• Is bitcoin's energy efficiency all we believe it to be?

    Belief is a powerful drug. It’s easy to believe that computer technology and electronics will make the world more efficient and reduce its dependence on fossil fuels, not least by reducing how much of that energy needs to be performed by physical things acting in a wasteful way. But this is the same set of core technologies that gave us bitcoin. In a demonstration of how perverse incentives can be in economics, bitcoin and the other blockchain protocols that evolved around it fell into an arms race that make just burning currency for heat look vaguely sensible.   The first miners just used the Intel processors in desktop PCs. But that quickly changed as the value of bitcoin and interest in mining for it increased. The protocol behind the cryptocurrency was designed to ratchet up the amount…

  • The bigger picture: Nasa's inflatable heat shield

    Nasa has r evealed an ‘inflatable heat shield’ that may change future space missions. ‘LOFTID’ (Low-Earth Orbit Flight Test of an Inflatable Decelerator) is set to be launched in November. Once in orbit, it will inflate, before descending back to Earth. Nasa hopes that a large inflatable aeroshell protected by a heat shield could slow down a spacecraft enough to survive atmospheric entry. If successful, the technology could eventually allow humans to land on Mars. Image credit: Nasa/Cover Images One challenge Nasa faces is delivering heavy payloads safely to destinations with an atmosphere, stating “current rigid aeroshells are constrained by a rocket’s shroud size. One answer is an inflatable aeroshell that can be deployed to a scale much larger than the shroud…

  • View from India: New 'garden terminal' unveiled at Bangalore airport

    The statue of Chieftain Nadaprabhu Kempegowda stands in a theme park near the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA). The statue, which is 108ft tall and has a sword weighing four tonnes, is known as the Statue of Prosperity, or Pragatiya Pratime. This is the first and tallest bronze statue of a founder of a city according to the World Book of Records. Prime Minister (PM) Modi flagged off the Vande Bharat Chennai-Bangalore-Mysore Express, India’s first semi high-speed train, which will connect Bangalore-Mysore-Chennai. This is the first Vande Bharat service in south India, and the fifth across India. The train has an intelligent braking system for better acceleration and deceleration, and a GPS-based audio-visual passenger information system. The coaches have automatic doors and are designed…

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    E+T Magazine

  • UN satellite system to detect prolific methane emitters from space

    Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas providing more than 80 times the warming power of carbon dioxide within the first 20 years of it reaching the atmosphere. It is currently estimated to contribute at least a quarter of today’s climate warming. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, we must cut methane emissions at least 30 per cent by 2030 – the goal of the Global Methane Pledge – to keep the 1.5°C temperature limit within reach. The Methane Alert and Response System (MARS) from the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) will allow it to corroborate emissions reported by companies and characterise changes over time. It will be part of the body’s International Methane Emissions Observatory (IMEO) strategy. “As UNEP’s Emissions Gap Report showed before this climate summit…

  • Teardown: Apple AirPods Pro2

    Most of us love wireless earbuds – especially us dog walkers. No longer a tangle of lead and cable followed by a painful jerk at the lobe when your best friend catches sight of the dreaded ‘Squirrel’. Unfortunately, the planet doesn’t agree. Most earbuds end up in landfill and, though small, are being bought in such numbers and replaced so frequently that they are thus becoming an e-waste concern. E&T previously looked at Fairphone’s true wireless entry as part of our February issue this year. Even with the company’s commitment to repairability and recyclability, they earned a measly 1 out of 10 for repair from teardown experts iFixit. Apple recently released its flagship second generation AirPods Pro. They offer plenty of improvements in functionality, including spatial audio, a separate…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • Gas ‘goldrush’ in wake of Ukraine conflict jeopardises climate goals

    With governments scrambling to shore up their domestic energy supplies, many have doubled down on fossil fuel extraction while delaying climate action plans. The 2022 update of the IEA’s ‘Net Zero by 2050’ road map shows that due to accelerating reductions in the cost of renewables and storage and other technologies, the total gas use globally by 2030 needs to be at least 30 per cent below 2021 levels - about 45 per cent faster than estimated a year ago. However, massive expansion of LNG plans could harm this goal, with the CAT analysis finding that the facilities currently under construction – coupled with future expansion plans – would significantly increase emissions beyond the maximum thresholds contained in the Paris Agreement. It is estimated that by 2030, oversupply could reach…

