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Venkatesh R

Oct 13, 2014
10:17

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The green house gas, contributed by humans are 1% it has been said, the nature as well contributes to the greenhouse gases, as intention of the frame is to capture the co2, this idea can be used to capture the naturally released green house well, but some time needs to be invested how it can be used for maximum efficiency.

Hanaa Rohman

Dec 2, 2014
01:32

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Thanks for your proposal! An algae forest is an interesting idea and I encourage you to think more about how it could be applied to Cambridge (take a look at the contest guidelines). How does an algae frame help reduce the urban heat island effect? What are the criteria to determine where this technology would be appropriate and how would you address potential barriers to implementation? Would you focus on any specific neighborhoods or types of buildings (do facades have to face a particular direction)? I also encourage you to think about working with the Sustainiverse group (https://www.climatecolab.org/web/guest/plans/-/plans/contestId/1301101/planId/1312601) as they have a similar proposal to integrate algae farms on unused walls and roofs.

Venkatesh R

Dec 21, 2014
03:55

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The concept of algae forest is a miniatures forest, let the photosynthesis be a black box to absorb co2 and purify the air, the strength of algae is they can be grown easily in presence of saline water. Use the vast space to grow the algae by having them in frames, an incremental unit. When we increase the frames in a locality, the combined effect acts as a distributed forest. The frames may not cost much and we can use the green algae formed for generating bio-diesel.

Venkatesh R

Dec 21, 2014
03:39

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The concept of algae forest is a miniatures forest, let the photosynthesis be a black box to absorb co2 and purify the air, the strength of algae is they can be grown easily in presence of saline water. Use the vast space to grow the algae by having them in frames, an incremental unit. When we increase the frames in a locality, the combined effect acts as a distributed forest. The frames may not cost much and we can use the green algae formed for generating bio-diesel. Location Suited: 1)Tall buildings with high level of light illumination. 2)This can be integrated with the glass it self they can act as curtains as in day time many places doesn't us the natural lights. 3)Industry or factory Sites, where the pollution levels will be high. 4)Container trucks, where the frames can be arranged on the sides, so it acts as an distributed forests. With the increase of urbanization,forests have reduced, if we have to keep temperature under control, we need to find new ways or plant trees / to have trees with modified dna. That can grow fast, absorb more heat by occupying less space. Algae frames is the basic version of the idea, probably a start up idea. Going forward some research in plant dna and vertical plantation not only keeps the temp in control, they can reinvent agriculture and energy source as well!

Venkatesh R

Dec 21, 2014
01:15

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The more details can be referred http://randomthoughtsofvramanu.blogspot.in/2014/09/algae-frames-approach-to-reduce-global.html The heat reduction can happen by the process called transpiration in plants, http://www.78stepshealth.us/green-algae/transpiration.html this is an area which needs to be explored with help of people who does research in algae plants/ plants dna. Its been mentioned that algae captures more co2 than trees http://utopianfrontiers.com/2-examples-of-algae-based-carbon-capture-technology-1-co2-absorbing-street-lamps-2-rd-plant-related-technology-followed-by-overview-of-carbon-capture-and-storage-historybackground/

Venkatesh R

Dec 22, 2014
12:23

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As mentioned in the idea, Green Algae have a lot of advantages, probably with transpiration in a small area they can provide better cooling efforts than planting the trees, if this is the case we can use them in vertical plantation with a thin layer of frames. This is a topic that needs some expert guidance. If we can modify their DNA along with other plants such as cactus, we can develop a different breed of Algae that can survive in arid conditions this is some what similar to new breeds of agricultural crops that survive against the insects/worms.

Jennifer Lawrence

Dec 22, 2014
09:27

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These are great ideas! And thank you for also writing to the other proposal creator who has some similar thoughts. Can you update your actual proposal with the details you have outlined in these comments (if you feel they add to your proposal)? Thanks again and wonderful ideas!

Venkatesh R

Dec 23, 2014
10:41

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Thanks I have updated the proposal with the details.

