Science
From mathematics and AI to medicine and psychology, The Optimist Daily features the latest news on discoveries, technological advances, and breakthroughs in the world of science. Our Science section is here to engage and enlighten you.
This grassroots renewable energy organization is powered by local moms
One by one, more cities are banning natural gas in new construction projects. One grassroots organization leading the transition to fully-renewable in Cambridge, Massachusetts is HEET, the Home Energy Efficiency Team. HEET advocates for replacing old gas infrastructure with geothermal micro Read More...
Transparent solar cell greenhouses could grow food and produce energy
Solar power is one of the fastest-growing forms of renewable energy, so there are many initiatives that are trying to see how solar can be combined with other industries, like agriculture, to become even more effective. We at The Optimist Daily have already written about agrivoltaic farming, Read More...
Scientists test new technology to clean up space junk from Earth’s orbit
From large rocket parts to tiny shards of metal from accidental collisions and explosions, space junk is becoming increasingly problematic. As these pieces of debris fly around at about 18,000 mph, they pose a real safety risk to the astronauts aboard the International Space Station and could cause Read More...
Covid-19 detecting robot quickly scans wastewater for viral traces
Detecting Covid-19 outbreaks as soon as they emerge helps governments enact preventative spread measures and reduce the severity of the surge. Using wastewater as an early detection tool, a team of researchers from the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) has developed a sewage-handling robot Read More...
Floating seawater reservoirs could help Helsinki become carbon neutral
As humans, we pride ourselves on our ability to innovate and adapt to a variety of environments. This has led us to develop technology that can support civilization, even in extreme environments. However, this technology largely relies on fossil fuels. Now, there’s a global push to put human Read More...
Microwave boilers could help cut heating emissions
Heating is responsible for 14 percent of the UK’s carbon footprint, posing a major hurdle in the country’s journey to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. As the country plans to phase out the use of gas boilers in homes by 2030, more sustainable heating technologies — such as green hydrogen — Read More...
Rivian to install huge network of EV charging stations across the US
America’s network of EV charging points is expected to get a boost thanks to automaker startup Rivian. The company has recently announced plans to build a nationwide network of fast-charging stations that can add as much as 140 miles in range in as little as 20 minutes. Dubbed the Adventure Read More...
World's first airport for flying cars launches this year
Coventry, UK is set to go down in history as the location of the world’s first airport for autonomous delivery drones and electric flying cars. The project, conceived by Urban Air Port, won the British government’s Future Flight Challenge and received a substantial grant of £1.2 million to Read More...
Plants could soon communicate with farmers to improve food security
We recently wrote about how researchers at MIT were teaching spinach plants to send emails. Now, scientists from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore are developing technology that allows for further communication between plants and humans. When plants interact with their environment, Read More...
New technology helps automakers easily convert pickup trucks into EVs
With the auto industry increasingly moving away from the internal combustion engines (ICE), a vehicle innovation company has unveiled a new electric vehicle (EV) component that will help automakers transition towards all-electric more smoothly. Developed by mobility tech firm Magna, the innovation Read More...