The wonderful potential of graphene has been well covered on our pages, with its supreme strength, ultra-thin profile, and excellent electrical and thermal conductivity opening up all kinds of possibilities. One thing missing from all of this is a cost-effective way to produce it, but a team of researchers now believe they may have discovered a key to this hiding […]
Green Graphene Could Cut Production Costs
New Airbag Vest Offers Shock Absorption
Dainese has stuffed its motorcycle airbag technology into a small, lightweight vest you can wear under or over any riding gear. The Smart Jacket is flexible and unintrusive for the 99.999 percent of the time you spend not crashing, but protects you seven times better than a back protector when your number is up. I’ve got back protectors and full […]
Seagull Inspired Blades
While we’ve already seen that large-scale wind turbine blades which are shaped like humpback whale fins can be more efficient, what works for big turbines doesn’t necessarily work for little ones. In fact, a new study suggests that for small-scale units, copying seagull wings may be the way to go. “Blades designed for large wind turbines usually don’t have good […]
Breakthrough Forensic Method
Building on a novel forensic approach that analyses proteins in head hair, scientists from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s (LLNL) Forensic Science Center (FSC) and Michigan State University have established that it’s possible to identify a person from a single hair taken from anywhere on the human body. If television is anything to go by, getting a positive identification of a […]
Returnable Reusable Cups
Every year, more than four billion disposable Starbucks to-go cups are distributed — and promptly sent to landfills, according to Clean Water Action. Consumers who bring their own reusable to-go cups to Starbucks definitely help reduce the demand for Starbucks’ single-use cups, but one Starbucks location is trying to reduce that number without putting the responsibility on the consumer. A Starbucks […]
Expanding Small Homes
IKEA has revealed its innovative Rognan robotic furniture, designed to minimize the compromises of small space living. Developed in collaboration with Ori, a Boston-based furniture start-up that grew out of a collaboration between MIT Media Lab students and designer Yves Behar and first caught our attention in 2016, the robotic furniture is set to first roll-out in Hong Kong and […]
Artificial Muscles
Scientists at Linköping University have blurred the line between robot and organism by developing an artificial muscle that runs off of glucose and oxygen like its organic counterpart. Made of a special polymer, the new plastic muscles open the promise of implantable artificial muscles and micro-robots that can be powered like living organs. In recent years, there have been great […]
Plant Shoe Can Be Composted At The End Of Life
Native Shoes is known for its “Beast Free” motto, which means the affordable and colorful shoe brand does not use animal products on any of its shoes. And while buying animal-free shoes is always a positive choice for the Earth, there are so many other ways to make sure your shoes are eco-friendly. So, to take their dedication to animals […]
Shaming People Off Plastic
Cities, countries, and grocery stores all over the world are straight-up banning single-use plastic bags — but one store is trying out a humorous approach when it comes to incentivizing reusable bags. Instead of the typical “have a nice day” message, Vancouver, Canada-based natural grocer East West Marketis offering plastic bags with slogans advertising fake stores where most people would not […]
Electric Scooter Specially Made For Norwegian Roads
We’ve been seeing a lot of foldable electric scooters, designed for use as “last-mile” transport between users’ homes/workplaces and public transit stations. Their little wheels, however, are no match for Oslo’s cobbled streets. That’s why a group of Norwegian entrepreneurs created the CityRabbit. The three-wheeled standup vehicle has a 12-inch front wheel (larger than those of a typical scooter) which […]