Subscribe
type here...
Subscribe
Home Blog Page 541

With Three Raging Reactor Meltdowns at Fukushima, What’s Positive About Nuclear Power?

Maurice Picow
-
4
With Three Raging Reactor Meltdowns at Fukushima, What’s Positive About Nuclear Power?

Destroyed reactor: Dead Zone for 100 years?

Three of Japan’s stricken Fukushima nuclear reactors may now be  in a meltdown situation according to nuclear energy experts studying the ongoing situation and the amount of radiation in reactor core water leaking into the sea. What’s worse, workers at the plant who have been exposed to high amounts of radiation are expected to “die within weeks” according to an article in UK based Daily Mail. The only option remaining appears to be to pour large amounts of concrete onto the reactor cores and permanently seal them. This means, the Fukushima plant, like the one at Chernobyl, is for all practical purposes a “dead” plant, which also goes for the geographical area surrounding the plant for a distance of 30 km. “It will take 50 –100 years before the reactor rods will be cool enough to remove” a UK nuclear energy expert said.

Continue

Sharjah Students Win Prestigious Award For Making Renewable Energy From Noise

Tafline Laylin
-
6
Sharjah Students Win Prestigious Award For Making Renewable Energy From Noise

american university of sharjah studentsThese four gentlemen are developing piezoelectric technology that harvests power from noise.

While some researchers wrack their brain over how to make solar energy more affordable, or to extract energy from a ruthless ocean, four students from the American University of Sharjah are testing a more benign kind of renewable energy. They have developed a device that can convert otherwise wasted mechanical energy, acoustic noise, and ultrasonic waves into electricity by using piezoelectric technology. Although this application could not be used to create massive power plants, their device has an extraordinary range of potential applications, including tapping ultrasonic waves produced at large aquariums.

Continue

UAE divers: Stop buying shark fin soup

Arwa Aburawa
-
3
UAE divers: Stop buying shark fin soup

shark fin trade uaeWe speak to Ibrahim Al Zu’bi from the Emirates Divers Association about why the ban on shark finning in the UAE hasn’t worked and what ordinary people can do to stop the horrific trade

In 2008, shark finning in the United Arab Emirates was banned. For many environmentalists and conservationists this was a time to rejoice and a moment of hope when it seemed the constant threat to sharks in the region may have eased. Over the years, however, it has become apparent that the change in law has done little to alter the situation on the ground.

Shark fins still fill fish markets in Dubai and the country remains an important market hub for the lucrative delicacy. This got me thinking- if the change in law has done nothing to protect sharks what can be done? I got in touch with two important organisations based in the country who are actively tackling shark finning, to talk about their views and what they think is needed to end shark finning once and for all.

Green Prophet spoke to the Emirate Diving Association, a non-governmental organisation setup in 1995 which works within the diving sector and marine conservation and has been encouraging its members to support the ban on shark finning. We caught up with Ibrahim Al Zu-bi, the driving force behind the organisation which is based in Dubai to find out more.

Aburawa: Can you tell us a little about the work that the Emirate Diving Association organisation does to end shark finning?

Ibrahim Al Zu’bi: EDA is a non-profit voluntary federal organization and is accredited by UNEP as an International Environmental Organization. We oversee all the locally based dive centres with the legal documents to operate within the UAE.

Through our strong membership base, we try to raise awareness about the practice of shark finning and use our members as tools to spread awareness. We also support all shark conservation initiatives and co-organize shark tagging expeditions to help research students know more about them.


Why is the EDA against shark finning and the need to protect sharks?

Sharks like any other fish are being over fished in general, but the fact that sharks are being over fished for their fins only makes it worse. The luxury of shark fins has put a lot of pressure on sharks, which we don’t want to encourage.Shark finning is not common here as people eat sharks here like other fish and deal with it as another whole fish.

Why do you think that the shark finning ban in 2008 the UAE has not worked?

Like any other environmental law, you need to be firm in implementation and monitoring. Also, we need ordinary people to stop buying sharks and shark fin soup- ask restaurant managers to take it off the menu and tell them that you won’t come back if they don’t.

CEO Of Organic Foods Company In Dubai Calls Local Farming “Stupid”

Tafline Laylin
-
21
CEO Of Organic Foods Company In Dubai Calls Local Farming “Stupid”

organic agriculture UAE The CEO of a Dubai-based company says growing organic food in the UAE is “stupid.”

No one would ever expect an organic food distributor to favor importing food to locally-grown produce, except in the Middle East. Despite efforts from people like Baker & Spice’s Yael Mejia, who is working furiously to improve the quality of local food, most of the United Arab Emirates receive their nutrition in large crates from afar. And we thought this was a bad thing.

