IBM is giving a boost to clean energy with a high-efficiency solar cell made from Earth-abundant materials.

Created from copper, tin, zinc, sulfur, and selenium, it performs at a 9.6 percent efficiency, which is 40 percent higher than previous attempts to create a natural solar cell.

While there have been other solar cells that perform at similar efficiency rates, they're created from materials that have either been too costly or that contain elements that could limit production capacity, making commercialization less likely.

Below is a cross section image of the new material from IBMs blog:


click to enlarge.

For more information, follow the related link below.

This is a suggestion that I read on another blog, and I think about the best one I have seen. Many suggestions include the purchase of things you do not need, this action is not green no matter how green the items supposedly are. If you don't need it, the transit to get it, the production of the item and any energy you expended to earn the money are all negatives on the environment if the item is not needed.

With that in mind, here is the suggestion:

Dinner at home. Make an effort for a romantic setting, buy locally grown produce and local meats if it is an option. Turn off a few lights to set the mood, use cloth napkins.

If flowers are part of your plan, try getting them from your yard before you buy. Remember, if you put some thought into this, your partner will be impressed and you can have a nice romantic evening without putting a burden on the environment.

Remember, if you do this, to plan your shopping so that you do not make a special trip for this dinner - add it to your regular shopping list.

Those of us that look for green products and try to make better choices often fall victim or find ourselves asking if something passes the smell test. If something smells funny or seems too good to be true, it usually isn't true. The most recent thing to goof us up is the Bamboo fabric.

According to the FTC:

-- Rayon is a man-made fiber created from the cellulose found in plants and trees and processed with harsh chemicals that release hazardous air pollution. Any plant or tree - including bamboo - could be used as the cellulose source, but the fiber that is created is rayon. --

The FTC last week sent warning letters to 78 retailers about misguided use of "bamboo" marketing. Among the warned retailers: Amazon.com, Barney's New York, Bed Bath & Beyond, BJ's Wholesale Club, Bloomingdale's, Costco Wholesale, Garnet Hill, Gold Toe, Hanes, Isotoner, JC Penney, Jockey, Kmart, Kohl's, Land's End, Macy's, Maidenform, Nordstrom, Overstock.com, QVC, REI, Saks Fifth Avenue, Sears, Shop NBC, Spiegel, Sports Authority, Target, The Gap, The Great Indoors, Tommy Bahama, Toys R' Us, Wal-Mart, and Zappos.com. Last year, the FTC sued several retailers for advertising rayon as bamboo.

We need to keep using our test, but it is very difficult when names we trust have made a mistake too. At least, I hope it is a mistake.

I have mentioned many times that the R's are very important, including the re-use and renew. In this pair, I include things like used cars. As I have personally had some car issues recently, the family van died, I want to share my experience as evidence that I try and practice the R's.

Let me first say that the van got decent gas mileage and has room for 4 car seats. 6 days a month I drive my own two children and my niece and nephew. On the alternate 6 days, my brother in law does the kid shuttle. This reduces the amount of gas and vehicles on the road right away. On the off days, I still drive my own kids one way, so the van has been very practical.

Because my kids are now in boosters, the option for a regular car is real. When the van blew a head gasket, I knew it was time to make the switch.

I did some research and a lot of shopping. I can not afford a car right now. I purchased an older Acura for about $5000 and had to borrow the money to do it. The cost to have the van fixed was estimated at about $3,300, so I only spent a little more to get better fuel efficiency and a better fit for our current needs. I am selling the van as a "mechanics special".

Even though the car was used, I called Acura and asked if they would look it over for me. I was amazed at the level of care and service I received. The dealer inducted me into the Acura family like royalty. The dealer gave the car a once over - and even washed it for me. They found several problems that I will be addressing in the near future, but it runs like a champ and I can shuttle my kids with confidence.

Buying used and taking steps to renew can really pay off. I could not afford this level of car with my current economic situation.

This is the kind of positive experience I hope everyone is able to enjoy when they make a decision that is environmentally friendly and economically conservative. Thanks Acura!

McGraw-Hill, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt K-12, Pearson Education and the Washington Post Co.'s Kaplan Inc. are named in a Wall Street Journal article as having plans to make electronic study guides. This is a first step toward electronic textbooks at school. I for one feel that this could be good for students and the environment if handled correctly.

We will see.

The only problem I see with the current deal is that it is for a single device. Hopefully this is just a first step. A very practical alternative might be a netbook because it can perform other functions as well as having a real keyboard. Another benefit is that a netbook costs a lot less than a fruit logo tablet. Making electronic textbooks more cost effective and attainable by more of the population would make it a very real possibility.

I feel that if the device were a netbook and students could potentially do real work on the device as well as read information, the schools could supply them to students instead of textbooks. However, they would be issued for the entire school career and parents would be responsible for replacement if lost, broken or stolen. As many textbooks run $40 or more, the cost is already close to a break even when calculated 1st through 12th grades.

See the related link for the article about the fruit logo device.