M.I.T. Ushers in Biking 2.0 With Copenhagen Wheel [Bicycles]

Today at the COP 15 Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, M.I.T. students introduced the technologically advanced Copenhagen Wheel. In addition to including various sensors and Bluetooth capability, the tire stores kinetic energy from braking for a later burst of speed.
The makers of the Copenhagen Wheel from M.I.T.'s SENSEable City Laboratory claim that the new features mark the advent of 'Biking 2.0,' a new era based on smarter bikes and easier rides. The wheel is certainly a step in that direction; it includes sensors for detecting distance, speed, direction, all of which are beamed via Bluetooth to the rider's iPhone. The wheel also includes a built-in lock that sends the rider a text if tampered with.
But the most notable feature of the Copenhagen Wheel is its KERS or Kinetic Energy Recovery System, a mechanism by which energy from braking is stored up for later use, giving the rider a boost when going up a hill or speeding through traffic. Some bicycle purists have already dismissed the wheel as a novelty while others suggest that M.I.T. has succeeded in reinventing the wheel. [MIT via Inhabitat]

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California Approves Orbiting Solar Panel Deal, Aims for 2016 Launch [Solar Power]

Remember Solaren, the company that's trying to launch those space-based solar panels, the one that signed a deal with California's biggest power utility company? The whole plan got even closer to reality today, after getting approval from California legislators.
And, like we said, there's no reason Californians would reject the deal between Solaren and PG&E—the utility company isn't investing or putting up any money at all, it's just saying "sure, we'll buy energy from you if and when this thing ever works." Which, you know, duh. The 15-year contract starts in 2016, by which time hopefully we won't have already devolved into a Mad Max-style post-apocalyptic desert state.
[Gizmodo via CPUC via CNET]

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Qualcomm Ebook Display Ups the Ante with Full Color and Video [Ebooks]

Qualcomm has developed a 5.7-inch (1,024x768) display for ebook readers that not only renders color and video; it does so with enough power efficiency to challenge a black and white, still-frame Kindle.
The 'mirasol' technology mimics iridescent butterfly wings by deploying charged, color-inducing membranes over a layer of mirror. It's a technology that, if integrated into Kindles today as-is, would increase battery life by an estimated 20%.
Instead, Qualcomm uses that extra power efficiency to drive color and higher refresh rates for smooth video. They contend that a Kindle with their more media-capable display could run about a day with its current battery.
The catch? The lead photo is a non-functional prototype (housing a functional, frozen-image display). Qualcomm is offering the tech to third party partners, and they expect you to see mirasol tech on the market by late 2010.
[Gizmodo via SlashGear]

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Grace is called the world's first E-Bike

Build an aluminum electric bike with euro-fighter and Formula One parts, power its 1300-watt motor with lithium-ion batteries, and you have Grace in motion. The company is calling Grace "the world's first and finest E-Motorbike," and while we beg to differ with that slogan — we've ridden a few profoundly exciting electric bikes ourselves — we have to admire the stylish build and cool power of this conveyance that looks like it came from the next century. And this is beyond just a bicycle — it's almost fast enough to be called a motorcycle.

Because this is all very high-tech and handmade in the company's Hanover, Germany shop, you'll have to plunk down €5877 ($8742) for the privilege of gracing yourself with this electro-bike when it ships in January. But then, the company claims that Grace is somehow 'really cheap compared to a car.' Maybe they have a point. If your commute is moderate, that might be true, with Grace's 18 to 31-mile range (depending on your weight), 40mph top speed, and one-hour battery recharge time. If it just went a bit faster and lasted a little longer, we'd call it amazing.

[DVICE]

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Solar collectors in space could finally solve Earth's energy problem

The Japan Space Agency, along with Mitsubishi Electric Corp. and IHI Corp., are getting even closer to next big thing: harnessing the power of the sun with a solar collector in geostationary orbit. Now there's cold hard cash involved. The plan is to drop $21 billion into a solar power generator that beams electricity to Earth via microwaves. The 1-gigawatt solar station will gather sunlight with a gigantic array of solar panels that is 4 square kilometers big.

While such an idea might be ahead of its time, Japan confidently predicts this first solar power space station will be online within three decades. Leave it to Japan to take our entire civilization ever closer to the day when we'll finally be a Type 1 civilization on the Kardashev scale. By the way, a type I civilization is able to harness all the power available on a single planet.

Actually, these Japanese innovators will be moving us closer to being a Type 2 civilization, which is able to harness all the power available in a single star. We would probably need to surround the Sun with solar panels to do such a thing, but Japan is off to a good start. Meanwhile, those innovators need to calm down the fearmongers, chattering about how those death rays of from space could kill us all.

