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Electric Hand Dryers vs. Paper Towels - How to keep your paws clean and green.

The restroom at my office has electric hand dryers with little plaques that read, "Thanks for helping us save trees." Is my company really doing the planet a favor by ditching paper towels? Generating electricity doesn't strike me as a clean endeavor. Both hand dryers and paper towels carry an environmental cost, so the Lantern's peers typically advise folks to wipe their hands on their trousers. But if you fancy yourself too classy to walk around in damp pants, then hand dryers are, indeed, the greener option—not because they necessarily prevent deforestation, but because they actually use less energy once everything's taken into account. Click here to continue...

Global Warming Myths and Facts

Myth: The science of global warming is too uncertain to act on.

Fact: There is no debate among scientists about the basic facts of global warming. The most respected scientific bodies have stated unequivocally that global warming is occurring, and people are causing it by burning fossil fuels (like coal, oil and natural gas) and cutting down forests.

The U.S. National Academy of Sciences, which in 2005 the White House called "the gold standard of objective scientific assessment," issued a joint statement with 10 other National Academies of Science saying:

"the scientific understanding of climate change is now sufficiently clear to justify nations taking prompt action. It is vital that all nations identify cost-effective steps that they can take now, to contribute to substantial and long-term reduction in net global greenhouse gas emissions." (Joint Statement of Science Academies, 2005)