Eco Factor: Zero-emission unmanned aerial vehicle proposed for security monitoring at the London Olympics.
VTOL Technologies is proposing an unmanned aerial vehicle that can take off vertically and maneuver around tops of buildings for security monitoring at the London Olympics. The single fixed-wing aircraft would be able to lift off the ground with four thrust vectoring ducted-fan units.
Eco Factor: Sustainable building harvests solar energy.
Kieran Timberlake has been announced as the winner of the Embassy of the U.S. London Design Competition for their entry that was stated to have “most fully satisfied the requirements outlined in the design competition’s mission statement. The concept holds the greatest potential for developing a truly iconic embassy and is on the leading edge of sustainable design.”
Eco Factor: Concept washing machine manually powered by a pedal mechanism.
Designed by Shang-Che Wu, the Laundering is a conceptual washing machine that doesn’t need electricity to wash and then dehydrate clothes. The concept uses pedals to drive a coaxial bi-directional rotating mechanism that generates high cleaning two-way flow to clean all dirty laundry.
Eco Factor: Vertical-axis wind turbine generates wind energy silently.
There are many individuals out there who want to lower their personal carbon footprint with the addition of a wind turbine on their rooftop. However, because of the noise associated with wind turbines, it’s not always a neighbor-friendly addition. British inventor Sweet-Escott has come up with an amazing wind turbine that is silent and hidden from view.
Eco Factor: Aerosol-enriched clouds could fight global warming.
Researchers from the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) have detected that rising steam from passing ships in shipping lanes has caused brightening in the clouds, which according to the research team can prevent the sun’s energy from reaching the Earth effectively, which could be used as a defense against global warming.
Eco Factor: Cellphone made from recycled plastic bottles.
The Mobile World Congress 2010 has seen the launch of a few environmentally friendly products, including the much anticipated Puma Phone that adorns solar panels for a renewable recharge. Motorola wasn’t empty-handed at the show as well, as the company has unveiled their new eco-friendly mobile phone dubbed the A45Eco.
This past weekend I was in Nashville to visit with friends and family and thought it would be an opportune time to sample some of the city’s finest Southern green hospitality. The Hutton Hotel has a lot going for it, and we were delighted as soon as we entered the lobby.
TripAdvisor named the Hutton one of the ten trendiest hotels in America for 2010. Contemporary design touches are evident throughout. So too are the green design features. Below are pics of three of my favorites.
1) A digital shower heating system. It’s fun to play with and enhances the shower experience by enabling you to instantly control the exact temperature of the water. It also saves energy by not having to heat water higher than necessary.
2) A slot for the room key card which activates the lighting system. When you take your key with you upon exiting the room the lights automatically shut off. Why every hotel in America doesn’t have this system in place is a mystery to me since it not only saves energy but also saves money just like a good green solution should.
3) Bamboo furniture. This is the first hotel I’ve seen that utilizes bamboo as the principal furniture material for many pieces throughout the hotel room. Bamboo offers a terrific aesthetic and is considered one of the best materials for furniture because it grows and replenishes so quickly without the need for pesticides and insecticides. It’s often a great alternative to wood or synthetic materials.
It’s not all that often that I get to hang out with a professional beer sommelier. Such was my luck when I visited The Bruery, a craft brewery located in Orange County, CA. I was there on a mission to see whether I could convince comedian and avowed beer guzzler Frank Nicotero that beers brewed with an inherently smaller environmental footprint could taste crazy delicious. Author of The Naked Pint: An Unadulterated Guide To Craft Beer Chrstina Perozzi (see image below) was our tour guide. This beer chick is very persuasive. After several pints we were all tempted to get naked and probably would have had our television crew not been so bashful.
It’s not all that often that I get to hang out with a professional beer sommelier. Such was my luck when I visited The Bruery, a craft brewery located in Orange County, CA. I was there on a mission to see whether I could convince comedian and avowed beer guzzler Frank Nicotero that beers brewed with an inherently smaller environmental footprint could taste crazy delicious. Author of The Naked Pint: An Unadulterated Guide To Craft Beer Chrstina Perozzi (see image below) was our tour guide. This beer chick is very persuasive. After several pints we were all tempted to get naked and probably would have had our television crew not been so bashful.
It’s not all that often that I get to hang out with a professional beer sommelier. Such was my luck when I visited The Bruery, a craft brewery located in Orange County, CA. I was there on a mission to see whether I could convince comedian and avowed beer guzzler Frank Nicotero that beers brewed with an inherently smaller environmental footprint could taste crazy delicious. Author of The Naked Pint: An Unadulterated Guide To Craft Beer Chrstina Perozzi (see image below) was our tour guide. This beer chick is very persuasive. After several pints we were all tempted to get naked and probably would have had our television crew not been so bashful.
No one likes doing it. For many it’s one of the worst times of the month. For some people it actually physically hurts. It’s writing that monthly rent check. And as much as it pains you, the whole process is even worse for the environment. Think about all those trees cut down just to deliver you that onerous paper bill. Think about all the trees cut down to print the millions of signed monthly checks. There has to be a better way. And now, there is, at least with regard to the environment.
It’s called ClickPayRent.com and as long as your landlord is signed up for the service, you can pay your rent online, which while still painful is at least much more convenient. The service was co-founded by Steven Van Praagh, an environmental entrepreneur who also helped found eco-printer Print Responsibly.
ClickPayRent.com is such an obviously better way to conduct transactions. It simplifies our lives and helps the planet in the process.
