The following data was pulled from the nces.ed.gov website.  I have listed the source data link at the bottom of this post.  The first thing I noticed about the data was that adjusted for inflation, 4 year institution tuition is up about 240% from 1980 to 2010!  This is far more than 2 year institutions from the same time period that increased 150%.  The next piece of data I noticed was the price difference between private and public 4 year institutions.  In 2010, the cost of a year of private 4 year institution was about $32,500 per year, compared to about $14,800 per year for public 4 year institution.  Public college on average is half the cost of Private college!  If you were to go to a community college for two years than transfer in state to a public school you could save over $80,000!

Option 1 - Community College / Public 4 year institution:

Cost of 2 years of community college: $16,902

Cost of 2 years of a public 4 year institution: $29,740

Total cost of degree: $46,642

Option 2 - Private 4 year institution:

Cost of 4 years of Private 4 year institution: $129,900

By going to a community college than transferring to a Public 4 year institution, you can save $83,258!  

¹Constant dollars based on the Consumer Price Index, prepared by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, adjusted to a school-year basis.

source: nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=76

When most people think of the diesel engines, they associate them with an inefficient, dirty, engine polluting our air.  This may have been true in the past, but the modern diesel engine and the fuel it runs on are more efficient and much cleaner today.  The modern diesel engine has the highest thermal efficiency of any internal / external combustion engine. According to fueleconomy.gov, diesel engines are more powerful and have a 30% - 35% better fuel efficiency than their similar sized gasoline counterparts.  Diesel fuel is more expensive than regular gasoline, but if you calculate the improved diesel engine efficiency into the equation, diesel engines on a per mile basis are cheaper than gasoline engines.  Why is diesel more expensive than gasoline which is more refined?  This is a complicated question to answer, and I have often wondered the same thing.  Factcheck.org has a great post about possible reasons diesel is more expensive.

In addition to advances to diesel engines themselves, the fuel the engines are burning is cleaner today.  This is due to new diesel fuels like Ultra low sulfur diesel fuel and biodiesel.  Diesel automobiles are very popular in Europe and as of 2007, 53.3% of new car registrations were diesel.  Out of all the countries in Europe, Luxembourg had the highest percentage of new diesel car registrations with 77.2%.  Diesel automobiles will hopefully catch on more here in the united states.  Many manufacturers, like VW have been adding diesel engine models to their inventories here in the US, and plan on adding more in the near future.  If you are in the market for a new ride in the near future, I highly recommend taking a look at a diesel. 

Sources

http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/di_diesels.shtml  

 http://www.greencarcongress.com/2008/02/european-automo.html

http://factcheck.org/2008/05/diesel-fuel-and-gasoline-costs/

LessConsumption recently awarded its approved product seal to Online SoftworX, LLC for its dustCut web application.  The new web app reduces waste in the manufacturing of cabinetry, furniture, windows, and just about anything that requires the cutting of rectangular sheets.

The problem dustCut solves is as old as the kitchen cabinet: Find the lowest possible labor and material cost to produce a set of rectangular panels. It sounds simple enough, but actually, the astronomical number of potential cutting plans has made it challenging for software developers to create panel optimization algorithms capable of reducing waste to its bare minimum. The question barely arises when manufacturing runs are small, say, a single kitchen. But as manufacturing runs scale up, the potential to reduce waste improves dramatically. However, to truly realize the savings, the right algorithms and a lot of computing horsepower need to be applied.

Until recently, manufacturers who appreciated the need for robust panel optimization had to license and install expensive software systems. Unfortunately the cost has kept this valuable tool out of the reach of most manufacturers already struggling in a highly competitive sector. But times change and Online SoftworX is now serving manufacturers that need high-end optimization without the high-end license fee. According to the company’s CEO, "The Online SoftworX mission is to leverage cloud computing and its inherent pay-as-you-go pricing to deliver high-end panel optimization to anyone who needs it."

So can the move from expensive, installed software to pay-as-you-go web applications really help save the planet? We think so. Manufacturing and construction account for a huge portion of global resource use and pollution. Anything that can help more manufacturers run more efficiently deserves our recognition, and we therefore award our approved product seal to this innovative new company. Why not check it out yourself, and if you happen to be in manufacturing, see if you can apply this new resource in your plant.

dustCut Solution Preview

The Pongam tree, otherwise known as the "Indian Beech, “Pongam Oiltree”,” Pumgai” and by several other names, is a renewable bio fuel source that is starting to get more attention here in the United States.  The Pongam tree is a member of the pea family and has been grown and used in India for a long time.  It seems the western world has just only realized the potential of Pongam tree as a viable bio fuel source.  A company called TerViva is currently developing commercial ranches on less than ideal, non-prime land in the US, Central America, and the Caribbean to plant Pongam trees in order to produce biodiesel.  The company claims that they can produce a gallon of biodiesel at a cost less than $1.00, which if true is very impressive.

