Tag Archives: life

What is Dirty Electricity and is it Harmful?

by JereLhotsky1481 Posted on November 23, 2015

Dirty electricity is a growing issue that can be easily misunderstood due to its complexity.

To help clear up any confusion, here are some answers to common questions about dirty electricity.

What is dirty electricity?

Electricity enters homes and other buildings at a constant frequency, typically 50 or 60 hertz (Hz,) depending on which country you live in. This is considered clean energy as it enters your home.

The problem starts when the electricity reaches appliances, computers or other electronic devices. Many of these devices require a transformer to convert the voltage and/or current, which disrupts the flow of electricity.

These power disruptions create irregular, high frequency surges of dirty electricity that travel along a buildings normal wiring, which should only contain 50 or 60 Hz electricity. The surges are also known as high frequency voltage transients.

Is dirty electricity harmful to our health?

Electrical wires and any devices that use electricity emit electromagnetic fields (EMF), also known as electromagnetic radiation (EMR). These fields will easily pass through most common materials. They are strongest close to the source and diminish with distance.

A growing body of evidence is showing that EMF exposure can be linked to various health conditions. And the stronger an electrical frequency is, the stronger the EMF will be. Thats why the high frequency transients associated with dirty electricity are of particular concern.

The World Health Organization has recognized that there are potentially both short term and long term health risks associated with EMF exposure.

Also, in 2012, a group of independent scientists, researchers and public health policy professionals, called The BioInitiative Working Group, published the BioInitiative Report. Their goal was to give an overview of whats known about the biological effects of EMF exposure. They reviewed over 2,000 scientific studies and concluded that there is substantial scientific evidence showing that even low levels of EMF have biological effects.

Laboratory studies showed that EMF exposure was linked to genotoxic effects, including DNA damage, as well as adverse effects on immune function, neurology, human behavior and melatonin production. There were also various population studies that found connections between EMF exposure and brain tumors, acoustic neuromas, salivary gland tumors, leukemia, Alzheimers disease, Lou Gehrigs disease and breast cancer.

For instance, one study published in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine looked at a cancer cluster in a southern California school exposed to high frequency voltage transients in their electrical system. The researchers found that a single year of employment at this school increased a teachers cancer risk by 21 percent, and teachers there more than 10 years increased their risk by 610 percent. They concluded that these high frequency transients may also be a universal carcinogen, not isolated to a single school.

What EMF levels are safe?

Despite the growing research showing the health risks of EMF, a challenge arises when governing agencies try to determine what levels are actually safe.

There are many different aspects of EMF to consider, such as the electrical voltage, frequency and pulse variations, as well as the duration of a persons exposure and any cumulative exposure over time. All these factors make it difficult to set exact safety standards for EMF in our homes.

Currently, most safety regulations only consider levels of EMF that are high enough to increase the temperature of an object. This is also known as ionizing radiation, such as x-rays.

Any lower energy frequencies that are considered non-ionizing, or do not heat objects, are assumed to be safe to use. These are the types of frequencies we are regularly exposed to from dirty electricity and were found to have detrimental effects in the BioInitiative Report.

In fact, The BioInitiative Working Group feels there may be no lower limit where exposure does not affect us. Until we can find a lower limit where its proven that bioeffects do not occur, they recommend limiting exposure to EMF whenever possible.

How can you avoid dirty electricity?

You have many options for reducing your exposure to dirty electricity and EMF.

There are meters you can buy that measure the levels of EMF in your home. EMF is typically measured either in milligauss (mG) or microTesla (T), depending on your country.

You can also download a phone application that will measure EMF, either for an Android or iPhone.

Some main sources of dirty electricity are:

Computers
Television sets
Cordless phones
Entertainment units
Energy efficient lighting
Energy efficient appliances
Dimmer switches
Power tools
Arcing on power lines, caused by loose wires or tree branches touching the lines

Try measuring the EMF levels near any of your suspect appliances, computers or other electrical devices. Replace any of these devices where possible, such as replacing cordless phones with corded phones, or energy efficient lighting (compact fluorescent or LED bulbs) with incandescent or AC halogen light bulbs.

If youre finding high levels in your house, you can install one or more dirty electricity filters. These are available from various online companies. Electrical filters have been shown to control high frequency currents in home electrical systems, but do your research to make sure the company youre buying from is legitimate.

