However If you want to build your own Car using Solar Power - Green Energy Source

Most cars are powered by fossil fuel or better known as Gas. But there is so much volatility in the price of crude oil crude is not renewable source of energy.The countries that have all of these resources are ripping our money out of our pockets as we lean back and pump this junk into our cars and then into the air we breath.Don’t you think it is time that we do something about this before it is too late.If solar energy can be used to power a small community then it stands to reason that you could power a car.This sounds very difficult doesn’t it?

What does it take to make this work?The two most important are the solar array and the batteries.The solar array is very important as it collects the sun rays and converts it into electical energy. There are two types to choose from in the market namely the prefabricated type and the individual kind which you set up yourself.

You can get branded parts from places like Siemens and ASE Americas they sell terrestrial grade cells and the space grade cells. Terrestial grade is the lower end and it does produce a significant amount of power.

You must complete the wiring properly in order to make sure your vehicle keeps moving even if one of the panels stops working. The voltage of the solar array should match the system voltage of your motor, you should not to worry because it will still run.

The battery is what is used to store the energy after it is soaked up from the sun. So the batter is a very important factor in building a solar powered car. There are a few options in batteries and they are lead acid, lithium-ion or nickel-cadmium.The voltage of the engine determines how many you will have to buy. After you have purchased these two components, you must connect them to the motor. So you know how much juice is left in your batteries, you will also need to install instrumentation similar to the heads up display console on regular cars which tells you your speed, mileage and gas.

All of this seem to be such a task and if you are not into building things or just don’t have the time, why not just purchase a hybrid car until the big Auto Makers get on board. If you use a hhybrid car, it is much better than driving a 1976 Coupe Devill and there are cars that can travel many miles on only one gallon of gas. Take the Toyota Prius as an example. They have tested this vehicle on 2 gallons of gas and they traveled 100 miles and still did not run out of gas. Adam Carolla took on this challenge only a few weeks ago and was featured on SPEED television.

Well I guess my point here is that you can build your own solar powered car and drive around with a large solar panel on the top of your car or you can take advantage of the new technology being provided by the car industry and drive a hybrid car.

Africa is the place of complete open space, the place where animals and plants run wild and free, but is it always going to be like this…

The world is changing, and more importantly the environment is changing. If you think about it, Africa is probably one of the hottest places in the world, temperature rises are the last thing a place like this needs. It is hard for us to judge just how much Africa will change in the next 100 years, one thing that is clear, is that it will be different.

The temperature all over the world is rising every year, places like Africa won’t be able to support a decent amount of life in around one hundred years. Now as everyone says, we need to “Take Action and Do Something”, unfortunately I honestly don’t believe this is going to happen. I don’t want to be Mr Doom and Gloom but people are too unpredictable and only care about there own families and nuclear lives; the planet is something considered for the government to deal with.

So what is the best immediate option? Heading on a holiday to Africa now could be a very good idea. The Safari holidays give you amazing insight into what Africa is all about, and the chance to see these animals in the wild will allow you to experience something that millions of others never will. If you get the opportunity to see a Lion in the wild it will be a once in a lifetime experience for most people, others may not ever see one.

These animals are also endangered by poachers; people think that because they are in reserves or national parks that they are now safe and the poaching has stopped. Although we like to think they are all safe and that nobody can hurt them, these things still happen.

Enter the 2010 Honda Insight - a completely retooled and revamped Hybrid.  It’s bigger than the first generation.  It has better lines, and looks less like a gadget, and more like an actual road-worthy vehicle.  Actually - it looks like a Prius.  To achieve the aerodynamics needed for the 40+ MPG rating, they had to style the aerodynamics in much the same way Toyota had to.

One nice thing about the new Insight, it’s more affordable than a Prius.  Base models start under $20,000, and top out around $24,000 (as opposed to my Prius, which - admittedly feature rich - ran me about about $28,000.)

Honda calls their Hybrid technology “IMA” - “Integrated Motor Assist.”  It behaves differently than the Prius “Synergy” Hybrid design.  With Honda’s IMA, the gasoline engine does most of the work, while a secondary engine - an electric engine - kicks in during times when additional power is needed.  Contrast this to the Prius, which uses its electric-only motor when starting from a dead stop, or when travelling at low speeds.

