The recent Texas electricity emergencies are significant warnings to all residents that everyone should do their part in conserving electricity. Unless a really abundant source of cheap electricity is made available to everyone, people must not be complacent in their efforts in conserving power and using electricity wisely. Everyone should not be wasteful with their use of power and should do their part in practicing energy conservation and having an energy efficient home.

While the recent electricity emergency called forth by the Texas grid operator Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) was mostly attributed to the significantly high temperatures of high summer, rolling blackouts were avoided with the cooperation of both residential and commercial Texas electricity users.

At some points during the recent emergencies, ERCOT had no option but to initiate Energy Emergency Alert Level 2, calling on large commercial and industrialTexaselectricity users bounded by contract to voluntarily reduce their load.

At least, Energy Emergency Alert Level 3 or Power Emergency was averted, which forces power utilities to immediately conduct temporary outages on their areas of distribution in an attempt to reduce to the overall demand on the Texas electricity grid. With 20 power plants shutting down and more than 3,000 megawatts of capacity lost, it looked as ifTexas residents would have to deal with 15 to 45 minutes rolling power outages.

Despite Texasresidents having the power to select energy options, everyone has the responsibility of doing their share in preventing a Texas electricity crisis. It is not the sole responsibility of the power grid operator and the utility companies to handle everything there is to be done during these emergencies. Texas residents can do their share by practicing energy conservation measures right in their own homes.

The Texas Public Utility Commission released their “Powerful Advice” initiatives which describe practical energy conservation tips that every resident should follow. ERCOT advised reduction of energy usage between 3 m to 7pm, peak hours where Texas electricity usage is at its highest, and they can do so by simply turning off unnecessary lights and other electricity-consuming appliances.

However, the practice of energy conservation and having an energy efficient home should not be done only during calls for electricity emergencies, but should be an integrated part of modern life. Tips are available from your Retail Electric Providers or from your utility companies. Aside from that, there are lots of energy conservation tips shared through various websites including the blogs and articles from Shop Texas Electricity.

Energy efficiency should be a way of life and not just an emergency action when the situation calls for it. Energy efficiency and energy conservation will help ensure that residents will have ample supply of energy now and in the future. The government and its agencies, private corporations, the academic and technological communities are doing the best they can to come up with alternative solutions for energy production to ensure abundant supply not only for all people now, but for future generations to come.

About Shop Texas Electricity- Shop Texas Electricity helps consumers and businesses compare and shop for their electricity plans in Texas. Learn more about Shop Texas Electricity by visiting us at www.ShopTexasElectricity.com

The average new home being built is up to four times more energy efficient than traditional second-hand houses.

New homes are built to incorporate all the latest energy-saving devices and the best insulation. This is great because it means new homes have much lower running costs in comparison to their older counterparts. New-builds offer a more substantial eco-friendly way of living. Older homes can be converted to accommodate the best heating systems or energy-saving technologies out there, but this this could prove very costly. New property developers are able to implement the latest techniques to install in new builds.

There are many ways in which we can save energy and money within our homes. One of the advantages of buying a new build is that you can be guaranteed that certain energy requirements have been met.

The Government requires by law that carbon emissions are cut and one of the ways this can be done is by ensuring that new houses are built to be significantly more energy efficient. Building regulations state that every home which is sold must have an energy performance certificate. This provides the home owner with information regarding how efficient the property is and its potential to be improved. This affects us because the more energy efficient a house is, the lower the running costs will be.

Clearly a lot has changed over the years and without doubt we can expect further changes in terms of how energy efficient our homes can be. As the general public becomes more educated about environmental issues, we can expect an increase in demand for more energy-efficient housing. In fact the trend is already on the rise and builders are responding with technology to meet whatever levels of energy efficiency new buyers might demand.

With the expected growth in innovative, environmentally-friendly technological advancements, we can expect our homes in the future to be much better. With new-build properties you can be sure that the best efforts are being made. Developers are aware buyers can now check energy performance certificates prior to buying new homes, and what they find can affect their decision.
Considerations are heating and hot water, lighting and products within the home such as kitchen appliances. Other aspects are flooring, walls, windows and roofs.

These are exciting times and our homes will be set up to utilise clean energy, save water and ultimately save us financially.

