We like to talk trash here at MentalMasala, so when one of our readers tipped us off on the new Nike ‘Trash Talk’ shoe, we obviously wanted to find out if this was a load of garbage that we should truly get excited about. Launched in February of 2008 by Nike celebrity endorser Steve Nash (All-Star guard for the NBA’s Phoenix Suns), this newly soled-star uses recycled scrap waste from Nike’s own production facilities. Nike has gone to the basket before with the use of organic cotton in its active wear collections (though, only after other sporting apparel companies tested the consumer field). So what makes this eco-friendly sneaker so darn special? The greening of a must-have status item such as this is surely a play to watch.

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India is well-known for delicious food, and the kitchen is considered to be a sacred place in any Indian home. And now India has something else to be proud of: the world’s largest solar kitchen. The system has been installed as a collaboration between the Academy for a Better World and Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University, with technology from Solare-Brücke, Germany. With 84 receivers and cooking at 650 degrees, the system can produce up to 38,500 meals a day when the sun is at its peak!

The solar kitchen has been set up at Taleti, near Mount Abu, situated at a height of 1219 m above sea level in Rajasthan. It boasts of a six-module solar steam cooking system and a total of 84 parabolic dish concentrators shell type receivers. Each oval parabolic concentrator has a reflective surface area of 9.2 square meters, and reflect sunlight on the receivers by special white glass pieces. Steam is collected in the header pipes, which is then directed via insulated pipes to cooking vessels in the kitchen.

The system generates temperatures of up to about 650 degrees, and 3500-4000 kg of steam per day. The food is cooked in 200-400 liters capacity cooking pots, producing an average of 20,000 meals a day, and up to 38,500 meals per day during periods of peak solar radiation maximum.

A total of $5 million has been spent on this endeavor. The Academy for a Better World is interested in renewable energy technologies and the program is part of a special demonstration project of Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), Government of India.

+ Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University
+ Academy for a Better World

Via Got2BeGreen

The Suzuki S-Ride features the kind of seating arrangement you’d see in a fighter jet: one person up front, one person in back. Who knows if this concept will ever be a reality, but the S-Ride is aimed at a young crowd to whom the excitement of a motorcycle would appeal, but with the safety of a car. Suzuki is still playing around with what futuristic features it would teasingly add to the car, such as telematic communication, presumably between vehicles and for road information.

Check out the gallery below for more of the Suzuki S-Ride.

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After designing a cell phone for Samsung Global Sponsorship in 2005, it seems like Picket as switched sides and designed this fabulous device for Kodak..

Actually, the 1881 as they called the camera works on the same principle as grandma’s locket worked: saving and preserving the pictures you love. The difference is that now you see them on an LCD screen at an amazing accuracy. But that’s such a “tiny” difference, isn’t it?

You can take a photo, either while the locket is closed or, watch it as you take it, to make sure the positioning is correct, on the LCD screen

So now you can get both a camera and a piece of jewelry in one package. Well, I’m not complaining but still, I wonder what they’ll think of next.

U-Boat Worx has developed two types of the C-Quester submersible. The CQ1 for one person and the CQ2 for two persons. Both the CQ1 and the CQ2 are based on an unique concept called the “Underwater Boat”. This concept combines the characteristics of a submersible -”the Underwater part”- , with those of a normal vessel -”the Boat part”.

The C-Quester is so-called 1-atmosphere “dry” submersibles. This means that both the pilot and the passenger are in a normal one-bar, dry environment. C-Quester can dive directly to the maximum depth of 50 meters and stay here to enjoy underwater flora and fauna, limited only by the life of the electrical power supply.
Source: U-BoatWorx

The AeroGarden uses aeroponic technology to grow plants faster and more reliably than with any other method, with no dirt, weeds or mess for you to clean up. Simply add water, drop in the pre-seeded grow plugs, turn it on and watch it grow. The system automatically turns the grow lights on and off and reminds you when to add water and nutrients.

Aerogarden garden kit grows lettuce, herbs, tomatoes, petunias, and more. It even grows them 5 times faster than soil. It also alerts you when more water or nutrients are needed.

Source: AeroGrow

Only in Japan!

Believe it or not, the photo above is of a train interior in Japan!

With the results looking nicer than most nurseries, the Japanese have taken the idea of ‘child-friendly public transport’ to the next level with these 2 beauties, both designed by eiji mitooka. He was the artistic force behind ‘omoden’ (toy train) and ‘ichigo ec’ (strawberry train), a couple of regional trains which travel on a daily basis on the 14.3km kishigawa line in japan.

The Japanese are intent on making train travel a more comfortable experience for everyone, women and children especially, and the results are incredible.

Both trains contain hundreds of toys, TV screens showing cartoons, immaculately clean wooden flooring and cots for younger children. Call me cynical but I can’t imagine anything like this emerging in India unless it was an attraction at a theme park.

Combining the delicate beauty of a Japanese bonsai tree, with the practicality of a battery powered mantle clock, the Bonsai Gear Clock is perfect for someone like me who can’t even keep a cactus alive for long. Despite their steely looks, the clock’s gears are actually made from plastic, although the frame is metal and the base is a wood box.

Kids with a mechanical bent will appreciate the exposed gear reduction, but it would make sense to keep it out of reach of the little ones with their easily pinchable fingers.

The Bonai Gear Clock is available for 9,975 Japanese Yen (plus shipping), which works out to around $100 US dollars.

Visions Coax, via Gearfuse.com