In the News

Would you sit in something made of recycled plastic, glass and sawdust?

Fast Company Co.Design Thursday, May 31, 2012

Fast Company Co.Design writes about Hanover-based Emeco, the heralded innovative chair-maker that recently rolled out its Broom chair made from recycled plastic, glass and sawdust.

The Broom got its start back in 2001, when Starck conceived of a bucket chair with a curved aluminum seat and backrest embedded in a plastic frame, intended to add a more affordable version to Emeco’s existing catalog. But the costs of tooling and creating two molds--one for the plastic component, the other for the aluminum--led the company to mothball the idea. After partnering with Coke on the 111 chair, a revamp of the classic Navy made from recycled plastic bottles, the company set about finding another way to push the bounds of sustainability through the use of innovative materials. So Emeco’s director of product management, Magnus Breitling, began a quest for an eco-friendly substance made purely from waste, rather than from a food product such as corn. According to Metropolis, “It occurred to Breitling that using sawdust as a stiffening agent in combination with discarded offcuts of a suitable all-synthetic polymer would result in an almost entirely recycled product.”

Original source: Fast Company Co.Design

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Philly VC funds investing heavily in water technologies

Environmental Leader Thursday, May 31, 2012

Philadelphia-based Meidlinger Partners and Enertech Capital are among those who have invested heavily in water management products, which have raised more than $400 million in equity and debt over the past five years, reports Environmental Leader.

Altela, a US company that uses a highly efficient thermal distillation technology to desalinate and decontaminate wastewater, has raised $10 million to date. Enertech has invested in the company, and it is backed by Yates Petroleum and Merrion Oil and Gas. Altela is focused on fracking operations and has projects underway in the Marcellus Shale. Its technology meets new regulations for clean water discharge and has been validated by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and the US Department of Energy.

Original source: Environmental Leader

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City of Philadelphia innovation driver Friedman named to national civic engagement post

Code for America Thursday, May 31, 2012

Code for America writes about the launch of its Engagement Commons civic engagement tool and how Jeff Friedman, the manager of civic innovation and participation for Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter's office, will head its advisory board.

Jeff brings almost fifteen years experience driving innovative practices within the City of Philadelphia, and extensive expertise at the intersection of technology, civic engagement, and governance.

"This is an important project -- with budget cuts and tremendous challenges facing our cities, it’s more critical than ever that we communicate and connect with our citizens in an transparent way. And to do so, cities have to embrace new approaches to engagement," commented Jeff. "Engagement Commons has the potential to help make that happen, and the feedback from this advisory board will be instrumental in realizing that potential."

Original source: Code for America

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Philadelphia woman aims to heal survivors through non-profit/for-profit hybrid

Forbes Thursday, May 17, 2012

Forbes talks to Philadelphia's Christina Stoltz about her social entrepreneurship effort -- a non-profit support and advocacy organization devoted to healing, recuperation and transition and a for-profit fitness boutique.

Together, the participants of this program and I utilized innovative fitness, response writing, and experiential art to transform trauma and heal through movement. Following the 2010 civil uprising in Kyrgyzstan, I returned to the United States. I wanted to take what I learned and try a new model—a new business model and new kinds of programs -- to reach people who have been through what I’ve been, and of course through much worse and for much longer.

Original source: Forbes

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'When art wins, everyone wins': Barnes Museum opens in Philadelphia May 19

New York Magazine Thursday, May 17, 2012

Two New York Magazine writers go head to head on the Barnes Museum's controversial move from suburban Lower Merion to the Ben Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia.

Soon the dust will settle, the feuds will fade, and art will do what it does. Till then, remember this: Owners of art are temporary caretakers. Their wishes are not to be sacrosanct in perpetuity. The move of this singular jewel in the crown to a more accessible location, into a far better-equipped, much more flexible building, allows this monumental testament to art’s possibilities to shine forth more magnanimously and generously than ever before. When art wins, everyone wins. Even Albert Barnes.

Original source: New York Magazine

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Fracking violations in Pennsylvania decreasing according to University of Buffalo report

International Business Times Thursday, May 17, 2012

A study by the University of Buffalo's Shale Resources and Society Institute indicates an improvement at regulating natural gas drilling, reports the International Business Times.

Out of 4,000 wells, the report's authors studied close to 3,000 violations reported to the state's Department of Environmental Protection between January 2008 and August 2011.

Of that number, 62 percent of the violations were administrative in nature and could have been prevented. The remaining 38 percent were environmental and included "major" incidents, including land spills, blowouts, gas migration and venting.

As time went on, however, the number of violations in relation to the number of gas wells dug started falling, decreasing by 58.2 percent in 2008 to 40.3 percent in 2009, and to 30.5 percent in 2010. By the first eight months of 2011, the report found the number of violations dropped further to 26.5 percent.

Original source: International Business Times

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Pitt orthopedic surgeon's study of older runners reveals much endurance

The New York Times Thursday, May 17, 2012

The New York Times talks to University of Pittsburgh orthopedic surgeon and exercise researcher Dr. Vonda Wright about her study that suggests older runners can perform adequately through age 75.

I used to run with a guy who was unhappy with the way his performance had deteriorated over the years. In his early 20s, he said, he had been super-fast. A couple of decades later and about 20 pounds heavier, he had lost that amazing speed.

“Too many miles on the tires,” he would say. His idea was that if you start racing when you are young, you will be worse in middle age than if you started fresh when you were older.