While the Insight does have an electric-only mode, this mode only becomes active while the vehicle is already in motion, and won’t travel as far as the Prius will in its electric-only mode.

The new Insight also includes an “Eco-Assist” - a computerized controller that helps adjust the car’s Hybrid behavior to your driving style.  That’s one problem I have noticed with my Prius - mileage results vary wildly, depending on how I drive.  I only get good gas mileage when I drive my Prius properly, and figuring out how to drive it properly is a process of trial and error.

I can see where Honda’s “Eco-assist” feedback would be handy in that case, to help drivers who want to be more environmentally-conscious adjust to their new Hybrid fuel-economy maximizing features.

One advantage of the Honda design - if you have battery problems, the car runs just fine in a gas-only mode.  The Prius, however, will leave you stuck.

Still - 40+ MPG is nothing to sneeze at.  The new Insight is slightly bigger and more efficient than a Fit.  Think of it as a more affordable slightly less efficient Prius.

Honda’s Insight page has a nice tour of some of its other features, I recommend taking a look here.

Climate modification is essentially the excessive heating of the planet, which results in dramatic climatic changes. So, are there ways to prevent climate modification? Yes! one of the most dramatic ways you can help prevent climate modification is to build a wind generator and produce clean energy for your household. Because of the changing societal conscience about renewable energy, more and more homeowners are looking to do-it-yourself kits to build a wind generator. Wind is a powerful source of energy that has been harnessed for different uses for centuries. More and more scientists and researchers are saying that when power within the moving air can be harnessed properly, wind can be effectively used as a renewable energy source.

How can wind be converted into energy is a question that is commonly asked when one first decides to build a wind generator? Using a wind turbine is the answer. A wind turbine is really just like a huge fan that can take the kinetic energy available in the wind and convert it into mechanical energy. When this mechanical energy is used by any type of machinery like a pump then such a machine is known as a windmill. But don’t do this with just any kit. Make sure the kit you use is created by a certified professional. Use the wrong kit and electricity can be very dangerous. Make sure you read reviews if you build a wind generator for your home.

In many ways, the climate modification debate is benefiting from the current highly volatile issues concerning energy. Coal and oil have powered the world’s industrial revolution. Oil is not available in many countries while coal is. The largest concentrations of oil are often found in areas with political turbulence. All you have to do is look at the circumstances in Iraq to understand this. With the growing China economy, there now seems to be a universal understanding that oil alternatives are necessary.

Perhaps proving the concept of Karma, nearly all oil alternatives are favorable ways to reduce climate modification. Whether we are talking about hydropower, solar, wind, geothermal or even nuclear energy, each alternative power source produces significantly less pollution than classic fossil fuels. Less pollution is the key for one very simple reason.

The notorious greenhouse gas is a major byproduct of using fossil fuels for energy. Carbon dioxide is the by-product of using oil regardless of whether you use it to produce electricity or to start the car up. Carbon dioxide is a major greenhouse gas. Reducing the volume of it in the atmosphere will greatly reduce the greenhouse effect. As our energy production evolves away from oil, we should see improvements in the atmosphere. Of course, whether we actually get around to this anytime soon is the bigger issue.

A second major way to prevent climate modification is to stop deforestation. Large areas of forests like the one found in the Amazon River Basin in South America are being leveled. The result has been disastrous to the progress of climate modification. Nature has a natural way of filtering toxic gases like carbon dioxide from the air. It does this through photosynthesis with plants. The best defense against carbon dioxide has been the dense huge forests acting as a filter. By cutting them down, we reduce the ability of the planet to filter out the bad gases while we continue to pump more of the gases into the atmosphere. This formula is bound to cause trouble no matter how you measure it.

Are there ways to prevent climate modification? Yes. We need to kick our oil habit and stop wiping out our forest areas.

You can make a difference! Start with education and make the choices that will prevent climate modification like choosing to build a wind generator for your source of power.

