Watts up? A bright idea (Global Warming/Oprah/Environmental Whacko Alert)

Newsday ^ | 3/16/2006 | RHODA AMON

[Born Conservative]

Pupils launch bid to save Americans $2.3B in electric costs; seek Oprah's help in plan to dole out lightbulbs

Qiana Marks and 200 other North Babylon students hope to save the Earth - and also save the American public $2.3 billion in electric costs.

It's all part of a campaign begun yesterday in the Robert Moses Middle School to "fight global warming one lightbulb at a time," said Kenny Luna, eighth-grade science teacher.

Luna and his students want to give an energy-saving compact fluorescent lightbulb to every school child in America, "all 50 million between pre-kindergarten and 12th grade."

They're asking TV star Oprah Winfrey to help spread the word.

CFL bulbs use an average 75 percent less energy than normal lightbulbs. If every student changed one bulb, the saving at $46 per bulb would add up to $2.3 billion, Luna calculated.

[Einigkeit_Recht_Freiheit]

"You are looking at "climate change" since last season, not climate change history of hundreds and thousands of years."

See post 20.

[Nathan Zachary]

They do save you a lot of money. But they are extremely bad for reading by. As far a making you "moody", they are color corrected, even less "yellow" than a regular bulb. Plus they last 10 times longer. Anywhere you leave a light on, put one of those in. But if you like to read, get something brighter.

[Publius6961]

So you don't think the climate is changing? Have you been outside lately?
Of course it has been. The real question is: is it now changing in a significantly different way than it has the last 200,000 years? Rational scientists with no agenda all agree not. Any minuscule difference is masked by the huge changes in climate on the macro time scale.

It would appear that 5 or 6 standard deviations from the mean have become commonplace. Or maybe the mean has changed and we are getting more extreme weather?
Which "mean"? Your personal one? The only one that counts? Nothing is meaningful outside your lifetime?
Fortunately, using mathematical jargon has little or no effect on informed educated adults. Anyone can call up the real science of climate over the last 100,000, 200,000 or 400,000 years and see for themselves what a joke the current hysteria is over the "change" of the last 50 or 100 years...

[Graybeard58]

Re #23

Thank you. If I could have said it that well, I would have said it myself.

[Nathan Zachary]

As far as logitivity goes, I have some that have been going over 4 years now, one of the 24 hrs a day. Most of the bulbs I use are now florecents. they even come in decorator styles that make you multi bulb lamps/ trac lighting systems look better.

[SlowBoat407]

Poor widdle moody Texan father of two. Don't get your panties in a bunch.

First of all, these kids are passing out fluorescent bulbs in a misguided attempt to "fight global warming", not reduce dependence on foreign oil. Second, it DOES have a definite emotional effect on some people. The wavelength of the fluorescent light can be irritating and cause crankiness. Do you happen to have one on now?

[Publius6961]

Propaganda is not fact.
Repeating the word "fact" does not create it.

You are unfamiliar with the "hockey stick" fraud in analyzing past climate data?
Unfamiliar with the Russian analysis of the absolute incompetence in analyzing gas concentration from ice cores that were never intended for that purpose? Which were not handled properly to prevent contamination?

If hysteria and smug erroneous data is your intention, I suppose not.

[burzum]

I am always wary about someone trying to convince another in an argument by citing 'indisputable facts.' I think most people would more likely be convinced if a reasonable argument was made that did not have the foregone conclusion that it was absolutely correct and completely indisputable.

Instead give a probability. Say that there is a 67% chance of the planet heating up by 3 degrees (with the uncertainty of the probability being 50%). And THEN cite the data that backs it up. Let another person decide for himself or herself whether the data backs up the global warming assertion.

I have spent a lot of time reading different articles relating to global warming (climate cycles, CO2 concentrations, methane gas hydrates, changes in albedos, etc.) and the best that I can say is that it is plausible. I don't know how to determine the uncertainty and most of the models of changes were computer models that have not been rigorously justified. I am also worried about the chaos factor (yes I have studied nonlinear dynamics and chaos). If chaos is involved (and I suspect that it is), then I will have a VERY difficult time trusting computer models.

[Graybeard58]

The wavelength of the fluorescent light can be irritating and cause crankiness. Do you happen to have one on now?

I have a prejudice against fluorescent lighting, having been knocked on my butt while changing one. I know it's not rational to blame the fluorescent aspect for my shock but it's there never the less.

[Nathan Zachary]

I didn't switch to these bulbs for global warming" reasons, I did it to cut down my giant electric bill, LoL! They save me on average about $50 or more a month. And now I don't have to yell so much at the kids leaving a dozen lights on all over the house. It adds up.

[Nathan Zachary]

These low watt bulbs screw in like a regular bulb. In fact some even look like a regular bulb, others look like a spiraled up tube. The starter is built into the base.

[palmer]

they really don't last long enough to justify their price.

I had one (flourescent tube inside a glass dome) that lasted over 5 years outside turned on 24x7. I sold the house, but I should have taken that bulb with me.

[Realism]

But, that humans caused CO2 to rise in a fact. That the earth's climate is changing rapidly is a fact. That the concentration of CO2 is higher than it has been for at least 900,000 years is fact.

I'm pretty sure the industrial revolution didn't begin 900,000 years ago. Therefore I tend to believe that global warning /cooling are a normal part of a natural planetary cycle.

[Wonder Warthog]

"...florescent light makes you moody. I've tried them and they really don't last long enough to justify their price."

Well, I don't know about "makes you moody"--but they DEFINITELY don't live up to their "long life" reputations.

[Nathan Zachary]

The wavelength or color of the florescent bulb is dependent on the gas used in the tube. When floresents first came out, they were a 'greenish' color, and bothered some people after working under them all day.

These days, they are color balanced by adding other gases, much like neon lights are colored using different gases. except for some industrial tube lights, you won't get that color of light in home florescent bulbs, they are actually closer to natural light in color than regular incandescent bulbs.

[antisocial]

http://www.junkscience.com

For your edification

[Wonder Warthog]

"The bulbs all carry a guarantee of longevity, which I've never pursued, but I plan to."

Don't bother. They do NOT live up to their advertising for long life. The "guarantee of longevity" is probably just "free" replacement when they fail prematurely---which costs more in time and effort than any possible "savings".

I've been SERIOUSLY disappointed in their performance, "life-cycle" wise.

[Wonder Warthog]

"Plus they last 10 times longer."

Nope--sorry. Not even close to 10X longer. MAYBE 2X or 3X.

[Fintan]

Just hand these out in lieu of the real thing. Less hot air and bull manure.