Image: MARK GARLICK/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY via getty Images ABSTRACT breaks down mind-bending scientific research, future tech, new discoveries, and major breakthroughs. Researchers from Tianjin University in China have proposed a way to turn tiny black holes into batteries and nuclear reactors. They published their calculations in the peer-reviewed journal Physics Review D. In their out-there study, […]
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The U.S. has no plan to proactively phase out so-called “unabated” fossil fuel production, despite the pledge it’s made to that effect. There are also no assurances that emissions from ever-expanding fossil fuel production can in fact be abated—a term that refers to capturing and storing carbon emissions—at any meaningful scale. Kerry, meanwhile, said during […]
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The U.S. has no plan to proactively phase out so-called “unabated” fossil fuel production, despite the pledge it’s made to that effect. There are also no assurances that emissions from ever-expanding fossil fuel production can in fact be abated—a term that refers to capturing and storing carbon emissions—at any meaningful scale. Kerry, meanwhile, said during […]
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Cautious investors will remain wary of uranium even as the nuclear fuel trades at a 15-year high of $80 a pound with the promise of more to come as market and geopolitical conditions look alarmingly like a repeat of 1973. Back then a war in the Middle East followed by an oil export embargo imposed […]
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There is vast opportunity for nanoscale innovation to transform the world in positive ways — expressed MIT.nano Director Vladimir Bulović as he posed two questions to attendees at the start of the inaugural Nano Summit: “Where are we heading? And what is the next big thing we can develop?” “The answer to that puts into […]
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MIT researchers and colleagues have demonstrated a way to precisely control the size, composition, and other properties of nanoparticles key to the reactions involved in a variety of clean energy and environmental technologies. They did so by leveraging ion irradiation, a technique in which beams of charged particles bombard a material. They went on to […]
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Renewable energy today — mainly derived from the sun or wind — depends on batteries for storage. While costs have dropped in recent years, the pursuit of more efficient means of storing renewable power continues. “All of these technologies, unfortunately, have a long way to go,” said Sossina Haile SB ’86, PhD ’92, the Walter […]
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Sri Lanka and Bangladesh compete in an ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 match at the Arun Jaitley … [+] Stadium in Delhi, India on on November 6, 2023 with Aramco sponsorship logos in the backdrop. (Photo: Matt Roberts-ICC/ICC via Getty Images) ICC via Getty Images Earlier this month, the 2023 Cricket World Cup – […]
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Unintended but not unexpected is one way of describing what’s happening to the price of steel-making coal as governments suppress supply in the face of steady demand growth, a perfect recipe for a higher price. On cue, high-quality hard coking (or metallurgical) coal has risen by 9% over the past three months to around $264 […]
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Argentina’s President Elect Javier Milei poses for a portrait after a recent interview for the … [+] political TV show in Buenos Aires, Argentina. (File photo: Tomas Cuesta/Getty Images) Getty Images In the end, when the results of Argentina’s Presidential Election became apparent on Monday (November 20, 2023), the outcome wasn’t all that surprising. However, […]
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A new MIT initiative designed to encourage open dialogue on campus kicked off with a conversation focused on how to address challenges related to climate change. “Climate Change: Existential Threat or Bump in the Road” featured Steve Koonin, theoretical physicist and former U.S. undersecretary for science during the Obama administration, and Kerry Emanuel, professor emeritus […]
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“There’s so much work ahead of us and so many obstacles in the way,” said Raisa Lee, director of project development with Clearway Energy Group, an independent clean power producer. But, added Lee, “It’s most important to focus on finding spaces and people so we can foster growth and support each other — the power […]
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Dennis Whyte, who spearheaded the development of the world’s most powerful fusion electromagnet and grew the MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center’s research volume by more than 50 percent, has announced he will be stepping down as the center’s director at the end of the year in order to devote his full attention to teaching, […]
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A general view of an oil platform in BP’s Eastern Trough Area Project (ETAP) in the North Sea, … [+] around 140 miles east of Aberdeen, Scotland, U.K. (Photo: WPA Pool/Getty Images) Getty Images Following months of mixed headlines, energy giant BP (LON: BP) recently attempted to grab market attention for the right reasons by […]
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In his early career at MIT, Josh Kuffour’s academic interests spanned mathematics, engineering, and physics. He decided to major in chemical engineering, figuring it would draw on all three areas. Then, he found himself increasingly interested in the mathematical components of his studies and added a second major, applied mathematics. Now, with a double major […]
