Green tech finds: from solar power to the Super Bowl
Super Bowl Sunday is coming up, and while I don’t pay enough attention to say whether it’ll be a good game, it will definitely be a green(er) game. That, plus cooler roofs for more efficient solar power, and a very quick look at over a century of global warming: your green tech finds for the week.
Buy renewable energy for your Volt: While the arguments about the energy sources for electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids are generally really overblown and oversimplified, many EV drivers do want the cleanest power they can get for their vehicles. So, GM is developing a system for its OnStar platform that would notify Volt drivers when there’s renewable energy available on the grid so they could plug in at the right time. (via Earth 911)
What does global warming look like? If you’re thinking big picture in response to that question, the folks at NASA have released a video that shows 131 years of global temperature fluctuations in 26 seconds. (via Climate Central and @NRDC)
Read More »Green tech finds: the monster trade shows edition
CES and the Detroit Auto Show are going on this week, and we’ve got finds from both!
The tiny electric pick up: Need to haul stuff? You won’t get much into the Smart For-Us, but, as Charis Michelsen at Gas 2.0 points out, it’s awfully cute, and may serve the actual hauling needs of most truck drivers.
Your plants are Tweeting: And they’re thirsty. That’s right: the Botanicalls gadget (not sure what else to call it) sends you a tweet when your plants need watering. Only marginally green, but kind of cool. (via Crisp Green)
Read More »Green tech finds: Architects to the rescue!
Can good design save the world? Well, maybe the Great Lakes, anyway. That, plus community-based solar, clothing recycling, and more: your green tech finds for the week.
The DIY bike seat: Ever wanted a second seat on your bicycle, without investing in a tandem? Or just carrying space without a trailer? Israeli designer Yael Livneh has you covered with his concept made from a used plastic milk crate. He’s entered the concept in Designboom’s Seoul Cycle Design competition. (via Unconsumption and @dothegreenthing)
Occupy the sun: We generally think of solar power as something that individual home and building owners do, but Francesca Rheannon at CSRWire takes a look at community-based efforts to adopt solar technology.
Read More »Green tech finds: Earthships and solar get affordable
Think “green tech” automatically means “expensive?” Nope: costs are dropping on everything from Earthships to solar power.
An affordable Earthship: I’ve been in love with the Earthship building concept for years, but no way I’d ever be able to afford one. That may be changing, though: the “Simple Survival” model Earthship is designed to provide the amenities of these self-sufficient structures without the “mortgage bondage.” Check it out above.
Read More »Woodstock Jews mark Hanukkah with solar-powered menorah
No winter holiday lends itself to environmental discussions quite as well as Hanukkah: getting eight days’ use out of one day of oil (the miracle on which the celebration is based) inevitably leads to discussions of efficiency and conservation. Numerous Jewish organizations have recognized this connection, and organized a variety of “green Hanukkah” celebrations in recent years involving everything from CFLs to recycled menorahs.
Read More »Green tech finds: Recycled guitars and impromptu speakers
Cool concept cars and planes, speakers that turn ordinary objects into amplifiers, and the potential environmental cost of washing your jacket: this week’s green tech finds.
Honda’s very cool, very light electric concept vehicle: Unfortunately, “concept” often means we’ll never see one on the road. Still, Honda’s EV-STER (which rolled out last week at the Tokyo Auto Show, and is pictured above) shows the company combining electric power with light weight (through lots of body elements made from carbon) and sweet styling; maybe they’ll keep thinking this way as they work towards new production vehicles. (via Earth Techling)
Read More »Green tech finds, 10/13/11
Teenagers build a really fast hybrid, GM’s got an all-electric vehicle in the works, and Nissan has a concept for charging a car in ten minutes: your green tech finds for the week.
Another EV1? Let’s hope not. Chevy plans to start selling the Spark EV (above) in limited US markets in…
Read More »Green tech finds, 10/6/11
A plug-in outdoor table, and how your labtop might contribute to rainforest destruction: this week’s green tech finds.
Wisconsin as a microgrid hub: There’s more than ugly political battles going on in the Badger State. A university-industry consortium announced an initiative to establish “microgrids” at UW campuses in Milwaukee and Madison over the next two years. (via @RepowerAmerica)
Read More »Green tech finds, 9/15/11
Pig poop, coconuts, and seaweed: all the stuff of good green tech finds this week.
An affordable, fast and tip-proof electric motorcycle: Lit Motors CEO Daniel Kim claims all of those qualities come together in the C-1 concept, which could be available as early as 2013. Check it out in the video above. (via GreenTech Pastures)
Read More »Green tech finds, 9/8/11
Harvesting runner power, turning plastic back into oil and becoming a (virtual) upcycling magnate: your green tech finds for the week.
