Christopher Fox's Blog (11)

I have found a really cool new product called LifeStraw, which is a portable water filter that can be used by some of the one billion people without access to clean, safe drinking water. Each one uses a four-layer filter system that can filter up to 1000 liters of water and kills 99% of disease-causing microbes. Producing and distributing enough of these could really save a wh*** lot of lives!

Party at my house in 2020! WOO-HOO!! My brand new house is as energy-efficient as they come, complete with state-of-the-art windows and insulation, a photovoltaic paint job, and photovoltaic shingles covering my entire roof! The water used to cook food is heated using an energy-efficient tankless water heater (powered by the shingles) and the food is cooked on a stove using gas instead of electricity. My home is completely energy self-sufficient, and I actually sell energy back to the…

I have found a cool guide on how to make your own solar powered USB charger (to charge cell phones or anything else that usesUSB): http://www.instructables.com/id/Solar-Altoids-USB-Charger/

I'm going to give this a shot when I get the chance and hope that I don't blow something up!

Researchers at the University of Notre Dame have created cheap paint that has photovoltaic properties: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111221211324.htm

Companies like Dow Chemicals and Atlantis Energy Systems currently produce photovoltaic shingles designed to look and fit like regular asphalt shingles:…

Researchers at the University of Notre Dame have created cheap paint that has photovoltaic properties: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111221211324.htm

Companies like Dow Chemicals and Atlantis Energy Systems currently produce photovoltaic shingles designed to look and fit like regular asphalt shingles:…

In 2020, I would like for my food to have been prepared completely locally. Locally grown vegetables, locally grown fruit, locally grown herbs, and local livestock. Rather than being pumped full of pesticides and hormones that are potentially unsafe for long-term consumption, the food is all organic and humane. It tastes much better than the overly procesessed food today that is prepared halfway around the world, frozen, and shipped here.

My wife and I have been working on an herb and vegitabel garden at our home. Even in the small space that we have dedicated to the garden, we grow way more than enough for the two of us, so we also share the herbs and vegetables with our neighbors whenever they need them. Of course, we aren't anywhere near self-sufficient, but it really makes you realize that self-sufficiency is possible within small groups of families.

I have been reading up a bit about vertical farming, a great idea that could help alleviate food shortages in major cities and urban areas. Here's a video from a TEDx event with D***son Despommier talking about it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIdP00u2KRA

Of course this isn't just a great idea for huge cities, but it's a great idea for anywhere, including right here in Charleston, where land is expensive and difficult to come…

Ten years from now I will probably still be in the Marine Corps. Hopefully by then I will have earned my master's degree, and I'll be working to line up my next career upon retirement from the military. I really hope to be able to be part of the political process in some way. I don't know if I have the right personality to be a successful politician, but I'd love to at least work behind the scenes to get things done!

I've decided to shadow Bill Gates and the work of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. I think it's incredible that they have taken their massive wealth gained in computer technology and used it as a force for good in the world. Every time I read about some new project or innovation from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, I'm struck by Bill Gates' philanthropy and innovative use of his own special skills as well as some of the smartest folks around!

I particularly liked the suggestion that we approach problems as though we are children. Children have no limit to their imaginative capacity, and they are blank slates without preconceived notions or biases. As adults, we tend to approach problems by trying to compare them to other similar problems that we have encountered before and try to make everything fit. We use past experience as a frame of reference for future decisions. This can obviously be a very good and useful thing to do, but…