How to Promote Interest in Environmental Causes by Using Custom T Shirts

Corporations and individuals are doing more to protect the environment, but it is still not enough. The natural world is in a state of crisis that calls for action. If you are concerned about environmental causes, you can use custom T shirts to get people more interested.

One thing you will want to choose when designing a shirt for your earth-friendly cause is something with a prominent green color. The actual shirt could be green or the shirt could be another color with a large green emblem. This is important because the universal color of the environmental movement is green.

You might belong to a local group of ecologically-minded people. You can all get custom T shirts to wear to support your ideas. The focus might be on replacing fossil fuels with solar or wind energy. Your group might be concerned about clear-cutting of rainforests. Whatever the causes you wish to support, you can wear your shirts to show others how you feel about them.

You may be able to set up a design for anyone to use if you go to the right online shirt store. The message and picture could be of your own choosing. Then, you could advertise to direct individuals to the site to buy their own matching shirts to take part in the organization activity. Soon you would see your earth-friendly ideas being expressed all over town; and perhaps all over the world.

It is sometimes possible to get support from corporations with local offices. There are several ways companies can help. They can increase awareness by having a green week. For that week, employees will be asked to work on projects that help the cause. Anyone who completes their project could be given a shirt recognizing their accomplishments.

Corporations can also be given a chance to sell custom T shirts with an environmentally sound message. The corporations would foot the bill for the basic cost of the T shirt, and the employees could chip in an amount they choose to donate to the cause in order to buy the shirt. In this way, funds can be raised to do some activities such as building zero energy homes or researching alternative fuels for cars.

When corporations get in on the act, they can have a profound effect on individuals. They can encourage their employees to think about the world around them. Businesses can set up brainstorming sessions on how to clean up the land, streams, and air. If everyone is given a custom T shirt for their efforts, they will take more pride in the part they have played on the panels.

If you want to get the word out that everyone needs to think about the earth’s natural environment, you need tools to do it. A shirt can be such a tool. You can bring about a change in people’s attitudes and awareness when you share your designs and custom T shirts with them.

Ron Subs works with Sonic Shack as a public relations consultant, more information about Sonic Shack can be found at www.sonicshack.com

Solar House Plans For Living Off Grid

The world is committing crime. Every moment of every day, we consume oil. We shed blood, and kill Earth to burn oil as energy. Why? When the same energy is attainable free from the sun! The Technology within the solar industry is here and now. It’s ready to take on the largest portion of household energy requirements. The only thing preventing you from capturing your own solar energy is the cost.

Consumers generally have two priorities when installing a solar panel system. First, that the system be economical and second, that the system produce as much solar energy as possible. Some consumers have a cost-is-no-option mentality. In that case, we integrate the best current technology in the solar industry to install a solar panel system producing maximum solar energy by today’s standards.
As of May 2008, an efficient solar panel system for a 2000 sq. ft. home costs $13,000 – $15,000 after tax rebates and incentives.

The solar industry is totally unorganized. In a nutshell, here are the ropes that one must jump through in order to receive rebates. Each state has their own certified systems that our able to receive the State tax rebate. Uncertified systems must go through a slow certification process.

In other words, your brand of solar panels may not be rebate worthy in another State (as if it were another country) because that brand has not yet been certified. So, in each State, every solar panel must go through a very long process to become market ready, within that particular State.

A national certification will ease these issues, enable more solar panel installations, and hence drop the price of the technology. Striking the price range of more consumers is key for the solar outfitting of the United States.

U.S. Installation Requirements. Here is the next major obstacle. A Licensed, NABCEP Licensed Contractor must install a State certified solar panel system for you to qualify for the full tax incentives and rebates offered in your community. Unfortunately, there are only 60 new North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners licenses granted annually. That needs to change to meet installation demands.

One of the NABCEP Licensed contractors in our network will guarantee quality and assurance throughout the installation of your system. We will do whatever it takes to get a NABCEP certified installer out to your project to grant you the 30% tax rebate. We will send a certified installation team to your region within six months of your request.

