13-Year-Old Discovers Way to Make Solar Energy More Efficient

Young naturalist Aidan Dwyer applied the Fibonacci sequence, a mathematical principle found in nature, to solar panels and discovered a way for them to produce 20 percent more energy.

Aidan was awarded a patent for his invention, and one more thing, he’s only 13 years old. The idea was sparked during a hiking trip Aidan took in the Catskill Mountains. He noticed the Fibonacci sequences among tree branches. The sequence states, “Starting with the numbers 0 and 1, each subsequent number is the sum of the previous two – 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13…. These numbers, when put in ratios, happens to show up in the patterns of branches and leaves on trees.”

Aidan knew that tree leaves collected sunlight energy for photosynthesis similar to how solar panels take in energy. Therefore, he hypothesized and sought to find out whether their Fibronacci sequences helped them take in more sunlight and thus produce more energy.

Aidan’s hypothesis was correct, and he applied his findings to solar panels.

To sum up his conclusions, Aidan wrote,

“The tree design takes up less room than flat-panel arrays and works in spots that don’t have a full southern view. It collects more sunlight in winter. Shade and bad weather like snow don’t hurt it because the panels are not flat. It even looks nicer because it looks like a tree. A design like this may work better in urban areas where space and direct sunlight can be hard to find.”

Do you know a young naturalist who will also someday change the world? How do we keep kids engaged in science?

Snack Food Trying To Be A Little Greener

Sun Chips of Frito Lay is making quite the crunch this week.  From Facebook, to twitter, to the Wall Street Journal there is a steady buzz about all the noise that Frito-Lay has been making with their green line of snacks.  Sun Chips is definitely making positive strides toward a greener treat from their packaging to their actual products.

Seven months ago Sun Chips began mass distribution of their products in a newer noisier bag.  The bag is made out of a plant-based material, polylactic acid, and claims to fully decompose in about 14 weeks if put into hot active compost (pretty good compared to the nearly 100 years it takes typical chip bags).  The polymer used to make the bags has a higher “glass transition temperature” which basically means that it’s more brittle than rubbery.

One of the current production plants for Sun Chips has also transitioned to Solar Energy to help lower their environmental impact.  In Modesto, CA 145,000 bags of Sun Chips are produced and ready to ship each and every day.  The plant in Modest is one of eight separate facilities that creates and packages the noisy treats; don’t get too excited because they have a long way to go, but their efforts should be celebrated for now.

Despite their green efforts, they have yet to make the transition to an organic product.  Perhaps that will be their next step.  Don’t let anybody trick you into thinking snacks like this are “healthy,” but Sun Chips are definitely less bad for you than some of their competition.

All-in-all, Frito-Lay is making some great steps in the right direction.  Hopefully people can ignore the noisy bag due to the positive impact that it can make over the alternatives.

For more eco-friendlier products, swing over to Organic Bug for everything from organic gluten free sweet brownie treats to jewelry made out of recycled glass!

Need an Incentive to Go Solar?

Going green has been a trending topic for years now, and our hopes is it won’t be a trend but a way of life. One state has implemented a bill that is allowing us to move away from coal and focus more on the use of alternative energy.

In the state of California, a bill was implemented where a home owner using solar panels could sell their excess energy back to the utilities company. When the law was first issued, a cap of 2.5 percent of the total utilities energy was allowed to be purchased from homeowners, however recently they increased the cap to 5 percent.

Not only is this a major benefit for our beautiful planet and hopefully a lead other states will follow, but it is a plus for the homeowners who’s monthly utilities bills’ may go from $100 to as little as a dollar a month. Also, this action will create green job growth within the state of California, helping with their current state. Bill author Assembly member Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) said, “California leads the nation in solar energy, accounting for more than 65 percent of the all the solar installed in the U.S. Net metering has been absolutely fundamental to that success. The passage of this bill means continued green job growth, further energy bill savings, progress in the fight against climate change, and a brighter future for California.”

To learn more about this bill, check out the press release.