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DIY YouTuber powers an EV using 500 disposable vapes
2 months ago
- DIY YouTuber Chris Doel powers a mini EV using a battery pack made from 500 used vapes.
- The project aims to highlight the environmental impact of disposable vapes, with over a million discarded daily in the UK.
- Chris repurposed a previously built 50V battery pack for the EV, originally used for home backup power.
- The EV, a Reva G-Wiz, required minimal configuration, including inverter reprogramming to match battery output.
- The setup achieved 17 miles (27 km) of range and a top speed of 35 mph (56 kph).
- The battery pack maintained temperatures below 30°C (86°F) and delivered 2.07 kWh of usable energy.
Upside Robotics is reducing fertilizer use and waste in corn crops
2 months ago
- Upside Robotics was founded in 2024 by Jana Tian and Sam Dugan to address fertilizer waste in agriculture using autonomous robots.
- The company builds lightweight, solar-powered robots that deliver precise amounts of fertilizer to crops based on proprietary algorithms analyzing weather and soil data.
- Initially focused on corn, one of the most fertilizer-intensive crops, the founders tested their concept manually in fields, living in a camper to stay close to the farms.
- Upside Robotics expanded from 70 acres in 2024 to 1,200 acres in 2025, with plans to serve over 3,000 acres in 2026, achieving 100% customer retention.
- The robots have helped farmers reduce fertilizer use by 70%, saving approximately $150 per acre per season.
- The company raised a $7.5 million seed round led by Plural, with participation from Garage Capital and Clearpath Robotics founders, to fund R&D and expand into the U.S. corn belt.
- Farmers have been receptive to the technology, often requesting the solution due to its clear return on investment and practical benefits.
CT Scans of Health Wearables
2 months ago
- The author reflects on the inconsistency in personal engineering projects, contrasting it with the extensive engineering behind everyday disposable objects like plastic bottles.
- The evolution of beverage packaging from glass to plastic, including the failed acrylonitrile copolymer bottles by Coca-Cola and the rise of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) bottles.
- The development and optimization of plastic bottle manufacturing processes, such as Injection Stretch Blow Molding (ISBM), to improve efficiency and reduce material use.
- The bottled water industry's growth in the 1990s, driven by brands like Aquafina and Dasani, and the subsequent focus on lightweighting and sustainability in bottle design.
- The environmental impact of plastic bottles, including recycling challenges and the potential for future innovations in packaging to address waste issues.
Does Costco Sell Half of the World's Cashews?
2 months ago
- Costco sells 50% of the world's cashews, sourcing from independent farmers in at least 20 countries.
- The company supports 2.5 million independent cashew farmers in Africa, investing in infrastructure, training, and community programs.
- Costco's Kirkland Signature line includes various cashew products, with packaging evolving to use more recycled materials.
- The company's global revenue includes about $300,000 weekly from cashew sales.
- Cashews are available in various forms at Costco, including mixed nuts, chocolates, and snack bars.
Using moon dirt to build future lunar colonies
2 months ago
- Simulated lunar dirt (regolith simulant) can be turned into durable structures using laser 3D printing.
- This method could help build sturdy, heat-resistant habitats and tools for future NASA Artemis missions.
- The material's quality depends on the surface it's printed on, with alumina-silicate ceramic showing the best adhesion.
- Environmental factors like oxygen levels, laser strength, and printing speed impact the structure's stability.
- Additive manufacturing in space could reduce the need to transport materials from Earth, saving time and resources.
- Future systems might use solar-driven or hybrid power architectures for scalability in space.
- The research could also improve sustainability on Earth by optimizing resource use in manufacturing.
Scotland becomes first UK country to legalise water cremations
2 months ago
- Scotland is the first UK region to legalise hydrolysis, an eco-friendly alternative to traditional burial or cremation.
- Hydrolysis, also known as water cremation or aquamation, uses an alkaline solution to break down the body, leaving only bones which are then processed into white dust.
- The process is already legal in several countries, including the US, Canada, and South Africa, with Archbishop Desmond Tutu opting for it in 2022.
- The Scottish government highlights that hydrolysis offers a new choice for funerals, aligning with public demand for sustainable options.
- Kindly Earth, the UK's exclusive manufacturer of hydrolysis equipment, notes it may take up to nine months for the first Scottish facility to become operational.
- Hydrolysis produces no toxic emissions and reduces the need for single-use coffins, making it environmentally beneficial.
- Public opinion on new funeral methods evolves over time, as seen with the widespread acceptance of cremation, now accounting for 80% of UK funerals.
The low-tech brilliance of Iranian design
2 months ago
- Nashtifan windmills: Vertical axis windmills made from cob and wood, used for over 1,000 years to grind grain and pump water. Features include fewer moving parts, on-site materials, and passive windbreak design.
- Windcatchers (Badgir): Passive cooling towers that lower indoor temperatures by 18-27°F using wind direction, thermal mass, and evaporative cooling. Functions without electricity.
- Ice Pits (Yakhchal): Passive refrigeration and ice-making structures in deserts using solar chimneys, ground cooling, and thick earthen walls. Operates without electricity or fossil fuels.
3M's PFAS exit killed the supply chain for two-phase immersion cooling in DCs
a month ago
- Germany enforces a law requiring new data centers to reuse at least 10% of waste heat by 2026, increasing to 20% by 2028, with fines for non-compliance.
- 3M's discontinuation of PFAS chemicals disrupts the supply chain for two-phase immersion cooling fluids, impacting data center cooling technologies.
