I Am Super Against Light Pollution, And Have Been For Decades

Giant floating islands that turn atmospheric CO2 into fuel could prevent climate change, scientists say

If rolled out globally, the islands could offset the total global emissions from fossil fuels.

Scientists in Norway and Switzerland have proposed that “Solar Methanol Islands” could use solar energy to recycle atmospheric CO2 into methanol fuel.

The idea arose when scientists were trying to find a way to provide electricity to future off-shore fish farms without access to power grids. Solar energy could power hydrogen production and CO2 extraction from seawater, which would produce gases that could be reacted to form methanol.

The team of scientists wrote:

“Humankind must cease CO2 emissions from fossil fuel burning if dangerous climate change is to be avoided. However, liquid carbon-based energy carriers are often without practical alternatives for vital mobility applications. The recycling of atmospheric CO2 into synthetic fuels, using renewable energy, offers an energy concept with no net CO2 emission.”

Currently, the team of scientists is working on prototypes for the floating solar islands.

Thanks to @sabre-fish for sending this in! 

its been p common knowledge for decades that light pollution can be massively reduced by just putting shades on streetlamps, and that doing that would save energy, help wildlife, and let us see the stars better, but are society says if u wanna change any minor little tiny thing u gotta dedicate ur whole life to campaigning for it and this is a good ways down the list of priorities for most ppl, so instead i gotta walk past newly-installed streetlamps that are just dumb glass globes that use half their electricity to blast half their light directly into the sky where it does only bad things for no reason and think "we should overthrow the government"

unhappy reminder that amphibians are going through a pandemic right now and anything you can do to support conservation efforts would be greatly appreciated by literally everyone in the world

What are your favorite online planty boy shops?

I did a post about generally all places I’d found to buy plants online which folks made some very lovely additions to. Some of those in my original post I wouldn’t necessarily recommend because there are way cheaper/better places to shop, but that was more of a “here’s what’s out there and is most popular” type post that I really need to do an updated version of someday. But anyway here are some of the places I’ve ordered from that I had a good experience with or seen people order from that I would really like to attempt to order from.

Glasshouse Works - this place has a huge selection and some very old stock plants and does not…. necessarily keep up with current trends and price markups so you can find some cool stuff here for relatively low prices (and low resolution lol). Also, their “collections” are very cool and cost effective. I have ordered twice from them, once in the spring and once in the fall and was very happy with my orders. They also regularly throw in a free “extra” if one fits in your box which is my favorite.

Steve’s Leaves - this place is a wee bit pricier than I’d like but in the end, I think it’s worth it because they ship big and healthy plants. they have a huge stock of begonias and tradescantia and peperomia, if you’re into that and their catalog changes frequently. they do a weekly email special which is fun! I’ve only ordered once from them (got my West Texas Blizzard begonia) but I see loads of people consistently having good experiences with them.

Etsy - I don’t really have a favorite specific shop but etsy is a great place to find a lot of different plants, especially cuttings. definitely look into the reviews of the shop before purchasing though.

Logee’s - tbh this place barely makes it on my list of favorites, just because I have only ordered there once and they tend to be… overpriced and overhyped for the plant you get/what they stock. but they also have a cool catalog and frequent email specials that are lots of fun to look through. I ordered my Begonia maculata wightii from them last year and have been pleased with it, though it was definitely overpriced for a plant so easy to propagate.

Arid Lands Greenhouse -disclaimer here that I have placed an order but not received it yet because I asked them to hold if they felt the weather was bad (which it has been), but they have an absolutely huge catalog of less frequently offered succulents and seem very much geared toward serious hobbyists rather than gimmicks and are very knowledgable. they’re located in arizona and grow a lot of their stuff from seed. 

The People’s Plants - is one I am including here only because this is the website where I recently preordered my Thai Constellation Monstera. This is I think their second or third preorder run and I have seen several people very happy with the plants they received, so I feel comfortable linking them. They have some other cool tropicals in and out of stock from time to time it seems but I don’t know how they compare to other shops.

NSE Tropicals - is one I enjoy seeing instagram updates from but probably wouldn’t order from just because giant aroids aren’t my thing. They have some really awesome beautiful stock plants (almost nothing is in stock currently because winter).

Taylor Greenhouses - this one is similar to Glasshouse Works where it’s owned by some older folks who can barely run a web page. But does have some cool plants (especially begonias) hidden in there and free shipping on orders over $85. I’ve watched a few unboxing videos from folks and not been overly impressed by the size of the plants for the price but still a cool place to poke around.

Josh’s Frogs - I’ve never ordered plants from here (maybe ordered water plants I can’t remember) but if you’re looking for terrarium/vivarium plants and supplies, they’re a great website. They sometimes have some pretty cool plants for cheap, though they’re vivarium sized so pretty small.

PA Orchid Exchange - I have not looked too deeply into this one and haven’t seen any unboxing videos but they’re the newest plant place that’s caught me eye, especially if you’re after some Trendy Boys for what looks like relatively affordable prices?

Greenhouse  by Travis Anderson

My mentor: I wanna do a wall garden, because it doesnt take up too much space

Me, already vibrating from the dopamine and adrenaline: Let's talk about espaliers

Neglected pastures thrive under solar panels

Solar panels could increase productivity on pastures that are not irrigated and even water-stressed, a new study finds. The new study published in PLOS One by researchers at Oregon State College finds that grasses and plants flourish in the shade underneath solar panels because of a significant change in moisture. The results bolster the argument for agrovoltaics, the concept of using the same area of land for solar arrays and farming. The idea is to grow food and produce clean energy at the same time.

Look, your plastic straws are only a negligible contribution to oceanic plastic pollution. Japan has backed out of all of its clean energy goals since Fukushima and is importing thousands of tons of fossil fuels to make up for it. The lithium mining processes required to make your hybrid car make its environmental benefits basically nonexistent. Food waste has much more to do with governmental regulations on spoilage and consumer demand for cosmetically perfect produce than you forgetting about the kale in your vegetable crisper.

The world is made of complex problems and the simple answer basically only exists to make you feel good about yourself