Business
We are seeing the biggest changes in our energy and transport systems since industrialization. By 2026, global renewable energy generation is expected to match total fossil fuel and nuclear output. Building the wind and solar ...
Jun 29, 2023
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Energy & Green Tech
In a cloud of gray dust, a heavy-duty excavator loads a truck with stone blocks containing lithium, the "white gold" of the clean-energy revolution, which some hope will transform this parched, impoverished region of Brazil.
Jun 15, 2023
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Hardware
Neural networks are distributed computing structures inspired by the structure of a biological brain and aim to achieve cognitive performance comparable to that of humans but in a much shorter time.
May 2, 2023
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Business
ChatGPT and other generative AI tools which draw on large language models (LLMs) are a hot topic. Released in November 2022 by OpenAI, ChatGPT is a chatbot—it generates text output refined through user prompts.
Apr 26, 2023
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Engineering
Heating of space and water in buildings accounts for about 44% of all energy consumed globally according to the International Energy Agency. This heat is still overwhelmingly generated by burning fossil fuels, making it an ...
Apr 13, 2023
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Engineering
New landmine detection technology, developed by Australia's national science agency CSIRO, could soon help landmine-affected countries with their demining efforts.
Apr 4, 2023
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Business
As cryptocurrency mining draws increased scrutiny on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., some state legislatures are considering proposals to restrict the industry over growing concerns about its energy use. Other states, though, ...
Mar 22, 2023
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Machine learning & AI
Generative artificial intelligence (AI) systems will inspire an explosion of creativity in the music industry and beyond, according to the University of Surrey researchers who are inviting the public to test out their new ...
Mar 15, 2023
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Energy & Green Tech
Towering mounds dot the desert landscape in northern Niger's Arlit region, but there is little natural about them—they are heaps of partially radioactive waste left from four decades of operations at one of the world's ...
Mar 15, 2023
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Energy & Green Tech
There are around 440 nuclear power plants operating in 32 countries around the world, supplying some 10% of the world's electricity. Another 60 reactors are under construction, and 300 more are proposed.
Feb 21, 2023
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Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or (coal) seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock salt and potash. Any material that cannot be grown through agricultural processes, or created artificially in a laboratory or factory, is usually mined. Mining in a wider sense comprises extraction of any non-renewable resource (e.g., petroleum, natural gas, or even water).
Mining of stone and metal has been done since pre-historic times. Modern mining processes involve prospecting for ore bodies, analysis of the profit potential of a proposed mine, extraction of the desired materials and finally reclamation of the land to prepare it for other uses once the mine is closed.
The nature of mining processes creates a potential negative impact on the environment both during the mining operations and for years after the mine is closed. This impact has led to most of the world's nations adopting regulations to moderate the negative effects of mining operations. Safety has long been a concern as well, though modern practices have improved safety in mines significantly.
This text uses material from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA
