A Trip Down Your Toilet December 10, 2010
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Brain Power, Environment, Human Body, Tough Stuff.Tags: energy, gas, poo, renewable, waste
3 comments
Nope, I’m not giving a lesson on plumbing. But I am going to give you the scoop on a secret that starts inside your toilet, all thanks to the crew at Thames Water who are helping people stay warm this winter. What’s this secret? Well, when a toilet takes your daily (or whatever frequency..let’s not go there) offering, all that human gunk can get converted into renewable gas to heat your home.
In fact, my dog Tiko got so excited about this concept, he decided to contribute. Before we see what he got up to though, let’s first find out what’s happening in the bowels of your toilet and then follow it through the twists and turns of the pipes below.
A Good Kind Of Gas
Each time you perch on the toilet, you may soon take heart that you’re not the only one who’s a bit lighter – you’re taking a burden off the environment as well. Approximately 200 homeowners in an English town called Didcot are among the first in the UK to benefit from gas made from their own waste and supplied through the national grid to heat their houses. The future plan is to make this process available throughout the UK.
So why all the fuss to find new sources of energy? Well, the UK has a goal for 2020 to have 15 percent of the energy it produces come from renewable sources. Producing gas in this way is a strong step toward that goal. Oh, and if you’re worried your house will be smelly, fear not! The gas is odorless and your house will remain toasty.
From Flush To Finish
From the time you flush your toilet to the time your house gets heat, it’s around 23 days. Let’s take it step-by-step, based on the procedure and image below that Thames Water has generously shared.
Waste has a bit of a path to travel before making your home warm. But it's worth the trip because it brings the UK closer to its energy goals.
- All the muck from toilets and stuff like sinks and dishwashers gets channeled to the Didcot works. Let me tell you, with 13.8 million customers, it’s a lot of waste!
- Waste gets separated into sludge and water inside settlement tanks
- Water is put through cleaning processes and then back to the environment it goes via a local watercourse
- Sludge goes a different route. It gets heated in massive containers called digesters. All the heat gets anaerobic digestion going, which is where bacteria breaks down biodegradable material. Now, we’re left with biomethane – also called biogas
- The gas gets collected and goes into a gas cleaning machine
- After the biomethane gets cleaned and smells more like normal gas, it goes to the national gas grid
- From here, it’s just like any other gas in the grid. Off it goes to heat up your home and fuel other things like your stove
Tiko Turds
Once Tiko heard about the capabilities of poo, he did what all good and respectable dogs do – he went to relieve himself. But instead of trotting to the door for me to let him outside, he wanted to do his part to help heat up the house. The cheeky mutt raced into the bathroom and plonked himself down on the toilet.
When Tiko found out that human waste from toilets was being used as a renewable source of energy to heat homes, he decided to help out. Now, where's the air freshener?
I appreciate that he’s determined to help the environment but I tried to explain that nobody wants to sit on a toilet seat covered in his fur. He responded by barking at me to close the door because he wanted some privacy.
On second thought, I should be grateful I have such an environmentally conscious dog, even if he is a modest one.
Whale Poo Is Good For You September 12, 2010
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Animals, Brain Power, Environment, Ocean, Tough Stuff.Tags: CO2, feces, global warming, poo, whales
10 comments
In fact, it’s good for all living things. Australian researchers recently found that whale poo is battling one of the planet’s toughest battles ever – climate change. The poor whales previously had a horrid reputation. Since they breathe out a common greenhouse gas known as carbon dioxide (CO2), they were disliked for contributing to global warming. Estimates are that they breathe out 200,000 tonnes of CO2 a year. Eep! It isn’t surprising people had a bad opinion of them!
But there’s way more to the story than this one fact. Let’s start with the basics and see how something so gross can actually be good for us all. Major science geeks can read the full study results in the Fish and Fisheries journal.
Benefits Of Whale Poo
A young sperm whale gracefully swims in the Southern Ocean. A trip up to the surface might mean a poopy feeding for the hungry phytoplankton, helping to fight global warming. Image credit: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
In the Southern Ocean, we’ve got an estimated 12,000 sperm whales. They hunt down fish and squid for food. Once digested, out comes all that poo. Why should we care about whale feces? Well, it contains loads of iron. All of those whales poop out approximately 50 tonnes of iron each year.
