How to Build an Earthbag Dome

February 1, 2011 by kris de decker Filed Under: Construction, DIY, Housing

earthbag home

“Domes are the strongest form in nature and easily support enormous forces. They create the most floor space for a given length of wall. There are no wasted corners. The feeling inside is magical. Those who live in domes (and roundhouses) most likely never live in boxes again. Wind flows around domes and does not build up pressure against them.”

“You can build domes without wood. You can build domes with minimal tools and materials – no nails, no wood, no plywood, no shingles. This makes domes a good candidate for those who lack carpentry skills and for emergency shelters for disaster areas and war refugees. Give people some rice or grain bags and a little training, and soon they can build their own sturdy, safe shelters.”

Step-by-Step Earthbag Building Instructable. Via Make.

Drug Catapult Found at US-Mexico Border

January 31, 2011 by kris de decker Filed Under: Aviation, Cargo, Catapults, Low-tech solutions, Military technology, War technology, Weapons

Trebuchet “Drug smugglers trying to get marijuana across the Arizona-Mexico border apparently are trying a new approach – a catapult. National Guard troops operating a remote video surveillance system at the Naco Border Patrol Station say they observed several people preparing a catapult and launching packages over the International Border fence last Friday evening.” Read & watch.

Judging Technology

January 28, 2011 by kris de decker Filed Under: Technology

Ran Prieur started an interesting initiative: TechJudge, in which a rating system is applied to different technologies.

“In this age, ‘judging technology’ means one of two things: reviewing a particular tool for how well it satisfies the consumer, or doing deep thinking about Technology as a whole. I don’t think there’s any such thing as ‘technology’. Every tool, every system of tools, every use of every system of tools, is a different animal. And instead of judging a clothes dryer for how well it dries your clothes compared to another clothes dryer, we should also judge it for how it affects the meaningfulness of your life, the society it is part of, and the rest of life on this planet. The goal of this page is to inspire deep thinking about particular technologies.”

For now, only the transportation section has been (partly) filled in. The “passenger dragon” (which scores the maximum of 100 points) left me a bit confused, but here are the preliminary results for the more common transport means:

  • sailboat 85 – 74,
  • horse 79 – 70
  • bicycle 77 – 63
  • private jet 58
  • airliner 45
  • passenger train 44 – 30
  • automobile 25

Note that energy use and ecological damage are not the only criteria.

Ten Reasons Why Jatropha is Neither a Profitable nor a Sustainable Investment

January 28, 2011 by kris de decker Filed Under: Biofuel, Energy
  1. Jatropha_curcas Jatropha does not guarantee high returns
  2. Jatropha does not thrive on marginal land
  3. Jatropha needs significant amounts of water
  4. Jatropha is not pest resistant
  5. Many jatropha investment projects have failed
  6. Jatropha competes with food production
  7. Jatropha causes displacement of local communities
  8. Jatropha plantations are not pro-poor
  9. Jatropha plantations negatively impact biodiversity
  10. Jatropha is likely to increase carbon emissions

Jatropha: money doesn’t grow on trees (.pdf), a report by Friends of the Earth. Via Energy Bulletin. Previously.

Shoemakers of the World

January 27, 2011 by kris de decker Filed Under: Craftsmanship, Shoes

“These 10 videos focus on the artisans around the world still making shoes by hand. From Mexico to Japan: we’ll take a look at how different shoes, slippers and sandals are made.”

Cash Ropeway in South Africa

January 26, 2011 by kris de decker Filed Under: Obsolete technology, Random, Ropes, Ropeways

cash ropeway in south africa

Low-tech Magazine editor Shameez Joubert spotted this cash ropeway in Grahamstown, South Africa.

Cash ropeways were used in shops from the 1880s to the 1960s. They worked in a similar manner to large-scale cargo ropeways. Bicable cash transportation systems were powered by a catapult device or by separation of the wires, monocable systems were operated by a small electric motor.

The Cash Railway Website is dedicated to cash ropeways and similar systems, but it does not mention any ropeway still in use. The system in the South African shop was installed in the 1960s and it still works. Thank you, Shameez!