It’s commonly understood that the reason why we spring forward every year is to save us energy. By waking up closer to when the sun rises during the summer months we can utilize more natural light in the evening and we won’t have to use as much artificial lighting…
…Or so the logic goes. It may initially make sense to us, but given that the demands on our energy system differs dramatically from when Daylight Savings Time was initiated over 90 years ago, does it still save us power?
Here’s an interesting fact: according to Ontario’s Independent Electricity System Operator (who’s responsible for connecting all users and producers of power in Canada’s largest province), the demand for electricity shot up significantly during the Canada-US Gold Medal hockey game of the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.
Over the past few months the National Film Board of Canada has been releasing its movies online. Among many of the excellent films and documentaries is this dry, yet fascinating gem from 1976 exploring various green- and energy-efficient building methods during the oil crisis of the 1970s.
Recent stock volatility in the world economy presents a crisatunity for The Next Great Project of humanity: namely, the development of clean, green energy.
There are several reasons why this crisis has a bright, silver lining.
The New York Times reports that solar panels are being nicked right off of buildings, like from Jim and Shayna Powell’s roof in Palm Desert, CA. (pictured).
Many of the panels are ending up on eBay or Craigslist.
