• Net zero buildings: the future of construction?

    With humanity scrambling to respond to climate change, countless companies, investors, public sector  bodies and national governments have made commitments to achieve ‘net zero’ carbon emissions in  the next two or three decades. Net zero is the notion that any greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted through  an organisation’s activities must be balanced out through an equivalent amount of carbon being  removed from the atmosphere. It is a huge challenge, yet if we are to avoid the worst effects of climate  change, achieving net zero will be vital. There is one industry where meeting such targets is especially important: construction. Globally, some  39 per cent of GHG emissions are associated with the industry, according to the World Green  Buildings Council. Of this total, 28 per cent comes…

  • Confused UK drivers believe they can buy a fully autonomous car today

    Thatcham's 'Trust in Automation' consumer study – compiled from data gathered earlier this year by Opinion Matters from a sample of 4,000 car owners (2,000 in the UK, 2,000 in the US) – has revealed that just over half of UK drivers think that they can buy a fully autonomous car today. The survey framed the 'fully autonomous' question by asking respondents if they thought it was possible to purchase a car today that can drive itself, where by ‘drive itself’ this meant a car with technology that can drive the car completely autonomously, as safely as a competent human driver would, and which allows the driver to remove their hands from the steering wheel. However, only 'assisted driving' systems, which require driver support, are currently available in the UK. “Realising the government…

  • Blue quantum dot tech improves power efficiency and colour accuracy of LEDs

    Quantum dots are nanoscale crystals capable of emitting light of different colours which can bring greater power efficiency, brightness and colour purity to displays than previous generations. Major manufacturers such as Samsung are already using the tech in some of their premium displays to improve their HDR capabilities. Now, a team of researchers from the University of Tokyo have developed a way to construct blue quantum dots – typically the most difficult colour to manufacture – to be more accurate, efficient and cost effective than existing quantum dots. The new method is based on self-organising chemical structures and a cutting-edge imaging technique. While pixels can appear almost any colour to the human eye, they are not actually the smallest element on your screen as they…

  • Creating an immersive at-home entertainment experience

    A cosy night in Our first pick for creating a more immersive at-home entertainment experience is rather obvious, but sometimes the simplest of technologies are the most effective. So, to take these cosy nights-in up a notch, why not try to find an 8K picture quality TV, perhaps on the larger scale… Of course, there are plenty of TVs on the market for people to choose from, but one with an 8K picture quality will give you the best experience. “If you want to experience the highest quality displays, then 8K is the way to go,” says consumer tech company Reliant. “8K displays provide extreme levels of accuracy, so you don’t miss details in anything you watch. So, if you want that cinematic film night experience, then an 8K screen will provide the most accurate picture and immersive experience…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • Insulating social homes could save £700m, research suggests

    Bringing social housing buildings to an EPC of C or above would reduce energy bills by 42 per cent to £776 a year, according to the analysis of heating cost figures from the English Housing Survey and EPC data published by the government. The National Housing Federation said poorly insulated homes are one of the country’s “biggest environmental polluters” and have become a “major culprit” in the cost-of-living crisis. At the moment, a family in social housing with an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) of D or below spends on average £1,343 a year on heating, based on the current energy price guarantee. At the same time, t hree-quarters of social housing residents rely on benefits and a large number of families are at risk of falling into poverty or debt because of increased energy costs…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • Spain closes part of airspace due to risks posed by Chinese rocket debris

    Spain briefly declared an official 'no-fly' zone in the region of Catalonia over fear of the risks posed by the uncontrolled fall of part of the rocket used to deliver China’s Tiangong space station.   Barcelona and Ibiza airports were among those impacted by the grounding, which lasted around 40 minutes on Friday. The EU  Space Surveillance and Tracking (EUSST) operations centres, said the core stage of the rocket was about 30 metres long and weighed between 17 and 23 tonnes, making it “one of the largest pieces of debris re-entering in the near past”.  The rocket blasted off on October 31 2022 from southern China  to deliver the last module of the country's space station, which is currently under construction. As gravity pulled the projectile back to Earth, most of it was expected to…

