energy efficiency

In the opening speech of the National Clean Energy Summit in Las Vegas last night, Bill Clinton offered a list of ten actions the United States could take to help solve the energy crisis and perhaps convince other nations to join in the crusade.

He emphasized that any such plan would have to be economically feasible if we are to convince others to follow suit. Without further ado, here are his suggestions:

1. Congress should put a price on carbon and establish a cap-and-trade system.

2. Tax credits for clean energy should be renewed and lengthened. The current time frame is three years. Clinton thinks that should be doubled or tripled in order to stimulate investment

Organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) seem destined to be a clean, eco-friendly solution to lighting in the very near future. OLEDs are basically LEDs whose electroluminescent surface layer is composed of organic compounds. The compounds can easily be laid down in rows and columns on a polymer substance that holds them in place. OLEDs can be used for television and computer screens as well as lighting. The OLEDs' advantage over LCDs lies in the fact that they require no backlight, allowing them to operate on far less power, and thus far longer on a single charge. They can also be made much thinner than LCDs and manufactured more effectively than both LCDs and plasmas.

That being said, GE has been working on some innovative lighting designs that use OLEDs. Due to their paper thin design

The latest and greatest light bulbs from Nexxus Lighting are here. The Array PAR30 is an LED bulb using only 7.7 watts of power with a brightness equivalent to a 75W standard bulb. They are the first LED bulbs to achieve 95 lumens per watt. These warm or cool white additions to the Array series of bulbs are rated for

a whopping 50,000 hours, over 25 times longer than incandescents. Unlike florescent lamps they power up immediately and can be used with standard dimmers. When the time finally comes to dispose of or recycle expired bulbs, rest assured the PAR30 is RoHS compliant, containing no mercury or lead.

Lenovo's M57p eco sips less power than a 60 watt light bulb, yet comes full-featured for the corporate or small business user. The case saves on space and materials, measuring just 9x11 inches, with a 3 inch height. Not only is the machine

Energy Star 4.0 certified, but when it comes time to recycle or dispose of the unit the components are RoHS compliant (no heavy metals or dangerous flame retardants). The Intel processor is a Wolfdale-based Core 2 Duo E8400 rated at 45 watts. When the desktop is idling, power consumption

Developed by The Laundry Alternative Inc., the Spin Dryer could be up to 100 times more energy efficient than a conventional dryer and could reduce total household energy usage in the U.S. by 6 - 10 percent.

The typical tumble dryer uses about 5,000 watts and run for close to an hour per cycle. The Spin Dryer has short 2 - 3 minute cycle and only uses a maximum of 300 watts. The Spin Dryer works by spinning at a whopping rate of 3200 revolutions per minute, compared to the much slower 500 rpm conventional dryer. This high speed allows the Spin Dryer to extract much more water than a typical washing machine

Solar Electric Vehicles (SEV) has developed a solar module for the 2004 - 2006 Toyota Prius that increases its already great fuel economy. Manufactured with mono-crystalline photovoltaic cells, the module is durable, has no moving parts and is basically maintenance free.

The SEV solar system generates 215 watts of renewable energy and uses a 3kW supplemental battery pack for additional energy storage and increased HV battery performance. The system is capable of adding up to 20 additional miles per day of electric mode driving, increasing the car's fuel economy by up

Direct drive is no longer only for turntables. Sans belts and many inefficient moving parts, the LG Eco Steam washing machine makes the drum into one big motor. This results in extremely quiet operation and simpler maintenance. LG boasts electricity savings

of up to 21 percent over comparable sized washers. In addition to being energy efficient, the appliances save water as well. A built in scale tells the user exactly how much capacity for clothing remains, insuring a full load is run every time. Several cycles and special features use steam, which results

Boulder, Colorado electric-hybrid bike maker Optibike has recently unveiled its OB1 model. The OB1 is a perfect solution for reducing your emissions, getting some good cardiovascular exercise and not arriving to work sweating like a pig.

The idea of electric-hybrid bikes is to add speed or power when you need it (running late or going up hills) but letting you pedal when you please. According to Optibike, "Pedaling an Optibike- you get the same amount of exercise you get on a traditional bicycle- you just go 3X as FAST. The seamless integration of the Optibike patented Motorized Bottom Bracket (MBB) means you can pedal as much, or as little as you desire. Don’t want to get sweaty on your way to work- fine, let the thumb throttle

Phantom power jacking up your utility bill? Sure, you can turn off your power strip. But what if you need your digital video recorder to catch Rock of Love when you're out of town? Belkin's solution hits the shelves this summer in North America and the UK.

The Belkin Conserve is an eight outlet surge protector designed to eliminate standby power and hassle. The unit features two outlets that never turn off, for devices that must remain powered. The rest of the outlets are easily switched off using the included

For $1400 buy the greenest 42 inch flat screen LCD television on the market. Philips full HD set consumes less power than a 100 watt bulb when properly configured. Automatic sensors dim the screen when

the ambient room lighting goes down. In addition, the low-mercury lamp can reduce energy consumption by lowering backlight in dark areas of the screen. The set is assembled with many recyclable components and is lead-free. With all the buzz about standby power consumption these days, this television