Food-Security and Water-Security in the Urban Context
by: VEIL - Victorian Eco Innovation Lab, 2013-06-19 23:36:02 UTC
  Image: CRC for Water-Sensitive Cities From The urban water-energy-food nexus by Prof. Tony Wong: […] Australia’s water consumption is dominated by agricultural uses, followed by consumptions in cities (domestic and industrial) and for electricity generation principally to meet demands in our cities. Our communities have an important role in managing demands. Our consumption of food, energy and water [...]

Towards Distributed Systems ? Modelling Melbourne’s resilience
by: VEIL - Victorian Eco Innovation Lab, 2013-06-05 08:32:18 UTC

Towards Distributed Systems ? Modelling Melbourne’s resilience
1.5 year project due to commence August/Sept 2013.

Funding:
Seeking funding
Estimated cost $400,000  - $493,000 in kind secured from partners

Industry partners:
Yarra Valley Water
Local Government partners:
Cities of Hume, Brimbank, Port Phillip, Casey
Non-government sector:
ICLEI (Oceania); Moreland Energy Foundation (MEFL); Northern Alliance for Greenhouse Action (NAGA)
Research Institutions:
University of Melbourne (VEIL/ABP) Lead
Lund University
University of Technology Sydney (Institute for Sustainable Futures)

Key Researchers
Che Biggs Research Fellow – VEIL
Prof Chris Ryan VEIL
Dr Graham Turner, Senior Research Fellow - Melbourne Sustainable Society’s Institute
Dr. Meenakshi Arora University of Melbourne Engineering
Prof Hector Malano  University of Melbourne Engineering
Ian Woodcock Research Fellow ABP
Kirsten Larsen Research Fellow VEIL

Project Summary
The project will use the ex-CSIRO physical stocks and flows model of the Australian economy (ASFF), now based at Melbourne University, with technical input from key urban stakeholders to understand how adoption of a more distributed water, energy, food and transport infrastructure would affect Melbourne’s:
a) resilience to future stress factors (such as drought and extreme weather),
b) urban design and morphology, and
c) social and economic functioning.

Read more...

Building more sustainable aircrafts
by: Fraunhofer Research News, 2013-06-03 09:30:00 UTC
Life Cycle Assessments of components can help make aircraft production more sustainable. The decisive factor is making the data available at an early stage. Thanks to a new eco design software, these data are now available even at the design stage.

TED: Paul Pholeros: How to reduce poverty? Fix homes - Paul Pholeros (2013)
by: TEDTalks (video), 2013-06-20 15:01:09 UTC
In 1985, architect Paul Pholeros was challenged by the director of an Aboriginal-controlled health service to "stop people getting sick" in a small indigenous community in south Australia. The key insights: think beyond medicine and fix the local environment. In this sparky, interactive talk, Pholeros describes projects undertaken by Healthabitat, the organization he now runs to help reduce poverty--through practical design fixes--in Australia and beyond. (Filmed at TEDxSydney.)

Wood Movement: Why Does Wood Move?
by: Core77, 2013-06-26 18:33:31 UTC

This is the fourth post of an ongoing series about wood. Understanding its nature, the way it moves and changes, and the implications for designers. Check back every Wednesday for the next installment.

The first three posts are here:
» How Logs Are Turned Into Boards, Part 1: Plainsawn
» How Logs Are Turned Into Boards, Part 2: Quartersawn
» How Logs Are Turned Into Boards, Part 3: Riftsawn

My front door that used to open easily now sticks and requires a massive shove. The heat of summer is here and with it comes the impact on wood.

When we think of wood—constructed into a table, a bookshelf, a door—most of us assume it will remain more or less the same. After all it's dead, right? But as I mentioned in my first post of this series, wood moves. And in some cases it can move significantly.

Understanding why it moves in the first place can help us know how to allow for such movement in design. So in this entry we're going to get a bit science-y (and not so much about the pretty pictures). I should point out that you could literally spend entire semesters studying this stuff, so reading this one entry is not going to make you an expert; what we are doing here is providing some basic information and terminology, so that you will know what to search for, should you decide to research further for your specific application.

It is the cellular structure of the tree, and the living systems within the board, that influences its movement, long after it's been cut. Because the wood in living trees is very, very wet. Its cells are swollen with sap, which is mostly water, but also some minerals and sugars. Water within cells is called "free water" and it can be squeezed from the wood, but water can still remain within the cell walls. This is called "bound water" and it is only when the bound water is removed (by drying) can the wood shrink and become strong.