Seith Leitman wears many caps these days. Seth is author of Build Your Own Electric Vehicle, Build Your Own Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle, Solar Energy DeMystified,Green Lighting and Series Editor to McGraw-Hill on The Green Guru Guides. These days he’s also covering the green side of life everywhere from the Sundance Film Festival to New York City’s Fashion Week.
In addition to blogging on numerous sites including his own atGreenLivingGuy.com, Seth is also speaking the green gospel through his online radio show on Blog Talk Radio.
He had me on as a guest yesterday. Have a listen.
Product Description
The perfect eco-reusable bag! Our grocery tote bag is a popular sleek design reinforced with extra intricate stitches sewn in at the strong point of the handle to add strength to the bag. With circular piping to enhance the aesthetic look of the bag, you can take trips to the grocery store in style! This is the top choice for promotional use and for grocery stores and boutique shops…. More >>
Eco Factor: Super-absorbent polymers to help plants grow in 80 percent less water.
Israel’s Exotech Bio Solutions have developed naturally-derived super-absorbent polymers (SAPs) that can treat obesity without surgery and can help plants grow in less water. While most super-absorbent materials developed till date are acrylic byproducts of oil, Exotech’s SAPs are derived from natural materials and chemicals, using a technology based on water.
Eco Factor: Sustainable building designed to maximize energy conservation.
Perkins Eastman have designed a sustainable building to serve as the headquarters of the Guangzhou Metro Authority, which will be developed in partnership with The Metro Design Institute of China. The 50,000 square-meter building will enable the company to house all the planning and construction group activities under one roof.
Eco Factor: Zero-emission vehicle powered by electricity.
US researchers have unveiled a new electric car that instead of guzzling up the owner’s money in gasoline and maintenance generates money by serving the electric grid. The converted Toyota Scion xB was showcased at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in San Diego, California.
Eco Factor: Wind farm in Suez to generate 200MW of renewable electric power.
Egypt’s New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA) has signed an agreement with Abu Dhabi’s green energy company, Masdar, to develop a 200MW wind power plant for Egypt’s eastern coast near Suez. The project will increase Egypt’s total wind energy installed capacity to 630MW.
Eco Factor: Portable water sterilization unit conserves energy.
The United Nations estimates that by the year 2025 more than two-thirds of the world population will be striving to get access to pure drinking water. These grim figures have forced industrial designers to think of concepts that are energy-efficient and can purify water in a simple way. Industrial designer Olivia Blechschmidt is up to the task with a concept water sterilization unit called the STER UV.
Eco Factor: Aeroponic planted controlled via computer.
Click & Grow has unveiled a range of high-tech planters that make growing houseplants a set and forget exercise. The planter has been designed for those who love houseplants but mostly don’t have much time to take care of their little green friends. The manufacturers of this unique system claim that once connected to the computer, the onboard sensors monitor the progress, via a processor and special software contained in the pot.
Eco Factor: Paintings created from recycled floppy disks and VHS tapes.
The latest advances in storage technology allowed us to store more data in a better fashion. However, this advancement meant that earlier storage systems such as floppy disks and VHS tapes were left to catch dust and later discarded inappropriately. Nick Gentry is salvaging obsolete tech and converting them into modern pieces of art to prevent them from reaching the landfills.
Eco Factor: Car replica created from recycled materials.
UK-based Ben Wilson Design have designed a Formula 1 race car replica using nothing more than recycled Puma shoe boxes. The design was a part of an installation at Puma’s new store at North State Street, Chicago and portrays the company’s ongoing relation with motor sports. The replica was put together by creating 3D scanned replica car and then hand fixing the different shapes from cut out shoe boxes to finally create something unique.
Eco Factor: Fuel cell to extend the range of EVs to more than 400 miles.
California-based fuel cell developers Oorja Protonics have unveiled new technology that according to the company can better the range of electric vehicles to up to 400 miles. The newly developed liquid methanol fuel cell, dubbed OorjaPac Model 1, will also be useful for long-haul trucks.
Eco Factor: Concept boat powered by a diesel/electric hybrid engine.
Mercury Marine showcased its latest concept boat at the Miami International Boat Show. Dressed in striking graphics, the concept vessel promises a low-emission cruise with its diesel/electric propulsion system. The vessel is equipped with both Cummins QSC 550 550hp diesel engines and Zeus pod drives and high-efficiency electric engines.
Eco Factor: Portable fuel cell to recharge mobile devices.
Mobile base stations are working hard to set up their towers in the remote places of the planet to connect them with the rest of the world. However, in most of these places power is a major issue and keeping cellphones charged isn’t that easy. Swedish company myFC AB is trying to help people in the developing and under-developed countries to keep their phones charged in a sustainable way.
Eco Factor: Fuel-efficient three-wheeled vehicle for Shell Eco-Marathon.
A team of mechanical engineering students at California Polytechnic State University is working on a three-wheeled vehicle for the Shell Eco-Marathon student competition, which according to the team gets a whopping 2752MPG. The vehicle, dubbed Black Widow, is the same which took first place in the 2007 Eco-Marathon and second place in 2008 and 2009.
Eco Factor: Supermarket proposal will grow food onsite to reduce emissions.
Usually in a supermarket food items are transported from hundreds of miles away before they are sold to the end consumers. Rotterdam-based firm Van Bergen Kolpa Architects are trying to reduce emissions related to transportation of food items by designing a supermarket, where all food items are cultivated onsite.
© 2011 Green Cleaning Ideas. Powered by Wordpress.
Powered by Yahoo! Answers
