Facebook Could Eliminate 75% of Its Servers by Changing Their Programming Code
Or at least that's the argument of one programmer, who writes that by switching from PHP to C++, Facebook could move from 30,000 servers down to just 7,500 servers. But as you can guess, this statement doesn't go without debate.

Robots Could Repair Nation's Water Mains, Save $245 Billion
By deploying robots, the US could both boost its water conservation efforts as well as minimize the expense of maintaining and upgrading mains systems. Plus save taxpayers billions. Plus it'd just be cool to have robots patrolling our water pipes.

Chariot Skates Let You Skate, er Cycle, er Ski...Well, Get Around Town Fast (Video)
If you ever wanted to skate anywhere and everywhere - or be one of the freakyWheelers characters from Return to Oz for a Halloween costume - you'll have a chance with the Chariot Skates.

Avatar: Big Movie with Big Environmental Themes
It's pretty obvious that James Cameron's Avatar movie has an important green theme. Check out what it is, and Check out a video of the 'making of' of Avatar at Discovery.com.

Best Green Tech Concept Gadgets of 2009 (Slideshow)
Fascinating and fun ideas that just might become a real part of our future, from bendable cell phones, to gorgeous solar chargers, to incredible furniture that eats bugs to use as a source of electricity.

Unbelievably Cute Wind-Up Computer Mouse Uses Renewable Power
Here's a design for a mouse that would use power generated from a wind-up key. It looks like one of the very old-fashioned toy with a very modern spin.

Flatpack 3D Printed LED Lamp By Dror Benshetrit
We certainly never tire of showing the wonders that designers are creating with 3D printing; it has gone far beyond simply printing, and into the realm of things that could not possibly be made any other way. A great example comes from Dror Benshetrit, a designer that we also never tire of. It is a lamp that folds completely flat; you just pick it up and unfurl it. Check out a video of it popping open.
LED Lamp Sticks to Windows for Solar Charging
It's not the first idea for a window-sticking-solar-style light we've seen, but it's a bit more realistic - and definitely would be a cool addition to a geek's windows.

Interactive Tool Shows Shocking Global Energy Consumption Growth Between 1980 and 2007
Using a slider, you can see the growth of global energy consumption split by region (North-America, Asia, Europe, Middle-East, etc), the growth of renewable energy production (compare the size of the circles... we're a long way off, sadly), the growth of CO2 emissions, and also the human population. Some of the changes are shocking.

300 Million-Year-Old Limestone Houses Ultra Efficient Data Center 22 Stories Underground
In western Pennsylvania, a data center is using the benefits of a very cool location. It's Iron Mountain's man-made caverns in an old limestone mine, and in room 48, an experiment in data center efficiency design and the use of geothermal environmental conditions for extra efficiency is taking place. In other words, researchers are trying to find out if putting data centers deep underground will be an ideal place for them.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

The Great CRT TV Massacre: Berlin Victims Speak (Slideshow)
In Berlin, countless e-murders take place every day. For the first time, the victims speak, to the camera of photographer Gerrit Sievert.

Solar Powered Mangoes to Illuminate Your Patio
Been looking for some fruity fun for your patio? Solar powered mangoes could be just the trick. Not only do they look like fruit, but they are made of fruit.

Powering Your Entire Home By Bike?! The BBC Explores 'Cheap' Energy (Video)
The BBC has taken a stab at illustrating what our modern energy needs look like in human terms. And the result is dramatic. Check out this video.

Renewable Energy Chargers: 6 We Love and 6 That Will Never Fly
Not all the chargers we see coming out of designers and stores look like they'll be successful. In the world of small scale renewable energy, some ideas are perfect solutions, and others fall flat. Here's our take on those we think will make it, and those that will get tossed in the bad idea bin, and why.

Hand Crank Twinkle Lights Work Just Like a Pencil Sharpener
Get the kids cranking out your gadget energy with this clever concept.

Hack Things Better With Crazy Cool Material Sugru
If you think duct tape solves all problems, you'll be taken aback by this material. Silly putty on steroids, it fixes everything.

PowerTutor - An App for Greening Your Smart Phone Apps
Love playing with new apps but sick of your phone's battery dying? Here's a solution - an app that displays the energy consumption of smart phone apps so we know which are sucking our batteries dry.

Solar Powered Phone Sticks to Window for Charging
Liu Hsiang-Ling has come up with a clever concept design that makes charging a cell phone with solar as easy as possible - just slap it onto a window and wait.

