Go Green: Just What Is a Greenhouse Gas, Anyhow?

They're in the news almost as much as Brad and Angelina, and you know they have something to do with global warming. But what exactly is a greenhouse gas? In a nutshell, they're gases in the atmosphere—both naturally occurring and caused by humans—that absorb and emit radiation.
Ultraviolet radiation and sunlight hit the Earth and its atmosphere.

Most of this is reflected back into outer space, thanks to the ozone layer, clouds, and ice on the Earth's surface. Approximately 25 percent is absorbed by the planet, and is then re-emitted as infrared radiation. Some of this re-emitted radiation is absorbed by greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, exciting the molecules and causing them to emit the radiation back to the planet again, as heat.

The more of these gas molecules there are in the atmosphere, the more infrared radiation can be absorbed and sent back to the Earth's surface. Increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases in the air will result in an increase of infrared radiation being trapped and re-emitted.

9 Greenest Laptops on the Market

A durable, reliable laptop is the kind of gadget you can end up feeling attached to at the hip -- and why not choose one with energy efficiency, recycling programs, and LED screens help you save money in the long run?
The nine laptops on this list deliver all the tech perks you need with a lighter footprint on the earth.

Dell Latitude Series

Dell has made environmental initiatives a priority for several years, implementing everything from compostable bamboo packaging to a ban on sending e-waste to developing countries (their efforts earned them a nod as the top green company of 2010 from Newsweek).

The EPEAT Gold-rated Latitude series has a 5.0 Energy Star rating, is completely recyclable as part of the company's Asset Recovery Service. Plus, they are easy to upgrade and meet the stricter-than-the-U.S. toxin laws implemented in Europe.

Asus UL30A

When Greenpeace released its annual report on the greenest electronics on the market, the Asus UL30A scored higher than any other notebook among the 21 companies that submitted their products for review.

The Asus comes with a low-voltage processor and allows users to turn off certain parts of the hardware to save energy (which also earned it rave reviews for its battery life).

As a whole, the company emphasizes lead-free and halogen-free manufacturing processes, and "enforces adherence to hazardous substance guidelines," according to its Web site.


Acer TravelMate

The second highest-scoring laptop on Greenpeace's list is the Acer TravelMate, which comes with an 11.6 inch screen and LED backlight technology.

Like the Asus, it earned its rating based on the company's phasing out of toxic chemicals, product lifespan, energy used in production, and innovation.

It weighs less than three pounds, so it's easy enough to take everywhere you go, and it's Energy Star-certified so you can be energy-efficient even on the road.

Six Personality Types of Gadget Owners - Which Are You?

(Photo by blakespot via Flickr Creative Commons)

We all have our preferences when it comes to buying and using gadgets. The way we purchase, care for, use, and dispose of our gadgets can vary widely. But when it comes to gadget ownership, it seems as though a few distinct personality types shine through.
Awhile ago we made up two personalities, the Gadget Minimalist and the Gadget Gottahavist, as we took a look at energy savings. But now, we're prying the lid to the can of worms open just a little farther and taking a more detailed look at the styles of electronics consumers.
So it's gut-check time -- which personality type are you, and how green can you get?

The Proud Hoarder

Description: This gadget owner has one of everything ever made for the past couple decades. The reason for hoarding could be varied -- for instance, there's the love-a-project hoarder. They don't get rid of anything but instead know for a fact that someone, at some time in the future, will need that spare part for some project. All electronics come in handy at some point and they are happily there, bag-o-gadgets in hand, to help.
Or there's the Gottahavist who just won't get rid of anything because they firmly believe it's all just too cool -- these are the types that have Nintendo 64s sitting alongside a new Kinect. And they probably play with both.

The Green Cons: There's a limit to what a person can responsibly consume, and bringing new gadgets into the home without a really good reason is just not sustainable.

The Green Pros: The best part about a Proud Gadget Hoarder is also their fault -- they don't throw anything out. It might not be green to collect gadgets just out of sheer addiction, but when you have a serious collection of electronics that can be used to repair other items, hack into new devices that have a useful purpose, or that you simply still use because you love them, then, well, it's better than using something for a year then sending it off to landfill or recycling.

Pairs Well With: Oh!Shiny-ist or It's-Not-Me-It's-You-ist



(Photo by Frankie Roberto via Flickr Creative Commons)

The In-Denial Hoarder

Description: This is probably the most common personality type. The In-Denial Hoarder swears they don't crave gadgets or new devices, probably doesn't buy them that often, and probably only has a handful they use on a regular basis.
But look into drawers and closets, and the truth pours out in a tangle of charger units and adapter cords. Decade-old laptops they have upgraded from but haven't gotten around to selling or recycling lay hidden on a shelf, the last three cell phones they every owned stuffed in the back of a nightstand drawer because, well, maybe someone will want them or maybe they should have a back up just in case.
And when they start to count the gadgets they really use (the TV and all the black boxes that go with it, the various digital cameras they use for different purposes, and so on) they realize with a shock that yes ... they too are a gadget hoarder.