You can tell if the filters are working when you have an EMF meter because you can take before and after measurements.

Many cities also have professional EMF consultants who can come to your home to measure EMF and suggest ways to reduce your exposure.

Sources
Dirty Electricity, by Samuel Milham
Public Health SOS: The Shadow Side of the Wireless Revolution, by Camilla Rees and Magda Havas
Overpowered, by Martin Blank

Related
5 Gadgets That Can Slash Costly Vampire Energy Use
Is Your Cell Phone a Health Hazard?
Shocking State of the Worlds Antibiotic Resistance

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

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What is Dirty Electricity and is it Harmful?

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10 Things to Do Instead of Shopping to Celebrate Buy Nothing Day

by LashondWilde Posted on November 23, 2015

Sure, Thanksgiving is right around the corner. But after giving thanks and gratitude for abundance with family and friends thousands of people across the country head out to big-box stores, malls and online to shop their way into oblivion on the infamous Black Friday.

Black Friday, one of the biggest shopping day of the year, falls the day after Thanksgiving. This tradition has been growing each year: stores open earlier on Black Friday, while others open on Thanksgiving evening to give shoppers a head start. And as shoppers move more online, retail outlets have tried to keep up, offering Black Friday deals all weekend (and even longer) and extra special offers all season long.

But what if we tried to enjoy the spirit of the season without shopping? Welcome to Buy Nothing Day, a campaign started by AdBusters to encourage shoppers to opt-out of the Black Friday shenanigans.

Buy Nothing Day is an international day of protest celebrated internationally this year on November 27 against excessive consumption and the unrestrained shopping frenzy of the holiday season. The website encourages us to take back our sanity by buying nothing on purpose:

“In a world where every inch of the capitalist system is bullying you into submission, can you resist? When advertisers hound you day and night, can you escape? This Black Friday, a massive, absurd, and destructive consumerist machine will coordinate against you for one simple reason – to convince you to max out your credit card to buy shit you dont need so that a broken system stays afloat. So when they say ‘BUY!’, will you say NOTHING!?

Buy Nothing Day is legendary for instigating this type of personal transformation as you suddenly remember what real living is all about you sense an upsurge of radical empowerment [as you join] Join millions of us in over 60 countries on November 28/29 and see what it feels like. Then, after Buy Nothing Day, take the next step for generations, Christmas has been hijacked by commercial forces this year, lets take it back.”

You can choose to be a more conscious consumer on Black Friday/Buy Nothing Day by opting out of the shopping madness (and dangers!) by taking on these 10 things to do instead of shopping.

1. Get outside! Legendary outdoor gear store REI is closing this year to encourage their employees to get outside, and you should too. Nature is good for our body, mind and spirit, so take advantage of the day off and go wander.

2. If you’re going outside, get yourself to water. Research shows that water can help us feel calm and collected, and can reset our brain after stress.

3. Make a gift: Instead of spending your day shopping for the perfect gift, why not make it? Find crafty ways to recycle, upcycle and make the perfect gift for your loved ones.

4. Cook some food: Nothing says love like homemade foods, whether you’re cooking for yourself or others. Do some meal planning or batch cooking, or try out some new recipes for your holiday parties.

5. Learn something new: Read a book about a new topic, try online courses for cooking or language development, or build your skills for food photography (this is what I will be doing!).

6. Practice mindfulness: The holiday season is arguably the most hectic season of all… if you let it become so. Learn some simple mindfulness techniques to help keep you grounded during these months.

7. Plan a trip: Give yourself something to look forward to in the upcoming months by planning a small road trip or an epic adventure.

8. Have a dance party: Most of your friends are probably off work, so why not throw a dance party? Get everybody moving joyfully to boost happiness and celebrate community.

9. Phone home: Whether your loved ones are near or far, give them an actual call, Skype or Facetime to let them know you love them and wish them a happy holiday season.

10. Do NOTHING! When was the last time you allowed yourself to lounge in bed, drink coffee, read the news, or just nap? Taking time off is important to help ourselves truly relax.

If you do choose to shop on Black Friday (or any day), ask yourself a few questions before purchasing an item. Care2 blogger Dave Chameidesencourages consumers to ask10 questions before buying anything:

Whatever you decide to do this Black Friday, choose to do so mindfully to fully engage (or disengage) with the season as you wish!

