Adrian Leskiw is one of the rarest kinds of science fiction creators: He does his world-building entirely through the medium of road maps. A self-professed road geek, Leskiw creates extremely realistic road systems for fictional countries or alternate versions of existing ones. Here you can see a map he's created of an imaginary island called Breda in the south Pacific, in the year 2040. On his website, Leskiw gives us a terrifically detailed portrait of this imaginary Pacific Island nation (see a much larger version of the map here), with an especial focus on the future of its road...
Open-source? Freeware? Which is it? Some people frequently interchange the terms as a generic way to say that a piece of software costs nothing to download or use. I mean, it's all free, right?Wrong!Open-source software has as much to do with freeware as an apple has to do with an orange. Both are fruits, but each offers a different enough of a texture and flavor to render it completely unique from the other. You cannot, and should not, confuse open-source software with freeware, as there can be grave consequences for such a fatal misstep. Ok, so maybe not grave. But...
We had the good fortune yesterday to be contacted out of the blue by 3D software company SpaceClaim, with an offer to interview their new CEO Chris Randles. Over the past year, SpaceClaim has become perhaps the clearest signal that a small revolution in 3D design software is on its way, in the form of highly accessible explicit modeling tools, and the interview gives us a good excuse to talk a little more about it. For the uninitiated, explicit modeling (also called direct modeling and non-parametric modeling) is a method of 3D construction similar to parametric solid modeling --...
For all the talk about $700 billion financial bailouts and tumbling stock prices, it's easy to forget urban blight has been strangling much of our country for decades. Eisenhower-era expressways that now serve no purpose other than to prevent urban redevelopment dot many cities, as do two-lane roads that should have been made four lanes decades ago. We took a look at ten highways that should be destroyed already this morning, but what's the worst highway in your area? Detroit has traditionally been home to America's crumbliest infrastructure, but we're actually getting relief this year in the form of orange...
Israel is a place, which is never not on the news. A Washington-based organization Project Interchange, is hoping that some of Europe’s “green” leaders will get in touch with a little more than the ongoing conflict that they see on the TV. On September 20th to 27th, a delegation of European leaders will be in Israel. They include influential environmental journalists, policy makers from the World Bank and the EU parliament; energy and climate change specialists, as well as activism leaders. These rising lea......
Caputmortum: The best thing about us humans is that we never give up and are constantly on the move to find new useful methods to utilize renewable energy. ‘Going Solar’, an Australian enterprise with a $6 million turnover has hatched an innovative idea, one that’s not been tried before. They have installed solar panels in the highways but unlike the regular ones, these ones function as sound blockades! Originally installed at Tullamarine Calder Interchange in Australia, this innovative solar energy sound barrier roughly produces around 18.7 megawatts electricity per year and is constructed from 500 metres of vertically disposed Photovoltaic...
Attitude: I always thought that it was wind energy that would be more likely looked at with highways being ideal to harness the energy of the gusting winds in open space. But Solar Energy seems as much an impressive alternate to explore, if not more, and the state of Oregon is doing exactly that by undertaking the project to build the world’s first solar highway project. When completed the project will not only produce more energy and look spectacular but it will induce others across the planet to take up similar projects. The project will be installed at the Interstate...
Filed under: TransportationJust over a year ago, we passed off a far-out proposal that would turn highways into wind farms. Now, however, the state of Oregon is proving that such feats are actually within reach as it breaks ground on the first so-called "solar highway" demonstration project. The project will be installed at the Interstate 5 and Interstate 205 interchange in Tualatin, where it will cover around 8,000 square feet and produce 112,000 kilowatt hours per year. The total cost for the 104-kilowatt solar photovoltaic system is $1.3 million, and believe it or not, it should be completed and operational...
Although not large in capacity, an interesting first has taken place in the state of Oregon. Construction has started on what will be the first demonstration project of using highway rights-of-way to develop solar power. Germany and Switzerland have utilized unused spaces on the side of roads for 20 years, but until now the United States has not done so. 28% of Interchange's Electric Needs Met On Right-of-Way The 104 kilowatt solar PV system will consist of nearly 600 solar panels covering 8,000 square feet at the Interstate 5 and 205 interchange. The project will generate 28% of the...
The following screencast animations shows how to exchange the position of Firefox Location Bar with the search box as in the screen capture above. Idea by Cameron. Do check this guide on how to prevent Firefox 3 from showing bookmarks in the address bar. Interchange the Position of Firefox Address Bar & Google Search Box - Digital Inspiration by Amit Agarwal...
