Sprouting phones

British researchers have come up with a novel way to discard old cell phones: Plant them in a pot.

The team has developed a new cell phone cover that's made from biodegradable plastic. That way, instead of taking up space in a landfill, the used phone covers can be buried in soil where they'll decompose. There, microorganisms will use the plastic cover as a food source and convert the material back to soil, explains Peter Morris, project manager for plastic developer PVAXX Research & Development.

As an added bonus, a sunflower seed embedded in the phone cover sprouts within weeks of planting. Now that's something to talk about.

This site has information about other environmentally friendly plastics, including energy facts and classrooms activities: www.eia.doe.gov/kids/energyfacts/saving/recycling/solidwaste/plastic.html

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