This is so cool! A giant marble that can harvest energy. It can do it with the sun, but it can also do it with the moon. It’s been created by Barcelona based architects. Andre Broessel, the architect and designer, says his spherical, sun-tracking glass globe is able to concentrate sunlight and moonlight up to 10,000 times and that the system is 35 percent more efficient than photovoltaic designs that track the sun. This is over at news.discovery.com.
Have you read?
Knit a Lacy Hat for Fall
Last year the Washington Post did a story looking at data from Ravelry that revealed that knitters tend to start knitting hats in August and scarves in September. I’m not quite sure I’m ready for either yet, but if you’re the sort of person who wants to start wearing a hat as soon as the tiniest hint of cool is in the air, you might be ready for a hat like this one.
The Saji hat pattern from Yoko Johnston uses DK weight yarn and has lacy patterns to make it even lighter weight and allow more air flow for those days when you want to wear a hat for fashion but it’s still a little warm for having a solid knit hat or a thicker hat on.
It’s worked in the round from the top down and alternates between a lacy rib and an undulating lace pattern that looks kind of like spoons (saji means spoon in Japanese).
The pattern is designed to use a single skein of yarn (142-175 yards, or 130-160 meters) and because it’s worked from the top down you can just keep knitting the brim until you run out of yarn if you like the fold over look.
The hat comes in one size, about 19 inches/48 cm around and 9.5 inches/24 cm tall, but again you can make it longer if you want a slouchier look or to fold over the brim (or both!).
You can find this pattern on Ravelry.
What do you think about the idea of starting to knit hats in August and scarves in September? It’s way too warm most days for either where I live, and even after all these years I’m still terrible at planning ahead with my projects. Maybe you all are better at that than I am?
[Photo: Yoko Johnston]