PARACHUTE & SEED WEED

Are you favoring quiet, reflective moments this holiday season? Most friends seem to be opting out of big, chaotic gatherings for some true chill time.

My plans are to get outside as much as possible and contemplate the simple beauty of nature. This photo is of a parachute seed caught in kinky curls after being liberated from a dandelion seed head by the force of a 3-year old's exhalations.

Human evolution favors the proliferation of dandelions. This perennial weed grows just about everywhere, all over the world, loving open spaces and the full effect of the sun. Think about deforestation, golf courses and the suburbs. Luckily, if we learn to embrace these tenacious plants, so many benefits can be derived from these beauties. Dandelions are an inexpensive medicinal herb whose roots and leaves can be made into tea, cooked or eaten raw. Although bitter in taste, it is flavorful and and cleans your palate as well as your body.

The benefits of this plant are too numerous to mention, but here goes -- iron, calcium, potassium, beta-carotene, almost all the b-vitamins, zinc, among others; check out, www.wildmanstevebrill.com, for inspiring facts and great recipes. Yummm! A slightly sweet dressing or some shaved parmesan helps the medicine go down. However, if you're like me, you'll welcome the bittersweet flavor as part of your culinary salvation. Better still, through properous and frugal times, dandelions can be cultivated for free! The best times to gather them are early spring (before they flower) and late fall.

Drink a cup of dandelion tea each night to keep warm you and fortify. Cook the greens in a low simmer to balance with indulgent holiday meals. However, the most nutrient rich way to eat dandelion is raw. Here's a recipe for a crunchy, tart, sweet salad that's packed with protein, flavors, and textures.

2 C chopped dandelion

(blanch in hot tap water for 5 minutes, drain & dry)

1/2 C cooked french lentils (salt cooking water)

1/2 C pomegranate seeds

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp maple syrup

1 lemon, freshly squeezed

sea salt to taste

FLOATING INTO THE FUTURE

Floating Pavilion for Shanghai World Expo 2010

In Juli the DeltaSync-team of the TU Delft, together with the municipality of Rotterdam, presented the concept of a Floating Pavilion to the World Expo Committee in Shanghai. The presentation was attended by around 50 officials, several news channels such as Shanghai Television (SMG), CCTV and Dragon TV and a handful of papers (including the Oriental Morning Post and the Shanghai Daily). The design has been received as an inspiring concept that well suits the World Expo’s theme: “Better City Better Life”. Shanghai’s Urban Planning Bureau is currently investigating the possibility of having the Floating Pavilion function as one of the five main entrances to the Shanghai World Expo area.

The floating building features five interconnected bubble shaped domes which house a large auditorium, a 3d cinema, an exhibition space and a ’skybar’, situated on top of the the tallest sphere. The shape is inspired on the natural phenomenon of bubbles, which have an optimal surface/volume ratio. This shape offers an optimized building climate, but also ensures stability on water.

The design is intended as a pilot project for sustainable urbanization on water. A first step to overcome the predicted sea-level rise and a way of creating new space in the metropolitan city of Shanghai. Besides offering a solution for sealevel rise the design intends to contribute to sustainable technologies such as rain water harvesting and Thermal Energy Storage (TES) systems. The pavilion can also be re-situated after the World Expo has ended, in order to receive a new place and function.

Reposted from site Ecoboat. http://www.ecoboot.nl