Plastic Solar Breakthrough: Efficiency Record Broken by Solarmer
This technology has the potential of bringing the cost of solar energy down, and also to allow us to put solar panels in all kinds of places.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

IBM Uses Micro-Forecasting for Ultra Efficiency, Thinks Cities Should Do the Same (Video)
IBM has kicked off an interesting series of short videos that show how their tactics for creating highly efficient manufacturing facilities can be a model for making cities just as efficient. Plus you get to see them blow something up.

Bike Trailer Homes for Sale, Only $1950 O.B.O
Some might say that Brian Campbell has been living on the street for thirty years; others might suggest that he has mastered the skill of lightweight mobile living. Brian actually lives in his creations. Jonathan Maus of Bike Portland writes that he has now gone into business making them for others as well.

Just What We Needed Dept: Mechanized House Plants for Extra Purified Air
Call it a botanical air purifier, or a plant inside a machine with a fan. Either way, it's an odd little device whose main purpose is to suck in air and circulate it around a plant's roots and leaves to give you sparkling clean air.

Fighting Water Scarcity with GPS
Scientists at the University of Colorado at Boulder have begun using interference patterns-called multipath signals-created when satellite signals reflect off the earth, to measure moisture on the ground and in vegetation. A whole new cheap technology could help us when it comes to the water crisis.

After California Nixes Energy-Sucking TVs, What's Next in the Crosshairs?
PC Magazine takes a half joking jibe at a few devices - but their choices of examples actually show a bright red arrow pointing at a particular group of gadgets.

MVRDV Proposes Artificial Mountains as Green Cities of the Future
Dutch architecture firm MVRDV presents an interesting concept for a high density self-sufficient city of the future in China, all in the shape of a Chinese mountain landscape. And the clincher - we could create it with existing technologies.

Flatpack Instant Office Built Like Pop-Up Book
This could be an entire new branch of architecture- designs which open and close like pop-up books.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

Cheap 3D Solar Cells Are 6x More Efficient, Work Underground
Scientists from the Georgia Institute of Technology have created the world's first 3-D photovoltaic solar system that actually works underground.

Drool-Worthy Wooden Mouse Has Debatable Eco-Credentials
This absolutely gorgeous AlestRukov wooden mouse is usually the type of gadget we love to see, but unfortunately we're on the fence about just how eco-friendly it is. Weigh in...

Is There a Future for Compressed Air Cars?
A new study published in Environmental Research Letters pours some cold water on those who think that compressed air cars are the future.

Razor Clams are Inspiration for RoboClam, a Robotic Sand-Digging Anchor (Video)
Scientists have taken a keen look at the mighty clam and have come up with a robot that can mimic how the clam digs itself into the sand, named, aptly, the RoboClam.

TED Talk - 13th Century Astrolabe, the First Popular Computers
Sometimes event the newest gadgets are overshadowed by really, really old gadgets. Ancient technology is amazing, and Tom Wujec shows the astrolabe, one of the earliest computing gadgets.

Qualcomm's Upcoming e-Reader Will Mimic Butterfly Wings for Energy-Sipping Color Displays (Video)
This technology which uses butterfly wings for inspiration for creating ultra low energy, ultra bright color displays will play a prominent role in the new e-reader, which might just give theKindle and Nook a run for their money.

How to Make Nano Solar Cells from Powdered Donuts (Video)
In addition to powdered donuts, you'll need some Passion tea from Starbucks and a bottle of Everclear. Enjoy.

Are Solar Chargers Turning Into Flowers? Beautiful iPetals Concept May Set Trend
Designers seem to be setting a new trend for solar chargers, turning small scale renewable gadget charging into something resembling a bouquet of flowers.

Regan's Beautiful (and Big) Reverb Solar Powered Speakers
The super sexy Reverb can play between 20 and 40 hours on a full charge. And this is no wimpy counter-top speaker, either.

GoodGuide's Newest iPhone App Lets You Scan Barcodes In Stores And Get the Scoop on Products
GoodGuidehas announced the first iPhone application that scans barcodes to "provide impartial health, environment and social responsibility ratings of products and companies." And what's more - it's free.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

Scientists Create Bacteria that Lights Up Around Landmines
It seems like something straight out of a science fiction film, but this new bacteria is very real - it actually glows when it senses the presence of a landmine.

