So, this is just impressive.  William Yuan is twelve years old, and lives in Oregon.  That’s not the impressive part, really.  What is amazing is that, at only twelve years old, treehugger.com reports that Yuan has created a new type of solar cell that 500 times more light than commercial solar cells.  Yeah.  That bit’s pretty impressive.

Now, I have no idea how solar technology really works - or really any technology, other than on most things you press a button and then it starts working.  But here’s a short description of the project, coming from the proposal Yuan submitted that won him a $25,000 scholarship for his research.  That’s right.  $25,000 for a 12-year old to do science things.

William invented a novel solar panel that enables light absorption from visible to ultraviolet light. He designed carbon nanotubes to overcome the barriers of electron movement, doubling the light-electricity conversion efficiency. William also developed a model for solar towers and a computer program to simulate and optimize the tower parameters.

Did you understand that?  I didn’t.  But I’m pretty sure it’s really, really impressive.

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I grew up ten miles from Berkeley, California, and thus am well-versed in their hippie ways.  Did you know, for instance, that Berkeley is a nuclear-free zone?  It’s true!  I mean, I don’t think the signs announcing that will help if someone else decides to make the Bay Area a nuclear zone for whatever horrible reason, but points for effort.  Also, what about the Lawrence-Livermore Lab?  But you know what?  I had a point to all this that I should get around to telling you.

Berkeley’s City Council, in its progressive (that’s a better word than hippie, isn’t it) form, approved yesterday loans to property owners for installing solar panels on their roofs.  All joking aside, this is awesome news.  The reason many people don’t invest in solar energy is the initial investment, and this could literally wipe out that problem.  The New York Times reports that the loans will probably be up to $22,000 apiece, and be paid back over 20 years as part of the homeowner’s property tax.

The city is going to run a pilot program first, in which $1.5 million will be raised, and approximately 50 loans will be given out.  Assuming the success of the test run (and I think we can only assume this will be a success), “the kitty could eventually contain tens of millions of dollars, and hundreds of property owners could be eligible to participate.”

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The TakePart Top 10 Weekly Roundup is a compilation of the week’s most notable stories from our entertainment-meets-social-action blogging network. Check out some of our most popular stories of the week, as well as a few TakePart blogger favorites!

Nicole Hughes:

U.S. Media Ignores Link Between Midwest Floods and Global Warming

Top 10 Houseplants for Removing Indoor Air Pollution

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Andy Kondrat:

Dubai to Build Rotating Positive Energy Tower

Bioethicist Peter Singer Tackles World Food Shortage

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Jon Popham:

Americacorps Workers Assist Flood Ravaged Town

Australians “Out-Fat” Americans

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Giulia Rozzi:

Progressive Book Club

Oprah Recommends “A New Earth”

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Gina Telaroli:

Human Rights Watch 2008 Film Festival Update

SilverDocs 2008 Update

The Mindset Six50 is the latest in innovative, super energy efficient car developed by a startup company working outside the traditional confines of the industry. But Mindset is hardly some fly by night strewn together on a whim. Former Volkswagen Head of Design, Murat Gunak has partnered with Swiss Multimillionaire Lorenzo Schmid to create a new standard in energy efficient ground transportation coupled with truly striking design.

The Mindset Six50 mixes power sources creating multiple energy options for its owners. Plugin Lithium Ion Batteries, a two cylinder hybrid gas engine and even solar panels installed on the roof of the car work in unison to provide the owner with a range of nearly 500 miles on merely one charge and one tank of gasoline. Central to the efficiency of the machine is its light weight, about 1400 lbs., from its state of the art aluminum frame. Large 22″ wheels provide for greater safety. All told the car is Marat Gunak’s answer to the major industry players who used to employ; an industry he says has become “too big, too heavy, too expensive”. Expense is the one thing the Mindset needs to work on however, with the first models, scheduled to arrive in 2009 priced at 50,000 EUR or $77,200. But just think how much the DVD player was when it first came out - then take a trip to the Wal-Mart Electronics section.

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Dubai, always reaching for the next architectural wonder, will build the world’s first rotating tower. What’s more interesting than that (though, let’s be honest - it is pretty amazing in its own right) is the fact that the tower also is built with wind turbines between every floor and solar panels on the roof, so that the building will power not only itself, but will return energy back to the grid. This makes the building a positive energy building. Pretty impressive.

Here’s a somewhat overwrought video from the architect/designer that gives some good information on how this crazy thing gets done:

I really should get myself some oil revenue. Seems like it’s a good way to be able to afford a lot of stuff.

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A 100 Mile Per Gallon automobile is being tested by scientists at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colorado. The car is basically an after market assembly of Toyota Prius in which scientists added extra Lithium Ion batteries capable of being plugged into the power grid for recharging along with solar panels on the roof of the car for some extra juice. These two add ons will serve to power the Prius along with its already existing batteries and gasoline tank in its hybrid motor power system.

The result yields a car that barely consumes any gas whatsoever for its first sixty miles on the road, yielding gasoline mileage of approximately 100 mpg per tank. Plus with the average commuter spending only 30 miles on the road per day, the experimental model would hardly ever need to be filled up at all as long as it was plugged into the wall each night for recharging.

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If simply owning a Prius isn’t enough satisfaction these days because now everyone else has one (I hear it’s actually a law in Los Angeles you have to own at least one), now you can Prius to the max by replacing your hybrid’s roof with solar panels to get that extra boost of non-gasoline power.

The roof panels are made by a company called SEV, and are compatible with the 2004 through 2006 models of the Toyota car.

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“Garbage Warrior“ is a new film about controversial architect Michael Reynolds, who has been building radically sustainable architecture and off-the-grid energy communities for 35 years. Our trash is his muse ““ everything from old tires to plastic bottles to beer cans ““ all transformed into energy independent eco-homes he calls “earthships.”

The walls absorb heat from sunlight in the winter, and insulate against the heat of summer. Windows are strategically placed and adjustable modulate sunlight; solar panels and wind turbines generate electricity. Rainwater is captured; wastewater is filtered and reused. Greenhouse areas are used to grow food. The aim is to make the people who live in these houses self-sufficient.

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Although it still might be a bit too cool outside for your favorite spring fashions, it’s never too early for a little pre-warm weather window shopping! There are two things on my radar this year as I contemplate spicing up my spring wardrobe: a desire to invest in more eco-friendly clothing options, and a slumping economy.

Sure there are tons of cute eco-boutiques in New York, and certainly online, but in many cases they just don’t fit in with my budget. However, eco-friendlier clothing options that don’t break the bank do exist. Check out these top five that I found below, and make sure to let us know about other affordable eco-friendly clothing options by leaving comments below.

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Planting trees””now, there’s an eco-friendly thing for a homeowner to do. Unless they happen to block your neighbor’s solar panels, in which case””if you live in California””you may find yourself guilty of violating the “Solar Shade Control Act.”

It would make a great episode for an eco-themed reality TV show, “Sustainability Smackdown:” a Santa Clara County couple who planted a row of redwoods along their property line for privacy a decade or so ago is locked in a bitter battle with the neighbor whose solar panels are getting less and less sun as the redwoods grow higher.

Both parties in this dispute have impeccable green credentials; treehuggers Richard Treanor and Carolynn Bissett drive a Prius; sun worshipper Mark Vargas has an electric car. But with the redwoods raining shade on Vargas’s solar parade, Treanor and Bissett have been ordered to chop down two of their eight redwoods, making them the first couple to ever be convicted under the Solar Shade Control Act.

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