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.
New desalination technology turns brine into valuable chemicals
Desalination plants around the world produce about 27 billion gallons of drinking water each day. This drought-proof approach of converting brackish or salt water to potable water is costly because it requires a lot of energy, but new research outlines an efficient method for transforming water Read More...
New bionic eye could restore sight and even offer night vision
As we’ve talked about on The Optimist Daily, prosthesis technology has come a long way in recent years, but the human eye has always been difficult to replicate. Now, scientists have designed a prototype for the first 3D artificial bionic eye, which could let users see better than with the real Read More...
Scientists harness renewable energy using water vapour in the air
Renewables are about to welcome a new member into the family of clean energy sources, thanks to researchers in Israel who have managed to generate a voltage using water vapor in the atmosphere. The concept of humidity as a source of energy is based on a recent study in the journal Nature that Read More...
Scientists map an entire ancient Roman city using only radar technology
We have previously written about how high-tech laser scanners have enabled scientists to discover the oldest and largest known structure built by the Mayans. Equipped with similar state-of-the-art technology, a group of archaeologists has managed to map an entire ancient Roman city while it’s Read More...
Australian fault lines could help us predict future earthquakes
If you live in an earthquake prone area, you know one of the scariest aspects is not knowing when “the big one” will hit. Scientists in Australia may be able to help with that. Researchers in Uluru think they may be able to predict earthquake location and size based on surrounding geologic Read More...
Drone delivery service will soon start dropping books to kids in Virginia
For many school librarians, getting kids to read over the summer can be a challenge, but a librarian in Christiansburg, Virginia, has found an ingenious way to get kids to read more: drones. In a hope that watching a drone deliver books to their house will entice kids to read more, middle-school Read More...
Wow: Scientists created a 3D heart model that shows the heart’s neurons
Everyone knows that the heart’s critical role is circulating oxygen and blood throughout the body — a role that is maintained in the brain through a network of nerves between the brain and the heart. Damage to those nerves could cause a heart attack, heart disease, or even death. But what Read More...
How food delivery apps could make our eating habits greener
Even before COVID-19 struck, food delivery apps were gaining popularity. With people stuck at home and restaurants closed, demand for services like DoorDash, Grubhub, Seamless, and Uber Eats has skyrocketed, leading environmental thinkers from GreenBiz believe this has potential for making our Read More...
Britain’s coal-free streak is still going as renewables beat fossil fuels
Back in April, we published a story detailing how the UK had gone 18 days without using coal energy. Now we’re in June—and guess what? That coal-free streak is still going. Midnight on Wednesday marked two full months without burning coal to generate power, an incredible streak for a country Read More...
Google Maps unveils new updates to help you travel safely in COVID-19 era
Even though lockdown orders are being eased, we still want to carry on living safely by avoiding close contact with too many people. That’s why Google has rolled out two new features for its Maps app meant to help users get around safely in the time of COVID-19, according to a new post on the Read More...