Silo Ink Reduces Printer Waste, Saves 80% on Ink Expenses
The cartridges hook up to your printer's existing cartridges and not only reduce waste and are refillable, but will save you 80% on the cost of ink.

Grass-Covered Computer Mouse (...and Cell Phone, and Car, and...)
Is this the new wave of accessories to go along with all the bamboo-covered computer devices on the market? Japanese artist Hanaoka likes to cover stuff in grass.

Awesome Art for Green Geeks - Mona Lisa Made of Motherboards
This Mona Lisa is in the lobby of the headquarters of ASUS in Peitou, Taiwan. It looks like a photomosaic, but the pixilated Mona Lisa is a bit more geeky than that.

Garmin Eco-Route Add-on Turns Your GPS Into a Green-Driving Teacher
A new add-on cable that can plug into your car's diagnostics communication port and feed that real-time data to your GPS device.

Does Our Water Really Come From Outer Space?
A new theory poses that our water was actually a chemical hitchhiker, finding a home on Earth after being brought here as ice on incoming meteors. In other words - alien water!

Swarms of Tiny Robotic Ocean Explorers to Help With Marine Preservation...Or Become Fish Food (Video)
Lots of little robots called autonomous underwater explorers (AUEs) might be swimming with you on your next trip to the beach.

Carbon Nanotube Sponge Can Absorb Toxic Oils and Solvents up to 180x Its Weight!
Scientists have created a sponge made of carbon nanotubes that can absorb organic pollutants from the surface of water up to 180x its weight (!) without absorbing water (see video below to see how light it is).

Tech Chest Turns Luggage Into Hide-Away Computer Case
One part neat upcycling, and one part Steampunk, one part James Bond, this PC case is fantastic. You know you want one.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every week on Gizmodo.

Sneakers for Geeks and Hackers Are Made form Recycled Computer Chips
Gabriel Dishaw, junk-metal artist extraordinaire, fashioned these incredible shoes out of pieces of computers and typewriters, with only glue and metal bending techniques to keep the pieces held together.

Mavizen's 130 MPH TTX02 Electric Motorcycle Runs on Linux
This crazy motorcycle is called a "laptop on wheels" because of all the electronics it packs on top of what is strictly required to control the electric motor - including a dash-mounted computer that runs Linux, has wifi connectivity and a web-server.

Amphibious Architecture Gets People to Interact with River System, Includes Texting Fish
A new design project offers an interesting, techy way for fish and people to interact, including humans sending text messages fish. Yes, text messages...and getting a response.

Futuristic Manhole Cover Harvests Rainwater Power and Tells You Where to Catch a Bus
The covers, called "eco signs," harvest power from rainfall in order to tell you, just by tapping your foot on its right or left side, information such as where to find the closest subway station or bus stop.

Hand-Held Printer Only Needs You to Wave It Over The Paper (Video)
Printers can be big, clunky machines that spit out more pages than you intended to print. So what if you had a tiny hand-held printer that only put down ink where you waved your hand? Now you can.

Foresters Use GPS to Save Ants' Nests from Thousands of Falling Trees
Just how good has GPS technology gotten? Good enough that it can be used to pinpoint the exact location of a handful of tiny ants in a massive forest.

A Solar Powered Blanket Creates Cell Phone-Powered Health Care for Africans
Sounds like a strange mix, but a blanket that sports solar power could help improve health care in Africa by allowing those people without electricity to charge cell phones used for getting health care information.

The 100-Mile Diet for Electricity? The Institute for Local Self-Reliance Argues for Decentralization
The Insitute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) has released a second version of its study that pushes for local power - in other words, how you can run what's in your house off of what's on top of your house.

Harnessing Bacteria to Grow Custom Packaging
This ambitious concept called Bacs harnesses the bacterium acetobacter xylinum to self-assemble around an object, encasing it in a biodegradable paper-like shell. No kidding - bacteria into packaging...

Take Up Less Space With A Vertical Bed
Sleep standing up. It's the ultimate nerd bed.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

Sharing Green Patents: Eco-Patent Commons & Green Xchange
Green patents are growing like mad, and it looks like there's no stopping their popularity.

Flapping Wind Turbine Inspired by Bumble Bee Wings
Green Wavelength, an up-and-coming California engineering biz, has prototyped a small wind turbine, the xBEE, the elegant flapping motion of which is inspired by the buzz of insect wings (see the video).

