brown turning green?

I'd like to think it was because of the environment, but when its a $40B company, its got to be about saving or making more money. Either way, I was happy to read on www.ecotechdaily.com that UPS recently announced it is investing in more in alternative energy vehicles.

UPS is purchasing 200 hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) and 300 compressed natural gas vehicles (CNG) from Daimler Trucks.  This was the largest order ever for hybrid electric trucks.

These trucks will be diesel and  electric  and will provide 40% fuel savings and 90% reduction in carbon emissions compared to standard diesel. Pretty cool.

Maybe the smart guy (or gal) at UPS who ran the numbers and convinced big brown going green will keep them in the black  will get a big kiss from a hippie environmentalist for helping reduce emissions and keeping oil prices at $4 a gallon?

This increases the size of their 'alternative fuel fleet' by 30% to 2200 vehicles.

Your Move, FEDEX!

Blinded by Science: pass the booze and crank up tunes, its research!

Thomas Dolby would be so proud...                                             
In yet another glorious, experimental foray undertaken in the name of SCIENCE to quench the empirical thirst of academia, I submit to you the most enlightening study of the day. Or as my beautiful and clever wife would say " how bout it, science?"...

Researchers  at Heriot Watt University in Edinburgh, Scotland (shouldn't they be studying scotch or whiskey?) have determined through  voracious analysis that music has an effect on the listeners' taste of wine.  How in the world does someone get funding for this type of experiment ( and where to I sign up?).  

Seriously, I think I learned that music effects the way alcohol tastes the first time I heard Led Zeppelin while drinking PBR at a high school party ( ok it might have been 'The Cure" and three 4 pack's of Bartles & James wine cooler but c'mon i've got an image to protect) ... and oh by the way I also think drunk girls efffect the taste of booze as well... but that could be a whole other post or experiment ( I'll phone the UGA science department immediately).

(This is not one of the students in the experiment, but I'll bet she is listening to Jimi. Go girrrl!)

According to the Herio Watt study, which purported to analyze 'cognitive priming theory' (remind me to use that phrase the next time I'm planning on getting soused and listening to tunes), 250 subjects (students of the university of course) were offered a free glass of wine in exchange for their views, which turned out to be quite enlightening.

Apparently the taste of  Chardonnay was most effected by 'zingy and refreshing' sounds like Kylie Minogue (spinning around) or Tina Turner (what's love got to do with it?).  Ok, so i'll pass on the Chardonnay for now and give a big " N/ A" stamp for my own damn self).

Along with 'zingy and refreshing" researchers played for different 'styles of music including 'subtle and refined' and 'mellow and soft'.    

The flavor of Cabernet Sauvignon was enhanced by 'powerful and heavy'  music.  The students heard Jimi Hendrix (All Along The Watchtower) , The Who (wont get fooled again - in what was no doubt an attempt at semi irony by researchers) and the Stones (honkey tonk woman- no comment on this commentary about the 'white lady'.. needs a  whole other experiment?).. and the students, I mean , subjects  all said the Cab tasted better when rocking out to the oldies but goodies. What no White Stripes or AudioSlave was available?  Go figure.. I saw Jane's Addiction a couple of times in the 90's and Perry Ferrell seemed to always have bottle of red.. though it looks like he's switched to veuve clicqot now that he's in Satellite Planet and living high on hog from royalties of Jane's tunes like "pigs in zen".   

 but I digress... So crank up the tunes,pop the cork on your favorite vino on your and enjoy this study... or create your own, what do i care? Live your own life..I'm drunk already.

here's a link to the original story... read it while you can still see straight.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7400109.stm

Danger mouse and Beck plus Cat Power? The New Pollution (again?)

I've always been a big Beck fan. I must admit that with every album I wonder if his appeal for me will wear off. Yet, with each offering he manages to take his music to a different place while still keeping with the nuances that make it definitively Beck.  I think he has been one of the biggest influences in quote alternative music since he changed the perception of rock and rap with "Odelay" in '96. So I'm thrilled to hear that he's teamed up with Danger Mouse for his latest effort "modern guilt" ( my guilt is usually olde fashioned, so that sounds interesting).  For those of you who don't know ( and shame on you because even my step mom is fan of Danger Mouse), DM is the force majeure behind such revolutionary acts as Gorillaz (where he helped combine brit pop and rap with more than a touch of psychedelia), Gnarls Barkley who's "Crazy" was an anthem you heard at every back yard bar-b-b-q, office party, night club and sporting event for the entire summer of '06.....as well as the Black Keys, Shortwave set and Sparklehorse.  It will be interesting to hear how DM's aestetic of making 'what sounds old sound new' brit -triphop-pop mixes with Beck's amalgamation of folk-rock-rap et al (with more emphasis on the "et al".  I'm always amazed that DM can collaborate with such different artists but still add his own sensibility to their effort. Beck comments that one can hear a tinge of Pink Floyd. Should be interesting considering Chann from CatPower helps out on back up vocals on a couple fof songs.  Hopefully DM takes Beck in another new direction. No release date is set so if you hear something let me know.

