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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: electricity

electricity stories: 58 news summaries

21 - 40 of 58 Stories | << Prev 1 2 3 Next >>

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 As Deadbeats Soar, 
 Utilities Quick to Pull Plug 

As the economy worsens, electric companies get tough on delinquent bills

Nov 3, 08 6:51 AM CST
(Newser) - Utilities are growing increasingly aggressive about shutting off the juice even as more customers struggle to pay their bills in a sinking economy, reports the Wall Street Journal. The trend has regulators and consumer advocates worried companies have become too focused on their bottom lines, but utilities say they’re... More »

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utility companies • consumer • electricity • economy • utilities • financial crisis

 Greenies Dim 
 Bright Lights 
 in Big City 

Big city's bright lights must dim, many say

Nov 2, 08 12:54 PM CST
(Newser) - A dimmer switch looms over Manhattan's bright nighttime skyline, as concerns over conservation and energy costs have prompted skyscraper owners to abandon the practice of blazing all lights at all hours. New York scores a 9 out of 9 on a light pollution scale, and legislators are considering official incentives... More »

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conservation • New York City • electricity • Energy crisis • skyline • light pollution

 Oysters May 
 Clean East 
 Coast Waters 

Electrified reefs could help restore the population

Oct 12, 08 8:10 PM CDT
(Newser) - Oysters can be shocked into repopulating and cleaning up America's waterways, the Christian Science Monitor reports. A project in New York's East River is using metal reefs, powered by solar panels, to build up limestone and help oysters grow. The upside is that they filter water—up to 50 gallons... More »

MORE ABOUT:
environment • New York City • pollution • electricity • fishing • oysters • Chesapeake Bay

 Volt's Looks Kill Some GM Buzz 

Plug-in electric car finally unveiled today; production model too ordinary for some fans

Sep 16, 08 1:58 PM CDT
(Newser) - GM offered its first official look today at the plug-in Chevrolet Volt, CNNMoney reports, the electric car slated to go on sale in 2010. Its tame appearance drew the ire of gearheads hoping it would look more like the futuristic concept version. "A lot of people are saying they're... More »

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environment • General Motors • electricity • gas prices • electric cars • Chevrolet • hybrid car • Chevrolet Volt • cars

 Stricken Houston 
 Lines Up for 
 Food, Water 

Residents scramble for survival basics in Ike's aftermath

Sep 16, 08 2:25 AM CDT
(Newser) - Thousands of weary Houston residents joined lines that stretched for blocks yesterday to collect the basics they need to survive in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike. Emergency supplies are being strictly rationed and each family is allowed only two bags of ice, a case of bottled water and a 12-pack... More »

MORE ABOUT:
bottled water • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention • Houston • electricity • FEMA • Galveston • emergency aid • Hurricane Ike • Texas Gulf Coast

 Crowded Northeast 
 Looks Offshore 
 for Wind 

Short of energy and too crowded to add  plants, US looks seaward for wind farms

Sep 3, 08 10:00 AM CDT
(Newser) - The Northeast is the most promising region of the US for major development of wind power, the Wall Street Journal reports, with large coastal cities close to strong offshore winds and a shallow continental shelf good for erecting turbines. The federal government is getting ready to lease 10 tracts of... More »

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alternative energy • electricity • wind power • wind farm • offshore development

Outdated Power Grid Blowing
Wind Energy Hopes: Experts

Creaky infrastructure not able to deliver alternative energy to consumers

Aug 27, 08 1:58 AM CDT
(Newser) - The nation's outdated and congested power grid is putting a damper on plans to expand renewable energy programs, the New York Times reports. Generating power from the wind and sun is becoming easier—but getting the power to consumers who live far from the country's windiest and sunniest places remains... More »

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alternative energy • power grid • electricity • renewable energy • wind • wind power • wind farm

 China's Wind Power Takes Off

Could compete with coal by 2015

Jul 27, 08 6:09 AM CDT
(Newser) - Although known for its monstrous appetite for coal, China has spent the last few years ramping up its wind-power capacity, the Guardian reports. The amount of wind power generated has grown over 100% a year since 2005, with enormous wind farms popping up across the country. "It is huge,... More »

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China • alternative energy • growth • electricity • renewable energy • wind power • coal power

UPDATED

 Dolly Makes Texas Landfall 

Rio Grande levees remain intact amid heavy rain, winds topping 100 mph

Jul 23, 08 2:06 PM CDT
(Newser) - Hurricane Dolly has come ashore near South Padre Island, Texas, the AP reports, forcing thousands on both sides of the US-Mexico border to forsake their homes for shelters. Heavy winds and rains have already destroyed a building’s roof and cut power for thousands; authorities say levees along the Rio... More »

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weather • Texas • winds • electricity • rain • South Padre Island • Hurricane Dolly


 Texans Shocked by
 Spiking Power Bills 

State not quite prepared for deregulation, and higher fuel costs don't help, either

Jul 17, 08 9:30 AM CDT
(Newser) - As energy prices soar, many Texans are wishing they had added "regulation of electrical companies" to the list of things not to mess with. Authorities predicted competition would lower prices when they deregulated the industry in 1999, the Wall Street Journal reports, but inadequate infrastructure, rising fuel costs, and... More »

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Texas • alternative energy • electricity • energy bill • George W. Bush • energy costs • deregulation