What’s so special about the iron? It’s a fabulously delicious food for phytoplankton, which are marine plants that exist up near the surface of the ocean. These helpful plants like to take in CO2 from the atmosphere through a process called photosynthesis.
Better still is that the whales pop out their poop (even I chuckled as I wrote that) in a liquid form that’s close to the surface of the ocean, making it easier for the phytoplankton to access. After, the whale dives down into the ocean, presumably feeling a little – or a lot – lighter!
Let’s Do The Math
First, we have to see how much CO2 gets sucked up by the plants, which is all thanks to the whale poo. It’s 400,000 tonnes. Now that’s twice as much as the 200,000 tonnes they breathe out through respiration each year. The 200,000 tonnes is equivalent to emissions from 40,000 cars!
I got in touch with Steve Nicol of the Australian Antarctic Division to find out how the study all started. He explained:
Our research was actually looking at baleen (krill eating) whales and the iron that they release. The research was stimulated by some ideas raised by Victor Smetacek and we had the samples and the expertise here in Hobart to do the measurements necessary to test these ideas.
When I asked Steve what we can do to help, his answer was a simple one. Simple but not necessarily easy to attain, especially given the attraction of whale hunting in many places around the world. According to Steve:
Many populations of great whales are recovering fairly fast – some at about the maximum rate possible. The best assistance we can give them is to avoid killing them – either accidentally or deliberately.
Don’t Judge Too Soon
I think an important lesson here is that we can’t judge too quickly and instead, should always look at the big picture. When we first hear about all the CO2 the whales are putting out there, it’s easy to think badly of these massive sea creatures. But with the Southern Ocean normally being a poor source of iron, the whales are making sure those phytoplankton are happily fed. This way, the phytoplankton can do their job of taking out the nasty CO2.
Now, if only human poo had such fantastic capabilities.
Bartholomew Says Hello June 22, 2010
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Animals, Brain Power, Deep Sea, Easy As Pie, Environment, Evolution, Ocean.Tags: blobfish, extinction, fish
6 comments
If this blobfish could talk, I think it would ask for us humans to give it some space. Maybe then it would have reason to smile. Credit: Greenpeace
Okay well, I made up the name Bartholomew and this interesting creature can’t really speak. But if it could, I imagine it might say something like “Please leave me alone!” So, just what is this odd, slimy thing and why would it want us to stay away?
Meet A Blobfish
With the formal name of Psychrolutes marcidus, the blobfish is definitely not the world’s prettiest fish. It is, however, on the verge of extinction according to researchers at the University of York in England. For blobfish, home is 800 meters into the ocean, just off the southeastern coast of Australia.
But unfortunately, excessive fishing with nets along the bottom of the ocean has jeopardized the well-being of the blobfish. It starts with overfishing at less deep and murky depths. After reducing populations up there, not much is left.
To compensate, we do something called bottom trawling, which takes us even deeper into the ocean. Here, we are fishing along the sea floor. It’s bad news for Bartholomew and all the other blobfish down there. No wonder poor Bartholomew looks so sad.
These blobfish may look like your grumpy Great Aunt Martha but they're probably unhappy for another reason. Overfishing is threatening their livelihood. Credit: NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center.
A Day In The Life Of Bartholomew
Just humour me here and let’s keep the name. So what’s life like for Bartholomew? You won’t see it for yourself because Bartholomew lives deep in the ocean, far away from our eyes.
That peculiar body serves a purpose, letting Bartholomew sort of float above the sea floor. Instead of using a bunch of energy to move, Bartholomew keeps movement easy and light.
How big is this body? A blobfish usually grows to approximately 12 inches (30 centimeters). In fact, I just picked up a comic book I will soon be reviewing here on the blog, and it’s about the same length as a blobfish.
A Floating Feeder
And boy oh boy, feeding is an interesting activity for the blobfish. While you or I take an active role in eating – we open our mouths and put food inside – the blobfish does it another way. When Bartholomew feeds, it means just drifting along, swallowing food particles that float in its mouth.
Ugliness Comes In Many Forms
Bartholomew is yet another example of the consequences from overfishing. Without adequate regulations around deep sea trawling, our ‘hello’ to Bartholomew may soon be a ‘goodbye’ instead. While his appearance may be ugly, some might say that the actions of humans are far uglier.
