Carly

Week 4: Autonomous Cars Saving Lives and Helping the Environment
 * Each year, approximately 40,000 people died from car crashes. Whether it is from drunk driving or texting and driving, the amount of fatalities is alarming. What if we could stop all of these car-related deaths? As a matter of fact, scientists and engineers are attempting to do just that. Just like with KITT from Knight Rider, people have developed autonomous cars, or cars that are capable of driving completely by themselves. Not only would self-driving cars save thousands of lives annually, but they would also help with the environment. Not to mention, this is an incredible technological advancement! **

media type="youtube" key="IIVTeiVsLO4" width="616" height="346" Week 3: NASA's GreenLab Research Facility
 * As shown in this diagram above, the Emission & Waste section is the area in most critical need of help. Although you might not think this, these cars will actually significantly cut down on emissions, thus reducing the amount of air pollution. How does this happen though?? Well, since the cars know exactly what they’re doing and have a faster reaction time than humans do, there would be less traffic congestions. This means that there would be less waiting with the car on and as a result, less emissions. Also, even though this wouldn’t help with sustainability, these cars would cut down on the amount of road rage, which is always a plus. Returning to saving lives, autonomous cars would allow any type of drivers to operate the vehicle—this includes drunk, sleepy, and distracted drivers. This would save these 40,000 lives and even allow blind people to drive! Below is a video that shows one of the cars in action on the real roads and explains how the car operates. **
 * In June of 2011, Nevada became the first jurisdiction in the United States to pass a law about operating autonomous cars. Since February of this year, Nevada, along with Florida and California, have all passed laws allowing self-driving cars. By the end of the decade, Google, GM, Audi, Nissan, and BMW all expect to have developed driverless cars. In 2011, Accenture conducted an online survey of 2,006 people in the US and the UK, and out of all of them, 49% claimed they would be comfortable with a self-driving car. In a more recent study in March 2013, 57% of the people preferred a more automated car. As of now, I would feel very weird driving—well, not driving—an autonomous car; however, as more models are released, I might warm up to the idea, especially if they can help with the environment and sustainability in any way. Below are some links about car crashes and then about these self-driving cars. **
 * [|Car Crashes Per Year] **
 * [|About Autonomous Cars] **
 * [|Autonomous Car Study] **


 * Continuing with the idea of sustainability, scientists are always looking for ways to improve the environment and avoid a depletion of natural resources. Earth’s sustainability depends on its ability to obtain fuel, food, and freshwater. Unfortunately, only 2.5% of the world’s water is freshwater, so these resources are scarce. In order to save the environment, we need to create alternative resources that will help with sustainability. NASA has created a program that they believe will do just that. They are in the process of creating a biofuel that is considered “extreme green”. This means that the fuel is sustainable, alternative, and renewable. Bilal Bomani, the lead scientist for this program, uses algae and halophytes as this eco-friendly fuel source which [[image:udapbio/Earth's_water_distribution_svg.png align="right"]]does not consume arable land or fresh water and does not compete with food crops. At NASA’s GreenLab Research Facility, they are studying “using biofuels as viable alternative fuel resources for the field of aviation, as well as utilizing wind and solar technology as alternative renewable energy resources”. The facility itself also uses alternative and renewable sources of energy. In the end, the scientists working on this program want to have a 100% clean energy lab that is a self-sustaining ecosystem which can be mimicked globally. **


 * In his Ted Talk, Bomani explains NASA’s GreenLab Research Facility and their studies on the next generation of aviation fuel. Their program “focuses on optimizing biomass feedstock using algae and halophytes as the next generation of renewable aviation fuels”. The facility is set up just like a greenhouse, where plants obtain energy via phototropism, and they are in an area where the temperature is monitored. However, unique to their facility, they use salt water, sand, and fish excretions, simulating the conditions of a coastline. The fish waste powers the plants (ironically they want all the waste they can get...) and is also a fuel source in the field of aviation. Similarly, there are algae, which are converted into biofuel for aircrafts. Where do the halophytes come into play? Since algae are somewhat expensive to obtain fuel, the halophytes in turn are very cheap. They live in salt water and fresh water environments and the facility uses them for specific changes needed for the biojet. Another way the GreenLab reduce the expenses is by using microgrid technology. By using a wind turbine, they save 40,000 dollars annually. **

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 * When the video was filmed (almost 2 years ago), Bomani excitedly reported having 3,600 visitors to the facility. Now, many more curious people have come to see this revolutionary ecosystem. The following articles talk about the GreenLab facility and one of the visitor’s experiences at the facility, respectively. **
 * [|http://www.humansinvent.com/#!/11498/inside-nasas-greenlab-engineering-a-next-gen-biofuel/] **
 * [|http://www.powersupplytips.com/nasa-glenns-greenlab-facility-researches-algae-for-alternative-fuel/] **

