Why battery technology hasn't improved much in decades

https://www.yahoo.com/tech/its-2014-why-is-my-battery-stuck-in-the-90s-104166984299.html

The Cheetah robot runs and maneuvers on batteries alone

https://www.yahoo.com/tech/s/mit-engineers-high-hopes-cheetah-robot-060838533.html

Will the Technological Singularity Arrive, and Will it Be a Good Thing or Bad?

http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2014/11/artificial-intelligence-singularity-theory

The Uplifting Promise and Depressing Reality of Space Travel

This could be, if only we put more than a fraction of 1% of our budget into NASA:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/11/30/wanderers-short-film_n_6244990.html?fb_action_ids=10204015258754626&fb_action_types=og.likes

But watching this video of what the upcoming Orion is supposed to do is depressing:

http://www.universetoday.com/116785/cool-nasa-animation-beautifully-details-every-step-of-orions-first-launch/

How painfully little has changed in 50 years! It's like watching a sad remake of a classic.

Tesla's $5 billion gigafactory to power more than just cars

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/11/21/dont-overlook-the-other-reason-for-tesla-motors-in.aspx

Solar Panels that glue on to roofs could almost eliminate installation costs

http://nextbigfuture.com/2014/11/solar-panels-that-glue-on-to-roofs.html

Batteries Could Capture Low-Grade Waste Heat

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/batteries-could-capture-low-grade-waste-heat/

Using wind power to make hydrogen for "free" during excess production

http://green.autoblog.com/2014/11/14/bibendum-2014-itm-power-make-free-hydrogen/

Solar to reachy grid parity in two years

https://autos.yahoo.com/news/coming-solar-power-boom-charts-tell-story-grid-143433439.html

Twisted-light waves transmitted in air over a 3-kilometer path

http://www.kurzweilai.net/twisted-light-waves-transmitted-in-air-over-a-3-kilometer-path?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=2547c5ecc1-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-2547c5ecc1-281903081

"The light can be theoretically twisted with an infinite number of turns, with each configuration acting as a single communication channel ... a number of experiments using twisted light over fiber-optic links, some showing that twisted-light can be used to transmit 2.5 terabits of data per second."

A battery made up of billions of nanoscale batteries

http://www.umdrightnow.umd.edu/news/billion-holes-can-make-battery

The global market for residential solar energy storage is expected to grow tenfold over the next five years

http://news.investors.com/technology/111214-726121-solarcity-vivint-solar-to-capitalize-on-battery-trend.htm

Magnesium To Replace Lithium-ion Batteries Soon

This sounds like a major game-changer:

http://wallstcheatsheet.com/business/magnesium-to-replace-lithium-ion-batteries-soon.html/?a=viewall

"up to 12 times the energy density of a lithium-ion battery and its charge-discharge efficiency is five times greater"

Fossil fuels with $550 billion subsidies hurt renewables

http://fuelfix.com/blog/2014/11/12/fossil-fuels-with-550-billion-subsidies-hurt-renewables/

China making a big push for solar power

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/chinas-hunger-clean-energy-leave-162034895.html

Google teaching robots martial arts

http://www.theverge.com/2014/11/11/7199179/watch-googles-robot-perform-that-scene-from-the-karate-kid

The Tricky Transition From Fossil Fuel

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/11/science/earth/denmark-aims-for-100-percent-renewable-energy.html?_r=0

Google's advanced technology research

http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/Article48112.html

Novel process could let consumers 3D-print metal parts for the first time

http://www.kurzweilai.net/novel-process-could-let-consumers-3d-print-metal-parts-for-the-first-time?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=3183e33762-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-3183e33762-281903081

Dual-purpose film for energy storage, hydrogen catalysis: Chemists gain edge in next-gen energy

http://phys.org/news/2014-11-dual-purpose-energy-storage-hydrogen-catalysis.html

Nanomotor Lithography Used to Develop Nanoscale Machines

http://www.jacobsschool.ucsd.edu/news/news_releases/release.sfe?id=1591

"the team developed nanorobots, or nanomotors, that are chemically-powered, self-propelled and magnetically controlled"

Darpa Circuit Achieves Speeds Of 1 Trillion Cycles Per Second, Earns Guinness World Record

http://www.darpa.mil/NewsEvents/Releases/2014/10/28.aspx

Grid Parity to Reach 36 States in 2016

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-29/while-you-were-getting-worked-up-over-oil-prices-this-just-happened-to-solar.html

So it it fair to say that 2016 is the tipping point?

