NEWS : TECH (NFPC)

A Discovery News Blogger Reveals All

Two years ago, Discovery News offered me a platform to rant and rave about sustainable technology. I still can't believe they let me do it! Starting in 2011, though, I'm hanging up my blogging hat to put on a news reporter's cap. I'll be covering not just sustainable tech, but writing about all forms of technology for the site. As I move forward, here's a look back at some of the memorable and wacky things that happened along the way.

This transportation-obsessed blogger jumped at the opportunity to drive an electric vehicle for the first time. It wasn't a Tesla or even a Volt, but Ford's workhorse commercial van, the Transit Connect. And I wouldn't be on an enclosed course, but Manhattan streets. AHHHHH! Look out!!! At one heart-stopping point, I think Ford engineer Scott Staley seriously regretted handing me the keys.

Like quite a few of you, I've got an inner five-year-old. Tech-related stories about poo and pee were irresistible, especially when they power a VW Beetle and fuel cells, respectively. I loved the comments on a post about a fancy Japanese machine that makes toilet paper from office reports. This one made me giggle, and groan: "Don't forget to remove the staples before you shred."

There were plenty of WTF moments, too, like watching a video of the guy who invented a human-hybrid vehicle that can go 30 mph uphill. One of the best was a response to an apocalyptic April Fools Day post written as if it were the year 2310. A faithful reader must have missed the year and asked about successful asteroid mining. "I've been out of the loop for a bit, but when did that happen? Can someone post a link?" It's OK dude. I've had plenty of "oh duh" moments myself.

Discovery News colleagues occasionally convinced me to get in front of the camera. There was the summer I decided to go without air conditioning in hot and sweaty New York -- listen to my audio slideshow. In October 2009, the day Balloon Boy captivated the world, video producer Jorge Ribas filmed me in freezing rain learning about tech at the Solar Decathlon in DC. And yes, I really am that dorky in real life.

Blogging introduced me to more memorable people than you'd ever have patience to read about in a single blog post. But sitting down to write now, several shot to mind. Microbiologist and urban farm pioneer Dickson Despommier telling me his superhero name would be "Captain Food For All." Artist Mary Mattingly inviting me to dinner aboard the Waterpod in Queens. Terrafugia cofounder Carl Dietrich explaining how flying cars could actually be green. NREL's Joe Verrengia giving me a mind-bending lab tour. And a group of high schoolers from New Jersey with big hearts and plenty of smarts showing me just how far low tech can go.

From posts lost in the ether to ones that took off, I've had the good fortune of ridiculously smart readers. You've shown it with comments that filled the gaping holes in my physics knowledge, offered helpful information about obscure scientific points, alerted me to typos, and expressed both skepticism and excitement about sustainable technology. From one green tech nerd to another, thank you.

Photo: The author, looking to the future. Or perhaps at the birds.

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Times Square Celebrates a Greener 2010

The famous Times Square New Year's Eve ball has been lit with LEDs for a few years now, but this time the rest of the display is making the big switch.

Now the "2010" numerals are being lit with custom-designed Philips LED flood bulbs that only use 9 watts each instead of the old 40-watt incandescents. To take the efficiency further, the "2" and "0" from last year are being reused. Plus, the new seven-foot "1" and "0" numbers were delivered to Times Square earlier this month, appropriately, via pedicab.

The Waterford Crystal ball itself is also getting a retrofit. Tonight it will shine with 32,256 Philips Luxeon LEDS--more than three times the LED bulbs used last year--and it will still be more energy efficient than the 2008-2009 ball. If you're like me and don't usually look too closely at the ball, this is a good year to enjoy the display during the crazed countdown.

For the past few weeks, Duracell invited visitors to their Times Square SmartPower Lab to take turns on "power rovers," special bikes that generate power to charge batteries. According to the company, more than 32,000 watt hours of energy have been generated--more than enough to light up the numbers at midnight. Next year maybe they'll convert all that cheering into some electricity.

Photo: Philips Lighting Engineer Oscar Zheng (right) and a Landmark Signs technician equip the 2010 numerals with new LEDs in Times Square. Credit: Larry Lettera, Royal Philips Electronics.

Top 10 Green Tech Stories of the Year

Happy New Year! It's time for a highly subjective list of my favorite sustainable tech news from the year. If you're looking for a decade rundown, I recommend the tech team's top stories here. Here's what recharged my batteries in '09:

1. Car parts grow up
From coconuts to wheat waste and even root vegetables, automotive researchers were looking to nature for inspiration, with an eye on the compost heap for later.

2. Solar goes for broke
It rained during my Solar Decathlon visit, but there's no stopping this parade. Australians broke records with their solar cell, the massive Desertec project moved forward, and DIY panels hit store shelves.

3. Flying car takes off
TreeHugger panned it as a "wacky combo" for the "super rich," but Terrafugia's Transition vehicle is a street-legal plane that gets great fuel efficiency, requires a pilot's license, and could mean less congestion in the skies, not more.

4. Recyclebot melts hearts
Described by some as "the real WALL-E" the DustCart robot took to streets in several countries for testing this year. The bot is not only ridiculously adorable--it has potential to make recycling collection quieter and smarter.

5. Saved by shark teeth
This year scientists discovered that a special mineral in shark teeth called apatite could help us determine what ocean temperatures used to be like long ago. When their research is done, we'll know just how much hot water we're really in.

6. Bikes do the tough stuff
Entrepreneurs looking for low tech solutions to challenges in developing areas turned to the bike. A group at MIT made a laundry bike and a group of students from New Jersey fashioned an agribike thresher for sorghum and millet.

7. Nano aims high
Tiny tech demonstrated its potential. A superhydrophobic surface crafted by Duke University scientists with carbon nanotubes could shrink power plants, AggraLight nanoparticles promise to lighten up solar cells while improving efficiency, and a nanostructure in algae led to lightweight, flexible batteries.

8. Geoengineering gets real
Science fiction no more: the University of East Anglia did a scientific evaluation of the most massive Earth-scale engineering plans out there and the Oxford Geoengineering Institute launched in the fall. After Cop15, an Earth-scale agreement might be the hard part.

9. Poo power for all
Oslo made plans to turn municipal sewage into methane for a new city bus fleet, an aid group in Haiti called SOIL set up dry composting toilets to make humanure, and Dean Kamen tested a sterling engine powered by cow dung.

10. Electricity wises up
We're a long way from widespread vehicle-to-grid tech, but the grid is getting smarter. GE announced that it will start making smart appliances, Google made a smart meter app, and a bunch of competitors collaborated to secure smart grid devices.

Here's to an even greener 2010!

Photo Credit: Wonderlane.