Charge your phone with your shoes: If you run or walk regularly, you’re creating mechanical energy that’s going to waste. The Instep Nanopower concept offers a way to capture that power and transfer it to electronic devices via wi-fi. (via Inhabitat and @EcoverUS)
Become a Trash Tycoon on Facebook: Tired of Farmville? Guerillaapps new Facebook-based social game Trash Tycoon (which is sponsored by upcycling company Terracycle) gives you the opportunity to build a virtual recycling empire. (via Crisp Green)
Read More »Green tech finds, 9/1/11
Lots of building tech this week, from shipping container “farms” to a net-zero rehab to a “living building” in Seattle.
Shipping containers as mini farms?: Is there anything you can’t do with used shipping containers? Atlanta-based PodPonics turns them into small hydroponic “farms” for growing food near the point of sale. (via Triplepundit)
Solar collector by day, light display by night: Move over, Jumbotron! Industrial designer Meidad Marzan‘s Urban Tiles concept combines solar panels and OLED panels that can be installed on the outside of buildings in an array, and which “flip” to shift from solar collector to advertising display, big screen television, or even a massive artistic canvas. (via Inhabitat)
Read More »Green tech finds: the Quirky edition, 8/25/11
Next week, the new series Quirky debuts on the Sundance Channel. We’ve featured lots of quirky ideas in the weekly green tech finds posts over the past two years, so in anticipation of the show I thought I’d go back to some of our most innovative (or, at least, most unusual) finds. And if you’ve just got to have the latest, we’ve got a few new ones, too.
Read More »New Chicago green building brings lighter footprint to food distribution
While I don’t have numbers at my fingertips, I’d be willing to bet that most new LEED certified commercial buildings fall into the office space category: corporate headquarters or other buildings in which lots of people work behind desks. There’s nothing wrong with that; These structures certainly use plenty of energy and water, and elements of green building such as the focus on daylighting and air quality make for more pleasant and productive workplaces.
But what about those buildings where products are manufactured, processed and/or distributed? In many cases, these are the real resource hogs sorely in need of, at the very least, a good green retrofitting. And new structures built around resource efficiency can be real cost savers for their owners.
Read More »Green tech finds – 8/18/11
Old school shipping, CO2 as a source of fuel and yet another new solar technology for charging your phone: this week’s green tech finds.
Another recycling robot: While not as directly practical as the ZenRobotics Recycler we mentioned in an earlier post, Florida Robotics‘ Dr. R.E. Cycler is designed for educational purposes – essentially, to show kids what happens to the aluminum cans that go into those blue bins. Take a quick look at it above. (via Fast Company and @TaigaCompany)
Read More »Green tech finds (8/11/11)
Lots of news on the car front this week, plus electronic paper, and a (partially) green-powered STAR TREK theme park in Jordan (yeah, Jordan).
Lotus’ wine and cheese-powered car: Okay, not exactly, but the British automaker’s Exige 270E Tri-fuel concept can do 0-60 in under four seconds on ethanol made from “undrinkable wine (whew!), whey (a byproduct of making cheese), and surplus chocolate.” Check it out in action above. (via The Discovery Channel)
Ford getting into the solar business? Kind of. They’re partnering with SunPower to offer future buyers of the company’s planned electric vehicles a rooftop solar system that could power the car completely on renewable energy.
Read More »Green tech finds: 8/4/11
Would you live in an old Hummer? Could solar power be available even when the sun’s not shining? These and other questions answered in this week’s green tech finds.
Harvesting ambient energy with paper antennas: Researchers at Georgia Tech are experimenting with pulling electromagnetic energy from the air with “antennas” printed on paper with inkjet technology. (via Grist)
Biodegradable sneakers that sprout flowers: Amsterdam-based OAT Shoes creates sneakers that not only biodegrade in soil, they even have wildflower seeds embedded in the tongue, so you can add to your garden once the shoes are worn out. (via Yahoo! Green)
Read More »Green tech finds – 7/28/11
(Fe) Catalytic Clothing from Protein® on Vimeo.
We get a little more fashionable than usual in this week’s green tech finds: from Linda Loudermilk’s compostable bikini, to a cutting-edge design for an RV (really!), to air-purifying clothing.
The film set trailer goes green: King Kong Production claims its Helios Solar Hybrid Production Trailer can run a full day on the built-in solar and biodiesel generators. So, no fossil emissions from a pampered celeb who’s late to set.
