Keefer Madness

Triangle Fast-Food Restaurants Go Green

// October 5th, 2009 // No Comments » // Eco, Local (Raleigh Durham)

It’s nice to see some local fast food chains starting to take some environmental/green steps forward with their business:

Triangle Fast-Food Restaurants Go Green

Solar Roads Get Small DoE Contract, Confidence to Change the World

// September 7th, 2009 // No Comments » // Eco, Planes, Trains & Automobiles

This is a really cool concept — utilizing roadways as solar panels to generate electricy. I’m thinking with current technology this would be cost-prohibitive to create any infrastructure of any large size, but it’s a cool concept and hopefully will have a future in electrical generation down the road (literally).

Solar Roads Get Small DoE Contract, Confidence to Change the World

McDonald's Deploys First Plug-in Car Charging Station

// July 5th, 2009 // No Comments » // Eco, Local (Raleigh Durham), Planes, Trains & Automobiles

Here’s an eco-friendly article that has a local twist. The first McDonald’s in the whole franchise worldwide to have charging stations for electric cars / hybrid plugins is opening in our backyard — but it’s not in Chapel Hill where you’d think, but rather in Cary, NC. The owner of this specific franchise is also building the new McDonald’s restaurant with eco-friendly materials. While I doubt this will mean we’ll be seeing a McDonald’s with a bunch of Tesla Roadsters sitting in the parking lot, it’s a step in the right direction and I hope more restaurants, retail and office complexes will follow suit.

McDonald’s Deploys First Plug-in Car Charging Station

Lamborghini Jumps on the Green Wagon with Hybrid Sports Car

// June 13th, 2009 // No Comments » // Eco, Planes, Trains & Automobiles, Tech

When does hybrid become simply a buzz word, rather than a real solution for truly increasing gas mileage and reducing emissions? When does the term “hybrid” jump the shark Oh, I’d say it’s about when Lamorghini develops a hybrid:

Lamborghini Jumps on the Green Wagon with Hybrid Sports Car

Pre-Orders Flood in For New 2010 Toyota Prius

// May 18th, 2009 // No Comments » // Eco, Planes, Trains & Automobiles

Not surprisingly, the reduction in price, the competition of the Honda Insight and a bunch of new features has created a lot of buzz for the third generation Prius. That buzz has turned into a lot of interest and pre-orders it would seem.

Pre-Orders Flood in For New 2010 Prius

Seriously Considering a 2010 Toyota Prius

// April 22nd, 2009 // No Comments » // Eco, Personal Crap, Planes, Trains & Automobiles

Toyota announced the prices for the third-generation Prius today, and I’ve gotta say that I’m really considering snagging a 2010 to replace my 4Runner after all the hype and demand wear off after its initial launch later this year.

Granted, we do get a ton of utility out of our sport utility, but I’m ready for something with a lot better gas mileage. Plus, as a self-proclaimed gadget geek, this thing is awesome with all the features and available options it has: including the solar-powered internal fan integrated into the moonroof and the Dynamic Radar Cruise Control system.

Add a roof rack for the bikes, and I think we’d be pretty happy with the green high-tech third-gen Prius. Realistically, we’ll probably end up getting a 2010 or 2011 Prius a couple years down the road. Other than the gas mileage and the lack of the latest and greatest tech, I absolutely love my 4Runner.

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Electric Utilities Set to Test Smart Charging System with Plug-in Priuses

// November 10th, 2008 // No Comments » // Eco, Planes, Trains & Automobiles, Tech

This is pretty cool. It sounds like our local utilities will be one of the test beds for the plug-in Toyota Prius. I don’t completely understand how the technology will work, but in theory, a plug-in in part works as an energy store for the electric company in off-peak times and ends up giving the owner credits for these holding times. I wonder how much of that offsets the cost of charging the vehicle. It seems like that would be a win-win for utility and owner alike. I’ll be keeping an eye on how this pans out for sure.

Electric Utilities Set to Test Smart Charging System with Plug-in Priuses

State Launches Center for Plug-in Hybrid Cars

// February 13th, 2008 // No Comments » // Eco, Local (Raleigh Durham), Planes, Trains & Automobiles

Good for Easley for having some foresight to setup this whole project. Granted, I still don’t get the whole plug-in concept fully. To me, it seems like another form of changing dependancies from one pollutant and problem, to another. Switching a bunch of cars away from gas stations, and instead plugging them will mean higher home and business power bills and will mean the power plants (many still coal-based) output more. Sure, I’ve read about how the collective batteries of a bunch of hybrids and electric cars will work as an off-peak holding ground for electrical grids, which is nice, but still doesn’t seem like a flawless solution.

State Launches Center for Plug-in Hybrid Cars

Futuristic Car Runs Like WWI Submarine

// February 13th, 2008 // No Comments » // Eco, Planes, Trains & Automobiles

Nice write up on the technology behind the Chevy Volt concept. It’s pretty cool, but at the same time, they’re using technology available during the freakin’ first world war. Imagine where cars tech would be had they been doing R&D on greener technologies and alternatives to petroleum-based fuels.

Futuristic Car Runs Like WWI Submarine

MSU Researcher Finds Renewed Interest In Turning Algae Into Fuel

// January 17th, 2008 // No Comments » // Eco, Planes, Trains & Automobiles

I wonder how many of these type of projects are going to get renewed interest (and funding) as our gas prices continue to ascend.

A couple of different alternatives would really help us out. So we start supplementing with a couple of different alternative fuels and reduce/remove foreign independence. Why hasn’t this already been done? Big oil money.

MSU Researcher Finds Renewed Interest In Turning Algae Into Fuel