"Electrobonsai" became the latest buzzword to hit the eco-blogs as research revealed that exposure to radiation from electricity supplys, including that emitted by WiFi, could have fatal consequences for trees.

The Dutch University that published the original news said:

The researcher from Wageningen University indicates that these are initial results and that has not been confirmed in a repeat survey. He warns strongly that there are no far-reaching conclusions from its results. Based on the information now available can not be concluded that the WiFi radio signals leads to damage to trees or other plants. It takes into account previously published studies showing no effect. The knowledge center awaits with interest the publication of the survey.

While a more sensationalist approach from the Weekly World News disclosed results on another American study that had even more horrific results:

A study by Washington University in St. Louis confirms that Wi-Fi radiation causes abnormalities in trees and these abnormalities eventually lead to tree death. Trees that are exposed to the RF (Radio Frequency) technology of Wi-Fi systems are dead within a year of exposure.

"We studied tree bark, tree sap, and the various insects that inhabit trees. They were all adversely affected by RF. Botanists and arborists are extremely concerned and feel that this is a national crisis of epic proportions." Hofverberg recommends banning all Wi-Fi usage within a ten miles radius of any trees.

"It's the only way we can save the trees of America."

This looks like the kind of thing 10:10 would be into http://blog.creamglobal.com/right_brain_left_brain/2010/10/carbon-saving-charity-1010-say-sorry.html. It's a lamp that is lit by a chemical reaction triggered by the addition of user's blood. Quite dark. The artist and designer Mike Thompson crafted this prototype lamp to make the user consider the cost of energy. 

Mike explains the concept below: "What if power came at a cost to the individual? The average American consumes 3383kwh of energy per year. That’s equivalent to leaving the light on in 4 rooms for a whole year. The simple flick of a switch allows us to power appliances and gadgets 24/7 without a thought to where it comes from and the cost to the environment."

"For the lamp to work one breaks the top off, dissolves the powder, and uses their own blood to power a simple light. By creating a lamp that can only be used once, the user must consider when light is needed the most, forcing them to rethink how wasteful they are with energy, and how precious it is."

Bina48 is apparently the most advanced humanoid robots around. Apparently modelled on a real Bina, who spent hours talking to the bot to give her human personality traits and vocabulary idiosyncrasies, Bina48 is quite frankly terrifying.

Admittedly it is impressive to see a robot respond to the New York Times journalist's questions. The disambiguation of the word "cool" is interesting to see, even if it makes her sound like Rainman. Nevertheless, I can't help wondering why they spent so much money on an anima-tronic, intelligent machine and then just scalped the nearest Julie doll to create that shock of fake blonde hair. 

It's the stuff of nightmares. Think Stephen King's "It" and you are nearly there:

Bina48 was designed to be a “friend robot,” by Hanson Robotics per the request of self-made millionaire Martine Rothblatt, who paid $125,000 for her last March, which her personality and appearance based on those of Bina Rothblatt, Martine’s real-life spouse.

Autom is a personal coach designed to learn about you over time, adapting to your needs and daily activities. “She” monitors what you shove into your pie hole and the calories you burn sweating it out in the gym. She is pretty gullible, so try not to lie to her if you want to lose weight.

The blurb says:

“No two conversations with Autom™ are alike. She is constantly adapting to you to better understand what will help you stick with your diet and exercise program. A randomized, controlled medical study showed that individuals using Autom™ to help keep with their diet were much more successful than those who used more traditional methods, like a paper log or a computer program.

Introducing Autom™ from Erica Young on Vimeo.

Sod the four horsemen or the super-volcano under Yellowstone Park, I'm casting my vote for a Pixel invasion:

Those wonderful uber-geeks at MIT have come up with a beautiful concept of a giant digital cloud that will float above the London skyline. The Cloud will feature 400-foot tall mesh towers topped with solar-powered plastic bubbles which show images and data such as weather information, race results, and spectator numbers. There could also be an observation deck.

All I can say is a) wow and b) how is this even possible? To find out, click here to read about the project in full. 

It was even reported on the BBC, but an alleged giant meteorite that crashed in Latvia this week has been exposed as a marketing hoax by Swedish Telco, Tele2. As a direct consequence, the Latvian Government has terminated its dealings with the company amid talk of a criminal investigation.

It's not entirely clear what the marketing people had intended, but there is some talk of it being part of a wider campaign and this being the teaser to kick things off. Now it's unlikely that the rest will see the light of day and a spokesman would only say that the stunt had been intended to distract attention from the country’s economic crisis and give people something “creative and exciting” to talk about.

Hmmm. Clearly another case that not all publicity is good.

Normally when people say that they have various eco-systems in their kitchen, we assume this means it is filthy with mould or that they might have mice. But for Philips, it means a sustainable food growing system. Philips has a range of far-future research initiatives, one of which is called the “Biosphere”, a 'home farming unit'.  This is a concept that plays on the synergies between fish, plants, vegetables and algae to create a single unit home farm that can fit into most kitchens. It stacks various mini eco-systems to ease the flow of nutrients from one level to the next. This could mean producing lettuce, cucumbers and spices as well as shellfish and the ability for it to operate without electricity, suing only water, organic waste and the sun’s energy.

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