by: The Design blog, 2012-02-20 08:50:03 UTC
Radhicka S Saxena:
Eco conscious computer users will love the idea of a clean and green portable workstation for their laptop. Made entirely out of cardboard, GreenCase boasts of many handy features. Firstly, it is real easy to carry around this slim and lightweight case. When you’re done working, just fold the case and secure the laptop inside by looping the thread around the button. Now, you can carry it effortlessly to your business meeting, coffee house or wherever else you are off to.
The GreenCase fits in a lot of other thoughtful elements. If you type on your computer incessantly, then you will really appreciate the angled keyboard holder of this case. The cardboard at the rear end can be folded and turned into a raised platform for holding the keyboard. This ergonomic position does not exert any stress on your wrist. In addition, the position aids in ventilating the laptop, thus keeping the problem of overheating at bay.
Most people place their phones close at hand while they are working. Also, paraphernalia like notebooks and files are always stashed on a work desk. This nifty case provides space for all these accessories. A smooth and leveled portion of the cardboard case opens up to form a mouse pad. A scratch resistant segment has been chalked out for placing smartphones. As the case is made from cardboard, you can take down messages or phone numbers on it. Also, A4 size sheets can be easily fitted into the case. So, you can put away documents in here. The ergonomic, practical and eco friendly laptop case has been designed by the product designer Mika Bector from Georgia, USA.
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“Eco but the colourlessness of it. This is not a recommendation for ecodesign in the sense it lacks the fun factor and looks cheap. Cannot imagine it lasts long either”
In the last two installments of our Green Guide to Prefab series on Inhabitat we highlighted the history of prefab design and the evolution of mobile homes into modular prefabricated homes. Within the last ten years, consumers have come to expect a new level of design quality in prefab homes, and this new generation is looking to not only personalize their home, but to create a sustainable, modern space that is able to support their eco-conscious lifestyle with out any sacrifices. Prefab home builders have taken notice have taken notice and are responding to the demand by adapting their processes and providing more options to prospective prefab homeowners. But if you’re looking to buy prefab, which type of manufactured home is right for you? In an effort to get you thinking about what questions you need to ask and how to evaluate the alternatives, Inhabitat’s latest prefab guide will focus on every project’s most important consideration — the building site. If your home isn’t in perfect harmony with its site – acknowledging and responding to the site’s natural environmental characteristics – you’re not getting the best green home you can get. So what must a prefab home do in order to get the most from its site? Jump ahead for the answer as former Lindal Cedar Homes CEO and green design consultant Michael Harris returns to Inhabitat give us some insight.
by: Gizmag Emerging Technology Magazine, 2012-02-16 15:18:11 UTC
House Arc, by Bellomo Architects, is a prefabricated off-the-grid housing solution that facilitates compact living. The project was originally designed as an environmentally sensitive and affordable method of housing that is not only functional but also attractive to the eye. Furthermore, it is designed to be easily packed and shipped to any location, where it can then be erected by the user or community. "We designed it to be a kit of parts that can be assembled quickly-like an IKEA house," says House Arc architect Joseph Bellomo.
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Continue Reading Modular home comes delivered in a 10 foot box and is assembled “like an IKEA house”
by: Gizmag Emerging Technology Magazine, 2012-02-17 13:24:15 UTC
Everyone knows geckos have extraordinary powers of adhesion, able to clamber up vertical windows with remarkable ease. With the "Geckskin", a team of scientists have replicated the effect to produce a flat, index-card sized piece of material capable of carrying a 700-pound (318-kg) load - easily enough for a flatscreen television. It can be removed with ease and leaves no unpleasant oomska. And interestingly, it doesn't work as you might think...
Continue Reading Gecko-inspired mess-free super-adhesive can stick a TV to the wall
I haven't left my office once today without bringing our octopus to show someone.
This thing is fascinating, both in terms of how it came to be, and also for how good it looks. It still has a few wisps of plastic hanging off it. Each eye socket also has a small loop of plastic drooping down from where it meets the head. For those few lines, gravity apparently overcame the adhesion properties of the melted filament.
Success!
(Credit:
Matthew Fitzgerald/CNET)
But I still can't stop marveling at the contours of the design. From the shape of its bulbous head, to the way the mouth portion transitions seamlessly into the front tentacles, even though I can see and feel the ridges from the layered plastic, our octopus has the look and feel of a professional design. Many kudos to Thingiverse user Brian "yeoldebrian" Emerson for his excellent 3D modeling work.