[DVICE via Treehugger]

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Turn a Sunny Window into a Hydroponic Garden [Gardening]

Just because you don't have a backyard garden doesn't mean you can't enjoy fresh greens. Put together a hydroponic system in a sunny spot based on the designs of WindowFarms.org, and you'll have fresh greens all year long.
WindowFarms is an initiative devoted to turning urban windows into useful micro-farming space. They've put together a detailed PDF to help budding window farmers get started, including charts to help you select and build the right number of hydroponic pods, what kind of pumps to use, and how to link your pods together.
The guide also covers how to make a nutrient solution and what kinds of plants are suitable for window-based hydroponic systems—herbs, cherry tomatoes, peppers, okra, and strawberries do well in hydroponic setups. A nice touch is the large vendor list at the end of the PDF that includes the name of the items, links to find them online or at least see an example of them, and sources in your local environment for each component.

[LifeHacker via DIY Window Farm via Re-Nest]

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100-Core Tilera TILE-Gx Processors Planned For 2011 [CPUs]

While Intel and AMD look to make a complete jump to 8-cores, Tilera (an MIT start-up) says its upcoming 100-core chip has 'at least four times the compute performance of an Intel Nehalem-Ex, while burning a third of the power.'
The 40-nanometer TILE-Gx will reportedly draw about 55W of power at full load, and though it's expected to cost between $400 and $1000 (depending on volume), it's more intended for use on Linux-based enterprise Web servers.
According to Wired, the chip isn't really geared for regular operating systems such as Windows 7—for that, you'll have to wait for Intel's 80-core processor which was demonstrated last year, and is expected in about 5 years.
[Gizmodo via Tilera via Wired]

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Yamaha unveils EC-f electric scooter concept

The annual Tokyo Motor Show in Japan is once again playing host to a number of cool concept vehicles, one of the most interesting being the new EC-f scooter from Yamaha. The electric-powered vehicle is designed to serve as a commuter bike for city dwellers hoping to make their drive to work a bit greener (ecologically and literally).

Constructed using lightweight aluminum, the scooter runs on a lithium-ion battery and can easily be plugged into a normal electrical socket for recharging. No word on a release date for this concept, but the design alone is enough to generate excitement for its upcoming release.

[DVICE via Telegraph UK]

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Nuclear Batteries Solve The Shrinking Gadget Conundrum [Batteries]

It sucks that batteries are nearly bigger than the gadgets they're powering, but thanks to University of Missouri researchers and some tiny nuclear batteries, that'll one day be an issue of the past. Yeah, you read right. Tiny. Nuclear. Batteries.
The real secret behind the size of the batteries is the use of new liquid semiconductors instead of tired old solid semiconductors. That's great, because nuclear batteries aren't a new idea, nor are they terrifying and harmful according to Jae Kwon, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Missouri:

'People hear the word ‘nuclear' and think of something very dangerous,' he said. 'However, nuclear power sources have already been safely powering a variety of devices, such as pace-makers, space satellites and underwater systems.'

Anyway, researchers are building and testing these batteries as you read this, but the bad news is that the initial focus is on powering micro/nanoelectromechanical systems, not remote controls. We can't even begin to speculate as to when we would see tiny nuclear batteries in our local 7-Elevens.
[Gizmodo via University of Missouri via Boing Boing]

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Israel Innovation Generates Electricity by Driving on Roads [Green Energy]

An Israeli innovation succeeded in generating electricity from the traffic on roads. The power generator is based on a piezoelectric layer that is installed 5cm under the road pavement. Cars driving on the road applying their weight on the generators to create electricity which is stored in batteries on the sides of the road.

Currently the researchers tested the technology on 10 meters of single lane highway and managed to create 2000KW/h. If applied to 1 km of a 4 lane highway it is estimated, deduced from this experiment's results, to be able to create 1 MegaWatt/h of electricity, enough to supply electricity to about 2500 homes.

For the drivers nothing is changed in the driving experience. The electricity will be able to power street lamps, traffic lights and any road side consumer. Weather has no effect on the generators productivity or maintenance.


This is the first time roads are used to create electricity ever. Hoping to see more and more power generating road in the future.


Update: A physical conundrum came to my mind. How is possible to create energy without wasting energy? The weight of the car is creating the energy you say? Who will pay for this energy? The piezoelectric crystal materials which are the "Power Generators" change their physical properties when the traffic, the cars, runs over them and them they "stretch" back with their elasticity. But this is as if the cars is driving in a constant, although very small, climb. This is where the energy comes from - the fuel you and me pay for to fill our tanks. We will pay for this electricity without any reward (unless you count streetlights ROI, which we already pay city tax for!!!).


Let me know what you think in the comments.


[TheMarker (Heb)]

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Eco-Macho: Germany debuts e2 electric car of the future

The Tesla electric car is officially passé now that we have the e2 electric sports car from e-Wolf coming in 2011. The vehicle features a 544 horsepower electric engine, a battery that will last for 186 miles, and a top speed of 155 miles per hour.

What makes the e2 even more attractive is that it will take just 30 minutes to power up to a full electric charge. According to the company the car will be able to hit 60 miles per hour in just 4 seconds. The era of eco-macho is upon us, now it's all just a waiting game.

