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- Human powered cranes and lifting devices
From the earliest civilisations right up to the start of the Industrial Revolution, humans used sheer muscle power, organisation skills and ingenious mechanics to lift weights that would be impossible to handle by most power cranes in operation today.
Links & Updates
Human powered machines
- Hand powered drilling tools and machines
The drilling tools that appeared in the late 19th century were not only a vast improvement over earlier tools; they also have many advantages over their present-day successors, the power drills. - The velomobile: high-tech bike or low-tech car?
Pedalling a "velomobile" requires three to four times less energy than pedalling a normal bicycle. - Pedal powered farms and factories
Pedals and cranks could make an important contribution to running a post-carbon society that maintains many of the comforts of a modern life. - All articles on human powered machines
Low-tech Transportation
- Firewood in the fuel tank
Wood gas cars are a not-so-elegant but surprisingly efficient and ecological alternative to their petrol (gasoline) cousins, whilst their range is comparable to that of electric cars. - The Citroen 2CV: cleantech from the 1940s
In spite of all the high-tech that has been squeezed into cars since then, the 2CV from 1949 is still more energy-efficient than the smallest model of the French car designer today. - Aerial ropeways: automatic cargo transport for a bargain
These days, we use them almost exclusively to transport skiers and snowboarders up snow slopes, but before the 1940s, aerial ropeways were a common means of cargo transport. - All articles on transportation
Energy Production
- The bright future of solar powered factories
To power industrial processes like the making of chemicals, the smelting of metals or the production of microchips and solar panels, we need a renewable source of thermal energy. - Wind powered factories: history (and future) of industrial windmills
More than 900 years ago, medieval Europe became the first large civilisation not to be run by human muscle power. - Medieval smokestacks: fossil fuels in pre-industrial times
Almost all of the leading economies in Western Europe during the last millenium relied on a large-scale use of fossil fuels such as peat and coal. - All articles on energy production
Energy Consumption
- Insulation: first the body, then the home
Modern thermal underclothing offers the possibility to turn the thermostat much lower without sacrificing comfort or sex appeal. - The monster footprint of digital technology
The embodied energy of the memory chip alone already exceeds the energy consumption of a laptop during its life expectancy of 3 years - The age of speed: how to reduce global fuel consumption by 75 percent
Engineers treat velocity as a non-variable, while in fact it is the most powerful factor to save a really huge amount of energy - with just one stroke, at minimal cost, and without the need for new technology. - All articles on energy consumption
Lost Knowledge
- Recycling animal and human dung is the key to sustainable farming
If we recycle our own waste products, fertilizer production would automatically keep up with population growth. - Tiles as a substitute for steel: the art of the timbrel vault
The "timbrel vault" allowed for structures that today no architect would dare to build without steel reinforcements. The technique was cheap, fast, ecological and durable. - Ropes and Knots
Ropes and knots are among the most ancient and useful technologies ever developed by man, predating the wheel, the axe and probably also the use of fire. - All articles on lost knowledge
History
- Sunbathing in the living room: oven stoves and heat walls
Oven stoves are greener, more efficient, healthier, safer and cosier than all modern heating systems. Why are they gone and how do we get them back? - Email in the 18th century: the optical telegraph
More than 200 years ago it was already possible to send messages throughout Europe and America at the speed of an aeroplane – wireless and without need for electricity. - Trolley canal boats
For many centuries, canal boats were propelled by men, horses or mules on the towpath beside the water. Before diesel power took over, engineers developed several interesting methods powered by electricity: trolleyboats, floating funiculars and electric mules. - All articles on history
- The status quo of electric cars
We don't need better batteries, we need better cars.
"The electrical telegraph was the main means of communication for transmitting text messages over long distances for more than 200 years."?
I hope you meant "...for more than 100 years.", because you go on, only two sentences later, to say that "The first line was built in 1844,", which was less than 200 years ago TODAY, and the telegraph is definitely *NOT* "...the main means of communication..." any more.
Posted by: Anonymous Freak | December 24, 2007 at 03:38 AM
Re airships for cargo - This is one of those ideas that comes up every five years. If I remember correctly, The New Yorker did a story about 15 years ago.
There is a fundamental problem with air cargo: if you have enough volume that you can lift something heavy, you have enough area that wind becomes a problem. Untill this is addressed, airships are a interesting toy.
PS: i thought the optical telegraph from the past was one of the best things I have seen on the web this year
Posted by: ezra abrams | December 24, 2007 at 04:06 PM
Your link "wind up your laptop" does not work. It is an empty link, you did not add the url of the page it is supposed to be linking to. It is an interesting title tho, and i'd like to read it.