  • UK at risk of facing energy shortages, report says

    The UK could face a potential shortage of electricity if it simply focuses on building new wind and solar power while not also limiting the amount of energy it will need.  A report published by energy company Danfoss has recommended ¡nvestment in renewable energies as a way to address the looming energy crisis and the large costs of heating UK homes.  The company's investigation showed that, for  every pound spent on energy efficiency – such as insulation in homes – two pounds can be saved by investing in renewable power generation, including wind farms. “The UK, and all countries throughout Europe, should be working to curb the growing demand for energy," Kjell Stroem, Danfoss's Northern Europe president has said.  “Even with huge build-outs of renewables we simply will not have enough…

  • Sponsored: Modelling high temperature superconducting magnets for nuclear fusion

    Losses of high-temperature superconductors induced during transient states require numerical models to dimension the necessary cooling system as well as to predict the safe operating conditions for the magnets. However, modelling large-scale HTS applications is complex due to the high aspect ratio of the conductors as well as the nonlinear property introduced by superconductivity. COMSOL Multiphysics has a wide range of functionality that makes it easy to handle such challenges. To see the software's capabilities in action and learn more about modelling high-temperature superconducting magnets for fusion applications, register for this free webinar, happening on 17 November. Register for this webinar to learn about: The basics of nuclear fusion, focusing on the challenges of designing…

  • Unabated plastic production poses serious climate change hazard, finds study

    The research from NGO Zero Waste Europe (ZWE) and Eunomia Research & Consulting found that a business-as-usual approach to plastic production would result in a trajectory of warming towards 3.5°C above pre-industrial levels. The IPCC’s 2021 Sixth Assessment Report estimated that there is a 67 per cent chance of global warming staying within 1.5°C of pre-industrial levels if cumulative global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions stay below 400 GtCO 2 e. But if the significant growth in all global plastic production witnessed historically continues at an annual growth rate of 4 per cent, it will reach 1.6 Gt annually by 2050. With no change from current practices, the report estimates that total annual GHG emissions in 2050 will reach 7 Gt CO 2 e, with cumulative emissions reaching 129 Gt CO 2…

  • Smart motorway target reached 14 months late

    Vehicles stranded on smart motorways without a hard shoulder had to wait an average of nine minutes and 49 seconds before being attended to by traffic officers, National Highways figures seen by the PA news agency have revealed. The government agency responsible for overseeing English motorways committed to reducing its average response time from 17 minutes in 2020 to 10 minutes by July 2021. However, the goal was only accomplished over a year later.  The response time relates to stretches of all-lane running (ALR) smart motorways where emergency areas are more than a mile apart. National Highways said it is reaching stranded drivers more quickly after buying extra patrol vehicles, recruiting additional traffic officers and introducing  satellite “outstations” and “park-up points” around…

  • Full power behind AI’s green ambitions

    It’s bonanza time in the land of computing, especially if you have bet large on artificial intelligence (AI). Opening his company’s autumn technology conference, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang claimed: “Computing is advancing at incredible speeds. The engine propelling this rocket is accelerated computing, and its fuel is AI.” Huang has good reason to be optimistic about the future of AI-driven computing. A decade ago, researchers at the Swiss research institute IDSIA took the deep-learning concepts developed by a small group led by Geoffrey Hinton, professor of computer science at the University of Toronto, and found they could use the parallel computing units sitting inside graphics processing units (GPUs) originally developed to run 3D games to speed up the processing. After training the deep…

  • Cargo mission reaches ISS despite solar array mishap

    The SS Sally Ride Cygnus spacecraft, developed by Northrop Grumman, was launched with an Antares rocket on Monday from Wallops Island, Virginia. But the cargo delivery to crew aboard the ISS faced issues after one of its two solar arrays did not deploy as planned. Despite the mishap, Northrop Grumman worked with Nasa to ensure Cygnus completed its primary mission of delivering approximately 3,700kg of supplies, equipment and experiments for the astronauts aboard the station. Amongst the delivery were brackets needed for a spacewalk next week to expand the station’s power, as well as apples, blueberries, cheese, peanut butter and ice cream for the station’s US, Russian and Japanese crew of seven. “During a rocket stage separation event, debris from an Antares acoustic blanket became…

