Solar Power

I am interested in solar power. I have been studying the subject for at least a decade (from the first solar landscape lights to building integrated photo voltaics). Here are some new technologies that look to slash current prices.

Nano Technology Solar
Concentrated Solar

New Car

I love this design.

http://blog.wired.com/cars/2008/06/bmw-builds-a-ca.html

http://www.bmw-web.tv/en/channel/new

Imagine changing your car's paint job in a matter of minutes. What if you wanted to show your support for your favorite team (Clippers, Dodgers, Raiders, Trojans) and could change based on the season. I thin that BMW is making a mistake by just placing it directly in a museum.

Entry Doors

Close by my house a neighbor has remodeled the front of their house. They added a room and enclosed the area in front of their front door. The newly enclosed space forms an outdoor room with a fireplace. It looks nice, but removed the sense of entry to their house.

Architecturally the front door should be obvious. One designs a transition from the out of door to the interior. The transition can be processional like the red carpet to the Academy Awards. Even tract homes have something to set the front door apart from the rest of the building.

My home has a larger overhang than the rest of the house. The door is set back from the rest of the West wall. It conveys a sense of shelter or transition.

My neighbor's remodel has the entry to the new outdoor space and the garage wall in the same plane. The overhang is exactly the same. The only feature to identify it as an entry is the shape and size (it is the only man door). The same wall has a door for cars, the back of a fireplace, and 5' tall windows.

Plans

I guess it had to happen sooner or later, an architect is offering home plans for free online:

http://www.freegreen.com

From the look of things they are a typical firm trying to differentiate themselves by offering a free base model with customization extra. Their income is supplemented by advertising and selling their emailing lists.

I downloaded a set of plans. It looks pretty complete. The plans are copyrighted so they cannot be resold or modified and resold.