Currently, solar panel installation/distribution companies can operate in California and achieve something remarkable. The phenomenon of selling solar panels at higher retail prices than any other state sells solar panels. But due to the state rebates, Californians pay thousands less for their solar panel systems.

This has caused a clot of solar businesses in the state of California, meanwhile the rest of the country is starving for licensed NABCEP solar contractors and solar panel system distributors to start the grass roots effect in the other 49 states. The demand exists.

How Do Solar Panel (Photovoltaic) Systems Work? A photovoltaic (PV) or solar cell is the basic building block of a Solar Panel (or solar electric) system. An individual PV cell is usually quite small, typically producing about 1 or 2 watts of power. To boost the power output of PV cells, we connect them together to form larger units called modules. Modules, in turn, can be connected to form even larger units called arrays or Solar Panel Systems. In this way, we can build systems able to meet any electric power need, no matter how small or large.

Almost all of today’s solar cell modules do not concentrate sunlight but use only what the sun produces naturally, what researchers call “one sun insolation,” which achieves an efficiency of 12 to 18 percent. However, by using an optical concentrator, sunlight intensity can be increased, squeezing more electricity out of a single solar cell.

Solar Panel Distribution. As a distributor for several major solar panel manufacturers, we are able to offer our clients the best possible solar panel system solution economically and technologically. We will give you system options based on your economical needs or technological needs for those who desire the best most efficient “cost-is-no-option” system for your home or business.

The solar industry has been unforgiving for many solar panel distribution/installation businesses for the past ten years. With constant technological advancements and a rapid price drop in the solar panel industry, businesses have been caught between a rock, and a hard place owning pallets of out-of-date, over priced, solar panels.

We have found the solution to that problem by collaborating with manufacturers that enable per-job distribution. Many of these manufacturers have research and development laboratories capable of producing new solar panels with higher wattage and module efficiency every few months.

It is crucial that the best possible solar panel system be installed in your home or business for either economic or technological reasons. Consumers generally have two priorities when installing a solar panel system. First, that the system be economical and second, that the system produce as much solar energy as possible. Some consumers have a cost-is-no-option mentality. In that case, we integrate the best current technology in the solar industry to install a solar panel system producing maximum solar energy by today’s standards.

Shane Burke is the founder of Solar Panels and Installation. A site offering solar house plans for living off grid. Please visit Solar Panels and Installation

5 Cheap & Easy Ways to Go Green

Switching to CFL light bulbs, recycling old cell phones, not mowing your lawn as often; little changes can make a big difference, and people are embracing the “green” lifestyle like never before. Fortunately for most of us, this doesn’t require a complete lifestyle overhaul. In fact, there are quick and easy ways that you can make your life a little more earth-friendly – without sacrificing your savings or your time.

1. Use your computer.
Surfing the Web for information rather than purchasing multi-volume encyclopedias or newspaper and magazine subscriptions can save you hundreds. And, since you only print out the pages that you need, you save precious resources, not to mention space. Say goodbye to newspaper clutter and those magazines that you toss after a week anyway – there are tons of sites out there that provide the same articles and information at no cost.

2. Remember to turn off that light (or air conditioner or TV…).
Saving electricity is easier than you think. Make it a habit to turn off the light every time you leave a room and use natural lighting when it’s available. Also remember to turn off the heat or air conditioner when you leave for the day. Many thermostats have programmable options that may be worth investigating.

3. Invest in a water filter.
It’s hard to say no to an ice cold glass of water. By using a water filter pitcher or even one for your tap, you eliminate the need to purchase and consume bottled water – and the excess plastic they generate. An added bonus – no more $4 bottles of water.

4. Start a compost pile.
Starting a compost pile can be a benefit beyond just reducing your trash output – it can also be a major asset to your garden. Do some quick research (see number one) and you’ll be amazed at all of the compost pile options that are out there. Believe it or not, there are hundreds of thousands of web pages out there about this very topic.

