Tropical storm Irene reminded us – as if we could ever forget – how essential reliable cell phone service has become in our lives. As the ferocious winds and heavy rains downed trees and millions of people across the East lost power and traditional land phone service, cell phones became all the more important.

We used our cell phones to check on the safety of relatives and friends, to stay in contact with work, to get the latest news in our communities, look at photos and video of storm damage, order takeout food and even to network socially. In fact, status updates on Facebook and tweets about the frustrations of losing power were made possible by using smartphones that maintained their Internet and cell connections, technology that didn’t exist in the past with hurricanes such as Hurricane Gloria in 1985.

Despite widespread power outages, wireless networks stood up well to Irene. According to a New York Times report, the Federal Communications Commission said thousands of wirelines went down during the storm while 1,400 cell sites along the coast were down, and several hundred were running on backup power.

Backup power for extended periods of time to cell phone sites is critical in times of natural disaster like Irene. We’ve heard of generators and use them in our homes and businesses. But the problem I see with diesel generators for cell sites that we might not be aware of is that they are noisy, produce noxious emissions and require a lot of maintenance and repair because they have moving parts. Diesel also is commonly stolen in some countries, with around 15-30 percent of generator fuel being siphoned off in some developing regions — and as soon as the site runs out of diesel, it goes down.

A better way

A cleaner alternative is emerging. Wireless service providers increasingly are investing in fuel cell systems for backup power. Fuel cells use hydrogen and oxygen, the molecules that create water, to produce electricity with no pollution. We see it as a green alternative that is on the rise. Clean and energy efficient fuel cells can help reduce CO2 emissions by 50 percent as well as decrease other toxic emissions and deliver additional environmental and efficiency benefits.  They also are very quiet, less costly to maintain and are not targets for theft.

When there is a loss of power for the electric grid, an attached fuel cell system senses the drop in the direct current voltage and automatically starts up, and begins reforming fuel. The liquid fuel is heated to the vapor point, and steam is reformed, and at the same time hydrogen starts flowing to the fuel cell module. Electricity is generated in the fuel cell stack by the chemical reaction between hydrogen from the fuel processer and oxygen in ambient air. The fuel cell can deliver power in about one minute and reach full power in 3.5 minutes, providing 5 KW of power to the telecom site.

When Irene was in full force with high winds that knocked out electrical grid power in one tropical location, a customer of our ElectraGen ME backup power fuel cell system reported the system automatically turned on, providing power to the telecom base station for hours. And members of this resort community never lost cell service.

Around the globe in times of severe weather, emergencies and in countries with limited or unreliable grids, backup fuel cells provide this essential service countless times – without cell phone users ever knowing it, but keeping them happy that they always have service.

With consumers’ growing reliance on cell phones, we expect wireless carriers around the world will continue to recognize the need for backup power. And with today’s energy-consciousness and sustainability efforts, we expect they’ll increasingly turn to a greener and sustainable solution: advanced fuel cell systems.

Just think — the next time you’re in the dark texting friends during a storm, it may be thanks to a fuel cell system.

Kathy Fosberg is marketing communications manager at IdaTech, a leading global supplier of fuel cell systems for backup power to the telecom industry based in Bend, Oregon.  

 Image courtesy of Flickr user Undertow851.

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It’s hardly a natural disaster, but the landscape of Manhattan is about to change once again with the arrival of cellular signal to a handful of the borough’s subway platforms. Both AT&T and T-Mobile are taking part in the pilot program, and the Metropolitan Transit Authority expects the service to begin rolling on Tuesday at several stations along the 14th Street corridor, including A, C, E, F, L and M, along with stops 1, 2 and 3. The 23rd Street line will also see part of the action, as coverage is expected for the C and E stations. Of course, straphangers are unlikely to receive signal once on-board the trains, as the tunnels themselves aren’t included in this rollout. Currently, the MTA expects all 277 underground platforms to be equipped for mobile chatter by 2016. Transit Wireless, the company responsible for the expansion, is said to be in talks with Sprint and Verizon for a similar introduction, although its customers must be content to listen in on the conversations other commuters for the time being.

[Image from SeanPavonePhoto/Shutterstock]

New York City braces for Tuesday’s arrival of mobile service on subway platforms originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Sep 2011 01:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lots of people are using PC systems all around the world. The computer can be used for entertainment, personal activities or business. So it’s not important what is the main use of your personal computer. Every PC user will store on their system some essential data. Documents, databases and media can be part of such data. Once they start storing their essential files on their computer, users begin to rely on their computers as their primary source of data. Here Data Backup Software you will learn more about data backup software.

