First FAIL letter.....

About a month ago I got my first FAIL for the Pre-Design Exam. I passed 4 exams already, but I will have to do PD again in six months......next on to Materials and Methods on 12/1/08. Hope I will pass this one,  otherwise next year is going to be very busy....

Trying to finish some tests

Well, it has been almost 10 months since I don't post anything to my blog. The reason....I've studying for my Architectural Exam Review (ARE Exams).

In order to become licensed in the state of New York, I had to go through a process that I'm almost finishing. I had to get 3 years of experience as an Intern and then I was able to start with the tests.

There is a total of 9 exams; as up today, so far i have done 5 and getting ready for the 6th one.

Just wish me luck and I hope to come back and keep posting whatever I find interesting very soon!!

Website that tracks CO2 emissions!

Power plants are the biggest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, accounting for 40 percent of the CO2 pumped into the atmosphere. A new Web site shows how much carbon is coming from each plant or power company around the world www.carma.org

Last Report by IPCC

Officially, tomorrow, nearly 200 governments will sign their names (again) to a statement that human activities are largely responsible for triggering climate change, that the impacts of climate change are already being felt, and that the cost of minimising future impacts is a sum that has previously been described as negligible ( see more in....New Scientist - Earth
www.newscientist.com/blog/environment/2007/11/ipcc-let-political-battles-begin.html?feedId=earth_rss20

Green Rebates & Incentives in US

Are you aware of the Database of State Incentives for Renewable Energy (DSIRE) website? This is a great resource describing federal, state, and local incentives applying to commercial, utility and residential categories. Check to make sure you are taking advantage of all of the incentives available to you and increase your energy efficiency!

Incentives or policies to reduce the use of Plastic Bags

The other day I was doing my grocery shopping on my local supermarket. At the register, there were for sale reusable bags for $99 cents. I thought this would be a great idea to buy a few bags and bring them back to the store in my next visit. But how many of us will carry those all the time so we can use them the next time we have to buy? it is something that we have to start using and get use to carry them in the trunk. After reading an article in the NY Times, I learned about some policies adopted to reduce the use of plastic bags, here are a few of them:

• shops that offers reusable bags
• raffles for free food or gifts certificates for people who bring their own reusable bags
• San Francisco banned the use of petroleum-based plastic bags in large supermarkets and pharmacies
• In Ireland, the government taxed plastics bags in 2001, consumption fell by 90%
• IKEA is charging plastics bags and is selling huge reusable bags, excellent to carry heavy stuff and groceries for the home
  

Its Nuclear Power coming back to the US?

A company in Texas in seeking approval to construct 2 nuclear reactors in US. Last time in US to approve work of a nuclear plant was in 1978 before the Three Mile Island accident in March/79.
Advanced boiling water reactor, a new technology more reliable. It reduces risk of meltdown, reduce cost and time of construction. There are four reactors like this one in Japan and two are under construction in Taiwan.
If construction will be approved, would the US start to go ahead like France? we will see.............

Is It Too Much GreEn?

clipped from www.sustainablepratt.org

Are we seeing too much Green? June 25th 2007 An article in The New York Times asks us to think critically about the current "Green" Madness we are seeing in retail. We all want to be consciencous consumers, but deciding what is truly environmentally friendly is getting tough. The article centers around Mega Retailer of all things domestic, Home Depot. The mega chain offers over 60,000 "green" products, not just compact flourescent lightbulbs. Consumer beware! Some of these products may be jumping on the increasingly crowded eco-bandwagon. Just because a product is packaged in recycled cardboard, may not mean it is kind to the earth.