How to Have a Green Vacation

Many properties include green efforts on their websites, or you can ask the concierge or reservations department about the hotel’s green programs.  https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/01/travel/how-to-have-a-green-vacation.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fearth&action=click&contentCollection=earth&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=7&pgtype=sectionfront
Article courtesy of the New York Time by Shivani Vora

Trump to Undo Vehicle Rules That Curb Global Warming

The regulatory rollback on vehicle pollution will relax restrictions on tailpipe emissions of carbon dioxide and will not require action by Congress. It will also have a major effect on the United States auto industry.  https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/03/us/politics/trump-vehicle-emissions-regulation.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fscience&action=click&contentCollection=science&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=8&pgtype=sectionfront&_r=0
Article courtesy of the New York Times by Coral Davenport

Want to cut carbon emissions? Try growing cement bricks with bacteria

To make bricks, bioMASON engineers start by pouring a pitcher of primed bacteria into a mixer full of foundation material, such as sand or pebbles. Paddles churn the concoction, so the bacteria slip evenly in-between the particles of the rocky material.Next, the tank holding the brew tips upward, and the goop slides into machine called “the hopper.” The wet biocement funnels into the hopper’s brick molds, and a hydraulic plate covers them. Flip a switch, and the plate presses into the material while vibrating furiously.  http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/carbon-emissions-growing-cement-bricks-bacteria-biomason/
Article courtesy of PBS Newshour by Nsikan Akpan and Matt Ehrichs

Why are pandas black and white? Science offers an answer.

The researchers discovered that the coloring could be tied to two main functions: crypsis (camouflage) and communication. The researchers realized that, unlike some other types of bears, pandas have to be active year-round without hibernation. The scarceness of bamboo, the only food pandas are capable of digesting, means that pandas need to be able to cross a wide range of habitats in search of a meal, from dense, warm rainforests to snowy, mountainous regions. The white parts of their fur helps pandas to blend in with snowy surroundings, and the black portions help them hide in shady forests.  http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2017/0305/Why-are-pandas-black-and-white-Science-offers-an-answer?cmpid=ema:nws:Daily%2520Newsletter%2520%2803-06-2017%29&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20170306_Newsletter:%20Daily&utm_term=Daily
Article courtesy of The Christian Science Monitor by Weston Williams

Norway Has Discovered the Future of Snowmaking

The snow machine would work a bit like your refrigerator, Eikevik says. The machine, essentially an enormous heat pump, would cool water inside an internal refrigeration plant, then shoot out frigid snow. But the process, which is familiar to anyone with a freezer, produces a significant amount of hot air. It’s here, however, that the machines can be made sustainable, researchers say. Instead of blowing the hot air outside the machine, Eikevik says his team will aim to achieve “100 percent heat recovery,” which could then be used to heat nearby buildings and facilities. A single snow machine, which produces an industry standard 200 cubic meters of snow per day, could provide enough heat to warm between 50 and 100 homes, he estimates. With enough machines, you could heat whole resorts and neighborhoods.   https://www.outsideonline.com/2160346/future-snowmaking-happening-Norway
Article courtesy of outside by David Ferry

SpaceX plans to send humans around the moon in 2018. Can they pull it off?

February 27, 2017 —Two private citizens have booked a trip around the moon scheduled for 2018, according to a SpaceX announcement Monday afternoon.
Yes, you read that right. The commercial spaceflight company that has yet to fly any crewed missions into space plans to send two non-astronauts beyond Earth's orbit next year. Is that really possible?
http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/Spacebound/2017/0227/SpaceX-plans-to-send-humans-around-the-moon-in-2018.-Can-they-pull-it-off?cmpid=ema:nws:Daily%2520Newsletter%2520%2802-28-2017%29&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20170228_Newsletter:%20Daily&utm_term=Daily
Article courtesy of The Christian Science Monitor by Eva Botkin-Kowaski             

Boston Dynamics new robot is kind of scary

The Google-owned robotics company rolled out its two-wheeled, four-legged hybrid robot, named “Handle,” in a video uploaded to YouTube on Monday. With the ability to travel at 9 miles per hour and jump 4 feet vertically, Handle offers new possibilities for what robots could become.  http://www.csmonitor.com/Technology/2017/0228/Boston-Dynamics-new-robot-is-kind-of-scary-video?cmpid=ema:nws:Daily%2520Newsletter%2520%2802-28-2017%29&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20170228_Newsletter:%20Daily&utm_term=Daily
Article courtesy of The Christian Science Monitor by Mengqi Sun