Even the most efficient washing machines on the market use a lot of energy and water, especially if warm or hot water is involved. But this revolutionary concept from designer Elie Ahovi could change all that. The Orbit ditches the soap and water for the cleaning power of dry ice. It’s also silent and only takes a few minutes per load to boot…
Continue reading… “Floating washing machine uses dry ice to clean clothes in minutes”
Google knows a thing or two about complex calculations performed across very big data sets. Which is why chemists are borrowing ideas from the search company to help them predict how substances react with each other.
PageRank is the algorithm that Google uses to determine the relevancy of links. Now, scientists from Washington State University have borrowed ideas from the code to understand how molecules interact with each other…
Continue reading… “How Google’s algorithms are solving chemistry’s trickiest calculations”
Plants simply do some things better.
We need more trees in our cities. But our cities also need to become more like trees.
The other day I posted on why environmentalists must think like pro-athletes, inspired in part by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s work on optimal experience. As I finish up his book, I was struck by another observation—namely that the task of finding meaning in an individual’s life can be directly compared to the role of plants as “dissipative structures—organisms that collect diffuse energy from the sun and transform it into highly complex, dynamic structures.
It seems to me that the challenge of building community is very similar. We could, as a culture, do a lot worse than to learn from plants…
Continue reading… “5 things plants do better than us”
Investment banking may be bad for your health.
On the list of things that could be dangerous to your health: add investment banking.
Continue reading… “Banking may be dangerous to your health”
Risk of heart attack or stroke can jump after high-pollution days.
Short-term exposure to air pollution — just a day or a week in some cases — may kick off a heart attack or stroke, scientists now say.
Continue reading… “Short-term exposure to air pollution may trigger heart attack, stroke”
Facebook is used by nearly 850 million people each month and roughly 480 million people use it every day. With a user rate like that and an upcoming $75 to $100 billion initial public offering, one might think Facebook is not only a highly visible company, but also one of Corporate America’s most reputable.
Continue reading… “Facebook has a reputation problem: poll”
Even cows can benefit from having a mobile device. A new collar being developed for cattle ranchers could send cow health updates to farmers’ cellphones. The device could help ranchers save money in the long run, monitoring the health of their animals and prevent accidental deaths.
The Silent Herdsman collar will track the movements of the cow using the same type of sensors found in Wii devices. That data is relayed to the rancher via a cellphone using a variety of technologies including 3G. This technology could also send farmers instant notification if their animals are in heat, going into labor or in distress.
Researchers also hope to determine which movements the sensor will pick up to determine when cows are in heat…
Continue reading… “Cow collar texts ranchers when animals are sick or in heat”
Ali Salman of Simply Hybrids
In 2007, Ali Salman was a Vice President of Marketing at Beverly Hills Rent-A-Car in LA. He was becoming dismayed at how dirty the beaches were and how smoggy the skyline was near his home in Orange County. He began to get upset and thought someone should do something to improve the water and air quality in southern California. He then remembered the Chinese proverb: “it is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.”
He took that message to heart and decided to open up his own green business, a car rental company called Simply Hybrids. Five years later, business is booming and growing at an annual rate of 26%. TreeHugger spoke with Mr. Salman about his hybrid car rental business and how he got to where he is today…
Continue reading… “How to start your own hybrid car rental company”
A ground-breaking study that may change how heart attacks are treated.
When a person has a heart attack a piece of muscle in a person’s heart dies from lack of blood flow , it scars over and is lost. But a team of researchers from the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute in Los Angeles has proven that those muscles may not necessarily be gone forever.
Continue reading… “Stem cells can reverse heart attack damage”
The more calories older people consumed, the more likely they were to have mild cognitive impairment.
Overeating may increase your risk of memory loss. Older people who consumed more than 2,143 calories a day had more than double the risk of a type of memory loss called mild cognitive impairment compared to those who ate fewer than 1,500 calories a day, according to a study being released Sunday by the American Academy of Neurology on its website (aan.com).
Continue reading… “Overeating may increase risk of memory loss”
Women more attracted to healthy golden skin than a masculine face.
Men with a healthier skin color are more attractive to women than those with a masculine face, according to new research.
Continue reading… “Women more attracted to men with healthy ‘golden’ skin: study”
New findings about Humpback whales change old views.
Whale song and the development of whale culture is a fascinating thing. Now researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), Columbia University and Australia have found that humpback whales from different sides of the same ocean basin are singing different songs — an surprising finding since whales from the same basin usually sing the same tunes.
Previously, when whale songs from the same basin were compared, researchers found that the songs typically consisted of the similar parts or what is called in whale song parlance as “themes,” or distinct sounds which are often repeated in cycles lasting up to 30 minutes…
Continue reading… “Humpback whales living in same ocean basin found singing different tunes”
By delving into the futuring techniques of Futurist Thomas Frey, you’ll embark on an enlightening journey.
Learn More about this exciting program.