technology
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Recycling robot is Terminator for trash
Finnish company ZenRobotics has developed a robot that can sort out recyclables from construction trash … about half the time. Doesn't sound exciting? That's because you haven't seen the company's awesomely over the top trailer. IN A WORLD … WHERE CONSTRUCTION TRASH MAKES UP 50 PERCENT OF THE WASTE IN U.S. LANDFILLS … ONLY ONE […]
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Coming soon, to a city near you: open-source agriculture
Sharing the bounty of knowledge.Most people attempting to build a viable urban agriculture business are acutely aware of the enormously challenging and time-consuming process of navigating zoning regulations. Having worked in this sector, I can personally testify that the process is tedious and time-sucking. Over the past couple of years, a number of cities such as […]
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Car parts made out of mushrooms will — wait, what?
Man, is there anything mushrooms can’t do? They make a damn fine fake meat, they make Mario bigger, caterpillars smoke hookahs on them, the whole nine yards. And now, thanks to a company called Ecovative, they can be used to replace styrofoam in some of Earth’s most persistent enemies: packing materials and car parts. The […]
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In five years, you could charge your iPod with a snap of your fingers
Yeah, sure, if nanotechnology gets out of control it could lead to a scenario where the entire world turns into gray goo. But if it DOESN’T get out of control, it could lead to a scenario where you can charge your iPod by snapping your fingers — or even just with your heartbeat. WORTH IT […]
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Should we compromise on key environmental laws to get greentech support? Alexis Madrigal wonders
This is the fifth and final post in a series from my conversation with Atlantic tech channel editor Alexis Madrigal about themes and stories from his new book, Powering the Dream: The History and Promise of Green Technology. DR: How should the lessons from your book alter the strategies of technologists and policymakers? How can […]
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Alexis Madrigal chats about Danish wind power and how to fail well (also, sensors)
This is the fourth in a series from my conversation with Atlantic tech channel editor Alexis Madrigal about themes and stories from his new book, Powering the Dream: The History and Promise of Green Technology. DR: Something that comes up again and again in your book is this seemingly irreducible mystery of wind and how […]
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Alexis Madrigal chats about energy forecasts and nuclear PR
This is the third in a series from my conversation with Atlantic tech channel editor Alexis Madrigal about themes and stories from his new book, Powering the Dream: The History and Promise of Green Technology. DR: Let’s talk about energy forecasts. They seem to have substantial sway over what we do on energy policy despite […]
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Alexis Madrigal chats about boom-and-bust fossil fuels and the promise of cheap electricity
This is the second in a series from my conversation with Atlantic tech channel editor Alexis Madrigal about themes and stories from his new book, Powering the Dream: The History and Promise of Green Technology. You can read part one here. DR: Earlier you mentioned technological momentum. But in a lot of these episodes [from […]
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Artificial solar leaf beats trees at their own game
What's better than trees? I'll tell you: ROBOT TREES. Scientists at MIT have developed "artificial leaves" — small solar cells, about the size (though not the shape) of an oak leaf, that use a photosynthesis-like process to turn water into electricity. Only they do it ten times more efficiently than natural leaves, and the electricity […]
