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What can I do about climate change?

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Re: What can I do about climate change?

#121

Post by pdimitar »

D_Alex wrote: post #109
pdimitar wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Buy less stuff. This is becoming harder and harder with time. Believe me, I would love to buy my kitchen stove, washing machine, refrigerator, aspirator, air conditioner and vacuum cleaner from a local manufacturer. But there are none. How many household brands do really exist and how many are actually known and bought by almost everyone? Additionally, even if you are an idealist who wants to be the change they wan…

>Never in my life, not once, have I seen citizens voting actually change anything of significance in a country Do you mean in the US? Examples that spring to mind in other countries are: gay marriage equality (Australia), independence (East Timor, plus probably others... Scotland and New Caledonia rejected independence by plebiscite), conscription (Austria), abortion (Ireland), migrant intake (Hungary) etc... and of…

I am from Eastern Europe. Here nothing ever changes politically-wise. The politicians expend a lot of PR effort to make things look like they are changing but they don't and it's pretty visible even for the not very well educated population.

Re: What can I do about climate change?

#122

Post by curlypaul924 »

tomp wrote: post #34
KnightOfWords wrote: post #3

This graphic give a pretty good summary of the relative impact: https://3c1703fe8d.site.internapcdn.net/newman/gfx/news/hire...

Why does “replace typical car with hybrid” help at all? Does regenerative braking save that much energy?

Yes, it does -- why else would the endurance racing world be embracing hybrid technology? A hybrid car has won Lemans for the last 5 years.

At least with the Prius-style hybrids, though, regenerative braking isn't the only advantage:

* The engine is an Atkinson cycle, which has better thermal efficiency than a typical Otto cycle engine.

* The electric motor is providing torque off the line, so there is no need for a torque converter (which reduces efficiency).

* The engine can be completely shut off when cruising at low speeds.

* The power split device (PSD) is more reliable than a traditional transmission, reducing maintenance costs over the lifetime of the vehicle. (it is much less labor intensive to replace the battery than to service the transmission)

The advantages add up when driving around town, but at highway speeds, a 3-cylinder or small 4-cylinder non-hybrid will often have better gas mileage.

Re: What can I do about climate change?

#123

Post by chupasaurus »

pdimitar wrote: post #119
chupasaurus wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, electric kettles are sort of a problem for british energy system which had someone watching BBC 1 and 2 for a decade (IIRC) in the evenings so they could handle peaks in a national grid at the very first minute of pauses between shows.

As I mentioned in another sibling comment here -- that's not my problem. I pay my bills and the rest is for them to figure out. I work, I buy my tech fairly, I don't see what else I could do. I am not a law regulator, I am not a technician, I am not an environmentalist. I buy tech because it helps me save time and effort in my busy day. It's the corps and the governments responsibility to make sure the tech is eco-fr…

I wasn't saying that electric kettles are making any noticeble impact on environment (imo), just that they could be a problem in certain circumstances.

Re: What can I do about climate change?

#124

Post by DoreenMichele »

pdimitar wrote: post #50
joelthelion wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As the article mentions, individuals can do something about corporate pollution: - Buy less stuff. Corporations produce waste because we buy their stuff . Get the stuff you still buy from more environmentally-friendly companies, if possible. - Political action. Corporations need to be regulated and that can only happen through political action. Lobbies may have a lot of power, but in the end, it's the citizens who vo…

> Buy less stuff. This is becoming harder and harder with time. Believe me, I would love to buy my kitchen stove, washing machine, refrigerator, aspirator, air conditioner and vacuum cleaner from a local manufacturer. But there are none. How many household brands do really exist and how many are actually known and bought by almost everyone? Additionally, even if you are an idealist who wants to be the change they wan…

Believe me, I would love to buy my kitchen stove, washing machine, refrigerator, aspirator, air conditioner and vacuum cleaner from a local manufacturer.

I gave up my car more than a decade ago. I haven't owned a vacuum cleaner in years. I live in a cheap rental with a wood floor. We strictly enforce taking shoes off just inside the front door to prevent dirt from being tracked in so we don't have to clean as much.

I currently live in a hundred year old building that doesn't have air conditioning. I'm interested in buying a home. Once I get a home, I will likely do what I can to use passive solar approaches to keeping the place comfortable with a minimum of electricity year round.

Passive solar design relies heavily on things like insulation and thermal mass. It tends to produce higher comfort levels than forced air heat while being cheaper in the long run.

Unfortunately, passive solar works best when it is incorporated at the design stage of a building. There are limits to how much you can retrofit a building with it.

