Usually, we don’t place our gadgets like music players to scorch under direct sunlight as it may harm the functioning. However this habit can be changed with the solar powered media player from Singapore’s Shiro Corporation. Christened as Shiro SQ-S, it is caked with solar cells on the backside. to juice up this doodad, all you need to do is place it under the sun with the rear facing the heat. Within four hours, Shiro will be full of energy that can last for 35 hours of music or up to seven hours of video. Roll over to know about its other techie features…..
This festive season, are you short of ideas to gift someone with a green thumb? Why don’t you grab the Memorex’s Eco-Friendly 7″ Widescreen LCD Digital Photo Frame and be assured of reviving green memories. The eco-friendly tag can be attributed to the medium-density fiber wood substrate frame and the packaging that made of 80% recycled material. Also the manuals and other leaflets are made of 100% recycled paper. Discounted down to $70, this digital frame boasts of excellent picture quality with 480 x 234 resolution; 400:1 contrast ratio and 200 cd/m² brightness.
Though flying across countries and continents on solar powered planes still seems to be a distant dream, the aviation industry of U.S. is moving ahead with a green objective for sure. America can now boast of the greenest airport hangar as the 60,000-square-foot structure at Bob Hope Airport opens its doors today. Believed to be the world’s greenest aviation facility, this hangar is capable of powering a Boeing 757 jetliner with solar energy while the aircraft is on the ground for maintenance. Known as Hangar 25, its roof is caked with photovoltaic panels that provide enough juice to operate the building’s lights. This green energy can also recharge electric-powered ground equipment such as forklifts and tow vehicles.
Japan is gearing up for a green exhibition, the tenth Eco-Products 2008 scheduled from 11th-13th December. Touted to be one of the largest green events in Japan, this green fair will house all kind of eco products as well as services at the Tokyo International Exhibition Center. It is an ideal platform to showcase the green business ideas and lifestyles concepts. This year’s exhibition is based on the theme of “We Can Do it! Eco-Lifestyle with a 50% CO2 Reduction.” Now that sounds very motivating…..if only all of us can actually modify our habits and lifestyle to bring about this green change. This eco-exhibition aims to accelerate the expansion of green markets by exhibiting environmentally friendly products and services.
Yesterday we reported about the NASA’s move to keep a tab on the CO2 levels and today its time to cover the European Space Agency, a.k.a., ESA’s strategy to do the same. The Europeans are working on laser based technology to measure accurate atmospheric CO2 levels. Here the A-SCOPE (Advanced Space Carbon and Climate Observation of Planet Earth) space mission is the well-matched answer for the NASA’s Orbital Carbon Observatory (OCO). The scientists at ESA maintain that atmospheric column CO2 can be measured from space using two short laser pulses emitted at adjacent wavelengths. As a result of the pulses, CO2 is absorbed by one of the wavelengths. The other wavelength is used as a reference point, and the comparison between the two shows the total column concentration of CO2.
Time to find an affordable alternative for silicon-based photovoltaic solar cells and trust our scientists at Harvard and IBM to come up with such green solutions for a clean future. They are up on a revolutionary project that will enable them to harness the power of a million idle computers to develop a new, cheaper form of solar power. Based on the IBM’s World Community Grid project, Havard guys are hoping that the project will allow them to discover a combination of organic materials that can be used to manufacture more efficient, affordable, and flexible plastic solar cells. Intending to harness the sun’s energy from every corner, such a technology could be used to coat windows, make backpacks or line blankets which in turn can turn out electricity.
If you are vary about the facts and the figures that are reported by various bodies to warn us about the dangerous levels of toxics in our environment then watch out for an assured source in the near future. To keep a tab on the CO2 levels, precisely, NASA is gearing up for a new mission called the Orbital Carbon Observatory (OCO). Scheduled for 2009, it will take care of the complicated task of measuring carbon dioxide in our environment. Synchronizing with the sun, OCO will fly over the planet in a 483-mile-high orbit in 16-day cycles.
We buy an oven according to the size of our family…..larger families means big meals which needs to be cooked in full sized ovens. However most of us do come across a situation when we just want to cook or heat up a small portion and the whole of this energy consuming gadget needs to be heated up. Matt has designed an oven for such times. He intends to heat only that part of oven that will accommodate the food product without wasting more energy to heat the rest of the space. Going by the image, it seems that this oven can be shelved and portioned according to the usage. Though Matt Gossington has conceptualized an energy saving oven concept, at this stage I am not convinced about its practicality. We would have appreciated improvised and practical eco-friendly features that can actually lure the makers to grab the design for the future kitchens. How about an alternatively powered oven that saves up on all the grid energy?
We have been covering about many gadgets, technology and news about eco-friendly stuff that carry a substantial value in our green world. But its time to take a break from significant, bring-about-change stuff to something non- frivolous yet green product. Care to spin a solar powered flashing LCD key ring, dubbed as SolarFlash, on your finger? The sophisticated Solar Drive powers up the LCD screen to turn it completely black at least once per second. This results in a flashing screen which otherwise displays a message, logo or graphic. Feeding on very little solar energy, such a key ring is ideal for marketing your company’s brand or simply spread a green message. Completely customized, the SolarFLASH it works on a system similar to that of calculator.
Obama, touted to be the greenest American leader is living it up to his newfound tag. Recently he was on Greenlaunches as he had promised a greener White House. And today he is back with a billion dollar green news. Since he is in the mode of making plans and promises, over the weekend he has pledged his support for the largest public works program. And a part of that includes a $100 billion package for eco-friendly reasons solely. All these greens will be utilized to cover many green projects like electric grids, alternative fuels, wind farms, solar panels, and efficiency upgrades. It is reported that to tackle these green-collar issues, the estimate could run as high as $100 billion over two years. Source
