Toggle light / dark theme

Boosting Michigan’s Energy Future with Regional Transmission Upgrades

The regional entity overseeing much of the electric power grid in the Midwest — the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) — approved a set of major new transmission system upgrades that will bring billions of dollars in benefits to the region while better enabling states and utilities to pursue transitions to clean energy.

See here for my colleague Sam Gomberg’s excellent post explaining the background and details on what is known as “Tranche 1” of MISO’s long range transmission planning process. This much-needed set of 18 projects will improve electricity reliability, address overloaded wires, and help unlock more lower-cost wind and solar power to replace costly, polluting fossil fuel plants in Michigan and many other states in the Midwest (including Illinois and Minnesota).

LGR — “Doom” on a Calculator! [Ti-83 Plus Games Tutorial]

Ever wanted to play first-person shooters on a monochrome graphing calculator screen? Well now you can! Or rather, you could for over a decade but I’m just now making a video on how to, ha.

● Links to the sites and resources used:
TI-Connect Graph Link Software.
https://education.ti.com/en/products/computer-software/ti-connect-sw.

TI-83+ v1.19 OS upgrade.
https://education.ti.com/en/software/details/en/377ABD471598…emsoftware.

MirageOS
http://www.ticalc.org/archives/files/fileinfo/139/13949.html.

Ion.
http://www.ticalc.org/archives/files/fileinfo/130/13059.html.

ZDoom.

Effectively Mixing Two Fluids

Want to mix two fluids? Researchers have developed a path to optimize the stirrer shape and velocity to give the best outcome.


New paleomagnetic research suggests Earth’s solid inner core formed 550 million years ago and restored our planet’s magnetic field. Swirling liquid iron in the Earth’s outer core, located approximately 1,800 miles beneath our feet, generates our planet’s protective magnetic field, called the magn.

The world’s largest crystal cave

In abandoned silver mine in Pulpí, in Spain’s south-eastern Almería Province, lies a treasure that’s not made from any precious metal at all. Instead, what’s hidden here is the world’s largest geode – a natural crystal phenomenon that has stunned scientists.

As Mila Carretero, geologist and coordinator of the Pulpí Geode, explained, a geode is a cavity inside a rock that is covered with crystals. Sitting against a backdrop of oversized crystal spars, she broke open a tiny rock with tiny gems inside, to show a comparison. “It’s the same as the one I have behind me, only this one is a super-sized version,” she said with a laugh as she pointed over her shoulder.

The Pulpí Geode is eight metres wide, two metres high and two metres deep. “When it comes to a geode, by definition, this is the biggest ever discovery,” she noted, adding that Pulpí is not to be confused with another crystal marvel, the Naica Mine in Mexico, which has larger spars (15m long compared to Pulpí’s two metres), but which is a cave lined with crystals rather than a geode.

Uncontrolled debris from massive Chinese booster rocket could hit Earth within days

China decided not to guide the booster back through the atmosphere and it’s not clear exactly when or where it will come down to Earth. While it will largely burn up on return, there remains a slight risk of fragments causing damage or casualties.

According to researchers at The Aerospace Corporation “there is a non-zero probability of the surviving debris landing in a populated area—over 88 percent of the world’s population lives under the reentry’s potential debris footprint.”

While China is not alone in such practices, the size of the Long March rocket stage has drawn particular scrutiny.