Not so, according to the head of a leading organic food store in Dubai. Nils El Accad told Arabian Business that it makes more sense for the UAE to freight its food in from other countries than to grow it locally. His ideas may seem completely anti-green coming from an organic food distributor, but his logic is fairly sound. Well – almost.

Continue

Fesenjan, Persian Chicken in Walnut Sauce

Miriam Kresh
-
2
Fesenjan, Persian Chicken in Walnut Sauce

image-fesenjan-chicken iran persian recipe
A classical Iranian dish, Fesenjan is chicken cooked in a rich walnut and pomegranate sauce.

Scientists from the University of Scranton, Pennsylvania, now proclaim that walnuts aren’t only tasty, they’re also good for you. According to studies cited by an article in the BBC News, the rich-tasting nut is so high in antioxidants that small quantities, eaten daily, may prevent cancer, heart disease, and diabetes. Try our almond milk also , another nut-based superfood recipe. That walnuts are part of a healthy diet is no news to Persian cooks.

Walnuts are a well-loved addition to many Iranian foods. A cupful, chopped, might get mixed into a sturdy vegetable omelet; the standard bunch of fresh herbs that accompanies almost every meal might be studded with a handful of halved walnuts that were softened by soaking in cool water. Traditional cookie recipes feature walnuts.

So does the aromatic chicken stew, Fesenjan, which is made for festive occasions. It’s slightly sweet and sour with pomegranate juice.  View our pomegranate-nut salad for another angle on this delicious combination.

Notes: Fesenjan may be made with duck or turkey instead of chicken.You may grind your own walnuts in a food processor, but beware of overworking them – you’ll get walnut butter.

Fesenjan, Persian Stewed Chicken with Walnuts and Pomegranate

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 chicken, cut into 8 pieces
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 cup  toasted, ground walnuts
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups pomegranate juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons sugar

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.

Place chicken and onions in skillet. Cook 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Mix in ground walnuts, salt, pomegranate juice, cardamom and cinnamon. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. Dilute the sauce with a few tablespoons of water if it becomes too thick.

Mix in sugar, taste for seasoning, and simmer 30 minutes more.

Serve with rice.

Enjoy!

More Middle-Eastern recipes on Green Prophet:

Holon Design Museum Hosts Conference About Sustainable Cities

Karen Chernick
-
0
Holon Design Museum Hosts Conference About Sustainable Cities

"sustainable city conference"“The city is not the problem, but the solution,” says architect Jaime Lerner.

Throughout history, philosophers have been dreaming about the utopian city.  The current age is faced with environmental challenges, and so many of today’s thinkers are dreaming of the sustainable utopian city.  Mayors, visionaries, academics, entrepreneurs, scientists, designers and architects will all gather at the Design Museum in Holon, Israel this Thursday (April 7th) to discuss the concept of urban sustainability at a conference sponsored by the Design Museum, the Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Holon Municipality.

Continue

Saffron is world’s most expensive aphrodisiac

Tinamarie Bernard
-
10
Saffron is world’s most expensive aphrodisiac

saffron flowers, natural viagra?

Saffron can ‘spice’ up your love life, Canadian study finds.

History is ripe with stories of foods, herbs and spices thought to enhance the libido, but scientific data to support whether a man’s virility or a woman’s sex drive could really be enhanced by certain supplements is scant. The dearth of proof may be changing.

Canadian researcher, Massimo Marcone, a professor in Guelph’s Department of Food Science, and master’s student John Melnyk, have confirmed what the ancients knew with regards to food and sexual health. Specific compounds, including the world’s most expensive spice (read further for the big reveal!) – whose origins are Middle Eastern/Asian – offer up eco-sexy nutrition without the side effects of pharmaceuticals such as Viagra (sildenafil) and Cialis (tadalafil).

Their results are available online and will appear in print in the journal Food Research International.

First the Science, then the Sex

bright red saffron

Marcone and his team examined hundreds of studies on commonly used consumable aphrodisiacs to investigate claims of psychological or physiological sexual enhancement. Ultimately, they included only studies meeting their most ‘stringent controls.’

“Ours is the most thorough scientific review to date. Nothing has been done on this level of detail before now.” Marcone reportedly said of their investigation into natural sexual enhancers. Such research is compelled in part by the multi-billion dollar erectile dysfunction drug industry that comes with a ‘price.’

