Google Loonacy: How Tech Companies Are Restoring A R...

On September 20th, Puerto Rico was devastated by Hurricane Maria a mere two weeks after a brush with another hurricane, Irma. Recovery efforts in the ravaged U.S. territory have been lackluster, and many are still without power, water, or communication. Surprisingly, some of the most innovative and enthusiastic support has come from non-traditional sources -- [...]

 

On September 20th, Puerto Rico was devastated by Hurricane Maria a mere two weeks after a brush with another hurricane, Irma. Recovery efforts in the ravaged U.S. territory have been lackluster, and many are still without power, water, or communication. Surprisingly, some of the most innovative and enthusiastic support has come from non-traditional sources — American tech companies. At the time of writing, roughly a month after the storms, aid workers and citizens alike are still putting the pieces back...
Read more
   

Water-Gen Wicks Clean Drinking Water Straight from t...

Dehumidifiers have been around for years, sucking excess moisture from the air and leaving it to collect in bins we all too often dump out. Water-Gen, an Israeli water tech company, is adapting that same principle for practice use, wicking ambient moisture and condensing it into pure drinking water for those who need it most. [...]

Dehumidifiers have been around for years, sucking excess moisture from the air and leaving it to collect in bins we all too often dump out. Water-Gen, an Israeli water tech company, is adapting that same principle for practice use, wicking ambient moisture and condensing it into pure drinking water for those who need it most. Even in the 21st century, water insecurity (that is, access to clean drinking water and adequate sanitation services) is still a major issue. According to...
Read more
   

The New Steam Engine: Hydrogen-Powered Trains Coming...

While hydrogen-powered cars might be falling to the wayside in favor of electric alternatives, trains covering long distances might hop on the hydrogen trend. French train manufacturer Alstom has recently unveiled the Coradia iLint, a new train free of carbon dioxide emissions thanks to its hydrogen fuel cells. Even with diesel-powered trains, traveling by rail [...]

While hydrogen-powered cars might be falling to the wayside in favor of electric alternatives, trains covering long distances might hop on the hydrogen trend. French train manufacturer Alstom has recently unveiled the Coradia iLint, a new train free of carbon dioxide emissions thanks to its hydrogen fuel cells. Even with diesel-powered trains, traveling by rail is seen as a greener alternative compared to flying or commuting by car. Studies have been boasting that trains cut greenhouse emissions by 90 percent...
Read more
   

VolkerWessels Wants to Roll Out PlasticRoad

When it comes to construction, plastic doesn't just have to come in Lego-shaped bricks to be a viable building material. Dutch construction company VolkerWessels is opening up about its PlasticRoad project which, as the name suggests, is looking for an alternative to conventional road-building by using recycled plastics instead. Is asphalt truly so bad that [...]

When it comes to construction, plastic doesn’t just have to come in Lego-shaped bricks to be a viable building material. Dutch construction company VolkerWessels is opening up about its PlasticRoad project which, as the name suggests, is looking for an alternative to conventional road-building by using recycled plastics instead. Is asphalt truly so bad that we need to find alternatives for it in a hurry? No, I wouldn’t say that. I will say, however, that it doesn’t hurt finding more...
Read more
   

DroneSeed Wants to Regrow the World’s Forests With D...

Trees are pretty great: they give us shade, timber, paper, and even food in some cases. On top of that (and most importantly), they help us breathe, scrubbing about 30% of annual carbon dioxide emissions from the air and replacing it with precious oxygen. But with rampant deforestation and the high resource and labor costs [...]

Trees are pretty great: they give us shade, timber, paper, and even food in some cases. On top of that (and most importantly), they help us breathe, scrubbing about 30% of annual carbon dioxide emissions from the air and replacing it with precious oxygen. But with rampant deforestation and the high resource and labor costs needed to replant all we cut down, we need a better way to regrow what we’ve lost. DroneSeed, a start-up in the Pacific Northwest, might...
Read more
   

Polymer Injection Technology: Turning Old Tires into...

When we think of transportation, images of vehicles big and small might come to mind. Cars, trucks, planes, ships, all with their own strengths and weaknesses when it comes to choosing the right vehicle to move your products (or yourself). Though when it comes to sustainability, the focus is on the emissions of these vehicles. [...]

When we think of transportation, images of vehicles big and small might come to mind. Cars, trucks, planes, ships, all with their own strengths and weaknesses when it comes to choosing the right vehicle to move your products (or yourself). Though when it comes to sustainability, the focus is on the emissions of these vehicles. Rarely do we think of how some of the parts might cause environmental problems of their own. Come to think of it, how many sets...
Read more
   

How Precious Plastic is Reshaping Our Waste Problem

It's often all too easy for businesses to dismiss recycling and green initiatives as too costly to implement compared to conventional methods. After all, a good capitalist knows one ought to maximize revenue while minimizing expenses, right? But just as rent or property taxes, equipment, wages, and whatever else you care to list off your books is considered [...]

It’s often all too easy for businesses to dismiss recycling and green initiatives as too costly to implement compared to conventional methods. After all, a good capitalist knows one ought to maximize revenue while minimizing expenses, right? But just as rent or property taxes, equipment, wages, and whatever else you care to list off your books is considered a fiscal cost of doing business, we cannot forget the cost we inflict on our planet as well. While some CEOs might try to justify this...
Read more
   

The Plastic Bottle Cutter Spins Waste into Rope

While the art of recycling plastic bottles into rope isn’t new, the inventors behind the Plastic Bottle Cutter sure are making it trendy. After a successful Kickstarter campaign, the Plastic Bottle Cutter might be a clever way to make the best of a bad situation (that is, the ridiculous amount of plastic waste that’s tossed [...]

While the art of recycling plastic bottles into rope isn’t new, the inventors behind the Plastic Bottle Cutter sure are making it trendy. After a successful Kickstarter campaign, the Plastic Bottle Cutter might be a clever way to make the best of a bad situation (that is, the ridiculous amount of plastic waste that’s tossed into our oceans and landfills). With over 150 million tons of plastic waste floating out at sea and millions more stashed away in dumps on...
Read more