  • Sales of second-hand EVs reach record high

    Some 16,775 used pure battery electric cars were bought in the UK between July and September, as the market reached a record high, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), has said. The data increased electric vehicles' (EVs) market share from 3.3 per cent to 4 per cent, reflecting the rising trend in new EV sales . In comparison to 2021, sales of used hybrid electrics were up 2.5 per cent, but demand for plug-in hybrids fell by 5.8 per cent. EVs now represent 14 per cent of the new car market, compared with 11.6 per cent at the end of 2021, the figures show.  “Electric vehicles are becoming the hottest ticket in town," said Alex Buttle, co-founder of used car marketplace Motorway.co.uk. “As more drivers make the leap, demand for used EVs will continue to soar.” In contrast…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • After All: Only libraries may know the answers

    “The aggressor confiscates all books printed in the Ukrainian language from the catalogues of libraries and schools. The destruction of about 100 libraries has already been confirmed, 221 were damaged”, said the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, 12 August 2022. A recurrent flashback to my Ukrainian childhood: I am sitting on a sledge, dragged by my tireless granddad Misha. He walks with a slight limp, the result of a leg wound during the 1918-21 Civil War and because of this – to my sheer delight – the sledge makes little zigzags in the snow. I am seven years old. In my hands, clad in varezhki (woollen mittens), I am holding a couple of dog-eared books by James Fenimore Cooper. We are going to the library in Inzhenerna (Engineers) Street. At seven, I am already a voracious…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • The measure of: U-Boat Worx’s Nautilus superyacht

    The idea of a superyacht that pampers guests with luxury both atop and below the waterline is one that has long been a fantasy for demanding billionaires. But with the Nautilus, U-Boat Worx is determined to bring the concept to reality. Capable of functioning as both an on-water vessel and a submersible, Nautilus has a depth rating of over 200m. The diesel-electric craft has a surface cruise speed of nine knots and an underwater speed of four knots and can stay underwater for up to four days at a time, according to the company. Image credit: Cover Images When functioning as a yacht, Nautilus has a range of relaxation and recreational features including a sizeable sundeck equipped with a freshwater pool, a bar and a dining table where guests can enjoy meals from…

  • View from India: Bountiful measures unfold for farming community

    The government has recently launched One Nation One Fertiliser (ONOF) scheme under the Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Jan Pariyojana (PMBJP). ONOF is a fertiliser subsidy scheme towards benchmarking fertiliser-urea companies. Under this scheme, all fertilisers, urea and soil nutrients will be standardised and marketed under the single brand of Bharat. This uniformity could be a move towards lowering high freight subsidy, as well as cross movement of fertilisers. Coming to the product retail, all fertiliser-urea bags will feature the Bharat logo and PMBJP as well as details about the fertiliser-urea company.  Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also launched 600 PM Kisan Samruddhi Kendras (PM-KSKs). The country is home to more than 330,000 fertiliser retail shops. The government has indicated that these…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • ‘Vacuum-cleaner’ could collect rare metals from the deep sea floor

    ‘Blue Harvesting’ - a collaboration between five European countries - has designed a way to collect rare metals from the bottom of the ocean.  The sea floor boasts one of the world’s largest untapped collections of rare-earth elements, including  copper, manganese, nickel and cobalt — materials crucial for accelerating the energy transition. In order to meet this rising demand for rare earth minerals, a team of scientists has developed Apollo 2, which they described as a "vacuum cleaner" d riven by water pressure and powered entirely by electricity. The device is able to collect raw materials without causing the clouds of fine sediment which are often harmful to marine life. Apollo 2 being lowered into the sea / Delft University of Technology Image credit: Technische…

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    E+T Magazine

  • Letters special: Your thoughts on our wiring inspection revelations

    During the course of my research for ‘Exposed: The National Wiring Scandal Putting Lives at Risk’ , I spoke to electricians and industry experts who described how some contractors carrying out safety inspections are incorrectly passing unsafe properties and mis-selling unnecessary upgrades. I also heard about so-called ‘drive-by inspections’, where contractors fill out paperwork without entering the properties at all, undercutting legitimate businesses. Many readers wrote in to say they had experienced similarly poor practices. Mal Ronan, a retired principal electrical inspector for the Health and Safety Executive, told us he had come across “a surprisingly high proportion of unacceptably poor inspection and test reports”. In most cases these were either incorrectly completed or incomplete…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • Crunch time for plastic recycling and 100 years of the BBC

