Hello world! I was strolling along a back street with my mother to a local park when I happened to see a strange occurrence by the water’s edge: a palm tree with an epiphyte on it! I didn’t know what this peculiar vegetation was until my AP Environmental class this year, but now I see them almost everywhere. For those of you who don’t know, an epiphyte is a plant that grows on the branches or stems of another (usually larger) plant. “Epi” in Greek means “on” or “upon”, and “phyte” means “plant”. These twisting, bizarre plants  look like they are strangling the other host plant, but the relationship between the two is not parasitic (more like commensalistic since the epiphyte benefits while the tree is mostly unaffected). They epiphyte gets its water and nutrients either from the bark/stem of the plant it is attached to, or from an elongated root that reaches to the ground. Epiphytes take to living in other trees in the first place because of the accumulated organic matter (nutrients) on the bark and the increased sunlight. Other common epiphytes include the omnipresent Spanish moss and orchids---one cannot walk in a wooded field without seeing the swaying, curly, and spongy moss dangling from dank leafy interiors.
       Another occurrence I saw on my walk was solar panels on a small, dull orange house. Although I have a few solar panel houses in my neighborhood (I even used to have them on my house), most houses in the United States rely on the centralized fossil fuel powered grid for electricity. Solar panels (many rows of them together are called an "array") utilize PV cell technology, which stands for "Photovoltaic" cells. Basically, when sunlight strikes the layered silicon cell, an electron flows between two plates, creating an electrical current that can be used for lighting and to heat homes. The two plate layers are called the n-type layer and the p-type layer. The electricity garnered from this process is a direct current (Einstein’s design), but it can be changed into alternate current (Tesla’s design) if need be. Again, as with most renewable energy sources, the upfront costs are high and the cultural perception has yet to shift from a fossil fuel economy to a more sustainable one. Also, many places are not sunny all year round or during the night; therefore, fuel cell batteries are needed to store power for use during times when the extreme power of the sun cannot be harnessed. However, many benefits (i.e. zero emissions and the ability for consumers to sell back excess power they created to electric companies for profit) are enticing. I have seen many fields of solar panels: once when driving to Atlanta and the other time in Spain (driving from Consuegra to Castellon-de-la-Plana). It is amazing and futuristic to see these sprawling fields of mirrors (an example of passive solar energy) producing sustainable power. Overall, I believe sustainable are the way to the future—read my riveting article on wind power for more information.

http://www.selby.org/about/what-are-epiphytes
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_moss