Today’s Solutions: November 14, 2024

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.

Whole avocado fruit and two halves in a row isolated on yellow background.

The results from the longest study on avocados are in

While always being front and center in Mexican, Ethiopian, and Brazilian cuisine, an avocado obsession has swept across the rest of the world over the past 10 years. It’s pretty much a given that every hip cafe will include an ‘avocado smash’ on their menu, and you’ll be able to spot this Read More...

Seletar airport

Singapore’s Seletar airport considers plans for electric flying taxis

Seletar Airport is the city-state of Singapore’s lesser known second airport. It’s a small airfield normally frequented only by private jets, but soon it could be known for the future of sky travel. Singapore has recently signed agreements that would make Seletar into a vertiport, where Read More...

Sand piles next to industrial machinery

"Sand batteries" could solve the energy storage challenge

We’ve previously written about how water batteries could help address the energy storage challenge facing the green energy transition. In Finland, however, some scientists are working on a much dryer power storage facility — a ‘sand battery’. Solving the energy storage Read More...

Hair loss

Newly discovered molecule bodes well for alopecia treatment

Alopecia can be extremely disheartening and drastically alter someone’s confidence and self-image. The condition affects men and women, and scientists are looking into different treatments and possible cures for the different forms of alopecia.  Researchers have identified a molecule that Read More...

Gas pump nozzle with gasoline or biofuel drop and growing green sprout symbolizing environmental friendliness, isolated. Ecological biofuel concept. 3D illustration

Bacteria-based biofuel offers higher energy density than jet fuel

At a time when the need to replace fossil fuels is urgent, it is amazing to see the results of human innovation and creativity to meet the challenge. Researchers at Berkeley Lab are working on a new producer of biofuel that produces a material that boasts an energy density far higher than jet Read More...

alzheimer's disease on MRI

Scientists find out how Alzheimer's affects blood vessels, a breakthrough discovery

Alzheimer’s is one of the diseases that we haven’t quite figured out yet. So far, there aren’t any reliable treatment methods for people who develop it, but scientists are working on preventative measures we can take to stop the condition from taking hold in the first place. What is Read More...

Single-use plastic

India bans single-use plastics

India experiences worse-than-average plastic pollution with single-use plastic water bottles and containers finding their way into streets and important waterways.  To rein in this pollution, the Indian government announced from the capital of New Delhi on Friday that it will be imposing a ban Read More...

Plastic sugar

This plastic alternative breaks down into sugar

While banning plastics is an important measure for curbing pollution, replacing plastics as a practical consumer material is important.  Researchers from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne have developed a plant-based alternative for plastics that decompose into Read More...

Opioid

New implant cools nerves and cuts pain, reducing opioid need

In response to the ongoing opioid epidemic, medical researchers are developing viable alternatives to pain management. While opioids have proven effective at managing pain, they come with a dangerous risk of addiction. Doctors and researchers are seeking medical alternatives to reducing pain, Read More...

Beautiful turquoise lake in the Swiss Alps

Switzerland built a huge water battery to store surplus energy

Switzerland is famous for hosting a number of scientific and engineering marvels, such as the Large Hadron Collider. Now, engineers in Switzerland have achieved an incredible feat — building the world’s largest water battery. Located in the Swiss Alps, in a subterranean cavern in the Canton of Read More...