Acorn Studios is a business that is turning old computer materials (and other things) into repurposed products. The founder, Nicola Harper, is a waste management engineer turned eco-entrepreneur. Her studio has a number of different products made from recycled materials in their online store, but there are other experimental pieces that are being developed and items from their booth that are sold at local (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada) craft shows.

There's wit behind the designs that geeks appreciate (keychains made with Enter or Home keys from old computer keyboards, paper notebooks made with old floppy disks as the covers, etc.)

It's not as extreme as turning cow poop into boards but it's another transformation of a waste stream into a resource stream. My inner EcoGeek wants a pair of circuit-board cufflinks, but then I'd have to start wearing French cuffs more than once a year.

link: Acorn Studios

So?

So that makes them eligible for, among other things purchase by federal agencies under a new executive order that tells 'em to get greener or suffer the consequences.

Memo to industry captains of the world: if you want to sell to people who care about sustainability -- an ever-growing demographic -- you'd better get on the stick.

Because of this limitation, Fujitsu stated that the e-paper is well suited to supplement mobile devices by acting as a large resolution screen. A cell phone could beam its screen to the e-paper and power it at the same time, allowing users to easily view websites, e-mails and other mobile content.

At the event they showed off a unit with 640x480 resolution and an 8-inch screen size, claiming these screens will eventually grow as large as 2.5 meters. This will allow them to function as signage. Imagine if changing advertising in a subway was as simple as beaming new images. This reduces paper waste and printing energy, in addition to the obvious convenience.

Currently, Fujitsu is looking to market this towards businesses, but hopefully they can bring it to the consumer market also. I would love to read newspapers, magazines and even websites off of one of these instead of sitting in front of a monitor all day!

For more EcoGeek e-ink content, check out other stuff tagged with E-Ink

Via: CNet and Engadget

Researchers at Michigan State University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture have been testing different kinds of particleboard, fiberboard and extruded lumber made from manure. The waste is first processed in an "anaerobic digester" which breaks down the manure in a contained fashion. Methane gas and liquid fertilizer are the useful byproducts that come from this process, and now, the solid component is finding a use.

The product is being manufactured using processed, sterilized manure in place of wood chips. Combining the material with resins and applying heat and pressure, as is done with the wood-based versions of these products, results in a board that has equal or better structural properties than the wood-based versions.

"It appears that the fibers interlock with each other better than wood," said Charles Gould at Michigan State's College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. "We end up with, I think, a superior material." (msnbc)

This is a literal example of a waste stream becoming a source of raw material for another process. We'll see if this becomes a viable commercial product or if the *ewwww* factor is just too much for consumers to bear.

via: Inhabitat and MSNBC

Applied Materials is a manufacturer of electronics and photovoltaic solar modules, so it's not exactly a fair fight. “As we pursue our strategy to significantly drive down the overall solar cost-per-watt, we feel it is important to lead through example,” said Mike Splinter, president and CEO of Applied Materials.

This is the kind of one-upsmanship that we EcoGeeks applaud.

via: Inside GreenTech

Well, Fantastic Sam's has nothin' on the mining industry.

Mountaintop removal mining is basically the worst haircut a person could give the earth. It involves clear-cutting and exploding the hell out of the place in order to extract minerals. Now Google Earth has featured content that will show you the extent of the damage in our own country in a few ways.

You can see what the mining scabs in Appalachia look like from above to understand the size of the problem and you can even see what the land looked like before it was attacked.

How? Like this:

1. Download the latest version of Google Earth.
2. In the "Layers" tab, expand "Featured Content."
3. Under that, expand "Global Awareness."
4. Check "Appalachian Mountantop Removal" and explore the other features within that menu.
5. If you get riled up, check out ilovemountains.org, where they're trying to stop mountaintop removal mining in the area.

Via BetaNews and Green Options

In addition to all this, they continue to market to EcoGeeks with an onboard computer to provide “Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, high definition video” and the usual ports for your iPod and other gadgets. Lastly, ZAP is using a special glass, which allows the windshield and other windows to provide a small amount of solar energy to the car.

So how do they do it? The ZAP-X is only slightly larger than a Prius and uses an award winning, Lotus designed all-aluminum chassis, making it very lightweight. Also, they are integrating batteries from Altairnano, who have proven their “nanotech-based batteries” in other electric vehicles.

The real key to producing such an amazing vehicle is getting people to pay for it. This is, likely, the first entirely practical electric vehicle, until you factor in the price: $60,000.

ZAP is shooting for a 2008 release, so us EcoGeeks will have some time to save up.

Via: Inside Green Tech and Ecofriend

Official Press Release

While this could hardly be described as a landmark case, it is good to see a politician practicing what he preaches, and heartening to know that the richest neighborhoods in the world are warming up to the idea of solar power. It's also nice to know that being an EcoGeek and a millionaire aren't mutually exclusive... I've had my eye on that Tesla Roadster for a while now!

via Wired News

This latest revelation -- har -- came thanks to a document written a couple of folks with green minds in the UK. The guide, For Creed and Creation: A simple guidebook for running a greener church (PDF), was endorsed by the Mayor of London and by the Bishop of London.

It includes chapters titled Your building and grounds, Lighting, Water, Rubbish and how to buy better and Other ideas. The tips are fairly generic tips -- check for leaks, get rid of incandescent bulbs -- that might already be familiar to folks like you, but it's put in a handy context for someone running a church (or really any other place of worship or community center) and uses adorable words like "rubbish."

But what's truly awesome about the Aura is it's hybrid Greenline version. While the efficiency could be boosted more, GM's hybrid system is considerably less expensive than Toyota's and Honda's. The result is that the Hybrid Aura will get 28 city 35 highway for $22,000, making it the cheapest new hybrid you can buy.

I would have like GM to increase those mileage numbers a bit more, but the price is spot on. GM knows that Americans are slow to adopt technology that isn't going to save them money, so the Aura Greenline Hybrid is an exciting step.
 

The whole setup with big LCD screen and speakers draws less than 200 watts, while the solar panel has a maximum output of 20 watts. So, yes, the panel has to charge the battery for a few hours before you can start playing. But once the battery is fully charged and with the constant trickle charging of the photovoltaic panel, the system can stay up and running for about 8 hours.

Excellent idea. Check out this video at Tom's Hardware to see the creation and exhibition of the first ever solar Wii.

All we're saying is that it might not be enough yet, Willie.

Skeptics might also suggest that a greener-than-thou rock 'n' roll band is a highly relative concept. A true ecological troubadour would simply swear off the strobe lights and JumboTrons and stay home strumming acoustic guitar ditties for neighbors in the dark.

The same goes for rock fans, even those responsible enough to carpool in their Subaru to the show: they will have to stare down the contradictions between planetary patriotism and the desire for a rocking good time — at least until someone invents a biomass-fueled cigarette lighter to thrust aloft during encores.

It's possible that the greenest thing they're doing -- and it's definitely something -- is educating concertgoers and raising awareness through eco-village setups at shows, with information booths and so on.

We at EcoGeek aren't prepared to give up our rock, but we are ready to hear from readers about tours that seem to be legitimately greening themselves -- or trying harder than most. What've you got for us?