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Sharing kindness through a books vending machine is a wonderful idea that can promote literacy, spread joy, and build community connections.

Concept:

A books vending machine designed to share kindness could offer free or low-cost books with the aim of making reading more accessible to everyone. This could include a variety of genres and formats suitable for different age groups and interests.

Implementation Ideas

1. Donation-Based Model: Encourage people to donate used books. These books can then be stocked in the vending machine. Patrons can take a book by either paying a small amount (which goes back into maintaining the machine and supporting the initiative) or simply giving a book in exchange.
2. Kindness Notes: Include handwritten notes inside each book with messages of encouragement, quotes, or even personal stories related to the book. This adds a personal touch and spreads positivity.
3. Community Engagement: Partner with local schools, libraries, and community centers to host events around the vending machine. For example, organize reading clubs or storytelling sessions where participants can discuss the books they’ve picked up from the machine.
4. Accessibility: Ensure the vending machine is placed in a location that is easily accessible to all members of the community, such as public squares, parks, or near community centers. Consider having multiple machines in different neighborhoods to reach a wider audience.
5. Themed Months: Dedicate certain months to specific themes or causes. For example, during National Poetry Month, stock the machine exclusively with poetry books. Or, support mental health awareness by offering self-help and psychology books.
6. Digital Integration: Create a QR code on the vending machine that links to an online forum or social media group where readers can connect, share their thoughts about the books, and suggest titles for future inclusion.
7. Sponsorship and Partnerships: Seek sponsorships from local businesses or publishers who might want to contribute books or funds. This can help keep the project sustainable and expand its impact.

By implementing these ideas, a books vending machine becomes more than just a place to get a book; it turns into a hub of community interaction, learning, and kindness. It not only promotes reading but also fosters a sense of generosity and connection among community members.

Other Vending Machine Applications

Drop your unwanted candy here and you will get the candy you love from this Reese’s vending machine! What an interesting promotional idea!

About Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups:

Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups are an American candy consisting of a chocolate cup filled with peanut butter. They were created on November 15, 1928 by H. B. Reese, a former dairy farmer and shipping foreman for Milton S. Hershey.

In 2012, Reese’s was the best-selling candy brand in the United States with sales of $2.603 billion, and was the fourth-best-selling candy brand globally with sales of $2.679 billion—only $76 million (2.8%) of its sales were from outside the United States market.

Other Vending Machine Applications

Instead of satisfying cravings, unique giving vending machines across the country are being used to do some good this holiday season.

They’re called the “Giving Machines,” and these vending machines are filled with items for people in need and make donating to charity as easy as buying a snack. All you have to do is punch in the number for the item you want to donate and swipe your card. The rest is taken care of.

Sharon Eubank, President of Latter-day Saints Charities, says the idea for the machines was born three years ago and they were first placing in a couple of locations, including Salt Lake City and New York City.

Whether you have a few dollars to spare or are wanting to give back in a bigger way, the machines feature items of varying prices that you can choose from. Items range in price from $2 to $320 and include everything from food, clothing, medicine, hygiene supplies, sporting equipment and livestock.

All donations go to local and global charities.

“So, there are some global partners, which include UNICEF, WaterAid, Water for People and Church World Service. They have outlets all over the world,” said Eubank. “But in every location, there’s also local charities so that you can buy things that benefit people right in the community where you live.”

In 2018, the machines raised more than $2.3 million for local and global charities, according to Eubank. This year, she says there are 10 locations and the church’s goal is to raise $5 million. As of Dec. 12, she said they had raised $2.438 million.

“But the most important statistic to me is that there’ve been 101,000 individual transactions, so it isn’t so much that people donated a lot, but they donated a blanket or something small and 101,000 people decided, yeah I’ll do a ‘Giving Machine’ and so that to me is the greater statistic,” said Eubank.

Other Vending Machine Applications

A futuristic 15-story showroom in Singapore dubbed the “world’s largest luxury car vending machine” has opened and offering customers million-dollar supercars, including Ferraris, Bentleys, Lamborghinis and Porsches.

