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A Brief History of the World’s First Planetarium

Cars That Think

The use of models to show the movements of the planets and stars goes back centuries, starting with mechanical orreries that used clockwork mechanisms to depict our solar system. ZEISS Archive At first, Bauersfeld focused on projecting just the sun, moon, and planets of our solar system.

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Generating Power on Earth From the Coldness of Deep Space

Cars That Think

On the rooftop of a quiet building, a set of panels cools the rooms within and keeps the lights on, removing heat and generating electricity using the coldness of the sky. That cold isn’t in the air around the building—the night is warm. Consider solar radiation, which carries heat from the sun to Earth’s surface.

Power 138
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Duke study finds China’s synthetic natural gas plants will have heavy environmental toll; 2x vehicle GHG if used for fuel

Green Car Congress

Private companies are planning to build more than 30 other plants, capable of producing as much as 200 million cubic meters of natural gas each year—far exceeding China’s current natural gas demand. They] will lock in high greenhouse gas emissions, water use and mercury pollution for decades. —Robert B. —Chi-Jen Yang.

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EPA proposes rule for nationwide 30% cut in GHG from existing power plants by 2030 relative to 2005

Green Car Congress

EPA is using four “building blocks” to determine state-specific goals: Reducing the carbon intensity of generation at individual affected electric generating units (EGUs) through heat-rate improvements. Each of these goal approaches use the four building blocks described above at different levels of stringency. state compliance) to $7.4

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Science Fiction Short: Hijack

Cars That Think

So IEEE Spectrum is making one of its occasional forays into science fiction, with a short story by Karl Schroeder about the unexpected outcomes from building a computer out of planet Mercury. This strategy would also make it easier to harvest solar energy. They sent you to acknowledge the Uploaded, is that it?”

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A New Wildfire Watchdog

Cars That Think

sensor units mounted on buildings to stream data via Wi-Fi to Web-based mapping programs. Sensors that mount on buildings can just plug into a wall outlet. If the power source is limited in capacity, such as a battery, or in availability, such as a solar panel, the computer also monitors and manages power consumption.

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The Importance of Recycling and Repurposing EV Batteries

Setec Powerr

Spent lithium-ion batteries contain hazardous materials like lead, cadmium, and mercury, which, if not properly disposed of, can leach into soil and water, causing significant ecological harm. Building a robust recycling infrastructure is crucial to keep pace with the rising demand and ensure efficient, effective recycling processes.