Speaker systems for electric vehicles
One of the nice things about electric cars, reviewers often mention, is they are blissfully quiet. But that is also a problem. Pedestrians often hear an oncoming vehicle without seeing it. That’s why the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has published this list of proposed sounds that electric vehicles should make. The basics are that electric cars should produce a sound when in reverse, and when driving at speeds of up to 30 km/h. The proposed regulations will require carmakers to include “a dynamic range speaker system that is protected from the elements and attached with mounting hardware and wiring to both power the speaker and receive signal inputs and a digital signal processor that receives information from the vehicle regarding vehicle operating status (to produce electric engine sounds dependent upon vehicle status). ”
Socialist Candidate Kshama Sawant Wins Seattle City Council Seat
Socialist candidate Kshama Sawant has won a seat on Seattle’s City Council. Sawant is an economics professor who participated in the Occupy Wall Street movement. She is the first socialist candidate to win citywide office in Seattle in a century.
The Ocean’s Surface Layer Has Been Warming Much Faster Than Previously Thought
Surface layers of the ocean have been warming significantly faster than previous estimates had projected, according to a new study. The study, published in Nature Climate Change, found that the upper 700 meters of the ocean have been warming 24 to 55 percent faster since 1970 than previously thought. This difference in estimations is likely due to “poor sampling” of ocean temperatures in the Southern Hemisphere, the study notes. If estimations for temperatures in the Southern Hemisphere are readjusted to fit better with climate models, they increase, the scientists found.
Budget Cuts Prevented Ebola Vaccine
A U.S. health official says an Ebola vaccine would likely be ready if it were not for budget cuts. Francis Collins, head of the National Institutes of Health, told The Huffington Post, “Frankly, if we had not gone through our 10-year slide in research support, we probably would have had a vaccine.”
[If our policies are defined by the idiots named Economists, then this will be the result.]
Chile becomes first South American country to enforce carbon tax
Chile has set a major precedent by becoming the first country in South America to introduce a tax on carbon emissions. The legislation was ratified by the Chilean government last week, bringing big power companies into the fold. Tax will now be imposed on all fossil fuel-based power plants with an installed capacity of at least 50 megawatts. At $5 per tonne of carbon emitted, the move will affect four energy companies, Endesa, AES Gener, Colbún and E.CL, in the country. Together, these companies are expected to contribute almost $160 million in carbon taxes to government revenues.
http://www.downtoearth.org.in/content/chile-becomes-first-south-american-country-enforce-carbon-tax