I don't assume that the culture we have currently is the one we will have in the future. I have spent some years working to design the kind of life I want rather than just accepting that the way my life was is all that will ever be.

I own a lot less than I used to. I have a higher quality of life. For one thing, my life is no longer being consumed by cleaning and maintaining a giant pile of possessions, so I have more time for having a life.

Intended as food for thought.

Best.

Re: What can I do about climate change?

#125

Post by curlypaul924 »

tomp wrote: post #120
ed_balls wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I depends on you location and driving in the city e.g. Prius can have less total CO2 emission than Tesla S if the electricity comes from fossil fuels. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RhtiPefVzM

I find that hard to believe. So you're saying that Prius, despite being more complicated (as it needs to route both internal combustion and electric power to the wheels), has an electric motor/transmission more efficient than Tesla and internal combustion engine more efficient than power plants? The only way I think that's possible is if weight is taken into account, Prius seems to be a bit smaller and thus possibly…

Are you taking into consideration the loss of energy in power transmission and distribution?

(I also find the argument hard to believe, but I'd be interested in seeing a proper comparison)

Re: What can I do about climate change?

#126

Post by doombolt »

ForHackernews wrote: post #112
doombolt wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, your children don't get to live to benefit some other people's children. That, or we end as species. Guess what? Worst case of global warming, mankind extermination. "Best" case, also mankind extermination.

What a bunch of tosh. You're worried about "extinction" from people having fewer kids? Meanwhile, we're on track to 10 billion people before 2050. Talk about premature optimisation!

Then, truly, you live to benefit some other people's children. Basically you are a monk. Monks also known for not making the difference in all that removing sin business.

Re: What can I do about climate change?

#127

Post by tomp »

curlypaul924 wrote: post #125
tomp wrote: post #120

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I find that hard to believe. So you're saying that Prius, despite being more complicated (as it needs to route both internal combustion and electric power to the wheels), has an electric motor/transmission more efficient than Tesla and internal combustion engine more efficient than power plants? The only way I think that's possible is if weight is taken into account, Prius seems to be a bit smaller and thus possibly…

Are you taking into consideration the loss of energy in power transmission and distribution? (I also find the argument hard to believe, but I'd be interested in seeing a proper comparison)

Well, yeah, that's basically equivalent to saying that you'd save money by running an internal combustion engine at home, rather than buying electricity from the grid. Sounds unlikely - although there are potential savings to be had if you take into account the heat generated, which is lost from the powerplant but a household could use it for heating - check out mCHP https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Micro_combined_heat_and_power

Re: What can I do about climate change?

#128

Post by Vinnl »

oppzixi00 wrote: post #41
Vinnl wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you think there's anyone promoting individual action who'd be against collective action? Or could a small individual action be a gateway to participating in collective action?

> Do you think there's anyone promoting individual action who'd be against collective action? Yes. A lobbyist who wants to avoid new legislation to control climate change, but still claim they care about it.

Ah sorry, it should indeed have said: is there anyone who is in favour of individual action, but against collective action.

Re: What can I do about climate change?

#129

Post by Vinnl »

pdimitar wrote: post #32
Vinnl wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ugh, I once read a booklet that had the same premise of the article. One of the suggested solutions: use less soap when doing the dishes, to preserve packaging. As I mention in a different comment, individual action is important. However, there is a large difference in effectiveness, and promoting obviously ineffective ones isn't going to convince people to do the ones that are likely to be effective.

The cynic in me thinks such articles are commissioned by the lobby groups so as to shift the blame. But I can't prove it so I will not claim it. But you have to wonder.

This particular instance was too amateurish and small-scale for that to be the case. But of course, the author might have been influenced by those lobby groups indirectly.

Re: What can I do about climate change?

#130

Post by Vinnl »

yitchelle wrote: post #53
Vinnl wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ugh, I once read a booklet that had the same premise of the article. One of the suggested solutions: use less soap when doing the dishes, to preserve packaging. As I mention in a different comment, individual action is important. However, there is a large difference in effectiveness, and promoting obviously ineffective ones isn't going to convince people to do the ones that are likely to be effective.

> individual action is important. This is critically important, but the mindset of the population need to change for it to be effective. If everyone have the same mindset, things will start to change. Imagine doing a simple thing like reducing your shower time by 25% or reduce your TV watching time by 25%. With enough people doing it, its impact will be significant.

I think that's the primary reason why individual action is important: because it achieves the mindset change. Or at least, is a prime motivator in changing other people's mindsets.
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