Pollution-Patrolling Robotic Fish Have "Muscle" Movement Like Real Fish
Michigan State University researchers are bringing another version of a robotic fish to the scene, having just received funding to move the project forward. And these fish have some very life-like features.

The Real Kindle Killer May Be the iPhone
iPhone just might be a device for Kindle to really keep an eye on as a competitor. In September, the number of book-related apps sold for iPhones outpaced games for the first time, indicating that the iPhone is gaining popularity as a convenient device for ebook reading.

Pimp Your Bike - Pump Your Light
The PUYL serves both as a bicycle tire pump and as a headlight, an efficient combo it its own right. But it gets better: the PUYL's battery recharges while you pump!

Very Promising! Zinc-Air Battery Could Hold 300% More Energy Than Lithium-Ion
ReVolt Technology, a company based in Staefa, Switzerland, claims that its Zinc-air battery can "store three times the energy of lithium ion batteries, by volume, while costing only half as much," and unlike other existing air batteries, this one would be rechargeable.

One of the Most Beautiful Radios We've Ever Seen...And It's Made for TreeHuggers!
Now this could top any greenie gadgeteer's holiday wish list. It is a gorgeous little wooden radio that - to top off its loveliness - is solar powered.

Google's PowerMeter Hits the UK. All Part of the Plan for Smart Grid Global Domination.
By partnering with First:Utility and AlertMe, Google's home energy dashboard PowerMeter has just hit the UK, becoming available for residents to watch every last watt and cut back where possible.

Savior Bud Sucks Moisture From Trees for Drinking Water
For dry areas, every drop of drinking water is important. Moisture collectors are a big help, and this concept design, modestly called the Savior Bud, is one idea to help gather up moisture from a tree's respiratory process and create drinking water.

A "Digital" Photo Frame To End The Debate Over Electric or Old Fashioned
Meet the image.jpeg photo frame - touted as the "first ever analog "digital" photo frame,"

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

Off-Grid Charging for Cell Phones Is a $2.3 Billion Industry (Video)
Solar and wind powered gadget chargers are part of an industry that can not only reduce the carbon footprint of our gadgets, but is also worth billions.

Finally! Attractive Solar Clothing - The Zegna Ecotech Solar Jacket
And here's where a big chunk of that $2.3 billion is coming from - It's about time gadget lovers make a positive fashion statement with a good looking piece of solar clothing.

Battery Chargers - Solar Chargers to Buy, Chargers to Hack, And Concept Chargers to Wait For
Another big chunk of the $2.3 billion comes in the form of these fabulous battery chargers...but maybe not such a big chunk. There are some ideas in here for hacking an off-grid charger for free.

Universal Phone Charger Approved, Could Save 13.6 Million Tons of CO2
A universal charger was approved by the International Telecommunication Union that manufacturers will be strongly encouraged to adopt as they roll out new phones - it'll save e-waste and emissions, not to mention lots of money.

Venom Introduces First Carbon Neutral Alkaline Batteries...But Can Disposable Be Green?
Do we pick apart just how "carbon neutral" disposable batteries can possibly be, or do we congratulate Venom on taking steps forward on greening batteries that are an undeniable product in our market place?

The Best Swag Bag EVER! PopTech Hands Out Solar FLAP Bags That Turn Into Lanterns
Attendees at this year's PopTech received as their swag bag the FLAP - Flexible Light and Power. It's messenger bag with built in flexible solar cells that can charge up a mobile device, or power an LED in the bag, turning it into a lantern. They *so* should have these at next year's CES.

Electric Wooden Buggy Hits the Streets of New York (VIDEO)
Seth Kinmont is an artist with one foot in the future—and one way in the past. He built an electric car with a design based on a combination of old wooden buggy models, including a horse drawn carriage, and an Amish cart. Apparently, the whole thing runs on four 12-volt batteries.

What Will It Take to Get EVs on the Road (Really)
Electric cars have the potential to improve our energy system, resuscitate the automobile industry, and dramatically reduce America's oil use. At least, that's the goal. The question is how do we actually get them on the road, and charged.

Dell HQ Gets a 130 kW Solar Parking Lot with Plug-In Charging Stations
Check out Dell Headquarter's newest parking lot feature - generating solar power, keeping employees' cars cool, and offsetting about 145,000 pounds of CO2 a year.

Disappearing Plastic Bags - New Plastic Magazine Mailer Dissolves in Hot Water
And one random one...might your next issue of Wired come in a plastic bag that dissolves faster than you can say "off-grid charging"?