“These drugs can produce headache, muscle pain and blurred vision, and can have dangerous interactions with other medications. They also do not increase libido, so it doesn’t help people experiencing low sex drive.” There’s additional concern that younger men are using these drugs when they have no history of erectile dysfunction, and in combination with other agents that could cause dangerous side effects or adverse reactions. Green lovers recognize the need for natural products that enhance sex without negative side effects, hence the growing popularity of the eco-sexuality movement.

The results? They found that panax ginseng from Asia and yohimbine, a natural chemical from yohimbe trees in West Africa, improved human sexual function.  Increased sexual desire was reported after eating muira puama from Brazilian and maca root from the Andes. Alcohol was found to increase arousal but impede performance. But despite its purported aphrodisiac effect, chocolate was not definitively linked to sexual arousal or satisfaction, the study said.

“It may be that some people feel an effect from certain ingredients in chocolate, mainly phenylethylamine, which can affect serotonin and endorphin levels in the brain,” Marcone said.

Get it on with Saffron

Is saffron a natural Viagra?

As for the contribution from this region to our sexual palates, it turns out that saffron, a spice used along Europe’s glamorous Mediterranean coast and throughout Middle Eastern cuisine, from Iran to Iraq, Turkey to Greece with evidence dating back thousands of years, may be one of the most potent enhancers yet.

Stories abound about the use of saffron by Cleopatra (who is said to have taken baths in waters scented with this rare gem prior to making love), Ancient Persia, the Sumarians and Alexander the Great (as a curative for battle wounds), among many others.

To this day, the northern town of Safranbolu in Turkey – a UNESCO World Heritage Site whose name is derived from this delicate flower – is known for its annual saffron harvest festivals.

Even the Hebrew Bible sets claim to saffron’s seductiveness in the Song of Solomon.

“Your lips drop sweetness like honeycomb, my bride, syrup and milk are under your tongue, and your dress had the scent of Lebanon. Your cheeks are an orchard of pomegranates, an orchard full of rare fruits, spikenard and saffron, sweet cane and cinnamon.“

It has been suggested that part of saffron’s magical property is thought to be its enhancement of “lust” via certain neurotransmitters that stimulate libido or erogenous zones. Saffron may also lower blood pleasure and stimulate respiration.

The parts used for culinary purposes are the stigma or style, the female sexual organs of the flower. There are three stigma on any one flower, so it takes 150,000 flowers to produce one kilogram of dried saffron, making it the most expensive spice in the world. Iran and Spain are the world’s largest producer of this flower (part of the Iris family Iridaceae) accounting for 80% of the global crop.

While their findings support the use of foods and plants for sexual enhancement, the authors urge caution. “Currently, there is not enough evidence to support the widespread use of these substances as effective aphrodisiacs,” Marcone said. “More clinical studies are needed to better understand the effects on humans.”

More eco–sexuality news:

The GINK Manifesto: Childless, Loud and Proud

April is Green Sex Toy Month

“Love Begins with L” Eco-Sexy Condom Company Empowers Women

CollPlant Enables Vegan-Friendly Collagen

Green Prophet Guest
-
0
CollPlant Enables Vegan-Friendly Collagen

Vegan-friendly lip enhancers? CollPlant makes an animal-free collagen, using tobacco plants.

Advocates of vegetarianism often point out the detrimental effects of raising livestock on the environment.  One frequently cited study is the  Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) report, Livestock’s Long Shadow, showing that livestock production is responsible for 18 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, a bigger share than that of transport. But even the most devout vegetarians are likely to avail themselves of drugs and bio-materials  that owe their origins to animal subjects.

Is there a way to replace the role animals play in the bio-pharmaceutical industry where they are used for testing new drugs? And what about the use of pig and cow tissues for the  repair of defective human organs?

Continue

Europe’s Biggest Solar Farm To Be Built In Turkey

Julia Harte
-
6
Europe’s Biggest Solar Farm To Be Built In Turkey

blue mosque turkey sunThe 100-MW photovoltaic power station would be the first to harness Turkey’s remarkable solar resource.

Turkey has a lot of catching up to do when it comes to solar power. At more than 1 million terawatt-hours (twH) of solar radiation each year, it receives more sunlight than most countries in Europe — for comparison, Spain and California each receive about 800,000 twH annually. But solar power contributes a mere five megawatts to Turkey’s overall installed capacity of 46,500 MW. Without subsidies from the government for their power, solar companies have been discouraged from entering the sunny country, and the solar power market in Turkey, despite all its promise, has remained small and scattered.

A U.S.-Dutch company is planning to change all that.

Continue

How the Middle East Should Can Coordinate A Sustainable Agenda

Dr. Yosef Gotlieb
-
3
How the Middle East Should Can Coordinate A Sustainable Agenda

In looking toward the future, social Greens throughout the Middle East should coordinate an agenda geared toward a sustainable tomorrow.

