Trees have been providing energy for humans since before recorded history. Cavemen used fire to release the stored energy in wood to cook food and provide illumination at night. Medieval castles were heated by massive wood-burning fireplaces. Wood burning locomotives helped connect the Atlantic and Pacific by rail in the 19th Century. Today, trees continue to be an important store of energy for humans.Throughout our long history of using trees for energy, the primary means of releasing that energy has been combustion. I was very interested, therefore, to read “Trees, Save Yourselves” in Technology Review. Researchers at MIT, led by Dr. Shuguang Zhang, have hit upon an alternative means of extracting energy from trees without setting them on fire.
By harnessing the pH difference between trees and the soil in which they are rooted, a small amount of electricity can be generated. While this phenomenon has been observed for years, a company is now capitalizing on MIT’s research to power sensor networks in forests. Voltree Power has built a “bioenergy converter” that parasitically harvests metabolic energy from trees.
The available energy is certainly not enough to make a dent in human consumption. However, according to the Technology Review article, enough energy is available to power wireless mesh networks within forests that can transmit data about local temperature and humidity conditions. These networks could be used for agricultural monitoring or early detection of forest fires. Voltree Power is planning to test their so-called Early Wildfire Alert Network (EWAN) beginning in the spring.
By experimenting with the photovoltaic reaction in solar cells, researchers at MIT have made a breakthrough in energy efficiency that significantly pushes the boundaries of current commercial cells on the market.
We looked at a number of sources to determine this year's greenest cars, from KBB to automotive trade magazines to environmental organizations. These 14 cars emerged as being great at either stretching fuel or reducing carbon footprint.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 5
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A quick look into the merger of two powerhouse 3D printing OEMs and the new leader in rapid prototyping solutions, Stratasys. The industrial revolution is now led by 3D printing and engineers are given the opportunity to fully maximize their design capabilities, reduce their time-to-market and functionally test prototypes cheaper, faster and easier. Bruce Bradshaw, Director of Marketing in North America, will explore the large product offering and variety of materials that will help CAD designers articulate their product design with actual, physical prototypes. This broadcast will dive deep into technical information including application specific stories from real world customers and their experiences with 3D printing. 3D Printing is
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