Free Republic

(Reuters) - The California Independent System Operator, or ISO, which operates the state's power grid, issued a Flex Alert for Monday for Southern California from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. PDT because of high temperatures expected in the region.

Over $83,000 in federal stimulus funds will go to the Oneida Indian Nation for a project estimated to reduce energy usage. According to Media Relations Director for the Nation Mark Emery the solar lighting project at the Village of the White Pines will reduce energy usage by more than 10,000 kilowatts of power a year benefiting the entire energy grid. National Grid did not comment on how the federally funded project could benefit other consumers and taxpayers. Emery says federal stimulus money was available to governments all around the country, including states and Indian nations, for energy conservation purposes.

It goes zero to 60 in about four seconds. Its top speed is 130 miles per hour. And it doesn't use an ounce of gasoline. It's the Tesla Roadster, a new car that's fueled entirely by electricity and could be hitting the lot just in time. Today the Energy Department reported that the average gallon of regular gasoline is now $3.10 -- a new nominal record price for the United States. Meet The New Electric Car! The Tesla Roadster is named after Nicola Tesla, the largely forgotten genius inventor of alternating current electricity, and it's the brainchild of Martin Eberhard,...

An article in the Wall Street Journal last week points out what happens when public officials depend upon the continued bad behavior of Americans to fund their projects. Under the headline: "Fuel-Efficient Cars Dent States' Road Budgets," reporter Robert Guy Matthews writes that drivers, answering the call to conserve energy, are driving cars which use less gas. Less gas used means less gas purchased. Less gas purchased means fewer tax dollars collected. Way fewer. According to Matthews: The Federal Highway Administration estimates that by 2009 the tax receipts that make up most of the federal highway trust fund will be...

Accidental Invention Points to End of Light Bulbs The main light source of the future will almost surely not be a bulb. It might be a table, a wall, or even a fork. An accidental discovery announced this week has taken LED lighting to a new level, suggesting it could soon offer a cheaper, longer-lasting alternative to the traditional light bulb. The miniature breakthrough adds to a growing trend that is likely to eventually make Thomas Edison's bright invention obsolete. LEDs are already used in traffic lights, flashlights, and architectural lighting. They are flexible and operate less expensively than traditional...

(Atlanta, Georgia-AP) - Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue Friday asked the state's schools to take two "early snow days" and cancel classes Monday and Tuesday to help conserve gasoline as Hurricane Rita threatens the nation's fuel supply line. If all of Georgia's schools close, the governor estimated about 250,000 gallons of diesel fuel would be saved each day by keeping buses off the road. Perdue also said an undetermined amount of regular gasoline also would be saved by allowing teachers, other school staff and some parents to stay home. He says electricity also would be conserved by keeping the schools closed....