Today’s Almanac for Thursday February 25
Today’s Almanac
Night before dawn is 6 hours and 8 minutes,
Dawn starts at 6:08 am and runs for 28 minutes,
Sunrise is at 6:36 am which is 5 hours and 23 minutes before noon,
High noon, the transit of the sun, is at 12:08 pm,
From twelve noon to the sunset at 5:40 pm is 5 hours and 40 minutes,
Dusk lasts for 31 minutes concluding at 6:08 pm,
Leaving 5 hours and 51 minutes until midnight.
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I was thinking this morning about how the word efficiency has replaced economy. π°
I was thinking this morning about how the word efficiency has replaced economy. π°
Often prior to the 1970s, products were advertised based on their economy – they didn’t use a lot of energy or at least used less energy – saving the user money. Often old florescent lighting fixtures advertised their economy and certainly compact cars did. Economy, except maybe for the outdated term of fuel economy, has all but gone away for describing conservation minded products.
Economy these days often seems like a synonym for cheap or low quality. Not necessarily efficient or money saving. You buy economy because you are poor or strapped for cash. The problem with focusing on efficiency over economy is sometimes it looks too narrowly at the current energy consumption rather than total energy consumption. A 60 watt incandescent light bulb in your attic that you turn on twice a year may be economic and not use much energy but it might not be efficient.
I am sure the replacement of efficiency over economy was chosen to emphasize the environmental virtues of efficiency. The problem with efficiency is it’s a single unit and doesn’t consider the unit’s total consumption over time. And efficiency is often used as an excuse for wastefulness – many think or act like it’s okay to be uneconomic and wasteful if something is efficient.
8-14 Day Outlook – Thursday February 25
Cutting My Own Path
For part of my ski route, I followed Shultes Road which is a seasonal use only road. Nobody had hiked, or skied on this road since the last snow last weekend. It was tough going for a while, but it was still good to be the first one there.
Taken on Saturday March 9, 2019 at Partridge Run Game Management Area.Bird-Watching Goes Both Ways
A new study of urban raptors reveals their close attention to human behavior, even during a pandemic.