Saturday Tweets: Compacted Soil, Bikes and Mirrored Headboards

New research on how to treat compacted urban #soil to help trees thrive https://t.co/tzhvk3pisZ @vtnews pic.twitter.com/x3QwSpKEgS — Thomas Rainer (@ThomasRainerDC) February 24, 2016 The Free Rider myth flipped: Are cyclists actually subsidising car drivers? https://t.co/qQaRd5eubE via @MomentumMag pic.twitter.com/fehEMXKh7B — Darren Davis (@DarrenDavis10) March 25, 2016 11-year-old's LA Times op-ed "My vision of a livable city is one where k...

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Free Permaculture Class

...as the basis for designing integrated systems of food production, housing, technology and community development, you can learn to create a self-sustaining environment, on a farm or in your urban backyard or apartment. The Permaculture Design Course is for anyone interested in gaining skills and perspective for sustainable living and productivity. A Permaculture Design Course is a way to share accumulated information with others. This Introduction...

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Essential System #3 – Sew Your Own Damn Clothes

...tart spinning and weaving your own fabric). Some recommendations for brave urban homesteaders who want to take up sewing. Don’t start with stretchy fabric. Don’t even think of using velvet (we learned this the hard way). Choose patterns carefully so you don’t end up looking like, well, folks who sew their own clothes. Consider purchasing a used serger, which cuts the fabric and finishes the seam all at once, which folks in the know tell us makes l...

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The Technological Disobedience of Ernesto Oroza

...the “Special Period” of the early 1990s people had to improvise their own technology with cast-off parts. Oroza and a fellow artist Diango Hernandez collected these improvised objects: things like TV antennas made from aluminum food trays, motorized bicycles and washing machine motors turned into incredibly dangerous fans (and even more dangerous table saws!). Oroza termed the extreme DIY ethos of the Cuban people, “technological disobedience.” V...

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Filter Fail: How to Cure Internet Addiction

...is an incredibly useful research tool and a great way to reach out to the urban homesteading community. That being said, I just can’t seem to stop watching those dancing raccoons. We may be well past the point where the distraction potential of the internet is beginning to adversely effect its usefulness. Preventing filter fail So what can be done on a personal level to prevent “filter fail?” Only two things have worked for me in the past: Checki...

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