The facility is built by used car dealer, Autobahn Motors (ABM) simulates a “fish-bone” system capable of minimizing wind resistance. About 60 luxury cars are displayed in its illuminated showcase.

Customers on the ground floor can choose from a touchscreen display which car they like to view. The car will arrive within one to two minutes thanks to an advanced vehicle retrieval system.

The vending machine format aims to make efficient use of space in land-scarce Singapore as well as standing out from the competition, said ABM General Manager Gary Hong.

Developers have shown interest in using the company’s Automotive Inventory Management System for parking services.

Other Vending Machine Applications

With the temperature in Mumbai rising steadily, suburban commuters have demanded that the railways speed up installing water vending machines at all stations.

So far Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has installed 15 water vending machines on the stations to cater to suburban commuters and allow them to purchase purified water at a much cheaper rate. Besides, environment friendly containers can be reused to refill water, thus reducing plastic waste.

Safety of the machines in India could be a big issue: both from thieving and vandalism. Yes, even ATMs mostly have guards. The fact that the machines can be accessed round the clock, don’t need to manned and don’t require too much space are big advantages.

Sandeep Goyal

Info from WHO

• In 2017, 71% of the global population (5.3 billion people) used a safely managed drinking-water service – that is, one located on premises, available when needed, and free from contamination.
• 90% of the global population (6.8 billion people) used at least a basic service. A basic service is an improved drinking-water source within a round trip of 30 minutes to collect water.
• 785 million people lack even a basic drinking-water service, including 144 million people who are dependent on surface water.
• Globally, at least 2 billion people use a drinking water source contaminated with faeces.
• Contaminated water can transmit diseases such diarrhoea, cholera, dysentery, typhoid, and polio. Contaminated drinking water is estimated to cause 485 000 diarrhoeal deaths each year.
• By 2025, half of the world’s population will be living in water-stressed areas.
• In least developed countries, 22% of health care facilities have no water service, 21% no sanitation service, and 22% no waste management service.

• Will the pandemic nudge Indian retail to vending machines? (Brand Equity)

Other Vending Machine Applications

SINGAPORE – Full-time national servicemen who need army supplies can now turn to a vending machine. It supplies items like zip lock bags, batteries, powder, socks, insect repellant, singlets and shorts.

In Singapore, national service, including army service, is a significant part of the country’s defense and security framework. Here’s an overview of what typically entails:

National Service (NS)

• Compulsory for Males: National Service in Singapore is mandatory for all male citizens and second-generation permanent residents who have reached the age of 18. Females are not required to serve but can volunteer for positions within the military.

Duration and Phases

• Basic Military Training (BMT): The journey begins with Basic Military Training, which lasts approximately 9 weeks (though this can vary). During BMT, enlistees undergo physical conditioning, learn basic military skills, and understand the values and ethos of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF).
• Service Period: After completing BMT, individuals will serve their respective roles within the military, typically lasting for 2 years. However, the total commitment period, including reservist obligations, spans well beyond these initial 2 years.

Types of Roles

Enlistees may be assigned various roles based on their aptitude, fitness level, and the needs of the SAF. These include combat, combat support, and command, control, communications, computers, and intelligence (C4I) roles.

Reservist Obligations

After completing their full-time national service (NSF), soldiers become operationally ready national servicemen (NSmen) and continue to serve in the reserve forces. This includes attending annual training cycles and being available for recall in times of national need.

Significance

National service plays a crucial role in Singapore’s strategy for ensuring its security and sovereignty. It fosters a sense of national identity, unity, and responsibility among its citizens. Moreover, it helps maintain a capable and credible deterrence against potential threats.

The system has evolved over time to meet changing security challenges while balancing the needs of individuals and society. Continuous improvements are made to ensure that NS remains relevant and beneficial for both the individual and the nation.

