Trouvelot Astronomy – In 1875 Étienne Léopold Trouvelot, using the [Harvard] observatory’s 15-inch refracting telescope, produced this drawing of sunspots. At the time the human eye could detect more detail than photgraphic plates. (modern photos of sunspots) Trouvelot is also noted for the introduction of the Gypsy Moth to the U.S. More of thes illustrations on the marvelous BibliOdyssey Blog, which gathers amazing illustrations from old books. This illustration is from the New York Public Library’s collection. Via BoingBoing

Filed under: Art- , Blogs, Good Sites, Science - by gamma
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A/C D.C. The deluded world of air conditioning

Outdoor air used to cool at night, allowing us to recover from the day’s heat. Now it doesn’t. To fuel our own air conditioning, we’re destroying nature’s.

The hotter it gets, the more energy we burn. In 1981, only one in three American households with central air used it all summer long. By 1997, more than half did. Countries once cooled by outdoor air now cool themselves. In Britain, 75 percent of new cars have air conditioning. In Canada, energy consumption for residential cooling has doubled in 10 years, and half the homes now have central or window units. Kuujjuaq, an Eskimo village 1,000 miles north of Montreal, just bought 10 air conditioners. According to the mayor, it’s been getting hot lately.

Filed under: Politics- , Ecology - by gamma
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