Don’t Believe Everything You See September 15, 2009
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Brain Power, Easy As Pie, Environment, Human Body, Ocean, Psychology and Behavior, Technology.Tags: Believe It or Not, Ripley's, science books, Seeing is Believing
add a comment
Tiko looks like he's immersed in the new Ripley's book. But looks can be deceiving! We all know dogs can't read. Hmmm, perhaps Tiko is captivated by the cheddar cheese carving on page 130 of the book. Tiko loves cheese!
Should you believe everything you see? Well, in the case of the Ripley’s book that I was recently sent to review, you can believe most of it! The new Seeing is Believing book by Ripley’s Believe It or Not is a bright, colorful book with a rather creepy but intriguing eyeball on the cover.
Over the course of the last few weeks, my favorite magazines – BBC Focus, Scientific American and New Scientist – along with various other science books strewn around have been glanced at and quickly dismissed by friends and family who pop over (how cheeky!). Yet when they see the glossy Ripley’s cover, virtually all of them do what I might begin to now coin the Ripley’s Rxn, which involves a lingering look, followed by a gleeful exclamation of “Ooooh cool.”
What does this tell me?
No matter what age, people like weird stuff and they like simplicity. Ripley’s manages to do both and do it creatively in a way that speaks to young and old alike. My excited thirty-one-year-old friend enjoyed the book as did his nine-year-old son.
After all that pretending to read, Tiko awaits a liver treat for his hard work. I'll bet he's thinking that being an actor sure isn't easy!
Just how much of the new Ripley’s book is believable though? While the publishers do put a disclaimer that they aren’t responsible for the accuracy of the book, it’s still reasonably expected that the tidbits of information are true. Not so. I spotted a headline titled Glandular Fever. Of course, my UK readers will likely recognize this as the term for what we call infectious mononucleosis or mono here in North America. It’s caused by the Epstein Barr virus and because it can be transmitted through saliva, it’s often called the kissing disease as well.
Expecting to read about mono, I was surprised to read about a woman who had an imbalance of hormones that caused her to experience excessive hair growth all over her body. My sense is that Glandular Fever was meant to be a catchy title but nobody realized it was the term for another health condition.
Still, a minor inaccuracy or few doesn’t at all break the fantastic impact and enjoyment of this quirky book, but it’s perhaps a reminder to kids and adults that there is a lot more to science than meets the eye.
Find out more at the Ripley’s website.
A Weird Science Contest: Win The New Ripley’s Book!
I like contests. Do you? If so, I want to invite my readers to send an email telling me about the grossest or weirdest thing they’ve ever seen in science. It could be something from science class or maybe just a creepy picture of a bug. If you do send a picture, make sure you include a description of why you think it’s so weird! Anyone aged ten to sixteen can enter. The contest closes on the 15th of October, 2009.
Send your stories and pictures to mina@weirdscience.ca and I’ll share the winning entry in November on the blog here. Plus, I will also mail you the new Seeing is Believing book by Ripley’s Believe It or Not. Please include your:
- Name
- Age
Please also get permission from your parents before entering. Any entries from under 13s must be done through a parent’s email address and must also include a telephone contact number for the parent. If you’re a winner, either you or your parents will be contacted for a mailing address to receive your Ripley’s book.
Good luck!
Evolution Gets Colorful August 24, 2009
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Brain Power, Environment, Evolution, Tough Stuff.Tags: autumn, ice age, trees
8 comments
Summer is still going strong but soon it will be fall – a time when we can enjoy the pretty autumn leaves. Or as I always like to do, throw leaves at my wee dog and race through the massive piles of foliage.
Unless you’ve traveled a bit and have a sharp eye for detail, you might not have noticed that autumn leaves are usually red in America but yellow in Europe. Seems strange, doesn’t it? If you’re wondering why, then you’re not the only one. Two professors thought about these differences too and they came up with a cool theory.
Prof. Simcha Lev-Yadun of the Department of Science Education at the University of Haifa-Oranim in Israel and Prof. Jarmo Holopainen of the University of Kuopio in Finland had their work published in New Phytologist.
Stepping Back In Time
Red leaves in America serve as a warning flag to ward off insects. But in Europe, none of these evolutionary 'tricks' are needed, which means leaves are yellow.
