Seen here trying to steal my soul with her stare, a Sony employee demonstrates a new “biological” battery capable of turning cellulose into glucose into energy efficiently enough to power an MP3 player. Me? I’m still cool recharging mine via USB, but what do I know? (SPOILER: Everything, I’m a centuries-old warlock). All it takes to power this bio-battery, then, is a bunch of chopped up cardboard immersed in a solution of water and different types of enzymes. The first enzyme breaks the cellulose in the cardboard into glucose, which the second enzyme then eats to produce electricity. It’s basically a little digestive tract that eats used paper products and poops out electrons and water, without relying on any heavy metals or chemicals or anything. Pretty cool, right? Sure, if you don’t mind carrying around a giant bottle of cardboard juice and eyedropping it on the battery every five minutes. Sorry Sony, but you know what you should’ve been working on instead of a battery that runs on cardboard? A battery that breakdances on cardboard. Oh shishi — that ‘lil AA is spinning on his head! Sony’s new termite battery runs on shredded cardboard [dvice] Thanks to paisley pia and Luke, who still power their electronics the old fashioned way: trapping lightning in a jar . OMG, I remember making Zeus batteries!

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It Ate My Fort!: Sony’s Cardboard-Powered Battery

This is a paper wine bottle. It was designed to help reduce the energy use associated with shipping wine because, I don’t know if you’ve ever been beat in the head with one in a really fancy bar fight before, but those glass bottles are heavy . I’ll f***ing kill you, Mr. Monopoly! So yeah — making the earth a greener place by reducing the shipping weight of wine bottles . Not gonna lie, that wouldn’t be the first thing I’d tackle. A leprechaun, yes. WHERE’S THE GOLD, LITTLE MAN?! While it looks a little rough on the outside, a challenge Martin will have to overcome when it comes to selling it to the consumer, the paper bottle weighs just 50 grams compared to the 500 grams of a glass bottle. It also has just ten percent of the carbon footprint of glass, so it’s cheaper to make and recycle. The paper bottles are even the exact same size as the glass bottles they hope to replace, so they can be easily integrated into existing production lines and transportation systems. The paper bottles actually have the same foil bags inside as boxed wine does, so the paper doesn’t get all mushy. Now, are you thinking what I’m thinking? “Remove the bags and tape them to your belly to sneak into a movie”? YES! You buy popcorn and I’ll let you have some. Will Wine Snobs Embrace a Paper Bottle? [gizmodo] Thanks to Marco, who still drinks wine the old fashioned way: out of a pimp cup . Dammit Marco, nobody used to do that. “Kings did!” I stand corrected.

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Booze Is Booze Is Booze: Paper Wine Bottles

Seen here looking suspiciously like a futuristic TNT detonator, The Airdrop is basically a dehumidifier for use outdoors that can pull water from the air, and use it to water thirsty plants . Which reminds me…*opening closet door* Have you learned your lesson, fern?! “Waaaaaaaaaaaater me.” *slams door* TWO MORE DAYS OF SOLITARY FOR NOT ADDRESSING ME AS GW, GIVER OF LIFE! With a deceptively modest design, Airdrop filters hot environmental air through a turbine, feeding it through a copper tubing system–with copper wool to maximize surface area–and into the earth where it cools and releases moisture. The dry air is then re-released into the atmosphere and the collected water pumped through semi-porous hoses to the plant roots. In his initial prototype, which was much smaller than the current design, Linnacre was able to produce a liter of water per day. Impressive, but a liter of water a day — that’s…not a whole lot for a bunch of thirsty plants in a drought. I’m afraid if they don’t wind up making these thing bigger you’re gonna have to choose just which weed plant you want to survive. This ‘air harvester’ pulls water from thin air in times of drought [dvice] Thanks to Harry, who agrees you should at least try a rain dance first.

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I Don’t Drought It: ‘Airdrop’ Machine Pulls Water From Air To Feed Starving Plants

This is a Coke billboard in the Philippines touting the company’s greenliness. How earth-friendly is Coke besides the billboard? I have no clue. Probably not very. Whenever I have to guess about something like this I always err on the side of “companies really don’t give a shit and will only do enough to give the appearance that they do.” Hey, I could be wrong though (except there’s no way because a Mountain Dew rep actually told me that). The 60 x 60 foot living billboard in Manila is made of thousands of Fukien tea plants surrounding the iconic curvy shape of a silver Coke bottle. The project with the CO2-eating plants was created in conjunction with Coca-Cola Philippines’ Live Positively sustainability program. Pots made from recycled bottles contain the 3,600 trees, which live off a mixture of organic fertilizers. Though they are currently in the first stages of growth, the plants are expected to grow quickly, completely taking over the billboard surface, absorbing a total of 46,800 pounds of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Who knows, maybe I’m just being cynical. Well — what’s your opinion? “It’d be cooler if that was ganja growing out of it.” OMG — so we could shoot flaming arrows at it and get high?! I WAS THINKING THE EXACT SAME THING! Coca-Cola Plant Billboard Absorbs Air Pollution [huffingtonpost] Thanks to Pat, who agrees the best technology is green technology. Wait like earth-friendly, or alien?

