Sustainable “plastic” is harder than bone A team at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has created a plant-derived “plastic” that is harder than bone and aluminum. CNCs Within all plants and algae, there is cellulose nanocrystals or CNCs. According to the MIT, “At the nanoscale, CNCs are stronger and stiffer than Kevlar. If the…
Clean water from waste Currently, 1 in 4 people in the world lacks clean drinking water. A Ugandan chemist may have a solution. Uganda People in Uganda rely on water supplied by the state, even though this may not mean it is clean. Some people develop typhoid from the tap water, resulting from chlorine being…
Plastic-free for you and me France goes plastic-free for 2022 by banning 30 types of plastic; more improvements for our planet to come. Plastic ban In 2022, France has banned 30 types of plastics from being consumed. Government officials estimate this change will save a billion items of single-use plastic from being used every year.…
Virginia offshore wind industry set to expand An agreement has been reached between Virginia and Denmark to boost offshore wind industry. Who’s involved? The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Gov. Ralph Northam in his last days in office. According to Wavy.com the partnership is detailed to “share knowledge of challenges, successes, and best practices…
Billionaires giving…billions! The ex-wife of billionaire entrepreneur Jeff Bezos, MacKenzie Scott has been on a donation spree including Habitat for Humanity and Planned Parenthood. The Giving Pledge Scott has given away over 8 billion dollars to over 400 different organizations since her divorce from Bezos leaving her with 4% of Amazon shares, or over 30…
DNA technology helps catch poachers Looking into DNA records for ivory seizures, scientists can track down their poachers. Ivory smuggling Ivory is smuggled under many different ruses. It may be covered in coffee, wood, or even plastic waste. Now, DNA tests can be done on the ivory to determine where and who were the ones…
WWII veteran achieves high school diploma at 97 Ernie Reda, who fought in the invasion of Normandy, finally received his high school diploma from a school in Tacoma, Washington. Ernie’s big day Reda’s original plan was cut short after he was sent to boot camp at age 19. He is a part of what is…
First woman cured of HIV via new stem cell treatment An American woman has become the third person to be cured of HIV via a stem cell transplant from a donor who is resistant to the virus. Happy accident The treatment was made possible by using a person’s umbilical cord blood who is resistant to…
1 billion doses of the vaccine sent to poor countries The World Health Organization (WHO) states a UN-backed program to send COVID-19 vaccines to poor countries has delivered its billionth dose on a shipment to Rwanda. COVAX Program Up to January 2022, the COVAX program has made deliveries to over 140 countries and is being…
Rat trained to detect mines A rat named Magawa recently located over a hundred landmines in Cambodia. Geeta Guru-Murthy, head of Belgian charity Apopo, was also the trainer of the rat. “He cleared 225,000 square meters,” states Guru-Murthy, doting on the fact the Magawa has been gifted a gold medal for his heroism. Magawa is…