I'm a note-taker.

As I sit in front of the computer, whether I'm playing video games or preparing a blog post, I always have paper and pen ready to take notes. Normally I re-use paper that I've already printed something out on. I just flip it over and use the back as a scratch pad.

But the folks at Xerox have come up with an even better solution. Paper that erases itself after 24 hours.

A team of experts from the same company that gave us the laser printer and the computer mouse is making another major change to the workplace with reusable paper which erases itself after 24 hours so it can be used again. The sheets are coated with special chemicals which turn white on their own or by being run through a special printer, meaning text will disappear and allow the paper to be used again.

Designers at Xerox believe that their reusable paper could save the world's offices at least seven trillion pages a year which would otherwise be printed once and then thrown away. There is one drawback: it is not capable of erasing pen doodles or unfolding paper aeroplanes.

Ok, so it would be cool if it could erase pen markings but it can't, so in one sense there's a little bit of a drawback for hand-writers like me. It's also going to suck for the idiot who writes disparaging remarks about his coworkers or boss thinking it'll disappear by morning. On the other hand, though, I can easily see how something like this can reduce wasted paper in an office environment.

There is a downside to this, however. Politicians might actually be telling the truth when they say documents have suddenly just disappeared.

If you're like me and a complete news-junkie, you might be interested in the EcoWidget from Environmental News Network.

It's currently available for the Yahoo! Widget Engine for both PC and Mac, but coming soon is an Apple Widget and a Windows Vista (ugh) gadget.

The widget displays a running feed of environmental news, snippets from news stories, and a local search for green businesses.

Ford has made delivery of a fleet of new hydrogen-powered buses to the Detroit airport, replacing their old shuttle buses.

Ford Motor Company and U.S. Congressman John Dingell and the Wayne County Airport Authority today announced the delivery of two hydrogen-fueled Ford E-450 shuttle buses to be used for transporting airline passengers between terminals at Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW).

Today’s delivery is the result of a partnership involving Ford, the Wayne County Airport Authority and the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG). The project is being funded with a Department of Energy grant that was supported by Congressman Dingell, who represents Michigan’s 15th District.

Now, the buses aren't hydrogen electric buses, which is the ideal, but the buses have hydrogen-combustion engines. In other words, their still burning the fuel, just using a different fuel. This means that they're still creating greenhouse-gas emissions, but at a far lower level than diesel buses.

Some will argue that they should have gone the full route and used hydrogen-electric engines, but Ford clearly states that this is part of their research into hydrogen-powered vehicles, and not a long-term commercial solution in their eyes. As I see it, any reduction in CO² emissions is a good thing, and near-zero emissions is a lot better than current engines produce.

The National Technology Readiness Survey released today by the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business found that American consumers want to spend their money on green products. In it's survey, they found that 71 percent of adults are interested in green technology, but there is a large gap between the number of products consumers own now and the number they say they would like to own.

That's pretty awesome, if you stop and think about it. But what's even more awesome is that a little over half of that $104 billion comes from interest in consumers wanting to buy alternative fueled vehicles. The auto industry could stand to earn $54 billion dollars from people who want to buy hybrids, bio-fuel, electric, or flex-fuel cars.

It shouldn't amaze me, but I still find it hard to believe that consumers are so far ahead of the curve compared to Detroit when it comes to planet-friendlier cars. Toyota saw what was happening early on and came out with the Prius, but the folks in Detroit have continually tried to fight against even higher gas mileage standards, ignoring what market research has been showing them.

The good news is that it seems they're starting to listen, albeit they're mainly supporting ethanol vehicles. That would be fine if we were producing more ethanol from cellulosic feed stock rather than food sources.

We'll have to wait and see what happens in Detroit when it comes to green cars. There's the appearance that America's big three are moving in the right direction, but appearances can be deceiving.

Still, there are a lot of other green products out there that people can buy, and a lot of interest for buying them. Here's a few more interesting numbers from the report:

• 83 percent of adults want to preserve and protect the environment
• 42 percent of adults said products and services that help the environment are hard to find
• 59 percent of adults say they like trying new technologies that help the environment
• 56 percent of adults say gadgets designed to help the environment would be fun to own
• 68 percent of adults like to do business with companies that are environmentally responsible
• 72 percent of adults say they resent companies who say they care about the environment but are not sincere

You can find more information about the National Technology Readiness Survey at Rockbridge Research.