Chicago Joins President Obama’s Better Buildings Challenge to Reduce Energy Use and Save Money

Chicago Joins President Obama’s Better Buildings Challenge to Reduce Energy Use and Save Money | Department of Energy Skip to main content Energy.gov Find information about your town or city. Search form Search Energy.gov Public ServicesTax Credits, Rebates & SavingsHomesVehiclesBuilding DesignManufacturingNational Security & SafetyEnergy EconomyFunding OpportunitiesState & Local GovernmentScience & InnovationScience & TechnologyScience EducationInnovationEnergy SourcesEnergy UsageEnergy EfficiencyMissionNews & BlogMaps & DataAbout UsFor Staff & ContractorsOfficesAll OfficesProgram OfficesStaff OfficesLabs & Technology CentersField SitesPower Marketing AdministrationOther Agencies You are hereHome Chicago Joins President Obama’s Better Buildings Challenge to Reduce Energy Use and Save Money June 5, 2012 - 2:26pm Addthis NEWS MEDIA CONTACT(202) 586-4940

CHICAGO  – U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu joined Mayor Rahm Emanuel at an event in Chicago today to announce that the city is joining the Obama Administration’s Better Buildings Challenge, part of the initiative launched last year by President Obama to catalyze investment in commercial and industrial building energy upgrades and support new jobs across the country.  As a partner in this national initiative, Chicago is committing to reduce energy use by 20 percent across nearly 24 million square feet of public and private building space within the next five years. The Better Buildings Challenge supports the Obama Administration's  blueprint for an economy built to last, reducing energy costs in buildings – which last year consumed more than 40 percent of all the energy used by the U.S. economy – while boosting American competitiveness in the global clean energy race.

“Investments in energy efficiency are making the American economy more competitive by creating jobs, growing industries, reducing energy bills for families and businesses, and protecting our air and water,” said Secretary Chu. “By joining the Better Buildings Challenge, Chicago is not only leading by example, but is also better positioning the city in the global economy by saving millions in energy costs.”

At the event in Chicago, Secretary Chu and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel made the announcement and highlighted the building owners in downtown Chicago that are stepping up to meet the Better Buildings Challenge.  Chicago plans to upgrade 10 million square feet of City-owned buildings and nearly 14 million square feet of privately owned buildings that have partnered with the City.  The City of Chicago and its partners will share their most successful energy-saving strategies and solutions so that others can follow.

The energy to operate the buildings in which we work, shop, and study costs the U.S. approximately $200 billion annually. By taking steps to be energy-efficient, buildings and manufacturing plants nationwide can reduce their energy use by more than 20 percent. The goal of the Obama Administration’s Better Buildings Challenge is to encourage building upgrades that will make America’s buildings 20 percent more energy efficient over the next decade, reducing energy costs for American businesses and local governments by more than $40 billion. 

The Better Buildings Challenge is a national leadership initiative launched by President Obama in December 2011 that calls on chief executive officers, university presidents, and state and local leaders to reduce their portfolio-wide energy use by 20 percent by 2020 and to share the results of their energy reduction strategies. To date, the more than 60 organizations partnering with the Energy Department for the Better Buildings Challenge have committed to improve the energy efficiency of more than 1.6 billion square feet of building space, in addition to reducing energy waste across more than 300 manufacturing facilities and committing nearly $2 billion in energy efficiency financing.  For more information please visit the BetterBuildings Challenge website.  

Addthis Related Articles Chicago Joins Better Buildings Initiative Secretary Chu and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel to Make Energy Efficiency Announcement City of Houston Joins Better Buildings Challenge, Partners with Energy Department to Reduce Energy Waste and Boost Efficiency What We Do For You Energy EconomyEnergy Economy InnovationInnovation Nuclear Security & SafetyNuclear Security & Safety Energy.gov Careers & InternshipsContact UsEmail Updates Popular Topics SavingsHeating & CoolingIndustrial Heating & CoolingSolarHome WeatherizationAppliances & ElectronicsAbout this siteWeb PoliciesPrivacyNo Fear ActInformation QualityOpen GovEnergy DepartmentBudget & PerformanceDirectives, Delegations & RequirementsFOIAInspector GeneralPrivacy ProgramSmall BusinessFederal GovernmentThe White HouseUSA.gov

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Can We Use AI Software to Teach Philosophy, Change the Narrative, and Challenge Minds?