5. Put your recycling bin to good use.
Remember that little blue bin? Of course you do. Dig it out and put some recyclables in there. It may not save you any money directly, but it will give you something to feel good about, and it will help ensure that future generations maintain access to necessary materials. If you have children, it is a great idea to set the recycling example for them.

Charlotte Beulow is a contributing writer for AccessMyLibrary.com. Best known for its large and diverse set of content, AML provides authoritative reference content as well as full-text magazine and newspaper articles – all courtesy of your local library and at no cost to you.

Will Clean Energy “Cross the Divide?”

Fossil fuels provide most of the world’s energy and are the foundation of the past two centuries of economic growth. The issue of climate change poses the first serious challenge to fossil fuels’ primacy.

But a great divide has existed between the mainstream technologies that make up the modern energy industry and the newer “clean” technologies that offer an alternative, low-carbon pathway to the future. This divide encompasses costs, technological maturity and scale of existing infrastructure.

In recent years, a range of forces has aligned to enhance clean energy’s prospects – technological progress, shifting public opinion about climate change, growing interest by governments in supporting alternative energy technologies through subsidies and emission caps and pricing, and a massive increase in private investment.

Can these forces bring clean energy technologies from their current position, on the fringe, into the energy mainstream? This is the question addressed in a major new study by Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA), Crossing the Divide: The Future of Clean Energy.

The study focuses on four kinds of clean energy technology. Biofuels include ethanol, biodiesel and next generation cellulosic-based fuels. Renewable power generation technologies include wind, biomass, geothermal, solar photovolaics (PV), concentrating solar power (CSP), and ocean power.

Carbon capture and storage technologies are primarily designed to reduce or eliminate carbon emissions from coal-fired electric power plants. Finally, conventional clean technologies include nuclear energy and hydropower.

The Crossing the Divide study uses a scenarios approach for thinking about the future of clean energy. Unlike forecasting, scenarios do not attempt to foretell one “right” future.

Instead, the scenario development process focuses on key uncertainties that could lead to futures that are very different from the present. Scenarios are “plausible stories” about the future, which provide a framework for anticipating change and identifying it earlier.

Crossing the Divide develops three possible scenarios for the future of clean energy. In Launch Pad, strong policy support and rapid advances in technology drive the development and adoption of clean energy. In Asian Phoenix, the global balance of power shifts to Asia, and Asian nations play a primary role in defining the future of clean energy technologies, as both consumers and exporters.

In Global Fissures, economic slowdown and turbulence, followed by a long, slow recovery, discourage government support and private investment in clean energy technologies.

For each of these macro narratives, CERA developed an in-depth assessment and quantification of the prospects for clean energy technologies. This analysis provides a framework for assessing the winners and losers in clean energy, and helps to define key risks and opportunities as companies and investors place their technology bets.

One major finding of the study is that for clean energy to “cross the divide” and enter the mainstream, major technical advances will continue to be needed in coming years to make clean energy technologies cost competitive and scalable.

Achieving the requisite technical advances will, in turn, depend on four primary forces. The first three are energy prices, government policy, and the pace with which scientists and engineers working on clean energy can foster innovation. All three of these are affected by the fourth: economic growth.

Oil and natural gas prices directly affect the economics of clean energy technologies and shape political concerns and actions over energy security. Oil prices most strongly affect biofuels development but also have a strong effect on energy security, which drives other technologies as well. Natural gas prices most strongly affect renewable power technologies, as well as hydropower and nuclear.

Government policy is central to the development of clean energy. It typically ranges from funding for research and demonstration projects to mandates, financial incentives, and subsidies for technologies approaching commercial viability. Three kinds of policies are important in shaping the future of clean energy – energy security policy, climate change-related policy, and technology development policies.

Government policy is central to the development of clean energy. Energy security policy plays a role in driving all clean energy technologies. Unfortunately, energy security policies can be inconsistent in nature, waxing and waning with fuel price, economic cycles and sense of risk.

Climate change-related policies are affected by scientific understanding, politics, economic growth, and the level of cooperation and coordination present in the world geopolitical system.