Take a look at these images. Below left is a magnified photo of wood. You can see vessels that look like bundles of drinking straws running through the wood. Below right, the graphic illustrates the difference between bound and free water. It's like the free water is sitting inside the straws, but the bound water is moisture trapped within the walls of the straws themselves.

(more...)



Microsoft Makes 3-D Printing As Simple As Clicking “Print”
by: Co.Design, 2013-06-26 16:00:00 UTC

To be honest, 3-D printing technology just isn’t there yet for consumers. It’s expensive. It’s relatively lousy. And it takes a slew of skills--from technical to artistic--to produce anything worth printing in the first place. So specialists, like designers and engineers, can enjoy its rapid fabrication, and everyone else is left behind.

Today, Microsoft announced a crucial step to empower the next wave of 3-D printer adoption. Windows 8.1 will be the first OS to support 3-D printing natively on desktops and tablets. “Our thinking was, let’s make this as easy as writing and printing a Word document,” says Shanen Boettcher, general manager at Microsoft’s Startup Business Group.

And that’s really the appeal of Microsoft’s pitch. The company tells me that 70% of 3-D printing is already done on Windows machines, but the problem is that it’s a clunky process. You have to design an image in a program like CAD, then output it to specialty printer software. From there you can start the glitch-prone printing process. Microsoft worked with hardware vendors--including MakerBot, 3D Systems, and Autodesk--to build the API glue that can allow any developer to build 3-D creation apps with a one-touch printing option. Just as iOS makes it easy for developers to plug in a scheduler or push notifications to iPhone apps, so, too, can Windows developers instantly support the relevant market of 3-D printers.

And it’s these developers that Microsoft is banking on creating a new wave of 3-D design software that can be more creative than technical.

“My kids have no problem building 3-D models in Minecraft all day long. How can you unlock 3-D creation for anybody to be able to do with a touch screen and their finger?” Boettcher asks. “To me that’s what’s really interesting.”

“I hope there’s a whole spectrum of apps. We might see a picture frame you just want to put your name on. Custom napkin rings for your dinner party. Maybe there’s a trophy app for your kid’s soccer teams. In the art world, maybe people will make a virtual potter’s wheel to create a 3-D object quickly and personalize it.”

On one hand, the discrete apps could begin to add up in the somewhat obnoxious iOS fart-button way. On the other, 3-D printing could make Windows 8 app development more enticing than it’s been, and it’s a field so young that we could use more software Darwinism than less. In fact, even if it fails to take off, Microsoft’s maneuver could nudge the rest of the industry to follow suit.

I still don’t think that 3-D printing is for everyone, but native Windows support makes for a nice start.

[Image: Printer via Shutterstock, Minecraft via Minecraft Gallery]

Want More Antioxidants? Let Your Vegetables Know When It’s Night Time
by: Co.Exist, 2013-06-26 17:00:32 UTC

Eating certain vegetables has known health benefits. Cabbage and broccoli, for example, contain glucosinolates that are thought to inhibit cancers. But could we get more out of vegetables by storing them differently?

That’s the implication of research looking at the effect of light conditions on the production of antioxidants. It turns out that plants have internal clocks, like humans, and that this clock keeps cycling for several days after harvest. Researchers at Rice University and U.C. Davis have found that by keeping produce in day/night conditions, rather than in a dark box, the produce takes on more healthful properties.

"Our work suggests the possibility that continued storage under conditions to keep the clocks cycling might significantly alter the levels of phytochemicals," says Janet Braam, a professor at Rice, who led the research.

Braam’s work, which tested cabbage, carrots, squash, blueberries, and other plants, follows previous research into pest resistance. That study found that day/night light cycles also promotes production of insect-fighting chemicals. Braam is now working with the Gates Foundation to apply the research in the developing world.

Still, she says more work needs to be done on the best way to store vegetables, both for antioxidants and pest control. "It shouldn’t matter much the time of day of harvest. It may matter, however, what time of day the vegetables or fruits are eaten, cooked or preserved."

D-Process Creates Lego-Like Pieces for Homes to be Built Right On Site
by: Jetson Green, 2013-06-13 07:48:31 UTC

Facit Homes has patented the D-Process, a high-tech machine that turns a 3D computer model of a home into functional pieces that can be snapped together to build an entire house directly on-site.