The sleek, all-electric RV: Okay, you likely never associate words like “sleek” or “cutting edge” with recreational vehicles, but NAU’s Ecco Camper may just change that. (via Crisp Green)
Read More »Renewable energy as art: the Bakken Museum’s Green Energy Art Garden
A solar array, or a wind farm, can certainly have aesthetic appeal… but the visual interplay between the technology and its surroundings, or the beauty inherent in those panels and turbines themselves, usually isn’t high on the priority list of installers. The Bakken Museum in Minneapolis, which is dedicated to “exploring the mysteries of our electric world,” thought that beauty needed further exploration… and commissioned local artists to create works that “demonstrate a new, creative approach to using alternative energy sources.”
Green tech finds (7/14/11)
“Brown” hybrids, super-efficient wind turbines, and a solar-powered golf bag… your green tech finds for the week.
- Not all hybrids are created equal: Yep, the Prius, the Honda Civic Hybrid, and the Ford Fusion Hybrid all deliver on the value promised by this vehicle platform. But, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists, there are also a number hybrid models that just aren’t worth the cost, and do very little in terms of fuel efficiency… check out the video from CNET above to see the top five “brownest” hybrids.
- Enterprise, Fed Ex love them some EVs: Yesterday at the National Summit on Energy Security, Andy Taylor, CEO of Enterprise Holdings (which owns Enterprise Rent-a-Car and others) and Fred Smith, CEO of Fed Ex, made impassioned arguments for ramping up vehicle electrification. Marc Gunther has the details…
Green tech finds (7/7/11)
Skiing down a Danish incinerator, seaweed for biofuels, and a solar unit that can save the lives of mothers in the developing world… your green tech finds for the week. The solar suitcase: Alexis Madrigal of The Atlantic takes a look at the WE CARE Solar Suitcase, a compact solar power unit designed specifically for [...]
Read More »California’s Butte College hits first in the nation solar milestone
Colleges and universities are hot spots for renewable energy installation and experimentation. From on-site energy generation to educational programs designed to train students for clean energy careers, schools are right up there with start-ups in terms of pushing renewable technology towards mainstream use. Last week, a community college district in Northern California set a new standard for renewable energy use in higher education, though: Butte College became the first “grid positive” school in the nation.
Read More »Green tech finds (6/30/11)
A car designed by teenagers that gets nearly 2000 mpg, white roofs for New York City, and how your DVR is jacking up your electric bill… this week’s green tech finds.
- Puma’s “clever little bag” is biodegradeable: We mentioned Puma’s alternative to the shoe box back in April of 2010; PSFK reports that the bags will also be compostable (or, if you’re impatient, they’ll dissolve in water in a few minutes). (via Environmental Leader)
- The 2000 mpg car? OK, not quite… this design by students at Kingdown School in Warminster, UK got a mere 1,980 mpg. That was more than enough for it to win the Mileage Marathon Challenge at Mallory Park track near Leicester. (via Inhabitat)
Green tech finds
eople-powered gyms, transmitting from turtles in Illinois, and combining flies and poop for good use… your green tech finds for the week.
- The open-source solar concentrator: Designer Eerik Wissenz claims that his Solar Fire open source solar concentrator concept can harvest power at ten times cheaper than photovoltaics. Check it out in the video above… (via Earth Techling)
- New university trend — the human-powered gym: Powering exercise and recreation facilities with energy harvested from workout equipment is catching on at universities… the Sustainable Cities Collective takes a closer look at Drexel University’s approach. Read More »
Green tech finds (6/16/11)
A pedal-powered helicopter, a very low-tech speaker for your iPhone made from bamboo, and an online map of solar power potential for NYC… your green tech finds for the week.
- The pedal-powered helicopter: Think it’s impossible to achieve this kind of flight on human power alone? Engineering students at the University of Maryland managed to get off the ground for 4.2 seconds (a US national record) in their Gamera helicopter. See more about the project in the video above. (via Crisp Green)
- Reused wine bottles: New company Wine Bottle Renew claims it can clean pre-consumer wine bottles (from tasting rooms and manufacturers) to the point where they’re better than new… and cheaper, also. (via Earth 911)
Green tech finds (6/9/11)
The original electric cars, a solar-powered train tunnel, and geothermal energy harvesting that also sequesters carbon… your green tech finds for the week.
- Big battery breakthrough?: Researchers at MIT are redesigning batteries as “semi-solid flow cells,” which could eliminate charging time issues for electric cars, as well as provide viable storage of energy generated from renewable sources. (via Grist)
- Solar-powered train tunnel opens in Belgium: A two-mile stretch of train tunnel near Antwerp is now covered with solar panels, and will provide electricity for both high-speed and inter-city rail links, as well as a train station. (via AOL Travel)
