Podcasts offer a great way to stay current on issues and learn new things. Whether you’re driving, working out or just relaxing, you can try various types of podcasts to see what matches your interests.

If you care about a greener future, then check out these 14 green podcasts recommended by GreenBiz.com.

Miami’s coastline is beautiful, but the water surrounding this tropical paradise is becoming more of a problem with each passing year. Most of us are familiar with the issues of global warming and rising seas levels. Even the climate change deniers can’t ignore the periodic flooding on the streets of Miami Beach. But the problems facing Miami run much deeper as explained by this article, as the drinking water for South Florida is also at risk.

Listening to music in your car used to be a pretty simple proposition. For the good part of a century, you had two choices of audio to listen to: the first was AM radio stations and the second was FM radio stations. That was it. Then the march of technological progress delivered us various prerecorded audio formats such as eight track tapes, cassettes and CDs. Today we still have AM-FM radio, of course, but prerecorded audio is generally enjoyed by capturing it via wireless Bluetooth connections or by wired AUX input ports. The question is: Which is the best way to listen to audio in your car? The sales staff at Kims Chevrolet of Laurel, a local Chevrolet dealer in Laurel, MS, say they get asked this all the time by prospective buyers. Let’s take a look.

Aux inputs 101

There are two general types of Aux inputs in automobiles. The first are the standard analog connections often called phone plugs or headphone jacks. While these are tried and true technology, there can be issues using this type of connector. Not because of the connector itself, mind you, but because the audio going into this connector. The audio signal coming out of some phones and MP3 players through the headphone jack is not terribly high quality. After all, the engineers who designed these devices, designed them to drive a set of earbuds, not a high-end audio system.

The other type of Aux audio input uses a USB connector. USB connectors process digital signals and digital audio, and when executed properly, can yield excellent, noise-free sound reproduction. If you have a digital device such as smartphone, MP3 player or even a thumbdrive, connecting that device via a USB cable to your car’s USB port is going to yield some pretty good audio.

Bluetooth 101

The other method is via Bluetooth wireless signals. Here’s how it started. Bluetooth was originally invented as a way to create secure, wireless, local networks. The basic idea behind the creation of the Bluetooth protocol was to come up with a faster, wireless alternative to the RS-232 serial port on the back of personal computers. It worked extremely well in that application and by the late 1990s, it was finding other uses besides mundane data transmission and started to be adopted by the telephony and consumer electronics industries.

Since Bluetooth also includes the ability for streaming audio, it was only natural that car stereo manufacturers would start to offer that option as well. With the right Bluetooth device, you can stream audio, video, and may even be able to control various radio apps right from your phone or other digital devices. The consumer electronics industry integrated it into quite a variety of devices in no time at all.

The main drawback of using Bluetooth to listen to music in your car is audio quality; the audio quality will typically be worse with Bluetooth than with an aux connection. The reason for this is that Bluetooth audio is compressed for transmission. This means that there will be some loss of audio quality when it is decompressed and played in your car.

So, which is better?

The question of whether Bluetooth is better than Aux in terms of listening to music in a car comes down to two issues. What is more important to you: audio quality or convenience?

From a sound quality angle, the digital signal going into a USB input is going to yield higher sound quality. Sure, you have to use a cable to hook it up but that effort is rewarded with great sound.

The main drawback of using Bluetooth to listen to music in your car is audio quality. While it may be more convenient in the long term, the audio quality will typically be worse with Bluetooth than with an aux connection.

You know what’s annoying? When you plug your smartphone into your car’s USB port and it doesn’t charge. Has this happened to you? Kims No Bull of Laurel, MS, a local Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Ram, Toyota, Nissan, Chevrolet dealer sells a lot of cars so they hear about this often. Well, here’s the reason why: not all car USB ports are designed to charge phones, or even power any peripheral devices at all. They are simply there to transfer data to the car’s infotainment system, not to charge anything.

There’s a few other things that can prevent your phone being charged too. For example, there’s also a chance that there is a compatibility issue between your car’s USB port and your phone, or there might even be an issue with your cable. Lots of things can prevent your phone from charging. Here’s what you need to know:

Two types of USB ports

When the USB port and cables were first introduced in 1996, the initial standard specified two different versions of USB ports: data ports and powered-data ports. USB data ports only transmit data back and forth between devices, while powered data ports transmit both data and power.

USB Data Ports in Cars

Data ports typically allow you to plug in a USB flash drive, smartphone, or MP3 player to listen to music. Since this type of port only uses the data connection terminals of the USB connector and not the power terminals, it isn’t going to charge your phone.

