Tag: economics
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Energy Dept Funding Hydrogen Fuel Cell Cost Models
The U.S. Department of Energy is funding four projects to better determine the costs of making fuel cells and hydrogen storage systems. The awards, totaling $7 million over five years, will cover studies to provide data that help the department focus future research and development funding on fuel cell components and manufacturing processes. The Energy…
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New Measure Developed of Irrigation Water Requirements
The Agricultural Research Service, an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, has devised a new method for measuring the water requirements of crops, based on the yield per drop of water actually taken in by the crops. A company is now developing instruments and software to measure and manage the amounts of water absorbed…
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Better Building Codes Urged for Tornado, Hurricane Regions
Researchers and engineers from universities and industry that reviewed the damage caused by destructive Spring 2011 tornadoes in the U.S. call for more intensive engineering design and more rigorous, localized construction and inspection standards to reduce property damage and loss of life. The report of the group’s research on the Tuscaloosa, Alabama tornado on 27…
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To Grow Economies with Small Businesses, Think Local
Economists at Pennsylvania State University have found that small, locally owned businesses and start-ups tend to generate higher incomes for people in a community. Stephan Goetz and graduate student David Fleming from the Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development at Penn State published their findings in the August issue of the journal Economic Development Quarterly…
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Universities to Study Food Security in Appalachia
Virginia Tech in Blacksburg is collaborating with West Virginia University and North Carolina State University to develop, implement, and evaluate a food security strategy for the southern Appalachian region. The three-year, $2 million study is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture, through the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative.…
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Wireless Bridge Safety Sensor Developed, Commercialized
An engineer at University of Maryland in College Park has developed a wireless, self-powered safety sensor for bridges, and started a company to take the device to market. Electrical engineering researcher Mehdi Kalantari says the sensor can provide public works authorities with an effective structural monitoring system for bridges at about 1 percent of the…
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NSF Unveils Innovation Corps to Extend Innovation Impact
National Science Foundation launched today its Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program, a public-private partnership to help turn scientific and engineering discoveries into useful technologies and products. I-Corps expects to support up to 100 projects at $50,000 a project. In I-Corps, NSF will ask members of the private sector to share their knowledge and experience with I-Corps…
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Study: Computer Detection No Aid in Finding Breast Tumors
A group of university, research institute, and National Cancer Institute researchers have concluded that computer-aided detection (CAD) technology, often used with mammograms, is ineffective in finding breast tumors. The research indicates that CAD may also increase a woman’s risk of being called back needlessly for additional testing following mammography. The study, published online in the…
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European Consortium to Fund Research on Life Expectancy
A group of research agencies in Europe, Canada, and Israel have combined resources to fund studies aimed at increasing healthy life expectancy by two years in the European Union by 2020. Europe’s first joint call for aging research — ERA-AGE 2 — will offer a total of €4.2 million ($US 5.9 million) to multidisciplinary teams…
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DuPont Acquires Nanotech Solar Materials Developer
The global chemical company DuPont says it has acquired Innovalight Inc. in Sunnyvale, California that develops silicon inks and process technologies to increase the efficiency of crystalline silicon solar cells. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. Innovalight’s silicon ink is made of silicon nano-particles dispersed in an environmentally friendly blend of chemicals, according…