The Body Electric: Electromagnetism and the Foundation of Life

The Body Electric: Electromagnetism and the Foundation of Life

The Body Electric: Electromagnetism and the Foundation of Life

Author(s): Gary Selden, Robert O. Becker, David Bichell

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks; 1 edition (July 22, 1998)

Paperback: 368 pages

ISBN: 0688069711

ISBN-13: 978-0688069711

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The Body Electric tells the fascinating story of our bioelectric selves. Robert O. Becker, a pioneer in the filed of regeneration and its relationship to electrical currents in living things, challenges the established mechanistic understanding of the body. He found clues to the healing process in the long-discarded theory that electricity is vital to life. But as exciting as Becker’s discoveries are, pointing to the day when human limbs, spinal cords, and organs may be regenerated after they have been damaged, equally fascinating is the story of Becker’s struggle to do such original work. The Body Electric explores new pathways in our understanding of evolution, acupuncture, psychic phenomena, and healing.

The Micro-Hydro Pelton Turbine Manual: Design, Manufacture and Installation for Small-Scale Hydro-Power

The Micro-Hydro Pelton Turbine Manual: Design, Manufacture and Installation for Small-Scale Hydro-Power

The Micro-Hydro Pelton Turbine Manual: Design, Manufacture and Installation for Small-Scale Hydro-PowerAuthor(s): Jeremy Thake

Publisher: Practical Action (February 2001)

Paperback: 240 pages

ISBN-10: 1853394602

ISBN-13: 978-1853394607

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Micro-hydro is a useful way of providing power to houses, workshops or villages that need an independent supply. For many remote areas beyond the reach of the national grid, micro-hydro is the only economic option. Where flow is limited, but terrain is steep, the Pelton wheel is one of the most useful turbines. Capable of producing a lot of power from a relatively small unit, Pelton turbines are reasonably easy to make and each size can be used at a wide range of sites

The Micro-hydro Pelton Turbine Manual is written to enable the reader to design and manufacture Pelton turbines themselves as might be necessary in developing countries. However, even if you can pick up the phone and order the turbine itself, you’ll find valuable information about how the principles of Pelton turbines that will help you select the right unit.

Aimed at readers with a general engineering workshop background, the emphasis is on simple technology, so that the turbines can be made in small workshops with basic engineering facilities. More advanced processes are discussed for those with access to better manufacturing facilities.

The Micro-hydro Pelton Turbine Manual details all the important aspects of design, including: basic theory, turbine selection, manufacture, installation, testing and problem-solving. The manual is well illustrated and contains many comprehensive appendices, which include manufacturing reference information and the derivation of equations used.

240 pages, 2001

Solar Radiation and Daylight Models, Second Edition: For the Energy Efficient Design of Buildings

Solar Radiation and Daylight Models, Second Edition: For the Energy Efficient Design of Buildings

Solar Radiation and Daylight Models, Second Edition: For the Energy Efficient Design of BuildingsAuthor(s): H. Kambezidis, Tariq Muneer, Peter Tregenza

Publisher: Butterworth-Heinemann (Trd)

Paperback: 392 pages

ISBN: 0750624957

ISBN-13: 978-0750659741

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The cost of operating a building far exceeds the cost of constructing it, and yet until recently little attention was paid to the impact of solar radiation on the costs of heating, cooling and ventilation. And now that there has been a surge in interest in energy efficiency and solar design, architects and designers need a practical guide to the modelling and application of solar energy data.
There are many different models and techniques available for calculating the distribution of solar radiation on and in buildings, and these algorithms vary considerably in scope, accuracy and complexity. This book demonstrates which of these predictive tools gives the best results in different circumstances, including explaining which models can be best used in different parts of the world.

The author has had over twenty-five years of experience of dealing with solar energy data from four continents and has used that experience in this book to show the development not just of knowledge but also the growing sophistication of the models available to apply it.

*Based on many years of first-hand experience with solar data
*Different models demonstrated and evaluated
*Calculations that can be used anywhere in the world

Book & Cd-Rom Edition

Paperback, 160 pages
October 1997

Cooking with the Sun: How to Build and Use Solar Cookers

Cooking with the Sun: How to Build and Use Solar Cookers

Cooking with the Sun: How to Build and Use Solar CookersAuthor(s): Beth and Dan Halcy

Publisher: Morning Sun Press; Rep Sub edition (May 1992)

Paperback: 114 pages

ISBN-10: 0962906921

ISBN-13: 978-0962906923

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Cooking with the Sun, How to build and use solar cookers. by Beth and Dan Halcy.

