Designed by Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), the new headquarters building for Chinese electronics company OPPO will highlight energy-saving design and green landscaping. The company is currently one of the country’s largest smartphone manufacturers and has its sights set on an overarching vision of sustainability within the industry. Known as O-Tower, the HQ will be located in Hangzhou’s Future Sci-Tech City, […]
O Shaped Building
See Through Cells?
With a view to one day developing transparent solar cells that can double as windows in homes and other buildings, an international team of scientists has demonstrated a new type of transparent electrode that can function as a key building block. The breakthrough overcomes some performance issues with previous efforts in this area, and lays the groundwork for advanced tandem […]
Versatile Asus Chromebook Serves Up Tablet, Sketchpad & Laptop In One
For folks who work and play online, Chromebooks generally offer pretty good bang for buck. While most come in laptop form, the Chromebook Detachable CM3 from Asus offers a laptop, digital sketchpad and a tablet experience in one device. Google’s Chrome operating platform first came to tablet form with Acer’s Chromebook Tab 10in 2018, which was aimed mostly at students. […]
Getting Serious Covid Side Effects After Vaccination Is Very Rare
A promising new report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has found less than 1,000 cases of COVID-19 needing hospitalization out of more than 100 million fully vaccinated people. The CDC admits it is probably undercounting positive COVID-19 cases, however, the report offers a powerful reminder of the real-world effectiveness of vaccines. The CDC report chronicles […]
Xiaomi Hypercharges Phone From 0 To 100%
Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi has demonstrated a new Hypercharge system that can charge phones at a monstrous 200 W through a wire, and 120 W wirelessly. Just three minutes on the charge cable is enough to get a large phone battery to 50 percent. In a short time lapse video, Xiaomi demonstrated the wired and wireless charge systems, with a […]
Burger King Rides On Meatless Trend In Germany
Vegan options have moved into the mainstream, as evidenced by more and more fast-food chains offering plant-based dishes. In a radical move, Burger King has announced a meatless outlet in Cologne, Germany. The Burgerless King will only operate from June 7 until June 11. The fast food restaurant has already partnered with Dutch company The Vegetarian Butcher to serve vegan […]
reTyre Adds Lugged Treads To Wheelchair Tires
When wheelchair users are traversing loose or slippery surfaces (such as snow or wet sidewalks), it would help if their chairs had knobby, grippy tires. Well, that’s what the reTyre Traction system is claimed to give them, within a matter of seconds. reTyre first came to our attention in 2018, when the Norwegian company introduced a setup that allows mountain […]
Modular System Let User Wears 5 Bags
While many people may buy a separate daypack, waist pack and shoulder bag, the Operator System offers an alternative. It’s a modular setup that incorporates multiple types of zippered bags, which can be worn all together or one at a time, as needed. Created by Massachusetts-based clothing designer David Volante, the Operator System consists of seven parts: a torso-worn frame, […]
Adaptable Sponge Soaks Up Phosphate From Polluted Waterways
The phosphate found in the Earth’s crust is a key ingredient for the growth of aquatic plants and animals, but human activity is washing far too much of it into our waterways. One consequence of this is the algae blooms that coat the surface of some lakes and rivers, which starve other marine organisms of the oxygen they need to […]
AI-Based System Warns Firefighters of Flashovers
Flashover is a very dangerous phenomenon, in which all of the exposed combustible materials in an enclosed area near-simultaneously ignite. Thanks to a new AI-based system, however, firefighters may soon receive warnings when flashover is imminent. Typically, flashovers occur when a structure fire causes the temperature in an enclosed space to reach at least 593 ºC (1,100 ºF) – this […]