Packaging machine builders will likely have to make some design changes to cope with the new biodegradable packaging materials that are starting to crop up. In this podcast, Bruce Kucera, vice president of Norland International, will tell us how his company created a blow-molding machine specifically for use with polylactic acid (PLA), one of the biopolymers. The key to success, he says, involved a move to better temperature controls. 8:02

Jim Dietz says Plextronics has achieved a new world record in photovoltaic efficiency using a unique plastic electronics technology based on a Carnegie-Mellon innovation.

David Cole, director of The Center for Automotive Research and a former professor of automotive engineering at the University of Michigan, talks about how Congressional proposals to boost vehicle mileage to 35 mpg would affect the auto industry.

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk says the key to interplanetary life is affordability. In this podcast, Musk discusses the production of reusable launch rockets and the possibility of becoming a space-fairing civilization.

Bob Shull, deputy director of auto safety and regulatory policy for Public Citizen, explains why he thinks automakers have the technology within reach to acheive 35 mpg by 2020.

Faster than a Ferrari, more eco friendly than a Prius, Tesla Motors’ Tesla Roadster is a brand new electric sports car. In this podcast, Tesla Chairman Elon Musk talks about the technology behind the car.

Hank Green, a blogger with an M.S. in environmental studies, discusses renewable energy and ecologically friendly engineering technologies in his blog, Ecogeek.org.