The Seven Sustainable Wonders Of The World.

I've never seen any of the Seven Wonders of the world, and to tell you the truth I wouldn't really want to. To me, the real wonders are all the little things--little things that work, especially when they do it without hurting the earth. Here's my list of simple things that, though we take them for granted, are absolute wonders. These implements solve every day problems so elegantly that every one in the world today--and everyone who is likely to live init in the next century--could make use of them without Mother Nature's being any the worse for wear. Alan Thein Durning

1. The bicycle THE MOST THERMODYNAMICALLY EFFICIENT TRANSPORTATION DEVICE EVER CREATED AND THE MOST WIDELY USED PRIVATE VEHICLE IN THE WORLD,THE BICYCLE LETS YOU TRAVEL THREE TIMES AS FAR ON A PLATE FULL OF CARORIES AS YOU COULD WALKING. AND THEY'RE 53 TIMES MORE ENERGY EFFICIENT-- COMPARING FOOD CALORIES WITH GASOLINE CALORIES--THAN THE TYPICAL CAR. NOT TO MENTION THE FACT THEY DON'T POLLUTE THE AIR, LEAD TO OIL SPILLS (AND OIL WARS), CHANGE THE CLIMATE, SEND CITIES SPRAWLING OVER THE COUNTRYSIDE, LOCK UP HALF OF URBAN SPACE IN ROADS AND PARKING LOTS, OR KILL A QUARTER MILLION PEOPLE IN TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS EACH YEAR.

2. The ceiling fan. APPROPRIATE TECHNOLOGY'S ANSWER TO AIR CONDITIONING, CEILING FANS COOL TENS OF MILLIONS OF PEOPLE IN ASIA AND AFRICA. A FAN OVER YOUR BED BRINGS RELIEF IN SWELTERING CLIMES, AS I'VE HAD PLENTY OF TIME TO REFLECT ON DURING EPISODES OF DIGESTIVE TURMOIL IN CHEAP TROPICAL HOTELS. AIR CONDITIONING, FOUND IN TWO-THIRDS OF U.S. HOMES, IS A JUICE HOG AND THE BANE OF THE STRATOSPHERIC OZONE LAYER BECAUSE OF ITS CFC COOLANTS. CEILING FANS, ON THE OTHER HAND, ARE SIMPLE, DURABLE, AND REPAIRABLE AND TAKE LITTLE ENERGY TO RUN.

3. The clothesline. A FEW YEARS AGO, I READ ABOUT AN ENGINEERING LABORATORY THAT CLAIMED IT HAD ALL BUT PERFECTED A MICROWAVE CLOTHES DRYER. THE DRYER, THE STORY WENT, WOULD GET THE MOISTURE OUT OF THE WASH WITH ONE-THIRD THE ENERGY OF A CONVENTIONAL UNIT AND CAUSE LESS WEAR AND TEAR ON THE FABRIC. I DON'T KNOW IF THEY EVER GOT IT ON THE MARKET, BUT IT STRUCK ME AT THE TIME THAT IF SIMPLE WONDERS HAD A PR AGENT, THERE MIGHT HAVE BEEN A NEWS STORY INSTEAD ABOUT THE PERFECTION OF A SOLAR CLOTHES DRYER. IT TAKES FEW MATERIALS TO MANUFACTURE , IS SAFE FOR KIDS, REQUIRES ABSOLUTELY NO ELECTRICITY OR FUEL, AND EVEN GETS PEOPLE OUTDOORS WHERE THEY CAN TALK TO THEIR NEIGHBORS.

4. The telephone. THE GREATEST INNOVATION IN HUMAN COMMUNICATIONS SINCE GUTENBERG'S PRINTING PRESS, TELEPHONE SYSTEMS ARE THE ONLY ENTRY ON MY WONDERS LIST INVENTED IN THIS CENTURY, AND--HYPE OF THE INFORMATION AGE NOT-WITH-STANDING--I'LL WAGERTHAT THEY NEVER LOSE GROUND TO OTHER COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGIES. UNLIKE FAX MACHINES, PERSONAL COMPUTERS AND COMPUTER NETWORKS, TELEVISION, VCR'S AND CAMCORDERS,CD-ROM, AND ALL THE OTHER FLOTSAM AND JETSAM OF THE INFORMATION AGE, TELEPHONES ARE A SIMPLE EXTENSION OF THE MOST TIME-TESTED MEANS OF HUMAN COMMUNICATION: SPEECH.

5. The public library. PUBLIC LIBRARIES ARE THE MOST DEMOCRATIC INSTITUTIONS YET INVENTED. THINK OF IT! EQUAL ACCESS TO INFORMATION FOR ANY CITIZEN WHO COMES INSIDE. A LIFETIME OF LEARNING, ALL FREE. LIBRARIES FOSTER COMMUNITY,TOO, BY BRINGING PEOPLE OF DIFFERENT CLASSES ,RACES, AND AGES TOGETHER IN THAT ENDANGERED FORM OF HUMAN HABITAT: NONCOMMERCIAL PUBLIC SPACE. ALLTHOUGH CONCEIVED WITHOUT ANY ECOLOGICAL INTENTION WHATSOEVER, LIBRARIES ARE WASTE REDUCTION AT ITS BEST. EACH LIBRARY SAVES A FORESTFUL OF TREES BY MAKING THOUSANDS OF PERSONAL COPIES OF BOOKS AND PERIODICALS UNNECESSARY. ALLTHAT PAPERSAVINGS MEANS HUGE REDUCTIONS IN ENERGY USE AND WATER AND AIR POLLUTION,TOO. IN PRINCIPLE, THE LIBRARY CONCEPT COULD BE APPLIED TO OTHER THINGS--CAMERAS AND CAMCORDERS,TAPES AN CD'S, CLEANING EQUIPMENT AND EXTRA DINING CHAIRS.

6. The interdepartmental envelope. I DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY'RE REALLY CALLED: THOSE OLD-FASHIONED SLOTTTED MANILA ENVELOPES BOUND WITH A STRING AND COVERED WITH LINES FOR ROUTING PAPERS TO ONE PERSON AFTER ANOTHER. WHATEVER THEY'RE CALLED, THEY PUT MODERN RECYCLING TO SHAME.

7. The condom. IT'S A REMARKABLE LITTLE DEVICE HIGHLY EFFECTIVE, INEXPENSIVE, AND PORTABLE. A FEW PURISTS 'GREENS' MIGHT COMPLAIN ABOUT DISPOSABILITY AND EXCESS PACKAGING, BUT THESE ARE TRIVIAL CONSIDERING THE WORK THE CONDOM HAS TO DO--BATTLING THE SCOURGE OF AIDS AND STABILIZING THE HUMAN POPULATION AT A LEVEL THE EARTH CAN COMFORTABLY SUPPORT.