~Ralph Somers

Moderator of Ralph’s Green Energy Guide

The best place to start is to look at what we have already been led to believe.

The Greenhouse effect is the relationship between the earth and the sun. The sun provides the earth with the heat and energy it needs and the earth releases back that energy into space.

The greenhouse effect comes into play as the gases in the earth trap that energy so that it cannot be released back into space therefore, warming the earths environment.

The greenhouse effect is not only natural but also critical to our existence. Without it, the earth would be too cold to sustain life.

Methane, carbon dioxide and water vapor are all gases that trap energy from the sun thereby enabling the warming of the earth.

It is common knowledge that plants provide carbon dioxide (CO2) but most people aren’t aware that they also eliminate carbon dioxide.

This is because, when a plant dies and is buried into the earth, these plants become fossil fuel which is coal and oil.

The carbon dioxide is removed from the air around it when coal and oil is burned.

200 years ago, before machinery was invented and cars filled our streets, global warming wasn’t an issue.

The natural gases which came from the earth would trap energy. However, since the industrial revolution, large quantites of gases are being spewed into the atmosphere and getting trapped resulting in global warming.

Although activists and researcher argue over whether or not humans are responsible for global warming, I am confident we all agree that when something unnatural happens, it disrupts the natural way things work.

If we are producing more gases than what is known as natural, then you would expect that this would have an affect on our environment, but whether or not this affect is causing global warming, well, we will have to leave that down to the scientists.

In the last century, it has been said that the average global temperature has risen by one percent. While this is not a large jump, it may still be unnaturaly enough to have an impact on the earth’s climate.

The fact of the matter is that even the most knowledgable scientists in the world cannot understand everything about how the earth works. We can’t assume that we know it all because there may be unknown factors that have not been accounted for.

It is natural to believe that we are having some kind of affect on our environment in comparison to 200 years ago, but is the cause of global warming? I guess we couldn’t say either way, but what we do know is that we need to keep it in mind and do what we can to help our environment.

Whatever the real truth is, you can definitely make a difference by turning your home into a green house (pun intended) and build a renewable energy generator. We can help the earth this way, one household at a time.

Ralph Somers

Moderator of Ralph’s Green Energy Guide

The solution is simple enough—reduce emissions to reduce the speed of climate change. So, how can you, as an individual, play a role in accomplishing this task? It is really as easy as flipping off a light switch. People really can make a difference by taking the climate change situation seriously.

Simple Changes You Can Make In Your Everyday Living

Turning off the lights and television when leaving a room can make a big difference. Raising the temperature of the thermostat on the air conditioner can result in huge savings. A fan uses much less electricity, so try to rely on those more than the air conditioner. Again, remember to turn the fan off when leaving. Computers and other electronics should be turned off when not in use.

These simple energy conserving tips are the easiest and most cost effective methods to reducing your dependence upon energyrfyrgy. All that is required is the memory and mindset to turn off switches. The minimal effort required will yield great results in both helping the environment, and in decreasing your electric bill. There is no reason to leave on the TV, lights or fans when not in a room. Turn them off regularly, and watch as your power bill shrinks.

All of these little changes can save tens of dollars on ones monthly electric bill, and in turn, add up to hundreds of dollars per year in savings. At the same time, you're reducing your dependence upon oil and electricity, and lowering emissions.

Buying and using fewer disposable goods is another great way to lower your impact on the environment without drastically altering your life or power source. This is as simple as using washable towels instead of paper towels. Bottling your own water from water machines is another way to reduce waste as well as save money. Instead of buying individual bottles of water, simply buy a few reusable hard plastic bottles that can be washed and refilled. Taking simple steps like these can greatly reduce the amount of waste which your household produces. Reducing waste lowers your overall footprint on the environment.

Many private households are choosing to go green. You can help your environment, while at the same time cut your energy costs. It really is a win-win situation. So, how else can you save the environment? There are plenty of ways to help.
•    recycling
•    alternative energy
•    landscaping
•    composting
•    organic foods
•    fuel efficiency
These are just a few of the ways that regular Americans can easily contribute toward the green movement.

visit www.SquidGoneGreen.com for more articles and tips on going green.

