I was about to write about the personal power plant (wind generated), which is on the cover of Business 2.0, but I didn't even make it that far when something else caught my eye. I was reading the letters to the editor and saw one regarding an article I must have missed. The letter pertained to Boeing's plan for a new passenger jet that uses as much as 30% less gasoline by combining the wings and fuselage and getting rid of the tail. My first thought was that this concept went against the laws of aerodynamics. After all, didn't even the earliest versions of aircraft have some form of tail? How can a plane fly without one? Yet, on second thought, isn't it time that we take drastic measures to change the nature of modern airplanes, given the enormous amount of fuel consumed--and greenhouse gases emitted--from these planes. I suppose someone forgot to tell the manufacturer of the plane that seats 550 passengers that just flew its first trip from Europe to the U.S. The writer of the letter to the editor had some valid concerns regarding the less gas-guzzling plane. For one thing, he noted that the ride would be anything but smooth; each row would have 45 seats, signifying that passengers away from the center would bob up and down frequently. He also noted that it would be very difficult to evacuate such a plane quickly, given how far most passengers would be from the exit. This letter made me reflect on the fact that if we want to combat global warming from the skies as well, we had better think of a way to do so that will be feasible for travelers. Perhaps if people simply flew less we could achieve some of the same goals. Yet, I suppose the planes might fly regardless of whether they were full or not. In my mind, business travel has gotten to the point of being ridiculous, with people traveling to places when they could simply use the telephone or video conferencing to take care of so many matters. Yet, if our business culture won't change, then something else will have to give, which appears to be the type of aircraft used.