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Category: economics – Page 7

HVAC systems common in data centers expel warm air outdoors, creating a consistent, untapped wind resource that can be converted into electricity. In a case study of a Colombian data center, the researchers used vertical axis Tesup V7 wind turbines to capture this man-made waste wind. The turbines, installed atop chillers, were chosen because they minimized size and weight while maximizing electricity generation.

The amount of gross electricity produced annually by six wind turbines was 513.82MWh from artificial airflow, exceeding the energy consumption of the facility’s fans, and providing a surplus of 131.2MWh. The authors suggest this recycled energy can be used for other electrical needs within the data center or be injected into the electrical grid.

The study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, also highlighted the economic and environmental benefits. A positive cash flow is achieved by the third year, with an impressive internal rate of return of 50.69%. Environmentally, the system reduces CO2 emissions by approximately 300 metric tons annually.

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Elon Musk, Tesla and Warner Brothers Discovery are being sued by “Blade Runner 2049” production firm Alcon Entertainment for alleged copyright infringement, which accused them on Monday of “a massive economic theft.”

The big picture: Alcon alleges the defendants used an AI-generated image like the one from “Blade Runner 2049” to promote Tesla’s robotaxi concept at Warner Bros. Discovery’s studio lot in Burbank, California, earlier this month after it denied their request to use “an iconic still” from the 2017 movie at the event.

Zoom in: The production company alleges in the suit, filed on Monday in federal court in Los Angeles, that the event used an image that was reminiscent of a scene involving Ryan Gosling’s character looking into an apocalyptic world in the sequel to the 1982 sci-fi classic “Blade Runner.”

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“The grid needs new electricity sources to support AI technologies that are powering major scientific advances, improving services for businesses and customers, and driving national competitiveness and economic growth,” Google Senior Director for Energy and Climate Michael Terrell, said in a statement.

“This agreement helps accelerate a new technology to meet energy needs cleanly and reliably, and unlock the full potential of AI for everyone,” Terrell added.

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By Tom Vice Chief Executive Officer, Sierra Space.

While the exploration of deep space is critical to advancing our understanding of so many unanswered questions about the universe and our place in it, it is equally as critical that the United States government and private industry work together to lead the commercialization of Low-Earth Orbit (LEO), and capture the resulting massive new space economy.

As I wrote in The Washington Post previously, the most profound chapter in human history is the industrial revolution happening in LEO, just 250 miles above our heads. We are at a turning point for our civilization, pivoting from 60 years of space exploration to a new era of unprecedented economic activity, manufacturing and growth in space. This burgeoning epoch is called the Orbital Age®, and it will drive a new trillion-dollar industry.

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The solutions to these long-standing problems could further enhance our understanding of symmetries of structures and objects in nature and science, and of long-term behavior of various random processes arising in fields ranging from chemistry and physics to engineering, computer science and economics.

A Rutgers University-New Brunswick professor who has devoted his career to resolving the mysteries of higher mathematics has solved two separate, fundamental problems that have perplexed mathematicians for decades.

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Company Awarded AFRL Contract to Investigate the Delivery of Five-to-Ten-Ton Capacity Containers Anywhere in the World in 90 Minutes

LOUISVILLE, Colo. – October 3, 2024 – Sierra Space, a leading commercial space company and defense-tech prime that is Building a Platform in Space to Benefit Life on Earth® and protect economic freedom in the Orbital Age®, announced today that it has been awarded a competitive, firm-fixed-price contract for the Rocket Experimentation for Global Agile Logistics (REGAL) program by Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). This new contract aims to revolutionize logistics and materiel returns from space, placing Sierra Space at the forefront of defense and space logistics innovation.

Earlier this year, the company unveiled its Sierra Space Ghost decelerator – a revolutionary logistics spacecraft designed for rapid payload return from Earth orbit – and shared the results of successful beta flight testing. The REGAL contract will support efforts to conceptually design and scale this new breakthrough technology, with the goal of landing critical supplies anywhere on the planet within 90 minutes.

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Researchers at Duke-NUS Medical School have identified interleukin-11 (IL11) as a key factor in the ageing process. Elevated IL11 levels lead to fat accumulation and muscle loss—two major indicators of ageing. Inhibiting IL11 could enhance healthy lifespans.

Ageing populations pose significant health and economic challenges globally. Even a one-year increase in life expectancy could be valued at $38 trillion.

In a study published in Nature, the team demonstrated that anti-IL11 therapy not only counters the harmful effects of ageing but also increases lifespan by up to 25% in preclinical models. The therapy shifts metabolism from generating harmful white fat to beneficial brown fat, which helps burn calories and maintain body temperature.

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Organizations are losing between $94 — $186 billion annually to vulnerable or insecure APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) and automated abuse by bots. That’s according to The Economic Impact of API and Bot Attacks report from Imperva, a Thales company. The report highlights that these security threats account for up to 11.8% of global cyber events and losses, emphasizing the escalating risks they pose to businesses worldwide.

Drawing on a comprehensive study conducted by the Marsh McLennan Cyber Risk Intelligence Center, the report analyzes over 161,000 unique cybersecurity incidents. The findings demonstrate a concerning trend: the threats posed by vulnerable or insecure APIs and automated abuse by bots are increasingly interconnected and prevalent. Imperva warns that failing to address security risks associated with these threats could lead to substantial financial and reputational damage.

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“This research underscores that successful water investments hinge not just on addressing immediate water needs, but also on strengthening the governmental and societal frameworks that facilitate private sector engagement,” said Dr. Pamela Green.

What steps can be taken to address global water shortages and security? This is what a recent study published in Global Environmental Change hopes to address as an international team of researchers investigated the readiness levels of economies around the world and if private investments could help alleviate the concerns regarding water security and safety worldwide. This study holds the potential to help researchers, climate scientists, and the public understand the severity of global water security and what steps can be taken to mitigate those risks and concerns.

For the study, the researchers conducted a statistical analysis comparing at-risk regions across the globe to available fiscal resources that can be used to address and alleviate risks and concerns to water scarcity.

“We found that 71% of the world’s population has high existing water security needs, and after evaluating the potential for private investments, we found that 64% of the global population could benefit from these efforts,” said Dr. Charles Vörösmarty, who is the principal investigator and founding director of the Environmental Sciences Initiative at the CUNY ASRC and is a co-author on the study.

Continue reading “Addressing Water Insecurity: A Call for Innovative Economic Strategies” | >