A simple oven that reaches 400°F can be built for $20. in materials, and this book shows how to design a solar hotplate to reach 600°F, plus 100 recipes designed especially for solar cooking: solar stew, Texas biscuits, enchilada casserole and more!

7×10 , 116 pages , 27 b&w photographs

Building for Energy Independence: Sun/Earth Buffering and Superinsulation

Sun/Earth Buffering and Superinsulation: Building for Energy Independence

Building for Energy Independence: Sun/Earth Buffering and SuperinsulationAuthor(s): Don Booth, Jonathan Booth, Peg Boyles

Publisher: Rodale Pr (September 1984)

Paperback:
ISBN: 0960442235
ISBN-13: 978-0960442232
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Hardbound:
ISBN-10: 0960442243
ISBN-13: 978-0960442249
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Back in 1983 Don Booth’s company, Community Builders was one of the premier developers of energy efficient homes in New England. This privately published book was probably written to help prospective customer’s understand the technology and boost sales. No matter what his reason, Don’s book became a classic of the genre. Calling upon his experience, he goes step-by-step through the theory and practice of building super insulated and passive solar/geothermal homes. The explanations are clear, the examples are informative and it provides just the right amount of technical detail. If you are planning to build a new home, read this book first. The principles you learn here will save you thousands of heating and cooling dollars. It has already saved me from a very expensive mistake.

Unlike most books on this topic, you can actually read this book without stunning your brain. Instead of bulking up the book with endless pages of sun elevation charts or conversion tables, Don includes twenty ‘reviews’ of solar/geothermal homes by their owners, designers and builders. These vary from the comic to the insane as the early pioneers struggle to build their dream homes. Some of these stories would make good movies. My personal favorite is the lady who lives in a tent on the site while her home is built. We watch with dismay as construction delays move completion deep into the cold New England winter. Finally, she moves gleefully into the shell while waiting for the windows, only to have her children complain that the tent was warmer. Who says we can’t learn from the mistakes of others.

Residential Energy: Cost Savings and Comfort for Existing Buildings (5th Edition)

Residential Energy: Cost Savings and Comfort for Existing Buildings (5th Edition)

Residential Energy: Cost Savings and Comfort for Existing Buildings (5th Edition)Author(s): John T. Krigger

Publisher: Prentice Hall; 5 edition (October 18, 2009)

Paperback: 320 pages

ISBN-10: 0135125413

ISBN-13: 978-0135125410

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Residential Energy introduces readers to a home’s energy-related components and explains all the important possibilities for energy conservation. Readers will learn from this exceptionally illustrated text that effective energy conservation requires a whole-house approach that addresses the biggest energy wasters first!

Covering everything from basic principles and air leakage to insulation and windows and doors, this user friendly manual is an essential text/reference for anyone interested in the design, construction, and operation of energy efficient homes! PLUS, every book includes a CD-ROM containing an electronic version of the text!

Ideally suited for programs in weatherization, energy auditors/raters and general construction trades including carpentry, HVAC, plumbers, electricians, and more! Residential Energy is packed full of the latest information on energy consumption, analyzing energy costs, and other energy-auditing information.

Build an Extreme Green Hot Water Solar Collector

Build an Extreme Green Hot Water Solar Collector

Build an Extreme Green Hot Water Solar CollectorAuthor: Phillip Rastocny

Format: Kindle Edition

File Size: 836 KB

ASIN: B0043EWW7S

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These instructions describe how to build a passive solar hot water collector using your existing hot water heater. This solar collector uses no pumps or additional electricity to operate and assembled without pipe bending. The instructions include a complete materials list with prices and part numbers from a large well known hardware store.

The Second Edition adds a solar-powered pump solution when collector positioing, long pipe runs, or other issues do not permit proper thermo-siphoning. Also included is a new appendix for troubleshooting common issues, and small changes in the text body with new illustrations to further clarify some of the existing steps.

This is an advanced project that requires good skills in silver soldering and custom plumbing fabrication.