The technologies most strongly affected by these policies are renewable power generation, carbon capture and storage, and nuclear. The long-term nature of the climate change threat provides an important impetus for establishing long-range approaches, at both the global and national levels, in this realm.

Technology development policies are the final area where governments can act to encourage adoption of clean energy technologies. These policies are typically driven by economic growth and fuel price cycles, as well as energy security policies. They can vary greatly in terms of their strength and sustainability, as well as which technologies they favor.

Government supports of all kinds are most effective when they are sustained and predictable. It is also important for policymakers to recognize the value of pursuing multi-faceted, flexible policy approaches.

The challenge for governments is to institute policies that get clean energy technologies off the drawing board and sustain them to the point that they become commercially viable and are able to wean themselves from the support – thereby allowing for a phaseout, rather than an increase over time, in subsidies.

Useful approaches include public-private partnerships to assemble clean energy development clusters, protection of new clean energy intellectual capital, and sustained subsidies to nurture emerging clean energy industries to maturity and scale.

Clean energy policy supports must also be multi-dimensional. Carbon markets cannot single-handedly ensure that new low-emitting technologies become widely available and competitive.

Although these markets can be influential in directing investment, it is still not known whether there will be enough public support to establish high enough carbon prices to encourage long-term development of alternative technologies. Since carbon pricing alone will sometimes not be enough, policymakers need other arrows in their quivers.

The third driver of advances in clean energy technology is the pace of technical innovation. Speeding the pace of innovation depends heavily on policy support and private investment, and these, in turn, are strongly affected by fossil fuel prices and carbon pricing.

A long-term perspective is required, involving policy and investment horizons that stretch over the course not of years – but of decades.

As noted above, the fourth driver, economic growth, has a strong impact on the other three drivers. A robust global economy can make it easier to provide financial support for development of clean energy technologies and to absorb the costs associated with carbon emission restrictions.

In thinking about clean energy, it is important to keep scale in mind. The existing installed base of carbon-based energy infrastructure has been built over the course of more than two centuries of ongoing investment and technology development. Implementing change in a system of this size will take time. A long-term perspective is required, involving policy and investment horizons that stretch over the course not of years – but of decades. Renewables and clean energy in general will increase in significance in an expanding energy system that is striving to meet the needs of global economic growth.

Daniel Yergin, chairman of CERA, received the Pulitzer Prize for “The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money & Power” and the United States Energy Award for lifelong achievements in energy and the promotion of international understanding. Vist CERA.

Climate Change: How North American Agriculture is Affected by Global Warming

When you think of global warming, you might envision dramatic scenes like melting glaciers and flooded coastlines. Agriculture is yet another area that will be seriously affected by climatic changes. Farming challenges may become even more intense. Today it is even more likely that a farmer will face droughts, floods, heat waves, and hurricanes. These types of weather events that are so traumatic for farming will certainly be less rare.

In regions that are already warm, global warming will cause the plants to languish in the heat. Soil evaporation rates will be very high, leaving parched earth and burned plants. Often rain will come down hard when it does come, leading to greater than usual soil erosion.

Some studies show that the news of global warming is not all bad for farming, at least not in the short run.

An increase in temperature has some temporary benefits. For a while, it will simply mean more time for crops to mature because of a longer growing season. This is especially true of regions where the spring and fall were once quite cool.

Strangely enough, all the extra carbon dioxide in the air also has a fertilizing affect on crops. This type of fertilization is most helpful for crops such as wheat, soybeans, and rice. Carbon dioxide fertilization is a beneficial by-product of global warming. However, this benefit may all be in vain. When global warming pushes ground level ozone to higher stages, the carbon dioxide fertilization is voided out by tropospheric ozone. These ozone levels are influenced by both emissions and temperature. When the temperature rises, the ground ozone levels will rise as well.

The overall predictions for farming in North America are neither all bad nor all good. Crops are expected to benefit from the effects of global warming in many regions for a short period of time. Crops will suffer in some places due to regional variations. The Great Plains are now more susceptible to drought. However, Canada will probably benefit from the added heat, causing farming of some crops to shift north.