 Uno: Cooler Than Segway 

One-wheeled 'motorcycle' goes green with electricity—and stylish to boot

Jul 1, 08 3:12 PM CDT
(Newser) - Looking like a tricked out motorbike, the Uno is electric personal transportation with style, the Chicago Tribune reports. Designed by 19-year-old inventor Ben Gulak, the device employs no throttle or brake, relying on its rider's leanings to guide it, and is so intuitive an 8-year-old picked it up instantly at... More »

MORE ABOUT:
environment • pollution • electricity • motorcycle • electric cars • transport • environmental impact • Uno • Segway • Ben Gulak

 EU Will Ban Incandescent Bulbs 

Capacity might be only speed bump to quick switch to CFLs

Jun 19, 08 2:07 PM CDT
(Newser) - The European Union is set to begin phasing out the incandescent light bulb in favor of compact fluorescent bulb, Der Spiegel reports. The highest-wattage bulbs will go next year; the transition to CFLs—using a fifth of the energy and lasting 10 times longer—should be complete in 2015.  More »

MORE ABOUT:
global warming • European Union • compact fluorescent bulbs • electricity • bulbs • incandescent bulbs • energy consumption

Brits March In With Foot-Generated Power

Basement sensors could power thousands of bulbs an hour

Jun 8, 08 5:40 PM CDT
(Newser) - Crowds may soon be kicking up clean energy in England. Designed to generate power from footsteps, "heel strike" generators are ready to be installed in shopping malls and subways—and power thousands of light bulbs. "It works by using the pressure of feet on the floor to compress... More »

MORE ABOUT:
electricity • clean energy • green technology • clean technology • electrical circuits

 Alaskan City Goes
 Green—by Necessity 

After avalanche, Juneau is forced to find ways to use less energy

May 14, 08 7:11 PM CDT
(Newser) - An energy conservation effort born out of necessity has turned the residents of Juneau, Alaska, into poster children for the green movement, the New York Times reports. Electricity rates skyrocketed 400% after an avalanche knocked out several major transmission towers last month; the state capital has since lowered its electricity... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Alaska • conservation • alternative energy • Juneau • electricity • clean energy • energy consumption

Venture Capitalists See
the Eco-Friendly Light

LED and other cleaner, efficient options attracted $100M in first quarter of '08

May 7, 08 8:38 PM CDT
(Newser) - Venture capitalists are swarming around firms developing LED (light-emitting diode) and similar lighting technologies beyond their current applications in calculators and cell phones, the San Jose Mercury News reports. Investors see new sources, using one-sixth of the power of incandescent bulbs, as environmentally friendly replacements for indoor and outdoor lighting. More »

MORE ABOUT:
electricity • venture capital • green technology • LEDs • incandescent bulbs • energy saving • electrical circuits

 'Super-Spike' 
 Could Drive 
 Oil to $200 

Experts say $150 or more isn't out of the question as world demand grows.

May 7, 08 8:35 AM CDT
(Newser) - A “super-spike” could push oil beyond $150 a barrel by October, the highest it been in more than 135 years, experts say. That would drive the price at the pump past $4.50 a gallon and trim US economic output 3.3% in the 2 years following, reports the... More »

MORE ABOUT:
oil • electricity • gas prices • oil price • crude oil • oil supply

World's Smallest Transistor Sets Path to Better Chips

Newfound material could replace silicon

Apr 18, 08 2:27 PM CDT
(Newser) - Scientists in England have created the world’s smallest transistor, the BBC reports. At 1 atom thick and 10 atoms wide, it could be the key to creating microchips beyond the power of silicon. The transistor is made of graphene, a single layer of graphite and an excellent conductor of... More »

MORE ABOUT:
electricity • computer chip • silicon • semiconductor • transistor • computer • computer hardware • graphene

OPINION

 Late-Night Charges
 Keep Hybrids Greener 

Power grids can handle recharging if done after hours

Mar 19, 08 11:29 AM CDT
(Newser) - Nighttime is the right time to plug in a hybrid, Michael Graham Richard writes in TreeHugger. If recharged after 10pm, the green cars exert less drain on power grids and may not require new power plants—meaning gas-guzzlers could be replaced without any extra pollution. But researchers at Oak Ridge... More »

MORE ABOUT:
environment • electricity • power plant • electric cars • hybrid car

Engineer's Goof Turned Out Florida Lights

Worker disabled
two levels of protective backup systems

Mar 1, 08 10:31 AM CST
(Newser) - One engineer's blunder shut off the power in Florida Tuesday, the Miami Herald reports. Florida Light & Power says a field engineer diagnosing a faulty switch disabled two levels of safety backups—against company policy—as he worked. In a bit of extremely unfortunate timing, a fault then occurred that... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Florida • utility companies • electricity • engineers • power outage • mistake • blackout

Scientist Makes Wonder Material from Rice Husks

Cheap 'aerogel' would slash electricity needs, bomb-proof buildings

Feb 29, 08 5:10 PM CST
(Newser) - Rice husks might be the key to lowering electricity use, bomb-proofing buildings and making products—from airplanes to tennis rackets—lighter. A Malaysian scientist says she’s found a cheap way to create aerogel, the world’s lightest solid, from discarded rice husks. The material combines incredible insulating power and... More »

MORE ABOUT:
electricity • Malaysia • chemistry • airplane • aerogel • insulation • bomb-proofing • soundproofing • scientific breakthroughs • tennis rackets

21 - 40 of 58 Stories | << Prev 1 2 3 Next >>


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