Logging my work one clip at a time!

We’ve been learning all about albedo in environmental science, but I never really thought of this application: School districts are painting the tops of school buses white to reduce the buses’ internal temperature by an average of 10 degrees. 

Businesses and schools, particularly those located in cities – like my alma mater Northeastern (go Huskies!) – are painting their roofs white to offset the effects of global warming and heat island effect (the phenomenon that cities are generally warmer than suburbs due to increased population and building density). White is more reflective than the typical black, and white roofs serve the same function as our diminishing polar ice sheets – they stabilize Earth’s temperature by reflecting the Sun’s energy.

But I guess I never thought of it this way – white roofs could be a great way to harness natural processes and cut down on summertime cooling expenses. In fact, this might be an even better application for this effort. If we lose our polar ice coverage, painting roofs white is going to be a measly effort in comparison, but it’s possible white roofs could have a substantial impact on cooling the interior of those buildings that have them.

Photo credit: Kevin Dooley

The Environmental Working Group released a tip sheet today on how to celebrate a “green Halloween,” that is, a holiday that is free from toxic cosmetics and disposable decorations.

Here are some of my favorite tips:

1. Be careful about what makeup you use on kids’ faces. Many lipsticks contain lead, and powdered cosmetics can be easily inhaled.

2. Don’t wear synthetic masks or teeth. These props could contain endocrine-disrupting phthalates – and they aren’t always on the label. If you must wear a mask, wear one that just covers your eyes to avoid getting the chemicals in your mouth.

3. Use all-natural, reusable decorations. Pumpkins and gourds make great centerpieces and look great on porch steps with a few (fragrance-free) candles.

Check out the full list here.

Jonathan Safran Foer reading from his new book, Eating Animals

We spent Saturday at the National Book Festival which is held on the Mall every fall. We bicycled down to the festival and arrived just in time to see Jonathan Safran Foer read from his new book, Eating Animals. I bought it, sat down while we were waiting in the author’s signing line, and began to read.

In the first five minutes of reading the book, I knew I was going to love it. In the second section the author writes about why we eat some animals and not others, and he describes his experience with dogs. I’ve never read so apt a description of the way I used to feel about dogs and animals in general:

“I thought of them as bothersome, dirty, unapproachably foreign, frighteningly unpredictable, and plain old unnecessary. I had a particular lack of enthusiasm for dogs … As a child I would agree to go over to friends’ houses only if they confined their dogs in some other room. If a dog approached me in the park, I’d become hysterical until my father hoisted me onto his shoulders. I didn’t like watching television shows that featured dogs. It’s possible that I even developed a subtle prejudice against the blind.

And then one day I became a person who loved dogs.”

For about a year I’ve been working on cutting down the amount of meat I consume, and picking up this book has inspired me to try to cut it out altogether. It’s not particularly challenging in my day-to-day life – all the places I eat offer vegetarian options. But, like Safran Foer writes, it’s the family rituals that will be the most challenging: the Thanksgiving turkey, the Christmas ham.

Well, we’ll see how it goes.

Today is Adams Morgan Day, and Jordan and I celebrated by heading down to that lovely area for the best street food festival I have ever attended. It’s like the Pumpkin Festival in my hometown, only hotter and without the pumpkin-flavored foods. In Adams Morgan they everything from jambalaya to Asian cuisine. We snagged $7 crab cake sandwiches from a vendor, $3 homemade lemonade outside Amsterdam Falafel and a huge plate of funnel cake with a mountain of powdered sugar on top.

All the street vendors:

Funnel cake:

My favorite part of these kinds of outdoor festivals are the little jewelry and clothing stands in between all the delicious food. I bought a new pashmina for $10.

I don’t usually see them on sale for that cheap. Of course, no one beats the woman who sells them in the Porter Square train station in Cambridge. I believe her’s are two for $10!