Solar Prices Still Falling Fast, Study Finds

http://www.triplepundit.com/2014/10/solar-prices-still-falling-fast-study-finds/

GM doubles down on the Chevy Volt

https://autos.yahoo.com/news/general-motors-doubles-down-chevy-040100807.html

Are We Witnessing The End Of The Oil Era

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/gartman-were-witnessing-end-oil-221420996.html

How Vermont's largest city went 100 percent renewable electricity

http://www.csmonitor.com/Environment/Energy-Voices/2014/1027/How-Vermont-s-largest-city-went-100-percent-renewable-electricity

Big utilities pushing into booming home solar market

http://news.yahoo.com/big-utilities-pushing-booming-home-solar-market-112015170--finance.html

Solar energy prices see double-digit declines in 2013, trend expected to continue

http://phys.org/news/2014-10-solar-energy-prices-double-digit-declines.html#jCp

Lowly DSL poised for gigabit speed boost

http://www.cnet.com/news/lowly-dsl-broadband-poised-for-gigabit-speed-boost/

Compact Fusion Reactor Will be Available in 5 Years Says Lockheed-Martin

Sounds great, but...

http://www.universetoday.com/115411/fusion-energy-always-50-years-away-now-just-5-according-to-lockheed-martin/

Brighter, New Energy-Saving Flat Panel Lights Based on Carbon Nanotubes

http://www.aip.org/publishing/journal-highlights/beyond-leds-flat-panel-lights-using-carbon-nanotubes

"Scientists from Tohoku University in Japan have developed a new type of energy-efficient flat light source based on carbon nanotubes with very low power consumption of around 0.1 Watt for every hour's operation -- about a hundred times lower than that of an LED."

Why Hawaii is at the forefront of American solar adoption

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/10/19/solar-news-watch-hawaiis-solar-dilemma-it-could-be.aspx

Why Solar Panels Are More Important Than Ever

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/10/18/why-solar-panels-are-more-important-than-ever.aspx

Soda May Age You as Much as Smoking, Study Says

One good way to not lose a few years from your lifespan:

http://time.com/3513875/soda-may-age-you-as-much-as-smoking/?xid=newsletter-brief

New Electric Drive System Saves Space

http://phys.org/news/2014-10-space-weight-electric-cars.html

Peak Oil Demand is Almost Here, Already is for the Developed World

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/10/16/peak-oil-is-coming-and-why-you-should-love-it.aspx

Solar installation prices dropping

http://www.vox.com/2014/10/16/6987915/solar-power-cheaper-balance-of-systems-costs

Electric 1000+ hp motor goes 0 to 60 in under 3 seconds

http://wrightspeed.com/products/the-circuit/

Of course, my Suzuki Hayabusa motorcycle goes 0-60 in about 2.6 seconds and does the quarter mile in 9.7 seconds (and can be found brand new for as little as $11,000), but it also can't carry more than two passengers....

Making electric vehicle motors lighter

http://phys.org/news/2014-10-electric-vehicle-technology-smaller-package.html

Giant Battery Unit Aims at Wind Storage Holy Grail

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-13/giant-battery-unit-aims-at-wind-storage-holy-grail-commodities.html

"Electric-car battery prices already have fallen by 50 percent since 2010 to about $500 per kilowatt hour, and “by drawing on auto-battery technology, battery makers may also be able to supply storage batteries at a lower price,” Citigroup said in a Sept. 25 report. Tesla Chairman Elon Musk said in July that battery packs for electric cars will drop to $100 in the next 10 years."

New Li-Ion Batteries Charge 70 Percent in 2 Minutes, Last for 20 Years

This one actually has strong promise of coming to fruition:

http://gizmodo.com/new-li-ion-batteries-charge-70-percent-in-2-minutes-la-1645721894

Scientists Might Have Accidentally Solved The Hardest Part Of Building Space Elevators

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/scientists-might-accidentally-solved-hardest-155000475.html

Breakthrough Replicates Human Brain Cells for Use in Alzheimer’s Research

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/13/science/researchers-replicate-alzheimers-brain-cells-in-a-petri-dish.html?_r=0

Elon Musk Just Made It Way Cheaper To Live Off Solar Power

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/elon-musk-just-made-way-200019467.html

Cold fusion reactor seems to have 1 million times the energy density of gasoline

We've been here before...but the third-party testing is the first step to verification that this time it's legit:

http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/191754-cold-fusion-reactor-verified-by-third-party-researchers-seems-to-have-1-million-times-the-energy-density-of-gasoline

Green Energy Falters in Ohio

http://www.livescience.com/48189-green-energy-standards-frozen-in-ohio.html?cmpid=558407

Oxygen absorbing material may allow us to breathe underwater

http://www.gizmag.com/crystalline-material-absorb-oxygen-denmark/34064/

Partially driverless cars due by end of decade

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/06/business/technology-takes-the-wheel.html?_r=0

Germany's Solar revolution threatens fossil fuel based generation

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/10/05/1334333/-Upcoming-solar-storage-parity-in-Germany-represent-threat-to-fossil-fuel-industry?detail=email