By the way, if you are unsure whether or not your vehicle has a data-only USB port, and it doesn’t say one way or the other in your owner’s manual, the easiest thing to do is plug in a device and simply see if it shows that it’s charging.

USB Powered-Data Ports in Cars

The USB port on your dash may be both for data and for power. The data is routed to your car’s infotainment system and the power is used by the connected device. In the case of a cell phone, the power will be used to power (or charge) your phone.

USB Data Cables Versus Charging Cables

Like USB ports, there are different types of USB cables. If you look closely into the end of a USB connector, you will see four terminals. Terminals one and four transmit power, while terminals two and three transmit data. Data-only cables omit terminals one and four, and power-data cables have all four terminals.

So, How Do I Charge My Phone?

If your phone isn’t charging in your car:

1. The first thing you need to verify is that the USB port you are connecting to is a power-data port.

2. Next verify if the cable you are using is a data-only cable (look in the connector end for all four terminals. If it is, you won’t be able to charge your phone.

3. If your car recognizes your phone and connects it in media player mode, there is a chance that the USB port is supplying power but the charging amperage may not be high enough to charge your phone.

Work Around

If you still can’t get your cell phone to charge, here is an easy work around: buy a 12V cigarette lighter adapter with a USB port on it and use that!

How they work

Each car manufacturer has their own automatic braking system design and outline of how they should work. In general, they all start the automatic braking process by monitoring motion sensors. These sensors are usually radar or laser sensors mounted on the front of the vehicle. In some cases, a front mounted camera is used to sense objects ahead of the car. The data from these sensors is then fed to a microprocessor that analyzes it and if an impending collision is detected, then the appropriate braking is applied.

GPS systems

Some systems tie their automatic braking control to GPS sensors. This allows them to tie their braking system to a database of stop signs and other traffic control mechanisms. The operation of a system like this is ingenious. If the processing unit senses that a driver is about to run a stop sign, it can activate the braking system. Kims Toyota of Laurel, a local Toyota dealer in Laurel, MS, says that the next generation of Toyota automatic braking systems is said to sense the vehicles speed in addition to location and then take appropriate action.

Photo Courtesy of Toyota

Secondary use

The primary use of automatic brakes is functioning as a collision avoidance system. In addition to collision avoidance systems, though, many cars use the same technology in their adaptive cruise control systems. These systems measure the speed of a leading vehicle and make sure that your vehicle doesn’t speed up on it. This is generally done by reducing the vehicle speed via the throttle.

Do I really need automatic Brakes?

No, you don’t have to have automatic brakes, but you might want to. Issue number one is that everyone has a lapse in attention once in a while. Obviously, an automatic braking system is a great technology to have if this ever happens to you. Another critical use would be to take control of the car if you fall asleep behind the wheel. While this is a rare occurrence, people do fall asleep while driving and fatal results can occur.

How to Find a Vehicle with Automatic Braking

Most automakers today offer at least one model that offers either adaptive cruise control or a collision avoidance system. Since automatic braking is so effective at reducing fatal collisions, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety maintains a list of vehicles that come equipped with specific advanced collision avoidance features like automatic braking.

Collisions with deer are common and are usually devastating for all the parties involved. Most deer that are struck by cars end up dying and cars that strike deer can incur thousands of dollars of damage. And, of course, people can be injured – sometimes very badly. In order to help prevent deer collisions many solutions have been proposed, but a few decades ago a unique solution appeared: car-mounted “deer whistles.” These whistles are said to make an ultrasonic noise which is supposed to scare deer away from vehicles and thus prevent collisions. However, questions remain about whether or not deer whistles really work. Kims Chrysler of Laurel, a Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram dealer in Laurel, MS, said that they are asked about deer whistles fairly frequently and this prompted us to look into the matter further.

The Growing Problem of Deer Collisions

According to the State Farm, there are about 1.25 million vehicle-deer collisions every year and the numbers are increasing. There are a number of reasons for this increase. The first is the eradication of natural predators. Animals like wolves and wildcats have been reduced due to loosened hunting regulations. Also, habitat fragmentation due to rural growth has forced deer to cross busy roads much more often to forage. Perhaps the most significant factor, however, is the gradual acclimation of deer to road noise. Deer just aren’t as afraid of cars as they used to be.

The Mechanism Behind Deer Whistles

The basic idea behind deer whistles is that they emit ultrasonic sounds that are beyond human hearing but the deer can hear them and it scares them off. The ultrasonic sounds are generated by air passing through the whistle which is often mounted on the front bumper. Several companies also make electric deer whistles.