Konstantin Lackner

Jan 22, 2015
04:14

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I really like the general idea! I think bringing algae onto buildings and public transportation is a great idea. One short remark: Is the algae plant smelling? Especially when exposed to heat? This could be a problem that whole Cambridge is smelling like the sea, if there's algae everywhere. But otherwise: Great contribution! :)

Venkatesh R

Jan 22, 2015
08:09

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They are smelly probably because of the salinity of the water, the SustainVerse team can tell us about it more https://www.climatecolab.org/web/guest/plans/-/plans/contestId/1301101/planId/1312601 but this is a basic version, this can be expanded with plant dna manipulation, but again it depends on the cost of the project. This article may be interesting there is a way to reduce their smelly http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/living/lifestyles/704582-224/algaes-benefits-more-useful-than-its-smell.html with help of product EC-504

Climate Colab

Feb 18, 2015
12:58

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Congratulations on making it to the Semi-Finals for the Urban Heat Island Effect contest. Please take into consideration the comments left by the judges and do please incorporate that feedback into your final proposal. We look forward to seeing your ideas finalized in the next iteration!

Jennifer Lawrence

Feb 18, 2015
11:03

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Dear Vramanu: The CoLab had a typo in their previous message to you. The proposal revision period closes on March 1st, NOT the 31st. Below are your proposal's comments from the judging team. Thank you for participating! Judge 1: This is very interesting - vertical gardens and green walls are becoming more common in many places. I'm not sure I completely understand several pieces of those proposal and would love some clarification on those pieces. 1. Why does it have to be algae? Many plants will grow in vertical alignments and will provide cooling through evapotranspiration. Is there something particular about algae over other types of plants? 2. How much cooling would one vertical planting provide, and so how many would you have to construct to see a meaningful difference in temperature? 3. If you want to have a rule requiring private property owners to construct these algae gardens, you need to determine the legal authority of the city to require such a thing. How would you implement such a rule? 4. How much maintenance do the plantings require? Who would pay for them to be constructed and/or maintained? Thank you so much! I think this is very interesting and look forward to hearing more. Judge 2: I wouldn't want to put an algae frame anywhere on my house so this idea seams unlikely, but I think this concept is worth trying to develop. Can you include a rendering of what these frames might look like? Why would I want to hang one up in or around my property other than the environmental benefits?

Venkatesh R

Feb 19, 2015
01:04

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Thanks for your questions For Judge 1 1. There are some research that says algae can absorb more co2 gas than tree, "an algae lamp that absorbs CO2 in the air--at the rate of 1 ton PER YEAR, or what a tree absorbs over its entire lifetime!" http://utopianfrontiers.com/2-examples-of-algae-based-carbon-capture-technology-1-co2-absorbing-street-lamps-2-rd-plant-related-technology-followed-by-overview-of-carbon-capture-and-storage-historybackground/ This should be true with all green algae! That is a huge amount, moreover algae are cheaper. and they grow quickly, compared to other plants more over their size is an advantage, we can use them in walls, and even on the sides of container trucks where it doesn't becomes cumbersome. 2. Though the idea is yet to be implemented, the exact cooling capacity depends on the plants; probably some botanist researcher can provide an approx data. Or you can contact sustain verse team, my idea has lot of similarity with sustain verse, they have implemented some projects, on similar thoughts http://sustainiverse.org/ 3. The first priority is to target industries, based on their exhaust gas emissions, a rule should be brought that so many acres needs to be covered with algae frames, and the algae grown during a period of time, can be used to generate power, algae based fuels, can be the source of energy in future.Then targeting houses even if each house can have a algae based art rather than a canvas art it makes a difference. Please ref the answer given to Judge 2. 4. As i mentioned this idea is to be developed, but there is a team https://www.climatecolab.org/web/guest/plans/-plans/contestId/1301101/planId/1312601 who can give this information http://sustainiverse.org/ For Judge 2 yes i agree, why one would cover their house with algae! , but if we can have an engraved art out of an algae how would it look? we are showing the concern on the environment in arts form, it’s a new way of art, and it can generate job opportunity for many artist, they need to engrave the thin frame of stone, and let the algae grow on it. Think about the cumulative effect of such an algae frame in art form. In a locality!

Venkatesh R

Feb 19, 2015
01:35

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Frames should look something like this https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1mqXBGn5we3U2VwOXVVVllEZkU/view?usp=sharing

