New catalyst unlocks industrial chemicals for making plastics from biomass
While most of us are keeping our eye on the transition to electric and self-driving cars and delight in how “green” the future will be, the industrial world continues to crank out billions of tons of Read More...
Google sibling Waymo launches fully autonomous ride-hailing service
Waymo, formerly known as Google’s self-driving car, is launching a fully autonomous Uber-like ride-hailing service with no human driver behind the wheel, after testing the vehicles on public roads in Arizona. Waymo, which is owned by Google parent Read More...
Study: spiritual people are younger, more liberal and more generous
A new study suggests spiritual people are younger, more liberal and more generous. Americans who consider themselves spiritual yet not religious are a fast-growing Read More...
This has to be the world’s most-environmentally friendly chicken farm
Mass-producing farms, even those that have moved on from cages, produce extremely cheap eggs at a heavy cost to the environment and the welfare of the animals laying them. The organic and free-range varieties, where farmers prioritize the welfare of the chickens, often sell at a higher price—but Read More...
The challenge: Men teach gender studies and mostly women take them
Even though the course is called “gender studies,” the overwhelming majority of people attending such courses are women. The imbalance seems bizarre, especially when so many men are engaged in gender debates these days. So why do so few men enroll in gender studies Read More...
How driverless cars will help the poor, the elderly and the disabled
The Tesla crowd may get a full driverless experience before anyone else, but unlike iPhones, Spotify, and Trader Joe’s, autonomous technology won’t just help those who are already pretty well-off. Instead, the opportunity and independence promised by our driverless future will do the most for Read More...
Education for all: free courses offered by 200 universities around the world
Massive Open Online Courses, also known as MOOCs, are on the rise. In the past six years or so, close to 800 universities have created more than 8,000 MOOCs. In just the past three months, over 200 universities have announced 600 of such free online courses, teaching a wealth of different subjects Read More...
How to keep your brain sharp, even if you aren’t a ‘super-ager’
As we age, our brain’s grey matter—the stuff we rely on for seeing, hearing, processing emotion, exerting self-control, learning information, and much more—shrinks and degrades. Well, not for everybody. Scientists have recently discovered a rare group of people above the age of 80 that have a Read More...
Investors turn focus on China’s drive for sustainability
Global investors are increasingly hesitant to invest in companies with a traditional growth model that fails to incorporate the principles of sustainability. Recognizing this trend, China is getting ready to shed off its Read More...
‘For us, the land is sacred’: the defenders of the world’s forests
Of the many thousands of participants at the Bonn climate conference which begins on 6 November, there will arguably be none who come with as much hope, courage and anger as the busload of indigenous leaders who have been criss-crossing Europe over the past two Read More...