Can Sea Water Desalination Save The World?
Ocean water is saturated with salt, and undrinkable. Most of the freshwater is locked away in glaciers or deep underground. Less than one percent of it is available to us. So why can’t we just take all that seawater, filter out the salt, and have a nearly unlimited supply of clean, drinkable water?
Britain Passes One Week Without Coal Power For First Time Since 1882
Britain has gone a week without using coal to generate electricity for the first time since 1882. The landmark follows a government pledge to phase out coal-fired electricity by 2025.
Smithsonian Artefacts Offer Insights Into Climate Change
Institute’s collections are helping to provide an understanding of how global warming affects specific locations. Paintings of Venice show rising sea levels and tracking France’s vanishing Mer de Glace in paintings and daguerreotypes.
Toyota To Build Prototype City Of The Future
Toyota revealed plans to build a prototype “city” of the future on a 175-acre site at the base of Mt. Fuji in Japan. Called the Woven City, it will be a fully connected ecosystem powered by hydrogen fuel cells.
The Unhackable Email Service
Ladar Levison built an encrypted email service called Lavabit that counted a prominent figure among its users: Edward Snowden. When the FBI demanded Levison decrypt Snowden’s communications, he had two options, either hand over the encryption key or destroy his servers. He chose the latter.
The Economic Failure Of Venezuela
In terms of countries that had it easy Venezuela by all counts should be at the top of the list, it is home to the largest oil deposits in the world, easily beating out the typical oil giants like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab eremites. But they squandered it.
The Air Conditioning Trap: How Cold Air Is Heating The World
Warmer temperatures lead to more air conditioning; more air conditioning leads to warmer temperatures. The problem posed by air conditioning resembles, in miniature, the problem we face in tackling the climate crisis. The solutions that we reach for most easily only bind us closer to the original problem.
What Facial Recognition Steals From Us
In just the past five years, the meaning of the human face has quietly but seismically shifted. That’s because researchers at Facebook, Google, and other institutions have nearly perfected techniques for automated facial recognition.
The Economy Of Cuba
Cuba is home to possibly the most bizarre economy in the world. Its wild swings between a hardcore capitalist society to a worker’s paradise and now an odd combination of both has meant that the country has probably not been able to live up to its full potential.
New Technology In China Turns Desert Into Land Rich With Crops
China was praised for a law it passed in 2002 — the world’s first integrated law dedicated to combating desert expansion. With this goal in mind, China has carried out several projects that have been successful, including at one desert in northern China.
“The Fence”, Award-Winning Short Film About Britain In The 80s
Set on the rough and ready streets of 1980’s Bristol, United Kingdom. This short film follows a council estate boy and his scoundrel friends as they rip through the estates. Motorcycles, cars and punch ups to be expected!
The Very Dramatic $3,000,000 Qantas Airlines Heist
Just after midday on May 26th 1971, Australian authorities received a call from a mysterious Mr. Brown claiming that a Qantas flight from Sydney to Hong Kong was carrying a bomb. He then claimed that he would disclose the location of the onboard bomb in return for a hefty sum.
The Canadian Genius Who Created Modern AI
For nearly 40 years, Geoff Hinton has been trying to get computers to learn like people do, a quest almost everyone thought was crazy or at least hopeless – right up until the moment it revolutionized the field. In this video, Bloomberg Businessweek’s Ashlee Vance meets the Godfather of AI.
Lives Adrift In A Warming World
If the Earth’s average temperature increases 2 degrees Celsius by the year 2100, humankind will see catastrophic changes. For millions of people, this extreme warming is already reality, in places like Qatar, Colorado and Angola. And Aaliyah, at the age of 9, has become a climate refugee in Newtok, Alaska.
“In The Absence”, Award-Winning Film About The Sinking Of A South Korean Ferry
When the passenger ferry MV Sewol sank off the coast of South Korea in 2014, over three hundred people lost their lives, most of them schoolchildren. Years later, the victims’ families and survivors are still demanding justice from national authorities.
How Drug Companies Make You Buy More Medicine Than You Need
Drug companies make eyedrops too big — and you pay for the waste. The makers of cancer drugs also make vials with too much medication for many patients. The excess drugs are tossed in the trash — another reason health care costs are so high.
How To Borrow Natural Light
With an increasing focus on sustainable design practices, the smart use of natural daylight in our homes is no longer a luxury — it has become a necessity. At the heart of any good daylighting strategy is a concept of “borrowed” light: the capture of light falling on the exterior of a home and transporting it to the spaces where it’s needed.
Conman: The Life And Crimes Of Mark Acklom
Watch the full story of the cunning fraudster who posed as an MI6 agent to con his ex-girlfriend out of £800,000. The documentary features the first TV interview with Diana Acklom, his mother. In it, she has an extraordinary theory for her son’s prolific crimes.
Why China And The U.S. Are Vying For Dominance In Pakistan
In Pakistan, China and the U.S. are clashing over China’s One Belt, One Road initiative. To understand what’s at stake, it helps to take a look at why China is in Pakistan in the first place.
Playtronica Turns Your Body Into An Instrument
The world we live in is afraid of touch and interaction, so Playtronica decided to highlight it – turn human skin into a musical instrument. Now you can experience the future of human touch and do it with style.
A Stunning 4K Timelapse Of The Gunhilde Maersk
A stunning 4K timelapse of container ship Gunhilde Maersk at sea from Ho-Chi Minh City, Vietnam to Ningbo, China and the incredible loading sequences at each port. A montage of over 78,000 5D Mk3 RAW files. Edited by Toby Smith to create a stunning day to night sequence in 4K.