Plundering the moon

The Guardian
There’s a new space race on and, unlike the last one, it isn’t focused on science or discovery. It’s all about making money. China, Japan, India, and the United States are all teeing up programs. And China’s expressly states that they want to analyze ‘‘the chemical composition of lunar dust.’’ Apparently there is an isotope in the lunar surface called helium-3 that could play a role in fusion technology. So whether it’s He-3, solar energy, ‘‘or some as yet unknown technology that draws humanity back to the moon,’’ we are coming back because it may be our next frontier for commerce. Soon environmentalists may need to fight ‘‘state-sponsored mining companies’’ from ravaging the moon, just ‘‘a quarter of a million miles from our [own] ravaged home.’’

Earth-friendly natural personal care brand Burt's Bees just cashed in and, according to PSFK, also sold out. The company that makes all that lip goop, shampoo and lotion in the yellow packages was purchased by Clorox, "the chemical company best known for making chlorine-based bleach and Kingsford Charcoal." However, the CEO has promised they are "going to continue to run the business with the same team and the same principles with the same integrity of the natural products and sustainability that we always have." Hmm.

Here's a question. What's the fastest growing Internet population in Europe? Wrong! It's Russia. While only 12 percent of the country's population aged 15 or older was online this September, it represented a 23 percent increase over the past year. Russian online ads are up 70 percent as a result. The largest online audiences in Europe are in Germany and the UK.

If you have a Facebook page, you're a brand ambassador. The way it works is that you can now choose to become a fan of brands and even make purchases. Then every brand interaction you have can be turned into an ad in your feed, complete with your image and an image of the brand, letting all your friends know what you're buying or favoring. It's social advertising made real. Concerns are being raised about the new ad system, because whether you realize it or not, when you signed up for Facebook you agreed to let them provide personal info to advertisers and marketers including your work history, relationship status, and political leanings.

$50 million for drywall? That's what investors coughed up for Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Serious Materials, a new eco-friendly dry wall manufacturer. Why? The company "claims its drywall takes 90 percent less energy to produce than standard drywall, resulting in 98 percent less greenhouse gas emissions." Let's put this in perspective. Buildings account for 50 percent of US greenhouse gases when you add the CO2 produced by materials manufacture. Cars and trucks account for just 12 percent. So anything you can do to change building materials has the potential for huge benefit.

The latest stats are in and it's confirmed. People in the UK are text addicts. They are "sending more than one billion text messages per week." That figure is "25 percent higher than a year ago." Here in the United States we are beginning to text more, but our adoption pales in comparison to the UK. Given that we carry our cellphones around all the time, it's no surprise we find it increasingly more convenient to get text messages instead of calls whether for personal or business reasons.

Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia had a great third quarter "with revenue up 13 percent compared to the same period last year, to $69.3 million." The growth is largely contributed to a 40 percent increase in ad revenue to their flagship magazine Martha Stewart Living. In addition Stewart rolled out the Martha Stewart Collection at Macy's and a Martha Stewart Crafts line. Go Martha. You just can't keep that woman down.

Now that text messaging is becoming mainstream, entrepreneurs are busy trying to monetize it. Enter HouseFront, a Denver-based start-up that's launched a beta site that allows you to "drive by a house and text in its address to 46873 (spells 'house' on a phone's keypad)." In just a few moments, HouseFront provides "the complete scoop on the property" via a text message to your phone. Serious house hunters can "save each address on the website for later review."

San Francisco-based start-up Brondell thinks you'll love its Swash heated toilet seats, complete with bidet-like spray wash, dryer, and deodorizer. You don't need a new toilet, just the "topper." Even Kohler is putting tech in the toilet - they're selling bidet-like features and ambient lighting under the seat - "runway lights for late-night landings."