Venkatesh R

Feb 23, 2015
04:16

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Thanks for your questions and selecting my idea for semi finals. For Judge 1 1. There are some research that says algae can absorb more co2 gas than tree, "an algae lamp that absorbs CO2 in the air--at the rate of 1 ton PER YEAR, or what a tree absorbs over its entire lifetime!" http://utopianfrontiers.com/2-examples-of-algae-based-carbon-capture-technology-1-co2-absorbing-street-lamps-2-rd-plant-related-technology-followed-by-overview-of-carbon-capture-and-storage-historybackground/ This should be true with all green algae! That is a huge amount, moreover algae are cheaper. and they grow quickly, compared to other plants more over their size is an advantage, we can use them in walls, and even on the sides of container trucks where it doesn't becomes cumbersome. 2. Though the idea is yet to be implemented, the exact cooling capacity depends on the plants; and the way they are arranged with respect to sunlight, probably some botanist researcher can provide an approx data. Or you can contact sustain verse team, my idea has lot of similarity with sustain verse, they have implemented some projects, on similar thoughts http://sustainiverse.org/ 3. The first priority is to target industries, based on their exhaust gas emissions, a rule should be brought that so many acres, needs to be covered with algae frames, and the algae grown during a period of time, can be used to generate power, algae based fuels, can be the source of energy in future.Then targeting houses even if each house can have a algae based art rather than a canvas art it makes a difference. Please ref the answer given to Judge 2. 4. As i mentioned this idea is to be developed, but there is a team https://www.climatecolab.org/web/guest/plans/-plans/contestId/1301101/planId/1312601 who can give this information http://sustainiverse.org/ . The government needs to pay for this, but they may not be costly,as algae can be grown easily, moreover they provide an alternate energy source, so this idea has lot of advantages. For Judge 2 yes i agree, why one would cover their house with algae! , but if we can have an engraved art out of an algae how would it look? we are showing the concern on the environment in arts form, it’s a new way of art, and it can generate job opportunity for many people, they need to engrave the thin frame of stone, and let the algae grow on it. Think about the cumulative effect of such an algae frame in art form. In a locality! Frames should look something like this http://randomthoughtsofvramanu.blogspot.in/2015/02/algae-frame.html

Hanaa Rohman

Feb 23, 2015
10:02

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Hi there, Just a reminder: Be sure to include all updates mentioned in the comments in your actual proposal. Judges will be reading through the main proposal page and may not see any clarifications you make here. Good luck on your final revisions! Best, Hanaa

Venkatesh R

Feb 24, 2015
10:18

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Thanks, i have updated the proposal, in below areas as i didn't find place 1)Related proposals section 2)References section i have some ref to sustainverse team's idea, as they have some working projects, but it seems their proposal has been deactivated, is it possible to share that to the judges ? https://www.climatecolab.org/web/guest/plans/-plans/contestId/1301101/planId/1312601 i have shared their website as well for reference. As they can be able to answer with some realistic data as they have some working models. Thanks Venkat

Laur Hesse Fisher

Mar 4, 2015
09:44

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Dear proposal authors: The Finalist selection phase has been extended so Judges could finalize their comments. The Fellow team will be in touch with more details as they arise. Thank you for your patience and understanding. ~~ Laur Climate CoLab Project Manager

Climate Colab

Mar 6, 2015
12:50

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Dear Vramanu: Thank you again for submitting a proposal to our contest. This project is innovative and creative. While the idea is novel and potentially effective, we decided not to send this forward to the finals. Thank you again for submitting a proposal to the Urban Heat Island Contest! Sincerely, Jen

Vishal Bhavsar

Jun 7, 2015
09:25

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This is innovative idea to tackle carbaon sequestration. Just one thought, algael growth of water bodies results in covering the entire water body and impacting the other dependencies. So could we look for other avenues where this can be used. There could be possibility of these algael growth expanding and creating other issues. Regards, Vishal

Venkatesh R

Jun 8, 2015
01:15

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If we can change the intensity of the light and dampness their growth will be continued, in some places they do grow algae in fields around the industries. But if we can achieve the same by varying dampness it will be a big change, currently many countries are supporting terrace farming, if they can do a small research on this along with some botanist researcher it will prove to be a worthy one! If we can design the frames with the help of building architecture, we can scrap those algae, just like the paints or a banner in the wall and this we can use it as a source for bio diesel. Which gives an alternate fuel in future.

Stevie Harison

Jun 12, 2015
04:04

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Hello from Indonesia, Good luck for your project proposal. Just review and make it completed before meet deadline tomorrow. Thank you,

Venkatesh R

Jun 15, 2015
05:23

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Thanks for the suggestion, we can grow them in ponds,river, and sea the point i want to mention here is by having the algae as an superimposed forest, so it overlaps with the city, in vehicle body, building walls etc so the sq m covered by it, increases and it can absorb the co2 then and there, so it thereby reduces the green house gases by locking it by doing photosynthesis. It is a complex one which involves lot of team to get involved but its worth trying as the Judges mentioned in previous climate co lab competition.