Burnout is a serious problem with many possible causes, but Googler Marissa Mayer's theory: Burnout is caused by resentment. More »

There's nothing like a power nap to restore energy and improve productivity. Now you can get the "ultimate" power nap by timing it precisely for when your body and mind may most need it, using this Take a Nap Nap Wheel. More »

A recent thrust on Do the Math has been to sort our renewable energy options into “abundant,” “potent,” and “niche” boxes. This is a reflection of my own mathy introduction to the energy scene, the result of which convinced me … Continue reading →

On Do the Math, three previous posts have focused on transportation efficiency of gasoline cars, electric cars, and on the practicalities of solar-powered cars. What about personal-powered transport—namely, walking and biking? After stuffing myself over Thanksgiving, I am curious to … Continue reading →

How high are we willing to let the temperature of the planet get? Many governments have signed on to international agreements that would limit greenhouse gas emissions to targets that will keep the Earth from exceeding a 2°C increase over preindustrial levels. However, two studies that came out in recent weeks suggest we're rapidly running out of time to do so. Both suggest we could be locked in to changes above 2°C before the decade is out, and perhaps in as little as five years.

Estimates of future warming are based on a term called the climate sensitivity, which is usually expressed in terms of the expected temperature rise caused by a doubling of atmospheric CO2 concentrations. (The impact of each incremental increase goes down as the concentration rises, since there's a greater chance that some other CO2 molecule will have already absorbed a given infrared photon.) The IPCC's best estimate is that the climate sensitivity is about 3°C per doubling, with uncertainties of about a degree in either direction.







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We’re totally digging GOOD magazine and Column Five Media’s latest infographic on Africa, “Transparency: The Quest to Power Africa.” Despite the fact that Africa is huge in terms of land mass and population, it uses the least energy per capita than any other continent in the world.

And let’s not forget that Africa is rich in natural resources (like uranium for nuclear energy) — so they’ve got the capacity to generate their own electricity if they had the right infrastructure in place. Unfortunately, the lack of funding, the widespread influence of corruption and a multitude of other problems keep almost 79 percent of third-world Africans living in the dark. While it certainly is environmentally friendly, a lack of electricity to light homes, schools and buildings hinders Africa’s chance to advance and pull itself out of poverty.

Take a look at GOOD’s map and check out more surprising statistics on Africa’s electricity usage. It’s great to see that Africa has a bunch of non-fossil fuel energy projects in place. Maybe if they start building an infrastructure and dependency around things like geothermal or wind power, Africa can boost its quality of life while keeping greenhouse gas emissions at current levels.

Daniel Tenner has spent a lot of time thinking about (and taking) naps. What follows is his experience learning to master 20 minute power naps even though he normally takes 30 minutes to fall asleep. More »