On TreeHugger, it's shark week! Check out technologies inspired by the big fish, and an electric gadgets to keep swimmers safe from them. Also, fish scales turned into plastic, techie solutions for designing a garden, Space Station architect designs a trailer and more!
1. Shark Week and Biomimicry: Four Futuristic Technologies Inspired By Sharks
Scientists are studying them ever more closely and are finding many ways in which these prehistoric fish can inspire futuristic technologies, from their skin to the way they feed.
2. New Software Developed to Recognize Monkey Faces
Now, thanks to a new facial-recognition software being developed, soon computers may be able to identify primate mugs much in the same way current technology can spot human faces, allowing primatologists to more accurately gauge the health of the world's most imperiled primates.
3. Shark Week: Electronic Shark Shield to Help Keep Swimmer Safe During Record-Setting Attempt
Ocean swimmer Diana Nyad wants to be sure to avoid any possible issues with sharks, and so will be wearing a new "shark shield" designed to keep the predatory fish at bay during a record-setting swim.
4. Sungevity's Solar Popsicle Truck Promises More than Just a Cool Treat
Sungevity is showing consumers that they can cool down on the cheap by pushing popsicles in a biodiesel solar powered ice pop truck, while at the same time reminding them that solar power is no longer out of their financial reach.
5. The First Solar Powered Town? Residents Push for 30% Renewables by 2015 (Video)
As solar panels start appearing on rooftops across Wadebridge, a Government rethink on large-scale solar puts some of the larger planned community-owned power installations at risk.
6. Space Station Architect Designs Out Of This World Trailer
Wanting to camp with his kids in a little more comfort than a tent, Garrett Finney combined his "NASA experience with his love of the earth" to design the Cricket, "an innovative lightweight, compact, and flexible small environment in which to travel and explore the world we live in."
7. 7 High-Tech Online Gardening Tools to Plan the Perfect Garden
These seven online garden planners help you pull together the perfect plot while offering tips on spacing, planting times, and harvest yields. Read through to find the one that's right for you — and start planning for next year.
8. Composting Kitty Litter with a Cat Poop Portal
It's been a challenge in the past, but two innovative cat owners have come up with a clever way to work kitty litter into the compost pile.
9. Recycled Clothes & Resin For Funky Furniture By Tobias Juretzek
German designer Tobias Juretzek combines recycled clothing with resin to make his unique and sturdy "Rememberme" chairs, each with its own story to tell.
10. Designer Creates Plastic from Fish Scales
Designer Erik de Laurens has come up with a novel raw material for making plastic — fish scales.