Be the first on your block to express your ego in public space by niftily repelling away the very compound that sustains the life of your planets many organic species. So symbolic it hurts. Its 1950’s redux. Neverwet is primarily acetone (http://toxipedia.org/display/toxipedia/Acetone ) formed into a super-hydrophobic nano-tech particulate then sprayed direct into the environment as an aerosol . The EPA says its safe. What I say, in reaction to “Neverwet” as a maker and as an environmentalist is that the burgeoning international Makerdom community desperately needs to adopt a shared Universal Hierarchy of Ethical Materialism outside the framework of profit motivated capitalist product creation. This would be in the form of a materials chart with properties that could be peer reviewed. It would include a ratings system for environmental impact and a system of workable substitutes for less toxic options that support ecological sound practices for seven generations into the future. There are many more details. This chart would follow as a central tenet the same as that which medical practitioners use. This is non-maleficence or Primum non nocere or , “given an existing problem, it may be better not to do something, or even to do nothing, than to risk causing more harm than good.” -from wikipedia. Being cool just is not enough!! Disposal routes, cumulative impact over multiple lifetimes. We all need to be looking at what we make not just on how it might surprise, engage or entertain our imaginations but also how it might impact our natural world. /rant
