alternative

Biomanufactured brick needs no firing, may be big deal

Biomanufactured brick needs no firing, may be big deal

Then again, if Calla lilies replaced each new brick on the planet, it would reduce carbon-dioxide emissions by at least 800 million tons a year. But we’d also be living in a world without useful new bricks to build stuff with. It is probably reasonable to expect that Dosier’s “Bacteria Bricks” will fare better as a construction material than Calla lilies, but whether they are truly comparable to conventional masonry in mechanical properties, durability, and weather resistance still remains to be proved. Also, her bricks take weeks to harden, compared to traditionally-fired bricks which can be manufactured in two days.

The power of poo

The power of poo

Brothers Kevin and Daryl Maas of Washington State are producing electricity from cow manure. We use a proven, commercialized technology called a manure digester to harvest methane gas from manure. We burn the methane to create electricity, while sending the processed manure back to the farmers as an organic fertilizer now free of pathogens and […]

Alternative MIDI controllers

Alternative MIDI controllers

DeviantSynth has an interesting roundup of alternative commercial(and vaporware) MIDI controllers up, covering a variety of approaches to key-layouts and interface. Helpful info for those brainstorming new input/button/switch arrangements and general design – Alternate MIDI controllers that are reasonably priced are very difficult to find. The piano-keyboard paradigm has such a death grip on electronic […]