These are a few stories we found this week that may be of interest to institute regulars. If you have a news tip, please send it to lowtechinstitute@gmail.com.
Low Tech News
Thinking about building a geodesic dome? Don’t. – TreeHugger
The Most Useful Tool on the Modern Farm is Data – Vice: Motherboard
Heat Storage Hypocausts: Air Heating in the Middle Ages – Low-Tech Magazine
Famines in the 21st century? It’s not for lack of food – The Conversation
4 lessons learned from a year of extreme frugality – TreeHugger
Lead is back on the menu for those who hunt and fish – TreeHugger
Creating Community: The Growing Abundance Project – Milkwood Permaculture Blog
$2,000 DIY Tiny Houses – Natural Building Blog
Cutting food waste helps companies profit – Grist
New Mexico Tiny House Bill Passes 66-0 – Natural Building Blog
Do we really need to double food production by 2050? Actually … no. – Grist
[Episode #38] – Getting from Here to There – Energy Transition Show
This man is cloning old-growth redwoods and planting them in safe places (video) – TreeHugger
Netting Fruit Trees for Pest Control – Deep Green Permaculture
Environmental News
Spring just keeps getting earlier. Guess what’s behind it? – Grist
Antarctica’s sea ice just hit the lowest level ever seen. – Grist
Scientists Say Fracking Regulations Probably Helped Reduce Manmade Earthquakes – Vice: Motherboard
UK CO2 emissions fall to Victorian-era levels – TreeHugger
Farmers Fight Environmental Regulations – NPR
Permafrost Collapse – Vice
“Science” is no longer part of the EPA science office’s mission – Grist
Spring Came Early. Scientists Say Climate Change Is a Culprit. – New York Times
Research News
Heating our homes kills 10,000 Americans per year – TreeHugger
Modern hunter-gathers relocate to maximize foraging efficiency, study finds – ScienceDaily
Why We Can’t Look Away From Our Screens – New York Times
700+ native bee species spiraling toward extinction – TreeHugger
Plants could be supercharged to absorb more carbon dioxide – TreeHugger
Most Americans think climate change is happening – to somebody else – TreeHugger
Forbidding Forecast For Lyme Disease In The Northeast – NPR
The Secret to a Really Crisp Apple – New York Times
Op-Ed¹
Energy efficiency isn’t enough anymore – TreeHugger
Communicating climate change: Focus on the framing, not just the facts – The Conversation
Why we should pay far more for clothes – TreeHugger
Scientific theories aren’t mere conjecture – to survive they must work – The Conversation
Personal solutions can’t save the planet – TreeHugger
Disclaimer: The news stories and posts linked above are not meant as an endorsement of the information presented. They are provided as they may be of interest to our readers and further our aims of solutions for a post-fossil-fuel world. We strive to provide fact-based information. If you feel that political views are being presented in a partisan fashion, we are happy to provide equal time to opposing view points as long as they are derived from verifiable data and facts.
¹Opinion pieces represent the independent thought of their authors and may or may not represent the position of the Low Technology Institute.