Friday 16 September 2011

Skulking in the bookshop

Unless I've got it wrong and I'm quite good at that, I should be in the Barnet Waterstone's in Hertfordshire, tomorrow between 11.30am and 3.00 pm, gripping a pen or fumbling with it in order to sign copies of "Everyone Can be a herO"... I'm not expecting to sign that many (!) but if you want to come and have a look at how we made the covers, because they are fun and very eco or find out about some of the characters, or talk about the weather, you'll find me skulking somewhere amongst their real books written by well known authors.
Come to think of it, that's not such a bad way to spend a few hours!
(The branch is in The Spires, which is off the High Street and runs up to Stapylton Road, opposite the library, )

Wednesday 14 September 2011

Revolutionary wind power design can triple output. Where is the news coverage?????

  Have you seen anything about this new cheaper, logical, simple, safe, elegant wind turbine invented in Japan in the main papers?...  I just wondered if I had missed some, because this is a simple idea which has been shown to triple energy output and the turbines can be floated on hexagonal bases offshore and they even cut down on noise.  So why aren't any of the national newspapers even mentioning it?.... There are loads of references in smaller eco friendly journals but I didn't even know about it until Eco-tube emailed me with the video. http://www.eco-tube.com/v/ENERGY/New_Wind_Power_cheaper_than_nuclear.aspx  
O.K. SO this is probably the best invention in years, and even if our national press apparently don't want to mention anything that isn't nuclear or massive biomass, or gas..  and if you think the same as I do about it, well, why not pass the message on.  People power doesn't have to rely on the press, they proved that in Italy... so here is another reference for you from those I found on the internet, http://www.geekosystem.com/japanese-wind-power/
You can read about it as well, on the Geeko link if you don't want to run the video.
Geeko amazingly brings a comment  from someone about a new wind turbine being developed in Canada which works on the jet engine system and can run at much higher wind speeds than was possible.. " load was completely removed from the generator at 80 mph wind speed with no damage"  and it runs at lows speeds too..go to:
http://www.vortexwindfunnel.com/
there is a video as well, which shows it in action... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v..

Have fun! !

Saturday 10 September 2011

Sometimes you write it = and then it happens.

     When I wrote "Everyone Can be a herO" I hoped that there wouldn't be another major disaster in the  nuclear power industry.... It seemed pretty unlikely because there have been quite a few accidents which I, for one, would never have heard about if I hadn't started to research them... However, we all know about Fukushima. 
    Much nuclear contamination won't go away for millions of years..there is still the problem of the nuclear waste we are allowing to be built up.  This is one of the things the kids in the book have to face.  Our waste.. their inheritance.
     I thought that there would still be decent kids around, however, like today, and they would be kids who couldn't see any point in violence and just wanted to have fun, look out for their friends, and have a sustainable future.
    It's up to us whether or not they do.
 http:// www.insideoutsider.co.uk

Friday 9 September 2011

Breakthrough in wind turbines from Japan

     A new wind turbine which could triple the power of offshore wind turbines has been developed in Japan.. It's a revolutionary design. I first received the news from ecotube.com  http://www.eco-tube.com/v/ENERGY/New_Wind_Power_cheaper_than_nuclear.aspx     They email out links for some of the best eco videos they encounter.
     You can also read more about it at http://nextbigfuture.com/2011/08/japan-has-wind-lens-turbine-design-that.html  and see the video from the university.
     This new wind turbine would, I guess, make wind power much cheaper than nuclear. Apparently it cuts down the noise problem as well and is safer.   It was lovely to hear such positive news from Japan.  There are more references on the internet and another short link is  http://skimthat.com/article/2703/japanase-breakthrough-for-wind-turbines
This is the wind of change!