Uncategorized

Get to stitchin’, bitchez

Yo-ho-ho me fellow lovers of the briny deep. I realized just recently that me li’l column be runnin’ for a whole year now. Remember that first arrrr-ticle? With the joking […]

A new blog — just what the world needs

I get lots of requests along the lines of, "hey, I just started a new green blog, will you give me a mention and a link?" Before you send one […]

Love, Nancy

Via The Gavel, a letter issued yesterday by Nancy Pelosi, et al, re: Green this Hill, damnit: The Honorable Daniel P. Beard Chief Administrative Officer U.S. House of Representatives Washington, […]

The beginning of a deluge

Two of the world’s leading oil producers have almost overnight joined some of the biggest players in wind power in the United States, accelerating a trend of large corporations investing […]

Dumbly

The nonpartisan U.S. Government Accountability Office recently issue a blistering report on the Department of Energy’s delinquent treatment of energy efficiency standards. Despite a mandate from Congress, DOE has missed […]

Fed legislation shouldn’t mess with state efforts

Speaking of this argument Jason raised — what exactly Dems should do on global warming in the next two years — one point strikes me as central: whatever Congress does, […]

Readers write in about sexist hair-color remarks, microwaving tea, eco rock concerts, and more

  Re: It’s Official: He Rocks Dear Editor: So Cameron Diaz is more luscious as a blonde than a brunette? Since when does Grist publish this type of sexist garbage […]

Don’t Make Her Bust Out That Bustier

Famed California town may have to fight yet another pollution battle Note to pollutey people: if you want to keep a low profile, perhaps it’s wise not to situate yourself […]

Who’s on the climate change A-List

Listen up, all you eco-celeb-hatas. (Yeah, you!) Starry-eyed site Ecorazzi and DeSmogBlog, which aims to clear the PR pollution clouding the science on climate change, have teamed up to create […]

Chris Jordan makes staggering statistics visually real

Our minds have a limited capacity to comprehend really, really big numbers. At least mine does. A million tons of C02 might as well be a zillion. Twelve and a half million dollars spent every hour on the Iraq war might as well be bazillions.

Sometimes we try to fathom the enormities of raw numbers by visualizing them. How often have you heard that something stacked on end would extend to the moon and back?

But that never helps me. I can't actually comprehend just how many pop cans, or human DNA particles, or safety pins, or Chevy engines or hot dogs would get me to the moon. It's just a heck of a lot.

Luckily for people like me, Seattle artist Chris Jordan has found a way to put big numbers into perspective.