The University of Maryland’s entry in the Solar Decathlon is inspired by water. Dubbed WaterShed, the house is designed as its own leafy ecosystem in which Chesapeake Bay area plants play key parts in water filtration and conservation.
Sources: WaterShed team members Newton Gorrell of Charleston, W.Va., and Veronika Zhiteneva of Moscow; University of Maryland; U.S. Department of Energy | Bonnie Berkowitz/The Washington Post 