Free Republic

It’s not the heat, it’s the humidity, they say. And according to one company with a distinct take on air-conditioning challenges, buildings can cut cooling costs substantially by dealing with the humidity separately. A central air-conditioning system made by Advantix Systems, formerly an Israeli company but now based in Miami, removes moisture from air and cools it with a mixture that is 60 percent water and 40 percent salt. Humid air is pumped past the salty mixture and water from the air tends to flow into the salt. If the salt is chilled, the air will be cooled, too. Finding...

Moorhead has set a new Minnesota record for mugginess. The State Climatology Office said the 88-degree dew-point temperature at Moorhead on July 19 is a state record. Minnesota's previous dew-point record was 86 degrees, set at Pipestone and St. James on July 23, 2005. Moorhead's 88-degree dew point was recorded from 7 to 9 p.m. The climatology office said that at the time, wind speeds were decreasing and air temperature rising, which suggests there were local influences helping to drive the dew point to "this extreme level."

Obama hits golf course with Biden on another hot, humid weekend By Bridget Johnson - 06/19/10 03:37 PM ET President Barack Obama hit the golf course Saturday with Vice President Joe Biden. The White House pool report noted that Obama left at about 1 p.m. for the course at Andrews Air Force base, and his golfing parters included White House Trip Director Marvin Nicholson and photographer David Katz. Nicholson and Katz, along with Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, joined Obama for four hours of golf last weekend. The Republican National Committee released an ad soon afterward taking aim at Obama's golfing...