• Texas Cold Snap Highlights Need for Improved Power Systems

    The greatest demand for electricity in Texas is traditionally during the hottest days of the year, when air conditioners turn on full blast to beat the heat. But in February 2021, an unusually long spell of cold weather took the region by surprise. With extreme weather events rising in frequency, the need for a prepared modern energy grid grows.

  • Warning: Objects in Driverless Car Sensors May Be Closer Than They Appear

    Researchers have demonstrated the first attack strategy that can fool industry-standard autonomous vehicle sensors into believing nearby objects are closer (or further) than they appear without being detected.

  • As Sea Levels Rise, Coastal Megacities Will Need More Than Flood Barriers

    By Faith Chan and Olalekan Adekola

    Sea level rise is expected to worsen in the next few decades, especially for many of the world’s largest cities in lower and middle income countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America. These cities are already improving their infrastructure. But most of the focus remains on big engineering solutions (like flood walls and embankments) rather than a more holistic plans.

  • CO2 Could Be Stored Below Ocean Floor

    Climate change is one of the most pressing challenges facing humanity. To combat its potentially catastrophic effects, scientists are searching for new technologies that could help the world reach carbon neutrality. One potential solution that is drawing growing attention is to capture and store carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the form of hydrates under ocean floor sediments.

  • The Digital Skills Gap: What Workers Need for the Jobs of the Future

    By Doug Irving

    The COVID-19 pandemic quickened the pace of digital development around the world, as everything from meetings to movie premiers went online. That may sound like a silver lining. For tens of millions of workers, it’s not. They don’t have the skills to compete.

  • War in Ukraine Could Cut Global Supply of Essential Elements for Making Green Technology

    By Gavin Harper

    The EU imports 40 percent of its natural gas from Russia, and nearly half of the five million barrels of crude oil Russia exports daily go to Europe. Decisive action by major economies to reduce coal, oil and gas imports from one of the world’s largest sources could accelerate the transition to green energy globally. But there’s a catch. Disruption to the supply of critical metals and other materials caused by the war in Ukraine could stall the roll-out of alternative technologies.

  • Electric Truck Hydropower: Flexible Solution to Hydropower in Mountainous Regions

    Mountain regions have a large potential for hydropower that cannot be harnessed effectively by conventional technologies. Researchers developed an innovative hydropower technology based on electric trucks that could provide a flexible and clean solution for electricity generation in mountainous regions.

  • 2022 List of Critical Minerals

    The U.S. Geological Survey has released a new list of 50 mineral commodities critical to the U.S. economy and national security. The 2022 list of critical minerals was determined using the most up-to-date scientific methods to evaluate mineral criticality.

  • Armored Transformer Barrier Protects Electric Power Grid

    A 2013 sniper attack on an electric power substation in Northern California, which caused more than $15 million in damages and destroyed 17 transformers, led researchers to develop a novel protective solution: the Armored Transformer Barrier system.

  • A Systems Approach to Cybersecurity

    The frequency and severity of cyberattacks on critical infrastructure is a subject of concern for many governments, as are the costs associated with cyber security, making the efficient allocation of resources paramount. A new study proposes a framework featuring a more holistic picture of the cyber security landscape, along with a model that explicitly represents multiple dimensions of the potential impacts of successful cyberattacks.

  • Climate Change Contributor to 2017 Oroville Dam Spillway Incident

    A one-two punch of precipitation resulted in damage to Oroville Dam’s main and emergency spillways pushing the second largest dam in California into a crisis in February 2017. Researchers say that they have identified the fingerprint of climate change in the events that triggered the incident. Issues with the dam’s spillways led to the evacuation of 188,000 people.

  • Last-Minute Defense Against an Asteroid: Obliterating It Before Impact

    By Evan Gough

    Scientists say that pulverizing a threatening incoming asteroid into tiny pieces is our best bet to protect ourselves from an asteroid on short notice.

  • Researchers Show They Can Steal Data During Homomorphic Encryption

    Homomorphic encryption is considered a next generation data security technology, but researchers have identified a vulnerability that allows them to steal data even as it is being encrypted.

  • Insect-Inspired Robots Can Monitor Hard-to-Reach Spots

    There aren’t many spaces that are off-limits to an insect. Researchers have created tiny bug-inspired robots that can carry out tasks in hard-to-reach spaces and inhospitable environments.

  • Computer Security Researchers Aim to Prevent Tech Abuse

    By Adam Conner-Simons

    Tech abuse often exists within a larger web of harm. Assailants can abuse their victims through tech including spyware, also known as stalkerware, and through inappropriate use of location-tracking features in phones and other devices. They harass their former partners on social media, hack into email accounts, and more. Researchers have created a new approach to helping survivors of domestic abuse stop assailants from hacking into their devices and social media to surveil, harass and hurt them.