  • Why partnerships are the key to sustainability innovation in a digital world

    While ‘digital transformation’ claims to be a magic wand for businesses needing innovation, the truth is that more than two-thirds of all digital transformation efforts end up failing. Others are left in ‘pilot purgatory’: according to the World Economic Forum, more than 70 per cent of industrial businesses are stuck here. The answer to scalable, sustainable success? Collaboration. Partners, platforms and co-innovation ecosystems amount to profits for all the players – and planetary positivity. Partnerships are the key to sustainability innovation in a digital world. Here’s why. To improve profitability, sustainability, customer experience or other objectives of an organisation’s transformation, it’s crucial that they innovate in partnership with technology providers. This need is particularly…

  • Is chemical recycling greenwashing?

    The US has a serious plastic problem. Over the summer it emerged that the recycling rate of the ubiquitous material had sunk to less than 6 per cent. For context, the European Union together with Norway, Switzerland and the UK recycled on average 37 per cent of the plastic waste they generated in 2020. The US generates more plastic waste than any other country in the world, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). In 2019, Americans generated 220.5kg of plastic waste per person, whereas Europeans generated an average of 121.6kg. Plastic production is expected to increase dramatically, with the amount of plastic waste produced globally on track to almost triple by 2060. Around half of this will end up in landfill and less than a fifth will be recycled…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • Sunak calls for ‘further and faster’ transition to renewable energy at Cop27

    UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been participating in the opening of the Cop27 international climate change talks in Egypt, at which he is scheduled to give a speech discussing the UK's strategy for weaning the country off fossil fuels. “The world came together in Glasgow [Cop26] with one last chance to create a plan that would limit global temperature rises to 1.5°C," Sunak is expected to say during his opening address.  "The question today is: can we summon the collective will to deliver on those promises? I believe we can. By honouring the pledges we made in Glasgow, we can turn our struggle against climate change into a global mission for new jobs and clean growth." On the first day of the summit, Sunak said the world must “deliver on the legacy” of last year’s Cop26 summit in Glasgow…

  • MPs call for ban on plastic waste exports by 2027

    The cross-party Committee wants a new strategy to use less plastic, re-use more of it and boost recycling. An estimated 380 million tonnes of plastic are produced worldwide every year, but the enduring nature of plastic products - often designed for single use - has led to a major waste issue, particularly involving plastic packaging for consumer and industrial goods. The UK exports around 60 per cent of the over 2.5 million tonnes of plastic packaging waste it creates. Turkey has become the main destination for this waste following China’s decision in 2018 to ban non-industrial plastic waste imports. However, as with China, instead of the plastic waste being recycled, there are numerous reports of shipments emanating from the UK simply being dumped and burned in Turkey, causing “irreversible…

  • Lung disease detecting AI could cut winter pressure on the NHS

    The diseases are potentially serious infections that mainly affect the lungs but often require a combination of different diagnostic tests such as CT scans, blood tests, X-rays, and ultrasounds. These tests can be expensive, and there are often lengthy waiting times for results. University of the West of Scotland (UWS) researchers originally created an AI to quickly detect Covid-19 from X-ray images. But it has subsequently been proven to automatically identify a range of different lung diseases in a matter of minutes, with a claimed accuracy of around 98 per cent. The technology could be used to help relieve strain on pressured hospital departments through the quick and accurate detection of disease – freeing up radiographers continuously in high demand; reducing waiting times for test…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • Decarbonising public buildings in UK could cost £30bn, estimates show

    Decarbonising the UK’s stock of public-sector buildings could cost up to £30bn, according to figures obtained by the BBC’s 'Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg' programme through a Freedom of Information Act request.  The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy said the estimates were an “indicative” figure, based on current "undiscounted 2022 prices" and stressed that the  costs were “highly likely” to change over time. “We have halved emissions from the central government estate in the last 12 years and invested £2.5bn in supporting those running our public buildings such as schools and hospitals to make similar progress," a government spokesperson added.  “This is on top of our wider efforts to increase our use of home-grown energy such as renewables, increasing our energy…

