Fungal organism, main ingredient, psychedelic drug… So far, the only use we have for non-poisonous mushrooms are ingesting them.
It’s fair to say I don’t complete my weekly food shop without adding a good ol’ punnet of shrooms to the basket, however one man has found an alternate use for them.
Using mycelium, Ford has created a speaker with natural sound dampening abilities. The mushroom-speaker prototype promotes sustainability and quality.
A uni student from the UK’s Nottingham Trent University has decided that mushrooms would make a great medium for playing music. 22-year-old Bertie Ford has created a loudspeaker out of a oyster mushrooms as part of his Product Design degree. Naming the speakers FungiSound, the funky fungi device also sends out an environmental message.
Using mycelium (a fungal network where mushrooms grow) Ford has created a speaker with natural sound dampening abilities. The mushroom-speaker prototype promotes sustainability and quality, with mycelium being the largest living organism in the world.
Ford is trying to promote mycelium as a sustainable organic material that has function and form, comparing it to medium-density fibreboard. Ford created the speakers by growing the oyster mushroom around a mould and feeding it agricultural waste.
It is then cured in an oven for six hours, where it dies and a strong outer skin is formed. It was then finished with brass and wood, for a more stylish and presentable touch.
It may be a far cry from a Yamaha NS10, but we reckon it’s pretty tight.
Via SoundonSound
