did you know?
interesting video visualizing what our world with all the technology and information we have floating around looks like today.
all of this begs the question, do we use less paper today with all of the electronic communication we do than we did 100 years ago?
thanks for the tip sam.
more stories about technology:
interactive technology goes green
the green life at the wired store
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freecycle friday: post your best eco-tip to score this north face jacket
it’s finally friday!
this week’s freecycled goodie is a women’s powder blue north face outer (size l).
comment on this post with your favorite eco-tip or product.
the comment with the most votes (your friends can vote by commenting with your name) will score this purty north face.
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good luck!
check out more free stuff here and remember to check back on monday for next week’s freecycle friday giveaway. i promise it will be a good one.
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green plug develop universal adapter that could solve the phantom power issue
why didn’t anyone think of this before? if you’re a gadget junkie like me, it can be frustrating to have 15 different chargers (most of which look super-similar) rotating on your power strip. to make matters worse, i try to unplug each one after i’m done charging to avoid phantom power drain which can be pretty darn annoying.
luckily, california based company green plug has developed a single universal adapter that enables users to power their laptops, cell phones, and other electronic gear with only one power adapter. this means that we might be able to eliminate the need to create and ship a power adapter with every electronic device. the adapters will also shut off the power supply when a device has finished charging or is turned off, providing further energy savings to consumers as well as being more environmentally friendly.
westinghouse digital electronics has given the thumbs up to this venture and has recently announced its commitment to using the new “smart power” technology.
of course in order for green plug to succeed with their vision, other electronics companies must cooperate. the word on the street is that many of them believe that not including a new charger with each product will somehow lower the buyer’s perception when they unbox. i’m not sure about you guys, but i usually cringe when i open a new device and see yet another charger. am i the only one?
on a completely aesthetic aside, how brilliant would it be if green plug collaboed with microworks and incorporated their vine charger design into the universal plug?
read more about green plug at the future of things
pics of vine charger courtesy of spoon & tamago
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snap pics of your directions instead of printing
next time you hopstop or google map directions, save paper by taking a pic of your screen instead of printing them out. you can text them or email them to your phone too!
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lendaround.com: like netflix meets facebook!
lendaround.com, a new web service that allows users to swap dvds with their friends in an organized manner, is the manifestation of the brilliant idea you had 7 months ago while eating cereal in bed but were too lazy to do anything about. the only difference is that tim jackson, the founder of lendaround, wasn’t eating cereal when the idea popped into his mind - he was in africa:
“coming back from rwanda or lesotho and looking around my home, i was struck by how much stuff we all own and take for granted,” he said. wouldn’t it be great if instead of leaving things to gather dust on shelves, we could lend them to our friends?”
tim’s simple idea could not have come at a more appropriate time. not only does lendaround speak to environmentalists and people who are just plain tired of consuming so much junk, it makes sense to those who are looking to save a buck (or $4.99) in a rough economy. by harnessing the power of users’ own dvd libraries, lendaround can offer their service for a song! that means free for anyone who was confused, although plans are underway to extend lendaround’s scope past dvds to include anything from cds to lawnmowers.
besides saving the energy, plastic, labor, money and other resources that go into making a dvd, lendaround saves fuel too. early data shows that about half of lendaround users walk their dvds over to their friends’ places. it’s a lot more conducive to socializing than netflix too. by helping out friends, lenders feel like they are doing something to brighten up someone else’s day.
so what about selection? true, netflix probably has a more expansive collection of titles, but if you’re friends with someone, chances are that you like some of the same movies that they do. and the cool thing is that when someone in your circle gets a new dvd, you can “keep it in the family” as if your shared lendaround library was your virtual media cabinet.
want to try? lendaround’s private beta is currently full, but swyyne readers have priority access! just email swyyne@lendaround.com with a list of your favorite movies to check it out.
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check yourself before you wreck yourself: the neutrogena wave exfoliator
our country is probably the easiest country in the world to sell things to. why? americans are naturally innovative, and need to have the newest contraptions to make life simpler and easier. we have a love affair with shopping, and even use it as a form of therapy - do you remember that scene in clueless where cher and di go shopping to cheer themselves up after a bad day? i’ve lived that scene too many times.
in many cases, frugality is not seen as a positive thing like it is in other cultures. for example, one of my former colleagues was horrified when my other colleague (of chinese descent) asked for her leftovers to-go after a business lunch. “you just don’t do that,” she said. i agreed that it probably wasn’t the norm for most businesspeople, but wondered why. as people who understand business, shouldn’t we try to be more frugal than anyone? why is it such a faux pas for a cfo or other person who is in charge of saving a company money to take home half of a $50 steak? the richest people i know are relentlessly thrifty and not ashamed of it at all (insert warren buffett comment here).
that being said, the check yourself before you wreck yourself series will focus on examining products that are on the market that you probably don’t really need. i like pretty packaging as much as the next piggy, but i’ve had to throw away my fair share of junk (damn you, mix n’ chop!), and am looking to be more selective with what i spend my hard earned buckage on.
this week, we examine the neutrogena wave power-cleanser.
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according to reviews, this thing makes your skin feel silky smooth and, in the words of one youtuber, eliminates the need to wash your face because “it does all the work for you.” i don’t know about you, but i never found that moving my hands up and down my face was all that strenuous. or could it be the lathering part that is so labor-intensive? i’m lost.
other than turning our nation’s teens (who this product appears to be marketed towards) into muscle-less, noodle armed wimps, there is another major problem with the wave. it comes with disposable pads that you stick onto the electronic base and are supposed to be disposed of once a day (or as said youtuber recommends “two times a day because i don’t like leftover oil and dirt in the morning). that means that you use 7 pads a week if you follow the instructions on the pack. sounds like a lotta cashmoney and waste to me.
my solution for someone who wants the exfoliating power of the wave, but doesn’t want to shell out the loot or create the waste? if you have an electronic toothbrush like the oral-b professional care 8950
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help! who are your favorite green celebrities?
you guys know who my favorite eco-celeb is:
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| adrian grenier at charity:water’s charity:ball 2008 |
but i’d love to know who yours are and why.
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freecycle friday: north face snowboarding jacket
i know, i know. it’s not friday today, but i thought i’d move freecycle friday to monday because there are already so many reasons to love friday, and monday really gets no love.
this week’s oldie but goodie is a women’s powder blue north face outer that i used to rock on the slopes (size l). if you think you can give it a good home,
comment on this post with your favorite eco-tip or product.
the best tips will be re-capped at the end of the week, and the one with the most reader votes by 6pm on friday will score this purty north face.
remember - pics of you demonstrating your tip get extra credit!
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good luck!
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why is this a site?
swyyne has always been an experiment for me. with all of the other super eco sites out there, i've been feeling like i want to contribute something just a bit different. so for now, here are my random musings.
look for stuff
feed yourself