  • BBC broadcast tech: then and now

    Daily London broadcasts by the newly formed British Broadcasting Company began from Marconi House on The Strand, on 14 November 1922, using the call sign 2LO, with transmissions from Birmingham and Manchester starting on the following day. The first broadcast by the young company, which was heard as grainy, muffled speech, was read by Arthur Burrows, who joined the BBC as director of programmes. Notably, he was one of the first people to move from newspaper to broadcast reporting. At the end of 1922, Scottish engineer John Reith, who was just 33 years old at the time, was appointed general manager of the BBC, which then had a staff of four. Reith is remembered for establishing the tradition of independent public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom. Within months, the growing organisation…

  • Book review: ‘How the Victorians Took Us to the Moon’

    Right at the end of the reign of Queen Victoria, as the 19th century turned into the 20th, a serialised novel appeared in the Strand magazine called ‘The First Men in the Moon’. Published 35 years after Jules Verne’s ‘From the Earth to the Moon’, HG Wells’ novel hypothesises on concepts that we now know – thanks largely to the Apollo missions of the 1960s – to be accurate. Leaving aside the English novelist’s prediction of ‘great beasts’ and ‘monsters of mere fatness’, there are more recognisable references to how desolate the Moon is – think Buzz Aldrin’s “magnificent desolation” – and weightlessness. The inescapable fact is that lunar landings featured large in the Victorian consciousness. More importantly, says Iwan Rhys Morus in his excellent ‘How the Victorians Took Us to the Moon…

  • View from India: Digital rupee pilot carries promise of sovereign backing

    The RBI is India’s central banking institution, which controls the monetary policy of the Indian rupee. Last week, it rolled out its CBDC, also known as Digital Rupee, e-Rupee or e₹ . The State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Union Bank of India, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Yes Bank, IDFC First Bank and HSBC are the nine banks that are part of the pilot project. As per CBDC, the digital rupee would be legal tender in a digital form of fiat currency, which can be understood as the Indian rupee. The Digital Rupee is a currency issued by central banks responsible for governing and managing the asset. It is also exchangeable one-to-one at par with the fiat currency. What comes to mind is whether the digital rupee is similar to crypto currency. The differentiator is that the…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • Hands-on review: MioFive 4K UHD dash cam

    We've looked at a number of dash cams lately and you'd be forgiven for thinking that there can only be so much variation in the basic shape and styling of these all-streaming, all-recording driving companions. Yet with the MioFive, the grandly named, Chinese-owned company Cruise Cloud Technology Corporation has come up with quite a neat refinement to the look and feel of these omnipresent, watchful black boxes. With the understanding that virtually every dash cam is typically installed in front of (or rather, behind) the rear-view mirror, keeping it well out of the driver's eyeline, the MioFive adopts the size and shape of a standard rear-view mirror. Seems logical: is.   Its slim body, with a crisply contoured edge, dark mirrored surface, laser-engraved LED light and carbon-fibre texture…

  • Sizewell C nuclear plant placed under review

    The UK government's plan to limit its spending overall includes a review of the project to build the Sizewell C nuclear power plant in Suffolk.  The new reactor, located in principle 30 miles northeast of Ipswich, was expected to be built by French energy firm EDF. The government had pledged to support the project by buying a 20 per cent stake in the reactor for £700m, as part of its target of achieving UK energy security in the midst of an energy crisis.   The total cost of the Sizewell C project could be around £20bn, according to reports. “We are reviewing every major project – including Sizewell C,” a government official told the BBC.  The statement was backed by a senior Treasury source, stressing “we’re looking at all capital spending”. Although the project could support the…

  • Gadgets: Yale Floodlight Camera, Honor 70 smartphone and more

    Yale Floodlight Camera This weatherproof, mains-powered, HD camera features a 2,000-lumen floodlight, 10m night vision, two-way talking and a 110dB siren. Add a memory card to store footage, so you can use it via Wi-Fi – with app alerts, live view and recent recordings – all without paying a monthly fee. £169.99 yalehome.co.uk Honor 70 A sleek smartphone with a bright OLED screen and top-notch cameras. Triple sensors include a 54MP primary and 50MP wide-angle, plus a 2MP sensor for arty bokeh. Its unique solo-cut mode can shoot two videos at once: a wide shot plus a tight shot that tracks an individual, perfect for vlogging. From £429.99 hihonor.com Read E&T reporter Jack Loughran’s full hands-on review LG OLED Flex ...