For all of the gee-whiz feeling I get from looking at our creation, as well as the printer itself, I also feel like we barely understand the full capabilities of our MakerGearMosaic 3D printer, its software, and the plastic feedstock.
Sustainable fashion designers like United Bamboo, Study NY by Tara St. James, H. Fredriksson and Luis Valenzuela found themselves right at home in the midst of Mercedes Benz Fashion Week on Friday. It was actually unclear if The GreenShows, which was established as a platform to highlight ethical designers at New York Fashion Week would even show this season, and then all of a sudden they popped up right in Lincoln Center! Read on to see our favorite looks from the show.
using traditional materials and an old artisanal production process for making moroccan cement tiles, the three designs can be arranged in multiple ways, offering several different macro-patterns for each, including a random factor that provides non-repetitive formations.
by: Ecofriend, 2012-02-17 08:51:27 UTC
Rahul Gupta:
Biomimicry is the best way of studying nature and using it to solve the problems of mankind. It is a realistic approach and has worked wonders when replicated. Recently, designers Xi Chen and George Whitesides came up with an improved version of ‘Soft Robots’. The design and the working of these air powered rubber robots is inspired by creatures such as snakes, squid and worms.
Snake-Inspired Folding Robots
The new soft robot is made up of wire mesh, fabric, rubber and paper. These materials will help the robot to bend, twist, and grip. Completely powered by air, it can lift around 120 times more than its own weight. The best thing about the new version of Soft Robots is their flexibility, which makes them useful for tight spaces.
The performance of the soft robot is directly correlated with the feat of origami. To demonstrate this, the researchers showed how a crinkled clump of silicon soaked paper, when folded in the right way and glued in the right spots, can lift two pounds of weight, roughly twice as powerful as human exhalation.
They also have specially designed cylinders that inflate into spheres and tubes, acting like springs and compact stacks, which turn into rigid ring like structures. According to researchers, addition of wire and electronics in the future will make the robots more efficient. Many military organizations are also fascinated by this technology and aspire to use them as spying devices.
Snake-Inspired Folding RobotsThey can lift 100 times their own weight.
by: Design 4 Sustainability, 2012-02-17 09:10:02 UTC
Sometimes you are touched by the beauty of things, often so simple that you wonder why nobody thought of it before. Trap Light is the result of an ...
by: Design 4 Sustainability, 2012-02-17 08:45:43 UTC
Climatex® Lifecycle™ is an entirely biodegradable and compostable upholstery fabric, manufactured using waste-minimising processes. Technical requirements ...
by: Design 4 Sustainability, 2012-02-16 08:38:17 UTC
On Tuesday, February 21, Dr Ben Sheridan, the Sector Development Manager for Advanced Manufacturing at BSI, will join Jamie O'Hare to look at the business ...
by: Design 4 Sustainability, 2012-02-14 07:42:26 UTC
BIONICTILE ® by CERACASA is a porcelain tile with the capacity to destroy harmful nitrogen oxides (NOx) which are in the air. These NOx are present ...
by: Design 4 Sustainability, 2012-02-13 09:09:53 UTC
I love the fact that Black + Blum use an old japanese technique, to filter water from all stuff the Britta does as well only for 6 months in stead ...
by: Design 4 Sustainability, 2012-02-13 08:21:08 UTC
Natural evaporation and self cooling... Terracotta has been used for water storage for centuries. Cooling occurs by natural evaporation through the ...
by: Design 4 Sustainability, 2012-02-11 14:20:57 UTC
The Materials Cafe 2012 is calling for suppliers, manufacturers, designers, and researchers that want to put their sustainable materials, processes ...
by: Design 4 Sustainability, 2012-02-09 10:14:46 UTC
Desso is a dutch carpet manufacturer which commited itselfs a few years ago to go Cradle to Cradle and even go beyond that to innovate in ways to not ...
by: Design 4 Sustainability, 2012-02-08 08:26:10 UTC
It turns out that 75% of jars sold worldwide use the same size lid. For designer Jorre van Ast this simple fact inspired the clever Jar Tops.
These ...
by: Design 4 Sustainability, 2012-02-07 07:27:01 UTC
Biomimicry & Lightweight Design
With energy conservation being a current hot topic, a lot is talked about lightweight construction. Often, nature ...
A crib from German furniture maker HOKIMÖ can be turned into a bed to match evolving needs.
Comments by our Users
“Eco but the colourlessness of it. This is not a recommendation for ecodesign in the sense it lacks the fun factor and looks cheap. Cannot imagine it lasts long either”