plastic
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Fit in with the masses with this reusable tote that looks like a plastic bag
If those reusable “I am not a plastic bag” totes earn glances of hippie-hating scorn from the populace, the THANK YOU THANK YOU bag helps green-minded people blend into the crowd while still sticking to their principles.
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It’s even in gum!: Tips on avoiding plastic from expert Beth Terry
Author Beth Terry talks about plastic-free living, why the proposed alternatives to BPA might be worse, and the connection between cutting out plastic and building a local economy.
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North Carolina elephant might be getting contact lenses
C’sar, a 38-year-old bull elephant living in North Carolina, could become the first pachyderm to wear contact lenses. Because nothing looks nerdier than an elephant in glasses. “An elephant has never been fitted with corrective lenses,” the Associated Press reports. (One elephant once had a contact put in his eye, but it was just to […]
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This graphic novel about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch looks awesome
I’m Not a Plastic Bag is a graphic novel about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, the agglomeration of plastic flakes that is swirling around in the Pacific Ocean. The book follows the journey of several pieces of trash destined to become part of the patch. The images are beautiful, and the story’s reminiscent of The […]
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Pacific Garbage Patch has gotten 100 times worse in 40 years
Since the 1970s, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch -- an area of the ocean clotted with plastic microparticles -- has grown 100-fold. And this is very bad news, not only because of the creatures it harms but because of the ones it helps.
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Chair-dance-worthy indie rock video explains why plastics don’t have to suck
It's like Threadless and the Arcade Fire teamed up with BASF to talk about green chemistry and the threat of peak oil.
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Your new offshore energy source: Floating algae farms
Forget offshore oil drilling. NASA’s working on a project that would generate clean, renewable offshore energy, by growing algae in floating plastic bags. These floating algae farms would take in wastewater from treatment plants. For algae, wastewater is like the nectar of the gods: The ammonia and phosphates act as a fertilizer. So the algae […]
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Watch a robot make a 3D-printed chair out of old refrigerators
Designer Dirk van der Kooij makes cool, modern-looking plastic furniture out of defunct refrigerators and other plastic waste. The plastic is ground up, then squeezed out like soft serve into a computerized pattern.
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Graduation caps and gowns made from recycled bottles
Seniors at Michigan Tech will be sporting the finest in recycled-bottle couture at their commencement next month. The school’s graduation caps and gowns just look like the standard Hogwarts-uniform deal, but they’re actually made of recycled water bottles.
