local bowls by rona zinger
by: Designboom - Weblog, 2012-03-27 15:00:00 UTC

old floor boards and patterned soil are combined together to create a collection of fruit bowls which challenges the use of external materials for interior treatments.
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Does it Make Sense To Use Photovoltaics To Heat Water?
by: TreeHugger Design, 2012-03-27 12:29:56 UTC
Three Years ago I said "Solar Hot Water First. Then Photovoltaics." I may have been wrong.

Prestige hybrids: Luxury cars with electric boost
by: Crave Green tech, 2012-03-26 23:43:29 UTC

The inherent frugality of a hybrid car might make you think of a no-frills driving experience. But luxury automakers have learned the win-win nature of an electric-assisted powertrain.

Infiniti, Porsche, and BMW devised their own takes on the hybrid car, fitting these fuel-efficient systems into full-size sedans and SUVs. Lincoln borrowed a hybrid system from sister brand Ford for its own mid-size sedan, the MKZ. And Lexus even transferred the Prius hybrid powertrain into a luxury hatchback.

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BMW ActiveHybrid 7 With its 7-series hybrid, BMW did not bother to downsize the engine, instead adding an electric drive system. The result? About 50 extra horsepower yet still achieving fuel economy in the low 20s, an impressive figure for such a big and powerful car. Read the full review.

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Infiniti M35h When Infiniti turned its flagship sedan into a luxury hybrid, it angled for ... [Read more]

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All I Own: Swedish Students Photographed With All Their Possessions Show How to Live With less
by: Inhabitat , 2012-03-27 05:00:42 UTC

Can you fit all your belongings in one photograph? Gothemburg-based photographer Sannah Kvist created a collection of photographs entitled “All I Own” where Swedish students were pictured with sculptures made from all their possessions. The result makes us question what we really need for living, if we are buying too much crap, and if it’s true that less stuff leads us to more freedom.

Read the rest of All I Own: Swedish Students Photographed With All Their Possessions Show How to Live With less

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Post tags: All I Own, anticonsumerism, Art, ikea, Photography, Possessions sculptures, Sannah Kvist, swedish photography

Regions commit to green policies ahead of Rio+20 (News)
by: Euractive, 2012-03-26 06:14:51 UTC

European regions are gearing up for the Rio+20 Earth Summit in June by drawing up a list of “key ingredients” in a bid to make sustainable urban development a focal point of the Brazil discussions.

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Liquid-like compound could lead to better thermoelectric devices
by: Gizmag Emerging Technology Magazine, 2012-03-26 22:45:02 UTC

Thermoelectric materials work by converting differences in temperature into electric voltage. If two parts of such a material experience significantly different temperatures, electrons within it will flow from the warmer part to the cooler, creating an electrical current in the process. Using these materials, electricity could be generated by the temperature differences on the inside and outside of jackets, within car engines, or even between the human body and the air around it ... just to list a few examples. An international team of scientists have now discovered that an existing material, which behaves like a liquid but isn't one, displays particularly impressive thermoelectric properties... Continue Reading Liquid-like compound could lead to better thermoelectric devices

Section: Science and Education

Tags: Caltech, Energy, thermoelectric

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• Metallic material can switch back and forth between hard and soft states

Stylish Flat Pack Birdhouses for Garden Birds
by: TreeHugger Design, 2012-03-26 19:12:45 UTC
Using laser-cut, sustainably-harvested and certified wood, these affordable birdhouses are designed for simple assembly.

Inkjet bioprinting opens cells to new possibilities
by: Gizmag Emerging Technology Magazine, 2012-03-23 05:31:29 UTC

Old inkjet printers are an important tool for bioprinting. Recently, researchers from Clemson University discovered that inkjet bioprinting disrupts the membranes of the cells being printed, leaving them open to having proteins inserted ... and opening up new avenues of research in the field... Continue Reading Inkjet bioprinting opens cells to new possibilities

Section: Health and Wellbeing

Tags: bioprinting, Cellular, Clemson University, Membrane, Stem Cells

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INTERVIEW: 8 Questions with Starbucks Global Responsibility VP Ben Packard
by: Inhabitat , 2012-03-25 06:58:24 UTC

Read the rest of INTERVIEW: 8 Questions with Starbucks Global Responsibility VP Ben Packard

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Post tags: ben packard, coffee farming, coffee house, corporate social responsibility, ethical farming sustainable agriculture, leed certified stores, leed for retail, recycled packaging, renewable energy credits, social responsibility, starbucks global responsbility, starbucks leed, U.S. Green Building Council, water scarcity

PayPal Here By Behar
by: Core77, 2012-03-23 17:00:00 UTC

Geometry fans will be excited: A triangle is about to do battle with a square. Yves Behar has designed the new PayPal Here device, a triangular, swipe-accepting dongle that plugs into your iPhone. It's stiff competition for the Square, the incumbent credit-card-swiping phone plug-in that doesn't have PayPal's monstrous infrastructure behind it.

While the device looks a bit strange—that part on the front that moves, presumably to uncover the swipe channel, looks like it's going to fall off, no?—the demo of how it works seems pretty smooth:

As a merchant I probably would not want you to put your disgusting fingers all over my smartphone, but this does seem a much more elegant way to perform a transaction than having to sign a slip of paper. Bic and the companies that make receipt paper and receipt printers ought to start looking into alternate forms of revenue.

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