New law means French supermarkets will donate unused food to those in need
Large French supermarkets will soon donate unused food to charity instead of throwing it in a dumpster, after the country’s parliament voted unanimously to cut down on food waste. As the world’s media gathered in Paris last week to cover climate news, French MPs quietly led the Read More...
Seattle votes to allow Uber drivers to form unions
Uber Technologies Inc. was dealt a setback in Seattle, where the city council voted unanimously to give collective bargaining rights to drivers. The new law allows workers who drive for ride-hailing services, such as those from Uber and Lyft Inc., to form unions and negotiate wages with the Read More...
Pocket-sized sensors help safeguard against food contamination
Food in the U.S. is often mislabeled, coming with an assortment of hazards such as carcinogens and pesticides, not to mention the threat of food poisoning. When you take this all into account, the cost of cheap and bountiful food in the U.S. is far more expensive than what we pay at the counter, Read More...
This incredible building material reflects heat back into space, keeping you cool
What if instead of spending vast amounts of electricity to keep our buildings cool from the inside, we just bounced the heat where it came from? Allow us to explain. Aaswath Raman, a researcher at Stanford University, is working on building a material that is ultra-reflective to the sun’s rays Read More...
Plastic-bottle homes are popping up to shelter the homeless
Water bottles are a major pollutant of our world, but communities around the world are finding ways to put discarded bottles to good use. Throughout Africa and Latin America, communities are repurposing these bottles to provide shelter for the homeless. People collect discarded bottles, fill them Read More...
“Resurrection plants” offer hope as climate change threatens crops
As climate change continues to turn what were once fertile lands into dusty, arid fields, scientists and farmers alike are searching for ways to adapt. One answer may lie in a unique group of flora called “resurrection plants,” which can go dormant and appear dead for years, only to return when Read More...
Standing desks in schools boost engagement in classrooms
At some point in history, sitting down in the school classroom became the norm. And even though researchers already proved that children learn much better if they have a chance to move around, in practice, in the classroom nothing much has changed. Up until now, it seems, because several schools Read More...
New style of police training aims to produce "guardians," not "warriors"
So far this year, police in the U.S. have fatally shot over 900 people—more than twice the number recorded in any previous year by federal officials. Anti-brutality activists and some law enforcement leaders argue that if police were better trained to de-escalate conflict, some of those people Read More...
Moderate drinking associated with lower risk of death for people with Alzheimer's
A new Danish study shows that for people with early Alzheimer's, moderate drinking is linked to a stunning 77% lower risk of dying. The results came as a surprise to the researchers, who already knew that moderate drinking leads to a reduced risk of death from coronary disease. However, they did Read More...
Tetris House takes modular homes to a different level
Have you ever wanted to change the layout of your house? Well, a new concept from Universe Architecture will let you do so simply and with relative ease. Tetris House is a modular system of blocks that can slot together in a number of different arrangements. Residents can also attach accessories to Read More...