Science
From mathematics and AI to medicine and psychology, The Optimist Daily features the latest news on discoveries, technological advances, and breakthroughs in the world of science. Our Science section is here to engage and enlighten you.
The Optimist View: Fighting Fire with FireーRethinking wildfires with Indigenous wisdom
“Everything on the earth has a purpose, every disease an herb to cure it, and every person a mission. This is the Indian theory of existence.” - Mourning Dove BY Amelia Buckley As wildfires continue to rage around the Western United States, Greece, Turkey, and more, I reached out to my Read More...
This plastic-free recyclable cooler uses wool to keep things cool
While it is an effective insulation material, the polyurethane foam typically used in coolers is difficult to recycle, involves harmful chemicals in its production, and releases noxious gases during decomposition. All of these environmental setbacks are what has prompted a startup, called Wool Read More...
New MIT invention could help control prosthetic limbs more precisely
In prosthetics, the most common technology for controlling limbs is called electromyography. This technique records electrical activity from the muscles, but only provides only limited control of the prosthesis, preventing users to move the artificial body part the same way they would move a Read More...
Texas A&M launches center for insect farming research
Eating crickets for breakfast may sound unconventional, but this unlikely ingredient could potentially provide protein-rich food to the millions currently lacking it. We’ve written before about the environmental and dietary benefits of insect protein. Now, Texas A&M AgriLife Research has Read More...
Automated aircraft towing tech aims to save fuel and cut emissions
Airlines consume billions of gallons of jet fuel every year to transport passengers around the world. About five percent of that fuel is used on the ground, as airliners have to run their jet engines to taxi along the runway, generating a lot of carbon emissions in the process. A novel in-ground Read More...
This device combines solar and human energy to generate electricity
An average person creates 100 to 150 watts of power while riding a stationary bike. That energy, however, usually remains untapped, causing users to miss out on a great opportunity to generate their own green electricity. In fact, by harnessing the biomechanical power generated by a stationary Read More...
Babbling bats: Winged mammals could teach us about human language
You may not think humans have much in common with bats, but it turns out these nocturnal creatures may provide critical insights into human language development. Researchers from the Museum of Natural History Berlin spent many months studying bat colonies in Panama and Costa Rica and found that in Read More...
This smart wheelchair enables users to climb stairs and adjust height
Here at The Optimist Daily, we are big proponents of technologies that move the world forward in an inclusive and thoughtful way. That’s why we’re happy to share with you BRO, a futuristic, stairs-climbing wheelchair developed by Scewo, which aims to offer people of restricted mobility the Read More...
This lab-fermented chocolate solves the industry’s child labor problems
About 20 years ago, chocolate companies have pledged to phase out child labor on cocoa plantations. Fast forward to today, the issue remains widespread across the industry, especially in West Africa, where 70 percent of the world’s cocoa beans are grown. Progress has also been slow in cutting Read More...
You will soon be able to feed your cat lab-grown mouse-meat snacks
Most of the food that we feed or pet cats and dogs is meat-based which, as you can imagine, has its negative impacts on the environment. In fact, producing meat for our cats and dogs has a footprint of about 64 million tons of carbon emissions — that’s more than a quarter of the environmental Read More...