Strip mine media
Rough Type: Nicholas Carr's Blog — ... more energy, but let's not kid ourselves: the vast majority of computer and Internet use represents additional energy consumption.) How many Twitterheads think about their electricity use before they tweet? Not many. How many bloggers think about it before they blog? Not this one. So the next time you see some lunkhead smugly bloviating about "dead tree media," ask him how much electricity his computers, smartphones, and other networked gadgets consumed that day. UPDATE: Google responds , claiming the Wissner-Gross estimate "is *many* times too high": "Queries vary in degree ...

Measuring your Google search's carbon footprint
Green Tech — ... about 200 million searches daily. "Google operates huge data centers around the world that consume a great deal of power," Alex Wissner-Gross told the newspaper. "A Google search has a definite environmental impact." The global IT industry generates about 2 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions, or about as much greenhouse gas as the world's airlines, according to a recent Gartner study cited by the newspaper. Google disputed that report late Sunday evening, saying in a blog that the "time it takes to do a Google search, your own personal computer will use more ...

How Google searches lead to our destruction
Technically Incorrect — ... not expect me to spout the numbers at you, but apparently the fact that Google transmits every search inquiry to more than one server doesn't help. And, worse, even though Google believes it is the most efficient of search organizations, our desperate and faintly pathetic need for speed means that by searching we are burning up the planet like Nicolas Cage in Gone In Sixty Seconds. Naturally, even though I have not finished my morning muffin, Wissner-Gross' numbers are already being disputed. ...

Are We Killing The Planet One Google Search At A Time?
TechCrunch — ... Update: Google has responded to The Times article, stating that a single search is actually equivalent to a mere 0.2 grams of CO2. The blog post also details some of Google’s efforts to further green technology as well as the energy efficiency of its own data centers. ...

Scientist Reveals Google CO2 Research; Blatently Puts Planet at Risk
Andy Beal's Marketing Pilgrim — ... So, by my “finger in the air” approach to science, the amount of CO2 generated by all the bloggers writing about this story–and their collective thousands of readers firing up their web browsers–amounts to leaving 200 refrigerator doors open for the entire length of the SuperBowl. Now excuse me while I go buy a carbon offset for this post. UPDATE: Google responds with its own numbers. ...

Why Pick On Google? How Green Are We The People? [GigaOM]
GigaOM Network — ... In a blog post today, Urs Hölzle, Senior Vice President, Operations at Google responded to the charges by pointing out that “your own personal computer will use more energy than Google uses to answer your query.” ...

One Search Produces Only 0.2 Grams of CO2, says Google
Search Engine Journal — ... The Official Google Blog has just a published a brief explanation of the company’s environmental footprint. Saying that, contrary to the recent report, one Google search does not produce that high amount of CO2 (0.7 grams), but only 0.2 grams. ...

Google Searches Are Power Hogs
Earth2Tech — ... emits 7 grams of CO2 — so, two searches on Google uses the same amount of power as boiling water in a tea kettle. (Update: Google disagrees with that data, and says an average search query emits closer to 0.2 grams of CO2, and that 7 grams is “many times too high.”) ...

Is Googling Bad For the Environment?
Technologizer — ... on a Harvard researcher’s upcoming study on computing’s environmental impact. I’m not sure what to make of that stat–is it a given that making a cup of tea is a more worthy undertaking than doing two Google searches? (The article’s in a British publication, so maybe so.) But Google has responded in a blog post , saying that it runs the world’s most energy-efficient data centers and that the study’s math is all wrong. Driving a car for .6 of a mile, Google says, creates as much greenhouse gases as a thousand Google searches. None of these calculations strike me as being ...

Energy efficient Google search - Generates 7g of CO2
D' Technology Weblog — ... difficulty, but for the average query, the servers it touches each work on it for just a few thousandths of a second. Together with other work performed before your search even starts (such as building the search index) this amounts to 0.0003 kWh of energy per search, or 1 kJ. For comparison, the average adult needs about 8000 kJ a day of energy from food, so a Google search uses just about the same amount of energy that your body burns in ten seconds.[…] Full Article ...

Google searches causing global warming? Err... no.
Tech Digest — ... creations, and the IT industry has a carbon footprint like any other industry, Google pales into nothing when compared to cars, fossil fuel power stations and the aviation industry. I suspect that the real reason for this jab at one of the world's biggest IT companies is simply a desire for more research funding, particularly since the article inexplicably ends with an utterly unrelated jab at celebrity Twitterers. Google's Senior VP of Operations, Urs Hölzle, clears things up on the Official Google Blog. ...

