What is Vampire Power?

      Vampire Power is power that is consumed by electrical appliances that are switched "off" or in "stand-by" mode.  These power suckers includes appliances like stoves and microwaves that have a clock display as well as coffee pots and the like that are equipped with automatic timers.  Other vampire amenities include modern-day conveniences that can be operated by a remote control such as your TV or stereo system.  Even devices that store settings for you like your personal computer and cable box consume power perpetually .  The only way to stop these devices from consuming a small amount of power every second of every day is to disconnect them from the power source entirely.  All the examples I have given are items found in the home.  But think about how much vampire power is consumed by offices, schools, and industries every day!

Beware the real vampire!

     The amount of energy consumed by one of these devices is small but the number of them is staggering.  America could save a huge amount of electrical energy every year if we made a few small changes.  We could begin by switching off or unplugging all equipment that has a standby mode whenever practical.  Next, engineers could create more energy-efficient designs so retailers could offer models that replace perfunctory clocks with timers that must be activated manually in order to function.  Remote-controlled appliances could be designed so that the remote function is activated only after the equipment is turned on manually.  Not all electrical devices in the home or office use power when they are not in use.  We could save power by selecting electrical devices that are designed with a simple on/off switch which breaks the circuit completely and denies the flow of power to any component part of the equipment.
     If everyone were conscious of vampire power and tried to limit it, the results could be significant but the amount of savings to a household or small business may not seem impressive enough for most people to think the effort worthwhile.  In today's world, we like our conveniences but they come with a price.

My Pet Resources

"The Gadget"

Plutonium was discovered by two physicists at U. C. Berkley in 1940.  It is a byproduct of spent Uranium and occurs infrequently in nature.  Plutonium, not Uranium, was the fuel used in the world’s first nuclear detonation, code named “Trinity”.  Scientists had no doubt that a Uranium weapon would work but they weren’t so sure about Plutonium so they tested a device called “The Gadget” in the desert near Alamogordo, N. M. on July 16, 1945.  Plutonium has been used to fuel the space probe Cassini and Galileo as they venture long distances from the sun.  It is also used in some nuclear reactors.  

Paper-Makers at Work

Paper seems to have been invented around 100 BC in China.  About 200 years later, the first paper-making industry was begun there under direction of the Han Dynasty.  Paper-making spread to India by 400 AD and to the Arab world about 750 AD.  The process eventually spread to Europe and in 1453, Gutenberg produced the first printed Bible.  By that time, the Aztecs had independently learned how to produce paper and were making books of their own.
      The role of paper in the development of the world we know today can’t be over-stated.  It facilitated the development of education without which, today’s technologies could not exist.  These days, paper is everywhere.  Paper products serve us in innumerable ways and impact every walk of life.