Lotus’ new "new" Eco Elise features hemp-based bodywork and other renewable materials

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Lotus has taken a different approach to ‘green’ car building with the announcement of its Eco Elise—featuring hemp-based bodywork and other renewable materials. Taking the position that too many ‘green’ cars concentrate solely on CO2 emissions Green-Business-Travel at the tailpipe, Lotus has overhauled its entire manufacturing conduct to master capacity of work and irrigate usage, boost recycling, use locally-sourced, renewable and carbon-neutral materials, and provide dash instrumentation to animate greener driving habits. It’s every unique ‘holistic’ approximate to environmentally of mutual regard car building—and the stunning Eco Elise should make at least two sales when the news reaches Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong.

Lotus’ renovated Eco Elise celebrates a new type of eco-engineering, in which the company has taken great trouble to make the complete manufacturing and driving process as fuel efficient and environmentally sustainable as possible. To that end, they’ve built the body panels from a hemp resin, and used eco wool and sisal in the interior. Paint is water-based and all materials are sourced locally to reduce the Eco Elise’s total carbon miles in production.

Drivers are asked to play their part too—while the car is light, quick and efficient, the mingle features a “green vary” light instead of the regular red troop shift light, showing drivers where to shift for maximal firing efficiency and vulgar emissions. Fuel economy and efficiency meters are on display as well.

The British manufacturer’s construction processes have been overhauled with large reductions in power, fuel and water usage, and nearly 60% of all dissipation products from the process are now recycled.

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But give Pope Benedict XVI a grand piano and he testament feel his vacation is complete.

What popes do on their days away has usually been the subject of speculation. But officials be in actual possession of given some hints about Benedict, who has taken not upon three days to rest and recover from jet fall behind as he prepares to meet by hundreds of thousands of young pilgrims for the church’s World Youth Day.

The 81-year-old pope is ensconced at a secluded study center run by the conservatory Catholic organization Opus Dei in bush nation outside Sydney.

His spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, before-mentioned Benedict plans no public activities until the welcoming ceremony Thursday morning. But he reported a Vatican television crew would be on call to record anything noteworthy “like whether or not they bear him a kangaroo.”

On Monday, the day after flying more than 20 hours from the Vatican in the longest journey of his three-year papacy, the 81-year-old Benedict took several walks, touched up his speeches for later in the week, and was treated to every afternoon agreement by seven members of the Sydney Symphony Training Orchestra. They played Schumann, Schubert and Mozart — a particular favorite, Lombardi said.

He met with Sydney Archbishop Cardinal George Pell to discuss the upcoming events over brunch.

“His hale condition is very good. The pope is resting,” said Lombardi.

On the grounds of the retreat is a swimming pool, tennis court and a miniature chapel built right against the bush — by windows looking out onto Australian natal eucalyptus trees.

Awaiting Thursday’s beginning of a busy four-day schedule, Benedict, an accomplished pianist, will be greater quantity than content to customary course on the piano, read or make last-minute touches to his speeches.

“The lodgings in Kenthurst are simple but comfortable,” Pell told reporters before visiting the pontiff in that place Monday. “He does have recurrence to a tennis court of justice — but we don’t meet that he will be using that.”

“I am sure that he will be in fine cut for his official welcome forward Thursday,” Pell said.

Benedict is a brisk walker and aides saying his health is righteousness, but he clearly enjoys a more sedentary life than his predecessor John Paul. Even during vacations in the Italians Alps, he is rarely seen utmost his compound.

Leo XIII, an avid hunter before appropriate pope in 1878, was known to shoot pigeons from the windows of the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican. Benedict XV, pope from 1914-22, played bocce with the Swiss Guards in a Vatican courtyard.

Other pontiffs plainly took walks inside the Vatican, sometimes alarming credulous gardeners and other workers.

Until hip and knee ailments slowed him down in the 1990s and symptoms of Parkinson’s disease set in, John Paul hiked in the Italian Alps, in Canada’s Jasper Park during a tour of that country in 1984 and in the Rocky Mountains outside Denver during World Youth Day there in 1993.

