Articles by Sarah Laskow

New photovoltaic generator runs on heat instead of sunlight

Photovoltaic cells, the basic unit of solar power systems, turn light into electricity. But fueling photovoltaics with sunlight isn't always practical. MIT scientists came up with a way around this issue: they found a really efficient way to turn heat into light.

Tokyo is cutting electricity use by 15 percent

Japanese people are already kicking Americans' butts when it comes to energy efficiency: they use half as much energy as we do already, despite their proclivity for gadgets like automatic toilets. But since the Fukushima meltdown, they've gotten even more hyper-aware of the need to save energy.

In Tokyo, the government is hoping to cut electricity use during work hours by 15 percent compared to last year, and they're on track to do it.

Critical List: New fuel economy standards; flat screens use less energy

Both options currently on the table for raising the debt ceiling would cut environment and energy spending.

The president will announce new fuel economy standards -- cars and light-duty trucks will need to be at 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025.

The EPA is proposing the first air standards for fracking.

British kids build greenhouse out of plastic bottles

What do you do with the empty plastic bottles that you really shouldn't have been drinking out of, anyway? These British school children spent a year and half collecting 1,500 of them and used the bottles to construct a greenhouse, in which they are very successfully growing tomatoes.