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.
Saudi Arabia wants to become global renewable energy powerhouse
Despite being the world's second biggest producer of 'dirty' oil, Riyadh wants to turn into a leader in clean energy. Despite being the world's second biggest producer of oil, the burning of which is one of the top drivers of greenhouse gas-fuelled climate change, the kingdom of Saudi Arabia wants Read More...
Renewable energy grows in an unlikely place: the sunny Mideast
“In the past, whenever I used to meet with ministers of energy in some of the oil- or oil-and-gas-rich countries, they would talk about renewable energy, and that meeting would end in a nanosecond,” said Nabil Habayeb, General Electric’s president and chief executive for the Read More...
Canadian government makes 100% renewables commitment
The Canadian federal government has committed to powering all of its buildings and operations using renewable energy sources by 2025. The goal is in support of a broader target to reduce the government’s greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions by 40% by 2030. Catherine McKenna, the federal minister of Read More...
5 things that will make you happier, according to neuroscience
Let’s get more specific: what’s going to make your brain happy? And let’s focus on things that are simple and easy to do instead of stuff like winning the lottery. Neuroscience has answers. I’ve discussed this subject before and it was so popular I decided to call an expert to get even Read More...
Can wind and solar fuel Africa's future?
At the threshold of the Sahara Desert near Ouarzazate, Morocco, some 500,000 parabolic mirrors run in neat rows across a valley, moving slowly in unison as the Sun sweeps overhead. This US$660-million solar-energy facility opened in February and will soon have company. Morocco has committed to Read More...
6 ways you can tell the global shift to renewable energy has arrived
We've said it before but it bears repeating: the global shift to clean energy is on today. Not 10 years from now. Not 50 years from now. Today. We're already seeing the benefits too in a whole host of sectors. And those below are just for starters. Which highlights why—with the Paris Read More...
SolarAid launches "the world's most affordable solar light" for just $5
UK charity SolarAid and solar panel manufacturer Yingli Solar just launched “the world’s most affordable solar light.” Sold by SolarAid’s social enterprise SunnyMoney in Africa, the SM100 solar light costs only $5. People in the UK can buy one of the lights for 10 pounds, Read More...
After decades of terrible pollution, a dirty coal plant turns into a solar farm
We will see this kind of news more and more. Last week the Danish state energy company announced it was divesting its oil and gas assets to invest in wind energy. Now, at the site where a polluting coal-fired power plant was closed in 2014, ground was broken on a 5.76-megawatt solar array—enough Read More...
The Second Law of Thermodynamics may not work always, and that’s important
This is not easy, but it is important. According to the Second Law of Thermodynamics entropy in the universe must always increase. That is: A fried egg will never become an egg again and free energy or perpetual motion is impossible. And, yet, we live in an endless universe where energy Read More...
Santa Monica, as first city in the world, requires net-zero new homes from 2017
It’s not easy to understand why city governments don't already require that all new commercial buildings need to have solar panels on their roofs. That seems a simple measure that will generate a lot of clean, renewable energy. Ideally, such a measure would apply to all new buildings including Read More...