Well, here’s a green way to exercise and get rid of all those extra pounds you’ve put on. Hitting the gym sure helps you tone up and turn into a chiseled out roman-statue like figure, though it really isn’t as green as skipping around with a battery-recharging skipping rope. Known as the E-Rope, this instrument to exercise can charge up four AA rechargeable batteries with about 20 minutes of high energy exercise.
LG has come up with an interesting new development, Korea’s first eco-friendly residential hybrid air conditioner- F-Q232LASS that uses juice from the sun to power up. The solar module is fitted on to the air-conditioners outdoor unit. When exposed to the sun, this 28,000BTU (76 square meter) standing-style LG air conditioner -F-Q232LASS produces up to 70 watts of power per hour. That’s enough energy to power up the unit’s air purification process. World over, people are turning to the use of air conditioners, setting them up in their rooms for cleaner air quality. This obviously results in astonishingly large electricity bills at the end of every month, and an extra pressure on the electricity grid.
Summer time woes include sweaty foreheads and heavy electricity bills. Well, you can wipe that forehead of yours and welcome a cheaper electricity bill, if the air-conditioner you use bothers to diet and do away with those age old mechanics. At least that’s what the National Renewable Energy Laboratory thinks. The guys at the NREL recently unveiled a design for an air-conditioner that keeps out those energy sucking compressors and condensers that promises an energy use cut-off of around 75%. Jaw hanging open already? Get a hold of this.
Besides grabbing a lot of curious glances from visitors to your home, this little power outlet adapter could help you save a load of cash too! This one sure is a fascinating little object to have at home, especially if you go “Ooh! What does this button do” every time you see a gadget of its type. On a more serious note, this device, the Belkin Conserve Insight, gives you an insight on just how much energy your home is sucking out of the grid. The power-outlet adapter is equipped with a screen too, to display the energy consumption of a home.
Microsoft has come up with a way to control your computers energy sucking computers thirst, and have recently developed an application for the purpose. Desktop computers are known energy suckers and IT equipment consume 50-80% of a modern building’s electricity. Last year, someone stumbled on an astonishing fact that leaving PCs on caused a $2.8 billion of electricity wastage. And yes, most offices and firms don’t really encourage the shut-down-your-PC policy today. Microsoft has an answer though, as always, in the form of its Sleep Proxy system that can cut energy consumption by a sweet 60-80%, without obstructing office work.
The Gulf of Mexico has been hit by a tragedy, turning the lovely blue waters into a bitter black greasy slime. Yes, we’re talking about the oil-spill. The oil spilt in the water has had its adverse effects and is continuing to do so, on marine life as well as birds. Well, the issue requires an immediate to be taken and people everywhere are thinking hard to do so. Well, a small company based in Lincoln, Mobius Technologies Inc. has stumbled upon a way to clean up the oil using its ground-up recycled polyurethane powder.
The world’s finally realizing the need to save itself, with people turning to renewable energy sources, slowly but surely. We hope for a future with greener energy resources that do not pollute, or squeeze the earth of its resources. Solar power, wind energy, tidal energy and a few others are being used today. Well, solar power is sure having its share of attention, with more and more applicability being discovered everyday. And so, Sanyo have realized the need to improve their technology to harness solar power and have come up with a new solar module, the HIT-N230.
We’ve seen quite a few on-the-go chargers that can power up your little electric I-make-your-life-easier gadgets. Some are juiced by the sun, most actually, while we’ve seen a few use stored electricity and wind power too! Well, here’s a new one of its kind. A fuel-cell powered personal charger. Now don’t try fueling your car with this one. It’s powerful enough to juice up electric gadgets like cell phones and mp3 players in the outdoors.
The Ikaros has left ground and has set off on its journey to the heavens above. And this time, it wasn’t the Greeks sending up a mythological creature, it’s the Japanese with a solar-powered idea that was eagerly waited upon to be executed. The Ikaros solar-sail has been successfully deployed by Japanese scientists, with a 200-sq-m (2,100-sq-ft) membrane is attached to a small disc-shaped spacecraft. This was launched into space using an H-IIA rocket last month. Unlike its peers, this space-craft can turn its head away from chemical fuels and use alternative energy instead.
Electricity lines that run from pillar to pillar around our neighborhood require regular checks and maintenance. Now, owing to the high voltage of power they transmit, working near these lines can be potentially risky to people. Usually, helicopters do the rounds inspecting these. There is however an answer to all these problems, a flying inspection robot. This one, developed by researchers at the Electric Power Research Institute, USA, is powered up using energy from the sun. using a robot makes this task much easier, cheaper and safer too.