While most of us dump coffee grounds into the garbage (OK, some of us might use them for compost or fertilizer), eco fashion company Singtex has taken three years to patent a process that converts used coffee grounds into yarn. And this yarn can weave shirts that aren’t just Starbucks-approved, but that feature fast-drying, anti-odor properties. (S Cafe shirts look like any typical performance sportswear.)

Now if only they managed to infuse the fabric with a little of the coffee’s caffeine we’d be onto something. [Singtex via Taiwan News via Greenlaunches]

(The magnetic fields, of course, do eventually drive the wheels forward when the energy is transferred from over superconducting fluid that touches the rims.)

The result is, theoretically, a very smooth and quiet ride with a low environmental impact. We just like the design for its neat, rear-entry cockpit and all of the potential we see in jousting of the future. [ecofriend]

Still, this Toyota Prius Hearse plans to unleash its green yuppie fury on Japan’s funeral circuit. For just $US80,000 a pop, you too can ride around (rotting) in the finest of posthumous eco luxury. According to a rough translation and some metric conversion, it looks like this supersized Prius gets 4.5L/100km. That’s really pretty good for a dead person mobile. It’s just too bad you won’t be around to appreciate the fuel savings while giving smug looks to truck drivers at the pump. [Press Release via Japan Probe]

New wind projects made up 42% of the U.S.’s total new power-producing capacity added last year, adding 8.4GW of new facilities into the grid. That brought the U.S. total up to 25GW, one more than Germany’s 24GW.

These figures are coming in from even before the “Obama bounce” expected from the new president’s vows for more clean energy initiatives. Last week, the Senate Finance Committee approved $US31 billion in tax breaks to boost alternative energy supplies and efficiency. [Ars Technica and Scientific American]

Built by Systematica, the PRT system will help keep Masdar (a planned city in Abu Dhabi) completely car-free. The vehicles travel at speeds of roughly 7 meters per second, with the longest routes planned for about 2.5km, and will be located two stories beneath street level. Riders will pay about the same price they’d normally drop on an equivalent taxi ride.

Morgantown, West Virginia has the the only PRT system in place right now, built in 1975 when the cost of the technology was many times higher. An equivalent system to the Masdar one (though to a much smaller degree) is currently under construction at Heathrow airport in London. [Treehugger via Dvice]

The Auto-Eco Light-Control Twin Pa, its full glorious name, boasts an energy savings of up to 62% with its brightness automation. But at $US360 for a 74W version and $US390 for 89W, it had better damn well rain redwood seedlings onto my living room floor wrapped in dollar bills to keep them warm. [Panasonic via CrunchGear]

The Solvatten looks like a standard jerrycan sliced in half and divided into two 5 liter compartments, each of which has a clear face. The two chambers are exposed to sunlight, which naturally heats the water to a pathogen-killing temperature of roughly 54° C. An indicator changes from red to green when the water is safe to drink.

The whole process takes about 3 to 4 hours when its sunny, and 5 to 6 when it’s cloudy. While that’s not perhaps the fastest way to cure water, the amount of resources it saves compared to boiling over gas stoves makes it ideal for making sure some clean H2O will be on hand later. [Treehugger]

The 52, 46 and 40-inch sets have a few other green-coloured tricks up their sleeves too: A presence sensor turns the TV off when no one’s in the room and automatically turns itself on when you come back into the room. They’re also Sony’s first TVs with a zero-watt standby switch.

LAS VEGAS (CES BOOTH 14200), Jan. 7, 2009 – Sony took another important step on the environmental front today by unveiling a series of highly energy efficient televisions.

The new BRAVIA VE5-series models offer substantial power savings thanks to a zero-watt standby power switch, along with motion and light sensors that minimize energy usage without compromising performance.

The 52-inch KDL-52VE5, the 46-inch KDL-46VE5 and the 40-inch KDL-40VE5 models (all measures diagonally) are also the first to incorporate Sony’s exclusive micro-tubular Hot Cathode Fluorescent Lamp (HCFL). The technology helps reduce power consumption by almost 40 percent compared to the company’s other LCD HDTV models.

“Sony is constantly ranked as one of the most environmentally conscious consumer electronics companies in the industry,” said Randy Waynick, senior vice president of Sony Electronics’ Home Products Division. “Our new Eco TVs represent the company’s commitment not only to saving the environment, but also to saving consumers money through lower power consumption.”

Televisions often are left unattended by children or others who become busy and forget to turn the set off when they leave the room. Sony’s Presence Sensor feature solves the issue by automatically turning off the picture when no one is present in the vicinity after a user-set timeframe. When the sensor detects motion, the TV turns it self back on instantly.

The VE5 models are also Sony’s first LCD televisions to offer a zero-watt standby Energy Saving Switch. When not in use, the standby switch can also be manually turned off, cutting power to nearly zero watts. Simply flip the switch back on and the TV is fully operational.

Additionally, the sets feature a light sensor that will automatically adjust the backlight depending on ambient room light. The setting saves energy and improves image contrast by lowering the backlight when it is set unnecessarily high in dimmer room light.

All of Sony’s new 2009 LCD high-definition televisions exceed Energy Star® 3.0 requirements. By employing a range of innovative power-saving features, the VE5-series sets a new standard for HDTV energy efficiency.

On the performance front, the sets feature Sony’s Motionflow™ 120Hz technology for improved sharpness and detail in fast-moving images. The models also offer a USB input for playing audio files from a USB storage device or connecting a compatible digital camera to display photos.

The models are compatible with Sony’s BRAVIA Link modules including the BRAVIA Wireless Link, BRAVIA Input Link and BRAVIA DVD Link.

The models also feature:

o The BRAVIA Engine™ 2
o BRAVIA Sync™
o 24p True Cinema™
o 4 HDMI inputs
o Single PC, component, composite and S-video inputs
o Favourites menu

[Sony]

Wired does not.

Like the Wizard of Oz, the workings are hidden behind a curtain. One thing we do know — there is either cheating or batteries involved. I’ve walked by a few times to see nobody on the bikes, but the lights still blazing.

Perhaps the tree is powered by Christmas spirit? [Wired]