Light up your home with green energy: Philips’ LED bulb emits the same amount of light as its incandescent equivalent but uses less than 10 watts and lasts for 25,000 hours — or 25 times as long. Replacing regular sixty-watt by LED bulbs, the U.S. could save enough electricity per year to light 17.4 million households.
Control your game without a controller: Does your joystick, trackball, mouse or light gun come between you and your video game? These controllers will hamper you no longer – Microsoft’s Project Natal enables players to control games using only body movements and voice commands. Move your hand, and the on-screen character moves his too, and less gadgets means less consumption and pollution.
Modernize your farm: Stressed for space? No problem. Valcent, an El Paso-based company, has come up with a hydroponic-farming system. Seeds are planted in rotating rows, one on top of another, thus ensuring sufficient light and nutrients, and less use of water. The biggest advantage is increased food supplies in the same amount of land.
Create energy with your roof: The Dow Chemical Co. has developed a new roof shingle that doubles as a solar panel. These low-cost shingles are expected to cost 10 to 15 percent less than traditional solar panels, and will be quicker to install.
Feed your car while you race: England’s University of Warwick has developed the World’s First Formula 3 racing car with steering made of carrot fibers, side mirrors of potato starch, and brakes made of cashew-nut shells. Fuel the car with a biodiesel mix of chocolate and vegetable oil and you are all set to race. And it gets even greener - the radiator coating converts ozone emissions into oxygen.
Origami for speakers: Chicago-based OrigAudio takes recycling to the next stage with foldable, self-powered, 1-watt speakers made of heavy-duty recycled paper. These easy-to-assemble speakers can be folded into a flat sheet that fits into a laptop sleeve, then just hook them up to any audio device with a headphone jack and you are ready to roll.
Blooming benches: Finding a tree for shade in the summer can sometimes be difficult in our urban concrete jungles. South Korean designer BonSeop Ku’s Bench provides an innovative natural shade to the passersby. It blooms like a flower to provide shade during the day and produces green electricity to work as a streetlight in the dark.
Skoot to beat pollution: Pollution and parking are two major problems in cities all over the world. Designer Stuart Emmerson has popped up an electric scooter that provides safe and sustainable commute. The Skoota has an in-wheel brushless hub motor to provide an eco-drive for young riders. The lightweight (about 20 kg) vehicle runs on lithium batteries and solar power for an entirely sustainable ride, reducing the user’s carbon footprint.
Drive your luggage: Say no to aching muscles from pulling around heavy luggage with Samsonite’s new luggage bag which turns into a mini scooter, allowing you to scoot around with your luggage safely tucked away. The scooter itself folds up as a normal luggage carrier, helping you to get around under your own steam.
Get going on an all-terrain wheelchair: Argentina’s Francisco Lupin has come up with a functional all mountain wheelchair that integrates a suspension system to adapt to the weight of the user, together with a regulator of camber in the front wheels and an adjustable belt. The wheelchair is not only lightweight and comfortable to use even in uneven terrains, but also economical.
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