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Coca-Cola’s Iffy Pollution-Cleaning Billboard

Faced with the problem of long charge times for electric vehicles vs. the immediacy of pumping gas , lab-coated, taped-glasses scientists at MIT have developed an electric power “goo” that can be pumped into electric cars for an immediate charge. Me? Two boner pills and a beer. They’re calling this black sludge “Cambridge crude,” and it’s really two different types of goo, each holding charged particles suspended in semi-liquid electrolyte, sort of like how quicksand is comprised of sand particles suspended in water. There’s anode goo, and there’s cathode goo, and when the two goos are separated by a goo-separating membrane, charge moves from one goo over to the other goo, generating current to power your car. When all the charge has been used up, you can pull over to a goo station, which will suck out your used goo and pump new goo back in. Or, when you get home, you can plug your car into a wall socket and recharge your goo that way. So it’s like having all the advantages of being able to pump gas, with the added advantage of being able to fill up at home, too. Admittedly this is great news for green vehicles, but my only concern is this: I’m gonna need it to smell like gasoline. You see — I’m all for cleaner power, but I’m also into fumes. And can you blame me? You can’t. For putting that dent in your fender pulling out of the gas station? Maybe. Battery goo is like gas for electric cars, but better [dvice] Thanks to dylan, who has a Mr. Fusion system and doesn’t give a shit.

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Battery Goo: ‘Pumpable’ Electric Car Power

You know what sucks about funerals ? Everything. There’s not a single thing I like about them. And that’s not even considering how bad they are for the environment. Whatever happened to dumping bodies in a volcano or leaving them out for animals to gnaw on? You know, like the good ol’ days. FEED MY ASS TO LIONS I DON’T GIVE A FUUUUUUUUUU. A Swedish company called Promessa has come up with a crazy new way of handling the remains of the deceased, and it’s straight out of science fiction. First, a body is chilled down to 18 degrees Celsius. Then it’s entirely submerged in liquid nitrogen, which freezes it solid, and makes it brittle enough that it can be shattered and pulverized into dust using high power sound waves. Next, the dust (which is still about the same mass as the body was) is exposed to a vacuum which boils off all the moisture contained in the dust, reducing its mass by 70% or so. Lastly, all of the inorganic stuff that may be left over is removed with an electromagnet, and the dust is placed in a coffin made of corn starch, all ready for a shallow burial that’ll turn everything into compost within a year. I’m not gonna lie, that would increase the entertainment value of funerals by at least a thousand-fold. Shit, add some dance music and a laser-light show and I’d pay to go to the funerals of people I don’t even know! Hey bro, got any E? I’m coming down already. It’s cool if you don’t but you could at least answer me. Come on dude, stop bein’ such a stiff. * CRASH!! * Oh shi-shi. *runs out rubbing nipples* The latest in eco-funerals: Terminator-style nitrogen shattering [dvice] Thanks to Martin, who doesn’t care how he’s buried just so long as it’s not alive. AMEN TO THAT, BROTHA!

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The Future Of Eco-Funerals: Freezing Bodies With Liquid Nitrogen And Shattering Them (While Children In Attendance Lose Their $#!7)

Sure it may look like a regular Porsche GT3 wearing a tinfoil helmet so aliens can’t read its mileage, but it’s actually a pedal-powered scale mockup . HOHO! Now I don’t know about you, but I’d pedal that sucker around town and holler at all the fly honeys . Things like, “HOLY SHIT LADY, GET OUT OF THE WAY I CAN’T STOP!!” She will be so turned on. It’s like taking candy from a baby plowing through the Farmer’s Market in a pedal-car. Hit the jump for a ton more pics, and the link to a whole bunch more.

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Great Fuel Economy, Horrible Everything Else: Full Scale Pedal-Powered Porsche GT3

This is a conceptual solar powered BMW . It may look like a fish , but it’s not, it’s a car , silly! Well, not a real car, cause it’s only a concept . Like me. I ONLY EXIST YOUR INTERNET! Created by 24-yo German designer Anne Forschner, the Lovos stands fo Lifestyle of Voluntary Simplicity. Each of those scales–which are replaceable and turn constantly to align with the sun–is covered with solar cells. Now I’m no aerodynamicist, but that shit looks like it’ll slow you down. AND I CAN’T DRIVE 55, know what I’m saying? It’s against my law! The Geekologie law of awesome. Which, honestly, makes gravity look like a little bitch. Hit the jump for a bunch more shots of the craziness.

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Frightening: Conceptual Solar Powered BMW

The $200 Solar Power Shower can heat up to 8 liters of water to 140 Fahrenheit in as little as two hours, provided it’s outside in the sun and not in your basement . It’s a lot more sophisticated than a simple camping solar shower, because this one mixes that 140 water with cool water from the garden hose, giving you plenty of toasty warm water at just the right temperature. Impressive, but I don’t really have a need for a solar powered shower. I do, however, have a need for that chick in the picture. Seriously, I’m getting hungry. HIYO! Solar Shower heats water in two hours [dvice]

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Solar Shower Provides Hot Water In 2 Hours

The Grass Wheel was created by David Gallaugher, Kevin James, and Jacob Jebailey of the Dalhousie School of Architecture, and provides a comfortable, shoe-free mode of eco-transportation in the concrete jungle ( grass-sandals guys, just saying). And I think we can all agree, it makes a very powerful statement. One about renewable energy or something. No? Human hamster wheels? A-ha — space technology and growing grass upside down! Yes, very thought provoking. How DO they do that? Grass Wheel [neatorama] Thanks to Armando, who is all man and refuses to walk in anything but a broken-glass wheel. Nice, Armando, but I’ll stick to my burning coals wheel.

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A Grass Wheel For The Concrete Jungle