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

More Than 100 iPhone Apps For Green Shopping, Eating, Travel and Fun
Every app you might want for living a greener life, from augmented reality to home automation.

9 Best Eco Apocalyptic Science Fiction Films of All Time
There's nothing like a vision of a world gone to hell to get the point across. In these nine post-apocalyptic movies (and one tv episode), ranging from the 1960's until next month (one's not released yet) the death, destruction, and general bleak futuristic visions are all based on environmental disasters. A note on the selection process: Don't expect to see "Waterworld". Bombs, even with savvy green messages, didn't make the cut.

Green Cell Phones Prefered by 40% of Consumers...If They Could Find Them
According to a poll conducted by ABI Research, nearly half of consumers in the market for cell phones would choose one that is considered "green." There's a catch, though - or rather, two catches.

Man Drives Wind-Powered Car
Harold Smith of Prince Edward Island has it all figured out: He has a private 20 Kilowatt wind turbine, and electric Toyota and a licence plate that says NO GAS.

Tiny Robot Trash Harvesters to Clean Streets of the Future
Move over Roomba, you've just met your match. It's called the Scarab, and it's an automated robot that's been designed to efficiently and quickly clean much larger areas, like shopping centers and neighborhood streets.

LG POP Cell Phone Goes Solar Powered
The latest entry into the market of cell phones with embedded solar cells is the POP from LG. The slick phone - very similar to the LG Dare - boasts an optional battery cover that is a solar cell, letting users charge up the battery with sunlight.

Buying Music Online Can Cut Carbon by 80%, Study Says
A new report put together by Carnegie Mellon University, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Stanford University examines how environmentally friendly digital music distribution is in comparison to traditional methods. Turns out, carbon emissions and energy use can be cut by 40% to 80%, depending on a few factors.

Nation's First TV Energy Efficiency Standards Will Cut CO2 By 3.5 Million Tons
The television energy efficiency standards being pushed forward by California are not without controversy...and not without some serious green potential. Even utility Pacific Gas and Electric is going to bat for the improved standards.

Japan's High Tech Graveyard Solution as Burial Space Grows Scarce
Japan has come up with a novel, high-tech and space-saving solution that reuses warehouse building space as a place to mourn the dead.

Facebook HQ Recycles 60s Computer Factory
Computers used to be about hardware, when Aligent made electronic measuring devices at this factory in Palo Alto. Now it is headquarters for the 850 employees of Facebook, and what a transformation it is. Studio O+A left as much of the old building as they could, recycling old lab desks and reusing cranes.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

Can Energy Dashboards Change Behavior, Permanently? - West Coast Green looks at the gadgets that help us monitor our energy use, and weigh in on just how helpful they are, or aren't.

See Where Stuff Comes From with SourceMap - Imagine a future in which pointing a PDA at a product bar code returns an instant readout of product source and environmental footprint. That's SourceMap - the Wiki of visualizing supply chains.

Meet Your New E-Waste Recycling Symbol: "4th Bin" Winners Announced - Curious about what to do with your gadgets after the sparks die? Here's your answer...

Friends Again? HP Gets Props from Greenpeace in Latest Gadget Guide - Greenpeace gave HP the what for when they tagged the company's roof with "hazardous products." But it looks like HP has cleaned up its act, and Greenpeace is giving them a hat tip for it.

Kindle e-Reader Hits Schools, Students Say "Meh.." - Kindle got a lukewarm reception when it hit a few university classrooms, though when you hear students' reasons, you can't really blame them for giving a thumbs down.

Apple's Tablet to Take Over Textbooks, Magazines, Newspapers - Apple is likely perfectly happy at Kindle's ho-hum school trial, because the company is edging its soon-to-be-released Tablet at just such a market.

Dell's Latitude Z and Its Wireless Charging Misses the Green Boat - The Dell Latitude Z has some phenomenal features...but its new wireless charging is among its least green.

Zipcar iPhone App Makes Car-Sharing Even Better (as Long as You Don't Abuse Remote Honking) - Zipcar, one of the heavy-hitters of the car-sharing world, has released a new iPhone and iPod Touch free app that will make interacting with the company's reservation service and vehicles better than ever.

These Smart Clothes Dryers Could Reduce Electricity Demand by the Equivalent of 6 Coal Power Plants - No joke! Whirlpool announced it will produce 1 million "smart" clothes dryer in 2011 and if all are installed, bye-bye power plants.