The goal of education is to educate our society, and it should also be to create smarter humans. However in order to do that we need to teach them how to think, and we are not doing that presently, at least not in the US as in our schools we are teaching to the test, and we have so much rote memorization going on that the kids are not really thinking, at least most of them aren't, and I have a problem with this. Let's go ahead and talk about this for second.

To teach people that think, we need to have better mentorship and fewer kids in the classroom, but obviously the budget constraints, the underfunded pensions, and the costs are just too great. But what if we used software to interact with students - asking them questions and teaching them to think while following along? Is this possible? Well, we already have avatars and computer programs which interact with autistic kids, and they do so in such a way that brings the artistic child "out of themselves" and they get quite a bit of learning done which they could not get in a small classroom with even a 1:4 ratio, or one-on-one instruction.

As artificial intelligence gets better and stronger, why can't we develop computer programs which can do the same thing with regular kids? Now then, I know of a company out of Atlanta; they created "genius software," and it would string together famous quotes and phrases, and it could do so in a basic assimilation of a conversation. The software could also be used to make writers look really intelligent by borrowing pieces of writing from famous quotes, which they could cite in their articles.

I would submit to you that we could use the same software, albeit 10 generations from that old genius software which was available in the mid-90s to teach kids philosophy and get them to think. Okay so, let me ask the question then, and we can walk through this; can we develop and use Artificial Intelligent Software to teach philosophy to future students to get them to think, change the narrative, and challenge minds?

Why do I mention "change the narrative" - it's simple, because this is something that DARPA has been working on to help interact on social networks, speaking to individuals who might have hostile intentions, such as terrorists, guerrillas, lone wolf terrorists, or major disruptors of society. By challenging their minds, starting a conversation, and moving that conversation towards a more positive note these individuals learn to interact with others, and perhaps come out of their shell, and dismiss their radical ideas and notions.

Why can't we use all of these software developments to help teach students? I believe we can. In fact, I've already been practicing with one of these software systems, and it actually works pretty good. Best of all it takes the information that I feed it, and might use that information modifying and changing the words and the derivatives of various statements, to interact with other individuals, on the same or similar topics. That's pretty cool when you think about it, and maybe we can teach our next generation to think, using the very social networks and interactive process that they do for fun, in the educational process.

Yes, there's a lot more to all this I understand that, and you're welcome to shoot me an e-mail if you'd like some of my ideas and theories which go well beyond this, in fact I can probably write a whole book on the topic. It is something that we should be discussing and working on. Please consider all this and think on it.

Lance Winslow has launched a new provocative series of eBooks on the Future of Education. Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank; http://www.worldthinktank.net/

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Designing Websites for Tablets - The Mobile Design Challenge

Up until recently, mobile website designers just had to worry about what their applications would look like on small-screened phones and other mobile devices. But with more and more types and sizes of tablets entering the market, mobile designers are finding themselves at a loss.

What happens when a traditional phone application gets displayed on a large screen tablet? The viewer sees lots of empty space and sparse content. And likely won't remain on the site for very long.

To fix that and keep visual interest in the application, Mobile Tuts+ recommended having a ListView on the left side of the screen and a details view on the right side. Use WebView to update the content.

Size and resolution also factors in to design for tablets. The Android operating system can dynamically load resources based on lists of device criteria. Have layouts available for small, medium and large screens.

There are four basic screen according to Android Developers:

• Xlarge screens at least 960dp x 720dp
• Large screens at least 640dp x 480dp
• Normal screens at least 470dp x 320dp
• Small screens at least 426dp x 320dp

Android Developers recommended providing alternative layouts for the different sizes, although the operating system will resize a layout too, so there's no need to design different layouts for each screen size.

When it comes to designing mobile sites that will look good regardless of what type of mobile device a viewer sees it on, keep it simple is the mantra of Developer.com.
Keep screens streamlined and free from clutter to make sure buttons and other touch controls are an adequate size. The site also recommends using flexible layout controls that adjust to screen size, including RelativeLayout and LinearLayout.

