A miniature car powered by electricity or solar power, stackable like a shopping cart, able to turn around by 360° and integrated into a network inside an eco-friendly city could soon become reality.
MIT is currently working on an eco-friendly pilot project involving clean transport inside metropolitan and big cities.
The scientists and developers at the university have a pretty concise idea of how this eco-mobility project is to be put into practice. People inside the city would have the possibility to have a more convenient transportation option than busses, subways, trains and even conventional cars. The Green City Car is a clean car that is charged by power stations that are connected to a huge network or even by solar power with solar cells on their roof. As soon as the car is parked on one of those power stations it starts charging. The cars can also be stacked like shopping carts, thus saving space and leaving room for other cars. User cards can be used to personalize the configurations inside the car. One of the most interesting features is the ability of the car to turn by 360°. This gives the car and the driver an extreme flexibility and can change traffic systems significantly.
Watch the video and see how terrific these modes of transport can be!
When we talk about being green, sustainable and ecofriendly, we are
talking about working together hand in hand. Otherwise it would never work. We
can all do our own little part from home by saving electricity and water,
separating garbage, wearing eco-friendly clothing and practicing
Eco-Mobility. If we make
the slightest contribution every day, we can already make a big change. We need to work as a huge team. Saving the
world means helping others save the world.
How is the
climate change affecting us?
Capitalism has created a world in which people have to step on one
another in order to keep growing. So we have stepped on people and nature. That
is why now nations are suffering from hunger and incurable diseases and
ecosystems are falling apart. Massive animal slaughtering, the destruction of
the rainforest and the use of unsustainable energies all lead to excessive
emissions of CO². This changes the world climate and leads to climatic
catastrophes in many parts of the world. The ocean level is rising and islands
in the Pacific are slowly disappearing. Coral reefs
and other plant and animal species are dying in the ocean due to waste and
sewage water being dumped into the ocean by cruise ships. We are interfering in
food cycles as we might be killing the animals that others are feeding on. This
leads to plagues as well as extinctions.
This is not a new
thing at all; this is actually much older than you and me. The term Eco-Mobility may be new, but the principle stems from the
beginning of human history.
Eco-Mobility is basically any environmentalfriendly way of transport. Most of the people on the globe could be eco-transported but for several reasons they are not doing it. This type
of mobility is not only healthier for people who adapt to it, but it is also environmentallyfriendly, as it reduces the emission of volatile organic compounds, oxides
of nitrogen, benzene, formaldehyde, polycyclic hydrocarbons, lead, sulphur
dioxide, particulate matter and carbon monoxide into the environment.
Why is air pollution a problem?
Air pollution may have effects on the development of the
human fetus
Ever since the
industrial revolution, we have been polluting the air relentlessly and without
any shame and everything has been fine one might argue. However, car exhausts
can lead to serious health risks. Once exhaust emissions are released into the
air, they are breathed in and reach our bloodstream which flows through all of
our major organs. According to BBC News, there are 24,000 premature deaths in
the UK due every year to vehicle emissions of which many people suffer from respiratory
problems. Air pollution also has serious effects on the hearth. It is estimated
that one in every 50 heart attacks in London is caused by air pollution.
Furthermore, lead can cause changes
in behavior, harm mental function, lead to memory problems, inhibit important
enzymes, interfere with our cell metabolism and thus slow down the circulation
of oxygen and essential nutrients in our body. Benzene leads to a reduced number of blood cells and might even
cause bone marrow loss. Carbon monoxide also has serious
effects on our body’s ability to transport oxygen and provide the tissues of
our body with it. Due to the exposure to toxic chemicals, the immune system
might start to attack the body’s own tissues which can cause the blockage of
blood vessels and increase the risk of high blood pressure and coronary
diseases. And last but not least, it has been proven that being exposed to
Benzene for long periods of time can cause leukaemia.
Through experiments on animals, it could be shown that polycyclic hydrocarbons can
cause cancer. It has also been
found that air pollution can have serious effects on the human fetus. Evidence
has been presented that environmental toxins can cause premature births. Babies may also be born underweight or with birth
defects. In these cases, the risk of death is much higher during infancy
and those who survive are more likely to develop brain, respiratory and
digestive problems in the future.
