Composting Public Toilets (San Francisco)

San Francisco has a poop problem – in the city’s Tenderloin district alone, there were almost 10,000 recorded “incidents of human waste” last year, according to the Bay Citizen. So this fall, the Oakland-based design firm Hyphae Design Laboratory offered a solution: install portable composting toilets that are both easy on the environment and cheap, because they don’t need electrical or plumbing inputs. Hyphae is currently working on a prototype which is set to debut in the Tenderloin next year.

The idea was first floated in September, and it appears to be gaining some momentum. The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission recently published a report that looked at the viability of using composting toilets for public restrooms, and it found that the toilets don’t smell. However, the commission didn’t give the idea its full endorsement. “I don’t want to say it’s not possible, but we also have to think about these other challenges,” commission spokesman Tyrone Jue told the SF Examiner, noting that health and safety issues still need to be addressed.

Read the original article here: inhabitat (dot) com/san-francisco-working-on-plan-to-install-composting-public-toilets

Wearable Technology for healing fractures

 

“Smart” Orthopedic Cast
Had an accident lately? The most interaction your broken bones can expect is a flurry of signatures and well-wishes on your cast—nice, but not exactly conducive to healing. Brazilian designer Pedro Nakazato Andrade, however, has something more engaging in mind: a high-tech orthopedic cast that not only monitors recovery but also cues up your own online cheer squad. Using electromyographic (EMG) sensors, “Bones” tracks muscle activity around a fracture in real time, wirelessly syncing that data to a website doctors can access. Online, Bones analyses the patient’s progress, suggests specific exercises to keep the affected muscles active, and extrapolates the time to full mobility if targets are consistently met.

      

By providing real-time feedback and treating recovery like a game, Bones ultimately reduces healing time.

Plus, Andrade’s system incorporates social networking so Bones users can share stories and tips about recovery. “On the website new users can visualize the achievements of current and former patients with the same type of fracture,” he says. “The reason for sharing this information works as a way to encourage new users to engage with their recovery process from the beginning of their treatment.”
Recovery from any ailment can be an isolating process. Bones ameliorates that by creating a community of patients, doctors, and physiotherapists to draw from.
If you want to see the full article go tohttp://www.ecouterre.com/smart-orthopedic-cast-heals-fractures-with-wearable-technology/pedro-nakazato-andrade-bones-2/