If you see people biking around Boston this week with what looks like an oxygen tube hanging off them, no, it’s not a bizarre experimental treatment for lung cancer. The Cambridge Public Health Department is conducting an air quality study for bikers, and this week I’m helping them take measurements.

The microaethalometer's the one on the left.

To do this, I’m wearing a messenger bag while I’m biking, with a microaethalometer inside and an intake tube snaking up the strap and clipped near my neck. A separate GPS unit tracks exactly where I am when a specific measurement is taken, to point out any particularly bad spots.

One of the most common reasons people give for not wanting to ride bikes is that they’re worried about breathing in exhaust. This study will try to document whether that’s a legitimate worry. Personally I think being sedentary on the bus is far worse for me than any exhaust I might inhale, but I guess I’ll have to see what the results are. Stay tuned.

One of the small farms that’s part of Maine’s Own Organic milk is in Dexter, near where I grew up.

• An Organic Milk Experiment in Maine – New York Times. Jason and I just found this at Whole Foods about a month ago.
• Not All CFLs Are Created Equal – Green Lifestyle Consulting. Don’t give up on something like CFLs or low-flow showerheads because the first one you try is terrible.
• Composting Guide for Girls Who Don’t Like Worms – Practically Green. I love my worms, but I understand everyone doesn’t.
• The simplest method for menu planning – Stone Soup. I suck at this.
• How The Hell Do I Cook This? Plantains – Eat Dessert First. I love plantains, but I’ve never actually cooked them at home before.
• The USPS is green – Boston Globe. The post office now has Cradle-to-Cradle certified packaging.

That’s all, folk. As usual, if you find something cool this week, send it along.

I may be the last person in the world to watch No Impact Man (or at least the last in the blogosphere). I actually avoided it for a reason: I was convinced I was going to hate it. But when it popped up in my Netflix Instant Watch while I was procrastinating at writing, I thought I’d give it a chance.

I shouldn’t have. Colin Beaven’s personality just rubs me the wrong way. He might have done some good things, but that doesn’t necessarily make him a better person, and it doesn’t make me want to listen to him disjointedly preach at me for an hour and a half.

Here are some of his own words, to justify my dislike:

“It’s not meant to be scientific; it’s just meant to be philosophical.”

“When I started this project, I just thought I was just going to, like, make less garbage, not travel so much, and wouldn’t I be a hero?”

“My mind wants to tell me that I’m the only one that’s important, so I have to keep teaching myself over and over and over again that that’s not true.”

Everything he does seems like a publicity stunt. Instead of failing to make a pot-in-pot refrigerator (which if he’d done some research he would have known wouldn’t work well in our relatively humid and cool environment), and then mooching ice off his neighbors, wouldn’t it have been better to downgrade to the smallest possible refrigerator and then discuss how to preserve foods without refrigeration? Considering that many people in the U.S. still have second refrigerators or freezers, that would probably have been more useful (and less off-putting to the general public).

Speaking of mooching, Beaven’s approach didn’t seem take into account anything he did outside his home. Turning off the electricity, but then using it at an office (and to, you know, write a blog)—doesn’t that seem hypocritical? We all do this to some extent, whether it’s eating at a restaurant or enjoying the AC at a movie theater, but his bombastic claims make it seem worse. To me, Beaven is the modern-day Thoreau, who wrote about simple living while sponging off his buddy Emerson.

The exaggeration is the worst. The only way he could actually have no impact on the environment is if he killed himself—and even then his funeral would consume resources and pollute.

Okay, off my high horse now. Next time I have the urge to watch something I know I’m going to hate, please stop me.

As you may have heard, quinoa is my new favorite food. Not only is it a complete protein, but it feels like little eyeballs popping between your teeth. I found this recipe for quinoa chili on nutritionist Marci Anderson’s blog.

A veggie version of Jason's favorite—sloppy joes.

Easy Quinoa Chili

2 tsps extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tsps salt
2 green peppers, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsps cumin
1 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/4 tsp cinnamon
2/3 cup quinoa
1 cup frozen corn
2 cups tomato sauce
1 cup water
2 cans kidney beans

1. Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Add onions, and sauté until tender. Add salt, garlic, pepper, and spices; sauté for 5-10 minutes.
2. Add rinsed quinoa and stir in. Add corn, tomato sauce, and water. Simmer 20 minutes.
3. Add rinsed beans and simmer 15 minutes.
4. Serve with sliced avocados and sandwich buns.

I added more green pepper than she did, just because I had it on hand, and accidentally added more garlic. Thus, it was a bit too spicy for me. And salty. I’d cut back on both next time. I also forgot to stir occasionally while it was simmering, and it burnt on a little. Oops.

Liked my tour of Casella Recycling? Want to go on one yourself? Cambridge residents can sign up for upcoming tours on April 13, May 19, and June 14. Email recycle@cambridgema.gov to sign up.

Can’t make the tour? Find out more information on the City of Cambridge’s recycling program on their website. They have lots of resources there.