But is it true, and if so, how does it happen? Do athletes accumulate injuries, for example, or just get mentally fatigued after competing nonstop for decades?

Original source: The New York Times

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Evive launches in Pittsburgh, raises $2M in seed funding to break water bottle habit

TechCrunch Thursday, May 10, 2012

TechCrunch posts on Evive, which has launched with a splash thanks to its stainless steel reusable bottles meant for re-filling with water.

So, what’s cool about Evive is that they offer users double-walled stainless steel reusable bottles, which means no more plastic, and lower carbon footprints. In turn, their kiosks filter municipal water, offer unlimited re-filling and cleaning of those steel bottles by way of a patent-pending process that only takes a minute. And everything other than the bottles are free.

Original source: TechCrunch

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Green natural gas well completion technology varies

State Journal Thursday, May 10, 2012

The State Journal in West Virginia writes about the differences in employing green completion technology related to Marcellus Shale natural gas drilling.

"It's not one-size-fits-all," said Andrew Paterson, executive vice president for technical affairs for the Marcellus Shale Coalition of Canonsburg, Pa. "It all depends on the kind of well that you're drilling."

Original source: State Journal

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Penn State-Berks scores LEED-Gold status for Gaige Technology and Business Innovation building

World Interior Design Network Thursday, May 10, 2012

World Interior Design Network posts about Penn State's LEED-Gold certification for the new Gaige Technology and Business Innovation Building at Penn State-Berks.

The building has low flow water fixtures and two button flush system in the bathrooms, which bring about saving in water. The facility has motion sensor enabled water bottle filling stations. It has two 35,000-gallon underground tanks which bring about a saving of 92% in potable water consumption.

Original source: World Interior Design Network

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Gene linked to West African Pygmies' small stature identified by Penn geneticists

Science Codex Thursday, May 03, 2012

A new study of West African Pygmies in Cameroon led by University of Pennsylvania geneticists identifies genes that could reveal why Pygmies are smaller than other neighboring groups, reports Science Codex.

"There's been a longstanding debate about why Pygmies are so short and whether it is an adaptation to living in a tropical environment," said Sarah Tishkoff, senior author on the study and a Penn Integrates Knowledge professor with appointments in the genetics department of the Perelman School of Medicine and in the biology department of the School of Arts and Sciences. "I think our findings are telling us that the genetic basis of complex traits like height may be very different in globally diverse populations."

While hundreds of studies have sought and identified genes that play a role in height variations in European populations — nearly 180 such genes have been pinpointed -- this is the first genome-wide study of genes that contribute to stature in African Pygmy populations.

Original source: Science Codex

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How the Cook siblings built one of America's most-trafficked websites out of New Hope

Inc. Thursday, May 03, 2012

Siblings Geoff and Catherine Cook reveal how they built teen social networking site myYearbook in New Hope over the last seven years in an interview with Inc. magazine.

Last year, myYearbook, one of the nation's 25 most-trafficked websites, merged with Quepasa, a publicly traded company that runs social networking sites aimed at Latinos, in a $100 million deal. The Cooks still run the show and are focused on graduating to a global market. As told to Liz Welch.

In 2010, we had $23 million in revenue, but 85 percent of our users were in North America. Winners tend to be global brands, so we started looking for ways that myYearbook could span the world.

Original source: Inc.

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Pittsburgh among cities challenged by commitment to emissions reductions

The New York Times Thursday, May 03, 2012

The New York Times blogs about a recent case study focused on Allegheny County that highlights how hard it is for Pittsburgh and more than 1,000 other American cities to meet ambitious targets for reducing carbon dioxide emissions.

At first glance, one would think that the county is on track. According to a study published this month in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, total carbon dioxide emissions in Allegheny County declined by an average of 1 percent a year from 1970 to 2000. And the Pittsburgh region’s current carbon reduction goals are, conveniently, 1 percent per year through 2023.

The difficulty here is that over the same three decades, Allegheny County lost one-quarter of its population and the bulk of its energy-intensive steel industry; that’s what accounts for the overall decline in fossil fuel emissions. Per-capita emissions were actually unchanged.

Original source: The New York Times

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Fast Company ponders Philly as America's next big tech town

Fast Company Thursday, May 03, 2012

Fast Company talks to Technically Philly's Sean Blanda and DuckDuckGo's Gabriel Weinberg, among others, about Philadelphia's bustling technology sector.

"Like many cities, Philly has seen a significant increase in all aspects of the startup lifecycle--start, growth, exit," says DuckDuckGo founder Gabriel Weinberg. "I think we're riding the global trend here, but also we've had great community leaders as well." He continues: "Our community is very tight-knit, which means it is very easy to connect with the top people in the scene."

Original source: Fast Company

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King of Prussia's InterDigital explores sale of patents

Financial Times Thursday, April 26, 2012

Financial Times writes that King of Prussia-based wireless technology company InterDigital is reportedly focusing on selling bundles of patents and might consider an outright purchase of the entire company.

The two sources said InterDigital appeared to be less ambitious on valuation this time around. Its expectations last year for the whole company were buoyed by the high price paid for Nortel’s intellectual property assets.

An industry banker said he expected the portfolio would attract serious bids because of the interest among large technology companies -- such as Google (NASDAQ: GOOG), Samsung (NASDAQ: SSNLF), and Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) -- seeking to protect their businesses from patent litigation.

Original source: The Financial Times

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