Editor Blogs

October 2017

RIKEN

Photo of the ultra-thin organic solar cells

Jason Lomberg, North American Editor, PSD

Ever wanted a wearable solar cell you could throw in the laundry? Of course you have! Who hasn’t wanted to wash a power source without causing a calamity? Scientists from RIKEN and the University of Tokyo have achieved just that – they’ve created a new ultra-thin photovoltaic device that can survive bei

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10/27/2017

In-memory computing can revolutionize AI

Ally Winning, European Editor, PSD

There is a huge need for high performance computational devices in the world today. Whether it is sorting big data for Internet of Things applications, or helping a self-driving car “see”, today’s applications require a huge amount of number crunching to operate. Most of the number crunching is done by AI

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10/26/2017

New iPhones Feature Qi-Based Wireless Charging

Apple

You should see a lightning symbol in the status bar.

New iPhones Feature Qi-Based Wireless Charging

Jason Lomberg, North American Editor, PSD

Apple has finally declared its allegiance in the wireless charging dogfight, and the Cupertino giant has thrown in with Qi, an open, universal charging standard created by the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC). The WPC – which enjoys the support of Apple, Nokia, LG, Samsung, Sony, BlackBerry, and Motorola Mo

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10/25/2017

Toshiba

Prototype of 50Ah next-generation SCiB
111mm x 194mm x 14.5mm

Toshiba's New Lithium-Ion Battery Can be Recharged in Six Minutes

Jason Lomberg, North American Editor, PSD

We’ve all heard about rapid-recharge solutions, some promising, some snake oil. But this one has promise and the support of a mega-conglomerate. Cue the hype machine. Toshiba’s next-gen SCiB lithium-ion batteries include a new anode material – titanium niobium oxide – which doubles the anode c

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10/24/2017

Is Ocean Wind Power the Key to Efficient Renewable Energy?

Ally Winning, European Editor, PSD

New research from Carnegie suggests that generating power in the open ocean is much more effective than land based windfarms. The North Atlantic in particular could be ideal for this type of power generation. The work, undertaken by Carnegie’s Anna Possner and Ken Caldeira, was initially published in Proceedings of the

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10/19/2017

Nvidia

The NVIDIA DRIVE PX "Pegasus" AI computing platform is the worldâ€™s first designed to drive fully autonomous robotaxis.

Nvidia's AI Platform Could Enable Fully Autonomous Vehicles

Jason Lomberg, North American Editor, PSD

Autonomous vehicles could reshape the fabric of society, and everyone from Volvo to Google has thrown their hat in the self-driving race (to varying degrees of success). But Nvidia’s new Pegasus AI computing platform, which crunches 320 trillion+ operations per second, could finally make Level 5 driverless vehicles a reality.

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10/16/2017

Google has revealed that the company is set be 100% powered by renewable energy ...

Ally Winning, European Editor, PSD

A new blog from Google has revealed that the company is set be 100% powered by renewable energy this year. Over the last seven years, the company has been gradually signing long-term contracts to directly purchase enough renewable energy to power its global server farms. Today, Google claims to be the largest co

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10/12/2017

''Air-Breathing'' Battery Cuts Renewable Energy Storage Costs by One-Fifth

Courtesy of the researchers. Left photo: Felice Frankel.

MIT researchers have developed an air-breathing battery that could store electricity for very long durations for about a third the price of current technologies, with minimal location restraints and zero emissions.

''Air-Breathing'' Battery Cuts Renewable Energy Storage Costs by One-Fifth

Jason Lomberg, North American Editor, PSD

A brand new battery could revolutionize renewable energy storage. The "air-breathing" battery from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) can allegedly store energy at one-fifth the cost of current technologies, and according to MIT, with minimal location restraints and zero emissions. T

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10/11/2017

Microsoft

Microsoft Plans Heavy Investment in Wind Energy

Jason Lomberg, North American Editor, PSD

Microsoft just announced an extensive wind energy investment in Ireland. Over a 15-year period, the multinational conglomerate plans to purchase all the wind energy from GE’s 37-megawatt Tullahennel wind farm in County Kerry, Ireland. As part of the 15-year power purchase agreement (PPA), Microsoft will buy 100%

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10/09/2017

Zunum Aero

Company to Release Hybrid-Electric Commercial Aircraft by 2022

Jason Lomberg, North American Editor, PSD

Jazzed about cheaper, quieter flights with no humans in the cockpit? That’s the eventual goal of Zunum Aero, which hopes to revolutionize air travel and eliminate flight-based emissions starting in 2022. By then, the Seattle-based startup plans to release a small hybrid-electric airliner, with the stated goal of delivering a 50-seat craft by the following decade. The initial entry,

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Date:

10/05/2017