Research claims single Google Search emits 7g of CO2, Google rubbishes it
Tech Ticker — ... competing against each other. It may even be sent to servers thousands of miles apart. Google’s infrastructure sends you data from whichever produces the answer fastest. The system minimizes delays but raises energy consumption.” Now a twist to the claim is that Google refutes it. In a blog post by Google’s Operations VP says that the “number is *many* times too high”. An average Google query takes just 0.2 grams of CO2. Via Timesonline|GoogleBlog] Advertisement: Samsung Hub ...

Google: major environmental polluter?
p2pnet news — ... But, “in the time it takes to do a Google search, your own personal computer will use more energy than Google uses to answer your query,” blogs Google, stung by Wissner-Gross’ claims and the Times Online report. ...

Signs of Armageddon: We’re worrying about CO2 emissions of a Google search
Between the Lines — ... cheaper than coal so it can cut data centers exponentially (oops forgot, save the world). Google says : In fact, in the time it takes to do a Google search, your own personal computer will use more energy than Google uses to answer your query. Recently, though, others have used much higher estimates, claiming that a typical search uses “half the energy as boiling a kettle of water” and produces 7 grams of CO2. We thought it would be helpful to explain why this number is *many* times too high. Google is fast — a typical search returns results in less than 0.2 seconds. Queries ...

How Much Energy is Consumed by a Google Search?
WebProNews Feed — ... emissions caused by computers and the internet is provoking concern. A recent report by Gartner, the industry analysts, said the global IT industry generated as much greenhouse gas as the world s airlines - about 2% of global CO2 emissions. Data centres are among the most energy-intensive facilities imaginable, said Evan Mills, a scientist at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California. Banks of servers storing billions of web pages require power. In what appears to be a response to this article , Urs H lzle, Senior Vice President, Operations at Google, has put ...

Disagreement over Google's carbon footprint
Technology: Technology blog | guardian.co.uk — ... Is that Google search really necessary? It's the latest question that environmentalists are asking after the release of research from US physicist Alex Wissner-Gross. He says that a Google search performed from a desktop produces about 7g of CO2, whereas boiling a kettle releases about 15 g. Google, and a fair number of others on the internet, are questioning the figures, making it one of the most discussed issues on the internet right now. Google has fired back saying: In fact, in the time it takes to do a Google search, your own ...

Researcher Claims Two Google Searches Produces Same CO2 as Boiling Tea Water [Energy Conservation]
Lifehacker — ... for a (really) detailed explanation. UPDATE : As noted by commenters, Google has responded to the Times' article with a firm denial , claiming that, from their own math: In terms of greenhouse gases, one Google search is equivalent to about 0.2 grams of CO2. The current EU standard for tailpipe emissions calls for 140 grams of CO2 per kilometer driven, but most cars don't reach that level yet. Thus, the average car driven for one kilometer (0.6 miles for those in the U.S.) produces as many greenhouse gases as a thousand Google searches. So, if you regularly drink stove-boiled ...

How Green is Google?
Know It All — Urs Hölzle, Google's SVP for Operations, responds to a Sunday Times article that cites a Harvard study claiming that two Google searches "can generate about the same amount of carbon dioxide as boiling a kettle for a cup of tea." Not so, says Hölzle. The reported energy consumption is "many times too high," he says, in part because Google searches are so fast that the hardware doesn't have to work very long on a given query. Nick Carr was dubious about the reported numbers, but says it's useful in any case to be reminded of the high cost of data centers. ...

Green-minded Google Gets Red-faced Over Search Energy Consumption Claims
eWeek - RSS Feeds — ... or practices to ensure its Web services are provided with as minimal an impact on our environment as possible. Urs Hölzle, senior vice president of operations at Google, provided a more empirical defense of Google search, arguing Wissner-Gross' calculation that a typical search produces 7 grams of CO2 is many times too high. Hölzle said that Google's speed keeps it from burning so much energy because the servers a query touches each work on it for just a few thousandths of a second. Hölzle explained : Together with other work performed before your search even starts (such as ...

Google Efficiency Claim Not Everyone's Cup Of Tea
InformationWeek - All Stories And Blogs — ... use often means fewer activities that produce more carbon, like driving. Google also disagrees with The Times ' assessment and on Monday published a rebuttal by Urs Holzle, senior VP of operations at the company. "Recently, though, others have used much higher estimates, claiming that a typical search uses 'half the energy as boiling a kettle of water' and produces 7 grams of CO 2 ," Holzle wrote in a blog post . "We thought it would be helpful to explain why this number is *many* times too high." According to Holzle, a Google search produces about 0.2 grams of CO 2 , ...

Google Disputes The Times Online UK’s Claim About Environmental Impacts On Search Queries
Pulse2 - Technology News And Reviews — ... .  Since Google is making a tremendous effort towards becoming a greener company and built their whole company based on a “Don’t be evil” philosophy, they simply can’t take the bad reputation.  Especially if they believe the facts are wrong.  Urs Hölzle, SVP of Google Operations responded to the accusations on the Google Blog. ...