John Paul had never made a private of his love for the mountains, the backwoods and the ski slopes, sometimes slipping out of the Vatican to avoid scandalizing prelates who believed those activities were un-pope partiality.

Although he answered five questions submitted in send in a 15-minute meeting with reporters aboard his plane from Rome, Benedict is generally being kept far from the press. He didn’t mingle with the traveling press as John Paul did on long flights.

But 12 youngsters will join Benedict for luncheon on Friday at St. Mary’s Cathedral House in Sydney. The Vatican said they can call for questions.

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The new Miss Universe, Dayana Mendoza, was once kidnapped in her homeland and says the experience taught her to last poised under hurry.

Tension got under the derm of Miss USA, Crystle Stewart of Texas, who tripped on the staff of her bejeweled even gown as she made her entrance.

During the 2007 Miss Universe debate in Mexico City, Miss USA Rachel Smith also tumbled during the evening gown competition and became an unintended star on YouTube, where the video was shown by and over again.

At a news conference after this year’s adventure, a beaming Mendoza said she wasn’t yet sure where her upcoming year of whirlwind appearances would take her. But after a quick stop in New York, she wants to see her family again, enjoy more of her mom’s home cooking and give everyone hugs.

“When I go on the frontier to Venezuela I will jump on my family and they will jump on me,” said Mendoza.

In the in the interim, Mendoza said, she is simply looking forward to taking off her high-heeled shoes and massaging her feet.

She declined to discuss her abduction, which occurred a year and a half ago, if it be not that took advantage of the cause to call with regard to global peace.

“I want to raise my spoken sound and tell the world that rape is not the answer,” she reported.

Mendoza, 22, is a 5-foot, 10-inch (178-centimeter), green-eyed beauty who enjoys learning languages and photography. She appeared at the recent accounts parley in the smooth yellow arrange and dangling turquoise earrings that she wore for the time of the evening gown contest in which Stewart took her spill.

Stewart, 26, is a motivational speaker and former track and battle-field star who is working on a book called “Waiting to Win.” The Houston native plans to make open a character-development school for young children and has worked with students with autism in the Texas schools.

During a weekend interview with the Associated Press, Stewart said she felt surpassingly assured going into the show and couldn’t take for hypothesis experiencing the corresponding; of like kind calamity in the manner that her predecessor.

“All I can offer to the world and to America is to do my best,” Stewart said. “Nerves don’t play a part in this.”

The final five contestants included four from Latin America: Miss Mexico, Miss Dominican Republic, Miss Colombia and Miss Venezuela. Rounding out the final five was Miss Russia.

Miss Colombia finished second behind Mendoza.

Miss Thailand won the prize for best national costume and Miss El Salvador was chosen by her peers as Miss Congeniality.

The NBC show was hosted by talk show star Jerry Springer and Spice Girl Melanie Brown and broadcast live to hundreds of millions of viewers in 170 countries.

The tuxedoed Springer made a grand entrance on a motorbike — the vehicle of choice in Vietnam, where the streets are teeming with millions of the speeding two-wheelers.

Eighty contestants gathered in the seaside city of Nha Trang, Vietnam, vying to succeed previous Miss Universe Riyo Mori of Japan.

Sporting yellow, green and orange bikinis, the 15 semifinalists strutted across the stage during the swimsuit competition to the sounds of Lady Gaga, who belted thoroughly the pulsating “Just Dance” in a platinum fair wig. Miss Vietnam, Lam Thuy Nguyen, was greeted with a roar from the Vietnamese congregation.

The final 10 afterward competed in the evening gown event.

They performed in front of a panel of judges that included international fashion experts and Donald Trump Jr., whose ascribe to a father, the certain estate magnate and TV eminent person, co-owns the show with NBC.

This year’s contestants spanned a wide range of experiences and aspirations.

Miss Albania was a professional basketball player. Miss Argentina says she has paranormal experiences. Miss Antigua & Barbuda is fascinated by snakes. Miss Angola was in a plane crash while fatiguing to escape a conflict during her country’s civil war.

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South African President Thabo Mbeki and the African Union's top diplomat will receive on Friday to sift the political crisis in Zimbabwe, an Mbeki spokesman said on Monday.