McMansion Lite
Supersized homes have supersized footprints, and some U.S. counties aren't waiting to be trampled by the environmental consequences. In Marin County, California, according to a recent MSN.com report, new homes must meet the energy budget standards set for a 3,500-square-foot abode, which means builders can only go as big as they can be efficient. In Pitkin County, Colorado, there's a green building checklist with point values assigned to various efficiency measures; the bigger the house, the more points required for a permit. The environmental incentive is steep: Over its expected life span, a 10,000-square-foot McMansion puts 5.4 million pounds more carbon dioxide into the air than the average U.S. home at 2,400 square feet, according to Adbusters (March/April 2006).

Age-old Wisdom
Mass brain drain will hit workplaces when the baby boomers retire, so some employers are preparing by 'knowledge mapping' their organizations. Governing (Feb. 2006) says the goal is to identify who will leave behind the biggest gaps in institutional memory by having employees document whom they'd ask for assistance in various scenarios. While the process can help organizations reroute workflow, some employees have concerns. Knowledge mapping not only singles out staffers who go above and beyond their job descriptions, it also exposes those 'go-to' people to whom people aren't really going.

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This Air Could Be Yours
When it comes to advertising, the sky is no longer a limit: New technology may soon make it possible to beam three-dimensional ads into thin air. The Tokyo-based National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology has developed a device that emits a quickly pulsating infrared laser to create images in space a few meters away. The flickering beams are invisible to the human eye but so intense that the air 'breaks down into glowing plasma that emits visible light,' reports NewScientist.com (Feb. 27, 2006). Besides giving corporations a cool new way to shill, the technology may also be used for emergency distress signals or temporary road signs.

Word Watch: Corporate Social Opportunity
Noun: Marketing term for leveraging a company's good works to lure conscientious customers. Rock & Rap Confidential (March 2006) argues that while green business practices may open the hearts and wallets of flush do-gooders, the term itself smacks of crass commercialism and leads shoppers to believe that problems such as global poverty can be addressed with a trip to the mall. Specifically, the newsletter calls out rock star Bono's Red campaign-which uses a portion of profits from American Express, Gap, Converse, and Emporio Armani to combat AIDS in Africa-as a hollow public relations scheme.