The Power of Search
Changing Way — ... generate about the same amount of carbon dioxide as boiling a kettle for a cup of tea, reported the Sunday Times. There’s no need to tell you which Times, since the quantification is so very English. Many kettles could have been boiled with the heat and other energy used in the reaction to the article. Om asked: Why Pick On Google? How Green Are We The People? and provides evidence that Google strives harder for efficiency than do most of us. From Google itself comes further context. a Google search uses just about ...

Tempest in a Tea Kettle: CO2Stats Founder Caught in Frenzy Around Environmental Costs of a Google Search
Xconomy — ... The Times story and stories about it have dominated technology news aggregators like Techmeme and (ironically) Google Blog Search for the last day or more.Late last night, Google itself posted a response, noting that the figure cited in the Times was “*many* times too high.” ...

Google Pushes Back Hard On Claims They're Hurting The Environment
AppScout — ... I have been looking for a word to describe Google's usual corporate voice. Circumspect. They hold their cards close to the vest and seldom comment publicly. That's what makes the latest entry in the "Official Google Blog" so unusual and unexpected. Google is pushing back against a claim web searches are environmentally unfriendly because Google uses so much electricity. ...

Revealed: The Times Made Up That Stuff About Google And The Tea Kettles
TechCrunch — ... the article for being overly alarmist, with a lack of perspective and possible bias. Google also responded, effectively denouncing the claim. ...

Roundup: Balderton’s new fund, Google’s “environmental impact” and more
VentureBeat — ... — but he left in June, citing issues getting anything done at the company. Now he’s at Google. Social gaming site Cafe.com sells Boonty digital distribution service to Nexway — GigaOm has more. Apple and LG Displays ink five-year deal — LG will provide Apple with LCD displays; Apple has already paid LG a $500 million advance. Google searches don’t have a significant environmental impact — Despite a report to the ...

Way Too Much Energy
John Battelle's Searchblog — If we are ever going to crack the biological barrier (IE, make real intelligence), we can't have this kind of inefficiency in our machines: "a Google search uses just about the same amount of energy that your body burns in ten seconds." Ten seconds!!! Man, that's slow. It takes us, what, about two orders of magnitudes less, if not three, to conjure up a thought, right? Kevin? ...

Scientist slams newspaper for Google report
Green Tech — ... second to visit a Web site." So where did The Times get the kettle stat? "I have no idea where they got those statistics," said Wissner-Gross, who acknowledged and defended making the statements about Google. "Everything online has a definite environmental impact. I think everybody can agree on that, including Google." Google, which the newspaper described as "secretive about its energy consumption and carbon footprint," was swift to respond to the reported statistics in a blog late Sunday: We thought it would be helpful to explain why this number is *many* times ...

Preposterous Stories Make for Good BS Indicators
SmoothSpan Blog — ... Google’s Official Response Post:  Of course Google had to respond, since it was called to task for heinous environmental crimes.  I thought their response was nicely measured.  Good job, Google! ...

Google Searches Most Likely Not Destroying World
OhGizmo! — ... aren’t great for the environment. But just about everything short of planting a tree isn’t great for the environment… The important thing is to be generally aware of the impact of your lifestyle, and try to mitigate things where possible. And sometimes services like Google can help you with that, by enabling you to locate information faster and more efficiently. So, don’t freak out, and click here. You’ll feel a little better. [ Google Blog ] VIA [ Wired ] ...

Single Google Query uses 1000 Machines in 0.2 seconds
Digital Inspiration - Technology Blog — ... This revelation may be a bit embarrassing for Google, which has defended its ecological record in the past, claiming that a single Google query takes just 0.0003KWh of energy and that the Google datacenters are "the world’s most efficient." ...

Your Google search uses 1,000 computers
Obsessable News Feed — ... for doing this after having made claims that its searches are highly energy-efficient. They might still be relatively efficient, but it's hard to believe that one thousand computers doing your bidding are light on energy usage! ...

Carbon Footprint of Spam: Hello, the Internet Uses Energy
Earth2Tech — ... about 0.2 grams of CO2 emissions (while there were some issues with the original Google carbon search report, that’s their official figure). Always-on web services like our dearly-beloved ...

Google: 15,000 searches = 1 cheeseburger (hold the fries)
Ars Technica — ... Early this year, a newspaper story made the rounds when, after extrapolating from some energy use estimates made by an academic, it claimed that two searches on Google would burn enough energy to heat water for a cup of tea. The researcher behind the report eventually disavowed the newspaper's extrapolations but, by then, Google had already felt compelled to defend its energy efficiency in a blog post. Not content to let matters rest there, however, Google is back with a ...