Both climate change and the repressive political culture that pervades the Middle East have roots in the state system and political culture of the region. The autocratic regimes of the Middle East – specifically Libya, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, the Gulf States and Iran – came about as part of the successful efforts of the formerly imperial powers of Europe, chiefly Britain and France, to preserve their economic and political interests in the domains of North Africa and West Asia they once ruled.

A process that began in the nineteenth century, intensified in the post-World I period and then continued through the early 1970s enabled the departing imperial powers to carve the regions into states. Authority over these polities was conferred on indigenous elites whose regimes were propped up by royalties from the transfer of petroleum resources to the roaring fires of the industrial West through tidy arrangements with European and increasingly American corporations.

The insatiable appetite of industry for fossil fuels coupled with market-driven economic growth and rising consumerism in the countries of the “developed” North have been the main engine of carbon-based climate change. This engine has been powered by the petroleum resources of the Middle East whose political, economic and social configuration has been designed to serve the market economies.

Continue

Was the Garden of Eden Snake Environmentally Unfriendly?

Maurice Picow
-
3
Was the Garden of Eden Snake Environmentally Unfriendly?

“Szzzzz, c’mon, honey; just take a little bitty bite of this delicious fruit”

This question has been asked by much of Mankind ever since the dawn of the Creation: was the snake that enticed Eve and Adam to eat fruit from the Tree of Knowledge really environmentally unfriendly? And is it fair to blame the snake for making  the life of Mankind more difficult? After all, the Garden of Eden was supposed to have been a perfect environment with plenty of food for Adam and his wife Eve; and climatically controlled to allow them to go around naked and not be embarrassed by this. Then the Snake came alone and told them that “your eyes will be opened you shall be as God, knowing good and evil.”

Continue

Post-Revolution Egypt Restarts Planned Peak Load Swap With Saudis

Susan Kraemer
-
0
Post-Revolution Egypt Restarts Planned Peak Load Swap With Saudis


Some very good news from Egypt. The very progressive renewable energy policy spearheaded by Hassan Younis, the pre-revolution Minister of Electricity and Renewable Energy will continue, post-revolution. He is one of four ministers who will stay on in the new government and will continue their good work for the new Egypt.

One of the projects he was working on, that I mentioned in early January, that was interrupted by the revolution, is now back on track. Today there was a new announcement about a grid project between Egypt and Saudi Arabia – to swap “peak loads” (the period each day when the most power is needed on the grid, typically hot afternoons when air conditioners max out).

Continue

Naomi Maaravi Fashions an Individual, Recycled, Re-designed Eco Collection

Karen Chernick
-
1
Naomi Maaravi Fashions an Individual, Recycled, Re-designed Eco Collection

Fashion designer Naomi Maaravi makes clothes with a story.

When Dutch designer Naomi Maaravi moved to Tel Aviv a few years ago, she brought her “clothes with a story” and affinity for recycled fashion with her.  She began creating her upcycled, re-designed fashion pieces ten years ago, when she made her first piece for her daughter out of her husband’s worn out jeans. She’s since turned into a collaborator with Comme Il Faut, and has the skills to coach others on sustainable brand building and marketing.

Naomi Maaravi

Her line has since evolved into a recycled – albeit high fashion – line worn by Israeli celebrities such as Keren Mor (pictured above). Of her inspiration for turning the used into the new, Maaravi says that reusing was her father’s way.  “He never threw anything away, never ever,” she says.

"upcycled fashion sweater"“He created a new world out of items that had no value for anyone anymore.

“Milk-bottles became lamps, strings and ropes were made into carpets or seats.  Combinations of old bikes, appliances, garments became interesting new useful or lovable objects.”

Maaravi took these lessons learned from her father and brought them into her design work.

She says that “as a result of my father’s teaching, for me, every garment has a personality, something that makes it individual and precious.  I like to continue these stories.”

Her garments are fashioned from either her own collection of high end materials, or out of materials supplied by her clients.  “Memories, events, joy, happiness, sadness are all parts of the materials I use, blended to create a unique garment with a story on his own,” Maaravi says.

As a result, all of her garments are unique, one-of-a-kind, and infused with a lot of special attention.

:: Naomi Maaravi

Read more about sustainable, upcycling fashion designers:
Lebanese Designer Ziad Ghanem Creates Recycled Couture
“New Dress A Day” Blog Takes Consumerism Out of the Fresh Fashion Equation
EcoGir Flaunts Its Recycled Polyester Suits During New York Fashion Week

Baba Ghanoush Dinner And Israeli Porno With Green Prophet At Masdar City

Tafline Laylin
-
1
Baba Ghanoush Dinner And Israeli Porno With Green Prophet At Masdar City

green prophet dinner eggplant, seo jokeOne lucky reader will have a chance to eat with a green prophet… maybe.

