Amazing Inventions! (Now we're talking!)

Ok, check this out!  OMG, Totally Awesome, huh?  Looks like a normal plastic cup but it's actually made out of corn!  Yep, like popCorn, Corn-on-the-cob, CORN!  Yay Corn!

So not only is this cup (non-edible by the way at least I'm pretty sure as of yet), recycle-able, it's also biodegradable!  Which means, if some jerk tosses it out his window while driving down a back country road, it's okay, this cup is safe for the environment and when our kid's kids decide to dig up that part of the country road, they won't find a plastic cup buried under the ages of dirt, rather they may find a nice tree that was fertilized by the cup while it disintegrated and released only good things (corn bi-products, I'm sure) into the soil.

Ok, last word about the Corn Cups.  Just IMAGINE if every place switched to these amazing cups rather than using plastic.  I'm freaking excited about the possibilities!

Speaking of possibilities, now that we know Corn can be used to make things like alternative plastics how about we try something a little tougher...

Introducing the Ford Model U.  It's only a concept car as far as I've read (introduced in 2003), however it is AMAZING!  You may not believe me now, but hold on to your pants, cause here I go on my eco-loving rant of why this car is a hippies dream come true (if it makes it past concept and into mass production).  

My boyfriend actually was the one that told me about this car, so big smooches go out to him for sharing this information and getting me super excited enough to do the research about it.  :)

As I was saying, YES this car is eco-friendly.  Mostly made up of plant bi-products, believe it or not (I feel like I could be on Ripley's as much as I'm saying that, but this is seriously incredible new technology I'm talking about)!

The Goodyear produced tires are made out of a corn based materials (again Yay Corn), along with the canvas roof of the vehicle and the carpet floor mats... can I get a double yay corn?!  :)

"The tailgate and side panels are made from soy-based resins. Soy is also the secret ingredient in the foam for the seats. And, the University of Northern Iowa, whom one may associate with corn, actually came up with a soy-based grease for the vehicle and Shell Global produced the vehicles' oil from sunflower seeds." -- www.hydrogencarsnow.com

So this car is biodegradable as well!  (According to the above stated website.)  That doesn't necessarily mean that your car will break down on you over time while you are using it, what it DOES mean is that if your car ends up on bricks for years and years down the road, or in a landfill someday, or a vehicle graveyard then it would eventually break down and return to the earth as soil enriching properties.  OMG Yay Ford!  So now we don't have the issue of more rust from older cars breaking down and leaking into our ground water or the old metal there to possibly hurt someone who is out mowing or something (yeah, I'm reaching, but you get the point).

Now the kicker as to why EVERYONE will have to own this vehicle... (excited yet?)

 "The Model U uses a 2.3-liter, I-4 engine, the same as the Ford Ranger of that year, only modified to run on hydrogen gas. The engine is supercharged and super-cooled and rated at 151 hp. The Ford Model U is able to achieve gas mileage of 45 MPGe (miles per gallon equivalent) and has a range of 300 miles." -- www.hydrogencarsnow.com

 So it burns cleaner, no gas fumes, no pollution!  Hydrogen only emits water vapor (I've heard), again I'm a total woman when it comes to this part of vehicles (which is why I choose to copy and paste from my sources).  :)

Now 300 miles to a full tank of gas may not be ideal for some people, but it's a cleaner way to travel for sure!  I am literally blown away at how advanced we have come with technology... especially when I discovered that this car was introduced in 2003, and now when everyone is lining up for the next new hybrid I say, it's time to make this concept a reality!  Not only is this car probably WAY better in so many ways from the Prius or even the new Ford Fusion hybrid, it's also quite stylish in Honda CRV (small SUV) meets Hummer (boxy SUV) sort of way!  I'm sure we could even find a eco-friendly paint for this little baby to make it a little more eye catching.  ;)

I'm about to contact Ford and suggest they move toward production rather than leaving the Model U a concept.  I suggest everyone else do the same, let's start a movement for cleaner, greener vehicles!  :)