Frederik Krebs came up with this combination of solar panels and LED lights which, while definitely a work-in-progress, could bring cheap light to some of the world's poorest regions. I call the lamps a work-in-progress because despite being durable enough to last several years, they run at a mere 1% efficiency. But with the expected final cost of $7 a piece, they're full of life-changing potential, despite that low efficiency.

Some prototypes of the lamps are currently being tested in Zambia. As seen in the picture, the solar panels are left laying flat during the day and then rolled up (and secured with snap-button) into a cone-shaped lamp. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing the results of the prototype tests and a final product, because no one should go without artificially lit nights. [IEEE Spectrum via Pop Sci]

This story's still developing, but if our sources are correct, it would blow the Toyota Prius out of the water. Heck, it'd blow every other vehicle currently on the market out of the water with the exception of the Tesla roadster — and that's no four-door mid-size sedan. So for GM this represents a huge marketing coup — the ability to claim the most fuel efficient vehicle in the world and a big blow to detractors who claim the big, sweaty 'merican manufacturer can't build quality products.

We'll have more out of GM's Warren Technical Center as the General holds their big product showcase event throughout the day.

This scientific discovery was printed in the renowned chemistry journal Angewandte Chemie, who deemed the breakthrough as "very important." According to Gizmag, "scientists have been able to make carbon dioxide react with a stable organocatalyst called N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) under mild conditions in dry air." After that, a dash of silica and a touch of hydrogen are added in, where the entire mixture is subjected to hydrolysis to produce the methanol.

The most promising part is that this NHC is a supposedly abundant gas. So here's hoping we actually see this move past the idea stage. [Gizmag]

The Boiler solar-powered watch by Freestyle uses a battery charged up from sunshine. It comes with both a power indicator and a power saving function, though the chances you'll need to use them are slim – according to Freestyle, it receives 12 months of power on a single charge. So basically, the only way your watch will ever run out of juice is if you live in a cave all year long.

The Boiler has a chronograph, alarm, timer, dual time and a backlight display for darker areas. Price for solar coolness: $115. [Treehugger]

According to Worldchanging, the City of Oslo will convert the sewage to biomethane, then get that methane working as bus fuel. Two sewage plants in Oslo will be adapted to support the infrastructure and the 80 buses will require minor modifications.

The Oslo Sewage Bus trial is expected to begin in September, and if successful, all 400 Oslo buses will be converted.Putting aside initial costs, the biomethane is expected to be about €0.40 cheaper per litre, and each bus will save about 40 tons of carbon dioxide every year. [Worldchanging via Earth First via Slashdot]

New wind projects made up 42% of the U.S.'s total new power-producing capacity added last year, adding 8.4GW of new facilities into the grid. That brought the U.S. total up to 25GW, one more than Germany's 24GW.

These figures are coming in from even before the “Obama bounce” expected from the new president's vows for more clean energy initiatives. Last week, the Senate Finance Committee approved $31 billion in tax breaks to boost alternative energy supplies and efficiency. [Ars Technica and Scientific American]

Built by Systematica, the PRT system will help keep Masdar (a planned city in Abu Dhabi) completely car-free. The vehicles travel at speeds of roughly 7 meters per second, with the longest routes planned for about 2.5km, and will be located two stories beneath street level. Riders will pay about the same price they'd normally drop on an equivalent taxi ride.

Morgantown, West Virginia has the the only PRT system in place right now, built in 1975 when the cost of the technology was many times higher. An equivalent system to the Masdar one (though to a much smaller degree) is currently under construction at Heathrow airport in London. [Treehugger via Dvice]

Each of the four colors of Hana-Akari lamps are made out of four of these cells painted by the dye. While Sony hasn't given a release date yet, but said they have big plans for the technology. Imagine having a solar power generating wall that wasn't a mess of black photovoltaic panels. [Impress]

The roughly 35-inch squared mat near the Hachiko dog statue at Shibuya station generates roughly 0.5W every time someone weighing 132 lbs steps on it. The amount of foot power it's already harvested is displayed on an LED wall.

Strangely, the installation will only be there until the 25th. I guess the Japanese are really good with taking their holiday lights down as soon as Christmas is over? [Digital World Tokyo]

Palmer, who touched down at UN climate change talks in Poznan, Poland, said the feat proved that solar power was a viable alternative to carbon-based fuel sources. Though to do what Palmer did, you'd need to drive a tiny three-wheeler tugging along a solar array almost as big as the car itself.

While the car probably needs a major redesign (and perhaps some more solar panel breakthroughs) to even inch close to becoming a regular on highways, it did disclose some promising technology. The car reached 55mph speeds and could travel for 300km on a single charge. Through the 17 months on almost non-stop driving, it only broke down twice.

Though this car's adventure is over, Palmer's not ready to give up eco-driving yet. He's planning a trip with six vehicles around the world in 80 days (ha!) that would draw power from hydro, geothermal and wind energy. [BBC]

The most pressing one is that changing to nuclear will help reduce the amount of emissions from planes and keep them flying in the air longer. A plane sipping on nuclear energy could take off in London, land in Australia, and then go to South Africa without needing to refuel, and it'll have zero impact on the atmosphere as well.

Plus, the safety risks we tend to knee-jerk envision with nuclear are tied more to its image in popular culture than any real scientific facts. Nuclear submarines have been around since the beginning of the Cold War—when was the last time you heard of an actual meltdown related to one of those? Now compare that to the tons of other fuels that have been leaked into waters over the years. Safe nuclear planes have been feasible since the 1950s, but lost favor when the military decided to start building intercontinental ballistic missiles instead.

While there are a few genuinely valid concerns we need to address before we actually let nuclear-powered planes take off—how to automatically jettison the reactor in case of a plane crash and what to do with spent fuel, for instance— there's no reason why we shouldn't at least hit the power button on research. [Times UK via Crunchgear]

About two hours of spinning would be enough to run a custom LED light source for six to seven more hours, significantly extending the amount of time families can work. Using LEDs will also help families avoid kerosene lamps, which drastically reduce air quality inside the home when they are used. The Indian government is already giving away several of the e-charkhas to Indian residents under its “Funds for Regeneration of Traditional Industries” program. A good thing, since very few of the people who need it can afford the roughly $200 it costs. [Inhabitat]

A new smart grid will be able to handle plug-in hybrids in large numbers, increase efficiency, and not be easily toppled by small problems that then cascade into mini-disasters, as was the case in the Northeast blackout in 2003. It will also ensure that power from alternative sources (solar, wind) will be able to be transmitted to where it's needed most, around the country. For more on smart grids, this lengthy SciAm article is a good read. [NYTimes]

The old specs and pricing for the ironically named Dream Car were about $60,000 in supplies, and that not-so-good 80-mile range mentioned above. Today, the numbers have increased remarkably, with the Dream Car now costing about $8,000 in materials and a mass production model checking in somewhere between $16,000 and $24,000 (depending on government alternative fuel incentives). A single 3.5 hour charge give the car a 240 mile-range for about $5 in electricity costs.

Here's the car in action, looking like something out of Mos Eisley:

And here's the Christmas Tree-shaped car lit up like a Christmas tree and looking like a low-flying UFO:

[TreeHugger]