experimental basis. Technology forcing standards are quite important in the field of environmental regulation, they are a necessary nudge in the right direction for the biggest producers of environmentally corrupt substances, and large contributors to human induced climate change. The automotive and petroleum industries, for instance, were transformed… read more

Halting The Sands

Desertification, Africa

If you were to visit rural southern Africa you would likely experience the beauty of a primordial country life. The cows would be grazing, farmers would be in the fields, their irrigation sprinklers would be at work, and maidens would be collecting firewood from the nearby forest. At face value there is nothing wrong with the picture, however if you would multiply the activity described, and look forward by 10 years or so, the picture would change to a cover on a document entitled “The Leading Cause of Desertification”. The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification focuses particularly on those African countries… read more

Is this the future we wanted?

The Future For Us?

A recent movie called Idiocracy paints a depressing future in which society has become unintelligent and feeble minded to the point of ridicule. Likewise, H.G. Wells’ famous novel, The Time Machine, also shares a similar tomorrow where humanity has dumbed down into obscurity. Could it be that we are on a correspondent path? In a world where convenience is paramount, and everything from vehicles to homes is automated, we’ve increasingly built a society of demanding and dependent people. The desire to create is slowly being replaced with the need to consume– a stark contrast compared to the mindset of previous… read more

A Green Future

A Green Future

Often times, we wonder why it can be so difficult convincing people that going green is a necessary route for the future sustainability of our planet. It almost feels like pulling hair just to get friends and family to see the same way we do. Why would somebody want to keep paying their electric bill when they can install a home automation system or even solar panels to save on costs? And if people realized that purchasing an all-electric or hybrid vehicle has nearly the same cost as a traditional gas-powered car, wouldn’t they seek that alternative option? It’s one… read more

Let’s Change Our Thinking For Good

Change Our Thinking For Good

For years, people have talked about “Subverting the Dominant Paradigm”. For years, it seems people have instinctively understood these words and what the alternative paradigm looked like. Like “sustainability” talk, it was a trendy expression that steadily gained traction within the non-mainstream quarters of the “developed” world. Great – except that nobody could really agree on what it was, let alone how to get to the other side. Subvert the dominant paradigm?  What on earth does this mean? We can hazard a guess that the dominant paradigm pre-dates the Industrial Revolution. Chances are a “genius” called Descartes had something to… read more

Life’s Quest

Life's quest

We all have a mission in life. From birth until death, we go about our daily existence with goals and visions on our minds. Whether it’s finishing college, starting a family, or rising up the ladder in the corporate world, everyone has a plan. What of humanity, though? What’s our unified plan, and is it clear cut? Since the days when the first human beings walked the earth, we have all asked ourselves that question. What exactly is the meaning of life, the universe, and everything? A popular novel-turned-film called The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy suggests satirically that the… read more

Power From The Body

Power from the body

Obtaining power from the human body may sound like a crazy idea, but scientists have started to take this idea seriously. There are various ways one can obtain power from the body such as heat, body movement and vibrations metabolism. One obvious form of energy harvesting is using well known piezo-electricity technology, which means converting human movements and vibrations into electricity. Researchers from the University of Michigan have developed a prototype using piezoelectricty to charge pacemakers installed in human hearts. Generally, pacemakers are introduced to do the work of the heart which has become weak but patients face many and regular… read more

It’s Getting Warmer

Climate change study

In a new study released by the Pew Research Center shows that more Americans are finally coming to the realization that climate change may really be occurring. According to Pew Research Center, 67% of people say that there is now solid evidence that the earth’s average temperature has been getting warmer over the past few decades. That number is up four points since last year and up ten points since 2009. An increasing number of people say that the rise in the earth’s temperature has much to do with and may be directly caused by human activity. As of today,… read more

Life On Mars?

Life On Mars

With the recent scientific expedition to Mars by NASA’s ‘Curiosity’ rover, many new questions and theories on future missions have been brought forth by experts in the field. Since human colonization of our closest planetary neighbor is imminent, the steps to achieve this monumental production will need to be finalized soon. One unanswered question is the topic of creating a permanent habitat, with the idea of adapting Mars into a “Second Earth”. Since the Martian atmosphere is 95.3% carbon-dioxide, and only 0.2% oxygen, compared to Earth’s 0.1% carbon-dioxide and 20.9% oxygen, future colonization efforts will face some obstacles before achieving… read more