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I doubt I’ll ever own a electric car
I have my doubts that I will ever own an electric car. Battery technology has improved a lot as has solar generation but still electric cars are heavily dependent on the fossil fuel-based power grids, as it’s difficult to generate and store a lot of electricity in a limited space. Almost every off-grid household relies on fossil energy – be it diesel or gasoline for their cars and trucks – and propane for cooking and heating – with maybe the supplement of wood.
I do think there is a strong future for electric buses and intra-urban transportation. Many people may choose electric cars in the future, especially those who live in the city and want a second car, have solar panels and can plan appropriately. Electric vehicles are more efficient and cleaner, especially in high pollution, densely packed urban areas. Moreover, electric drive trains are simpler and potentially much more reliable and long-lasting. But they still consume an enormous amount of energy which is difficult to generate on site using renewables.
Which is to say that I don’t believe we will meet our ambitious climate change goals and is going to be serious impacts to our economy and planet as a whole. But some action is better than none and indeed reducing the carbon intensity of society and energy use more generally, limiting greenhouse gases is better than no action at all.
Plastic Bag Ban Upheld, But Could the Details Change?
A ruling by a state court on Thursday surrounding New York's ban on single-use plastic bags has all sides claiming some form of victory.
For the Department of Environmental Conservation and environmental groups: The bag ban was generally upheld. The plastic bag industry, however, pointed to language in the ruling that struck down a regulation limiting bags to 10 mils thick. One mil is one-thousandth of an inch.
NPR
Steve Bannon, President Trump's former political adviser, has been arrested alongside three other people in connection with an online fundraising scheme that federal prosecutors in New York say was responsible for defrauding hundreds of thousands of people.
Bannon and the three other defendants are alleged to have orchestrated a scheme around an online crowdfunding campaign called "We Build the Wall," which has raised over $25 million, according to prosecutors. The campaign was advertised as an effort to build portions of the wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and support maintenance operations.
Conspiracy Theorists Have a Fundamental Cognitive Problem, Say Scientists
The world’s a scary, unpredictable place, and that makes your brain mad. As a predictive organ, the brain is on the constant lookout for patterns that both explain the world and help you thrive in it. That ability helps humans make sense of the world. For example, you probably understand by now that if you see red, that means that you should be on the lookout for danger.
But as scientists report in a 2017 paper published in the European Journal of Social Psychology, sometimes people sense danger even when there is no pattern to recognize — and so their brains create their own. This phenomenon, called illusory pattern perception, they write, is what drives people who believe in conspiracy theories, like climate change deniers, 9/11 truthers, and “Pizzagate” believers.
The study is especially timely; recent polls suggest that nearly 50 percent of ordinary, non-pathological Americans believe in at least one conspiracy theory.
Bicycles 🚲
Bicycles 🚲
I have a bicycle at home but it’s been sitting along the wall for almost a decade now as I got tired of broken spokes. Ever since I got that bike it was in the shop for spoke repairs – I did some myself but some are quite hard to repair on that bike. A couple other parts and the derailer are broken now. It probably could be rebuilt for not that much money, but I can’t have it being junker that breaks down all of the time.
I should think about getting a bicycle now, especially if I am thinking about going without a car next year. I should see how practical it is to get around town on a bicycle, along with use of public transit. It would save so much money if I could go a few years without a car, and only rent one during vacations. It would improve my health, burn calories and let me learn more about my community. Not to mention really lower my carbon footprint!
I’ve started looking at Facebook at people selling bicycles. Used bicycles aren’t particularly expensive, although I am not sure what kind of bicycle I would want to get. Reliablity has to be top priority, and the ability to mount a basket on it for carrying supplies like groceries home from the store. I don’t mind doing maintenance on my bicycle, but it can’t be regularly breaking down when I’m 10 or 20 miles away from home — especially if it’s my primary way to get around town.
If I can’t get any use out of the old bicycle, I am thinking I could donate it to Troy Bicycle Rescue or some other group that restores bicycles for community use.
Kueka Outlet In The Village
The downtown part of Penn Yan is quite attractive with nice apartments and luxury condos located along the dammed up part of Kueka Lake Outlet.
Taken on Thursday August 13, 2020 at Notes.