Right now, and in the near future, global warming does not seem to pose a serious risk for North American farmers in general. There may even be some positive outcomes. However, in the long run, nothing will be able to mitigate the damage to agriculture that will occur if global warming is not slowed or stopped.

Knowledge is the key to solving problems associated with the Climate Change and Global Warming situation. You can get more information at www.globalwarming-101.com
www.the-home-sauna-center.com

Cow Protection Is Very Important

Prabhupada: Vaisya means the mercantile community. They are meant for giving protection to the animals, for producing grain and trading. That’s all. Because formerly there was no industry, people generally depended on agricultural work. Therefore the duty of the mercantile community was to produce food grains, distributing them, and giving protection to the cows. As the king was entrusted to protect the lives of the citizens, similarly the vaisya class, or the mercantile class, were entrusted to protect the lives of the cows. Why particularly cows are protected? Because milk is a very essential food for the human society. Therefore cow protection is the duty of the human society. That is the conception of the Vedic literature.

Protecting the cows and providing them grass for grazing are among the essential needs of human society and for the welfare of people in general. Animal fat required for the human body can be also derived from cow’s milk. Cow’s milk is very important for the human body and the economic development of society depends on sufficient food grains, sufficient milk and sufficient transportation and distribution of these products. Lord Sri Krsna, by His personal example, taught us the importance of cow protection. This is not only meant for India but for all human beings all over the universe.
Less intelligent people underestimate the value of cow’s milk which is also called “gorasa”, or juice from the cow’s body. Milk is the most valuable form of “gorasa” and from milk we can prepare many important and valuable foodstuffs for the upkeep of the human body. The killing of cows by human society is one of the grossest suicidal policies, and those who are anxious to cultivate the human spirit must turn their attention first toward the issue of cow protection.

As written in Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.16.1, and similarly the vaisyas, krsi-go-raksya-vanijyam vaisya-karma svabhava-jam [Bg. 18.44], they should be trained in three things:

1.Production
2.Agriculture
3.Cow protection

That is essential, agriculture and cow protection. And vanijyam. Vanijyam means trade. If there is excess milk product, if there is excess grain product, then you can sell them to others. Nowadays the trade is that you take as much milk as you can, and then kill the animal and sell the flesh to other countries. That is going on. No. Go-raksya. Cow protection is very, very essential in human society because it gives milk, the miracle food. You can make hundreds and thousands of preparations, all not only delicious, but they nourish the brain. You can get good brain. Therefore go-raksya, cow protection is especially recommended.

As written in the purport to Srimad-Bhagavatam 6.18.52, if one is trained to honor and worship the cows and brahmanas, he is actually civilized. The worship of the Supreme Lord is recommended, and the Lord is very fond of the cows and brahmanas (namo brahmanya-devaya go-brahmana-hitaya ca). In other words, a civilization in which there is no respect for the cows and brahmanas is condemned. One cannot become spiritually advanced without acquiring the brahminical qualifications and giving protection to cows. Cow protection insures sufficient food prepared with milk, which is needed for an advanced civilization. One should not pollute civilization by eating the flesh of cows. A civilization must do something progressive, and then it is an Aryan civilization. Instead of killing the cow to eat flesh, civilized men must prepare various milk products that will enhance the condition of society. If one follows the brahminical culture, he will become competent in Krsna consciousness.

Here we see Maharaja Pariksit, as soon as he saw that a cow was being attempted to be killed, immediately he took his sword and inquired “What nonsense are you doing? You are killing my citizen.” This is a good government. Why the cow is not a national? She was also born in the land, so she’s an important national as you are. Krsna has given her grass to eat. She’s not interfering with your food. What right you have got to kill her? You have got your own food. The cow has got the grass as her food. You have got food grains and the cow is giving you milk. Just give her protection. The cow is saying, “Don’t spill my blood, yet drink my milk. Please do not kill me.” So why are these things happening? It is because there is a ‘rascal’ government. Kalina upasrstan. Rascal government. So one should lament that, “We are under this rascal government, under the rascal guru, rascal father. They, who are meant for giving protection, are all rascals. This is our position.”