    As COP27 meets in Egypt this month, the world’s attention is once more on the environmental crisis. One great technological hope in recent years, especially in America, has been an emerging method known as ‘chemical recycling’, aka the more publicity-friendly ‘advanced recycling’. In this month’s cover story investigation , Conor McGlone takes a closer look at how it works, its pros and cons, and how green or sustainable it really is – or could be. Is it everything its proponents praise it for – or is it just so much greenwashing? In this issue, we also have a selection of your responses to Conor’s investigation a few months ago on electrical wiring inspections . He uncovered evidence of widespread sub-standard inspections on potentially dangerous installations. Your emails contained plenty…

  • Is hydrogen the fuel of the future?

    As the global aviation industry reeled from the impact of Covid-19, with thousands of jets grounded and passenger numbers down by 60 per cent, a bold initiative began at the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) in Cranfield, England. Early in 2021, a team of 100 experts from across the UK launched a one-year intensive research project to investigate the best route to zero-emission commercial flight. The FlyZero project examined key aspects of developing zero-emission aircraft, ranging from design challenges to operational requirements, and compared the potential of electric batteries, hydrogen and ammonia for the task. It found green liquid hydrogen (produced using electricity from renewables) was the most viable zero-​emission fuel for commercial aviation and concluded that hydrogen aircraft…

  • Researchers call for zero plastic pollution target by 2040

    The call on the United Nations to establish a target for the end of plastic pollution comes while leaders discuss the challenges of climate change at the COP27 summit in Egypt. The team from Hampshire University have advised the United Nations Environment Programme, G20 and the World Bank on plastic policy, including the possible structure and content of a global agreement to tackle plastic pollution. Professor Steve Fletcher, director of the Global Plastics Policy Centre at the University of Portsmouth, has made the plea for the UN to make the “bold pledge” in its upcoming legislation on plastic pollution.   In March 2022, UN member states agreed on the adoption of a mandate  for an International Negotiating Committee (INC) to develop a legally binding UN Treaty on plastic pollution…

  • Kerch Strait - A bridge too far?

    It was on 8 October 2022 at 6:07am local time that an explosion occurred on the Kerch-bound lanes of the road section of the Crimean Bridge. Two entire road spans collapsed into Crimean territorial waters in the strategically important Kerch Strait that separates Russia from the annexed territory of Crimea. Seven fuel tankers of a 59-wagon train caught fire on the parallel rail section, which also incurred structural damage. Both road and rail traffic has been significantly disrupted. At the time of going to press, no organisation has formally taken responsibility for the explosion and there is no definitive explanation for what happened. Image credit: Gettyimages The heavily defended infrastructure is a crucial military resupply route for Russian troops and is regarded…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • Meta axes 11,000 jobs worldwide

    In an announcement this morning, Meta confirmed its plans to cut more than 11,000 jobs globally as part of a major restructuring of the tech giant. Meta founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said the cuts were “some of the most difficult changes we’ve made in Meta’s history”. He added: “We are also taking a number of additional steps to become a leaner and more efficient company by cutting discretionary spending and extending our hiring freeze through Q1 [2023]. “I want to take accountability for these decisions and for how we got here. I know this is tough for everyone and I’m especially sorry to those impacted.” Zuckerberg blamed the “macroeconmic downturn, increased competition and ads signal loss” for causing a drop in Meta’s revenue, which has now led to the substantial staff…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • Sponsored: Intelligent power supplies will accelerate the smart factory

    One of the main characteristics of a smart factory or connected automation environment is the need for fast feedback control and reliable monitoring to ensure the power supply’s performance and parameters meet the project’s requirements. The smart factory will have multiple and varied components which need to operate together in often harsh and noisy environments. For this reason, Cotek has equipped its AD-1500 ac-dc converter series with an intelligent GUI (graphic user interface). The programmable 1500W power supply can be used with a choice of communication interfaces and industry protocols and has the capability to memorise settings after shut down to ensure a rapid restart, thereby minimising downtime. The series is made up of configurable modules and easy-to-use digital interfaces…

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