“'AI is a powerful tool, but climate action will require all the tools. The moral of the story for me is that it is important for people to think about how they can use the tools they have to make a difference on problems that they care about.'”
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Burning Metal to Make Clean Energy
"So, what happens with all the rust then? Because iron is not just the fuel that is consumed, the energy stored can be easily recharged. And to recharge it, all that oxygen from FeO can be stripped out, and turned back into Fe, ready to be burned again. It might not be easy to do this, but much of the energy and work consists of prying that oxygen away from all the iron, which gets returned to when burning the iron, the next time. The idea is to use the same iron repeatedly, discharging it, and recharging it every time – just like a battery."
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GM-Backed Cruise Launches Driverless Ride Service In San Francisco
"Starting next year Cruise will add purpose-built, electric Origin vans supplied by GM to its fleet and thinks having them do double duty throughout the day, acting as robotaxis during rush hour peaks and shifting to grocery and food deliveries when ride demand drops, will maximize revenue, Vogt says."
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‘Tree of life’ keeps forests alive for thousands of years, scientists discover
“'This study recalls the urgent need for a global strategy to conserve biodiversity, not only by preserving intact forests, but in particular the small remnant of a few ancient trees that have survived in managed forest landscapes,' study author Gianluca Piovesan concludes."
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With a plan to decarbonize home heating with hydrogen, Modern Electron raises $30M
"If Modern Electron’s tech becomes mainstream, and the trend away from oil and coal continues, it could make natural gas a much cleaner and more viable complement (and one already with a heavy global presence) to renewables like solar and wind."
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A roadway will charge your EV while you’re driving
"Wireless EV charging systems use magnetic frequency to transfer power from coils buried underground to a receiver pad attached to the car's underbelly."
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Verdox Captures $80M to Develop Novel Electric Carbon Removal Technology
"Verdox, an electric carbon capture and removal company, launched today and announced $80M in committed capital from a syndicate including Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV), Prelude Ventures, and Lowercarbon Capital. The investment will be leveraged to develop and deploy the company’s novel electrochemical carbon capture technology."
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These EVs are cheaper to own than their gas-powered counterparts
"The real cost advantage happens over time, since charging the truck costs less than buying gas, and maintenance will also be less expensive because EVs have fewer moving parts. The same is true for other EVs."
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Scientists count the world’s tree species (spoiler: it’s a bunch)
"Researchers on Monday unveiled the world's largest forest data base, comprising more than 44 million individual trees at more than 100,000 sites in 90 countries - helping them to calculate that Earth boasts roughly 73,300 tree species."
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Offshore wind farms could help capture carbon from air and store it long-term – using energy that would otherwise go to waste
"Replacing fossil fuel-based energy with clean energy like wind power is essential to holding off the worsening effects of climate change. But that transition isn’t happening fast enough to stop global warming. Human activities have pumped so much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere that we will also have to remove carbon dioxide from the air and lock it away permanently."