Google Earth Ramps Up for Copenhagen: New Layers for Exploring Climate Change Scenarios (Video) - Google has let loose an interesting tool in preparation for COP15 that allows users to explore what the world might look like if various levels of warming, sea rises, and so forth occur. You're able to see played out some of the what-if scenarios you're hearing about as the Copenhagen date approaches.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

Biomimicry has been in the news a lot this week, but one of the top stories is security experts creating digital ants that will swarm on viruses and worms in order to protect your computer.

A handcrafted Lotus replica gets 100 miles to the gallon...on homemade biodiesel! Talk about DIYing it.

NTT DOCOMO has crafted some beautiful cell phones made of waste wood. And one looks like a little bean.

A solar powered cell phone concept is aimed at getting us to quit upgrading every two years. But is it weird enough to work, or too wacky to make its point?

Not all solar concepts fall flat. Here are 13 solar concepts inspired by plants that we love.

Move over energy efficiency - the next step in TV labeling will be carbon footprints. Check out the world's first carbon footprint-verified TV.

Li-Ion batteries are getting super strength with a new breakthrough - silicon nanotubes that boost their capacity by an order of magnitude.

Not all green robots are as cute as WALL-E. Check out some green robots that are destined to be our overlords.

Augmented reality on your...bike helmet? Maybe! This gadget geek put google maps on his head so he can navigate while cycling.

And one last solar gadget - a mailbox you can see from half a mile away. Making it easier on friends finding your house, or a beacon for baseball bats?

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

Google Earth has a new application that shows carbon dioxide in different layers of the earth's atmosphere. Not only can you navigate through space, but also through time!

Indiana Jones wants to keep the tropical jungles where he has his adventures. In other words, Harrison Ford along with some heavy hitting companies have launched a new social networking site dedicated to stopping deforestation.

Ask Pablo: What is the most efficient use of solar power? Check out the top 3 ways tech helps us utilize the sun most efficiently.

Electric cars, anyone? Here are 9 that made the biggest splash at the Frankfurt Motor Show.

Art Energy Design has created a sculpture, of a 12-foot flower with solar cells in the leaves and a small wind turbine for the petals. It looks hacked-yet-still-futuristic enough that it just might be something you want to install in your back yard.

We like plants near our computers but what about in our computers? Might you offset your carbon emissions with this desktop planter?

Android phone users, you're about to become scientists! Check out this awesome new app that puts research labs on your cell phone.

Nanotech looks to be the holy grail here is making more efficient solar panels to reduce the cost of solar power. Here's how that would work...

Nuclear bunker...for a data center? Turns out it's a perfect location for greening up IT operations. Check out this bat cave of a data center in Sweden.

Speaking of nuclear...guess what cleans it up! Here's a hint: It's a bacteria we try to avoid just as much as nuclear waste itself.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

Nanosolar has broken radio silence and the news is good. They've simultaneously released information about three things, including possibly hitting grid parity with their solar cells, starting mass production, and we get to view a very cool video showing the inside of their factories.

Will personal solar power take over our lives? This image from a concept personal solar power device makes us groan at the possibility. Even so, we have to admit that this solar vest is a great idea for Boda Boda operators in Africa. Solar certainly has its place.

Moving on from solar, turns out trees are a source of electricity as well. Could we one day just plug our gadgets into a branch at the park? Your computer could be that much more tree-huggable if you let it calculate and offset its emissions all on its own.

It looks like lithium could be a wildly sought-after material as our need for batteries grows. Check out this video about where lithium is produced and its potential future in the marketplace. The news about lithium also reminds us about the importance of recycling those toxic batteries. But there's good news on that front as well, with perfect gadget recycling as a reachable goal.

And no column is really complete without the mention of robots. Check out the deep sea robot being tested out off the coast of California.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

Recycle your phone by throwing it. Really! Check out 4 ways to keep your phone green.

Electric cars are already a greener option for automobiles, but what if they were also smart enough to charge up only when electricity is at its cheapest? Ford is looking to give customers exactly this with new charging software.

Speaking of cheaper electricity options, the Internet could become less energy intensive with smart algorithms. A new study shows how energy-savvy algorithms could switch traffic to data centers where the cost is lowest.

