A Smarter Planet

electricpower: Solar energy and lithium-ion batteries: Sanyo...

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:05:54 -0500

Solar energy and lithium-ion batteries: Sanyo now builds “green” homes in Japan

Sanyo is already being considered Japan’s “greenest” brand in the consumer electronics field (which is the main reason Panasonic is about to acquire the company), but them building complete, eco-friendly buildings is certainly new. Sanyo Homes [JP], a wholly-owned subsidiary, will start marketing all-electric homes with lithium ion batteries providing back up power to Japanese customers as early as tomorrow. (Sorry for the tiny picture, which shows a CGI-model of how these houses look like.)

Each house will be equipped with a 3.78kw solar energy system. But buyers will also get 1.57kw Sanyo lithium ion batteries to make sure they’ll have access to eco-friendly energy during the night or during days without enough sunlight. Sanyo Homes says that each of their houses will come with ten LED light fixtures running on direct-current power to minimize energy loss and a solar-powered heat-pump water heater.

The company expects these extras to boost the prices for their homes to some extent, but says buyers will be able to recoup the initial plus in investment over time and will also get financial from the Japanese government. A 132sqm Sanyo home, for example, will sell for $355,000, which is $62,000 more than a comparable conventional one (but only eco-friendly homes will get government subsidies, in this case $30,000).

Via Nikkei [registration required, paid subscription]

(via Crunchgear)

Mad Science

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:05:34 -0500

Mad Science

IBM is teaming up for the eUnion

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:05:34 -0500

IBM is teaming up for the eUnion

Qualcomm Ebook Display Ups the Ante with Full Color and Video -...

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:42:50 -0500

Qualcomm Ebook Display Ups the Ante with Full Color and Video - Gizmodo

Qualcomm has developed a 5.7-inch (1,024x768) display for ebook readers that not only renders color and video; it does so with enough power efficiency to challenge a black and white, still-frame Kindle.

Mad Science

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:26:37 -0500

Mad Science

chickenfeetunicornwings: “Objectified” is a feature-length...

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:06:14 -0500

chickenfeetunicornwings:

“Objectified” is a feature-length documentary about our complex relationship with manufactured objects and, by extension, the people who design them. In his second film, director Gary Hustwit (“Helvetica”) documents the creative processes of some of the world’s most influential product designers, and looks at the creativity at work behind everything from toothbrushes to tech gadgets. “Objectified” is about the people who re-examine, re-evaluate and re-invent our manufactured environment on a daily basis. It’s about personal expression, identity, consumerism, and sustainability. What can we learn about who we are, and who we want to be, from the objects with which we surround ourselves?

source.

I want to watch this. Because.. yeah. :D

IBM is teaming up for the eUnion

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:01:46 -0500

IBM is teaming up for the eUnion

IBM tips microfluidic device for immunodiagnostics - Small...

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 07:58:53 -0500

IBM tips microfluidic device for immunodiagnostics - Small Times

Scientists from IBM Research in Zurich, Switzerland, have created a diagnostic test using a silicon chip to more quickly diagnose diseases. Their collaborative work with the U. Hospital of Base, published in the December issue of Lab on a Chip, uses capillary forces — the process whereby liquid rises in narrow tubes, or drawn into tiny openings — to analyze tiny samples of serum or blood to find disease markers, typically proteins detectable in human blood.

Read the Truck 2020 Study in the popular iPaper format with the...

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 06:31:15 -0500

Read the Truck 2020 Study in the popular iPaper format with the Fullscreen mode. The report can also be downloaded.

infoneernet: 33 Excellent OLED Energy Saving & Eco-Friendly...

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:36:34 -0500

infoneernet:

33 Excellent OLED Energy Saving & Eco-Friendly Designs

OLEDs are like a new type of magical material, self-illuminating and eco-friendly. They are organic and work in a way similar to the bioluminescence that makes a firefly and certain deep sea fish glow. OLEDs can be extremely thin, flexible, varying in shapes, colors and sizes, some are even transparent while providing a lovely ambient glow. The function and creative possibilities of OLEDs in clothing, furniture, jewelry, and art are only as limited as the creator’s imagination. Here are 33 excellent OLED eco-friendly and energy efficient designs, from the super-sly spy to the interactive.