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Ayomikun “Ayo” Ayodeji ’22 from Lagos, Nigeria, has been selected as a Rhodes Scholar for West Africa. He will begin fully funded postgraduate studies at Oxford University in the U.K. next fall. Ayodeji was supported by Associate Dean Kim Benard and the Distinguished Fellowships team in Career Advising and Professional Development, and received additional mentorship […]
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Hydrogen-gasoline refueling station in Beijing. VCG via Getty Images New Mexico in the U.S. is a rich oil state, second only to Texas. So why does New Mexico want a radical new hydrogen-to-heat energy from Australia? First, the state wants to make energy that’s clean, meaning energy with low carbon emissions (not oil or natural […]
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Why get a heat-pump dryer? Heat-pump dryers can slash energy use by an enormous 40 to 70 percent over gas and electric-resistance models, the EPA shared with Canary Media. (That’s a familiar story; heat pumps for heating and cooling are also far more efficient than conventional models, even in the cold.) A more efficient dryer […]
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A sign at BP petrol station in Surrey, U.K., on Monday, October 30, 2023. (Photo: Jason … [+] Alden/Bloomberg) © 2023 Bloomberg Finance LP Whenever cyclical volatility and uncertainty hit the energy markets, consolidation becomes the order of the day as oil and gas majors go on the prowl. Oftentimes, the urge to add attractive […]
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“They aren’t making more land” is a classic real estate saying used for generations. It highlights the scarcity of land, one of the main rationales for investing with a long-term view. Premier real estate properties have been a great source of return since the location can’t be duplicated, and they create cash flows that exceed […]
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The world in recent years has largely been moving on from debates about the need to curb carbon emissions and focusing more on action — the development, implementation, and deployment of the technological, economic, and policy measures to spur the scale of reductions needed by mid-century. That was the message Robert Stoner, the interim director […]
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In order to avoid the worst effects of climate change, the United Nations has said we’ll need to not only reduce emissions but also remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. One method for achieving carbon removal is direct air capture and storage. Such technologies are still in their infancy, but many efforts are underway to […]
Read MoreA derek pumps oil in Kuwait. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Getty Images Global markets were greeted on Tuesday (October 31, 2023) by news that World Bank has forecast crude oil prices to rise to $150 per barrel or higher if tensions in the Middle East rachet up further. More so, as the war in […]
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The search is on worldwide to find ways to extract carbon dioxide from the air or from power plant exhaust and then make it into something useful. One of the more promising ideas is to make it into a stable fuel that can replace fossil fuels in some applications. But most such conversion processes have […]
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Inflation has hit the entire energy sector, and renewable energy is no exception. For decades developers fought to become competitive—then dominant––as the source of new power sector generation, and it’s worked for the most part. While renewable energy costs fell fast over the past decade, those declines recently leveled off, and in some cases, reversed. […]
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On Sept. 22, Rafael Mariano Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), delivered the 2023 David J. Rose Lecture in Nuclear Technology at MIT. This lecture series was started nearly 40 years ago in honor of the late Professor David Rose — a nuclear engineering professor and fusion technology pioneer. In addition to […]
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Pipes of a future hydrogen pipeline in Germany in June 2023. dpa/picture alliance via Getty Images This post follows a previous post which pointed to significant influence that ExxonMobil+Pioneer created in the oil and gas sphere. Now we explore the company’s influence in climate and the energy transition. In this sphere, it’s quite remarkable what […]
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When Exxon merged with Mobil. AFP via Getty Images Chevron CVX just announced they will buy Hess HES Corporation for $65 billion, the second mega-merger in two weeks. These represent a step change in the oil industry, with long-term ramifications. ExxonMobil has recently acquired Pioneer Natural Resources PXD for about $60 billion, the biggest since […]
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Kendall Square’s community took a deep dive into the history and future of the region at the Kendall Square Association’s 15th annual meeting on Oct. 19. It’s no secret that Kendall Square, located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, moves fast. The event, titled “Looking Back, Looking Ahead,” gave community members a chance to pause and reflect on […]
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Mike Wirth, chairman and chief executive officer of Chevron Corp., during a Bloomberg Television … [+] interview in New York, US, on Monday, Sept. 18, 2023. Wirth said oil probably is headed for the $100 mark soon amid tightening supplies. Photographer: Christopher Goodney/Bloomberg © 2023 Bloomberg Finance LP Less than two weeks after ExxonMobil’s XOM all-stock buyout […]
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TO GO WITH AFP STORY BY GRACE MATSIKO Robert Otala of Alaki Village in Soroti District about 300 … [+] kilometres northeast of the capital Kampala is seen checking on his solar panels that he uses for home purposes on December 12, 2016. Residents of the town, surrounded by thatched huts, rivers and grasslands, hope […]
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