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Keep Your Bum And The Earth Cool
Oh, the things we create and label "green".
For those eco-conscious folks living in hot climates, you can thank Japan for the latest and greatest in buttocks cooling. Introducing Suzukaze air-conditioned seat cushion. Using the sweat generated by your bum and a tiny bit of energy, this cushion has an internal fan that blows over 170 liters of air per minute to keep your nether-region cool. It is light weight, portable, and so efficient that even if used as much as 8 hours a day, you’d still only spend pennies per month on electricity.
Hallelujah.
While not quite as handy as some crazy gadgets we’ve seen come through here, if you have a significant problem with your rear end overheating or becoming… um… swampy, then this energy-efficient new gadget is for you. But, realistically, I think we can chalk it up to another random item found in the Skymall catalog.
Watch a video on how the seat works.
Via Newlaunches
How To Convert Your Car To An Electric Vehicle
Gasoline-powered cars are perhaps the most inefficient devices that many of us use daily. The internal combustion engine is inefficient in term of pollution, gas costs and maintenance costs. Electric motors are comparatively simple devices that do not require much maintenance at all. But, as you may know, it’s difficult to obtain an commercial electric [...]
How To Convert Your Car To An Electric Vehicle
Gasoline-powered cars are perhaps the most inefficient devices that many of us use daily. The internal combustion engine is inefficient in term of pollution, gas costs and maintenance costs. Electric motors are comparatively simple devices that do not require much maintenance at all. But, as you may know, it’s difficult to obtain an commercial electric [...]
Really Green Energy
Wired dot com is once again covering oil from algae. This post was prompted by a press release from Sapphire Energy who have announced that they have managed to produce 91 octane fuel from their process. The exact process is being kept under wraps but …
Really Green Energy
Wired dot com is once again covering oil from algae. This post was prompted by a press release from Sapphire Energy who have announced that they have managed to produce 91 octane fuel from their process. The exact process is being kept under wraps but …
Really Green Energy
Wired dot com is once again covering oil from algae. This post was prompted by a press release from Sapphire Energy who have announced that they have managed to produce 91 octane fuel from their process. The exact process is being kept under wraps but …
Really Green Energy
Wired dot com is once again covering oil from algae. This post was prompted by a press release from Sapphire Energy who have announced that they have managed to produce 91 octane fuel from their process. The exact process is being kept under wraps but …
Toyota Opening $192M Hybrid Battery Plant
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Coming on the heels of news about the commercial success of the Prius is an announcement that Toyota plans to expand its battery manufacturing, opening up a $192 million plant in Japan to produce the nickel-metal hydride batteries used in these popular gas-electric hybrid cars.
With Toyota’s plans to increase sales of its hybrids to 1 million cars a year, more batteries are a must. Yet, it is saddening to see Toyota pumping funds into their Prius tank, rather than developing new, more eco-friendly technology. A sister plant for lithium-ion batteries for future cars is rumored to be in the works, and Toyota does have plans to move on to a more ecological plug-in version, however, it is clear that Toyota wants to keep flying high on the success of these semi-eco cars. For now, you’ll have dole out even more dough for your own heightened fuel economy.
We know many drivers enjoy the Prius because it offers the slightly less guilt-inducing option of gas-saving tech, but, like smoking filtered cigarettes to stave off blackened lungs, better mileage and fewer on-the-road emissions seems to be about all the car really has to offer above and beyond other new cars, for now at least. With skyrocketing gas prices, perhaps these hybrids will make more sense, especially for big-city commuters, but with new models starting at over $22,000, it’s not a car Joe or Jane Schmoe can waltz down to the dealership to buy.
Nonetheless, every nickel-metal hydride cloud has a bright lining, and for strapped and asthmatic Americans, it’s a paradigm shift towards economical and environmental responsibility in our daily driving choices. The Prius is one of the forces propelling us toward this shift, and if it means more gas-electric hybrids as we wait for better technology, perhaps that is better than no hybrids at all.
Via WIRED
World’s First Renewable Gasoline
The title might sound impossible, but Sapphire Energy, a California-based company, has been working away to create actual gasoline from a renewable, carbon neutral source: algae. While we’ve heard of many different processes for making fuels from algae, this one certainly tops the list. They’ve managed to produce 91-octane, ASTM certified gasoline, ready to be pumped into your car. They stress that it is not ethanol, and not biodiesel.
Move over Brent Crude, it’s Green Crude’s turn.
The company, they say, started with 3 friends discussing a very interesting question: "Why is the biofuel industry spending so much time and energy to manufacture ethanol — a fundamentally inferior fuel?" A very good question indeed, and one they sought to answer on their own terms. The friends – a bioengineer, a chemist, and a biologist – set out to recruit the best minds they could find to collaborate with them on the project, and the results are staggering. "The company has built a revolutionary platform using sunlight, CO2 and microorganisms such as algae" to produce the fuel, without the use of arable land, and while we haven’t yet seen any data, they claim it to be very water efficient.
They also announced that they raised $50 million from Arch Rock Ventures, Venrock, and the Wellcome Trust. It is evident that Sapphire will become a major player in the coming years for alternative fuel production, and one cannot help but be inspired with confidence when Arch Rock says: "We realized at that point we could change the world, so we sat them down and told them, ‘the checkbook is completely open; tell us what you need’." Not a statement you hear everyday from a venture capital firm.
We will have more on this story as it develops; we are eager for more info and will pass it on as soon as we get it.
B5media Lifestyles Channel Roundup of Contests
Below is a roundup of contests currently running around the b5media Lifestyles Channel. Entering to win is easier and cheaper then playing the lottery! What have you go to lose?
Visit each link provided, leave a comment and you may just end up the lucky winner!
Last chance to enter at Inside Motherhood – Contests [...]
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