The Earth's ozone layer is slowly growing again [here]. That's good news, but for those of you who tend to confuse the greenhouse effect with ozone depletion, they are not the same thing!

Ozone depletion has to do with the destruction of a layer of atmosphere that helps protect life from the damaging effects of UV radiation. The greenhouse effect has to do with the proliferation of gases that create a "blanket" that insulates the planet and causes the average temperature worldwide to increase.
10:38:16 AM    

Wired has an article talking about the technology behind America's Cup racing yachts [here].

It took Columbus 10 weeks to reach the New World. By 1905, thanks to better maps and streamlined hulls, the record for crossing the Atlantic stood at 12 days and 4 hours, for an average speed of 10 mph. Over the next 75 years, skippers carved just 2 days off that record. Then something remarkable happened. As the 20th century ended, a surge in data-processing muscle and the advent of carbon fiber gave naval architects the power to craft dramatically lighter hulls with less drag and more efficient sails. At the same time, more accurate weather models told sailors how to exploit optimum wind currents.

In October 2001, millionaire adventurer Steve Fossett's PlayStation put it all together, racing from New York to England in 4 days and 17 hours, shattering the decade-old record by 44 hours. Fossett sailed at an average speed of nearly 26 mph, a pace even most blue-water powerboats can't match. Fossett's secret: He waited for weeks on his 125-foot carbon-fiber catamaran until his weather guru said go, then surfed across the pond on the curl of three powerful low-pressure systems. The forecast was so accurate that, in 2,900 miles, he never tacked once.

The article goes on to talk about many of the facets of sailing that are being tackled using technology.
10:19:09 AM