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Multiple positions, immediate or May 2011 commencement date High profile consulting company working on a large Federal Government project 6mths + a further 6-12mths extension

If you are an experienced Infrastructure SQL DBA, seeking a Contract engagement at excellent rates or permanent role with a great salary package, then these roles are designed with you in mind.

Solar Power Authority has a post on the solar powered Google headquarters - Googleplex Solar. The Googleplex headquarters located in Mountain View California has installed one of the largest corporate solar power structures of any other company to date. The array consists of 9,212 solar panels produced by Sharp Electronics and has a capacity of 1.6 Megawatts (MW) which cover's ~30% of the Google campus electricity needs, the equivalent of roughly 1,000 California homes. This installation is said to save Google $393,000 in electricity per year and can be monitored real time at this interactive page that contains data on the electricity being produced. One of the most unique features of the Googleplex array of solar panels is that it contains several clusters of solar trees. These parking lot covers are designed to keep cars cool while also producing electricity and serving it to both the Googleplex or plugin hybrid electric cars (PHEV's).

Inhabitat has a post on Toyota's latest hybrid vehicle design - Toyota's New Hybrid MR2 Revealed!. The Toyota MR2 sportscar is hitting the road, remade from its older version into a Prius-inspired hybrid vehicle. The new MR2 will draw inspiration (and technology) from the iconic Toyota Prius, with the goal of creating a mass market hybrid sportscar that is as fun to drive as it is green. Toyota's development of the MR2 is not to one-up the Tesla Roadster, but rather to create a car that can do a reasonable 0-60mph in seven seconds and get an incredible 60mpg. We are all familiar with Toyota's efforts to create a mass market electric vehicle. The Prius, after all, is the best known green car on the market. So looking to capitalize on such technology while creating a sportier, much more dynamic looking vehicle has great implications for both a consumer market and the corporation's innovation.

Technology Review has an article on a startup that says its "solid polymer electrolytes will mean cheaper, more-reliable batteries" - Better Lithium-ion Batteries. A new incarnation of lithium-ion batteries based on solid polymers is in the works. Berkeley, CA-based startup Seeo, Inc. says its lithium-ion cells will be safer, longer-lasting, lighter, and cheaper than current batteries. Seeo's batteries use thin films of polymer as the electrolyte and high-energy-density, light-weight electrodes. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory is now making and testing cells designed by the University of California, Berkeley spinoff. Lithium-ion batteries are used in cell phones and laptops because they are smaller and lighter than other types of batteries. They are also promising for electric and hybrid vehicles. However, conventional materials and chemistries have stopped them from being used extensively in cars.

Even with those efforts we support we still have to make hard choices and it is not as easy when struggling against the giant oild companies.

Feinstein is working on legislation that would designate hundreds of thousands of acres of desert land as a national monument, which would put them off-limits for solar and wind energy projects. That could result in a green- versus-green confrontation, pitting those who want to protect the desert ecosystem against those who believe renewable-energy projects are a vital part of the struggle to avert catastrophic climate change.

President Obama's proposed $9.9 billion Energy Department budget contains up to $28 million for a Pantex wind farm that would be designed to meet the nuclear weapons plant's energy needs. The Pantex Renewable Energy Project would be built on land in the vicinity of the plant and could generate surplus electrical power that could be sold to utilities, according to budget documents. Preliminary plans call for the wind farm to be built by 2012. The project's overall scope would depend on future funding, but plans call for enough wind turbines to generate up to 75 megawatts of electrical generating capacity. Initial funding would only support construction of a 10- to 15-megawatt system.

Basically, a cross between the convenience of grabbing a cab and a public bus; the podcars will be a component of Masdar City's public transportation system. As part of Masdar City's car-free design; these podcars will be part of a network of electric taxis without drivers (!). The first of these podcars (also known as personal rapid transit - PRT) are set to debut this year

REW reports the world's biggest solar thermal tower has opened in Spain - World's Largest Solar Power Tower Commissioned. Abengoa Solar has begun commercial operations of the world's largest solar power tower plant, a 20 MW installation. The company claims that the performance of the power plant, the so-called PS20, has exceeded its design output in the wake of its three-day production and operational testing period. Located at the Solúcar Platform, near Seville, Spain, PS20 is the world's second power tower plant in commercial use and features a number of significant technological improvements with respect to its predecessor, PS10. These enhancements include a higher-efficiency receiver, various improvements in the control and operational systems, and a better thermal energy storage system. PS20 consists of a solar field made up of 1255 heliostats with a surface area of 1291 square feet each. This reflects the solar radiation it receives onto the receiver, located on the top of a 531 foot-high tower, producing steam which is converted into electricity generation by a turbine. Plant construction was carried out by Abener.

What do you do if you build a wind farm smack dab in the middle of a major bird migration route, and want to avert the anger of conservationists? Put up a radar system that's designed to shut down the entire thing when it detects a mass of birds on the way. That's what's been done at the 202 MW Peñascal Wind Farm in Texas: System Detects Birds Approaching Four Miles Away The system uses radar originally developed for NASA and the US Air Force to detect birds as far as four miles away, The Guardian reports. When it picks up the approaching birds, it analyzes the existing weather conditions and determines in real time whether those birds are in danger of flying into the blades. The system then automatically restarts the turbines when the birds have passed.

Technology Review has an article on thin film solar vendor Xunlight's approach - making cells on flexible steel sheets - Roll-Up Solar Panels. Xunlight, a startup in Toledo, Ohio, has developed a way to make large, flexible solar panels. It has developed a roll-to-roll manufacturing technique that forms thin-film amorphous silicon solar cells on thin sheets of stainless steel. Each solar module is about one meter wide and five and a half meters long. As opposed to conventional silicon solar panels, which are bulky and rigid, these lightweight, flexible sheets could easily be integrated into roofs and building facades or on vehicles. Such systems could be more attractive than conventional solar panels and be incorporated more easily into irregular roof designs. They could also be rolled up and carried in a backpack, says the company's cofounder and president, Xunming Deng. "You could take it with you and charge your laptop battery," he says.

Whirlpool's WFW8300SW model has an ultra efficient design with a duet sport washer. It uses 60% less water and energy making it the best choice for an economical usage.

The system has been designed in such a way that it can support up to two OutBack FX series inverter or chargers or up to two MX60 charge controllers and all necessary AC and DC components.

Nearly every store has a green shopping bag display now, right at the checkout lane. Many people bring their own however, and the green shopping bag industry is a wide open one to explore for the person, with the right skill set.

The best product in this genre is the flip it envelopes. Basically, such an envelope looks like a regular little pouch, but after you are done, you turn it inside out and use it again to send to the next address.

Heliodyne 75 liters direct vent gas water heater runs only on natural gas, not on propane or kerosene. The product has been designed in such a way that it has to be installed in certain places where atmospheric units cannot be used.

The building's design should be one that takes into account as many green aspects as possible. From using natural lighting to reduce the amount of electricity, to good air ventilation to reduce the need for energy for cooling, the building should be built to save money and resources.

We have to wear shoes to protect our feet during cold days, wet days or when we are walking on uneven, potentially dangerous surfaces. Some shoes, however, are not good for the environment.

A fireplace is one of the best features of many homes and is often listed as one of the selling points to it. If someone wants to upgrade or redo a room in their home, they often consider adding a fireplace, including the new, free standing models and other types that give heat and create a central focal point to the room.

A golf course is a beautiful thing, but for the non-golfer might be seen as nothing more than a luxurious waste of land. A golf course may also be seen as a blight on the environment for many reasons, including the strenuous work it takes to keep the grounds so immaculate.