Therefore all measures should be taken to protect the data stored on computers, as any form of natural disaster such as flood, fire or even a hardware malfunction as well as a software error could cause potential damage to computers and all the data stored on them could be lost. Losing such data can result in important financial problems for some of you. There are many methods to safeguard your data, the most reliable of which is to backup your data to a secure remote location. Data backup means a lot more than just copying your data to some external hard drive (or disk). Complete and secure data backup means to professionally backup up your data using a well-tested method. Check here Mozy Online Data Backup Review for a review about Mozy data backup software, and here Mozy Online Data Backup Review for a review about the Acronis data backup software.

The two most popular methods used to backup data is to use data backup software or to use an online data backup service provider. It does happen that beginners may be confused to exactly know what is the best way to backup their data. So let’s see a bit more about data backup program vs. the online data backup system. The right solution for your needs will then become clearer for you.

Data backup tools vary a lot. Some of those tools can be used without paying anything. While others programs require some payment. The most popular and well-known data backup software applications are normally available as paid versions. Such backup applications come with various methods to copy the final created backup image. This file contains your backed up files and preferences. So you can copy the image to some external USB hard disk, or even optical one. Such programs allow you to backup the System Registry, and also your preferences. So in case your PC gets damaged, you do have a copy of all your preferences and user settings. However, you will have to use your own storage devices to store backups, and when the backups start piling up after a while; you may have problems trying to find storage space to back up your data.

Online data backup is a service allowing you to backup your infos on online servers. Those servers are part of the data backup service provider. With them, your file storage capacity is unlimited. After the initial backup operating, incremental data backup can be performed, which means that only changes you make will be backed up to the server.

The cost of such service is a lot more compared to using a data backup tool. But you won’t need any storage device of your own to keep your backup images. With such online data backup service, you can also backup your user preferences and applications details. A last problem that some computer users are finding out about such online data backup service is that the speed of their Internet connection might not be fast enough for them to a backup on a daily basis.

No matter the method you do select to backup your data, you can rest knowing that your data is safely kept.

One of the worst things that you can have happen when you own a home is to suffer through a flood.If it comes from a natural disaster or from a broken pipe it doesn’t matter.Acting fast and getting out of the water faster is the main key in minimizing destruction caused by flooding.  Because the longer you leave your home and it’s valuables in water the more damage can be done.

Destruction of the furniture is the first thing that happens.If you have a serious flood in your house definitely your furniture will get wet.You must move swiftly and evade from the water as fast as you can. Because most of the time furniture is one thing you just can’t pick up.  In my San Diego water damage service I always advice the people who call me to find a way to get rid of the water. 

Mold is the next thing that water damage can do.Mold is the real killer and is very expensive to destroy but is so hard to get rid of.  In my San Diego mold removal service once we are called we get blowers over to the house.These blowers will absolutely help dry up the area immediately.  Because the longer things stay wet, the more mold damage will occur.So you want to dry out the area in order to lessen any mold damage.

Finally the flooring can also be destroyed by water.  In my San Diego home fire damage service sometimes the flooding is caused by having to put out a fire.  The damage it can cause to flooring is ruined carpets.If it is some type or kind of wood. The less warping will occur the sooner you get rid of the water.

The common theme as you can see is get rid of the water rapidly. You will save yourself a lot of damage and money if you don’t forget that point when you have this happen to you.

Japan is prone to large-scale earthquakes, so the fact that researchers in this country are constantly working on the development of highly specialized rescue robots. And the so-called Bari Bari IV is a particularly clever model, as it can help people who are in danger, for example after a building has been destroyed, by being more cautious than other robots.

It’s one of the robots developed at the Kitagawa-Tsugoshi Lab at Tokyo Institute of Technology. The Bari Bari solves the problem rescue teams encounter at the scenes after an explosion, accident or natural disaster took place: Helping people buried under rubble without hurting them.

While some rescue robots don’t appear to be designed to treat victims in a very gentle way (this example springs to mind), the Bari Bari is designed so one part of it supports the rubble while the other one makes sure it slowly moves forward toward the person in trouble. As a result, the danger of objects in the vicinity collapsing and hurting the victim is reduced.

The rescue team can view and communicate with victims through built in cameras, speakers and microphones.

This video shows the hydraulically propelled exploration robot in action:

By Evan Ackerman

Your hybrid is great and all (never mind that it’s arguably more wasteful of resources than my old Volvo), but it’s no longer cool enough to just have a hybrid. Everybody is producing hybrids now, and they’re just not making enough progress where progress needs to be made. There are a few companies, though, who are actually stepping up and taking a risk on vehicles that don’t use gas engines as their primary means of propulsion. Check them out, after the jump.