To find out more, we have to step back 35 million years to sort out the mystery. Up until that time, huge areas of the globe were rich in evergreen forests. Then, a bunch of ice ages and dry spells came into the picture. Lots of the tree species evolved to become deciduous – meaning they lose their leaves depending on the season. Some trees even started to produce red leaves to keep the pesky insects away. But, something else came into play and you might be surprised to learn just what it was!
Look To The Mountains
It’s true. We have to check out the orientation of the mountains to get the scoop on why the leaves evolved to be red in America but yellow in Europe. In North America, north-to-south mountain chains created a protected area, enabling the plants and animals to migrate south or north. Joining them were the insects. So, the leaves in America remained red to continue warding off these annoying bugs.
But in Europe, the mountains are oriented from east-to-west, leaving no protected areas as the ice and other environmental conditions came to visit. Loads of the tree species just couldn’t survive the extreme cold. When they died, so did those insects that needed the trees for their survival. By the time the ice ages were over, those trees that had managed to survive didn’t have to deal with the now-extinct insects. So, no need for red leaves to keep them away!
Curious Minds Want To Know
I asked Simcha Lev-Yadun how he ended up studying leaves. While my background is in the life sciences (medicine and nutrition), I always wonder how people end up in the many different, neat areas of science. He explained:
I wanted to be a biologist and archaeologist since I was ten years old. For me, science is a lifestyle, not a job. At the age of 57…I look backwards and see that I made the right decision.
He also shared his plans to meet up in Scandinavia with his colleague Jarmo Holopainen, where they hope to find out even more about why plants have such cool and different colors.
My Wishful Thinking
While my dog Tiko probably doesn’t care much about leaf color when he dashes through the crisp autumn leaves, I like to understand what makes one leaf a bright yellow and another a brilliant red. Now, if only leaves could somehow evolve to become fluorescent pink, my favorite color. Somehow though, I just don’t see it happening!
The Bold Traveler October 19, 2008
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Environment, Microbes, Think About It.Tags: bacteria, bold traveler, darkness, discovery
6 comments
Imagine a world where you are all alone and surrounded by complete and total darkness. Now, take away all of your oxygen. Sound scary? Not necessarily. For the Desulforudis audaxviator – or bold traveler – this is the normal way of life. This bug relies on some important things for its survival: water, hydrogen and sulphate. It was recently discovered by a group of scientists led by Dr Dylan Chivian of California’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The results of the research were published in the journal Science.
Credit: Greg Wanger, J. Craig Venter Institute, and Gordon Southam, University of Western Ontario. This lonely baterium travels in complete darkness.
So, why should we care about this lonely bug that braves its world alone? Well, if we think about how this rod-shaped bacterium can survive without oxygen, we might be able to get some important clues about whether life exists on other planets. If we found life on other planets, we would maybe learn that those bugs and creatures are able to get by without oxygen while still obtaining energy from chemicals such as sulphate.
Excited Scientists
Let me tell you, scientists were really excited when they discovered the bacterium. But, it wasn’t easy! They found it 1.74 miles (2.8 km) below the Earth’s surface near Mponeng mine, which is close to Johannesburg, South Africa. The bug was in total darkness and 60 C (140 F) heat. Now that’s hot! Scientists originally found the bacterium in DNA that was drawn from cracks in the mine – filled with water. Who would have thought that it would be a gold mine where scientists would discover the first ecosystem that only has one biological species? Sometimes, it seems that darkness can be full of special surprises and this is especially true in the case of our bold, lonely traveler.
A Day In The Life Of The Lonely Traveler
Since our isolated bacterium lives all alone, it has to get organic molecules without any help from other species. To do this, it builds what it needs to survive from water, inorganic carbon and nitrogen. These are all sourced from ammonia in the nearby rocks and fluid. But it sure does live deep in the Earth, doesn’t it? Thanks to evolution, our traveling friend can handle all sorts of tough situations and conditions. Over time, it has developed ways to handle stuff like fixing nitrogen straight from elemental nitrogen in the environment.
