Ice cools the grid
A consortium of municipal utilities in California plans to begin retrofitting government offices and commercial properties with systems that use ice made at night to replace air-conditioning during the day, reports Technology Review.
It's part of a pilot programme for the devices, which are built by energy solutions company Ice Energy. If widely deployed, they could reduce fuel consumption by utilities by up to 30% and put off the need for new power plants.
The first devices will be installed in about two dozen city-owned buildings in Glendale under the plan being coordinated by the Southern California Public Power Authority. The project is the first large-scale implementation of Ice Energy's technology.
Back-to-back display debuts
Pauley Interactive's Bi Computing concept looks to provide "the perfect platform for gamers, Internet surfers, business applications or watching TV and movies all at the same time, in the same place," writes Gizmag.
The design crunches a couple of computers into one unit with back-to-back displays, an idea that could help ease the battle for space in homes and offices overflowing with gadgets and gizmos.
Philip Pauley of Pauley Interactive said the Bi Computing concept "is based on two computers housed within one unit which will allow two users or groups of users to share one space and one computer, TV or machine more effectively."
Nasa picks reduced-gravity projects
Nasa has selected 17 technology demo projects for reduced-gravity aircraft flights to demonstrate whether emerging technologies can perform as expected in the reduced-gravity environment of the moon and Mars, or the zero-gravity environment of Earth orbit, states PRNewswire.
The space agency selected the projects through its Facilitated Access to the Space Environment for Technology programme (Fast). The selected projects are from US companies, universities and Nasa laboratories from 10 different states.
The programme is designed to incorporate new technologies into Nasa's flight programmes and other commercial aerospace applications. Nasa will begin flying the projects during the last week of September.
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