The new factory will also host a process to reduce afterglow and improve 3D performance. It'll eventually output 1 million smaller sets a month. [JapanToday]

Eco-friendly is the general theme of Sharp's facility because it's all about creating and saving energy. From the energy-conserving LCD displays and solar panels being produced to the technology being used around the actual factory, Mama Nature's got plenty to smile about here.

Ok, maybe the whole place is a bit eerie with those hallways, but did anyone really think that LCDs would be built in a cheery-looking factory?

As the shiny, shiny floor decoration reveals, a Taser factory needs all that security. No, really. Wired magazine recently took a tour of the Taser plant and this was the ominous front door they faced. Taser-proof gear or not, like anyone would try to trespass there? [Wired]

Actually, it's the multifunctional hall of the BMW Welt energy-efficient factory, designed as "a solar-heated, naturally ventilated sub-climatic area." The air flow is generated by thermal currents and turbulences that start on the building's façade and roof, which are guided by strategically placed vents across the structure.

Yes, it's cool and and it looks awesome too. [Inhabitat]

The process is the same as the one used in the Lego factory, but instead of Lego, these guys make things you touch pretty much all throughout your day. [RGS]

The gadgets are separated into categories, and then ripped apart for the valuable or recyclable parts, like glass, steel, aluminum, and more valuable metals like copper and gold. They use a special machine with teeth to separate copper from steel and aluminum, and then magnets to separate the latter two. As expected, the batteries are placed in hazardous waste containers, since they're by far the most environmentally harmful piece of any given gadget, and are shipped to specialized outposts who deal with them.

Factories like this are a big step up from our previous recycling protocol, which was to mail our junk overseas where the restrictions are much more lenient (and harmful). Check out this link for instructions on how to responsibly recycle your dead toys. [Wired]

I know that robotized assembly lines are nothing new, but I thought there were more people around. You know, drinking beer and sausages and sauerkraut while languidly pushing a single red button or something. [DRB]

Terrifyingly beautiful. [Bouncing Red Ball]

Over the last two years Polaroid has stopped production on the instant cameras and now it's the film, which will be available till around next year. It was only a matter of time till Polaroid killed off the film since it was obviously a declining / nonexistent profit. So for all those Polaroid users out there, were sorry, looks like you'll only have another year left to take random pictures at house parties. [Washington Post]