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/sci/ - Science & Math

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File: 541 KB, 800x600, treepod.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5663285 No.5663285 [Reply] [Original]

Holy fuck this is awesome.

Are any of you familiar with this?

http://www.shiftboston.org/competitions/2011_treepods.php

> During late October of 2010, the SHIFTboston recruited Mario Caceres and Christian Canonico from Paris, France, to develop a synthetic urban tree that could benefit the City of Boston – or any city – by providing the functions of a normal tree without soil and water.

>Boston Treepods is an urban intervention which contains a system that is capable of removing carbon dioxide from the air and releasing oxygen using a carbon dioxide removal process called “humidity swing”

>Treepods will also generate energy with solar energy panels while harvesting kinetic energy through an interactive seesaw that visitors can play with at the Treepod's base.

So basically its light up solar powered fake trees that produce oxygen by removing CO2 from the air.
That also have a swing thingy for people to have fun with an generate kinetic energy

>> No.5663291

>>5663285
god tier MA

>> No.5663356

Its very hard to get your attention on this board

>> No.5663388

How can my face hold all these palms? It must be 100 times cheaper just to plant trees at those locations.

White people are DUMB. Always trying to use expensive technology to accomplish the same thing a cheap plant, animal or laborer can do.

>> No.5663410

>>5663388
Honestly, if they'd have used machines to manage their fields from the get-go instead of imported niggers America would be a much nicer place today.

>> No.5663439

I could splice some GFP into a tree for cheaper.

>> No.5663454

>>5663439
>>5663388
>no fun.jpg

>> No.5663480

>>5663454

What do you mean, no fun? Trees can be fun. You can attach seesaws to real trees as well as you can these hyperexpensive yuppie stupid-ass trees. You can climb real trees. Carve your initials into the bark. Play in the leaves they let fall.

Get over your tech addiction. It's disgusting. It's really fucking INHUMAN. Only a tech-addicted yuppie fuck would propose replacing a real tree.

>> No.5663494

>>5663480
Oh, so youre a tree hugging hippie. You mad. Humans have made super awesome tree like thing to make the inside of a city awesome and more livable and fun.

>> No.5663502

This is fairly typical ID / architecture competition wanking.

>Have the barest idea of how certain technologies work.
>Be incapable of calculating basic energy estimates.
>Protoype nothing.
>Produce some handsome computer illustrations.

>> No.5663515

>>5663494
Not the guy you're arguing with but,
you're a retard.

>> No.5663516

Sounds great. Except it must be cost effective somehow. I don't see that happening though.

>> No.5663522

Humidity swing? converting CO2 into O2? I dont fucking think so

>> No.5663525

>>5663515
Im just saying its a cool invention for an urban environment where the only option otherwise would be a tree in a large pot. It would probably make an area really really interesting to visit at night, you can play with it and its actually pretty functional for at least making the air nicer in whichever area its in.

Middle of a park randomly, inside of maybe a mall or on the top of a building in the middle of a large city.

>> No.5663543

>>5663388
It would be less expensive, but these are an attraction.
they will increase commerce because epople will want to go and see them.

capitalism, beetch.

>> No.5663560
File: 12 KB, 467x339, arealtree.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5663560

>> No.5663564

>>5663388
They're basically decorations.

>> No.5663573

>>5663564
And theyre awesome

>> No.5663593

>>5663388
You can't harness solar power from a tree unless you cut the fucking thing down and burn it.

So no, it's not the same thing as planting a tree.

>> No.5663604

Congratulations, none of you have any idea about the process of CO2 scrubbing and how these trees do it a far, far, far more efficient manner than actual trees.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_dioxide_scrubber

>> No.5663608

>>5663593
Nor can you create kinetic energy in a fun way with your date while walking through the park with a date

>> No.5663636

>>5663604
Forcing a fluid through a filter isn't the same as the wind blowing across a pretty surface.

>> No.5663638

>>5663480
Can we use both? Christ, take it easy. There's nothing wrong with building a couple of artificial trees. They look pretty cool as well, but that is subjective I suppose.
It's cheap to plant a tree, but it takes years to grow. It's expensive to build a "treepod" or whatever, but it takes much less time to do so. Do you want to save money, or do you want to save time?
Both "treepods" and real trees require maintenance. It would be interesting to see what the cost ratio for maintenance would be. I assume trees cost much less to maintain, even with the cost of removal at the end of its life.
On the plus side, treepods wouldn't shed in the fall. They would also provide oxygen year-round, like an evergreen.