Try to keep in mind the people who will be viewing the mobile content. Even the best thought-out mobile plans can go awry and cause users to drift away from the site.
Mobile devices aren't just another ways to reach customers, but are a way to engage them, said Tom Wentworth of Mashable. The gadgets are the most important innovation since the introduction of the computer mouse.

A smartphone user is transaction-oriented and will expect a more no-frills interface -- so stay away from using a lot of Flash and complex sites. Tablet users are looking for more of an experience that could include video, images and other content, but keep the tablet websites easy to navigate.

Betsy is a freelance writer in the UK and Tel Aviv. She specializes in writing creative copy for web, print, film, mobile devices and http://www.wix.com/. Wix is a free mobile website builder mobile website builder that lets users create and customize mobile websites with drag & drop - no coding is required.

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Pelosi Faces Likely Leadership Challenge From Moderate Democrat - Fox News

Outgoing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, facing a growing rebellion against her bid to become minority leader, is likely to be challenged for the post by a moderate Democrat.

North Carolina Rep. Heath Shuler, who has been sending signals since last month that he would run against the San Francisco liberal if she didn't step aside, is expected to launch his leadership bid on Sunday when he appears on CNN's "State of the Union." He's also appearing on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" on Monday.

Shuler, a former NFL quarterback, told the Clay County Progress this week that he had no choice but to leave the sidelines.

"At this point, no one has come forward, no one in leadership for a long time," Shuler told the North Carolina weekly newspaper. "It will be very tough. It is probably a race we can't win. But we need a moderate voice in the Democratic Party."

Shuler's spokeswoman did not return an e-mail seeking comment. Neither did Pelosi's office.

The challenge comes as House Democrats just avoided a messy leadership struggle between Reps. Steny Hoyer of Maryland and James Clyburn of South Carolina for the No. 2 post of their new minority. Pelosi brokered a deal that will allow Hoyer to become second in command while Clyburn receives a new position that will be labeled the third-ranking post in leadership.

But several Democrats, most of them moderates from conservative districts, have made clear that they won't support Pelosi's leadership bid after their party suffered historic losses to Republicans last week. 

Democrats lost more than 60 seats, with a few races still up in the air. Many of the defeats came in conservative or swing districts and many of her critics are lawmakers who barely survived.

Party elections, which occurs behind closed doors, are scheduled for Wednesday.

Pelosi's quick postelection announcement that she would run for minority leader startled many Democrats.

Rep. Dan Boren of Oklahoma told Fox News last week that voters sent a message that they want the Democratic Party to move in a new direction.

"They want someone to lead the party who is going to be bipartisan," he said. "This is very disappointing for a lot of us in the center."

Pelosi told NPR on Friday that she decided to run so she can finish what she started.

"My motivation for running is to be in the strongest possible position to create jobs, to continue the work we did in the previous administration, to preserve Social Security, to protect what we did for health care reform and Wall Street reform," she told the network.

She also blamed the high unemployment rate for last week's election results.

"We didn't lose the election because of me," she said, adding that she believes she has been widely attacked because of her effectiveness as speaker.

"The reason they had to try to take me down is because I've been effective in fighting the special interests in Washington, D.C.," she said.

On Friday, 31 female House Democrats, including two members-elect, endorsed Pelosi for minority leader in an open letter.

"As the first woman Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi has borne the brunt of unfair criticism and attacks, but her record of accomplishment speaks for itself – particularly to women," the letter reads, citing her record-high promotions of women into committee chairmanships, among other things.

"At a time when the incoming Majority is expected to threaten the progress we have made for women and families, we need Nancy Pelosi as Democratic Leader to help us stay unified and fight back," the letter says.

But even some longtime supporters of Pelosi have said she needs to step aside as the party leader.

"I voted for everything she asked me to vote for," said Rep. Albio Sires, D-N.J. "You know, sometimes in this business it's difficult to know when to move on."

"With all the losses that we had with governors and all the redistricting that's going to be done, we don't need the target," Sires said, referring to the once-a-decade House redistricting process about to begin nationwide.

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