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Budge up: making space for the next generation

Society is far from fairly represented in STEM, portraying a false sense of elitism that deters diverse, budding young talent. The Making Spaces project, led by Professor Louise Archer at University College London, launched in 2020. Funded by Lloyd’s Register Foundation (LRF), the initiative focuses on the growing global phenomenon of ‘makerspaces’ – physical locations designed for people to come together to create and collaborate. The project strives to bridge the inequalities in STEM and to encourage participation from under-represented communities through working in collaboration with practitioners. In 2020, the UK government acknowledged the importance of STEM with £179m of investment in the future of UK science. Funding is vital to fuelling growth and success in STEM but doesn’t directly…

E+T Magazine in STEM Education and Skills
Sunak axes northern leg of HS2, but promises billions for transport links

After weeks of speculation , Sunak confirmed the scrapping of “the rest of the HS2 project” during his closing speech at the Conservative Party conference, held in a former train station in Manchester. Sunak explained his decision to scrap any HS2 connection that is not in the London–Birmingham leg as a result of changing circumstances and rising costs. The move goes against the warnings of former prime ministers, political allies, regional mayors and businesses. “I say to those who backed the project in the first place, the facts have changed,” Sunak said. “And the right thing to do when the facts change is to have the courage to change direction. “So I am ending this long-running saga. I am cancelling the rest of the HS2 project.” HS2 was a central part of Boris Johnson’s levelling…

E+T Magazine in Railways
Regulator forces Hitachi to sell train-signalling arm before Thales merger

The rail arms of both Hitachi and Thales are major global suppliers of signalling systems for mainline and urban tracks. In August 2021, Hitachi announced a €1.7bn deal to acquire the Thales Ground Transportation Business. Last year, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) warned that the merger could lead to higher fares for consumers. The body’s independent inquiry group concluded that if the merger was allowed to go ahead, few credible competitors would remain. In response, Hitachi has offered to sell its signalling business in the UK, France and Germany. The CMA said it would still need to approve the purchase, and Hitachi’s key customers in these countries will also need to agree to the transfer of the relevant signalling contracts. But it said that once this requirement is met…

E+T Magazine in Railways
AI designs new robot from scratch in seconds

T he team tested the system by giving it a simple prompt: “Design a robot that can walk across a flat surface.” The computer started with a block about the size of a bar of soap. Knowing it was unable to walk, as instructed, the AI began making iterations of the design. With each new version, the resulting robot improved on previous flaws. After nine tries, the AI algorithm designed a robot riddled with holes and with three legs, rear fins and a flat face. It generated a robot design that could walk half its body length per second – about half the speed of an average human stride. The entire design process – from a shapeless block with zero movement to a full-on walking robot – took just 26 seconds on a laptop. “We discovered a very fast AI-driven design algorithm that bypasses the…

E+T Magazine in Research and Innovation
How SF6-free alternatives drive decarbonization

During this webinar, we will discuss the advantages and benefits of: SF6 ban becoming the new norm and driving a sustainable future for medium voltage Environmental concerns driving the need for SF6-free solutions Comparative use cases between products with and without SF6 Current and incoming regulations related to SF6 How SF6-free solution fits into a Life Cycle Assessment Finally, we will illustrate the application all these key standards and their benefits in different real-life use cases. Register to watch this free live webinar on Tuesday 17 October, 10:00 (CEST). Register for this webinar

E+T Magazine in Renewable Energy
Cheap malaria vaccine receives WHO go-ahead for global roll-out

The R21/Matrix-M vaccine could help reduce the 500,000 malaria-associated deaths that occur each year. The vaccine was developed by researchers from the University of Oxford, the Serum Institute of India and drugmaker Novavax. It is expected to become available by 2024, at a cost of between $2 and $4 per dose. R21 is the second malaria vaccine to receive WHO approval. The first one – known as RTS,S – was developed by GSK and has been sold under the brand Mosquirix since 2022. However, the difficulty in producing doses of RTS,S has made pharmaceutical firms unable to meet the high demand for the vaccine – presenting R21 as an equally effective but cheaper alternative. “As a malaria researcher, I used to dream of the day we would have a safe and effective vaccine against malaria. Now…

E+T Magazine in Research and Innovation
Satellite TV company hit with first-ever space debris fine