And finally, what week kicks off well without UFOs? Well, UFO-like objects, anyway. This very cool solar-powered water filter just hit the waterways of Japan.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

TOPLESS stands for "Thin Organic Polymeric Light Emitting Semi-conductor Surfaces" (not your first guess, eh?); it's a three year, £3.3M project financed 50% by the UK government and 50% by a consortium with the goal of creating "high quality white light generating single polymer, and efficient large area single pixel
device architectures." In the video here, you can see one of their very cool OLED Desk Lamp prototypes in action.

The solar messenger bags, which have a removable flap with a solar panel that charges a built-in LED light and USB connection, are so far drawing fairly positive response from the locals African Hersman.

Nearly every day, we get news of a new cell phone app that will help us shop for eco-friendly this or that, figure our public transit route for us, help us find recycling outlets, or control the thermostat in
our home. There are hundreds of "green" apps, all claiming to make our lives more eco-friendly if we use them. So, are people using them and are they making anyone's life greener?

Finally, here's a pretty cool solar coffee maker. It was created by designer Gun Ho Lee, and while we have some doubts on how well it would work, it definitely looks better than most coffee makers...

When trying to determine the greenest option among products, it is important to take into account the whole life-cycle of the product. The U.S. Department of Energy has already released a few life-cycle assessments (LCA) of LED lights and LED maker Osram has just released a new LCA study conducted by the Siemens Corporate Technology Centre for Eco Innovations. Their conclusions are pretty interesting...

Vinod Khosla clarifies his take on the future of Lithium-Ion batteries and the future of energy storage in a guest post. Get the scoop on Li batteries from someone in the know.

We take a look at the Samsung Reclaim and wonder if it's just another piece of greenwash, or worth a double take.

Craving a solar charger for your gadgets but everything on the market so far is a bit clunky? Well, they're getting better.

So, are netbooks greener than notebooks or not? We weigh the pros and cons to decide if you're going green if you're on the netbook bandwagon.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

In its Eco-Management 2013 report, Samsung says $4.3 billion is going into greening its gadgets. Check out how.

Can a robot lay bricks better than human workers? A particular robot in Switzerland raises the question, and a gorgeous building.

This cool cookstove greens up your BBQ and gives you extra electricity!

It just might be the right time to boast your gadget repair skills. Business is booming for iPod doctors!

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

If you're off grid but still needing to use AA-style batteries, wouldn't it be great to be able to add more juice just by shaking them up a bit? That's what the Mint Energy Rechargeable Battery concept would allow us to do...just use a little "shakenergy."

The latest in our un-TreeHugger department is a very odd cell phone idea, that helps you pollute the air with cigarette smoke along with all the other emissions associated with mobile devices. Yes, light up with a built-in cigarette lighter!

MIT has just announced a new project that makes trash a whole lot more technical -Trash Track. The goal is to figure out exactly how much energy and effort goes into taking trash from homes to final disposal, which could help guide consumer choices about products while they're still on the shelves.

They call it the Net-Zero Energy home. It has ground source heat pumps (promising a 30% reduction in energy use), photovoltaic arrays, supplementary wind power, high efficiency appliances and battery storage, all talking to each other through a Home Energy Manager. That's a lot of impressive technology. But are green gizmos the best way to achieve net zero energy?

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

Two Australian researchers have devised a way to make circuits out of recycled plastic that would help eliminate much of our e-waste stream. Their research is aimed at greening our gadgets, and their video on TreeHugger explains the background on the project.

New gadgets that will attach to fishing nets could help save sea turtles. However, they also have the chance of ending up as e-waste. We weigh the pros, cons, and possibilities of this underwater eco-tech.

An interesting LED light uses ambient light sensors and motion detectors to keep a zen-like feel to hallways and dark corners. You can watch it in action at TreeHugger and see if you feel a little more one with the world.

WALL-E arrives in Italy! The DustCart is helping to keep the streets clean (and people out of the way) R2D2-style.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

A breakthrough in solar that involves putting 'nanopillars' on aluminum foil could improve the efficiency of manufacturing solar by as much as 300%. That could drop costs way down, if they can get the technology out of the lab.

Microsoft has tossed its home energy management software, dubbed Hohm, into the beta ring for you to take your swing. All feedback is appreciated as they build a better tool to help you analyse your energy use, and give you recommendations on saving money and energy.

Greenpeace wags its finger at HP, Lenovo and Dell, and praises other companies in its most recent report on the greenest gadget manufacturers.

Finally, one ugly "solar" gadget vest pushes us too far. We look at the bigger picture with ridiculous designs, and tell companies why they need to quit dreaming up and manufacturing ugly solar clothing.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.