  • Letters to the editor: volume 17, issue 11

    Judge progress by outcomes I recently had my credit card cancelled by John Lewis because I was unable to provide a mobile number for two-factor authentication. My argument that using a landline works currently and is more secure, and that in the end the mobile is merely a communication channel, cut no ice with them. This experience set me thinking that progress should be measured by outcomes, not process. As somebody who has installed and commissioned IT and telecoms systems for around 40 years it is a given to me that technical developments have advanced beyond imagination over that period. However, it is not apparent that services for the ordinary citizen have improved; I would suggest that they have significantly deteriorated. Health, transport, welfare, police and so on are up to their…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • UK space policy is ‘uncertain and disjointed’, MPs say

    The Members of Parliament have described the UK's approach to space policy as “uncertain and disjointed”, despite the industry's £16bn valuation. The Committee has said it is “concerned” that the first-ever UK satellite launch has been plagued by licensing delays and has raised doubts regarding the benefits of the taxpayer-funded £400m stake in OneWeb. The government's investment in the satellite company – as part of a consortium with India's Bharti Global – was announced in July 2020 and described as a means to rescue the company from bankruptcy . At the time, the move was seen as an attempt to give the UK a platform in the highly coveted low Earth orbit (LEO) space, providing internet connections for businesses and governments around the world. However, the committee said success from…

  • Northern Powerhouse Rail and other infrastructure projects under review

    Business secretary Grant Shapps hinted that Northern Powerhouse Rail would be scaled back, amid confusion over the commitment to a new nuclear plant in Suffolk. A senior Treasury source stressed they were rethinking “all capital spending” after an official told the BBC: “We are reviewing every major project – including Sizewell C.” Others, along with sources in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, insisted that Sizewell C was not being scrapped or delayed. A government spokesman said they are “seeking to approve at least one large-scale nuclear project in the next few years”. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak are looking for sweeping cuts that can be made ahead of the 17 November budget, as the Bank of England warns of the longest recession…

  • Electricity customers offered discounts to cut peak-time use

    The launch of the electricity system operator's Demand Flexibility Service, which will run until 31 March 2023, means a typical household could save approximately £100 through the limited scheme while industrial and commercial businesses with larger energy usage could save multiples of this. Electricity suppliers and providers can join the service and work with their customers in an effort to boost engagement and participation. In the coming days the ESO will look to run the first demonstration events for this service, with those providers that have ensured they are ready and able to participate from the first day of this service. Ofgem, which is the Britain's energy regulator, said that these demonstration events will include a guaranteed acceptance price for the providers that participate…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • Europe and Australia report a significant rise in cyber attacks

    The investigations in Australia and the European Union showed a rise in cyber threats over the past twelve months, fuelled by the war in Ukraine and wider geopolitical tensions.  The Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC)'s annual cyber threat report said the company received 76,000 cyber-crime reports last financial year, up 13 per cent from the previous period, and resulting in costs of A $39,000 for a small business and A$62,000 for a large business. These numbers equated to one attack taking place every seven minutes, the agency said.  The Australian Signals Directorate’s latest annual cyber threat report, published on Friday, also warns that cyberspace “has become a battleground” and is “increasingly the domain of warfare”. "It's not just about the frauds or the texts that you…

  • UK’s new car market recovers but concerns remain over lack of chargepoints

    According to the latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), EV registrations increased by 23 per cent to just under 20,000 and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) by 6.2 per cent to 8,899. However, uptake was less than the overall market, meaning that October is the first month to see EV market share fall year on year since May 2021. The SMMT blamed the fall largely on supply challenges, with the ongoing global chip shortage continuing to impact car makers around the world. It also said that the decline in growth demonstrates the importance of increasing public chargepoint provision. At the start of October, the UK had 34,637 public standard, rapid and ultra-rapid electric vehicle charging devices, with 1,239 new rapid chargers and 5,023 new standard chargers installed…

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