Despite all the problems with fossil fuels, this plant is not without many other ways to produce power from what are termed ‘alternative energy’ sources. An example that can be sited is one that is driven by photovoltaic cells called the solar power which in time can get more advanced and affordable. Solar energy power can be used for electricity, heating, and making hot water plus solar energy produces no pollution, as its input comes completely from the sun’s rays. However, much more work still needs to be done in order for us to economically harness the sun’s energy. On problem still to be overcome is storage of the collected power for ‘night-time’ use and when there the sunshine is not at its best.

Usually for now, a large number of private investors as well as the government take pride and support in investing for the utilization of wind energy as an alternative energy source. These are huge windmills with two but more often three blades which harness the power of the wind to generate electricity for many communities. We have used windmills for a number of centuries but it is only recently that they have been converted to produce electricity on an industrial scale. Modern wind turbines are simply are more advanced variations on the old theme. Just like any other methods, using the wind energy has its own hitch such as having to worry what to utilize if ever the days are calm and still. Unsurprisingly, you cannot fully depend on wind energy during these times and this is where the electric company comes into action of powering your home or office.

Hydroelectric energy is available as a source of alternative energy, and it can generate a substantial amount of power. To generate electrical energy, turbines are turned by the downhill motion of water which its flow in response to gravity and that’s something essential that hydroelectric energy uses. As water is everywhere it has not generally been a problem finding locations where it can be employed. Having said that, building huge dams is very expensive, time consuming and there are other issues which usually make the whole process costly at the beginning. To utilise this power, the dams that are built are huge structures otherwise they will not be able to a) hold back the water and b) have enough water to run the turbines efficiently. Conservationists are starting to be worried about operating a dam as it not only requires a lot of labour building it to store and control water’s potential and kinetic energy but it can also be risky and complicated. If you are not in the need to supply the electrical needs of a city or an area with huge population, then building a dam for it is not that necessary. There are small run-of-river hydroelectric converters which are good for supplying neighbourhoods or an individual office or home.

When artesian waters just below the earth’s crust are heated, a naturally-occurring energy in the structure of geothermal energy can be produced which is more often than not the most underrated form of alternative energy that gains less of the gratitude and pride. The heat from the earth’s core gets taken up by the water. A number of different methods are used to harness this ‘free’ power which is drawn up into power plants. The purpose of drawing up the hot water is for the gathering of the steam. The Geysers, approximately 100 miles north of San Francisco, is probably the best-known of all geothermal power fields - it’s an example of a dry stream plant.

Transport and environmental groups highlighted the need for a plan to roll out this new initiative. Transport secretary Geoff Hoon commented that “Cutting road transport CO2 emissions is a key element to tackling climate change. “Less than 0.1% of the UK’s 26 million cars are electric, so there is a huge untapped potential to reduce emissions.”

The Government has put aside some money for the scheme which includes a whopping £20million worth of investment across the UK for electrical charging points for the cars. This new push for economical cars will also allow 200 motorists to trial the electric cars and give their feedback to the Government.

Although the alternative economical option of electrical cars for driving may sound attractive, there are several issues to consider across a large scale. For example, the car can only run 40 miles before it needs a re-charge. The car could take several hours to charge before it’s ready to go on the road again and the fact that they can be fairly small.

Other things to consider include cost, because even with the huge investment made by the Government to roll this out, the cost of an electrical car can still be quite high. The AA president Edmund King argues that although there is the potential to revolutionise the UKs transport system across the cities, the small announcements are not enough and something needs to be done on a larger scale.

It was also argued that there is no point having one country’s Government push for more economical transport because manufacturing works on a global scale not a local scale. Finally, although people may be moving towards a low-carbon lifestyle, it may not be before 2050 that there is a mass transport system consisting of electrical cars that can hopefully travel more than 40 miles before needing a recharge and be fit for city driving as well as long distance journeys.

Related topics include car loans, yes car credit and car finance

We have wondered when we would start to lose some of the worlds wonders, maybe we need to do something about it. We need to find out why the coral reef is shrinking and what can be done to help? Everybody knows of something that is affecting the coral reefs, but not everything is so clear, somethings we need to find out about.

