If there is one industry that tries very hard to go green, is the computing industry.
Tag: Environment
Which Part of “All Conditioned Phenomena Are Subject to Change” Do We Not Understand?
So we started off with wood for our tools and made many things with it. We chose the trees that are strong and durable. That was good for awhile. Then we dried them, treated & processed them and made them last longer. Along the way, we also used stone. Oh, stone is so much harder and last longer. But it was not as malleable as wood. So we used both for a long time, complementing each other.
We then discovered smithing and started using copper, tin, bronze, iron and many others. Along the way, we developed and learnt how to make them stronger and more durable. With each innovation, we found a way to prevent them from rusting, from breaking down.
Beyond wood, stone and metal, we also used glass and clay. Unlike wood, glass and clay can be molded into various shapes needed. Strong and yet lighter than metal, it was great. But they were brittle. Very brittle. Modern tempered glass can be made stronger, but then it is heavy.
Then we invented a magical material.
It was malleable and yet hard. If you needed, soft variants can be made. You can make it into thin strands like cotton thread, or have them shaped into bigger stronger structures if needed. And it was durable. It would not decay or rot like wood, nor rust like metal. It was water resistant and can have high heat tolerance if needed. You can even shape it the way you want it. Exactly. Precisely. It was the perfect, magical material.
We invented plastic.
Now we have the ideal material that allowed us to do whatever we want. Perfect ideal material. Magical. Only problem: We are too successful in our pursuit. Most plastics will outlast several generations of human beings.
Some people say that we should bring our own bags when we go to the market or mall. I agree. But I think many Singaporeans reuse that *ntuc* plastic bag as trash bag. If we bring our own bags, we will end up buying trash bags, which we are presently not buying.
The problem is that we cannot see across time and space. We can only see what is near, so it is hard to visualise how the whole earth is changing because of our habits. We also cannot see these changes to our environment because we do not have the patience, energy or ability to watch over a span of several months or years. And even if we could, we mostly lack the ability to see the patterns within what we observe.
We are unable to link our habits (cause) with the environment harm (results).
The same goes for the Law of Karma. Untrained, it is not easy for us to see directly the functioning of karma. But if we train our mind to be more observant, calm and mindful, we can start to see the patterns emerging. Patterns of wholesome actions
leading to happiness, peace and calm, and patterns of unwholesome actions leading to sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress and despair.
To observe the long term effects of our actions on the environment, scientists take sample data from various environment metrics to develop a model. Through this model, they can approximate and project the possible impact of our actions before it occurs. So far, the picture is not a pretty one. We are going into our 59th minute or 11th hour. Our time is running out.
The world as a whole need to rethink how we use the earth’s resources. It is not an finite source unlike the US dollar (or other currency) which the US treasury can simply print more green back and flood the market with it. If a certain natural resource run low or run out, we cannot simply produce more of it. Natural resources cannot be manufactured so to speak. It can only be replenished over time as nature take its course. A broken wooden chair when left to the element, decay and rot over time. Its constituent parts, be it the four elements or its hydrocarbon molecules, break down as it interacts with the environment. Over time, a chair that is untreated will totally disintegrate and so call ‘disappear’; the ‘chair’ disappeared’ but the elements move on in this earth, is absorbed or combine with other entities. This process of decay and decomposition do not speed up just because scientific advances allowed us to speed up the manufacturing process.
Scientists are also trying to speed up the decomposition by tweaking certain bacteria to act on certain ‘protein’ in plastic, and a teen managed to do just that. “The Waterloo, Ontario high school junior figured that something must make plastic degrade, even if it does take millennia, and that something was probably bacteria.”
It all boils down to control. We want changes that suit us. But nature has other plans. This very physical world has other plans. It will change, not according to our whims and fancy. It will change only according to conditions. In a simplistic sense, science is really about understanding this world so that we can steer how it changes in order to satisfy our needs and wants. When we want it not to change, we paint it, lacquer it, glaze it, electroplate it, wrap it with vinyl, enshrine it in glass or make it chemically inert. If we want it to change, we heat it up, toss it around, dissolve it, charge it, or even send our bacterial minions to do our bidding.
Scientists in some ways are like the Buddha. They try to know and understand this world to make our life easier, better, without so much stress and suffering. Difference is that the Buddha discovered that the nature of this world is that it is impermanent, subject to change and cannot be controlled by any single entity, but goes in a constant flux of transitions according to conditions. Instead of changing the world, the Buddha realised that we have to change ourselves. By reducing our craving and attachment, our suffering reduces, by realising the true nature of all phenomena, one’s habit of delighting, craving and attachment / control subsides and ceases. With that, suffering also ceases.
