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From Fill-Ups to Free Parking


By David Roberts and Sarah van Schagen
20 Jan 2006
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1
Car and drivers. Photo: fuelchallenge.com.
Photo: fuelchallenge.com.

In other news, vegans to eat 30 cows in 30 days

Leaving London this week, a pair of drivers set off on a trip around the world, pledging to use fewer than 50 tanks of gas, hoping to "show people that in these hard environmental times they can save fuel." By driving 14 hours a day. For 70 days. No wonder Shell is sponsoring them.
 
2

You give analog a bad name

Still hanging on to those old Bon Jovi tapes? Sweet! Uh, time to let go. Send them to Alyce Santoro -- she's created fabric from recycled cassette tapes and other fibers. Sonic Fabric is wearable and washable, and while it won't re-create "Wanted Dead or Alive" (what could?), you can even play it with a special "compact fabric reader."
Dress. Photo: Alyce Santoro.
Photo: Alyce Santoro.
 
3
Cupcake. Photo: iStockphoto.
Photo: iStockphoto.

Cavity search

Mmm ... hot buns. Creamy cupcakes. Buttery tarts. And we like baked goods too! So we're psyched about the Green Bakery -- a sweet spot in NYC's East Village made with wheat-board walls covered in milk-based paint. It's a totally orgasmnic experience.
 
4

I'm sorry, Dave. I can't let you turn up the heat.

The Pacific Northwest National Lab's GridWise project will hook up select houses in the region to an internet-connected energy grid seeded with microturbines and smart appliances. Sounds boring? Wait 'til you start getting email from your thermostat.
Thermostat. Image: iStockphoto.
Image: iStockphoto.
 
5
Meter maid.

Latter-day parking

Salt Lake City drivers whose vehicles run on alterna-fuels, get 50 mpg, or have low emissions are eligible for free parking throughout the city. That means only small cars. And thus, only small families. So, uh ... there's really no tactful way to make a Mormon joke here, is there?
 

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Seen something weird, wacky, or wonderful in the environmental world? Think it deserves a place on The List?
Grist does not testify to the quality of consumer goods, guarantee the pop-cultural significance of trends, or vouchsafe the accuracy of news stories featured in this column. For all you know, we just made it up. Use it at your own risk.
David Roberts is assistant editor of Grist.
Sarah van Schagen is Grist's editorial fellow.
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