On a soft July evening in Durham, North Carolina, shortly before the singing of our National Anthem, John Darnielle holds forth on baseball and breakfast. "Where have you eaten since you've been in Durham?" he asks, adjusting his glasses. "You didn't happen to stop by Loaf this morning, did you? Because if you did, and there weren't any peanut-butter-and-chocolate croissants left, I apologize: I grabbed the last few. They're insane."
The voice and face of much-beloved rock band the Mountain Goats, Darnielle is publicly passionate about a great many things, generous with deftly phrased opinions on sports and music and animal rights. But as he comes alive in Durham Bulls Athletic Park, touting his adopted hometown's ongoing renaissance from within its jewel-box minor-league-baseball stadium, his enthusiasm borders on the evangelical.
"We have so much good food in this town, it is crazy," he enthuses, between bites of a squishy veggie burger, as his sturdy two-year-old son, Roman, "our cookie sommelier," bulldozes a path to a platter of chocolate-chips just within his reach. "You go to these restaurants and you have profoundly good meals. You go to Loaf, you get the best loaf of bread you've ever had for five bucks."
A few blocks away, past the center-field bleachers, the city's once-abandoned downtown is now teeming with vibrant local businesses, including a staggering array of first-rate, farm-to-fork destinations, often natural extensions of already-successful vendors in the bustling Durham Farmer's Market and rapidly expanding swarm of food trucks. Bars, breweries, galleries, and urban farms have sprouted up, while the arrival of luxury condominiums is both luring new residents downtown and providing cause for concern among other Durhamites. Substantial retail operations seem to be finding some footing, and, not far from DBAP, you'll find the Durham Performing Arts Center, a recently built, Carnegie Hall-sized auditorium that has ranked nationally in ticket sales since opening in 2008.
But tonight is the Bulls organization's first official collaboration with another Durham institution: Merge Records, formerly and famously of neighboring Chapel Hill, 10 miles to the southwest, and label home to Spoon, Wild Flag, Arcade Fire, the Mountain Goats, and Superchunk, the pioneering 24-year-old punk-rock band of label co-founders Laura Ballance and Mac McCaughan. Both of whom are here as well, mulling over the catering options alongside Darnielle in the luxury box allotted to the label. At the Bulls' request, Merge has tapped its coveted back catalogue, providing the songs to which every Durham batter will stride to the plate tonight.
The entire stadium is gleaming in high definition, from the pink towers of cotton candy tottering through the aisles to the sweaty trains of light beer changing hands to the batting helmets of the visiting Pawtucket Red Sox, a team whose first, fruitless few at-bats are soundtracked only by narcotic crowd murmurs. But when a relatively propulsive snippet of the Mountain Goats' "The Brothers Diaz" cues up the approach of Bulls third baseman and leadoff hitter Cole Figueroa, all seems right in the Merge box. "Figueroa's got an older brother in the Big Show," Darnielle says to Ballance and her husband, Luc, an esteemed sound-engineer-turned-local-wine-importer. "We want him to go yard at least once tonight, so that he can say to the world that he owes it all to the Mountain Goats." Ballance, bratwurst in hand, cracks a smile and laughs. "John," she says slowly, "This is so weird."
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2013年8月20日星期二
2013年3月27日星期三
Harvard University team on mission to light up rural homes
Many Kenyans dream of getting their homes connected to the electric power grid. For many, this remains just that; a dream. But things may soon change if a team of engineers from Harvard University has its way.
These engineers are determined to see rural homes across Kenya gain access to affordable power and clean water from wells and boreholes.
One of the team experts, 26-year-old Sam Slaughter, the brains behind WindGen Power East Africa Limited, says the team aims to enable Kenyans to put the provision of energy in their own hands since access to electricity can transform the country.
“Renewable energy can be used for pumping water, powering completely off-grid homes, providing power backup from on-grids, and offering low-cost lighting solutions,” said Mr Slaughter.
WindGen Power, a project initiated two years ago, provides access to reliable and affordable renewable energy using the limitless power of the wind and the sun.
“We enable those living, working, and learning off-grid to enjoy the benefits of power,” he notes.
