Among TIME Magazine’s just published list of the Best Inventions of 2008, we find ten directly related to issues of sustainability. There may well be others, but I’m not really sure what the world’s largest particle accelerator does exactly (other than overheat and need shutting down until spring). As this blog and others can attest, there has been an impressive range of new innovation in sustainability (from ‘Smart Meters’ to mobile phone/GPS carbon calculators, from wave-energy technologies to solar-powered bus stops), so TIME’s list is, of course, incomplete but interesting. Below are the links to those ten inventions, with my own brief description of each.
#2. The Tesla Roadster: With a price tag of $100,000, this is by no means a mainstream invention, but this sportscar will change the way people think about electric cars.
#7. Chevy Volt: No one thinks of ‘green innovation’ when you mention Chevy, but that’s exactly what the US auto maker has finally delivered. With an all-electric range of 40 miles, it’s a good step towards catching up with the rest of the world (particularly Toyota and Honda).
#11. Green Crude: Researchers at Arizona State University are developing ‘carbon neutral gasoline,’ derived from algae, which might change the way we think about biofuel. more…