Adobe Houses for Today: Flexible Plans for Your Adobe Home

Adobe Houses for Today: Flexible Plans for Your Adobe Home

Adobe Houses for Today: Flexible Plans for Your Adobe Home

Author(s): Laura and Alex Sanchez

Publisher: Sunstone Press; Revised edition (April 9, 2008)

Paperback: 230 pages

ISBN-10: 0865346623

ISBN-13: 978-0865346628

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Since Adobe Houses for Today first appeared, interest in energy efficiency has exploded. Showing the pathway to smaller, solar tempered, easy-to-heat homes using adobe, one of the world’s most energy efficient building materials, makes this book about adobe houses not only for today, but also for tomorrow. Adobe Houses for Today features 12 plans for compact, beautifully proportioned adobe homes in modern and traditional styles. The richly illustrated text shows how the basic houses, designed for today’s smaller families, can be expanded and adapted to fit readers’ own budgets, family sizes, style preferences, and building sites. After a brief look at adobe’s rich history, Adobe Houses for Today surveys adobe’s advantages as a building material, illustrates adobe construction, and gives an eye-opening tour through the facts and fantasies of energy conservation. The heart of the book details the plans, using them as examples of design techniques that increase livability and control costs in any house. The book and its minimal-cost construction drawings are valuable, enjoyable tools for those buying, building, or remodeling a house. With this new edition, which includes an additional chapter with stories from people who have built the houses, construction drawings are now available for some of the expanded versions.

Adobe Houses for Today features 12 plans for compact, beautifully-proportioned adobe homes in modern and traditional styles. Yet the book offers much more. The richly-illustrated text shows how the basic houses, designed for today’s smaller families, can be as flexible as a set of building blocks. Intriguing drawings demonstrate how readers can expand and adapt the plans to fit their own budgets, family sizes, style preferences, and building sites.

After a brief look at adobe’s rich history, Adobe Houses for Today surveys adobe’s advantages as a building material. Next, readers take an eye-opening tour through the facts and fantasies of energy conservation. Then, the heart of the book illustrates the basic and expanded versions of the plans, using them as examples of design techniques that increase livability and control costs in any house. The book also explains site requirements, adobe construction, and estimating basics with an adobe house that “assembles itself.” Adobe Houses for Today and its associated construction drawings are valuable, enjoyable tools not only for those buying, building, or remodeling a house, but also for contractors, drafters, drafting teachers, and real estate professionals.

Award-winning author Laura Sanchez previously ran a drafting business that specialized in adobe houses. She called it quits sometime after the 250th set of plans, but maintains an abiding interest in designing the very best, most cost-effective houses possible. Alex Sanchez, who grew up building houses, has taught courses in adobe construction and solar energy. He founded and currently heads the renowned computer-aided drafting program at the University of New Mexico-Valencia Campus. The authors’ previous books and CDs concern architectural computer graphics.

 

 

Solar Radiation and Daylight Models for the Energy Efficient Design of Buildings

Solar Radiation and Daylight Models for the Energy Efficient Design of Buildings

Solar Radiation and Daylight Models for the Energy Efficient Design of Buildings

Author(s): H. Kambezidis, Tariq Muneer, Peter Tregenza

Publisher: Architectural Press (September 29, 1997)

Paperback: 224 pages

ISBN: 0750624957

ISBN-13: 978-0750624954

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Book & Cd-Rom Edition

This book and CD Rom package provides an accessible, user-friendly database on daylight design data. With the boom in interest in energy-efficiency and solar design, it provides a valuable source for architects and engineers.

It describes models which can be used to provide essential data at any place in the world. These models are included on a disk to ease the task of the architect or engineers. The authors show how these models can be applied to the energy efficient design of buildings.

‘The value of this book is that an expert in the subject has made a personal selection of applicable formulae, and presented them in a comprehensive and consistent format, both on paper and in the form of computer programs. Books such as this are indispensable references for the research worker and for the practising engineer.’
Peter Tregenza, The University of Sheffield

The Last Straw Journal

The Last Straw

The Last Straw JournalAuthors: various

Publisher: Green Prairie Foundation for Sustainability

Order From: The Last Straw Journal

The Last Straw Journal is a (theoretically) quarterly journal of strawbale and natural building. Issues have been somewhat sporadic over the last several years due to health issues of the publisher, but don’t let that deter you – there are 60+ issues so far, all available as back issues in one form or another, and pretty much all of which contain good useful material on strawbale construction, plaster, foundations, etc, etc.

PDF copies have been available for a number of years, and they’re encouraging all subscribers to purchase PDFs if possible in order to reduce shipping and printing costs.

The first 40 issues are compiled on a single CD.