Apple files home energy patents

Apple has applied for two patents that would give people a way to lower their electricity bills by optimising how power is supplied to various electronics, such as computers, peripherals, and iPods, reports CNET News.

The patents, which were filed in May of last year, were spotted and explained by Patently Apple. The two patent applications describe a hardware device that controls the amount of power supplied to different electronics.

Data between devices would be shared over a building's existing wiring, using the HomePlug Powerline Alliance's communications protocol.

A group of investors representing $13 trillion in assets has stepped up calls for national governments to pass legislation that will accelerate the development of the low carbon economy, states Computing.co.uk.

The seven-page statement released by the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change, the Investor Network on Climate Risk, the Investor Group on Climate Change, and the UN Environment Programme warns that the investment community "cannot wait for a global treaty" to curb greenhouse gas emissions.

The statement, released at a meeting hosted by the UN in New York, said that while negotiators should continue to work to deliver a binding international climate change treaty before the end of the year, the onus was now on national governments to take "rapid action" to introduce their own measures to tackle climate change.

Austin Energy unveiled an online carbon calculator at the Austin Climate Protection Conference and Expo, says the Statesman.

The calculator, which is free to use, tabulates an individual's carbon dioxide emissions, based on a user's energy and water consumption, garbage production, travel miles and eating habits.

Actually a Web site, the calculator also comes in a children's version and offers tips about how to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, which have been linked to climate change.