With the help of D-Process, the company designs detailed pieces of each home on a computer and cuts them on a CNC router, and the result is plywood pieces that are light and easy to assemble right at the site. This maintains a quick process for homes that easily snap together with minimal costs and waste.

Each home also has a thermal envelope that seals in heat and energy. There are also options for solar thermal systems and solar panels, depending on the specific site and requirements.

The D-Process is in the running for a 2013 Index Award, which is part of an organization that seeks to provide sustainable solutions to design and lifestyle challenges.

Discuss it here on our new forum - http://bit.ly/13FSdY7

For more information and photos on homes that have been built with the help of D-Process, visit facit-homes.com.

Best creative lights made from recycled plastic bottles
by: Ecofriend, 2013-06-27 09:52:32 UTC

Have you ever thought that waste plastic bottles can be used and turned into some creative lights? Yes, it can be done quite easily, but there is good creativity required when the bottles are shaped into unique artistic patterns. This not only utilizes thrown-away bottles, but is a good way to protect the environment by recycling plastic waste. Check out here some of the most creative lights you could witness being made out of waste plastic bottles.

Bubble Chandelier

There has been an excellent attempt at creating wonderful bubble-shaped chandeliers by a New York-based company called Souda, which is into product design. These beautiful chandeliers are carved out of used PET bottles that were collected from consumers by homeless individuals in an attempt to raise money for a nonprofit organization. Then, these bottles were cleaned and cut to shape them together to form dome-like fixtures. A single lighting fixture uses about 60 recycled bottles. Nothing makes this stunning green chandelier look any inferior to a royal glass chandelier.

 

Big Crush Plastic Bottle Lamps

Studiomold, an Anglo-Italian design studio, has developed this superb range of plastic bottle lamps. The Big Crush lamps received great appreciation from almost everybody who saw them on display. All these lamps are created out of used fizzy drink bottles made of plastic. Studiomold works on the concept of bringing in a sense of humor while creating ambience, and this reflects in this range of lamps, as well as their Little Crush table lamps.

The Bottle Light

You would not believe your eyes if you look at these bright lights made of reused and recycled drink containers. These mesmerizing lighting fixtures are based on an award-winning design concept, which includes squishing the PET bottles in order to screw them onto an LED enclosure made of modular aluminum. That is how you may find these fixtures in vivid and unique shapes, as well as twisted angular light colors. This is an example of an innovative eco-friendly approach.

Loto Chandeliers

Based on the characteristics of lotus flowers, Loto is a lamp series that is organically inspired. Designed by Eugenio Menjivar, these concept lights reflect how Loto lamps representing the lotus flowers come out of the plastic debris representing muddy swamps. It also educates consumers about sustainable designs that can be created out of discarded household items, such as these lamps made out of recycled waste plastic bottles.

 

The Cardboard Bike Becomes Real, But It’s No Longer Cheap
by: Co.Exist, 2013-06-25 12:00:09 UTC

The bicycle made from recycled cardboard is a real thing: Inventor Izhar Gafni grabbed headlines last year for riding the prototype, and describing how he made folded cardboard “like origami” into a material as strong as carbon fiber.

But another important component of those news stories was the product’s price. Gafni’s business partner Nimrod Elmish told Reuters last October that they would be available within a year, and could be priced at $20 at a profit, thanks to cheap raw material of old cardboard, plastic bottles and car tires estimated at only $9 to $12. The low prices helped justify a pitch for the developing world: “the potential to change transportation habits from the world’s most congested cities to the poorest reaches of Africa.”

Yet from their just-launched crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo, it appears a world of cheap cardboard bikes will take much more time and much more money than previously suggested. The estimated delivery date for the bikes is March 2015, and only in the U.S. and Europe. The price is a more-than-tenfold leap from that oft-quoted $20: $290, including $40 for shipping and handling.

In response to Facebook fans stung by sticker shock, Cardboard Technologies posted:

it’s crucial that we get this production plant up and running ASAP. We need to begin mass production that will not only get the bike to all the places it needs to go in the world, but it will allow us to bring the production costs down dramatically. The prices we have listed in the campaign are intended to help us reach that goal, so everyone who buys one will be a part of the community that helped establish it

If they reach their eye-popping goal of $2,000,000 they will set an Indiegogo record, and will presumably be able to fund some of their more farfetched cardboard dreams. As Elmish told an audience at Microsoft Next: “We believe that within 10 years, parts made out of recycled material like this will be flying to the moon and outer space.”