He says that the main power grid serves just 18 per cent of Kenya’s population, which means that an estimated 30 million people have to contend with environmental-damaging fuels like kerosene, firewood, charcoal, diesel, and dry cell batteries.
Mr Slaughter says renewable energy is an excellent option for people living off-grid since it is a comprehensive power solution that does not require an expensive, noisy, and polluting generator.
With a turnover of Sh15 million from Sh1 million seed capital, the company has made great strides in commercialising small Kenyan-made wind turbines. The station has 15 employees.
Mr Slaughter says the company has made 35 installations of renewable power stations in rural Kenya. Conversely, the wind turbines are designed based on the specific needs, budget, and site characteristics of the customer.
He says the company’s mission is to harness East Africa’s renewable energy using robust and affordable products to bring clean energy to homes, schools, hospitals, and businesses.
According to engineer Alastair Smith, an expert working for the energy firm, water pumping in particular is of crucial importance for the Kenyan economy, especially in agriculture.
“Water pumping with solar and in some cases wind, can be extremely efficient and cost-effective. Once installed, the system requires no refuelling, which saves immensely on operating costs and logistical challenges related to fuel transportation,” he said.
He says the systems are most useful in rural areas, where water is needed for domestic use and farming, but are not connected to the national grid.
Increased deployment of such systems, he adds, would go a long way in achieving Kenya’s development goals by increasing agricultural output, decreasing carbon emissions, and increasing renewable energy penetration.
A key advantage of the wind turbines is that they can operate for more than 20 years if well maintained. The water pumps are reliable and designed to operate with little or no maintenance and can run directly from the company’s turbine without the need for battery backup.
The wind turbines, he says, are more affordable than imports. Installation costs between Sh10,000 and Sh20,000, depending on size, type, and use.
These engineers are determined to see rural homes across Kenya gain access to affordable power and clean water from wells and boreholes.
One of the team experts, 26-year-old Sam Slaughter, the brains behind WindGen Power East Africa Limited, says the team aims to enable Kenyans to put the provision of energy in their own hands since access to electricity can transform the country.
“Renewable energy can be used for pumping water, powering completely off-grid homes, providing power backup from on-grids, and offering low-cost lighting solutions,” said Mr Slaughter.
WindGen Power, a project initiated two years ago, provides access to reliable and affordable renewable energy using the limitless power of the wind and the sun.
“We enable those living, working, and learning off-grid to enjoy the benefits of power,” he notes.
He says that the main power grid serves just 18 per cent of Kenya’s population, which means that an estimated 30 million people have to contend with environmental-damaging fuels like kerosene, firewood, charcoal, diesel, and dry cell batteries.
Mr Slaughter says renewable energy is an excellent option for people living off-grid since it is a comprehensive power solution that does not require an expensive, noisy, and polluting generator.
With a turnover of Sh15 million from Sh1 million seed capital, the company has made great strides in commercialising small Kenyan-made wind turbines. The station has 15 employees.
Mr Slaughter says the company has made 35 installations of renewable power stations in rural Kenya. Conversely, the wind turbines are designed based on the specific needs, budget, and site characteristics of the customer.
He says the company’s mission is to harness East Africa’s renewable energy using robust and affordable products to bring clean energy to homes, schools, hospitals, and businesses.
According to engineer Alastair Smith, an expert working for the energy firm, water pumping in particular is of crucial importance for the Kenyan economy, especially in agriculture.
“Water pumping with solar and in some cases wind, can be extremely efficient and cost-effective. Once installed, the system requires no refuelling, which saves immensely on operating costs and logistical challenges related to fuel transportation,” he said.
He says the systems are most useful in rural areas, where water is needed for domestic use and farming, but are not connected to the national grid.
Increased deployment of such systems, he adds, would go a long way in achieving Kenya’s development goals by increasing agricultural output, decreasing carbon emissions, and increasing renewable energy penetration.
A key advantage of the wind turbines is that they can operate for more than 20 years if well maintained. The water pumps are reliable and designed to operate with little or no maintenance and can run directly from the company’s turbine without the need for battery backup.
The wind turbines, he says, are more affordable than imports. Installation costs between Sh10,000 and Sh20,000, depending on size, type, and use.
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