Category Archives: environment

3D-Printed Clock

At the Ars Electronica / MIT Media Lab exhibit in Linz, Peter Schmitt presented his work on mechanical systems made by rapid prototyping machines – so-called 3-D printers. He makes the interesting argument that by producing these intricate mechanical devices using a single process, manufacturers could forgo the need for low-cost assembly and instead manufacture […]

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rate my landman

The Extract project is an internet-based advocacy effort for land-owners being targeted by the oil and gas industries. Unaware of their rights, their land’s value or the health risks of drilling near residential areas, many residents of mineral-rich states unwittingly sacrifice the mineral rights to their property resulting in the propagation of thousands of wells […]

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Plastic Car

Have you ever wondered why cars are painted? Is it to attract scratches? To stimulate the car wax industry? In addition to begging for a fender bender, painted panels are expensive to make, nearly impossible to repair or reuse, and they are toxic to people and the environment. The Think City car is purposely designed […]

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community radio

Most sustainable design is focused on preserving the life-support systems of our planet, but true sustainability relies on a balance between survival of people and the persistence of culture. The Magno radio is at once a consumer product made from renewable materials, while at the same time it creates a means for a people to […]

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dinner globe

The Dinner Table Game by Luckybite was one of the nominees at this year’s British Insurance Design Awards. The maquette I photographed (below) represents a full-sized dinner table at the London Science Museum (above) projected with virtual food on white place settings. A globular lazy susan allows visitors to understand where food comes from and […]

Also posted in augmented reality, energy, food, visualization | Comments closed

carbon fiber kitchen

Move over stainless steel: I spotted this carbon-fiber kitchen island in the Tokyokitchen gallery at the Axis building in Roppongi. When I used to work with kitchen manufacturers I learned that most people only buy new cabinets every twenty or thirty years. Considering the weight and size of most kitchen cabinetry, there is a major […]

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money pollutes

Last Fall Grant Kristofek (“sustainability champion” at Continuum, the industrial design powerhouse responsible for the Reebok Pump and the OLPC) co-authored a report entitled Colorblind: How Consumers See Green. A team of designers, ethnographers and engineers visited households all over the US to document the attitudes that govern how we think and act with regard […]

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cereal craft

Mass Customization is generally thought of as a technological triumph combining the quality of the made-to-order with the efficiency of the mass-produced. Recently, it has been proposed that mass customization could also be desirable in terms of sustainability. Custom goods are always made on-demand, reducing inventory and waste. They may also warrant higher prices and […]

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