[DVICE via AutoBlog]

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Microsoft's 224,000 Servers Fit Into 112 Containers and Only Take Four People to Set Up [Microsoft]

There are 2,000 in that container. And there are 112 such containers in Microsoft's $500 million Chicago data center. It may seem somewhat ridiculous, but this container-based data center design is absolutely brilliant (and environmentally sustainable to boot).
While we haven't seen Microsoft's newest data center, we hear that it has 700,000 square feet of space, really, really high ceilings, and 40-foot stacks of server-filled containers. Thinking about the stacks may leave me with vertigo, but thinking about the ingenuity of the design leaves me impressed: Microsoft has built something which'll 'deliver huge benefits in cost, energy efficiency and environmental sustainability.'
All those containers are plug-and-play in a way, complete with corresponding bays, and can be set up by 'as few as four employees' in hours. Yes, they've designed it so that moving 60 ton stacks of servers requires only four people. If that's not incredible then let's consider that the place has a huge focus on being energy efficient: Despite the facility having a 30-megawatt power capacity, steps have been taken to make it as economical and sustainable as possible:

The Chicago site employs water-side economization [which takes] advantage of cool outside air to reduce the data center's reliance upon power-hungry chillers to produce chilled water. Air economizers introduce fresh air into the data center, while water-side economizers use cooling towers to remove waste heat.

Basically Microsoft is cutting down energy waste, saving on labor, and being all-around economical. While the modular, server-in-a-box approach might not get the stamp of revolutionary, the way Microsoft is approaching it is something worth paying attention to because it might just be what'll help 'meet the demand for cloud computing at scale.' [Gizmodo via Data Center Knowledge]

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Backpack Generates 40 Watts Just By Walking [Gadgets]

Defense Tech's Bryant Jordan was at the Disneyland of military gadgetry—the Modern Day Marine event at Quantico—and came across this power-generating backpack, which has stepped from prototype to reality. It can generate 40 watts just by walking.

It works great, apparently. The backpack itself is mounted on rails, so it moves up and down when its wearer moves. The movement generates enough electricity to power your gadgets, and the design actually relieves stress from the user. [Gizmodo via Lightning Packs via Defense Tech]

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Tiny $9,000 Car Gets an Astounding 74mpg [Cars]

Leave it to a Formula One race car engineer to create a car that's so cleverly designed it delivers 74 miles per gallon in a package that costs a mere $9,000. Barely big enough for one person, the T.25 is manufactured with a highly efficient process called iStream, lowering costs and simplifying repairs.

[DVICE]

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Horizon's Cheap Personal Fuel Cell Now On Sale—Charge Gadgets Cleanly and Cheaply [Fuel Cells]

First seen at CES years ago, Horizon's MiniPak has (finally) gone on sale for $100. It's the first personal, portable fuel cell—if you don't count the Japan-only Toshiba one—and is like a mini power plant for charging gadgets.

It eats refillable cartridges (coming bundled with two), with each cartridge giving the equivalent of 1,000 AA batteries. At $100, you can see it's going to end up saving you quite a bit of money. Not to mention help save the environment, with fuel cells being a clean and cheap way to generate energy. More on that can be explained here.

A bunch of connectors are included, so your smartphone/gaming console/other portable device should be supported, with up to 2W of power surging through a USB port. It's dead-small too, fitting in the palm of your hand, only slightly larger than the object you're charging up.


[Gizmodo via MiniPak via GizMag]

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Mystery European Car Manufacturer Will Use OLED Lighting In Next Two Years [OLED]

OLED manufacturer Novaled has announced it's teamed up with a 'European car maker' to create OLED interior and backlight lighting for their new motor. Intriguing, eh?

Apparently it's passed the concept stage and is being put into production as we speak, with the car likely to go on sale in the next two years. OLED, as you know, is flexible, low-energy and with costs being decreased almost every day, it's now an affordable alternative to other lighting systems.

OLED lighting in the next Citroën, anyone?
[Gizmodo via Plastic Electronics via OLED-Info]

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Toner-, ink- and paperless printer (video)

A Japanese company called Sanwa Newtec has developed a printer that works without toners, ink or (copy) paper. ThePrePeat RP-3100 is rather based on a line thermal head and special paper that’s made of PET plastic and can be reused over and over again.

In other words, if you have a sheet that you don’t need any longer you can insert it back into the printer (where it gets “cleaned”) and immediately print out a new document in one go. Each of those special sheets can be used 1,000 times, saving not only the costs for 1,000 sheets of copy paper but also 5.7kg of CO2 for the environment.

The printer prints in black and white only, but at least you need neither toners nor ink (look here for a detailed price comparison with conventional printers).

One sheet costs $3.35, while the PrePeat itself is priced at $5,600. It’s already available in Japan (people living outside Japan can make an inquiry here). Obviously, Sanwa Newtec is justifying this price with the low running costs and the eco-friendliness of the device.

This video shows the “green” printer in action:


[CrunchGear]

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