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.
Researchers found a way to keep buildings cool without air-conditioners
Air-conditioning systems gobble up about 6 percent of the electricity generated in America, raising emissions of greenhouse gasses in the form of carbon dioxide from burning power-station fuel. Not only that, but the refrigerants used in air-conditioning systems are also detrimental to the Earth. Read More...
UK offshore wind 'will lower energy bills' more than nuclear
Offshore windfarms could provide cheaper power than Britain’s new wave of nuclear power stations, a leading figure in the wind industry has claimed. Speaking to the Guardian, Hugh McNeal, the chief executive of trade body RenewableUK, said he expected that offshore windfarms would secure a deal Read More...
Big energy hugely underestimates electric cars, renewable power
Mass adoption of electric cars and renewable energy could significantly decrease global consumption of fossil fuels. But does the established energy industry view these new developments as a threat? In a recent report, ExxonMobil said coal could continue to provide the majority of the world's Read More...
Iran approves $3 billion worth of foreign renewable energy investments
Iran’s Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian said earlier this week that the Finance Ministry had approved foreign investments in the country’s renewable energy industry worth $3 billion. “Iran intends to launch a large-scale project to construct renewable energy power plants over the Read More...
Renewable energy continues to beat fossil fuels
Clean energy grew at a record pace as the United States added 22GW of capacity — the equivalent of 11 Hoover Dams — to the grid from renewable sources Read More...
Plug Power fuel cell engines power FedEx
Plug Power has shipped the first production ProGen fuel cell engines for use in electric delivery vehicles. The ProGen engines in this deal are destined for courier service company FedEx Freight delivery vans in the greater Los Angeles area and will more than double the fleet’s range of Read More...
Taiwanese farmers turn their damaged fields into solar farms
Across the world, farmers are discovering a new "crop" they can cultivate on their fields: solar panels and windmills to generate electricity. In Taiwan, many farmers are dealing with changing soil conditions that have rendered entire fields of soil useless. That's why they are leasing their land Read More...
Nigeria is tackling election fraud with this solar-powered voting device
A new solar-powered hand-held voting machine should help prevent election fraud in Nigeria. The device uses biometrics such as facial recognition and thumbprint scans to register the voter into the system, and then stores the results in the cloud to keep track of any attempts to manipulate the Read More...
New Honda fuel-cell car, Clarity, lands in Bay Area
Heather Mc Laughlin’s new car sprang to life Monday with a gentle whoosh, followed by a quiet electric whine. A few drops of water trickled out the back and puddled on Dublin Honda’s showroom floor. “You can drink that,” said Honda spokeswoman Natalie Kumaratne. The car, a Read More...
The world could reach peak oil in three years, thanks to cheap renewables
The world could reach peak oil and coal in as little as three years—not because either is close to running out, but because of the falling cost of solar power and electric cars and stronger climate policy. A new report from the Grantham Institute at Imperial College London and the Carbon Read More...