3D printing, Cuba’s garage innovation, Coca Cola’s water kiosks, the Internet gap for women and the performance rating of a solar-powered stirling engine: These are some of the most interesting tweets on our radar recently. For up-to-the-minute updates from E4C on Twitter, please follow us at @Engineer4Change.
Study: 3D printing your own things can save energy over mass production http://t.co/jMWcgKu5Xp
— Engineering 4 Change (@engineer4change) October 7, 2013
3D printing has excited a lot of us with its potential for unchaining people from the products that make it to the mass market. The idea could have an interesting impact in developing countries as the technology matures. Now we’re seeing evidence that it might save energy, too.
SODIS gets updated w/WADI – a Solar-Powered Disinfecting Device that indicates when #water is safe http://t.co/DeI1OgYipx … via @Inhabitat
— iana (@iana_aranda) October 7, 2013
Solar water disinfection can be cheap – just leave a clear plastic bottle of questionable water in the sun and it will be potable within a few hours. The problem is knowing when, exactly, the water is ready. This WADI device solves the issue by measuring the solar radiation hitting the bottle to estimate when the water should be disinfected.
Hmm.. Coca Cola building 150 #water kiosks, says “We’re still working on the business model” http://t.co/KQP8TZFKnI
— John Feighery (@rocketboy76) October 7, 2013
Coca Cola has a legendary worldwide distribution scheme and it has been on development professionals’ radar as a powerful partner for years. This idea has merit for its link to the company alone, if not for its intrinsic value.
‘garage innovation’ in Cuba demonstrates the value of informal #engineering http://t.co/jqZzYXAGqS
— iana (@iana_aranda) October 3, 2013
Cuba has responded to its decades-long economic misery with a flourishing culture of garage innovation. It’s an inspiring model for DIY economic development.
Paul Polak on the ultimate goal of achieving scale – http://t.co/I9vhtDYH7m #socent
— Catapult_Design (@Catapult_Design) October 2, 2013
Research brief: An approach to designing energy delivery models that work for people living in poverty http://t.co/BYwOtQsPvs
— Engineering 4 Change (@engineer4change) October 2, 2013
We share research briefs like this on our social media and our news blog. If you know of a paper that would interest our community, please pass it along.
Research brief: A solar-heated stirling engine with air as the working fluid can have 52-72% efficiency http://t.co/iC1CZmWwT4
— Engineering 4 Change (@engineer4change) September 30, 2013
You call it #peanuts. We call it pistach and we grind the shells for our #EcoSan toilets. Check out our #grinder! pic.twitter.com/7dY5FPJ84f
— SOIL (@SOILHaiti) September 26, 2013
We can’t resist posting pictures of machines doing good work. And SOIL does noteworthy work in Haiti with sanitation, composting and nutrition.
Advocating for ‘abali’ -patience- when Solving World Challenges Through Making: Piantella shares insights http://t.co/pDsJ3FIOyV #makerfaire
— iana (@iana_aranda) September 21, 2013
Benedetta Piantella, the artist and designer who makes humanitarian technology, spoke at World MakerFaire in New York. The link above includes a video in which she shows her water kiosk design.
“What is the Internet gap for women? In developing countries it can be up to 23 percent.” – @sfallender #2030NOW
— Mashable Social Good (@socialgood) September 22, 2013
The Social Good Summit brought together leaders in international development and other spaces, social entrepreneurs and others. We tweeted some of the highlights.
Lots of innovation in “developing” countries that “developed” world can adopt to create #globalhealth – @mHealthAlliance #mhealth #2030NOW
— Kate Ettinger (@katemural) September 23, 2013
You can drone on about the downsides of drones but this drone-powered defibrillator is awesome http://t.co/UIkkXp6q15 pic.twitter.com/HZ2As1RB3r
— Co.Exist (@FastCoExist) September 14, 2013
Drones like this or similar tech may be a way to deliver healthcare resources to people in remote areas with poor road access.
convincing infographic on 7 reasons why #Africa is geared for success http://t.co/7fOiLgFBDU pic.twitter.com/IR5kPqHEg6 thx @Catapult_Design
— iana (@iana_aranda) September 13, 2013
Fluoride, window screens, and 12 other under-appreciated innovations that save lives: http://t.co/6Rt9TDhZDy via @Slate
— GlobalGiving (@GlobalGiving) September 12, 2013
