Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

So you think you’re all cool with your biodiesel, your compost pile and your donations to the Sierra Club? Well leave it to the Dutch to take environmentalism to the next level — the next level in fun, that is. The Sustainable Dance Club in Rotterdam is planning on becoming the first green dance club in the world, converting dancers’ moves into electricity, powering the turntables and speakers scattered throughout the facility. As if that weren’t enough crunchy granola hippie-thinking for you, there are also plans to have “rainwater toilets, biological beer, and walls which change colour according to the heat generated inside the club, without using any electricity.” Now don’t get us wrong, we’re as big on recycling as the next guy/gal, but when we hear of a foreign concept like biobeer, well, lets just say that we’re gonna make damn sure that the septic system and the keg tubing aren’t cohabitating the same plumbing.

[Thanks, Jocko]

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

Filed under: Transportation

Last night a host of fancy society-types, car buffs and our good friends from AutoBlog got a unique chance to check out Tesla’s electric sports car. The zero-emissions whip (it’s so green it doesn’t even have a tailpipe) will get about 250 miles on a single charge, and reaches speeds of about 130-miles per hour, with a 0-60 time hovering around a pretty impressive 4-seconds. Stop driving it long enough to peek under the hood and you’ll find a 3-phase, 4-pole AC induction motor and a Power Electronics Module at the heart of this slick ride. Don’t run out to the car dealership yet, as these babies aren’t hitting the streets until mid-2007, and when they do, they’ll run you somewhere between $80,000 and $120,000. It sounds like a lot, we know, but just think of the looks you’ll get as you drive by at 124-mph, completely silently. Plus, it’ll be a great place to install your new Bluetooth-enabled head unit. Check the source link for a lot more pictures and even video from the big unveling.

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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Remember that report in late 2004 that stated that as much as 10% of our energy draw could come from aggregate power use of devices in standby? Well, Scotland's mad as hell, and they're not gonna take it anymore. ScottishPower, Scotland's biggest power company, is calling for standby-free devices -- you know, like back in the good old days when an off device meant the device was off. In fact, according ScottishPower, gadgets in standby cost Scottish consumers over £62 million (about $108.5 million US) and produce 360,000 tons of CO2 annually. Of course the influence on the global consumer electronics market ScottishPower wields is, um, less than knightly, but if more power companies and government energy conservation programs (like EnergyStar) in more countries get behind ScottishPower, we might just be able to slow down this global warming thing (a little) with some clear(er) conscience devices.