After analyzing the data, the ZERO-System Sustainable Land Association and Portuguese Renewable Energy Association have determined that between 6:45 am on May 7 and and 5:45 pm on May 11, Portugal’s total energy use was all covered by renewable energy sources.
The World Economic Forum reports that Portugal has been building up its renewable energy sources for the past few years. In 2013, the country reportedly generated 7.5 percent of its electricity with wind power, increasing to 22 percent last year. In addition, WEF says, Portugal got about half of its energy from renewable sources (including solar and hydro power) in 2015.
While four days doesn’t seem like much, it’s an encouraging prospect that an entire country can meet its energy demands through renewables. Perhaps it will inspire those who are particularly driven by friendly competition.
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said it would update guidelines for nutritional labels on packaged food and beverages to include information on added sugar and to prominently display calorie count and servings.
The move comes at a time the United States is staring at increasing childhood and adult obesity and lifestyle diseases such as heart problems.
The FDA said on Friday that the modified guidelines, which companies would have to adopt within two years, would help consumers “make informed decisions about the foods they eat and feed their families.” (1.usa.gov/1ODAIin)
“What and how much people eat and drink has changed since the last serving size requirements were published in 1993,” the FDA said.
Currently, companies are required to provide details on the total amount of sugar in a product. Under the modified guidelines, they will have to break down details on the amount of added sugar such as corn syrup and white and brown sugar.
Information about “Calories from Fat” will be removed because research shows the type of fat is more important than the amount, the FDA said.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than a third of U.S. adults are obese.
First Lady Michelle Obama, who has used her White House position to launch the “Let’s Move” campaign to fight childhood obesity, had called for the changes two years ago.
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Last year, Ikea surveyed 8,500 people in eight cities around the world, to better understand their kitchen habits. The results of that survey are published in the company’s second annual Life at Home Report. Among the more interesting findings was the fact that 60 percent of survey participants grew plants indoors, be they vegetables or flowers. Gardening was more common in Shanghai, where the number is 75 percent.
It’s no surprise, then, that Shanghai is where Ronnie Runesson, a senior product developer at Ikea, came up with the company’s new line of indoor gardening kits. Runesson, who is Swedish and has worked at Ikea for 33 years, recently spent three years in the company’s Shanghai office. While in Shanghai he visited with other product suppliers, and saw several small, indoor units where office workers grew their own lettuces and herbs. Runesson, whose parents were farmers, was intrigued. He did some market research and found similar products in Japan and China, but none for purchase in countries like Sweden or the United States. So he brought the idea to Ikea. Ikea adapted the concept, and the Krydda/Växer line of small-scale hydroponic gardening kits was born. It’s available now in the UK, and will make its way stateside early next year.
Ikea
The Krydda/Växer kits include a handful of parts: seeds, a frame, an LED light that mimics the sun, and two trays. The first houses moistened, stone wool plugs; the second, water-retaining pumice stones. Seeds implanted in the stone wool plugs eventually sprout. After that, the seeds and plugs get repotted into new vessels, along with the pumice stones. Users water the plants evenly with a small irrigation system. Seven months later, the newly grown herbs, lettuce, bok choy, and chard—Ikea’s initial offering—can go directly from planter to plate.
Runesson wanted the system to be as simple as possible. He also wanted to ensure that people around the world could grow plants successfully at any time of year. He and his team consulted with scientists at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences to create a universally viable growing kit, which, in this case, means a starter pack of 12 seeds and some appropriate fertilizer. The LED lighting, too, needed to work for all kinds of climates, kitchen sizes, and sun exposure.
Ikea is paying special attention to the idea that, in the future, people will have to adapt to living in smaller apartments in urban environments. To explore that idea, last year Ikea partnered with Ideo to create a concept kitchen for the year 2025. The prototypes for near-future living included a smart table that uses augmented reality to assist cooking, inductive cooling containers, and a composting system that siphons off nutrients from waste to feed indoor plants. The Krydda/Växer kits aren’t that high-tech, but they are a step in the direction of sustainable city living. Besides, it’s only 2016. We’ve still got nine years to get to that AR kitchen table.
You’re probably used to getting turn-by-turn directions to your next destination with Google Maps, but there’s also a pretty-well-hidden Driving Mode just for… well, driving. It alerts you to traffic problems, directs you to nearby gas pumps and stores, and is useful for those times when you already know your route or don’t even have a destination in mind.
Sitting in front of a screen all day can wreak havoc on the spine. Our posture changes, and that can cause some serious long-term damage. Dr. Eric Goodman, creator of the Foundation Training program, offers these three no-equipment exercises to help.
The exercises (The Founder, Lunge Stretch, and an unnamed third one) promise to both reduce your back pain as well as improve your posture over time. Goodman helpfully explains the correct technique for each step, as well as exactly which part of your muscle should be feeling stretched or activated when you do a step. It’s great at letting you know if you’re doing it right or not.
Before you start, do note that if you have chronic back pain or are already seeing a physiotherapist, you should check with them first. You might also want to start with this other wall-based posture-correction exercise, which is simpler to do than Goodman’s methods. If you notice pain during those, you’re better off checking with a doctor before trying the Foundation Training exercises.