The Science of Deer Whistles

There have been several studies concerning the efficacy of deer whistles and they have found that there is no statistically relevant difference in deer reactions to vehicles without whistles compared to those with whistles. Another point raised by multiple deer whistle studies is that it isn’t clear whether deer can even hear the sound frequencies that deer whistles emit. For instance, one study published by the Acoustical Society of America found that deer whistles produce frequencies of about 12 kHz but the loudness at which the whistles created these sounds were completely drowned out by standard road background noise.

So, Do They Work?

All the science aside, anecdotal evidence does say that deer whistles do work and some people swear by them. In fact, some companies even install deer whistles on all the cars or trucks in their fleets because they swear they work. As we have seen, though, the scientific studies do not conclude that the whistles work. So, do they work? Well, the jury is still out but if you want to give them a try, let us know!

Fog Lights aren’t standard equipment on most new automobiles. They do seem to be an added feature on many deluxe car models, though, and you can always have them added on as an accessory on any vehicle. The question is: Do you really need them?

When do you use them?

There’s actually a lot of confusion out there on the subject of fog lights. Unlike high and low beam headlights, which drivers use all the time, fog lights are only useful in a few very specific situations. They are specifically designed for use in poor weather and other situations where visibility is reduced.

How do they work?

Many people think that fog lights are simply another set of lights, usually more powerful lights, that can help pierce through bad visibility conditions. While there is some truth to this, fog lights have another characteristic that makes them valuable to use. The basic argument is that standard headlights, particularly high beam headlights, tend to reflect off things like fog and snow, right back in a driver’s eyes. Sometimes if the conditions are just right, the reflection can be almost blinding and it doesn’t matter if you use high or low beams when this occurs. Generally, this sort of situation can be avoided by aiming a secondary set of front-mounted lights down at a steep angle and focused in a wide, horizontal bar shape pattern. As Kims Nissan of Laurel, a local Nissan dealer in Laurel, MS, explains: fog lights do one thing really well, they illuminate the ground immediately in front of a vehicle.

Why are they often yellow

Actually, the term used by automotive engineers is “selective yellow.” The problem is that ordinary white headlights emit a bright white light that tends to produce glare effects when it reflects of fog, rain and snow. Selective yellow light is created by filtering out the blue and violet wavelengths of light thereby reducing the tendency to produce glare. However, filtering out blue light does reduce the total light output. This is why ordinary headlights aren’t filtered to produce selective yellow light.

When to Use Fog Lights

As we explained, fog lights, unlike main beam headlights, only illuminate the ground immediately in front of your vehicle. This makes it dangerous to drive at any kind of a high rate of speed when using only your fog lights. In fact, it’s actually illegal in some areas to drive with just your fog lights on.

What are Rear Fog Lights?

While front-facing fog lamps are designed to allow you to slowly make your way through poor visibility conditions, rear fog lamps are designed to prevent anyone from hitting you from behind under those same conditions. The issue is that in poor visibility, your ordinary tail lights may not alert other drivers to your presence until it is too late.

The fact is that, while fog lights do have their uses, most people don’t actually need them. Since they are only useful in a very narrow range of circumstances, you only need them if you actually find yourself driving under those specific circumstances often. However, if you want to be prepared for bad weather conditions, consider getting a set for your car or truck.

In recent years, the Chinese have imposed fuel mileage and appliance efficiency standards, similar in many respects to those in the U.S. Just this week, officials in Beijing announced that the government would be taking another 5 million aging cars off the nation’s road. China has also set up pilot versions of tradable pollution permits—in other words, “cap-and-trade” schemes—for various industries. Officials say they hope to make these nationwide soon. And one reason the Chinese government was so eager to sign that massive new deal with Russia, allowing the import of natural gas, was because it’s desperate to find alternatives to coal. “For a long time, opponents [of new regulations] said we’ll get hoodwinked, because China won’t do anything,” says David Doniger, director of the Climate and Clean Air Program at the Natural Resources Defense Council. “That’s just not true.”

This is a positive development, and hopefully it continues. If China gets more serious about this, then it can give political cover to those around the world trying to put a lid on carbon emissions.

Cohen points out that any new EPA regulations can put further pressure on China to act.

Expect to hear plenty of noise about this over the coming months.

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

There are all sorts of opinions on the Keystone Pipeline. Many environmentalists are very much opposed, while many people concerned with weaning ourselves off of Mid East oil are in favor of it, even with all the new oil American is producing through fracking. The Arkansas oil spill complicates the issue of course.

Here’s T. Boone Pickens discussing natural gas, oil and the pipeline.