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has issued its first space debris enforcement fine, officials have revealed. The agency has fined DISH $150,000 (£124,000), stating that the company relocated its direct broadcast service EchoStar-7 satellite at the end-of-mission to a disposal orbit “well below the elevation required by the terms of its license”. The move could pose “orbital debris concerns”, according to the regulator. “This marks a first in space debris enforcement by the Commission, which has stepped up its satellite policy efforts, including establishing the Space Bureau and implementing its Space Innovation Agenda,” the FCC said in a statement. The FCC added that DISH admitted liability and will adhere to a compliance plan. However, the satellite TV has issued a statement…

E+T Magazine in Space
Engineering workforce skill gap threatens UK’s net zero goals

Bill Drury is a former technical director at Control Techniques, a £300m-turnover engineering company. “I can’t remember a time when there hasn’t been a shortage of engineers,” he says. His reaction is one common among engineers when asked about the sector’s notorious skills problem: it’s par for the course. The industry, for all its problem-solving expertise, has never cracked the skills supply/demand conundrum. The IET’s most recent survey on skills found that 47% of respondents reported a technical skills gap in their workforce. This is similar to a 2021 report stating that 49% of engineering businesses were experiencing difficulties in the skill-sets available to them when trying to recruit. This is a problem expected to worsen as the UK works towards its legally binding net zero goal…

E+T Magazine in STEM Education and Skills
Comment: Supporting Gen Z with talent training

Gen Z are the next generation of tech talent. They are increasingly taking up roles in the workforce, with data showing that people under the age of 25 will make up over a quarter (27 per cent) of entry level roles within just a few years. With this new influx of talent comes great potential to transform and disrupt the technology workplace. It is crucial that we give these young workers attention, and invest in their development to champion the skills of the future. But despite being known as “tech-savvy”, the generation who didn’t know life before technology may actually be less equipped for a technical future than we would expect. Traditionally, we see Gen Z attending university to build their skills in technical areas, but university alone won’t meet the market demand for tech skills…

E+T Magazine in STEM Education and Skills
Birmingham to Manchester leg of HS2 expected to be scrapped

Sky News announced the rumour minutes before Chancellor Jeremy Hunt took to the stage at the Conservative Party Conference. Speculation about the future of the project has been circulating for weeks, but both Hunt and Sunak have refused to comment on the future of this section of the high-speed rail link a number of times. HS2 was given the go-ahead in 2020, despite a decade of sharply rising costs and repeated delays to the original project timeframe. The cost of completing the project has ballooned from £33bn a decade ago to an estimated £100bn today. The Independent recently reported that ministers were considering shelving the northern phase amid concerns about increasing costs and severe delays. It said a cost estimate it had seen revealed that the government has already spent £2…

E+T Magazine in Railways
Extreme weather: the technologies used to combat climate change

At the end of last year, the United Nations Foundation reflected that 2022 was a “split screen” in terms of climate change. The world, it said, had taken “several important steps to curb the climate crisis while its impacts continued to worsen”, reminding us of the “increasingly severe and irreversible consequences” of an increase in temperature with floods, record-breaking heatwaves, severe drought in Africa, forest fires and cyclones throughout the year. Cyclones Cyclones are tropical rainstorms with strong, rotating winds, formed when low pressure is created in the oceans near the equator. Thunderstorms move across the surface of the ocean and if the surface water is warm (i.e. 27°C/80°F), the storm sucks up the heat energy from the water and carries it in the converging winds. The…

E+T Magazine in Climate Change
Meta’s AI chatbot to feature over 25 personalities

Speaking at the tech giant’s annual Meta Connect conference, the company’s chief executive Mark Zuckerberg, pictured, announced its AI chatbots will have “personality” and be played by celebrities and influencers. Kendall Jenner, Charli D’Amelio, Dwyane Wade, MrBeast, Naomi Osaka, Paris Hilton, Snoop Dogg and Tom Brady are some of the celebrities who have partnered with Meta to play the AI characters, which will all have specific identities and hobbies. Paris Hilton’s Amber is “a detective partner for solving whodunnits”, while Tom Brady’s Bru is described as a “wisecracking sports debater who pulls no punches”. The goal is for the Meta AI virtual assistants to be able to answer queries or craft responses in a fashion similar to ChatGPT and other programmes. The personalities will be…

