The Wordsmith's Forge

It's time to pick poetry for sponsoring.  The general fund currently contains $32.  There are two $5 poems left: "The Leaning of Life" and "Sundrops."  There are two $10 poems left: "The Evolution of Perception" and "Haunted Gatherers."  There are three $15 poems left: "The Curse of Titania's Table," "The Fountainhead of the Wisdom of Food," and "The Luckpot." 

There are two epics from this session: "Chamomile and Honeycrack" (Path of the Paladins, $62) and "This Bittersweet Weed" ($37).  You can read thumbnails for these in the unsold poetry list.  If "Chamomile and Honeycrack" gets $13, that will reveal six verses; if it gets all $32, that will reveal 16 verses (out of 28).  If "This Bittersweet Weed" gets $13, that will reveal seven verses; if it gets all $32, that will reveal 13 verses (out of 16).  There is also one open poem, "The Inescapable Agony of Being."  If "The Inescapable Agony of Being" gets $2, it won't reveal another verse yet; next verse is $4, so that would bring the level down to $2.

Everyone is eligible to vote in this poll.  The first question in the poll deals with distribution of funds into price categories.  Later questions select specific poems, based on which way the first question falls.  Please answer all the questions.  I will check this poll Sunday evening.  If there is a clear winner then, I'll close it and post the poetry.  Otherwise I may leave it open a little longer.

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One challenge with green energy, such as solar and wind power, is that they tend to fluctuate over time due to the weather or other factors.  Fossil fuel sources can be held steady.

So far, people have looked at supply-end solutions, following the millennia-old habit of modifying the environment to suit human needs.  These include trying to catch more power, distribute it over a wide area, and store it for use during lulls.

I propose that we consider a demand-end solution.  We have Twitter, websites, and a host of other tools that can give real-time information.  We also have assorted gadgets that tell you how much electricity a given device, or your whole household, is using.  So, track the power availability.  When it surges above average demand, announce that to users and lower the price slightly.  This is a good time to do optional tasks such as laundry.  When the power drops below average demand, announce that to users and raise the price slightly.  People can then choose to use less electricity during that time, just the minimum for household necessities.  This would be preferable to the negative versions we have now: blackouts, brownouts, and power companies that shut off power against consumer will.  And it's more flexible than the remote-shutoff devices where the power company gives you a discount if you let it turn off certain things during peak demand hours -- because you won't necessarily know when that is until you go to use the hot water and there isn't any, or whatever.

Ideally, I'd like to see both supply-end and demand-end solutions combined, for best results.  I don't think we need to flatline the production rate, just buffer the supply and demand enough to avoid crazy spikes.  If people paid more attention to their use of electricity, that would help reduce waste and create more demand for energy-efficient appliances, so we'd need less in the long run.

Have some Earth-friendly resources for improving your home.

This laundry rig looks workable, and could probably be made from whatever junk is handy.  I am generally intrigued by things like this, which offer alternatives to electric/gas/etc. devices.  And, hrm, those poles remind me a bit of a rocking-beam engine.  If you were running one for some other purpose, you could rig this to that; or you might be able to make it run on some sustainable power source, like a creek, rather than shoulder power.  Much potential.

I like the idea of green roofs.

Green Roof of UK School First to Be Designated As Nature Preserve
A green roof at a UK primary school in Sheffield is the first to be designated as a nature reserve after a rare bird took up residence there. The Sharrow school's green roof design provided value through its control of stormwater, noise, heat and pollution. A happy by-product was its value to local wildlife.

I was intrigued by the Long Now Foundation, which encourages people to think in deep time.  They want humanity to make responsible choices considering the next 10,000 years.  I think that's a good goal. 

I found this article about transition towns in Australia.  It talks about the need to concentrate rather than disperse population, for quality of living as well as protecting the environment.

Here's a proposal to build a solar power array on a dried lake bed.  This seems promising because such territory has minimal wildlife to damage.  The main drawback I see is that if the current southwestern drying trend ever reverses, that site will be underwater.

L.A. Plans World's Biggest Solar Farm in California Desert 
The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power is planning to turn an dried up lake bed into one of the largest solar farms in the world. Thousands of shiny black and blue panels may eventually generate three to five gigawatts of power -- enough for 10 percent of California's power supply. (Edmonton Journal)

I was intrigued by this gathering which is intended to develop cities along more sustainable lines:

Future Cities
Future Cities 2009 will help you to strengthen and practice democracy at the local level to move our society toward a greener, more peaceful future. If you want to learn more about making the shift from carbon and nuclear energy sources to renewables and conservation, from war spending to a peace economy, from sprawl to greener transportation and development practices, from nuclear proliferation to global elimination of nuclear weapons . . . then Future Cities 2009 is for you!

See a photo tour of a cob home. Link courtesy of stonetalker.