I came across this interesting article last month that gives a real in depth discussion of the copper mining industry – it is absolutely worth a read.
http://www.psmag.com/navigation/nature-and-technology/the-new-bronze-age-entering-the-era-of-tough-ore-60868/
Let me see if I can tickle your fancy… Are you willing to throw away your smart phone, halt the Vancouver condo industrial complex, turn in your car and your TV, buy a horse and ride off to the Yukon to live in a log cabin and hunt/grow your own food? If you don’t do this immediately – you are supporting the copper mining industry!
Copper is basically irreplaceable in our current world and visible future. Among metals, only silver conducts electricity better but it is too expensive to use on a large scale. What copper does well, nothing else quite does. This means that the demand for copper is largely not driven by price, but by need. Copper is the wiring in buildings being constructed around the world, it is essential to the electronics we use, it is essential to the development of higher efficiency devices and environmentally friendly solutions to age old problems.
Unlike other key resources, like oil and gasoline, it has no realistic competitors. Oil as an energy source can be recreated in exactly the same quality using coal, water, heat from the earth, wind. Gasoline can be replaced by ethanol, bio diesel, and batteries charged by any energy source. There is no viable alternative to copper. The easiest sources of copper have been mined already. It is eminently recyclable but extremely durable, which means it lasts a long time and there is not nearly enough recycled copper to meet increasing needs. New copper requires an ever increasing amount of energy to extract and process, and comes with a slew of environmental implications because of the way copper exists in the ground – not the way it is processed.
So as we drive our society towards more environmentally friendly sources of energy, cars, and buildings – we also drive the demand for copper up and enable the development of increasingly complex and difficult to access sources of copper with an increasing need for energy to extract the copper and increasing environmental risks/consequences of extracting it. A bit of a conundrum, I think.
What to do… what to do…
Love, Afghan
Preparation:
A) Coach Choice
B) 15/15 Single Leg Glute Bridges
Strength/Skill:
a1) Barbell Glute Bridge 4×8+
a2) Inverted Ring Rows (221) 4×10
- Pin the ribcage down. Foot position should be placed where gluteals are felt most
- Increase weight with every set
- On final set, cut weight to 50% and burn it out
- On the rings: 2sec Eccentric, 2sec Concentric, 1sec Isometric
Conditioning:
With a partner, complete:
Row 750m
50 Russian Swings 2p/1.5p
30 Burpees
Row 1500m
30 Burpees
50 Russian Swings 2p/1.5p
Row 750m
Movement Penalty:
- Burpees landed on toes = 10 Wallballs (accumulative)