In my previous post, I highlighted some of the energy- and water-saving initiatives already installed, such as indoor LED lighting, window film, smart controls, and the Pillow-Vac system.

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About 93 percent of 3, 040 large U.S. hospitals used one or more day lighting or lighting conservation features, including tinted window glass (80 percent), reflective window glass (39 percent), external overhangs or awnings (47 percent), skylights or atriums designed to provide light (57 percent), automatic controls or sensors that increase or reduce lighting in response to the level of natural light (14 percent), and occupancy sensors that reduce lighting when rooms are unoccupied (46 percent).

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Heated front- and rear seats, rain sensing wipers, rear-window sunshades, interior ambient lighting and a large sunroof are optional.

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"In ten years, window panes will double as lighting and display screens, giving personality to buildings, " a Samsung spokesperson told the Korea Herald.

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As it happened, the smell vanished as soon as the place warmed up, and it was her husband who performed all the tasks: lighting the stubborn Rayburn stove and forcing open the kitchen window, activating the bathroom plumbing and disposing of the broken-backed mice in the traps.

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From colored lighting and ambient music to digital art (on your TV), temperature, window blinds and specially designed mood-enhanced wake-up calls (like "wake me gently" or "wake me wildly"), you can direct the room's whole look and feel, all without having to get out of bed.

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