Tonight, one amazing eco-minded reader will have the opportunity to enjoy a delicious baba-ghanoush dinner at Masdar City with one of our very own green prophets. And yes, Israeli porno is on the menu. If you believe that, then I’m afraid you are an April Fool. But there is method to our madness. Find out why we used this particular title after the break.

The title “Baba Ghanoush Dinner And Israeli Porno With Green Prophet At Masdar City” reflects an interesting challenge that we green prophets face in our pursuit to disseminate environmental news in the vast and nebulous digital world.

We are competing with more than 25.21 billion indexed webpages and trying to attract the attention of two billion people worldwide who use the web in an information environment that travels at breakneck pace.

Our success depends in part on how well we understand Search Engine Optimization (SEO). This is a technique that we use, along with millions of other bloggers and businesses, to generate traffic. In a nutshell: SEO requires strategic use and placement of certain key words.

We have to anticipate the words people use when they go online to find information, use them, and then strategically link those terms with stories in our archives. And we have to do this without compromising the quality of our news.

“Google accounts for nearly half of all Internet searches. Yahoo! and MSN are the next most popular search sites,” according to Microsoft.

These are the five most frequently searched terms (taken from Google trends) for March 31, 2011: yankees, cincinnati reds, ocelot, atlanta braves, and the room.

So, what does this have to do with Baba Ghanoush and Israeli porno? It turns out that the words chosen in our title are among the most popular terms that draw attention to our site.

Does this mean that we are going to start writing about Israeli porn? Not any time soon, but we will keep you up to date on the best baba ghanoush recipes available, and the unfolding developments at the “world’s first carbon-neutral city” – Masdar.

Happy April Fool’s everyone.

More on Baba Ghanoush and Masdar City!
Taking on Middle Eastern Classics: Baba Ghanoush Recipe
Re-Assessing Masdar City
Masdar City: Small Hiccups Or Total System Failure?

Japanese Radiation Reaches Israel

Tafline Laylin
-
0

tel aviv coast Traces of radioactive material from Japan have been detected in Israel.

The Soreq Nuclear Research Center announced that traces of radiation had reached Israel on Tuesday, Xinhua reported.This radioactive material is most likely to have carried from Japan, where the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant exploded following the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that has left scores of Japanese dead and missing.

Although the number 2 reactor at the Fukushima plant in Japan is leaking dangerous quantities of radiation, Israel’s Atomic Energy Commission noted that the concentration of Iodine-131 detected in Israel is 400,000 times lower than after the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear explosion and posed no environmental or health risks.

“The public can continue its daily routine as usual,” the IAEC said in a statement. Traces of radiation stemming from Japan have been discovered in Siberia, the Pacific, North America, and most Chinese provinces.

:: Israel National News

More on the Japanese nuclear disaster and consequences for the Middle East:
Japan Nuclear Meltdown Will Seriously Affect World Environment
As Japan Nuclear Plant Melts Down, Israel Plans To Build A “Safe One”
As Japan Plant Nears Meltdown, What Can The Middle East Do To Prepare

For more news on Israel, see the Jerusalem Post.

image via Shayan (USA)

1...540541542...779Page 541 of 779

Have news to share? Renewable energy news, architectural, artificial intelligence, biotech, sustainable design ideas, eco-architecture, green travel?
Email us: [email protected]

Company

Headlines

Jujube, the tree of medicine and magic

0
When you hear “jujube,” you might first think of...

Jean-Pierre Conte: Five Principles That Guide My Philanthropic Decisions

0
Jean Pierre Conte is the chairman and managing director of Genstar Capital, a leading middle-market private equity firm with investments in healthcare, software, financial services and industrial technology.

Ancient Roman strategy game figured out with AI

0
Two thousand years ago, someone scratched a web of lines into stone in a Roman settlement on the empire’s northern edge. Soldiers, traders, or locals passing time in Coriovallum—now Heerlen in the Netherlands, moved small counters across those lines in a tactical duel of blockade and entrapment.

First ever recorded humpback whale recording found from 1949

0
Unlike most recordings from this era, which were lost as early media deteriorated, the audograph discs survived and appear to have been uniquely used for underwater sound — making them a rare, possibly singular example of early ocean listening preserved from the dawn of marine acoustics.

Newsletter

Get important news delivered directly to your inbox and stay connected!

© 2007 to 2026 Green Prophet, All Rights Reserved