Garbage

WithaK — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 06:20:11 +0000

Check out some Italian research going into a garbage robot. This thing is actually out on the streets:

Watch out WALL-E.

‘Trash robots are being seriously considered as a viable alternative to huge, inefficient garbage trucks that often can’t fit down narrow Italian streets’ (Gajitz).

Unrelated to this project I also saw a concept for garbage powered streetlights:

‘Doubling as a trash bin, the lamppost then uses the methane, a byproduct of trash, as a fuel to power the lamps’ (I New Idea).

Would You Pay $10 to Visit the USA?

WithaK — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 05:02:59 +0000

“United States considering $10 “tourist fee” to pay for promoting tourism.

A proposal currently under consideration in the U.S. Congress may soon charge visitors to the United States a $10 entry fee.

The fee will go into a fund used to pay for promoting tourism.

The idea behind the bill is that promoting tourism should not cost the U.S. taxpayer.

The $10 tourism sponsorship fee would be linked to the ESTA pre-registration system currently required for all visitors from visa waiver countries. When ESTA was introduced, foreigners were told that it would always be free, and by hiding the new fee as a “tourism sponsorship fee”, the government obviously thinks they are keeping their word. The site currently says that there may be a fee in the future.

A family of five will have to pay $50, just for the right to travel to the States, in addition to any new luggage fees imposed by the airlines. This means a trip to the United States could start costing about $400 more than it used to – a price many people may simply refuse to pay, making them head elsewhere instead.

The bill in question, and all details about the proposal can be found here: Travel promotion act of 2009. The bill calls for a non-profit company to manage the money, and proposes to fund it with $100,000,000 in its first year.”

source: Gadling

Charging an ‘admission’ fee just to visit the US? Personally, I think this idea is completely ridiculous; hopefully it doesn’t pass so it’s just not an issue at all. To me, it seems like money spent by tourists within the economy is enough by itself to rationalize promoting tourism. Also, I know that I would not be very excited to pay a fee to travel to another country… even if it’s as low as $10.

America F*** Yeah: Guns & Hummers

WithaK — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 03:47:13 +0000

‘While the rest of America’s auto-dealers are crying about the end of “Cash for Clunkers,” the guv-mint bail out of GM, and other forms of socialism in this once-prosperous capitalist society, one Chesterfield car salesman knows what a true American patriot needs to make it through this recession: machine guns.

Lynch Hummer in Chesterfield– the largest Hummer dealership in the United States, according to Motor Trend– has opened a new wing of its store called “Adventure Shooting Sports.” The gas-guzzler-turned-arms-dealer proudly proclaims it now offers “the finest in hunting, tactical and home defense.” They have also beat Stephen Colbert to the punch and registered the domain name GunsAndHummers.com.

Jim Lynch, the owner of the shop tells CNN that “he needed a second revenue stream to support his company” (and he’s not the only Hummer hawker facing that problem these days) so he converted an entire showroom into an arms bazaar:

In fact, he isn’t even the first one in Missouri. That honor belongs to a dealer in the Kansas City area who offered a free AK-47 with every truck purchased.’ LOL

source: Riverfont Times

10 Unique Churches Around The World

WithaK — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 02:29:04 +0000

I think churches are always the coolest buildings to check out in cities. Also, I think the whole idea of religion vs. science is pretty interesting. I find the Illuminati and Freemason conspiracies fascinating.

The city I lived in while in Sweden was home to one of the largest churches in Scandinavia; here’s a pic I took of it:

Uppsala, Sweden

Anyways, here is a list I found of 10 unique churches around the world. I’ll highlight a few of my favs:

Cathedral of Brasília, Brazil

Las Lajas Cathedral, Colombia

Chapel of St-Gildas, France