The Green Cons: The In-Denial Hoarder doesn't realize the impact they have on the environment because they probably don't realize their purchase and use habits, or if they do, they don't think it's that bad.

The Green Pros: There is a lot of room for improvement for the In-Denial Hoarder and that's great news for the planet since it's the most common personality type. The most important thing this personality type can do is stop, take stock of what they use, take stock of what they own, and start to get organized. Admitting a problem is the first step toward recovery...

Pairs Well With: The Perfectionist or The Meh-ist

Top 10 Smallest Animal

10th Place The Medusa

MEDUSA:
It’s called Irukandji  (Caruk Barnes) and measures about 2 cm. It is among the most dangerous jellyfish!

9th Place the Horse


HORSE:
Thumbelina and she is really small! Do you think that it weighs only 27 pounds and is about 43 cm high

8th Place The Dog

DOG:
Her name is Brandy and a cute 6 year old Chihuahua. It is about 15cm long .. As for the height you look at the photo above and you do the scale

Top 10 Smartest Animals

By Animal Planet
10. Rat
No. 10 in our countdown of smartest animals is the rat, a highly intelligent yet much-maligned animal in Western cultures. Widely used in research, the lab rat has been known to find shortcuts, loopholes and escape routes in the laboratory experiments designed by the top scientific minds of our time. In Chinese culture, the rat is revered for its cunning and resourcefulness. And for good reason — the rat has successfully colonized every continent on Earth except for Antarctica. And if history is any indication, they’ll be there too soon enough.


9. Octopus
Kudos should go to the invertebrate with the strength and skill to screw a lid off a jar! No. 9 in our list is the octopus, one of the smartest creatures in the sea. This animal is still poorly understood, but scientists are constantly discovering new and impressive octopus abilities. They play, solve problems, navigate through mazes and have a respectable short-term memory. But how is an animal that belongs to the same class as the snail capable of such clever feats? It may be that the combination of strength, agility, curiosity and a lot of brainpower sets the octopus apart from its soft-bodied brethren.


8. Pigeon
Pigeons are abundant in most major cities of North America, but many people think of them as mere pests. However, this ubiquitous bird is actually quite smart. Because pigeons have been the subjects of countless scientific experiments, there is a wealth of knowledge about their intellectual abilities. For example, pigeons can recognize hundreds of images even after several years have passed. They can also identify themselves in a mirror, be taught to perform a sequence of movements and to discriminate subtle differences between two objects -- pretty impressive for a mere “pest.”

The Newest iPad Apps for Pets - Review

Help your pet fight boredom and look nerdy-chic at the same time!
Are you running out of productive uses for your shiny Apple ipad? Does your pet crave something new and exciting to play with? Do you ever find that you are simply too lazy to wave a laser pointer around the room for your pet to play with?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you need to check out some of the newest ipad Apps designed specifically for pets! From the iSqueek app, a virtual doggy sqeak toy, to the Cat Toy app and Game for Cats app there's a *yapp* for just about any level of dexterity.
We put these apps to the test, and, as you'll see in my "Top iPad Apps for Pets  video below, we received some amusing mixed reactions from our test subjects (....such as using the iPad as a toasty impromptu cat lounger...at right! HA!)
Keepin' it Real
Check out how my down-home dogs ultimately choose a 49 cent dog toy over the high-tech gadgetry !


http://blogs.discovery.com/daily_treat/2011/04/the-daily-treat-tests-ipad-apps-for-pets.html

Top 20 Candidates Cutest Animals , What's your choice?

LiveScience.com took on the challenge of listing the top 500 cutest in the animal kingdom. We are sharing photos of their top 20 cutest in reverse order. Some may surprise you.

20. Clownfish

19. Clouded Leopard

DLILLC/Corbis

Top 5 Weird and Freaky Animal Photos

Mike the Headless Chicken
This is not a hoax: Following a non-lethal decapitation, Mike the headless chicken, later nicknamed "Miracle Mike," lived for approximately 18 months. Seen here in 1945, a little over one month after the beheading, Mike's body poses with his head.
Bob Landry/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images

African lion Jambo fights with female Kuchani at the 2006 opening of a savannah-themed makeover of the lion enclosure at Taronga Zoo in Australia.
LIan Waldie/Getty Images

10 Biggest Bugs on Earth

Appreciation for nature is easy when it comes to the cute, the little, the non-threatening creatures...but what about the massive insects and arachnids on these pages, many of which are endangered or threatened: How would you feel facing down a spider the size of a dinner plate or an 8-inch-long beetle?