>> No.5663653

IT LOOKS LIKE FUCKING SHIT. SERIOUSLY FUCK FUCK AND FUCK. STOP TRYING TO FIGHT NATURE PLEASE SHIFTBOSTON YOU CHRIST DENYING MONGRERS.

>> No.5663713

>>5663285
Reminds me of that one glowing Basidiomycota.

>> No.5663736

I don't object to the concept, nor to the aesthetics.

But it's an ID competition. There's nothing to say that these will work as they appear to. Look at the 3 or 4 posters. No calculations. Just a few very general terms. ID people don't give one flying fuck if or how or why something works.

Look at these pretty fucking shoes I drew! Every step generates piezoelectric energy! Put them on in your bedroom, and walk to your car. If your house has stairs, you'll generate enough power to drive from New York to Boston!

>> No.5663751

>>5663608
>Nor can you create kinetic energy in a fun way with your date while walking through the park with a date

Assuming that walking with your date is enjoyable, that's exactly what you're doing.

>> No.5663765
File: 10 KB, 227x261, 1355248388354.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5663765

>>5663751
Quit being a wet blanket. You know what I mean.

>> No.5663783

>>5663516
>Sounds great. Except it must be cost effective somehow. I don't see that happening though.

Actually, you always ASSUME the opposite; that a natural tree is vastly more cost-effective.

Assuming some techno-bullshit is cost effective, especially when it promises so much, is just insipid.

>> No.5663800

>>5663593
>You can't harness solar power from a tree unless you cut the fucking thing down and burn it.

You also can't 'harness' (stupid word for this; not blaming you)
solar power from this --
notice it is supposed to use the power for the filtration, the media show, and for lighting.
Expecting anything significant left over is just silly.

>> No.5663808

>>5663800
Its just to power the tree itself

>> No.5663813

>>5663604
>Congratulations, none of you have any idea about the process of CO2 scrubbing and how these trees do it a far, far, far more efficient manner than actual trees.

You don't know anything about what these trees do, either -- the articles don't specify anything like that, least of all actual quantities and values.

But assuming they work far more efficiently certainly means you are ignoring massive problems here:
they need to be fed
they need to be maintained
they do much less than a tree (because CO2 isn't the only thing trees convert!)
they need to be built, and installed.
they do not propagate

>> No.5663824

>>5663638
>Can we use both?
No, that's part of the problem.
In any single space, you CANNOT put both a tree and a tree-pod.
Obviously, you want the better solution in all locations (unless you are just supposing this as an art project, make a little park with a few of them).

>There's nothing wrong with building a couple of artificial trees. They look pretty cool as well, but that is subjective I suppose.
Absolutely -- they are interesting, beautiful, and might spark imagination or even respect.
But they are being SOLD to that city as something different from those.

>They would also provide oxygen year-round, like an evergreen.
I assume the filter needs replacing and that there is a catalyst compound in it;
so, it actually does nothing at any time of the year for free.

>> No.5663867

>>5663388
Why build power plants when you could just have a thousand people run on hamster wheels?

Why build a car when you can walk?

The point is although this may not be practical technology today, or cost effective, it is knowledge gained. Someday in the future it may find other applications, for now let's just showcase it.

I hope, i REALLY hope, most people simply are doing this because it is interesting/amusing, and they really know that it is just a exhibition.

>> No.5663884

>>5663783
I agree. We're gonna be planting trees for awhile.

>> No.5663948

>>5663867
>I hope, i REALLY hope, most people simply are doing this because it is interesting/amusing, and they really know that it is just a exhibition.

I do, too -- it looks great in the artwork.
But, obviously, it is likely to be smashed by cars (for someone's 'fun')
and spray-painted,
and people will climb them,
someone will hang a swing from it...

it just begs for abuse.

But, even worse is the stupid scam that they are selling this as an eco-solution.
You could get some dumb politician to support this, just because it is visible!

>> No.5663971

>>5663388

Yes...all those white people are dumb..

all those white people that invented most of the shit you see around you.

angry jealous butthurt nigger is mad.

>> No.5663998

This is pretty cool actually. Maybe next we can create some sort of self-propelled bioreactor for making milk. Ideally it would be able to move around autonomously and collect raw materials on its own. Perhaps cellulose, or even some kind of plant matter?

>> No.5663997

I'm surprised no one's said it yet...

