The mountain of debt accumulated by Greece and Italy crushed those countries' prime ministers. Spain, too, is ushering in new leadership after Sunday's parliamentary elections. Spaniard Jorge Belena says, "All politicians are very boring," but incoming Prime Minister Mariano Rajo is "especially boring."
Nathan Phillips looks at methane data plotted on a map of Boston streets on Nov. 17. Data from a mobile methane "sniffer" and a GPS show a real-time display of the gas levels in Google Earth. The orange spike in the center of the screen, on St. Paul Street, indicates methane levels about two or three times above normal levels, Phillips says.
Credit Robin Lubbock / WBUR
Bob Ackley, left, and Nathan Phillips measure methane levels on a Boston street. They found about 4,000 significant gas leaks after driving 785 miles of Boston and suburban roads.
A scientist in Boston has been driving around the city measuring leaks in the gas mains. He's found a lot, and he wants the public to know where they are.
Gas leaks aren't uncommon, and gas companies spend a lot of time tracking them down and repairing them. But the scientific team says they're surprised at how many they've found, and what those leaks are doing to the health of the city's trees.
Sikh pilgrims stream into the Golden Temple in Amritsar, India, on Nov. 10. Devout Sikhs from all over India and the world come to Amritsar by the tens of thousands every day — adding to an already sizable carbon footprint. So city and temple officials have joined an environmental group to learn how to incorporate environmentally friendly practices.
Credit Courtesy of Diana Derby
Devotees reach out to the gilded litter that carries the Sikh holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib, to the Golden Temple in Amritsar.
Credit Narinder Nanu / AFP/Getty Images
Sikh devotees Puneet Kaur (left) and Gurmeet Singh light lamps as they pay their respects at the Golden Temple last month. Temple authorities are considering installing solar panels for the lighting system to make it more environmentally friendly.
The Golden Temple at Amritsar, India, doesn't look like an environmental pressure point. The gold-sheathed building gleams serenely as a jewel box in the midst of a broad reflecting pond. Music serenades pilgrims as they cross a causeway to reach the shrine.