Scientists instead went the other way to change the world.
As I type on this keyboard, made mainly of plastic, I wonder how we can balance between changing the world and changing ourselves. Each of us have to find that balance that work for us at this moment. I just hope we find that balance sooner.
So, which part of “All conditioned phenomena are subject to change” do we not understand?
References
Does Animal Liberation Affect or Harm the Ecosystem Significantly?
If animal liberation affect or harm the ecosystem significantly, then surely commercial fishing does more harm.
National Geographic agrees to this.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/02/110225-little-fish-oceans-environment-fishing/
….
Fish Crashes Due to Overharvesting
Christensen and his colleagues analyzed more than 200 models of marine ecosystems from around the world to estimate fish numbers between 1880 and 2007. They found that 54 percent of the decline in predatory fish populations had occurred in the past 40 years.
“Cod in the North Atlantic is a classic case of a crash,” he said. “You had hundreds of years of sustainable fishing of cod—on the order of 200,000 to 300,000 tons caught a season—and then we saw an increase up to 700,000 tons, beyond sustainable levels.
“Now it’s been 20 years and we still haven’t seen a recovery.”
….
Those who want to protect the natural ecosystem should stop commercial fisheries and fishing companies from upsetting the natural marine ecosystem. A direct way is to stop eating marine life, and start campaigns to raise awareness about it. As they say it, “When the buying stop, the killing stops”.
And when the commercial fishing stop, animal liberation of respective marine life do not and cannot even take place.
It is laughable when I read articles about how animal liberation can significantly upset the marine ecosystem when commercial fishing companies easily destroy the balance by wiping out tons of marine life every season.
So jog my memory again, how many tons of marine life have we liberated last year?
(Hint: Not enough tons.)
Why Aren’t We Piping the Heat from Air-Con Compressor / Coolant Units to Heaters Yet?
Was wondering … why aren’t we piping the heat from air-con compressors / coolant units to heaters yet?
These units are transferring heat from the room or fridge to the coolant gas and onto the air surrounding the unit. Go check out the back of your fridge or the compressor unit of your split-unit aircon in your house, the one sitting outside the house, and you would find the air around it warm or hot.
Can someone device a way to make use of this excess heat? As it is, this heated air is either going to waste or increasing the temperature outside. Granted, no heat is ever wasted, it is just transformed to other forms of energy … or loss to space, ie out of the earth’s thermodynamics.
Just wondering … …
Mass Animal Die Offs … Is the World Coming to An End? Or the Sound the Hare Heard!
There’s been recent reports of animals dying off world wide. Some people are panicking and declaring that the world is finally coming to an end with an “Aflockalypse”.
Scientists however, are not so quick to draw such a conclusion. According to US government agencies, mass die offs are common but merely unreported. Others note that the advent of camera phones and internet has made it easier to highlight and report such occurrences; it does not mean that it is only happening now or is happening more frequently or intensely.
This reminds me of the earthquake reports that went online quite frequently last year. While a few of the major earthquakes were really catastrophic and their reports was certainly helpful to bring awareness and aids to those who needed, the ease of capturing and reporting information online has meant that the general public may start to think that there is an increase in natural disaster when in fact the perceived increase is also due to an increase in reports of major and minor earthquakes made possible by advancement in technology.
Is the world coming to an end? I think not. But if this spur us to appreciate our daily life, our every breathing moment with our friends, family and love ones, even those with our enemies or those we dislike, then perhaps it can be positive too. But if we get all paranoid and start behaving irrationally or irresponsibly, harming ourselves and others in the process, then we may want to take a page from the Jataka Stories (Birth stories) of the Buddha, and learn something from “Jat 322: Duddubha Jataka: The Sound the Hare Heard”
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/kawasaki/bl142.html#jat322
http://www.aolnews.com/2011/01/07/now-its-dead-doves-falling-from-sky-in-italy/
Animal Releasing vs Ecosystem Protection: A False Dichotomy
When I received personal snail-mail yesterday, I was pleasantly surprised to see a single page of The Straits Times (dated 21 May 2010) in the envelope. It was page C3, entitled “More people releasing animals into wild” by Grace Chua. The article focuses on the impact of releasing animals into the wild and how “More people are releasing animals into the wild, reversing a downward trend.”
