Kinfolk (frame design) and Coat (paint job), with a bag by Nivaldo de Lima, have come up with a bike that breaks down to fit inside a custom bag that can be simply carried or put on a plane as luggage. The leather saddles are made by Brooks. There are 2 models- one has 54 cm wheels, the other has 58cm wheels.
The prices appear to range from $1579 to $1973 USD plus shipping.
See Wallpaper* Magazine for more information
Park Gate is quite an architectural masterpiece. It has 6 curving towers covered with canopies of solar panels to keep the heat out, let in light and cool the building. It takes advantage of the cool breezes from the ocean. It has hanging gardens that have drought tolerant plants (watered with a gray water mist system); as well as plants that are salt water tolerant. The gardens are in abundance. There are thermal salt water reflecting pools that act as a heat sink during the day, and release the heat at night. All of these measures are thought to reduce temperatures by 10-15 degrees.
China has come up with an innovative way to reduce carbon emissions and relieve congested metropolitan areas. They have developed what is being called a “straddling bus” that allows vehicles less than 2 meters tall to pass under the busses. This was first exhibited at the 13th Beijing International High-Tech Expo in May of this year, with hopes of putting a model into pilot use in Beijing’s Mentougou district in the near future.
These large sized busses have a ground clearance of 4 to 4.5 meters and 6 meters wide, and are comprised of two levels- the upper levels will be designated as passenger space, and the lower level will be for the passage of normal sized vehicles.
The “straddling Bus” will be powered by solar energy and electricity with a top speed of 60 km/h (37 mph) carrying a maximum passenger load of 1200 to 1400 in one trip (about 300 per cart). It also has an emergency exit ladder built in, in case evacuation is necessary. It is also estimated that this bus will save approximately 860 tons of fuel each year.
Frying an egg on the sidewalk.
The ‘City of Klamath Falls Geothermal Utility’ is located in a known geothermal activity area in Oregon, and provides a renewable, non- polluting ‘green’ resource to heat Commercial and Government buildings throughout the downtown core area in addition to geothermal sidewalk and bridge snow melt systems.
Initial construction on the geothermal systems began in 1981.
The snow melt system is designed to provide safety and convenience throughout winter months for sidewalks and bridges. This would be difficult and expensive using other heating methods.
While other heat sources rise in cost, geothermal energy remains low, and has better overall heating efficiency.
Central Reykjavik (ocean in the distance)
Central Reykjavik
Large natural lake in central Reykjavik
I visited Iceland recently and was amazed at how they really use their natural renewable resources. Their Hydro electricity is on a grid that provides for over 80% of electricity on this huge island. They have a lot of rivers and glaciers melting, waterfalls etc. The Geothermal plants provide for a very large amount of heating & hot water to houses as well as providing hot water for municipal pools.
I also was fortunate to meet a very nice couple that have a couple of apartments they rent out that are more comfortable than most places that you would normally rent. The apartments are very well equipped, and they also have excursion services.
They speak English very well, as do many Islanders. Their website for tours is: Iceland Luxury Tours, Apartments: Cosy Reykjavik - Sveinn and Stella are guaranteed to enhance the quality of your visit!
This solar powered boat operates in Sydney Australia as a passenger ferry. Pollution free boats- WOW!
Boats are among the biggest fuel guzzlers of all time… right up there with Hummers and Tanks.
This is a passenger boat that is powered by wind and solar energy. It has movable wing- like solar panels that act as sails.
Since it is Hybrid, it can run on wind, sun, battery, diesel or any combination of these.
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This is The Solar Shuttle, designed by SolarLab founder Christoph Behling. It is the UK’s largest and most advanced solar boat. It carries 42 passengers in all daylight conditions, has reserve power for night-time running and even generates surplus energy that can be fed back into the national grid.
It operates on the ecologically-fragile Serpentine Lake in one of the oldest parks in the world, London’s Hyde Park.
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda and Tesla CEO Elon Musk in front of the Tesla model 'S'
Arnold in front of the Tesla model 'S'.
Tesla model 'S' studio shot
Tesla Roadster
Tesla paid $42 million dollars to purchase the former NUMMI pant (New United Motor Manufacturing Inc) in Silicon Valley, and includes 207 acres which is about 55% of the site and includes all manufacturing facilities there.
As part of the deal with Tesla, Toyota has agreed to buy $50 million worth of stock in Tesla’s IPO (initial public offering).
Cornell University has installed a very innovative, yet very basic concept for cooling Ithaca High School and Cornell University. It is a closed loop system that exchanges the cool water from the depths of nearby Cayuga Lake, and expels the warm water into the shallow waters of the same lake. The water is drawn through an intake that comes from water about 2 miles out in water that is 250 feet deep, and the intake sits about 10 feet from the bottom of the lake where the temperature is about 39ºF year round.
If I take public transportation to work 1 time this week, I will save enough energy to surf the web for 50 hours. If 1,000 people joined me we could, for a year, take 2 cars off the road!
Construction for Hoover Dam started in 1931 (some sources say it began in 1930), and was completed in less than 5 years- 2 years ahead of schedule, and well under budget. It is listed as one of the top 10 construction achievements in the 20th century. A national historic landmark, it stands 725 feet above the Colorado River. With 17 generators it produces 4 billion kilowatts of electricity a year.
It attracts more than a million visitors a year and is located in Black Canyon, 35 miles outside of Las Vegas. They have two tour options that both sound quite interesting. They have some age and mobility restrictions, so it is good to call ahead and make sure which tour will work best for your group.
Due to all of the traffic crossing the current bridge, they are building a new bridge to help alleviate the current bottleneck. The bridge looks quite impressive, and is an amazing construction feat by itself.
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