Earth Bags with The-Shire

We got out of bed early this morning after going to bed very early this morning.  Why would we do such a thing?  So we could help to build an addition with earth bags, of course.  Nick Moser and Sandor Stockfleth of The-Shire.org shared their experience and insights.

One really cool thing about this is that even a lovely, pregnant, young lady was able to help because we were not using any toxic materials and most parts of the process do not include  heavy lifting.

It was a great way to spend a Saturday and I encourage everyone out there to volunteer to help do some sustainable building in your community.

The Corpus Clock and Chronophage

The following is a video of the Corpus Clock, a machine invented and designed by Dr. John Taylor for Corpus Christi College Cambridge for their new library building. It was unveiled on the 19th of September by Stephen Hawking.

(Photo - press association via AP images) 

This is an amazing video. Watch as Dr. Taylor walks us through it's workings.   The artistry, engineering and design are all quite astounding. 

He calls his version of Harrison's escapement a Chronophage (time-eater) as the grasshopper literally eats time.

Earth Hour 2008 Tonight!!!

Tonight: March 29, 2008 at 8 p.m:

Per the Earth Hour website:

"Join millions of people around the world in making a statement about climate change by turning off your lights for Earth Hour, an event created by the World Wildlife Fund.

Earth Hour was created by WWF in Sydney, Australia in 2007, and in one year has grown from an event in one city to a global movement. In 2008, millions of people, businesses, governments and civic organizations in nearly 200 cities around the globe will turn out for Earth Hour. More than 100 cities across North America will participate, including the US flagships–Atlanta, Austin, Chicago, Phoenix and San Francisco and Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver."

I encourage everyone around the world to turn off your lights for an hour starting at 8 p.m. (your time)

Do something small and be part of something big.

Model Plane Fun - Benoit Dierickx

This fun video is of Benoit Dierickx flying an electric remote-controlled plane indoors at the qualification F3P-AM Mulheim 02/2006. I showed Arlene, making certain to point out that she should watch how skillfully he drops the tails from the wings. She grinned at me, called me an uber-geek and went on her way to yoga.



Video by Jurgen Heilig.
Thanks to Sarretta for sending this one in.

The Earth's Music - John Bullitt

John Bullitts Deep Earth Dome project is one of the more innovative and remarkable musical ventures I have come across. John sped up recorded vibrations of the Earth (obtained through IRIS) by several hundred times to create an audible voice for the planet.

He converts what many fear into something beautiful and intriguing. 5 minutes of sound contains what our planet sings across the course of a day.

(image: University of Washington College of Engineering)

John describes his work:

"Over the course of a few minutes, the visitor hears dozens of earthquakes, large and small, from around the globe, as well as the ebb and flow of storm-generated ocean surf noise, all against a steady backdrop of the Earth's own characteristic background noise. Delicate ticks and pops, distant booms, diffuse whoops, crackles, and whistles appear, only to slip away again into the background. Some sounds are fleeting and confined to one corner of the space, while others travel across the full breadth of the dome. The attentive listener will, in fact, discover layer upon layer of hidden structure within the sound, inviting the listener to progressively deeper levels of interior experience."

These may not be rhythms and melodies you recognize, but it is the music of our collective consciousness and the heartbeat of our planet.

You can see planet's earthquakes in the last 7 days here. We receive notices when earthquakes happen across the globe. You can specify a higher magnitude so that you are only notified of major quakes. Sign up here.

Thanks to Cynnamon for introducing me to John Bullits work.

BugE and Human Car - Amazing Enviro Vehicles

The "Bug E" is an electric commuter vehicle that travels a mile on about one cent of electricity! Click here to check out the official site.



The next one runs on human power!!! The HumanCar Imagine is an amazing 400lb electric hybrid vehicle poised to surprise the light delivery, small fleet, utility, taxi, military, personal urban and suburban commuter markets. It retails for about $15k.

What a cool vehicle!?! Check out their site here.