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

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10 Things to Do Instead of Shopping to Celebrate Buy Nothing Day

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Hackers are messing with the oil and gas industry

by CoryDescoteaux Posted on November 18, 2015

Hackers are messing with the oil and gas industry

By on 18 Nov 2015commentsShare

The best part about an oil and gas addiction — besides all the pollution, environmental degradation, and crippling income inequality, of course — is how pathetically vulnerable it makes us to cyber attacks.

Say you’re a hacker. Pick a cool name — something like Krazy Keys or The Epidemic. Now, say you want to really fuck with the U.S. economy (you’re still reeling over those damn Starbucks cups). What better way to take down Uncle Sam than to target the slick, gooey oil that is his life blood? Fortunately for you, Cyber Satan, a growing number of oil and gas companies are making that pretty easy to do.

By connecting their infrastructure to the ever-expanding network of internet-enabled devices known as of the Internet of Things (check out our explainer video here), these companies are automating their operations and thus improving efficiency, but they’re also opening themselves up to cyber attacks. Here’s more from Motherboard:

The industry has a lot of different moving parts and processes, including pump control, blow-out prevention, and managing gas storage. Unexpected changes to these processes or the operations technology systems that run them can have a major impact like production stoppages or even damage to the infrastructure.

“Maybe the hackers’ intentions may not be to destroy something, but by not understanding the full picture of the system or what component of it they are messing with, they can have a real catastrophic effect,” said (cyber security expert Jasper Graham). This could be anything from bringing productivity to a standstill to disabling alarm systems or communications between workers on the field, which could put their safety at risk.

Already, there have been a number of attacks on oil companies around the world. In 2012, a group called The Cutting Sword of Justice (real name) attacked Saudi Aramco, partially or fully wiping files on 35,000 computers, Motherboard reports. The hackers didn’t manage to tamper with any pumping or drilling operations, but the company did have to temporarily shut down all of its computers. And last year, dozens of oil companies in Norway fell prey to unidentified internet marauders. Even Anonymous is getting in on the action, according to Motherboard. The notorious hacking group targeted gas stations earlier this year.

Unfortunately, oil and gas companies aren’t the only ones failing to protect themselves against cybersecurity threats. The Internet of Things is taking over a lot of our infrastructure, and most of that infrastructure isn’t ready to take on hackers. On the plus side, the oil industry is pretty evil, so as long as Queen Crypto and The Wackadoodle aren’t hurting anyone or creating serious economic mayhem, more power to them. And besides, the environmental movement is always in desperate need of a little badassery. These Hackers might just do the trick:

Source:

The Internet of Things Is Making Oil Production Vulnerable to Hacking

, Motherboard.

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Pick Out Kevin’s Lunch Today

by TammaraGrinder Posted on November 7, 2015

Mother Jones

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A few days ago, for no special reason, I began to wonder how many different fast food places I had eaten at during my life. So naturally I hopped over to Quick Serve Restaurant and took a look at the latest QSR 50, their ranking of the 50 biggest fast food joints. Then I went to lunch at Chick-fil-A, which was my 28th out of 50. Only 22 to go!

It’s getting close to lunchtime. Which fine dining establishment should I cross off my list today?

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Pick Out Kevin’s Lunch Today

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These Charts Show the Cost Of Renting a 2-Bedroom Apartment In the 5 Most-Expensive Cities In America

by FernElledge Posted on November 6, 2015

Mother Jones

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A little more than a year ago, my former colleague Erika Eichelberger wrote about the fact that, for many, the rent is simply too damn high (I chipped in with some pretty charts illustrating an ugly problem). This story has been told time and time again, but a recent report from Bloomberg takes it one step further, at least for those of us lucky (or unlucky) enough to be entering the job market while living in San Francisco or New York City.

“The Starter Apartment Is Nearly Extinct in San Francisco and New York,” according the the article’s headline. Citing data compiled by real estate listings site Trulia, Bloomberg points out some depressing statistics: In San Francisco, 91 percent of one-bedroom apartments rent for more than $2,000 per month. It’s almost as bad in Manhattan, where 89 percent of one-bedroom apartments will set you back $2,000 month.