E+T Magazine in Research and Innovation
MoD approves £4bn in contracts to build UK’s next-gen submarines

The submarines will be built under the AUKUS pact – a trilateral security agreement between Australia, the UK and the US, designed to assist Australia in acquiring nuclear-powered submarines. The pact also includes cooperation on artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, undersea capabilities and electronic warfare. The UK’s next-generation nuclear-powered attack submarine programme, known as SSN-AUKUS, will see the construction of the largest and most powerful attack submarines the Royal Navy has ever operated, which will replace the Astute class currently in operation. BAE Systems started early design work in 2021, but the £3.95bn funding will cover development work up to 2028. It will enable the defence firm to move into the detailed design phase of the programme and begin to…

E+T Magazine in Marine Transport
Water firms propose billpayers fund a £96bn plan to improve infrastructure

“This investment is essential to maintain the highest-quality drinking water for a growing population, ensure the security of our water supply in the future and significantly reduce the amount of sewage entering rivers and seas,” said Water UK, which represents the sector. The House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee recently warned that continued underinvestment would have serious consequences for the environment and the security of water supplies. It also found that Ofwat needed to go further to hold water companies to account for environmental pollution as well as ensure that companies invest sufficiently in infrastructure. Water UK said that under its proposed £96bn investment regime, for the 2025-30 funding period, the number of households receiving support with bills would…

E+T Magazine in Water Supply
Nasa validates a new AI-enabled form of energy

During the Energy & Mobility Conference & Expo in Cleveland, Ohio, the two organisations presented a lternating direct current (ADC), a hybrid of Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla technologies. The research has been led by Nasa Langley Research Center scientist Narasimha Prasad PhD, with the goal of developing an AI-enabled technology that upgrades the entire foundation of energy. Currently, the energy sector relies on two different forms of energy: alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) transmissions. In contrast, ADC has been defined as a hybrid form of energy transmission using AC and DC on the same wires. The new energy transmission option has been identified as safer and much less wasteful than the current two – especially when incorporating renewable energy sources. According…

E+T Magazine in Space
The new Moon race: behind India and China's space ambitions

The race to the Moon is on – once again. Half a century after humans set foot on the lunar surface for the last time, nations are back at the drawing board, designing missions to reach the Earth’s only satellite. This time, they intend to stay. Towards the end of summer, two nations fought to become the first to land in a spacecraft at the Moon’s south pole. Luna 25 – the first Russian probe to set for the Moon in 47 years – was launched first. However, the spacecraft “ceased to exist” after suffering a technical glitch that sent it crashing into the lunar surface. Two days later, India launched Chandrayaan 3, becoming the first nation to land in the Moon’s south pole, and doing so with a budget of only $74m. Perhaps surprisingly, the US was not among the participants in the race, although…

E+T Magazine in Space
Dear Evil Engineer: Could I hurl satellites into orbit with a trebuchet?

Dear Evil Engineer, After several years working for a reusable rocket start-up in the US, I feel ready to take a risk and start my own business. I am interested in stylish, sustainable alternatives to rocket launches – something to set my offering apart from all of those the other private space companies jostling for contracts. My big idea is to revive and reimagine an iconic bit of engineering history: the trebuchet. We have access to materials and techniques today that would allow for trebuchets of unprecedented size to be constructed, if there is a business case for it, and I know from my years in the industry that there is demand for cheaper, lower-carbon launches. But is it possible to launch a satellite into orbit with a trebuchet? Yours, Not quite a villain Dear Not quite…

E+T Magazine in Satellites
Planning laws relaxed for undersea cable linking Moroccan and UK energy grids

The Xlinks Morocco-UK Power Project is a proposal to create 10.5GW of renewable generation, 20GWh of battery storage and a 3.6GW high-voltage direct current interconnector to carry solar- and wind-generated electricity from Morocco to the UK. As Morocco has far more consistent weather, it should provide consistent solar power to the UK, even in midwinter. The solar panels are expected to produce three times more energy than they would in the UK. Coutinho has confirmed that the proposal has been given the ‘Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project’ status, which means it can bypass normal local planning requirements in a bid to get it built faster. The designation is typically given to upcoming power plants, large renewable energy projects, new airports and major road projects. Xlinks…

