Ecology and Energy
Ecology, by its nature, covers a wide range of topics. But what we focus on in this department are all the topics concerning the climate change crisis, the sustainable development use of energy, the green economy and the political thinking and campaigns required to move us to a more livable world for us and our descendants.
Ecomind: A One-Hour Lecture by Francis Moore Lappe
Frances Moore Lappe, author of "Diet for a Small Planet," argues in her latest book that people should not be pessimistic about solving the ecological problems facing the planet. Shesays that it is important toget people to think differently about their connection to the natural world and the possibilities for changing course.
Home: We All Have a Date with the Planet
We are living in exceptional times. Scientists tell us that we have 10 years to change the way we live, avert the depletion of natural resources and the catastrophic evolution of the Earth's climate. This beautiful 90-minute documentary makes the case.
Access Here
Feynman on Modern Physics
Richard P. Feynman (1918-1988) was a scientist, teacher, great orator, and musician. He worked on atomic bomb, invented quantum electrodynamics,translated Mayan hieroglyphics. Here are four great lectures: 1: Photons - Corpuscles of Light;2: Fits of Reflection and Transmission - Quantum Behaviour: What are reflection and transmission, and how do they work? Electrons and their Interactions; 4: New Queries: What does it mean, and where is it all leading?
Access HereSmart Grid: Green Energy Distribution
Immense amounts of energy can be conserved by combining modern energy distribution with information systems--a radical infrastucture project for the planet. Two videos, 18 minutes
Access Here
The Third Industrial Revolution
75-minute video lecture by Jeremy Rifkin on high ecological design and innovation in the factories and product of the future with higher quality but lighter footprints. The creation of a renewable energy regime, loaded by buildings, partially stored in the form of hydrogen, distributed via a green electricity Internet, and connected to plug-in, zero-emission transport, opens the door to a Third Industrial Revolution.
Access HereWhat is a Green Job? Ethan Pollack of this site, with infographics and PDF files, assesses the green economy and its implications for growth and equity. What is a green job? We tend to think of a green job as one that benefits the environment, but illustrations tend to be limited to fossil fuels vs. renewable energy. In fact, whether to categorize a specific occupation as a green job is not always straightforward: what about bus drivers, or software engineers who help design smart-grid technologies, or commercial construction workers? The economy is made up of more than coal miners and solar panel installers, and many occupations have significant roles to play along the spectrum between the fossil fuel economy and a “clean” economy. Without a definition of what green jobs are it is difficult to count them, much less determine what role green jobs and industries play in the economy today and going forward. Access Here
Access Here
The Strange Brillance of Buckminster Fuller
Richard Buckminster Fuller may not be a household name. Nevertheless, his contributions to society and to sustainable living throughtechnology and design were both vast and transformative. Here is an audio file on his ideas and contributions.
Marx, Engels and the Red Chemist. An essay on the famous organic chemist, and his role, as a communist, in keeping his two friends on the cutting edge of the physical sciences