Sunday Papers: August 17

From pink polka dot trashbags appearing overnight to Norway’s new favorite knight, here’s a round-up of news and notes for your Sunday reading pleasure!

Corn Cobs --> Biofuel
There’s been a lot of controversy over biofuels that use food crops as a base — the argument being that these divert food from the hungry and have contributed to soaring food costs worldwide. Now a South Dakota company called Poet has found a way to make ethanol not from corn itself, but from corn cobs discarded after the corn kernels have been removed. This seems to be part of a growing eco-correction away from re-purposed food crops and toward waste products from agricultural production as a base for everything from disposable plates to tree-free paper. (CNET Green Tech)

How green is thy campus?
Campus Grotto gives the rundown on the Princeton Review’s picks for Greenest Colleges. There are some terrific choices in there, including College of the Atlantic and Bates College (yo, PBJ, nice going!). Some of the other choices raised an eyebrow. Harvard and Yale, really? I think there might be better choices, including Daily Mitzvah’s own alma mater. And I don’t think the Ivy League can match Eckerd College’s green take-out containers, which I blogged about earlier.

And now, the countdown to my favorite story of the week:

#3: All I want for Christmas is . . .
Lots of news outlets picked up this story, but I liked NPR’s headline the best: “Muggles A Step Closer to Creating Invisibility Cloak.” Add this to my George Jetson flying car and I will be a very happy camper.

#2: What’s pink polka dotted, smells like Juicy Fruit, and a little bit trashy?
Residents of Greenwich Village and Soho found out recently, when they awakened to streets piled high with big pink polka dot trashbags. The TRASH Project is a “a viewer generated public art installation” to bring awareness to environmental issues through unexpected guerilla/ public art. The project blog has fab photos of oversized pink polka dot trashbags, made from recycled plastic and imbued with a fruity scent to keeps rodents away. I didn’t want to lift their groovy photos, so you’ll want to hop over to see them at the source. (Thanks to Everyday Trash for the link.)

And my favorite story of the week . . .
Norway has knighted a penguin. That’s Nils Olav — er, make that Sir Nils Olav — at right reviewing the troops. With perseverance, hard work, charm, and a certain penguin je ne se qua, Sir Nils worked his way through the ranks, according to Sky News earning the titles of “Corporal, Sergeant, Regimental Sergeant-Major, Honourable Sergeant Major and, in 2005, Honorary Colonel-in-Chief.” (Sky News)

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