You can read more about the project here:

http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2008/05/12/in-the-studio-beck-conjures-1960s-brit-rock-vibe-on-danger-mouse-produced-modern-guilt/

alcohol fueled, trash talkin' green thoughts

I swear, some days I wonder how so many good ideas can continuously be swept under the rug in the oil induced coma that is our nation.  There are so many energy alternatives, transportation alternatives... When will we convince our congressmen to start funding more alternative energy programs?  Here's a couple that would make Christopher Lloyd proud. Cue Huey Lewis and the news.. We're going "Back to the Future".

www.cleantechnica.com is reporting that some garbage collection trucks in California will soon be fueled by trash. Brilliant!  Apparently America's largest waste management company "Waste Management"  (clever name but I will cut them some slack after reading this) has a goal to reduce fleet emissions by 15% by 2020.  They are paying nearly  $15M to create a facility at a landfill which will purify and liquify up to 13,000 gallons of liquified natural gas daily.  Why can't landfills in Georgia be doing this?? Oh yeah,  I forgot, our Atlanta City Council can't add and subtract and we don't even have effective mass transit.  Here's a link with more deets:

http://cleantechnica.com/2008/05/08/transportation-fuel-produced-from-trash-in-worlds-largest-plant-in-2009/

Its enough to drive you to drink. And drink..... But, when you wake up, take heart , and take those left over beer and vodka bottles with any backwash down to your local fuel station, IF you are in California:

In Las Gatos  an entrepreneur has launched a company that will make ethanol for vehicles out of left over alcohol.  ( Left over? They don't know me so well.)   The dude has invented a machine with a fermentation tank that converts sugar extracted from alcohol into ethanol. Apparently it will fuel any vehicle that accepts 'flex fuels'.   Incredible! Obviously this guy spent more time in chemistry class than drinking beer and skipping chemistry class like I did in college.  The ideas are out there, we just need a sea change of thinking.. maybe its happening?

http://www.nbc11.com/slideshow/technology/16200868/detail.html

and speaking of being original...

Since my main topic yesterday was the ever boring struggle to be original, i had to post this...Darwin would be chuckling at this one.  Scientists have finally deciphered the genetic blueprint of one the weirdest (some might say cutest?) looking creatures on earth. No not Marty Feldman or Dennis Rodman, the duck billed platypus. .   According to these crazy scientist dudes at University of Oxford UK, is a mammal covered with fur that produces milk, but it also lays eggs  (film at 11). I kind of resemble my mom, but have some of my dad's features.

This little bugger has the tail of beaver, bill of a duck and eyes like a mole, according to the British DNA nerd quoted in this article.   So I guess ducks and beavers at some point......well you know.

Anyway, I'm sure she'll have a blog at some point too.. 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7385949.stm

who am I?

Who am I? or rather who am I going to be on the net? Since everyone else and their pets (seriously have you seen catster??) now have blogs, I thought the water was finally warm enough for a swim... and the pool is crowded.

Sheesh.  I have been planning a 'first post' for a quite a while, but putting it off and off trying find the right words, url, blog name _something remotely original. It ain't happenin'! Is it me or is it increasingly hard to do anything original on this here information super highway?  I had a helluva time just naming my blog because there's already grits n/an/&/ and gravy users out there. Grits n Gray in MN? Really? Must be a transplant? And here I thought everyone and their cousin was moving to Atlanta...Its like going to a party and everyone's wearing the same "I'm with stupid" shirt.   So, guess I'm too late for the properly spelled 'grits n' gravy'.  Not that I think I'm special or have anything interesting to say, but I thought I should start before some kid in the Netherlands writes a program that can guess what I'm going to blog about and blogs about before I get the chance. So here you go Dieter. take that! 

Anyway, you found me. Thanks for stopping in. Come again for an aggregation of posts and archives of  arts & food, culture, technology, going local, going green, going insane from the mundane and maybe, just maybe, something original (from some geek in the netherlands).

So pass me some gravy.