But wait, it can’t do everything. This smart bacterium can’t handle oxygen, which tells scientists that it has been without oxygen for a really long time. I guess that the lengthy journey into the Earth has toughened it up to lots of harsh conditions. However, without oxygen exposure, there was no need for it to develop any mechanism to resist it. Still, it continues to survive and hints to us that there could be a lot more bugs and creatures out there that manage to get by just fine without oxygen and many of the basic things we associate with life. Now that’s adaptation!
del.icio.us 
digg 
reddit
Secrets Of Climbing June 1, 2008
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Animals, Environment, Evolution, Think About It.Tags: energy, primates, treadmill, trees
add a comment
Ever had a favorite tree in your yard that you liked to climb once in a while? You probably scurried up the tree and maybe hung out for a bit before carefully making your way down to your abode on the ground. We all know that some creatures like to live up in the trees but what makes the trees such a cool place to inhabit? Scientists may have found some clues as to why early primates liked to make their home in the forest canopy. It’s all about size!
Apes and monkeys – ancestors of humans – might have ended up in the trees because of their small size. Researchers have been curious for a while now about why early primates happily lived up in the trees. Why so curious? It’s because they thought that climbing used up more energy than walking. When it comes to walking, for example, smaller animals use up more energy in comparison with larger animals. Generally, we would expect the animals to live in a way that conserves energy. So, it has been somewhat of a confusing question as to why primates would make a transition to the trees if it meant that their energy efficiency was compromised.
Using A Treadmill To Investigate
You’re probably reading the word ‘treadmill,’ and wondering to yourself what I’m talking about! Well, treadmills can be useful for many things – not just for us humans to use as exercise equipment. In this case, researchers from Duke University in North Carolina observed primates as they walked and climbed on a special treadmill that was designed for the study. The results were surprising!
The researchers found that there was no difference in how much energy was consumed for small primates whether they walked or climbed the treadmill. This means that climbing didn’t have a higher energy consumption. In this way, the small primates could make good use of the treetop environment without compromising their energy. These early primates would have been approximately the size of a very big rat. The results were published in the journal Science and the information gives us some clues about how the ancestors of these primates ended up in the trees approximately 65 million years ago.
Yummy Food
You might be wondering what was so great about the trees? Well for early primates, moving into this new environment provided them with an abundance of tasty insects and fruits. On top of that, evolutionary changes then occurred, which means that the primates developed characteristics to help them better adapt to this new environment. For these mammals, the changes included the development of nails instead of claws. Jandy Hanna, a Duke graduate student at the time of the study, created the treadmill apparatus and measured primate activity and energy consumption. She explained:
We assumed it would be more energetically expensive for all of them to climb than to walk, so this finding was unexpected. What we have shown is that they could have made this shift into a rich environment with insects and fruits without increased energetic cost.
Ultimately, the small size of the primates meant that they could make the transition into the trees to enjoy the goodies up there. From the perspective of energy consumption, heavier animals had less incentive to climb than walk, so it was the smaller primates who had the competitive edge. Still, even if it does take more energy for humans to climb – that sure never stopped me when I was a kid and I liked climbing the tree to my playhouse.
del.icio.us digg reddit
Better Air From Greasy Hair February 29, 2008
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Environment, Human Body, Think About It.Tags: hair, ozone, pollution
add a comment
It may not always look and feel so pretty, but greasy hair might actually reduce how much ozone you breathe in. It’s thought that the oils in hair are somehow reacting with ozone in the environment.
Investigating Greasy Hair And Ozone
In a recent study, Lakshmi Pandrangi and Glen Morrison from the University of Missouri in the United States tested out their theories about ozone and hair. They exposed sixteen samples – eight washed and eight unwashed pieces of hair – to ozone for 24 hours. The results? Overall, the unwashed hair absorbed roughly seven times as much ozone as the freshly washed hair. Morrison explains:
For dirty hair, the ozone concentration around the head is likely to be substantially lower than the level in the room.
This means that when the unwashed hair absorbs more ozone, less is available for you to breathe in.
Ozone Is A Respiratory System Enemy
Ozone at ground-level is one of your respiratory system’s enemies. It can cause a bunch of respiratory ailments and is thought to increase mortality. So, it’s important to figure out ways to reduce our exposure.