Work physiology is the science that studies how the human body responds to the physical stress of work or activity demands. These physiological responses are important in maintaining homeostasis in the body during work activities and reducing the adverse effects of physiological fatigue due to work. Homeostasis is defined as the maintenance of a constant or changing environment. In practical terms, it refers to the relatively constant internal environment of the human body during both stressed and relaxed conditions, due to many regulating anatomical and physiological systems. These organ systems and physiological responses regulate cellular metabolism, energy production, cellular waste product removal, voluntary muscle control, and the flow of blood and oxygen to working muscles. An understanding of the role of major organ systems in the human body during work activities and the relationships between work intensity and recovery intervals is essential to the science of ergonomics.

Metabolism
To accomplish work, the body requires energy, oxygen and nutrients. The human body consumes and uses carbohydrate, fat and protein nutrients to provide the required energy to maintain homeostasis both at rest and during work activity. During work, the primary nutrients utilized are fats and carbohydrates, with proteins contributing less than 5-15% of the total energy used. These nutrients, after having been converted to chemicals, enter the blood stream and circulate to the various internal organs and muscles. At the muscle sites, this chemical energy is converted into mechanical energy, or a muscle contraction, and heat. This process is known as metabolism.

Working muscle requires a constant supply of energy. The fundamental source of energy for these contractions is the high-energy Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) molecule. The ATP molecule is the most important energy carrying molecule in the muscle cell. The ATP compound consists of three parts: adenosine molecule, a ribose molecule and three phosphate molecules linked together by chemical bonds. The bonds linking the phosphate molecules are high-energy bonds and when these bonds are broken, large amounts of energy are released. This energy is then used for muscle contractions. The energy can be liberated from the ATP molecule by a process known as phosphorylation. This metabolic process is shown below. Phosphorylation is the process in which the Adenosine Triphosphate molecule is broken down by the enzyme ATPase into Adenosine Diphosphate (ADP), a phosphate molecule (Pi) and energy.
Aerobic Metabolism
The Adenosine Triphosphate needed for muscle work can be produced from either aerobic (with oxygen) metabolism or from anaerobic (without oxygen) metabolism. The aerobic metabolism of nutrients refers to the oxidation of glucose or glycogen molecules and fatty acids to form ATP, this process is called aerobic glycolysis. This metabolic pathway requires a continuous supply of blood in order to provide ongoing oxygen and nutrients.

A cardiovascular response to increased workload is to increase the amount of blood flowing to active muscle. However, it can take almost one minute for this response to be activated. Therefore, at the onset of most industrial tasks, or in cases of quick-high intensity tasks, it is not always possible to have adequate blood flow available to working muscles. When this occurs, the muscles switch to anaerobic metabolism.

Anaerobic Metabolism
The muscle cells can produce Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) or energy, without oxygen (anaerobic metabolism) by two methods: the first method is to break high-energy phosphate bonds in Creatine Phosphate (CP) molecules. The second method is by a process known as anaerobic glycolysis. Under anaerobic conditions, the simplest and thus immediate source of energy is through the use or production of the Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) molecule by breaking high-energy phosphate bonds in the Creatine Phosphate (CP) molecule. The CP molecule donates a phosphate(P) to an ADP molecule to create an ATP molecule and energy. Creatine Kinase is the enzyme that initiates this reaction in the muscle

The second anaerobic metabolic process for energy synthesis is called anaerobic glycolysis. This process also generates a limited amount of energy, but does so by breaking the chemical bonds in the breakdown of glucose to lactic acid. Anaerobic glycolysis can only produce enough ATP or usable energy for a few minutes. In this method, however, the supply of CP is quickly depleted in under 1 minute. Anaerobic glycolysis provides energy for up to four minute. Only the aerobic glycolysis process can provide a sustained supply of energy to working muscles. With both anaerobic processes, work can only be sustained for short periods because is a limited supply of available ATP and CP molecules in the muscle cells

Muscle Fatigue
When skeletal muscle is continually stimulated, the force or tension that is developed by the muscle fibers diminishes. This failure of muscle fiber to maintain tension as a result of contractile activity is known as muscle fatigue. The onset of fatigue depends on both the type of skeletal muscle fibers as well as the intensity and duration of the muscle contractions. The red muscle fibers, or the -slow twitch- fibers appear to have better blood flow and therefore oxygen supply to maintain aerobic metabolism. In the slow twitch muscle fibers, fatigue develops more slowly. These muscles fibers are used mostly during long duration, low intensity activities. The white muscle fibers, also called -fast twitch- fibers, appear to rely more upon anaerobic metabolism. These fibers fatigue more rapidly, and are used more for short duration, high intensity activities. The development of muscle fatigue corresponds to four events that occur in working muscles:

1.)The depletion of the concentration of ATP. The rate of ATP utilization exceeds the rate of production. The muscle cannot contract without ATP.
2.)Increased amounts of intracellular acidity due to the rise in lactic acid levels. This increased hydrogen ion concentration affects the contractile proteins of the muscle fibers, decreasing the force generated by the muscle fibers.
3.)The depletion of muscle glycogen levels. As the amount of available glycogen diminishes, the muscle can no longer sustain a contraction.
4.)Levels of other metabolic waste products, including Carbon Dioxide, increase within muscle cells. If levels of acid and carbon dioxide waste products build up, this will slow aerobic metabolism, resulting in less efficient metabolism.

If muscle fatigue sets in and the muscle is no longer able to sustain work efficiently, the muscle becomes overloaded resulting in micro trauma to the muscle fibers. If this fatigue and overloading is repetitive or long term in nature the resulting microtrauma becomes cumulative and pathology or injury occurs. Local muscle fatigue is suspect to contribute to work-related Cumulative Trauma Disorders. In order to avoid the adverse effects of muscle fatigue, a sufficient supply or flow of blood to the working muscles is critical.

Since aerobic metabolism generates almost 20 times as much ATP for energy as does anaerobic energy, the effects of muscle fatigue can be minimized by ensuring work load intensity is low enough so that adequate oxygenation, or blood flow to the active working muscles is achieved. If heavy workloads are required, they should be brief in duration, lasting less than a few seconds or minutes, which reduces the effects of prolonged anaerobic metabolism, and maximizes metabolic efficiency.

Summary
The most important factor in ergonomic job design or modification is to promote aerobic metabolism and adequate blood flow, resulting in a high metabolic efficiency. This will maintain adequate blood flow to working muscles, prevent fatigue and allow maximal performance. Dynamic muscle contractions are always preferred over static muscle loading situations. Work-rest cycles should provide sufficient recovery times to sufficiently perfuse active muscles with blood. Jobs should be designed or modified to minimize or reduce the requirements for static contractions, such as static grips, extended reaches and extreme postures.

Custom Home Builders VA:What can I do to increase the energy efficiency of my current home?

by: www.CustomHomeBuildersVA.com

Most advisers agree that energy prices are going to continue to go up. If you look at the possibility of further devaluation of the dollar combined with the possibility of draconian energy legislation, the opportunity of extraordinary escalation of energy prices exists.

Many Americans are living in homes larger than they need. Homes that were built for size rather than quality.

In my opinion, getting prepared for high energy costs is a critical component of any preparedness strategy.

First do all the conventional things to make your home as energy efficient as possible.

Add insulation, upgrade windows and doors (while you are doing this it is an excellent opportunity to upgrade your security), change light bulbs, upgrade appliances, install water heater blankets. If the plumbing pipes have relatively short runs it is very likely that a propane fired tank-less water heater would make sense.

Secondly, consider your heating system. This is an intensive area of energy for many homes.

We recommend wood-fired outdoor boilers where feasible. These units circulate hot water and can be used for many heating applications including home heat, domestic hot water, greenhouse radiant heat and swimming pools, to name a few.

If you have a heat pump, a propane furnace installed with the heat pump is a very good combination. This allows for an energy efficient propane furnace to do the heating when the heat pump is out of its operating range. While there are very efficient and comfortable heat pumps, the back-up heating strips on heat pumps are very energy intensive. Propane is still primarily produced in the United States.

Also, we have had very good experiences with geo-thermal. While it is still electric based, it provides an excellent source of heating in mild climates and is incredibly energy efficient.

We always recommend some alternate options in heating, so there is some source of heat in the event of grid failures. For example, if you have a geo-thermal heating system, install a wood stove as the back-up.
There are a number of structural changes or modifications which could result in much greater energy efficiency. These would include adding a vestibule or windbreak if you have children or go in and out of the house a good bit. You might be able to earth berm part of the north side of your house, or add a solar room to the south side of the home, just to name a few possibilities.