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.
"Swarm electrification" is keeping the lights on in one part of Bangladesh
Bangladesh has a very unreliable energy grid. The country has power outages on a daily basis, and the rather unpredictable weather doesn’t help either. But in one working class neighborhood, a pilot project is helping residents keep the power through something called “swarm electrification”. Read More...
The world's largest solar farm just went online in India
Last year, India announced ambitious plans to make the switch to renewable energy. With the opening of the world’s largest solar power plant, it seems those plans are coming into fruition. After just 8 months of construction, the Katmuthi Solar Power Project went online yesterday. The solar plant Read More...
This Australian startup is turning tires into cleaner fuel
The world has more scrap tires than anyone could possibly know what to do with. In fact, Australia alone has nearly 48 million end-of-life tires sitting in landfills and illegal stockpiles. Many have tried to recycle old tires into different items, but now an Australian startup has figured out how Read More...
Shell is looking to buy into green energy
It seems even the big oil companies are realizing that the green energy future is imminent. In a conversation with Reuters, the CEO of Royal Dutch Shell announced that the company is studying acquisitions in the green energy sector in order to prepare for a future without oil. The company also Read More...
What it's like when your car drives itself
The first time your car drives itself, it’s terrifying. The second time, it’s thrilling. By the third time, it’s a little boring. Self-driving cars are on their way to our roads. And they’re probably not going to arrive with a bang, but with a quiet little beeping. In one Read More...
U.S. tech startup Comma.ai giving away self-driving car software
Comma.ai, the tech startup that recently pulled the plug on its device to give cars limited self-driving capabilities after being reprimanded by U.S. regulators, has opened up its software secrets to the masses. On Wednesday, Comma.ai announced on its website that it had open sourced the software Read More...
EU unveils power market reform to boost renewables
EU regulators set a path on Wednesday for renewables to power half of Europe by 2030, with plans to cut energy use, phase out subsidies for coal and enforce greater cross-border trade. The European Commission's the 1,000-page draft law seeks to meet goals on cutting emissions and adapt Europe's Read More...
Five major automakers to install 400 ultra-fast chargers for electric cars in Europe
BMW, Mercedes, Ford, Audi and Porsche have announced an ambitious plan to deploy 400 electric car charging stations across Europe to enable long-range travel for electric vehicle drivers. And with twice the capacity of the Tesla Supercharger, these stations will have the ability to refill cars at Read More...
Rooftop solar is winning from utilities
Utility companies have tried to undermine rooftop solar by creating ballot measures that favor their own interests. Unfortunately for them, voters have fought back and won policy wars in states like Nevada, Wisconsin, and Florida. Now the policies are in favor of the people, which could slowly lead Read More...
Offshore wind energy system combines sea water and wind to create electricity
We've seen our share of interesting wind power designs, but often the technology can't come anywhere close to matching what the traditional horizontal axis wind turbines can do. There's a reason that when we think of wind energy, we think of giant masts with rotating blades and it's because that Read More...