Hacker News with Generative AI: Sustainability

The 'Green' Aviation Fuel That Would Increase Carbon Emissions (e360.yale.edu)
The “Big, Beautiful Bill” that Republicans are pushing under President Trump would roll back almost all the clean energy incentives that Democrats enacted under President Biden, shredding federal support for solar, wind, nuclear, electric vehicles, and other climate-friendly technologies. But it would make a lavish exception for one supposedly green form of energy that isn’t green at all: farm-grown jet fuels.

Climate Change, Energy, Politics, Aviation, Sustainability

16 points by Brajeshwar 30 days ago | 2 comments

He has powered his house for 8 years using laptop batteries (3dvf.com)
Can we really turn waste into a sustainable source of energy? Glubux, a daring internet user, took on the challenge with 1,000 used batteries. Discover how he has been powering his home for 8 years thanks to his ingenuity!

Sustainability, Energy, DIY, Innovation

54 points by georges_gomes 32 days ago | 61 comments

Data center projects blocked or delayed amid local opposition (datacenterwatch.org)
Local activism threatens to derail the U.S. data center boom

Data Centers, Local Politics, Technology, Activism, Sustainability

28 points by cratermoon 32 days ago | 70 comments

Compressed-Air Car (wikipedia.org)
A compressed-air car is a compressed-air vehicle powered by pressure vessels filled with compressed air. It is propelled by the release and expansion of the air within a motor adapted to compressed air. The car might be powered solely by air, or combined (as in a hybrid electric vehicle) with other fuels such as gasoline, diesel, or an electric plant with regenerative braking.

Alternative Fuels, Automotive Engineering, Vehicles, Sustainability

14 points by FridayoLeary 34 days ago | 6 comments

Truck platooning could ease driver shortages, save fuel, boost safety (ieee.org)
The pair of semi trucks cruising down Interstate 70 between Columbus, Ohio, and Indianapolis may seem unremarkable at first glance. But these rigs are part of a groundbreaking pilot project that could reshape the U.S. freight industry.

Trucking, Transportation, Technology, Sustainability, Safety

8 points by Brajeshwar 34 days ago | 4 comments

Startup enables 100-year bridges with corrosion-resistant steel (news.mit.edu)
Allium Engineering, founded by two MIT PhDs, is tripling the lifetime of bridges and other structures with a new technology that uses a stainless steel cladding to make rebar resilient to corrosion.

Construction, Engineering, Materials Science, Sustainability

6 points by FinnKuhn 35 days ago | 1 comments

Tariff Exemptions Are Terrible News for Electronics Repairability (ifixit.com)
The US trade war is likely to have an unintended casualty: Repairability.

Electronics Repair, Trade Wars, Policy, Consumerism, Sustainability

6 points by gnabgib 36 days ago | 0 comments

How AppHarvest’s indoor farming scheme imploded (2023) (lpm.org)
The workers had spent the morning of November 8, 2021, clipping, trussing, and trellising hundreds of thousands of tomato plants that twisted almost four stories into the air. They were inside one of the world’s largest high-tech greenhouses, which sat on more than 60 acres of a former cattle field in Morehead, Kentucky.

Agriculture, Business, Technology, Sustainability, Kentucky

35 points by andrewrn 37 days ago | 19 comments

We need 'revolutionary' cooling tech (bbc.com)
Climate change is making staying cool more challenging

Climate Change, Cooling Technology, Engineering, Sustainability

11 points by southernplaces7 39 days ago | 3 comments

Old Growth Wood (brenthull.com)
It’s true what they say, “they don’t make ‘em like they used to.”

Woodworking, Sustainability, Material Science

38 points by ksec 39 days ago | 14 comments

Seagate claims spinning disks beat SSDs on carbon footprint (blocksandfiles.com)
A Seagate Decarbonizing Data report says energy usage is a top concern for more than half of business leaders and better use of disks is a wise datacenter choice.

Data Centers, Sustainability, Hardware, Storage

51 points by rbanffy 39 days ago | 71 comments

InventWood is about to mass-produce wood that's stronger than steel (techcrunch.com)
It sounds like the stuff of science fiction, but it actually comes from a lab in Maryland.

Materials Science, Innovation, Sustainability

4 points by mmooss 40 days ago | 1 comments

Lightweight plastic mirrors drop cost of solar thermal energy by 40% (newatlas.com)
Researchers in Australia are working on a way to lower the cost of producing solar thermal energy by as much as 40% with the help of shatterproof rear-view mirrors originally designed for cars.

Solar Energy, Sustainability, Materials Science, Australia

9 points by geox 40 days ago | 0 comments

InventWood is about to mass-produce wood that's stronger than steel (techcrunch.com)
It sounds like the stuff of science fiction, but it actually comes from a lab in Maryland.

Materials Science, Innovation, Sustainability, Manufacturing

487 points by LorenDB 40 days ago | 430 comments

The Climate Modeling Alliance (clima.caltech.edu)
We know that climate change is poised to reshape our world, but we lack clear enough predictions about precisely how. At CliMA, our mission is to provide the accurate and actionable scientific information needed to face the coming changes—to mitigate what is avoidable, and to adapt to what is not. We want to provide the predictions necessary to plan resilient infrastructure, adapt supply chains, devise efficient climate change mitigation policies, and assess the risks of climate-related hazards to vulnerable communities.