Victor Epand is an expert consultant for Krishna art, religious gifts from India, and Hare Krishna books. You can find the best marketplace for Krishna art, religious gifts from India, and Hare Krishna books at these sites for cow art, cow protection gifts from India, and Cow milk products.

Malta Hilton Crowned ‘Regional Energy Champion’

Next time you’re visiting Malta, be sure to stay at the Hilton Malta. The hotel was opened in 2000 and offers the highest quality accommodation you’d expect from a Hilton.

Hilton Hotels began a programme in January 2006 called “We Care!” This program was one of the first of it’s kind. It began with Wolfgang Neumann taking the initiative and sending a letter to 80 Hilton general managers in Europe and Africa. His intentions were to get others to ‘think green’ and reduce the energy requirements of the Hilton Hotel chain. His plan was to decrease energy consumption by five per cent in the first year then fifteen per cent over three years.

The program was a huge success. The results at the end of the first year were astounding! Mr. Neumann’s plan to cut energy consumption by five percent actually yielded a six-and-one-half per cent cut across the board after the first year. Hilton Malta alone saw just over fifteen per cent cut in energy per guest night.

Mr. Neumann’s plan, in less than 3 years, earned the Hilton Malta praise from many environmental leaders. Environment Minister George Pullicino has praised the Hilton Malta for paving the way for other industry leaders to provide the same level of environmental preservation.

The “We Care!” program has been an educational experience for hotel employees and guests alike. As an added benefit for hotel employees, each of the 360 employees received an eco-friendly mountain bike.

Tourism Minister Francis Zammit Dimech congratulated Hilton Malta’s management and their employees for taking the initiative to promote and do their part to ‘think green.’

Over the years, management and employees of Hilton Malta have engaged in environmental awareness activities. Some of these activities include:

*planting trees in Mellieha
*donating substantial amounts to Heritage Malta
*investing in a programme to minimize air pollution
*treating waste water for irrigation
*implementing gas burners
*promoting clean air by not using diesel
*installing a reverse osmosis plant
*restoring a 400-year-old bastion wall

Malta is a densely populated archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The primary spoken languages are Maltese and English but due to the location of the small island nation, you may also hear French, Spanish and Italian.

Rich in history, Malta was captured by Napoleon while he was en route to Egypt during the French Revolutionary Wars in 1798. Then in 1814, Malta became part of the British Empire as part of the Treaty of Paris. King George VI awarded the George Cross to Malta in 1942. A replica of the George Cross appears in the upper corner of the Flag of Malta.

Malta is also home to the oldest freestanding structures in the world. Their name, Ggantija or Ggantia, means ‘belonging to the giants.’ Ggantija is a megalithic temple complex on the island of Gozo. The two Ggantija temples are notable for their gigantic Neolithic structures which were erected during the Neolithic Age, more than 5500 years ago.

Whether you visit Malta for its historical setting or simply on holiday, you’re sure to find something to spark your interest.

The Hilton Malta is one of the leading 5-star hotels on the island. Why not pamper yourself while enjoying the history of the islands and helping preserve the environment?

For holiday information about Malta, which includes the Malta capital Valletta visit YourMalta.com

Other information about Malta includes a Malta map and for those taking a twin centre holiday the Milan weather

Eco-Minded Skiers Take the Train

This ski season, if you’re planning to take a ski trip, skip the long, annoying security checks at the airports and take the train instead.

It’s no secret that air travel is less environmentally friendly than train travel. Eurostar train operators in Europe have decided to compete with airlines to transport travelers to The Alps.

Eurostar is the first operator in the world to offer ‘carbon neutral’ journeys for all its travellers – at no extra cost. Newly opened Ebbsfleet offers seven trains per day to Paris and five per day to Brussels. Trains travel as fast as 186 mph, making your trip as short as possible. And as economically friendly as possible to boot.