Seen at WebEcoist

The Top 25 Words of the Decade from 2000 - 2009

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:31:34 -0500

1. Global Warming (2000)
2. 9/11 (2001)
3. Obama (2008)
4. Bailout (2008)
5. Evacuee/refugee (2005): (Survivors of Katrina who had to be rescued)
6. Derivative (2007)
7. Google (2007)
8. Surge (2007)
9. Chinglish (2005)
10. Tsunami (2004)
11. H1N1 (2009)
12. Subprime ( 2007)
13. dot.com (2000)
14. Y2K ( 2000)
15. Misunderestimate (2002)
16. Chad ( 2000): (a la "Hanging Chad" in Florida after the Bush vs. Gore election)
17. Twitter (2008 )
18. WMD (2002) (Weapons of Mass Destruction)
19. Blog (2003)
20. Texting (2004)
21. Slumdog (2008) (Popularized by Slumdog Millionaire)
22. Sustainable (2006)
23. Brokeback (2004) (From Brokeback Mountain)
24. Quagmire (2004) (Referring to the Iraq War)
25. Truthiness (2006) (A contribution from Stephen Colbert)

SixthSense technology = Augmented Reality 2.0?

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:55:00 -0500

futuramb:

via ted.com
Everybody must see this mindblowing presentation of the innovative Sixth Sense user interface technology. This is already what I would call Augmented Reality 2.0 or Augmentation^2. It gives a hint to where ICT is taking us.

And in the Q&A after the presentation Pranav tell us that he will release this technology as Open Source in December of this year!

Posted via web from futuramb’s posterous | Comment »

Making sense of all that data...

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 11:57:48 -0500

Making sense of all that data...:

Blue Insight: Cloud Based Smart Analytics for IBMers

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 08:22:00 -0500

IBM Launches Business Analytics Cloud

IBM on Monday announced plans to deploy an internal cloud computing environment that will make more than a petabyte of information—the equivalent of 100 times the content of the Library of Congress—instantly available to employees under a project called Blue Insight. IBM said it also plans to make the service’s architecture, dubbed IBM Smart Analytics Cloud—available to customers.

emergentfutures: Report: Countries prepping for cyberwar Major...

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:44:23 -0500

emergentfutures:

Report: Countries prepping for cyberwar

Major countries and nation-states are engaged in a “Cyber Cold War,” amassing cyberweapons, conducting espionage, and testing networks in preparation for using the Internet to conduct war, according to a new report to be released on Tuesday by McAfee.

courtenaybird: flightpath: (via stammy)

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:12:18 -0500

courtenaybird:

flightpath:

(via stammy)

smartercities: Tools to help Communities help Themselves!...

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:08:31 -0500

smartercities:

Tools to help Communities help Themselves! SeeClickFix: Report non-emergency issues, receive alerts in your neighborhood

"Online memory, or LifeLogging or e-memory as it’s called, is probably closer than you may think...."

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:49:16 -0500

“Online memory, or LifeLogging or e-memory as it’s called, is probably closer than you may think. Here are 22 tools can let you put your life online today.

What if you could remember everything—every person you’ve met, every conversation you’ve had—and then retrieve that information in an instant? You would never lose a phone number. You’d be able to share those fleeting memories with anyone and find where you put those damn keys. ”

- LifeLogging: 22 Tools for Storing Your Life Online - Technology For Change

Follow Smarter Planet on your mobile device. Recommend or email...

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 20:36:00 -0500

Follow Smarter Planet on your mobile device. Recommend or email posts, and share them via Twiiter.

http://bit.ly/mobilesp

datavis: Government Spending by Country (via...

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 19:03:00 -0500

datavis:

Government Spending by Country (via VisualEconomics.com)