Oh dear, oh my Buddha! We should call in the police to investigate this matter! The limited natural ecosystem is about to be overrun by these animals released by “people tired of their pets or those setting free animals in religious rites”. Take a closer look my friend, there was a drop from 44 cases in 2004 to 1 in 2007 and an INCREASE to 3 in 2008 for animals being released into the parks and reserves. Phew! ok, call off the search party for the culprits.
Now, if you read through the article, you will see various cases of different animals being released and how the very releasing can cause either harm to released animals or to the ecosystem. A group called “Operation No Release” is specifically targeting Buddhists’ religious practice of animal liberation during Vesak, the very day of celebration of Buddhism’s founder, the Buddha. Vesak celebrates the Buddha’s Birth, Attaining of Buddhahood (of Perfection) and Final passing into Mahaparinibbana (Great Cessation) and on this day of celebration, Buddhist take part in a variety of practices to strengthen their commitment to the Buddhist Teachings, and try to further develop qualities like Metta-Karuna (Loving Kindness and Compassion) and Wisdom.
These are part and parcel of the daily life of a Buddhist, to try to improve themselves through the cultivation of the mind and
purifying one’s bodily, verbal and mental actions. Amongst a whole range of practices, animal liberation is one of them and it is aimed at 1) Giving animals a second chance at survival and 2) to develop compassion towards all sentient beings, humans, animals, spirits, gods and hell beings alike. The article failed to share with the reader this positive aspect of such a practice, choosing to focus only on one aspect of it. Compare this with thousands of animals being killed at restaurants and slaughterhouses, I would choose to give animals a second chance any time.
There are hundreds of Buddhist temples, monasteries and societies in Singapore. Only one is quoted from Ajahn Brahmavamso, an Australian venerable serving as spiritual patron for Buddhist Fellowship. With respects to Ajahn Brahmavamso, I believe it will give readers a more comprehensive coverage of the subject matter by inviting comments from local Buddhist communities in Singapore. So, dear Straits Times and Grace Chua, in future if you need some thoughts on Buddhist practices, you can consult Singapore Buddhist Federation or any of the local Buddhists for advice and information.
More?
The article goes on to highlight how even Secondary school students are also doing their bit to discourage the practice with “30 pupils from Fuhua and Zhonghua primary schools and enrichment centre Neumind” attending a workshop to learn why releasing animals harms the environment. Why are they discouraging the practice and not encouraging the RIGHT practice? Thousands of people are killed in car accidents each year, should we ban driving? No! We encourage drivers to drive safely and responsibly! I say, keep up the workshop but please focus on the positive motivation of Animal Liberation and educate people on the RIGHT ways, on BETTER ways to do it.
Raffles Girls’ School (RGS) students were also highlighted in the article highlighting how “they are working with National Parks Board to put up signs and exhibits in nature areas to explain the fate of released animals”. The RGS students came to SBF seeking the Buddhist opinions on the issue of Animal Liberation. Their request was channelled to me and we had an interview on 24th March 2010. Their teacher-in-charge, Mrs Raja, came with them and I shared with them the various aspects of animal liberation. When they use the word “issue” one too many times, I asked them what the issue was about and Mrs Raja quickly replied that they had no issue on it. It was clear from the interview that they wanted to discourage animal liberation. I cautioned them that if they are interested in protecting the ecosystem, they have to take a well-rounded view of as many of the factors involved as possible and that by zooming in on Buddhist animal liberation alone while not considering other factors, they may be missing the point and not achieving their original goal.
With the ST article, I understand what issue the RGS students may have with Buddhist animal liberation, but again I must highlight to them and others a moderate approach that will serve all better without inciting religious sensitivities. The intention and motivation behind the practice of Animal Liberation is a very positive and wholesome one. In the past twenty over years, Singaporeans have learnt a great deal about better ways to express this beautiful practice in a more positive way and with education, the methodologies and the motivation can be more inline.
Promote the positive motivation of Animal Liberation and educate people on the RIGHT ways, on BETTER ways to do it. Animal Release and Ecosystem protection being incompatible is a false dichotomy.
Let’s not throw the baby out with the water, along with Granny.
PS: I’ve kept the RGS students informed of this blog post so that they may freely comment on their positive work and perhaps how they have been touched through it. I am also hopeful that knowledge and dialogue will empower them to realise that protection of the ecosystem and Buddhist animal
liberation are not mutually exclusive that there is value in encouraging responsible animal liberation that will bring a wholesome and positive development of compassion in people while not damaging the ecosystem.
PS1: When RGS students mentioned to me on the displacement impact that animal liberation has on the ecosystem, I asked them if we should stop fishing since it causes a displacement as well. 😉