This selection of highlights is grouped on an environmentally-friendly and
energy-aware theme.
+ The Penguin Jumpers Project (15,000 knitted so far!)
+ How much 'desktop toast' could you make via windpower?
+ Wash your car without water
+ Devices that communicate the amount of energy they use
+ A 6000 pixel wide panorama of urban sprawl
+ 'Imagine the home in 2020': DesignBoom/Electrolux's competition winners
+ The latest in arachnid immobilisation technology
On one hand this is the most impossibly cute story. On the other, it's an extraordinary community-based design project, where the cleverly designed outcome helps deal with a very real enviro-problem.
Major oil spills can wipe out countless numbers of seabirds, fish, seals and other aquatic life. The good people of Tasmania via The Penguin Jumpers Project have hand knitted 15,000 (!) jumpers to help the rehabilitation of oil-affected Little Penguins – in the event of an oil spill occurring. "Oil clogs the feathers of these tiny seagoing birds, and reduces their insulating and waterproofing qualities. Even worse, the penguins attempt to clean themselves by preening, and rapidly become poisoned." Except when they're in a cozy, handknitted Tasmanian, penguin-sized jumper. The knitting pattern is on the afore-mentioned site. Via We Make Money Not Art.
+
Britain's Design Council has produced a very neat little desktop 'widget-style' application that tells you (if you live in the UK) how much energy you could generate by windpower – and how many slices of bread you could toast with that energy. UK toastlovers – handy for choosing where to relocate to if windpowered toast is your thing.
+
The ongoing water shortage in Australia, which is now a perennial problem, means that the average weekend car wash has to be re-thought. How about not using H20?
+
STATIC! is a research project by Sweden's Interactive Institute. Their pioneering work "revisits the design of everyday things to increase our awareness of how energy is used." Visit the projects at left. Via We Make Money Not Art.
+
A dazzling image of Californian urban sprawl. This is an issue familiar to many Melburnians. Unrestricted development: energy-aware and enviro-friendly? If we keep this up, we'll have to be much more smarter in this regard. Via Z+ Blog. More links on their blog, see the 'Seeing Sprawl' entry.
Also, explore National Geographic's New Urbanism interactive that focusses on smart growth.
+
The winners of the DesignBoom/Electrolux Design Lab 2005 'Imagine the home in 2020' design competition. A waterless washing machine is the big winner. Some great thinking here.
+
We Australians have some of the most venomous and dangerous spiders in the world. We, as a nation, need this. Via Designboom.
............................................
© Images at top:
1. Some penguins wearing jumpers made by the Penguin Jumpers Project.
2. Spider-catcher by loadsmorestuff.com
3. Windpower application: 2005 Design Council
Comments