Interestingly the Caribbean contains just over 20% of the world’s coral reef and there is a huge amount of damage being done to it. Honduras is a place where they grow several different plantains including bananas, these require a lot of fertilizer. The nutrients released by this fertilizer damage coral and can kill fish in the ocean. The farms in this area leak pesticides and fertilizer into the ocean, this damages the coral reef sometimes beyond repair. The fish in the ocean are key to the survival of the coral reefs, although a lot of people dont really know this. The fish act like the corals personal grooming kit, they remove bacteria from the coral keeping it clean and healthy, they also eat the surrounding seaweed making sure oxygen levels stay up in the sea.

Apparently fish have dropped in population rates by around 70-95%, a massive fall. When we remove fish from the sea in massive amounts, we are removing a vital part of the corals survival.

Another problem is an obvious one, Global Warming. This is the big one, rises in global warming have created acids in the sea and reduced the amount of Aragonite. This is a carbonate mineral that coral requires to stay alive and even begin growth. According to some people the acid levels in the sea will be so high in about 40 years, coral will stop growing.

However there are few things that we can do to try and help. We can take part in some activities abroad, that allow us to get stuck in with the cleaning of the coral and enjoy ourselves as well. If you do go on luxury holidays or Caribbean holidays you could have the option to go and volunteer for a coral clean up operation, where you can help clean coral underwater or on the shore. This isn’t just rewarding, you can have a good time while you do it too.

Also if you go fishing around coral, try not to drop anchor, you will tear the coral apart and damage anything living around it

So if your thinking about going abroad or maybe somewhere tropical, maybe some of you want to have weddings abroad, it might be a good idea to get there as soon as you can. If you want you could chip in with the divers and help the coral survive, you never know how much longer it will be around.

Until recently, being an environmentalist or “green person” was considered pretty extreme, and associated with hippies, tree huggers, or people who wanted to drop out of society and live on a co-op. Today, however, with growing awareness of global warming, pollution,  and other environmental problems, more and more people are realizing that there is no shortage of answers to the question, “Why should I go green?” Here are some you should think about.

1. Think About Our Future Generations

If you have kids, nephews, nieces or any young people who mean something to you, don’t you want them to grow up in a world that is green, healthy and sustainable? One of the reasons we have problems today is that for a long time, people were imprudent and careless  and didn’t think about the future.

2. Ponder Your Own Future

The fact is, many people alive today may have to face the ramifications of climate change, pollution, global warming deforestation and other environmental issues. You should be concerned for more than just your future generations, you should be worried about yourself. Many of these factors are not a distant worry, but are affecting the world right now. If you need evidence for this, just look at the increasing frequency and severity of storms, hurricanes, tsunamis and other devastating weather events.

3. Green Can Be  Healthier

Many green activities, from eating more naturally, to using non-toxic household cleaners, to organic gardening are healthier for you. You can reduce your exposure to damaging chemicals by going green.

4. Save More Money

You can save money by driving your car less, using less heat and air conditioning, and conserving on electricity by turning the lights off. These activities conserve energy and can reduce your bills at the same time.

5. Reduce Your Clutter

By reducing the amount of paper you use, you are helping to conserve trees and reduce paper waste, but a side benefit is that it can significantly reduce clutter in your home. Paper clutter can make you feel overwhelmed and disorganized, so recycle those bills and do as much of it as you can online.  Activities like banking, and viewing statements on a computer will save you time and money, as well as using less paper.

6. Allocate More Outdoor Time

Many green tasks, such as composting, gardening and biking or walking as an alternative mode of transportation, involve spending healthy outdoor time. This can help you stay more fit and also connect with friends and family members.

7. Get Educated

Going green involves learning more about the world, how things grow, ecology, the climate and other paramount  issues. As you learn why each issue is important, you will also be getting an education.

Why should you go green? In short, it’s healthy for your body, your wallet, and the planet!  www.SquidGoneGreen.com can help you along with your journey to go green.