The Japanese architect Shigeru Ban recently completed a very interesting and innovative theater building in Paris, France. Shigeru Ban is well known for pushing the envelope when it comes to architectural design, as well as for his humanitarian design work, and this theatre is no exception. It features a wall of solar panels, which is movable so that it can follow the sun all day.
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The Polyurt 180, made by the company Full Circle Shelters, is a cabin that measures 180 square feet and can house up to 4 people, and can provide a completely off-the-grid and mortgage free living. On top of that, it is also very easy to construct, while the 12-sided, circular shape of the yurt makes for a very strong structure.
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A team of researchers at the University of Michigan has successfully developed a prototype of a semi-transparent photovoltaic solar cell, which they hope will make solar arrays more attractive to consumers and lead to a more widespread adoption. Existing solar panels are far from aesthetically pleasing, but this new invention could be used to cover the sides of buildings, window shades and even billboards without obscuring what lies beneath.
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While living in solar powered homes is very sustainable and environmentally friendly, the materials from which most solar PV arrays are constructed are not. Since they are often made from rare natural materials or plastics, researchers are constantly looking for way to improve this flaw and make the whole package more eco-friendly. A team of scientists from the University of Maryland, the South China University of Technology, and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln have recently developed a type of paper, which is made from wood fibers. This paper is 96 percent transparent and could conceivably one day be used instead of the plastic materials used to construct the solar cells of today. This would make solar cells more eco-friendly as well as much cheaper.
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