plastic
Gadgets

Use Plasti Dip To Fix Stripped Headphone Wires

There’s no reason to say goodbye to a good pair of headphones just because the wires are starting to separate from the headphone casing. With a dash of Plasti Dip, a small paintbrush, and a little time, you can seal up your headphone cables like new.

April 8, 2011
Cars

Ford Inspired By Chocolate Bar For New Lightweight Plastic

It may not be available in the US, but American car company Ford looked to Nestlé’s Aero chocolate bar for inspiration when designing their new ultra-light plastic for their cars.

March 29, 2011
Cars

Fruit Salad Could Be Key To The Car Design Of The Future

Between the banana fuel the Australians are working on, and this Brazilian plastic made from bananas, pineapples and other fibrous fruit, transport of the future might just resemble Carmen Miranda.

March 6, 2011
Geek Out

Those Plastic Bread Ties Tell You What Day Your Bread Was Baked

I never knew those plastic clips that hold a bag of bread together actually had a purpose. The most commonly used system is the one above, where Blue, Green, Red, White, Yellow (alphabetical order) tell you which day it was actually baked, Monday through Friday. Not every bread company does this, but next time you see it, you’ll know. [Wise Bread via Consumerist]

March 2, 2011
Geek Out

Del Monte Gives Nature The Finger With Plastic-Bagged Bananas

If… if only there were some sort of container for a banana. Something that would protect the fruit inside, be easy to open and a cinch to throw away. Oh wait, right.

February 23, 2011
Science

Aussie Researchers Create Plastic That Can Conduct Electricity

Gizmodo AU

In a nice discovery for Australian researchers at the University of Queensland and UNSW School of Physics, the team have created a plastic film that can conduct electricity in the same way metals conduct electricity across an electrical wire.

February 22, 2011
Science

One Man’s Trash Bags Are Another Man’s Heat Source

A Japanese inventor has created a machine which can melt down plastics – such as bags and bottles – into a crude oil that can be used as energy in a home heating system. In one hour, 1kg of plastic (polypropylene, polyethylene and polystyrene… you pick!… mix and match!), can be melted down into a quart of the oil, which is good for a kWh worth of energy. The $US10,000 machine can be purchased now. [PhysOrg via Wired]

November 6, 2010
Science

More Great News: Common Plastics Are Killing Your Sperm

Bisphenol A, or BPA, as its close friends call it, is a chemical used to create plastics. It’s included in a ton of great stuff—water bottles, tooth fillings, sports equipment—because it’s cheap and shatterproof. It also kills sperm.

November 5, 2010
Science

3D Holograms Invade The Fourth Dimension

Holography has just gained a fourth dimension, bringing the prospect of Star Wars-style holographic telepresence into the real world.

October 27, 2010

These Electrolux Vacuum Cleaners Are Made From Rubbish

Four months after boasting of vacuums made from recycled sea junk, Electrolux now has five colourful cleaners to show off. They’re made from 70 per cent recycled plastics, with each cleaner’s design representing the ocean the rubbish came from.

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