E+T Magazine in Renewable Energy
Secret London spy tunnels to become WWII museum

A network of tunnels used during World War II and the Cold War, located underneath Kingsway, near High Holborn, are set to become the capital’s latest tourist attraction. The BT Group has agreed to sell the tunnels to London Tunnels Ltd, a consortium led by Australian banker Angus Murray and backed by a private equity fund. The firm will invest £140m in restoring the site and an additional £80m for the installation of interactive screens and other museum features. London Tunnels has selected WSP to conduct the engineering surveys on the site and design the new museum. Also working on the project will be WilkinsonEyre, the architect behind Singapore’s Gardens by the Bay and London’s Battersea Power Station. Known as the Kingsway Exchange Tunnels, the network features over 8,000 square…

E+T Magazine in History of Engineering
Ban on various single-use plastics comes into force this weekend

According to the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA), people living in England use 2.7 billion single-use plastic cutlery items and 721 million single-use plates every year, with only 10 per cent of them being recycled. From Sunday, businesses will be banned from using various items in England, while the supply of single-use plastic plates, trays and bowls has also been restricted. Plastic pollution typically takes hundreds of years to break down, inflicts environmental damage and spreads microplastics, which could be harmful to human health. “This new ban is the next big step in our mission to crack down on harmful plastic waste. It will protect the environment and help to cut litter – stopping plastic pollution from dirtying our streets and threatening our wildlife…

E+T Magazine in Ethical Aspects
How mechanics found in nature could make quantum computing a reality

The travelling salesperson problem does not sound like a major quandary. The task? Compute the shortest possible route between a list of destinations and return to base. Unfortunately, although it’s conceptually simple to work it out, no one has come up with an algorithm that is efficient enough to run at speed for tasks with more than a short list of destinations. The naive approach of adding up the total distances for all possible routes results in a combinatorial explosion of calculations. Computer scientists have tried all manner of tricks to bring it down from the order of n-factorial needed for the naive approach. But you still wind up with a running time on the order of two to the power of the number of destinations. If you aren’t scheduling an entire lifetime of sales visits, that…

E+T Magazine in Research and Innovation
‘High-entropy’ semiconductor could be processed at room temperature

S emiconductors are key to the development of almost every electronic device. However, f orming semiconductor materials from sand consumes a significant amount of heat-intensive energy, as it can only be done at extremely high temperatures. In order to make this process more energy-efficient, researchers from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and UC Berkeley have developed ‘multielement ink’, the first ‘high-entropy’ semiconductor that can be processed at low or room temperature. “The traditional way of making semiconductor devices is energy-intensive and one of the major sources of carbon emissions,” said Peidong Yang, the senior author on the study. “Our new method of making semiconductors could pave the way for a more sustainable semiconductor industry.” The new…

E+T Magazine in Research and Innovation
National Grid ‘cautiously optimistic’ the UK will avoid blackouts this winter

The operator said it anticipated a margin of around 4.4 GW, or 7.4 per cent excess generation at peak times, which is slightly higher than last year’s 3.7GW. It said a combination of factors were responsible for the higher margins for this winter, including more generation being available, as well as increased levels of battery storage. Last winter, the energy markets across Europe were able to cope with consumer demand, despite record-high prices of gas and oil driven by the Ukraine war. Coordination and cooperation across European electricity systems helped to meet the demand – if one country was producing excess energy, interconnectors would be used to transport this to other areas of the continent where demand outstripped supply. This winter, both European gas storage and French…

E+T Magazine
Scotland can't afford its ambitious infrastructure plan, auditor warns

Scotland is expected to miss its infrastructure targets and will be forced to pause several of its schedule projects despite “significant” need , the public spending watchdog has said. The latest Audit Scotland report has found that the Scottish government is faced with a combination of reduced capital budgets, higher costs and increased maintenance requirements that would make it unable to afford the cost of delivering its public sector infrastructure plan. As a result, plans for improving and building roads, railways and hospitals might be paused. The auditor said it expects a cost increase for the 45 infrastructure projects of at least £55m between December 2022 and June 2023, while ministers expect a 7 per cent real-terms reduction in the capital block grant it receives from the…

E+T Magazine

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