This wind-turbine nacelle once sat atop a giant machine in the Dutch city of Eindhoven; designers turned the 10-metre-long retired shell into a tiny houseNestle's most memorable achievement may therefore be its ability to change the way people see an object that would normally disappear at th...
In 2019, New York restaurants turned discarded oyster shells into a unusual plan to rebuild the city’s historic reefsIn 2019, New York restaurants were taking part in an unusual environmental effort: recycling discarded oyster shells for use in rebuilding ...
New York has already restored 200 million oysters. Now it wants 1 billion back in its harborNew York Harbor is the focal point of an extraordinary ecological restoration project known as the Billion Oyster Project. The aim is to tr...
Coconut or banana?Indian tradition categorises communication into three styles using fruit metaphors. The coconut style requires significant effort for under...
Florida was throwing away damaged metal signposts. In 2026, they are being turned into underwater habitatsIn Florida counties, discarded road signposts are being creatively repurposed into underwater habitats. These metal structures are transfor...
- Around 1850, sailors drove giant Galápagos tortoises to extinction, keeping them as live food because they could survive for up to a year without food or water; then scientists found mysterious ‘alien’ survivors in 2000
In an astonishing twist of fate, researchers found tortoises linked to a lineage believed to have vanished 150 years ago. Genetic testing r...
Israeli airstrikes on a village in southern Lebanon kill 12 people, including 2 childrenIsraeli air force conducted two airstrikes in Kfar Rumman, killing at least twelve people. These strikes occurred amid a new round of escal...
Florida dumped 500,000 tonnes of used oyster shells into the sea. It has now developed new reefs, cleaner water and is recovering the coastal environmentOver the past 16 years, Florida has successfully returned over 500,000 tons of shells to the Gulf, providing vital surfaces for young oyste...
Since 2025, Belgium installed 23 concrete blocks weighing 22,000 tonnes each in the North Sea; together, they now form the walls of a new artificial energy islandBelgium is turning a huge offshore construction project into reality. Since 2025, workers have installed 23 massive concrete blocks in the ...
In the 1980s, rare shells linked to Captain Cook were thrown into a university dumpster; 40 years later, the forgotten collection returned to England's heritage archivesRare shells linked to Captain James Cook nearly vanished in the 1980s. The collection was thrown into a university dumpster, apparently for...
In 2020, Zac Efron bought a 128-hectare parcel of bushland in Australia. 6 years later, his sustainable home ‘FutureCave’ is being built with hemp, oyster shells and agricultural wasteActor Zac Efron is constructing an unconventional home in Australia using hemp. This "FutureCave" project incorporates recycled materials a...
Researchers crushed mussel, cockle and oyster shells collected from a Dublin beach and added them to polluted water; the experiment cleaned the water while recovering valuable metalsA team of researchers discovered that discarded seashells have the ability to purify water by removing rare earth metals. Among various she...
In 2013, Robert Downey Jr. commissioned Nicolò Bini to create a Malibu Binishell with thin-shell concrete; nine years later, the 6,500-sq-ft home was completedRobert Downey Jr.'s unique guest house took nine years to complete. This unusual structure utilized a Binishell technique involving inflate...
Science says older eggs are easier to peel, here’s what happens inside the shell as they ageFresh eggs generally have a lower albumen pH and stronger adhesion between the cooked egg white and shell membrane. Research has repeatedly...
In 2000, NOAA planted 500 square meters of cordgrass and added oyster shell on Pivers Island; the living shoreline later weathered Hurricanes Irene and FlorenceIn North Carolina, a living shoreline project has proven effective in combating significant erosion, relying on natural materials like mars...
In 2018, ACS Energy researchers studied cashew nut shell liquid as a potential diesel alternative; the biofuel may be used in compression-ignition engines after blending or processingCashew nut shells hold a remarkable oil, called CNSL, which can be utilized to fuel engines. This renewable resource presents a sustainable...
In 2023, researchers crushed discarded coconut shells into aggregate substitutes, replacing 10% of coarse aggregate produced 34.8 N/mm² concrete strengthCoconut shells offer a sustainable alternative to gravel in concrete construction. Studies show replacing ten percent of coarse aggregate w...