** - ** Week 2: Idea to Help Reduce Mosquito Populations


 * We all have seen them. We all hate them. We all have been bitten by them. What are these pesky creatures? Mosquitos. This week when we returned from Robbin’s Park, we not only came back with fresh mud and water samples, but we also obtained itchy, ugly, and huge red spots. Although we wore our protection— bug spray—, we still lost the battle to these annoying bloodsuckers. While we find them simply irritating, other people across the globe suffer even more from these bugs. Malaria is a terrible disease transmitted to humans by none other than mosquitos. Each year, there are 200-300 million cases of malaria, and there are approximately 655,000 fatalities from the disease. Below is a link that has other shocking statistics. **
 * [|http://internationalmedicalcorps.org/page.aspx?pid=501&gclid=CLD5yKjcs7cCFcue4AodJ2gAeA]**
 * Another disease caused by mosquitos is Dengue fever. This disease infects 50-100 million people per year, killing approximately 24,000 annually. Dengue fever is caused by all four of the viruses that mosquitos transmit. Here is another link discussing this disease. **
 * [|http://www.humanillnesses.com/original/Conj-Dys/Dengue-Fever.html] **

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 * For some people like us, mosquitos are an extreme nuisance; however, for others, they are killers. The overall message that is ‘transmitted’ is the same though: everyone wants to get rid of these bugs. So far, there are no methods that particularly effective at killing mosquitos. Pesticides are harmful to other beneficial insects, and someone killing a mosquito when they see it will not help reduce the population. In his Ted Talk, Hadyn Perry discusses an idea to reduce mosquito population—genetically engineering the male mosquitos to become sterile. I learned that only the female mosquitos have the ability to bite humans. Perry also explains how while male mosquitos cannot bite humans, they are remarkably good at finding and mating with the female mosquitos that can bite, producing more and more bloodthirsty bugs. So, if there were more sterile male mosquitos that mated with female mosquitos, then there would be less offspring, thus effectively reducing the population. Perry, along with the other members of insect control company called Oxitec, have what Perry calls a “mosquito factory”, which is thousands of genetically modified mosquito eggs. So far, they have conducted a few field trials in small villages of around 2,000 people. In four months, the mosquito population was reduced by 85%. They hope to conduct more trials with more people, such as places with around 50,000 people. Hopefully this is the beginning of the end of “the most dangerous animal”. **
 * When I went to Africa, we visited several orphanages. The most vivid memory I have is when I met one of the children. She was very reserved and she didn’t really join the other kids when they ran around or played games. When I asked the head of the orphanage how old she was, she replied, “Twelve. But she only has another week left.” This poor girl, how has been gone now for a while, is one of the many victims of malaria. This is a very real disease, and Perry’s idea **** is a very real solution. **

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Week 1: Sustainability Bioneedles

[|Bioneedle Technologies Group]
 * During class this week, we discussed sustainability. Sustainability is described as “the quality of not being harmful to the environment or depleting natural resources, and thereby supporting long-term ecological balance”. In order to maintain this balance, people are thinking of new and creative ideas to help the Earth. Upon research, I found an invention that addresses the aspect of sustainability that is in most need of help: emission and waste. The Bioneedle Technologies Group was founded in 2004 by scientists Dr. Van de Wijdeven and Drs. Van Haalen. They have created (and are still developing) a needle that enters a person’s skin and within minutes it dissolves, releasing the vaccine into the body. The needle can hold any type of vaccine, can be stored at room temperature, and significantly reduces the amount of waste produced compared to using syringes. Apparently, this method of injection is virtually pain-free, but they also say that about shots, so I’m a little skeptical about that claim. Anyway, the hope behind this revolutionary idea is to eliminate the current system of administering vaccines and replace it with their Bioneedle Vaccination System. The pictures below feature the Bioneedles, or as they call them, “tiny, biodegradable, mini implants”. **
 * Below is a link to the Bioneedle Technologies Group website, which explains everything about their idea. **

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 * In the following video, the co-founder of the Bioneedle Technologies Group explains the concept of the needle, and how it is a progressive step away from syringes. **


 * Last year, the company won the Katerva Award, which is considered the “pinnacle of recognition for global sustainability excellence”. In regards to sustainability, these Bioneedles will greatly lower the amount of waste that is normally produced from syringes. Out of the four sectors of sustainability— Economics, Ecology, Politics, and Culture— Ecology, especially its subunit Emission and Waste, is in the most critical condition. With these needles, this section would greatly improve, thus helping restore the balance of the four sectors. Not only do the needles help lower the amounts of waste, they are safer, healthier, more effective, and more efficient. In fact, the group projects that 25 million more children will be vaccinated a year with these needles. This idea, if put into play, could not only save lives, but help increase the Earth’s sustainability. **