Other Vending Machine Applications

Anyone who’s ever fantasized about a personal fast-food vending machine to satisfy cravings at a moment’s notice need look no further — provided they’re really good at building stuff out of Legos. The folks at Astonishing Studios, a YouTube channel dedicated to constructing candy machines and food-makers out of Legos, constructed a Lego Vending machine made entirely of the tiny plastic blocks that churns out Burger King Whoppers, Cokes, and fries.

As Gizmodo notes, the machine is powered by a Lego Mindstorms module hidden in the back, and includes a motorized cash slot which will collect five $1 bills before depositing the food.

This isn’t the first time the mad scientists at Astonishing Studios have worked their LEGO magic on fast food. They’ve built a number of other machines fueled by greasy drive-thru fare, including a Chicken McNugget dispenser and a McDonald’s french fry machine.

Fun Facts with LEGO by kidskonnect

• LEGO comes from the Danish word leg godt. Leg godt means “play well” in Danish and LEGO is made from the first two letters of each word.
• Ole Kirk Christiansen was a carpenter. He lost his business and began to make toys out of his leftover wood. He was inspired to construct a small wooden duck toy for his children and when they loved it he put them into production to sell.
• In 2009, British TV presenter James May built a life size house out of LEGO. It used 3.3 million bricks and it included a working toilet, a shower and a bed – which was very uncomfortable.
• The largest commercial LEGO set is the Taj Mahal set. It has 5,922 individual pieces.
• In 2000, LEGO was named “Toy of the Century” by the British Association of Toy Retailers. LEGO beat both the common teddy bear and the Barbie doll.

Other Vending Machine Applications

14-year-old Entrepreneur raises $100K to create First Aid Vending Machine

What started as an eighth-grade project could soon turn into a multi-million-dollar company thanks to a 14-year-old entrepreneur from Alabama and his diligent work ethic.

A decade of playing baseball as a first baseman and pitcher inspired Opelika High School freshman Taylor Rosenthal to create a first-aid vending machine.

“No one could find a Band-Aid when someone got hurt,” Rosenthal said.

When the Young Entrepreneurs Academy — a program designed as a class for students interested in learning how to start their own small businesses — asked his class to brainstorm ideas for a company. Rosenthal’s mother and father, who both work in the medical industry as an x-ray technician and sports medicine trainer, respectively, helped him develop his idea for the machine, which they called RecMed.

Rosenthal’s RecMed pitch went on to win first place in his class, which earned him assistance from startup incubator Roundhouse to develop the pitch for a regional competition in Boca Raton, Florida.

“Have you ever been to an amusement park, and your child falls to the ground and scrapes their knee?” Rosenthal asked in his original pitch. “Then, you had to walk all the way to the front of the park to get a Band-Aid?”

The vending machine allows consumers to purchase first-aid packages to treat ailments such as cuts and blisters or buy individual supplies like bandages and rubber gloves.

In January, Rosenthal went on to win second place in the Techstars competition at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. He will be featured at TechCrunchDisrupt, a startup conference in New York, where he is the youngest person to ever be accepted to the event.

Rosenthal’s mentor at Roundhouse, Kyle Sandler, said he is the youngest entrepreneur at the company, where the average member is in his or her 30s. Rosenthal spends all his free time at Roundhouse, where he even has an office, he said.

“We had to throw him out of Roundhouse on Christmas Eve because he wanted to keep working,” Sandler said. Rosenthal is even a local celebrity, with the mayor of Opelika declaring Dec. 16 as “Taylor Rosenthal Day.”

The straight-A student says he sees a need for RecMed in any “high-traffic areas where children can get hurt,” such as amusement parks and sports stadiums. So far, Six Flags has ordered 100 machines and several more “major” companies are interested, he said.

Other Vending Machine Applications

The Pizza Vending Machines, outside Costcutter opposite Southwark Station, delivers a hot pizza in under two minutes.

The customer pays and then chooses a preferred recipe by using a keypad. The pizza is then served on a cardboard tray ready for immediate consumption.

The vending machine, which contains both a fridge and an oven, can be stocked up to 102 pizzas. During its first day of operation the stock was sold out.

Other Vending Machine Applications