Climate Change, Climate Modeling, Science, Research, Sustainability

7 points by pmaddams 41 days ago | 0 comments

Climeworks' capture fails to cover its own emissions (heimildin.is)

Climate Change, Carbon Capture, Sustainability

21 points by jacobgorm 41 days ago | 4 comments

The Japanese method of creating forests comes to Mexico (elpais.com)
In English, the Japanese concept satoyama translates as “village” and “mountain.” These are rural environments where communities manage forests and farmland based on a sustainable system, harnessing their resources without harming them, in a kind of sacred pact between humans and nature for living in harmony.

Forestry, Sustainability, Japan, Mexico, Environmentalism

89 points by geox 41 days ago | 3 comments

Schools are digging underground for their heat – and saving money (msn.com)
Like much of New England, the public schools in New Bedford, Massachusetts, have burned heating oil and natural gas for decades to keep their buildings warm through long, cold winters.

Schools, Energy Efficiency, Climate Change, Sustainability, New England

6 points by MilnerRoute 42 days ago | 2 comments

Less meat is nearly always better than sustainable meat (ourworldindata.org)
If you want a lower-carbon diet, eating less meat is nearly always better than eating the most sustainable meat.

Environment, Food, Sustainability, Climate Change

25 points by sohkamyung 45 days ago | 60 comments

PyPI Organizations (2023) (pypi.org)
Today, we are rolling out the first step in our plan to build financial support and long-term sustainability of the Python Packaging Index (PyPI), while simultaneously giving our users one of our most requested features: organization accounts.

Python, Software, Open Source, Community, Sustainability

42 points by calpaterson 45 days ago | 13 comments

Starch-based bioplastic may be as toxic as petroleum-based plastic (theguardian.com)
Starch-based bioplastic that is said to be biodegradable and sustainable is potentially as toxic as petroleum-based plastic, and can cause similar health problems, new peer-reviewed research finds.

Bioplastics, Sustainability, Health, Environment, Science

5 points by laurex 45 days ago | 0 comments

Philips will let you fix your trimmer with 3D printable parts and accessories (theverge.com)
Philips Fixables wants to make it easier for consumers to keep their devices running.

3D Printing, Sustainability, Consumer Products, Repair, Electronics

28 points by c5karl 46 days ago | 1 comments

Slow software for a burning world (bonfirenetworks.org)
As we approach the release of Bonfire 1.0, this isn’t your typical launch announcement. Instead, it’s a moment to reflect on how we’ve built Bonfire, a roadmap of values, methods, and intentions – and an invitation to define what comes next.

Software Development, Sustainability, Values

171 points by todsacerdoti 49 days ago | 94 comments

Energy use in Kuwaiti city fell over 50% after crack down on crypto mining (tomshardware.com)

Energy, Crypto Mining, Kuwait, Sustainability

8 points by gnabgib 49 days ago | 1 comments

Arduino is at work to make bio-based PCBs (arduino.cc)
April 22nd is Earth Day – a powerful reminder of our shared responsibility to preserve the planet for future generations. While the call for climate action grows louder, Arduino is committed to making sustainability an ongoing priority through concrete projects and global collaborations every day of the year.

Arduino, Sustainability, Electronics, Bio-based Materials

71 points by PaulHoule 50 days ago | 23 comments

Scientists discover new way to convert corn waste to low-cost sugar for biofuel (news.wsu.edu)
RICHLAND, Wash. — Scientists at Washington State University have found a new way to produce sugar from corn stalks and other crop waste, potentially opening a new pathway to sustainable biofuels.

Science, Biofuels, Agriculture, Sustainability

38 points by gnabgib 52 days ago | 16 comments

Rams is a documentary portrait of Dieter Rams (2018) (hustwit.com)
Rams is a documentary portrait of Dieter Rams, one of the most influential designers alive, and a rumination on consumerism, sustainability, and the future of design.

Design, Documentary, Consumerism, Sustainability

71 points by Michelangelo11 56 days ago | 19 comments

World's largest '100 per cent electric' ship launched (abc.net.au)
At 130 metres long, Hull 096 is the largest electric vehicle of its kind ever built, with the maker saying it represents a "giant leap forward in sustainable shipping".

Electric Vehicles, Shipping, Sustainability, Technology, Green Energy

23 points by perilunar 57 days ago | 7 comments

Eco-voxels: reconfigurable building blocks for Earth and space construction (techxplore.com)
For centuries, innovations in structural materials have prioritized strength and durability—often at a steep environmental price.

Construction, Sustainability, Materials Science, Space Exploration

4 points by PaulHoule 57 days ago | 0 comments

How the Water System Works (thenewatlantis.com)
There is so little fresh surface water on Earth that if you collected it all into a ball, it would barely reach across New York City. Running water is a miracle — but the technology that brings it to us and takes the waste away is actually thousands of years old. The only barrier to staying hydrated today is political will.

Water, Technology, Sustainability, Politics

67 points by SCEtoAux 57 days ago | 25 comments