Don’t Throw Out Your Shampoo
I wouldn’t chuck out that shampoo just yet though! The researchers also discovered that the unwashed hair samples caused a greater number of secondary-reaction products. One of these is 4-oxopentanal, which is a known respiratory irritant. It’s produced when the ozone reacts with the oils in hair. For people who are more prone to air pollution – such as the elderly or those who have compromised health from illness – reducing ozone exposure can be particularly important. It’s best, however, that they do it through an air filter. As for my readers, I certainly hope I don’t get emails from your parents complaining about your unwashed hair and birds nesting in your coiffs!
del.icio.us digg reddit
A House With A Conscience February 25, 2008
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Easy As Pie, Environment.Tags: building, green, home, nature
2 comments
Credit: Simon Dale.
Behold a house that actually cares! Well, sort of! This is a family home in Wales that was built by Simon Dale and his father-in-law. There was also some help from the rest of the family and various people who passed by during the course of the work. According to Simon:
Being your own (have a go) architect is a lot of fun and allows you to create and enjoy something which is part of yourself and the land rather than, at worst, a mass produced box designed for maximum profit and convenience of the construction industry. Building from natural materials does away with producers profits and the cocktail of carcinogenic poisons that fill most modern buildings.
The home took approximately four months to build and required an estimated cost of £3000 ($6000 Cdn) and 1500 man hours. The aim of the project was to build a house while simultaneously respecting nature and using natural materials.
Making It Work
The house was built with attention to an underlying motto from Simon, which is that anything a person could possibly need will be found somewhere in a pile of garbage. The floors were made from reclaimed wood and the fridge keeps cool because of air that flows underground through the foundations. A massive skylight in the roof keeps the home brightly lit during the day, without the need for electricity.
If you’re like me, you were also maybe wondering about the bathroom? Well, it really is back to nature for this one! The house has a compost toilet. What about those gadgets like your computer? To provide energy, the house uses solar panels for lighting, music and computing. But how does the family deal with the icy Welsh winters? Given that I’m currently living in Cardiff, Wales – I know all too well about the freezing winters! That’s where the wood-burning stove comes in, allowing the family to obtain heating that is renewable and abundant.
Virtually Anyone Can Build It
Anyone at all? According to Simon, it’s true! You might have been thinking that he must be a builder but nope, that is not the case. Simon explains:
Oh, and by the way I am not a builder or carpenter, my experience is only having a go at one similar house two years before and a bit of mucking around in between. This kind of building is accessible to anyone. My main relevant skills were being able bodied, having self belief, perseverance and a mate or two to give a lift now and again.
Now that is a super fabulous example of doing something different and challenging. Not only does the home preserve the surrounding environment, but it also sets a cool example to others by showing how we can all find positive ways to impact our environment.
del.icio.us digg reddit
A Wooden Bicycle January 24, 2008
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Environment, Technology, Weird Gadgets.Tags: bicycle, building, wood
4 comments
We’re lucky here on our earth. Why? Because we have heaps of different materials that allow us to build and create almost anything our minds can conjure up! Ever wondered how we’d fare if our wasteful ways left us with only a handful of materials?
Marco Facciola, a 16 year-old high school student in the International Baccalaureate program, was required to complete a project on a non-academic topic. As he was reflecting on a story his grandfather told – when rubber was scarce during the war and his grandfather needed wheels for a bicycle – Marco thought about building a functional wooden bicycle. The full, original article can be read here.
There were many challenges although it seems that the challenges were what made the project so exciting and interesting for Marco to complete. His biggest one proved to be the design of a wooden chain that wouldn’t break. Another challenge was budgeting for the wooden bicycle. Marco described how he didn’t want to purchase new drill bits because of his tight budget. He explains how he got creative to keep on track with his project:
I could not sharpen the bits I was using because they were Forstner drill bits. So, to prevent them from overheating and dulling, I drilled only a little at a time. I would remove the bit from the partially drilled hole and while it was still turning, I would take a bar of soap and rub it against its side to reduce the friction in the hole. This also cooled the bit slightly.
Having enjoyed woodworking and design for a long time, Marco plans to challenge himself with future projects. For now though, he is going to focus on school, his job and sports.
Credit: Lee Valley.
Taking Care Of What We Have
I think that Marco’s project shows how an open mind and hard work can allow a person to build with only one material instead of the many different materials usually required. At the same time, the project was a challenging and time-consuming one. It demonstrates how important and valuable it is to have a wide range of materials to use for building and creating the items we use in our lives. If you’re not getting my hint there, I’ll say it more clearly! Reduce, reuse and recycle!
del.icio.us digg reddit
