Over the last 300 years, only a handful of people have tried making spider silk into a cloth. Yet natural spider silk is soft, light and incredibly strong. Its strength, resilience and flexibility are as yet unmatched (scientists are still trying to produce synthetic spider silk that replicates the properties of the natural protein fiber). […]
Studies show that animals have evolved mechanisms for protecting themselves from infection and illness. Did you know, for example, that chimpanzees eat plants not just for their nutritional value, but to ward off disease? This is important for humans because we share about 99% of our DNA with these animals, making them our closest living relatives. So instead […]
Did you know? Hugging a tree, even touching it, will likely make you healthier. And just being around trees has beneficial effects. Nature & Health magazine reports that, “Tree-hugging has been shown to specifically benefit depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), headaches, muscle weakness, stress and poor concentration.” Studies especially in Asia have long suggested […]
Who is credited with having made the lives of an estimated 2 billion people possible over the last century? The German chemists Fritz Haber (1868-1934) and Carl Bosch (1874-1940). How? They invented a process to produce ammonia on an industrial scale. Why is that important? Ammonia can be converted into fertilizer. And abundant fertilizer translates […]
One goal, two pioneers, three remarkable world tours between them: the first in a balloon, the second in Solar Impulse, the renowned solar-powered aircraft, and the third, less widely known, in a solar boat called PlanetSolar. Less famous than Bertrand Piccard who accomplished the first two global tours, Swiss solar navigator and aviator Raphaël Domjan nevertheless has […]
By Danielle Carpenter – According to UNICEF, “Nearly half of all deaths in children under 5 are attributable to undernutrition, translating into the loss of about 3 million young lives a year. Undernutrition puts children at greater risk of dying from common infections, increases the frequency and severity of such infections, and delays recovery.” Malnutrition can be […]
By Danielle Carpenter – Ambling through the Piccadilly district in London, pedestrians often want to rest their tired feet. What better place to do this than on a bench that pulls pollution from the air, is self-sufficient and plant-based, cools the surrounding air through water evaporation, and reduces noise pollution? The CityTree, by Germany-based tech […]
There’s been a flurry of talk lately about the amount of pollution, plastic waste in particular, covering our planet. A new weapon may help rescue us from the mess. A recent discovery could radically change how plastic pollution is dealt with. It involves fungi. A fungus is a living organism separate from animals and plants. It includes […]
The logistics company, Zipline, designs, manufactures and operates drones that deliver urgent medical supplies and other goods, such as vaccines or blood for transfusions. Health professionals in remote hospitals or health centers in Rwanda, where the company first tested its concept, order the medical products they need by SMS. The products, stored at Zipline’s distribution center, […]
What has changed the lives of a whole bunch of people? A wild shrub with yellow flowers that grows like a weed in humid tropical areas. The plant, called Tithonia diversifolia, can be used as a fertilizer to increase cereal or vegetable yields. Made into “green manure”, its effects are equivalent to those produced by […]
