Miscellaneous
Mobile platforms bring banking to developing countries
The financial system is changing at a rapid pace, yet in many developing countries there are few banking options and people are forced to hide their money in secret places where it deteriorates because of inflation. However, mobile phones are very common in developing countries and new businesses Read More...
Making biofuel from trash could create thousands of jobs
One man’s trash is another man’s treasure—or in this case his job. A recent report by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) found that making biofuels from trash could create 36,000 jobs across Europe and save 37 million tons of oil. The ICCT also says that biofuels have Read More...
Device gives deaf children gift of hearing
Cochlear implants have provided thousands of deaf people with the ability to hear. Cochlear implants work by using electrodes to send pulses to the auditory nerve, which the brain then recognizes by sound. But for those born without an auditory nerve cochlear implants and hearing has not been an Read More...
Suit gives paralyzed the gift of walking
A diagnosis of paralysis almost always means you will never walk again. But that’s changing. Watch this short video. Two companies in the US have created a bionic suit that basically walks for the person who is wearing it. The suits are strong and the person wearing them only feels the weight of Read More...
High seas fishing ban would boost catching equality
Our global fish stocks are being depleted at a rate that is not only unsustainable, but will leave future generations with nearly no fish. Right now 10 high sea fishing nations catch more than 70 percent of fish in international waters. Researchers from Canada have crunched fishing data from high Read More...
Volkswagen invests in EV charging stations
At the end of last month BMW and Volkswagen announced plans to build a network of electric-vehicle (EV) charging stations along the eastern and western seaboards. Now Volkswagen has followed up with this announcement and has pledged $10 million to start construction on a national network of EV Read More...
Micro-funding app lets you borrow money from your friends
Developers of a new app, called Puddle, want you to throw out the old idea of keeping money and friends separate. The way Puddle works is that you can borrow from it up to 5X what you put in. So lets say you put in $10 then you can take out $50, put in $500 and you can take out $2500, and so on. Read More...
Indonesia is winning the battle against sea poachers
Indonesia is home to some of the most diverse ecosystems above and below sea level. Corruption and illegal poaching has damaged Indonesian authority’s reputation but changes in recent years are showing hope for the Indonesia’s archipelago and species are starting to comeback. Since 2012 the Read More...
Drawing power from water pipes
When you hear the words hydroelectric you probably think dam, or maybe a big underwater turbine. Small scale hydroelectric hasn’t really been tapped into, until now. The LucidPipe is the latest offering from Lucid Energy and is designed to be an inexpensive option for capturing the energy from Read More...
China winds down coal production
For the first time this century China’s coal production has fallen. Chinese coal production fell more than 2 percent in 2014, and totaled 2.5 billion tons produced between January and November last year. The Chinese government says this isn’t a one-off occurrence and plan on reducing coal Read More...