A group of 40 University of New South Wales (UNSW) industrial design students have developed some futuristic home designs, including some novel space-saving furniture -- like a light weight two-seater couch which converts into an eight-seater dining table for casual sit-downs with friends. The 'Otto Lounge' has four different formations: a compact two person lounge; a couch plus leg rest; couch plus coffee table; and an eight-seater dining table.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/2017/11/20/these-design-students-inventions-for-tiny-apartments-are-genius_a_23280085/?
A 2023 start-up aiming to make recycling convenient and accessible to all is about to go national. The aim is to provide people with a home pick-up option for some of the "trickier" items the normal recycling bins can't handle - including soft plastics. https://wastemanagementreview.com.au/recyclesmart-goes-national/
A Kyushu University study (2021) estimated there were 24.4 trillion pieces of microplastics in the world's upper oceans or roughly 30 billion 500-ml plastic water bottles. Microplastics are tiny, toxic and very hard to remove from the environment. But researchers in the US have discovered that some Natural Deep Eutectic Solvents (NADES) can attract and bind microplastics, making it easier to remove them from the environment. And the N in NADES is key - natural - in this instance, think extracts from plants. https://www.research.uky.edu/news/researchers-develop-eco-friendly-magnet-battle-microplastics
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