>LeX

>> No.5664001

3 year old news of something "in development"

It's not actually a real thing that exists.

>> No.5664004

>>5663783
its cost-effectiveness improves as natural trees become more unsustainable in hopelessly more and more polluted urban environments.

>> No.5664010

>>5664004

Tree hardly give a shit about air pollution.

>> No.5664060

>>5664004
>its cost-effectiveness improves as natural trees become more unsustainable in hopelessly more and more polluted urban environments.

Perhaps, but nothing else solves that contingency, either.
Yes, trees can become polluted and dead.
But we can never build anything that will help more -- it's chasing a rainbow, trading one pollutant (solution) for many other pollutants or consequences.

The only solutions that can help us in improving the environment are botanical.

We need to find more places to put trees, bushes, grass -- and the best part is we like having them around!
We also know about many useful algae which are good at filtering, at sequestering, and at gas conversions. We just need to start applying them.

>> No.5664075

>>5663971

Not that anon, but he does have a point.

While the treepods have a nice aesthetic to them you do have to wonder why not place more focus on genetically engineering trees instead of "building" them.

Designing a tree through genetic engineering would seem far more effective in both design and usefulness than manufacturing one.

Unless the whole point of them is to avoid general decay and deciduous. The treepod usefulness seems to only maximize when natural trees can't survive or adapt to the given environment they are need in.

And personally while I don't believe the "current" urban setting is that hostile I can see a time where it could be. So op's enthusiasm for it isn't completely without merit. I would find it somewhat interesting if we could use them in arctic environments and make it more habitable in the future.

>> No.5664078

>>5664075
>Unless the whole point of them is to avoid general decay and deciduous.
I tried to think of something undesirable about trees, and could not.
The worst two characteristics seem to be:
they can die (offset by their very low maintenance)
they 'shed' (unimportant, as nothing that drops from them is a pollutant)

>The treepod usefulness seems to only maximize when natural trees can't survive or adapt to the given environment they are need in.

There are lots of good ways to protect a tree's standing pot; not so many to protect the leaves.
But hell, if we get to the point where a tree cannot survive in open weather, we're on a very slippery downslope.
Which is why environmentalism is so important long before that 'slopiness.'

>> No.5664108

1) Unconventional
2) Fragile

>> No.5664155

>>5663388
that's why arent rich niggers. i'm sure a wooden dirt tent and hunting some gazelle works better

>> No.5664154

>>5663410
this.

>> No.5665707

Bump

>> No.5665787
File: 611 KB, 960x1299, 1346433795497.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5665787

>>5663480
>It's really fucking INHUMAN

>> No.5665792

>>5663593

Then put innovative solar wraps on tree limbs.

Why you morons are avoiding real trees, for all their existing advantages, boggles my mind.

>> No.5665801

>>5665787

WE AM GO TOO FAR
YOU MAKE NOT-TREE, PLAY GOD

>> No.5665868

>>5665792
I think the only way these could be usefull (assuming they actually work and arn't just fancy pictures an "concept" design" is if we made settlements were we needed to recycle oxygen but couldn't wait for trees to grow, for example if we made a permanent settlement on mars (not sure why we'd need to do that but MUH SPACE)

>> No.5666642

How long can you make threads last on here?

>> No.5666652

>>5666642
a long time, almost as long as you've been rocking the sexy neckbeard LeX

>> No.5666670

>a little extra padding

>> No.5666700

Great thread bump.

>> No.5666746
File: 482 KB, 672x537, NO i dont want that.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5666746

>>5664075
>put robot trees in the Arctic
>in a few centuries the Arctic has Mediterranean climate
>planetary climate is now like it was when dinosaurs lived
>bugs become 3-foot monsters and dethrone humans as apex species

Fucking bug apologists get off my /sci/.

>> No.5666758

>>5663285

Not science.

It's just a fancy rendering

>> No.5666760

>>5663388
>plant, animal or laborer
>energy efficient

You're fucking stupid.

>> No.5666763
File: 24 KB, 210x200, 1357823608790.gif [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5666763

DAILY REMINDER

YOU CAN PUT FAKE TREES ON MARS

>> No.5667668

>>5666763

You can build fake trees to package into a large container spike. You can use a space based rail gun to shoot hundreds of these at specific areas on the Martian surface, they will impale themselves into the ground and unfold into the scrubber device.

If we land 100,000 of these trees the environment could have a good kickstart to the terraforming process. An atmosphere could be generated in less than 500 years,