Posted by: Kees | December 24, 2007 at 11:55 PM
Thanks, sorry, it should work now
Posted by: Kris De Decker | December 25, 2007 at 12:13 AM
Yeah, and once upon a time I invented a perpetual motion machine, which powered a time machine and I went into the future and saw that all this argumentation was futile, but that the hot air from it could be used to make balloons that could lift aircraft carriers into the air.
Does any of that make sense? No? Neither does any of that folderol about floating electricity generating windmills. I think it's all in the windmills of these people's minds.
Posted by: classics buff | March 05, 2008 at 03:44 AM
This is truly a great site and is somewhat similar to what I'm trying to get across with my blog. I featured an excerpt from your "Right to 35 Cell Phones" article on my blog: http://lowtechtimes.com/2008/03/12/hi-tech-cell-phone-addicts-causing-environmental-damage/
Thanks and keep up the good work!
Posted by: S.P. Gass | March 13, 2008 at 03:22 AM
A suggested addition to your "Download, print, fold, paste" post: buildable cutouts of Chicago landmarks. Free patterns are here: http://www.wurlington-bros.com/BuildYour/free.html
The main site also has a more extensive selection of landmarks, for a very nominal price.
Posted by: Pete | April 10, 2008 at 10:44 PM
Read your article:
http://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2008/02/a-world-without.html
Very well written. But one complaint: How can you talk about underground delivery without mentioning either the Chicago tunnels or London's Mail Rail?
Must say though that all the other systems were unknown to me.
Posted by: Eric Dunn | April 17, 2008 at 04:00 PM
Thanks, Eric. I learned about the Chicago tunnels when my article was featured on Slashdot, together with an article in Modern Mechanix on those tunnels. I must say that I was very surprised that I did not stumble upon this freight system while doing research for my story. Maybe the reason was that the Chicago network was not an automated system: basically, it was just trains driving underground(pretty cool though...). The Londen mail system was initially in the text, but somehow it did not make the final version. Thanks for mentioning, I guess I should write a short update on the page.
Posted by: Kris De Decker | April 17, 2008 at 04:34 PM
Hello! I just happened across your page of things to print off and create. I thought I might suggest you add my site to it. It contains over 800 FREE paper airplane designs. Check it out at
http://www.theonlinepaperairplanemuseum.com
Thanks and great site you have!
dean :)
Posted by: Dean Mackey | April 30, 2008 at 09:11 PM
Hi,
When I was a kid in the U.K I often bought paper cut out books - some of these were UK publications by obscure publishers, and many were by US manufacturers.
One of these was for something which I have never seen since (mid 70's) - it was a sand powered TV...yes...the "kit" came in a large format book with pre-cut sheets and involved using "movie strips" printed in red and green, and a revolving filter wheel which comprised red and green gels.
The sand (if you managed to make it properly...) was poured into a hod, and then onto a water wheel style wheel driving the filter wheel - the whole things was enclosed in a 50's style TV casing.
It was possibly the most elaborate paper assembly toy that I have encountered and I would like to know if anyone else has seen it, or who might know the manufacturer.
cheers,
R
Posted by: ravi swami | June 04, 2008 at 11:03 AM
Keep up the good work.
Posted by: Cady | October 28, 2008 at 05:19 PM
Hello--Referring to the article on why the electric car has no future, it's a mistake to say that more power plants would have to be built. This is because most electric cars are charged at night during what's called "off-peak". My understanding is that power plants don't or can't spin down their generators when demand is low, resulting in an unused electrical potential.
Anyway, there's a lot of reference to back this up. Just search "off-peak electricity" Dale McLeod
Posted by: Dale McLeod | January 12, 2009 at 01:23 AM
Dale, you are correct to say that electric cars can use a large amount of off-peak electricity. However, I refuse to believe that *all* electric cars will be charged at night. A substantial amount of them will be charged during the day, too, hence the need for additional power plants. Compared to other household appliances, electric cars use a lot of energy.
Posted by: kris de decker | January 12, 2009 at 01:29 AM
Does anyone knows other sites on the net with calculating modules for solar radiation? I have found one but the tool doesn't works good.
(http://re.jrc.ec.europa.eu/pvgis/apps3/pvest.php)
thanks from.....
Flanders.....
Patrick
Posted by: patrick | March 02, 2009 at 12:45 AM
this link should work, info or europe and africa:
http://re.jrc.ec.europa.eu/pvgis/
Posted by: kontiki | October 23, 2009 at 01:19 PM