Eurostar plans to further reduce carbon dioxide emissions by twenty-five per cent per passenger by 2012 with their ‘Tread Lightly’ plan. A train trip with Eurostar generates ten times less carbon dioxide than an airplane trip. In addition to generating fewer emissions, Eurostar plans to offset the emissions they cannot eliminate. Travellers who travel with Eurostar may not realize it, but they are making the environmentally responsible choice.

‘We know that thousands of travellers want to be on the first trains on High Speed 1. We are expecting heavy demand from customers keen to enjoy even faster, shorter journeys to the Continent, and who want to see the stunning restoration of St. Pancras International Station,’ says Eurostar’s Chief Executive, Richard Brown.

Independent research commissioned by Eurostar has shown that a trip from London to the French Alps generates 24 kilograms of carbon dioxide per passenger. In comparison, a typical return flight London Heathrow-Geneva generates 191 kilograms of carbon dioxide while a round trip between Gatwick and Geneva generates 169 kilograms of carbon dioxide per passenger.

An increasing number of skiers are using high speed rail to ski in the French Alps. Since July 2006, more than 33,000 skiers, an increase of 43 per cent from the previous ski season, have used Eurostar to travel to the Alps.

Not only is it more environmentally friendly, it cuts back on transfer problems and lost baggage associated with flying. Travelling with Eurostar helps avoid lengthy coach rides and transfers travellers have to deal with when flying. Eurostar’s stations, located high in the Alps, require only a short bus ride to resorts.

For skiers convenience, Eurostar has travel packages that include round trips to The Alps. Some of their most popular travel incentive packages include overnight travel on Friday night to arrive Saturday morning, or Saturday trips that allow travellers to take in the beautiful scenery along the way.

Eurostar also offers select packages at a slightly higher rate. These select packages offer slightly more roomy accommodations, meals and drinks served at the passenger’s seat.

This ski season, weigh your options. The plane trip may be quicker, but then you have the worries of lost luggage, coach rides and transfers to and from the resorts. The train trip may take a little longer, but much less hassle.

Whatever mode of transportation you choose, have a safe and happy ski season!

The ski season is upon us, and YourAndorra.com offers full ski holiday information for Andorra

Included in the details are Andorra hotel reviews and skiing package tours with leading ski holiday specialists Crystal ski holidays

A Visualization of the Urban Legend Called, Man Made Global Warming

About the only truth pertaining to Man Made Global Warming is that there are many people across the world making tons of money by perpetrating a junk science hoax. Just as in the previous Nuclear Winter scare of the 80s, there is no basis for the fears that are being manipulated by those who are profiteering from this absurd science. Worse yet is that if one calls a Global Warming Alarmist (GWA) out on their claims then they will get the patented answer of, the debate is over.

I think not. One has to have a debate before the issues can be resolved. Yet the GWAs will not debate their evidence because they have none. If there is evidence anywhere to prove Man Made Global Warming as fact it has yet to be supported by reputable men of science. Therefore, the best recourse for these GWA profiteers is to claim that a debate which proved their claims has actually occurred. That brings to mind the following famous quote:

“Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it.” – Adolph Hitler

I will attempt to prove the absurdity of blaming man for the acceleration of Global Warming by first providing some basic botany facts and then a couple of visualizations which anyone can do at home. Bear in mind, these examples are for visualizing how small man actually is on this planet.

Through normal Photosynthesis, algae and cyanobacterium in marine environments provide about 70% of the free oxygen produced on earth. The remainder of Earth’s overabundant oxygen is produced by plants like trees, shrubbery, grasses, flowers, et al. In fact just three average sized trees can provide one person with enough oxygen for their entire life. Now imagine how many trees there are on Earth.

For the first graphic experiment one needs to agree that there are 300 million people living in the United States. Now what we will do is to multiply that number by three feet in length per every man, woman and child. The three feet is what we will say is the average width of each of the 300 million people, from shoulder to shoulder. That leaves us with a line of 300 million people stretching shoulder to shoulder for 900 million feet in length.

The entire 50 United States has 12,383 miles of coastline and 7,458 miles of International Boundaries with Mexico and Canada. Which means the little thin outline on a map of the continental USA, complete with an insert of Hawaii and Alaska stretches 19,841 miles in length. Multiply these miles by 5,280 feet and the length of the USA outline stretches out to 104.8 million feet.

