Good News Notes: “Pterosaurs were the first vertebrates to evolve flight and include the largest flying animals in Earth history. While some of the last-surviving species were the size of airplanes, pterosaurs were long thought to be restricted to small body sizes — wingspans 1.6-1.8 m (5.2-5.9 feet) — from their Triassic origins through the Jurassic…
Tag: Scotland
A New Carbon Capture Method Turns CO2 Into Solid Carbon ‘In an Instant’
Good News Notes: “A new decarbonization technology developed by RMIT University researchers in Australia instantaneously turns CO2 into solid carbon, a press statement reveals. The team claims their method is commercially viable and that it could soon be deployed in aid of global efforts to reduce the ongoing effects of the climate crisis. A ‘radically more efficient’ method…
Scotland Ends Coal Power With A Bang
Good News Notes: “Scotland recently demolished its last coal-fired power station, ending coal’s reign in the country with a literal bang – ending decades of reliance on the emissions-heavy fossil fuel. “Today’s event is a symbolic reminder that we have ended coal-fired power generation in Scotland, as we work in a fair and just way towards becoming…
Iceland Foods commits to being UK’s first plastic neutral supermarket
Good News Notes: “Iceland Foods plans to be the first British supermarket group to become plastic neutral, offsetting its remaining plastic footprint by recovering and recycling waste plastic, it said on Thursday. Supermarket groups have been responding to growing consumer demands for less waste, less plastic and more action on the environment. Those demands are…
Solar panels in space could be clean-energy gold mines
Good News Notes: “Solar power has been a key part of humanity’s clean energy repertoire. We spread masses of sunlight-harvesting panels on solar fields, and many people power their homes by decorating their roofs with the rectangles. But there’s a caveat to this wonderful power source. Solar panels can’t collect energy at night. To work…
Tech Billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes on How Australia Could Become a Renewable Energy Superpower
Good News Notes: “Australia is the world’s leading exporter of coal and liquified natural gas (LNG)—but the transition to green energy could make it a renewable energy superpower instead, says Mike Cannon-Brookes, the co-founder and co-CEO of the software company Atlassian, and a major investor in green projects. “Australia should aim for 500% renewables,” he said during…
Novel Renewable Technologies That Could Power the Future
Good News Notes: “You’ve heard, of course, of solar panels, wind turbines, and hydroelectric power plants, but did you know there are some other lesser-known renewable technologies currently in the pipeline? From stretchable or paint-infused solutions that can generate electricity from the Sun to ways for you to power your own electronics, the future of energy generation…
Nova Innovation and SABELLA team up on tidal energy
Good News Notes: “The collaboration will accelerate development of tidal energy sites for both Scottish and French companies, combining expertise to drive rapid scale-up of installed capacity in the tidal energy sector in both the UK and France. The alliance will include co-operation across French and UK sites, driving down costs, catalysing opportunities for funding,…
Orbital Marine Power of Scotland is pursuing ocean energy technologies.
Good News Notes: “Scotland is the source of many great exports: scotch (of course), Gordon Ramsay, and the Young brothers of iconic rock group AC/DC. Its next gift to the world might be a way to harness renewable energy from the ocean. In April, Scottish-based Orbital Marine Power launched the O2, the world’s most powerful tidal turbine, to…
Amateur archaeologist uncovers earliest known animal carvings in Scotland
Good News Notes: “An amateur archaeologist has uncovered the earliest example of animal carvings in Scotland. The carvings were hiding in plain sight in a Bronze Age burial site. Two red deer (Cervus elaphus) sporting fully grown antlers — as well as three smaller quadrupeds (four-footed animals), two of which are also likely to be deer —…