Hasta La Gadget!

Recycling seems to be the buzzword these days and if you’ve got a stack of papers lying around that you’d rather not just throw away, here’s an interesting way to recycle them. Chinese industrial designers Chengzhu Ruan, Yuanyuan Liu, Xinwei Yuan and Chao Chen have come up with an interesting concept that will take your pile of papers (printing errors, memos no longer applicable, etc.) and feed them into the machine pictured above. The machine will then tightly roll up the paper inserted around a piece of lead and there you have it, an instant pencil! Given the digital age we’re living in, pencils might seem a little dated, but reassured as there is still plenty of real world usage left in them. In any case it’s a pretty novel concept but if anything it will let you create some pretty unique looking pencils! So, any takers?

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Concept machine recycles scrap paper into a pencil, Fujitsu recycles CDs and DVDs into notebooks,

“Revenge of the scrap paper” should make for a more interesting name for such a device, don’t you think so? I am referring to this conceptual idea that relies on you to feed it with scrap paper, where it will eventually use all that scrap paper and process it into a pencil so that you can write on more paper and turning them into scrap, hence perpetually creating a seemingly never ending cycle. Obviously, the machine will carry a supply of lead centers within so that it can wind all your scrap paper tightly around those lead centers for a custom, truly one of a kind pencil. Not only that, it comes with the ingenious idea of having an integrated pencil sharpener, so that you no longer need to complain about not having any sharp points to work around with.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Modular laptops make it easy to recycle, Phone Designed To Last 5 Years,

Admittedly, Finland’s seen better days in the mobile industry, but that hasn’t stopped the townspeople in Savonlinna from hosting the 13th annual Mobile Phone Throwing World Championships to brighten things up. In fact, the recycling awareness event went so well that 18-year-old Ere Karjalainen set a new championship record of 101.46 meters. The secret? Just an old Nokia device (obviously) plus a bit of preparation the day before — “mainly by drinking.”

While Finnish organizer Christine Lund claims this is a new world record, a little digging revealed that Britain’s Chris Hughff threw — as a guest participant — a 102.68 meter distance at JIM Mobile’s Belgium Championships earlier this year. Despite the utilization of a laser rangefinder plus video proof after the break, Lund dismissed the “unofficial” event’s record, according to the AAP. Regardless, Karjalainen is no doubt the latest sweetheart amongst Finnish geeks.

Continue reading Finland sets new mobile phone record… by throwing one

Filed under: Cellphones

Finland sets new mobile phone record… by throwing one originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Aug 2012 13:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Recycling wastewater to generate energy has turned up noses before, but researchers at Oregon State University have developed a microbial fuel cell that can create 10 to 50, or even 100 times more electricity per volume than similar technologies. After refining the tech for several years using new materials, techniques and selecting better microbes, the team can now extract two kilowatts per cubic meter of refuse. As bacteria oxidizes organic matter, electrons — rather than the hydrogen or methane that other methods rely upon — are produced and run from an anode to a cathode within the device to create an electric current. Once implementation costs are cut down, the technology could power waste treatment plants and enable them to sell excess electricity. The contraption isn’t just for processing what comes out of the porcelain throne — it can also utilize materials ranging from grass straw to beer brewing byproducts. For now, however, the cell will tackle a pilot study before it inches closer to your local brewery or water treatment facility.

Continue reading Researchers create super-efficient microbial fuel cell, dream of selling excess electricity

Filed under: Science

Researchers create super-efficient microbial fuel cell, dream of selling excess electricity originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 14 Aug 2012 04:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Scientists from Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University aren’t keen on being wasteful — that’s why they’ve developed a toilet that uses 90% less water than other commodes and is capable of generating energy. Aptly named the No-Mix Vacuum Toilet, the porcelain pedestal’s pot divides waste between two partitions — one side for liquids, the other for solids — and uses vacuum tech reminiscent of airline lavatories. Flushing solid and fluid wastes with 1 and 0.2 liters of H2O, respectively, the can will be able to route refuse to external processing facilities. Fertilizer ingredients such as nitrogen, potassium and phosphorous would then be harvested from liquids. Similarly, methane can be coaxed from solids for conversion to electricity or as a replacement for other natural gasses. Two of the university’s restrooms are slated to have the toilets installed in the near future, and the team expects the thrones to roll out worldwide within three years.

[Thanks, Yuka]

Scientists develop flush-efficient toilet system that can turn waste into energy, sort before it recycles originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 29 Jun 2012 21:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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