Now all we have to do is to figure out how many times we can run our line of 900 million “people feet” around the boundaries and coasts of the United States map. Through dividing the 900 million in people feet by the 104.8 million in USA outline we will get a total of 8.6 rows of people stretching around the entire USA map and inserts. Now if each person is averaged out at being two feet in depth then our rows would become 17.2 feet deep by 104.8 million feet long. At that thickness this line would not even be visible from low earth orbit!

Now look at the entire United States. One can see nothing but green and blue with a few sprinkles of beige for deserts. All of this green and blue and a small portion of beige produce oxygen. That is the entire oxygen producing ground cover of the United States. The CO2 emitting lines of people are not even visible at all. So how can one say that man is affecting the land?

For the second graphic experiment all we need to do is multiply 300 million people by six square feet (their footprint). That is an allocation of three feet by two feet for every single person in the USA. This results in approximately 1.8 billion square feet of people. Divide this by the total square feet of a square mile (27.9 million) and you will get an area of 64.6 square miles. That is actually a smaller area than Reno, Nevada! Which compared to a USA map would be like throwing a golf ball out onto a football field. The grass of the field would produce oxygen while the golf ball would represent the 300 million people producing CO2. Still think man can affect the earth?

To account for emissions from factories, transportation and animals, let us get crazy and just toss a volley ball out onto the football field instead of the golf ball. Even then, there is plenty of green on the field producing an overabundance of life sustaining oxygen.

John DeJong is the lead creative designer for NotMeUSA. He has been writing humorous advertisements for over twenty-five years. All of the funny t-shirts, prescription pill bottles, and gag spray bottles were created by him. You can view these by visiting www.notmeusa.com.

What Are Alternative Fuels And How Do They Effect Our Enviroment?

Right now in the United States, there is a huge push for people to use alternative fuels as opposed to gasoline. There are many reasons for this push. Generally, it’s because alternative fuels are kinder to the environment and can help to combat the ever-growing problem of global warming.

The price of driving a car is rising at an alarming rate. It has become very expensive to drive a car, so people are looking out for ways to save money on their fuel.

Scientists are developing alternative fuels that can help not only the environment, but also the consumers checkbook. The new alternative fuels offer advantages in so many ways that people are really starting to take a look at these as an option over paying astronomical gasoline prices.

When consumers use alternative fuels both to gas up their car as well as heat and cool their homes, they are helping the environment as well as helping themselves.

The toxins that are released into the air when we burn gasoline and other fuels have shown to contribute to global warming and before we know it, winter will be as warm as summer.

In the simplest form, an alternative fuel is one that is not produced by using crude oil. They are simply fuels that replace conventional gasoline as a means of powering vehicles. Alternative fuels have desirable energy efficiency and pollution reduction features. The 1990 Clean Air Act encourages development and sale of alternative fuels.

There are many different kinds of alternative fuels and the most prominent one as well as the one that has been around the longest is ethanol.

Ethanol is made from corn which is a great help to our farmers as well as to consumers and the environment. Ethanol is sometimes called grain alcohol. It can also be made from organic materials including agricultural crops and waste, plant material left from logging, and trash including paper.

The alcohol found in alcoholic beverages is ethanol. However, the ethanol used for motor fuel is denatured, which means poison has been added so people can’t drink it. Some people believe that producing ethanol takes more energy than it gives back and for the most part, this is true. However, technologies have evolved in such a way that it is possible to increase the efficiency of producing ethanol.

The growing trend toward alternative fuels will probably grow as we become more and more conscious of how we are damaging our environment through our habits and products we use. New alternative fuels are being developed all the time and having a choice will certainly be a nice alternative itself.

Dwayne Garrett is the author of several eBooks and popular software applications, he also offers an affordable Alternative Fuel Resource that will help you to make sense of Choosing An Alternative Fuel source. Visit:

http://www.ChoosingAlternativeFuel.com

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