Thursday, March 20, 2014
People have carried the most amazing things by bike, and we at TreeHugger have helped publicize their sometimes heroic efforts to make two wheels hauls tons of goods.
For most of us, the quest is simply to move the daily necessities - groceries and rain gear, babies and beer.
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Creating a small, livable space of one's dreams can be realized through a variety of ways, be it retrofitting an old camper trailer, building a tiny home from scratch, or renovating a shipping container. This beautiful, cozy office space is actually a discarded construction trailer purchased for USD $20.
Seen over at Designboom, Ghent, Belgium-based owners Kris and Griet collaborated with architect Karel Verstraeten to create this attractive work pod that was once a construction trailer which was salvaged locally, and brought to the back of their garden by a farmer neighbour.
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It’s tempting for both vegetarians and omnivores to think they’ve got it all figured out. Selecting the type of diet one wants to follow is a highly subjective decision that reflects one’s personal lifestyle. People also tend to have strong opinions about what others eat, which leads to fierce rivalries between different dietary paths.
A thought-provoking article in The Star called “Which foods are the worst for the environment?” challenges our individual assumptions that we’re all doing the best thing for the environment. Vegetarians may think they’re saving the earth by not eating animals, and conscientious omnivores might think they’re making smart choices by exclusively eating grass-fed, pastured meat, yet choosing the optimal environmental path is never black-and-white.
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Wednesday, March 19, 2014
The last time you may have given thought to window treatments might have been when you noticed your neighbor peering into your living room window while you were eating breakfast in your undies. But in addition to providing privacy, window treatments are important for a number of reasons – they can help you sleep better, keep your house cool and comfortable, and save you energy. Did you know that the right window treatments can help you save a significant amount of money on your electricity bill each month? By carefully investing in the right window treatments for your particular environment and location, you can help prevent your house’s indoor warmth from escaping in the winter (cutting down on winter heating), and keep your house cool in the summer (cutting down on air conditioning). You can also dramatically reduce the need for electric lighting during the day by being smart about your window design. Read on to learn how to choose the best possible window treatments for your particular windows, and save money and your sanity in the process!
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Chances are, if you have owned more than one mobile phone in your life there is a drawer in your home dedicated to a collection of defunct chargers. In order to cut down on e-waste, the European Parliament voted last week to require manufacturers to produce a universal charger. The Radio Equipment Directive is expected to cut clutter by 51,000 tons annually and reduce the amount of interference between radio devices.
While companies such as Samsung, Sony Ericsson, ALCATEL, Apple, Nokia, and Motorola have all signed agreements to manufacture a single model of USB charger, there are still those who feel that the EU legislation is a step in the wrong direction. Paul Nuttal, deputy leader of the UK Independence Party, believes that demanding one style of device will stifle innovation and put the market in the hands of regulators instead of consumers.
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A Dutch start-up called Plant-e has developed a way to use living plants as a continuous source of clean energy – all that’s needed is a light source, carbon dioxide, water, and, of course, a field or patch of plants. The system works best in wetlands or watery fields like rice paddies, but it doesn’t matter if the water is brackish or polluted, so areas unsuitable for growing crops could be repurposed as a power source. There’s no complicated infrastructure to install, which makes it super easy to bring electricity to isolated regions that are currently without power.
The theory behind the Plant-e system is surprisingly simple. When plants create food using photosynthesis, a large portion of the organic matter generated is actually excreted by the roots into the soil. That organic matter gets munched on by microorganisms living in the soil, which release electrons as a byproduct of this consumption. By placing an electrode near the roots, it’s easy to harvest this waste energy and turn it into electricity.
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Sunday, March 16, 2014
In a permanent extension of a 2007 law, San Francisco has made it illegal for the City to buy or distribute plastic water bottles. Bottled water contributes to massive amounts of litter and plastic waste all over the world. San Francisco has an aggressive plan to achieve zero net waste by 2020. In late 2013, Inhabitat reported that San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors appeared ready to enact one of the strictest bans on bottled water in the nation. Days ago, the proposal became law, and plastic water bottles smaller than 21 ounces will no longer be allowed on city property starting Oct. 1, 2014.
As Inhabitat’s Charley Cameron reported last year, San Francisco’s legislation, introduced by Supervisor David Chiu, “does not prohibit private business from trading in small plastic bottles of water.” Rather, it restricts the sale at events of more than 100 people (not including marathons and other sporting events), and on all city property and parks. San Francisco Airport will also be allowed to sell plastic bottles indefinitely.
Related: More Than 90 College Campuses Ban The Sale of Bottled Water
San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors supported the legislation unanimously. Prior to the vote, Chiu held up a water bottle that was a quarter of the way filled with oil. The move illustrated just how much oil is used in the production and transport of plastic water bottles.
“He also reminded San Franciscans that the current fad of buying bottled water only started in the 1990s when the bottled water industry mounted a huge ad campaign that got Americans buying bottled water,” reports the San Francisco Bay Guardian. “Somehow, Chiu noted, ‘for centuries, everybody managed to stay hydrated.’ He, and the rest of San Francisco seem confident that they can learn to do so again.
Not surprisingly, the American Beverage Association and bottled water industry were less than enthusiastic about the bottled water ban. These critics claim that banning bottled water at concerts and other large events will drive them to choose alcohol or carbonated beverages instead of healthier water.
Via San Francisco Bay Guardian
Related: Concord, Mass. Becomes First U.S. City To Ban Single-Use Plastic Water Bottles
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One of the biggest sources of frustrations for users of mobile devices, from laptops to smartphones, is the relatively short life and small capacity of their lithium-ion batteries. But one father and son team believe they have a solution for that, and it's not a new type of battery, but rather a better way to manage the batteries so they can hold a bigger charge and last for more recharge cycles.
While we keep hearing about the coming age of the supercapacitor, which could have huge capacities and very quick charge times, it may be quite some time before we see them in the devices we use every day. In the meantime, it stands to reason that getting the most out of the batteries already in production would be a big step forward for the mobile tech industry. It would also make sense from an environmental perspective, because Li-ion batteries are already used to power a great number of gadgets, so making them last longer and hold more power would conceivably reduce the amount of waste associated with them.
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Saturday, March 15, 2014
Professor Behrokh Khoshnevis’ revolutionary robot can 3D print an entire 2,500-square-foot home in just 24 hours. The technology was first developed at the University of Southern California, and it has since caught the eye of NASA and major building firms. The printer is based on the principles of contour crafting—a process that 3D prints large-scale objects layer by layer.
The 3D printer has two crane-like arms and a crossbeam which carries the printhead. The entire machine runs along a set of tracks and can work on all parts of the house simultaneously. Professor Khoshnevis believes the printer can build an entire two-story house in just under a day. For the printer to do its work, the space around the site needs to be prepared and the foundation in place. Additional work is required when it comes to window head jambs and metal ceiling, which can be done either by hand or by cranes. The rest of the process is almost completely automated.
The innovative technology of 3D printing large structures could revolutionize the building industry and help meet the growing demand of housing in city centers. Meanwhile, NASA has given Khoshnevis a grant to experiment with lunar structures and buildings that could potentially be erected on other Earth-like planets.
Via Dvice
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