The seeds of the Pongam tree have a lipid content of between 25% and 40% of which half is oleic acid.  The oil from the seeds is what gets processed into biodiesel and is used as a heating fuel source in many parts of rural India.  The oil from the seeds can also be used for tanning leather and making soap.

The leaves of the tree are sometimes put into grain stores to repel insects and are used as a fertilizer.  The tree grows to a height of about 15 - 80 feet and naturally grows in tropical and temperate Asia.  There exists potential to grow the tree in a wide variety of areas and climates.  One of the features of the tree is that it can withstand temperature ranges from around or just below freezing up to 120 °F and its ability to grow in a wide range of soil types.  The trees grow fast and can reach adult height in around 5 years.  Pongam has been used in folk medicine for centuries and has many other uses not listed here.

In order to replace fossil fuels, we will need an array of renewable, clean energy sources.  The Pongam tree should become one such element in this array.  The tree does not compete with food sources, can be grown quickly in less than ideal conditions, and does not require fossil fuel based fertilizers to thrive.  I hope TerViva can succeed in growing Pongam on a large scale, so in the not too distant future I can fill my diesel wagon up with pangom oil.

Here is a recap on what makes the Pangom a good source for biodiesel.

• Can tolerate poor soil types
• The oil from the seeds is non-edible, so there is no worry of competing with the food supply
• Does not require prime arable land that would be used for food production
• Does not require petroleum based fertilizers to grow well
• Long lifespan of 60 to 80 years  
• Can survive in cold and hot temperature
• Grows a large taproot that can prevent errosion
• Very resiliant and can handle a light frost, drought, moisture stress and salt water.
• Fixes Nitrogen in soil, improving quality
• Fixes up to 6 tons of Carbon per year / per acre

After learning what ingredients are corn derived and then looking through the pantry, it seems as though most processed foods contain at least one corn derived ingredient.  Although one can argue that corn is a grain and not bad for you, remember that 85% or corn in the United States is genetically modified.  It just seems like a big science experiment, feed the population tons and tons of genetically modified corn and see what happens 30 years down the road.  I have always been taught to eat a well balanced diet and eating corn derived ingredients in every meal doesn't seem like the best idea to maintain a healthy diet.

Below is a list of ingredients that are potentially corn derived.  This is not a complete list, only a subset.  I am sure there are countless other ingredients that are corn derived that are not listed below.

baking powder - Not all baking powder's contain corn, but the most popular ones contain corn starch.

caramel coloring - caramel color is one of the oldest food colorings and is found in colas.  Caramel can be made using many food grade sweeteners and is often made from dextrose (corn sugar).

maltodextrin - is produced from a starch and in the US this starch is usually corn starch.  It is moderately sweet and almost flavorless and is used frequently in the making of soda and candy. 

dextrose - is also known as glucose or corn sugar.  dextrose is a simple sugar usually made from corn. 

Corn “anything” like corn flour, corn starch, corn gluten, corn syrup, corn meal, corn oil

hydrolyzed corn protein - Used as a flavor enhancer, people that are sensitive to MSG should avoid hydrolyzed corn protein due to the high levels of glutamate.

monoglycerides / diglycerides - is added to foods like ice cream, chewing gum to act as an emulsifier, helping to mix ingredients that normally wouldn't mix well like water and oil.  mono- and diglycerides are made from plant oils like corn or animal fats.

starch - added starch in foods most commonly come from corn but can come from other sources.

vanilla extract - some brands add corn syrup to the extract. 

Vegetable “anything” - Unless you know for sure, products like vegetable broth, vegetable shortening, vegetable oil could be derived from corn. 

xantham gum - is a food thickening agent that is produced from the fermentation of glucose (corn sugar), sucrose, or lactose.  Tooth paste commonly contains xantham gum.

Just for fun I reached into the pantry and pulled out a packet of fajita seasoning mix.  I flipped over the packet and here is the list of ingredients that make up the mix. 

Corn Starch

Maltodextrin

Salt

Sugar

Monosodium Glutamate (MSG)

Spice

Chili Pepper

Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil

Citric Acid

Natural Flavor

Silicon Dioxide

Natural Smoke Flavor

Yeast Extract

Ethoxyquin

The first two main ingredients are corn derived!  Some other scary ingredients include MSG, Natural Smoke Flavor (whatever this is...), and Ethoxyquin.  After careful analysis it was decided the best place for the fajita seasoning mix was the trash can.