- Data centers' water consumption is significantly higher off-site (72%) due to power plant cooling, challenging traditional views on water usage.
- The UN reports 'global water bankruptcy,' with data centers consuming up to 5 million gallons of water daily, exacerbating freshwater depletion.
- AI infrastructure demands push rack power beyond 120 kW, making liquid cooling mandatory, with market projections showing rapid adoption growth.
- Nevada bans evaporative cooling for new data centers, signaling a regulatory shift towards water conservation in data center operations.
- Air cooling increases electricity consumption, shifting water usage to power plants, highlighting the need for balanced cooling solutions.
- Advanced cooling technologies can reduce energy consumption by up to 67.2%, with state-of-the-art facilities achieving PUE as low as 1.06.
- Community opposition and regulatory challenges stall $64 billion in U.S. data center projects, reflecting growing environmental and social concerns.
- Immersion cooling offers superior PUE (1.02) but faces adoption barriers due to server compatibility, workforce readiness, and retrofit economics.
- The liquid cooling market is projected to grow from $5.52 billion in 2025 to $15.75 billion by 2030, driven by AI and high-density computing demands.
- NVIDIA's GPU power requirements (up to 1,000W per chip) dictate cooling technology choices, pushing the industry towards liquid cooling solutions.
- Frore Systems' solid-state cooling technology raises $143 million, valuing the company at $1.64 billion, signaling interest in innovative cooling methods.
- Pilot projects in Phoenix and Wisconsin test zero-water cooling technologies, aiming to address water scarcity in data center operations.
- The workforce skills gap in liquid cooling installation and maintenance emerges as a critical barrier to adoption in the data center industry.
Chest Fridge
a month ago
- Vertical doors in refrigeration devices go against the nature of cold air, reducing efficiency.
- A chest fridge (modified Vestfrost freezer) consumes only 0.1 kWh/day, running just 2 minutes per hour.
- Energy-efficient fridges cost less and preserve food better by minimizing temperature fluctuations.
- Inefficient fridges waste at least 1 kWh/day per household, contributing to unnecessary greenhouse emissions.
- For 20 years, freezer-to-fridge modification kits were supplied in Australia to promote energy efficiency.
- Modern chest freezers now often include temperature controls for use as fridges, reducing the need for modifications.
- Replacing an old Vestfrost with two CHiQ hybrid inverter freezers (142L and 198L) improved flexibility and efficiency.
- CHiQ freezers use inverter-based compressors, reducing peak power demand to 138W, ideal for off-grid systems.
Fiber optic cables reveal a serious problem at the heart of modern farming
a month ago
- Tilling soil, a practice dating back thousands of years, initially boosted agriculture by improving soil fertility and weed control.
- Long-term tilling degrades soil, reduces water retention, and increases reliance on synthetic fertilizers, harming the environment.
- Fiber optic cables and Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS) reveal tilling destroys soil capillaries, crucial for water retention.
- Regenerative farming practices like no-till, cover crops, and crop diversity can reduce agrochemical use and improve soil health.
- DAS technology uses fiber optic cables to detect disturbances, turning them into continuous sensors for seismic and agricultural monitoring.
- Tilled soils, despite appearing loose, actually absorb less water due to destroyed natural structures like worm and root holes.
- Farmers traditionally plow to control weeds and boost short-term fertility, but this leads to long-term soil degradation.
- Synthetic fertilizers, while addressing soil deficiencies, contribute to global warming and waterway pollution.
- Regenerative agriculture solutions include livestock grazing, cover crops, compost use, and increasing crop diversity to enhance soil health.
- Adopting regenerative practices can reduce agrochemical reliance, increase biodiversity, lower pollution, and make farms more profitable.
Sodium-ion EV battery breakthrough delivers 11-min charging and 450 km range
a month ago
- Next-generation sodium-ion EV batteries are nearing mass production, offering efficiency, safety, and lower costs.
- BAIC Group announced a breakthrough in sodium-ion battery tech, achieving a prototype with 170Wh/kg energy density and 450 km range.
- Sodium-ion batteries support ultra-fast charging (11 minutes) and perform well in extreme temperatures (-40°C to 60°C).
- CATL's sodium-ion batteries (175 Wh/kg) rival LFP batteries, with future range projections of 500-600 km.
- Sodium-ion batteries provide a cost-effective alternative to lithium, with global shipments expected to exceed 1,000 GWh in four years.
LibreOffice and the Art of Overreacting
a month ago
- LibreOffice 26.8 will feature a donation banner in the Start Centre, sparking mixed reactions.
- The banner is non-intrusive, appearing periodically and not blocking any functionality.
- LibreOffice has displayed donation requests for years, with the new banner being less intrusive than previous versions.
- Comparisons with Mozilla Thunderbird and Wikipedia show similar donation practices without controversy.
- The Document Foundation's mission and governance ensure LibreOffice remains free and open-source, debunking 'freemium' fears.
- LibreOffice's sustainability relies on donations, with the banner being a reasonable request for support.
- The debate highlights a misunderstanding of FOSS sustainability and the importance of supporting free software.

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#sustainability

DIY YouTuber powers an EV using 500 disposable vapes

Upside Robotics is reducing fertilizer use and waste in corn crops

CT Scans of Health Wearables

Does Costco Sell Half of the World's Cashews?

Using moon dirt to build future lunar colonies

Scotland becomes first UK country to legalise water cremations

The low-tech brilliance of Iranian design

3M's PFAS exit killed the supply chain for two-phase immersion cooling in DCs

Chest Fridge

Fiber optic cables reveal a serious problem at the heart of modern farming

Sodium-ion EV battery breakthrough delivers 11-min charging and 450 km range

LibreOffice and the Art of Overreacting