Trying to find a two bedroom? In San Francisco, almost every two-bedroom apartment rents for more than $2,000 (98 percent). Many are more than $2,500 (96 percent), or $3,000 (91 percent). More than half the two-bedrooms in San Francisco will put you back $4,000 per month. Take a look:

Trulia.com

Obviously this applies to certain parts of these cities and, indeed, if you read through Trulia’s report, it breaks the data down by neighborhood. For instance, take a look at the interactive map of San Francisco below, which breaks down the cost of 1-bedroom units:

Here’s one for New York City:

So yes, chances are you can still find something, somewhere. But the point is that for many of us, that dream of life in the big city—for a reasonable amount of money and in a convenient location—is just that: a dream.

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These Charts Show the Cost Of Renting a 2-Bedroom Apartment In the 5 Most-Expensive Cities In America

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Did Colorado’s Open Carry Law Delay Police Response to a Mass Shooter?

by BurtonWarkentin Posted on November 3, 2015

Mother Jones

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Details are continuing to emerge about a gun rampage that took place in the streets of Colorado Springs on Saturday morning, in which 33-year-old Noah Harpham shot three people to death before police killed him in a shootout. On Monday, a troubling detail came to light in a Denver Post report suggesting that police may have had a chance to intervene before the slaughter began—but that a police dispatcher may have reacted without urgency to a 911 call about Harpham because of Colorado’s open carry law:

Witnesses watched in horror as Harpham picked his victims off. One of them, the bicyclist, pleaded for his life before being killed.

“I heard the (young man) say, ‘Don’t shoot me! Don’t shoot me!’ ” Naomi Bettis, a neighbor who witnessed the killing, said Monday.

Bettis said she recognized the gunman as her neighbor—whom she didn’t know by name—and that before the initial slaying she saw him roaming outside with a rifle. She called 911 to report the man, but a dispatcher explained that Colorado has an open carry law that allows public handling of firearms.

“He did have a distraught look on his face,” Bettis said. “It looked like he had a rough couple days or so.”

It’s unclear how much time lapsed between Bettis’ 911 call and when the rampage began, but according to The Gazette the initial police response didn’t come until after the carnage was in progress:

The first reports of a shooting came about 8:45 a.m. as Colorado Springs police were called to the 200 block of Prospect Street after multiple calls about gunshots, El Paso County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Jacqueline Kirby and Colorado Springs police spokeswoman Lt. Catherine Buckley said. Authorities said the shooter was killed after opening fire on police officers.

By then, Harpham had killed the bicyclist, 35-year-old Andrew Alan Myers, and two women at a nearby location, 42-year-old Jennifer Michelle Vasquez, and 34-year-old Christina Rose Baccus-Gallela. (Similarly, the Denver Post reported: “Officers were first called on reports of a ‘possible shooting’ at 230 North Prospect Street—a townhouse-like building—where they found the bicyclist dead and a fire burning, the dispatch archives show.”)

Proponents of open carry laws argue that the ability for citizens to take firearms with them in public isn’t just a right but makes communities safer. We don’t yet know, but the law allowing guns to be carried on display in Colorado may have just done the opposite.

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Did Colorado’s Open Carry Law Delay Police Response to a Mass Shooter?

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Is Cohousing the Future? (Infographic)

by FrancisOLN Posted on October 30, 2015

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Why Recycled Polyester Fashion Is NOT Sustainable

by BradlyMarcus Posted on October 27, 2015

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Book Review: My Life on the Road by Gloria Steinem

by ThomasEwald Posted on October 24, 2015

Mother Jones

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My Life on the Road

By Gloria Steinem

RANDOM HOUSE

Steinem spent her childhood crammed against her sister in the backseat of a car as her father tried to persuade roadside antique dealers to buy his wares. In My Life on the Road, her first book in more than 20 years, Steinem elegantly reflects on this nomadic upbringing and how it inspired her own travels. Though she never learned to drive, her tours as a young journalist introduced her to women who helped shape her ideology: disgruntled American stewardesses, passengers in a female-only Indian train car, and an Irish taxi driver who told Steinem in the 1970s, “Honey, if men could get pregnant, abortion would be a sacrament!”

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Book Review: My Life on the Road by Gloria Steinem

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This Guide Will Help You Make the Most of Seasonal Produce (Infographic)

by FatimaLangley Posted on October 6, 2015

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