this shower head uses advanced nozzles to atomize water under extreme pressure, which converts the liquid into very fine particles or droplets. by doing so, the shower head substitutes streams of water, such as an average shower head, for a misty cloud. this allows it to produce ten times the surface area of a normal shower, according to nebia’s website.

nebia says that on average, americans take about eight minutes to shower. typically, this uses about 20 gallons of water with a standard shower head. to combat this, nebia incorporated technology used in aeronautical applications when producing this “breakthrough shower nozzle.” this advanced engineering and technology resulted in the shower head only using six gallons of water per average shower. nebia has tested their revolutionary product on over 500 people, several large companies, including equinox gyms, apple and google, and even stanford university campuses. the company even received funding from timothy cook, the chief executive officer of apple inc. 

nebia’s shower, according to the website, “practically rains money.” to prove this fact, nebia performed calculations to display the water, energy, and money savings that americans would experience by using its shower head in major cities, such as new york, san francisco, chicago and miami.

for example, in new york, there is an average of two daily showers per household for an average of about nine minutes. water costs about $0.013 per gallon in new york. for a household that utilizes gas heating to warm their showers, it costs $1.007 per gallon. by using a nebia shower head, this could save $226.62 per year, and about 43 days of heat for the average home. for a household that utilizes electric heating to warm their showers, it costs $0.202 per gallon. by using a nebia shower head, this could save $602.94 per year, and about 74 days of power for the average home.  

of course, the calculations don’t end here. nebia also claims that, for an average new york household, their shower head also saves 183,960 glasses of drinking water per year.

as listed on their website, nebia created their shower head to “fundamentally change the way people think about their relationship to water in their home,” while not drastically changing users’ showering habits or rituals. by using the nebia shower head, users can shower as they always have, and save thousands of gallons of water per year while doing so.

with their innovation, as nebia’s website claims: “showering just become something you can wholeheartedly enjoy.”

as college students, we tend to neglect or track our water, energy and electricity consumption, since it is technically our university’s job to cover those bills. however, while we may not be accountable for paying those monthly electricity bills now, that responsibility is right around the corner. thus, it is important to develop the habit of being energy conscious now: not only will these small changes add big savings to your electricity bills down the line, but they will also make a huge difference for our environment.

here are four easy-to-do tips that can help kickstart these energy-efficient habits.

1. unplug unused electronics and appliances

even when electronics and appliances are turned off, they continue to gobble up energy. while not all devices can be unplugged when you’re out for the day, such as refrigerators or digital clocks, it is important to identify those that can be, such as phone chargers and lamps. according to bc hydro, a corporation that operates hydroelectric facilities and thermal generating plants in canada, “standby power,” or power that is consumed by electrical appliances while they are not actively used, can account for 10% of an average household’s electricity use.

2. use natural light

the energy center of wisconsin conducted an experiment on “daylighting,” or the use of windows or skylights for natural lighting, and found that using natural light produced significant annual savings per square foot in the building they tested in. by using natural light to illuminate your room when possible, you will reduce the need for artificial lighting during daylight hours.

3. take ‘navy showers’

these showers were used on navy ships that had limited fresh water. crew members would turn on the water for 30 seconds, shut it off to lather, and rinse off in under a minute: a full body shower in under two minutes. by cutting your shower time, you can save a surprising amount of water and energy. according to the sustainability office at boston university, the average american uses 25,300 gallons of water per year. a typical shower uses about five gallons of water per minute; thus, if you shorten your shower by a mere two minutes, you will cut your water use by 10 gallons.

4. take control of temperature

when you go to sleep or leave the house for the day, set your thermostat to lower temperatures to save energy and money. despite popular belief, it takes less energy to warm up a cold room in the morning than it does to maintain a constant temperature throughout the night. additionally, you can utilize the sun for free heat. open up your shades or curtains during the daytime to allow heat into your home, and then close them when the sun goes down to reduce heat loss through the windows.

by implementing these small changes throughout your daily routine, you will be saving ample amounts of electricity, energy and money. if each individual performs such energy-efficient habits, we will be sparking a collective action on our campus and beyond to reduce our water and energy footprints.

my idea is for a government or forward-moving organization to sponsor design competitions to design a better, more spacious, green and futurist “seating” area for both trains and planes that maximizes the concept of how we use that space more than packing us in like sardines for profit. you could use the standard seating quota as the parameters for the competition, perhaps a $100,000 prize and recognition for the winner. a conscientious government (it may not be ours) can give a tax incentives or contract to the airlines & train that start adopting these cabins that work towards the future and design with health, comfort of the passengers and rethinking of a better space. better design is the low hanging fruit of saving energy, health and comfort for all. it just needs attention, publicity and sponsorship. please don’t leave it to these industries; it goes under “luxury” in their book. make it a public cause.