Mitsubishi PX-MiEV Concept

This is what Mitsubishi calls a “plug-in hybrid crossover,” which seems a little bit redundant to me. There are electric motors to power both the front and rear wheels, and a gas engine can add power to the front wheels or power a generator. These systems can be combined in a bunch of ways, and the vehicle does so on its own depending on how reckless of a driver you are (among other factors).

Also, here’s a pretty cool feature: “In addition, to maximize effective use of the drive battery, the vehicle is equipped with a power supply mode that allows the use of some battery power to supply domestic appliances or as an emergency power source in the event of a natural disaster.” Basically, what they’re suggesting you do is plug the PX-MiEV into your house, charge it up with cheap electricity in the middle of the night, and then use its batteries to power your toaster during the day when energy costs peak.

But wait, there’s more! The interior includes “a negative-ion aroma humidifier and oxygen enricher that improve comfort and reduce fatigue,” and if the car thinks you’re starting to fall asleep, it “emits a distinctive fragrance” to alert you to the situation. There aren’t any specifics as to what this fragrance IS, so let your imagination run wild. Or don’t.

Chevy Volt

We’ve been covering the Volt for several years now (and covering and covering) but here’s the gist: it plugs in to the wall, goes 40 miles on batteries, and then uses its gas engine to make it an extra 300+ miles. The latest news (sort of news) is that the Volt is going to go on sale in California late next year for probably around $40k. Seeing is believing, but I will say that the Volt at the show looked more than a little used, which is a good sign… I guess somebody is actually getting to drive one of these.

Mini E

This little guy is unchanged from last year, and field trials are underway in select cities. Unfortunately, it hasn’t been going that well. A 4 hour charge gets you a usable range of about 100 miles, but the back seat (and part of the trunk) is entirely taken up by a gigantic battery pack.

Mercedes-Benz F-Cell

Ah, here we go. F-Cell means (you guessed it) fuel cell, and the F-Cell has one. Compressed hydrogen reacts with ambient oxygen to create electricity and pure water, which is a pretty lucrative source of power for people who are both eco-minded and thirsty. The rest of F-Cell is based on the Mercedes B-Class, a small and efficient model that’s popular everywhere in the world except for North America.

The big problem with this car? My local gas station doesn’t refill hydrogen, and neither does anybody else. Mercedes is going to bring 200 production F-Cell cars to the US anyway, for a lease-test program next year.

Honda FCX Clarity

Also a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle, the FCX Clarity captured our attention last year thanks to the innovative way that Honda tackled the refueling problem: each FCX Clarity comes with a Home Energy Station that sucks hydrogen out of your natural gas line and feeds it to your car while creating heat and electricity at the same time. About 200 of these cars have been produced and are available for lease, sort of… They go for $600 a month, but you won’t get one because you’re not special.

Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid

This is Toyota’s tentative first step towards an hybrid vehicle with an option to go pure electric, which is weird, considering the experience that they have with the Prius. Their plug-in version offers relatively uninspiring specs, too… The number you care about, which is maximum mileage on electricity alone, is a mere 13 miles using their first generation lithium-ion battery pack (current Priuses use nickel-metal hydride batts). You’ll get those 13 miles after a 3 hour charge on a regular (i.e. 110 volt) outlet.

Toyota plans to produce 500 Prius Plug-In Hybrids in 2010, 150 of which will end up with customers in the US for testing. But again, it won’t be you.

Fisker Karma

Without an appearance by Tesla (and probably even if there had been), the Fisker Karma was both the eco-friendly car that I’d most like to drive, and one of the few that is actually going to be available to be owned by normal (rich) people in the near future. The Karma has an extended range electric powertrain, which means that you can drive it on batteries for 50 miles or so, and after that, a small and efficient gas engine kicks in to keep you going for another 250 miles. With 400 hp and a top speed of 125 mph (which I imagine is electronically limited), it clocks a 0-60 time of just over 7 seconds on batteries only, and knocks that down to 5.8 with the assistance of the little engine.

This car is the same production version that we saw a year ago (complete with the solar panel roof), but shockingly (shockingly!), the price has gone up: excluding any potential tax credits, the EcoStandard model will run you $87,900 with the EcoSport convertible bumping that up to $94,900 with a leather interior and premium sound system. An extra $11,500 gets you an interior made with no animal products and wood trim that’s been made out of logs harvested from the bottom of lakes. Kinda makes me wonder what you get if you don’t pay for that upgrade… Probably rainforest hardwood and Northern Hairy-nosed Wombat skin seats or something.

Fisker says that “our goal is to make eco-friendly cars without compromise either in performance or design.” It looks like they’re about to pull it off, too, and the first Karmas should be showing up in driveways by the end of next year.

The LA Auto Show is open to the public from December 4th to the 13th.

[ LA Auto Show ]