Giant Weta

New Zealand's giant weta gets its name from the Maori word for "god of bad looks" -- and it's not hard to see why.
The giant weta could hardly be called pretty but it has a fascinating history: Scientists believe this species shared its land with dinosaurs, and had no local predators until European settlers introduced rats to the island.
Though there are more than 70 weta species on the island, 16 of them are endangered or threatened, and the country's Department of Conservation is hard at work trying to save them.
The giant weta is one of the world's heaviest insects: They can grow as long as three inches and weigh up to 1.5 ounces -- check out the tomato in the background for a size comparison.

Stag Beetle

The three-inch-long male stag beetle may be most easily recognized by its spiky front antlers -- also known as mandibles -- which are a key part of courtship rituals and wrestling matches; you'd have more to fear from the slightly smaller females, though, which don't have the giant spikes but do have a more fearsome bite.
The beetles thrive on dead wood, but its numbers appear to be dwindling: Researchers point to the long maturation time -- 4 years from larvae to adult -- and "the over-zealous tidying of dead timber and stumps," according to ARKive.

Five things that aren’t going to save the planet

 

By Lori Bongiorno

Looking for ways to live a more eco-conscious life? It can be overwhelming because there are so many choices we can make. It's hard to know where to start or what will really make a difference.
Here's a list of things you don't have to do to save the planet, either because they ultimately don't have much of an impact or because there are simpler or less expensive actions that are actually better for the environment.
That's not to say that you shouldn't take the actions below, it's just a guide for those of us with limited time or resources who want to get a bigger bang for our buck. 

1. Always buying organic
There's no question that farming without pesticides is good for the planet, but you can make a bigger difference with other food choices. Buying real instead of processed food is better for your health and the planet's. Choose what's in season and local for produce that tastes better, is more nutritious, and doesn't have to travel thousands of miles to reach your table.
If you can afford to buy organic, then spend your money on the fruits and veggies that tend to have the most pesticide residues such as peaches, strawberries, and celery, as well as dairy and meat. You can skip organic versions of onions, avocado, and other produce that's typically light on pesticide residues as well as processed foods.
Other ways to make a real difference: Try to reduce food waste. Eat less meat and dairy (cut down on portion sizes or try skipping meat one day a week). The kind of meat you choose is also important. Red meat is harder on the planet than poultry and pork.

The history of Earth Day

Earth Day was founded in 1970 by U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson, but only after several years in the planning. Frustrated that the environment was a “non-issue” in politics in the 1960s, Senator Nelson went to Washington, D.C., and presented an idea that the  Attorney General Robert Kennedy and President John F. Kennedy both liked. What ensued from that meeting was a “five-day, 11-state conservation tour in September 1963″ by President Kennedy. (The tour took place a mere two months before the president was assassinated.)

After several years speaking throughout the country on the environmental degradation Nelson saw all around him and spurred on by “teach-ins” and the anti-Vietnam war protests taking place across the U.S., the senator finally hit upon an idea -- create “a huge grassroots protest over what was happening to our environment.”

10 Planet Helping Animals

By Animal Planet
Every animal plays a special role in the web of life, but these 10 go above and beyond with their planet-saving activities.

1. Bee
Sure, their sting can be a pain in the you-know-what, but the full-time pollinating duties of bees are essential when it comes to ensuring that flowering plants, well, flower.
It’s estimated that one-third of the human food supply depends on insect pollination, with bees accounting for the majority, particularly the domesticated European honey bee. Next time you hear one buzzing by, consider delivering a round of applause is in order for all their hard work.


2. Dung Beetle
The name says it all — this beetle plays a crucial role in the world of agriculture by both burying and consuming feces. The process not only improves nutrient cycling and soil structure, but also serves to protect livestock by removing what could be a potential habitat for flies and other disease-carrying pests.
In fact, the American Institute of Biological Sciences reports that the U.S. cattle industry saves approximately $380 million dollars annually, all thanks to the dung beetle. It’s a dirty job, but somebody’s got to do it.


3. Vulture
The vulture could be considered nature’s garbage collector, thanks to its appetite for roadkill. Animal carcasses act as the perfect breeding grounds for bacteria and other dangers, but the vulture’s incredible resistance to botulism allows the bird to remove dead animals, keeping the environment clean of the potentially hazardous waste.
Unfortunately, both loss of habitat and illegal hunting have put these eco-friendly predators at great risk, particularly the California condor species and the European black vulture.
[ 10 Animals With Interesting Eating Habits ]


4. Earthworm
The earthworm earns its “green” stamp of approval as a result of digging large burrows underground, which allows for more water and air to pass through the soil. As they burrow, these little wigglers also ingest soil along with any plant matter in it, eventually passing it through their body above ground, where it serves as an ideal fertilizer. Waste not, want not!


5. Great White Shark
Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water … actually, it’s already much safer than most think. Though great white attacks on humans are often played up in the media, in reality they are very few and far between, more often occurring as a case of mistaken identity (“Hey! That’s not a seal!”) than an actual penchant for human prey.
Additionally, sharks play an essential role in ocean ecosystems, helping to curb animal populations, which could bring adverse, long-term damage to the marine food chain.
[ Top Five Endangered Sharks ]