A 12.3% efficient solar to hydrogen conversion with low-cost, earth-abundant materials

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkGAqk-TXw8

People Will Vacation to the Moon by 2024, Report Says

Probably overly ambitious, but...

https://www.yahoo.com/travel/future-travel-report-says-people-will-fly-to-moon-in-98815692472.html

Perovskite Offers Shot at Cheaper Solar Energy

http://online.wsj.com/articles/perovskite-offers-shot-at-cheaper-solar-energy-1411937799?ru=yahoo?mod=yahoo_itp

Scientists come closer to the industrial synthesis of a material harder than diamond

http://mipt.ru/en/news/harder_than_diamond_201409

Ultra-thin diamond nanothreads are strongest, stiffest materials

The best material to use in making a space elevator:

http://www.kurzweilai.net/smallest-possible-diamonds-form-ultra-thin-nanothreads?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=46b6db3250-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-46b6db3250-281903081

Ultra-fast ‘phase-change materials’ could lead to 1,000-times-faster computers

http://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/quick-change-materials-break-the-silicon-speed-limit-for-computers

Japanese company plans space elevator by 2050

http://www.cnet.com/news/japanese-company-plans-space-elevator-by-2050/#ftag=YHF65cbda0

Researchers Create a Scaleable Nanosized Hydrogen Generator

http://newswise.com/articles/a-nanosized-hydrogen-generator

Scientists Discover an On/Off Switch for Aging Cells

http://newswise.com/articles/scientists-discover-an-on-off-switch-for-aging-cells

First Water-Based Nuclear Battery Developed Can Be Used to Generate Electrical Energy

Another potentially game-changing storage system:

http://munews.missouri.edu/news-releases/2014/0916-first-water-based-nuclear-battery-developed-by-mu-researcher-can-be-used-to-generate-electrical-energy/

A new impermeable form of graphene oxide could be the ultimate protective coating

http://www.kurzweilai.net/a-new-impermeable-form-of-graphene-oxide-could-be-the-ultimate-protective-coating?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=e1450f72b7-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-e1450f72b7-281903081

http://phys.org/news/2014-09-graphene-corrosion-free-future.html#nRlv

Grid Parity Here or Coming in More Than Half of U.S. States

http://blog.ucsusa.org/how-much-does-rooftop-solar-power-cost-grid-parity-633

New algorithm enables MIT cheetah robot to run and jump, untethered, across grass

http://www.kurzweilai.net/new-algorithm-enables-mit-cheetah-robot-to-run-and-jump-untethered-across-grass?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=4cc668be04-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-4cc668be04-281903081

Renewable energy creating revolution in energy creation

http://m.dailykos.com/story/2014/09/14/1329718/-NYT-renewable-energy-creating-revolution-in-energy-creation?detail=email

A soft ‘wearable robot’ exosuit to increase stamina for soldiers and civilians

Currently vaporware, but...

http://www.seas.harvard.edu/news/2014/09/walsh-to-advance-wearable-robot-design

Will Brownian Motion Sink the Hopes of Nanotech?

http://hplusmagazine.com/2013/11/23/going-soft-on-nanotech/

Robot learns to load a dishwasher

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-29168675

New finding may considerably delay the aging process

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-09/uoc--ubd090814.php

Simplest form of long distance technological telepathy achieved

http://www.kurzweilai.net/researchers-demonstrate-direct-brain-to-brain-communication-in-human-subjects?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=67e61eaba8-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-67e61eaba8-281903081

New advance in making graphene

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-09-08/crystals-chemicals-and-a-crazy-idea-forget-breaking-bad-and-try-breaking-graphite.html?cmpid=yhoo

GM to launch hands-free driving

http://news.yahoo.com/gm-launch-hands-free-driving-050530248.html

The proliferation of 3D printing

http://www.bbc.com/news/business-29114744

New generation of chips are half the size and 30% thinner than the previous generation

http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-29066210

Space Station’s Robonaut 2 Is Getting More Astronaut-Like By The Day

http://www.universetoday.com/114346/space-stations-robonaut-2-is-getting-more-astronaut-like-by-the-day/

The next steps for Watson

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/08/28/questions-for-ibms-watson/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0

The Top 10 U.S. States for Solar Power — And What They Can Teach Us

http://www.triplepundit.com/2014/09/top-ten-states-leading-example-harnessing-solar-energy/

Robotic brain 'learns' skills from the internet

http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-28936436

Transparent solar cells for windows and other see-through surfaces

http://msutoday.msu.edu/news/2014/solar-energy-that-doesnt-block-the-view/

NASA creates 3D printer capable of using different alloys on the same item

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/08/23/nasa-just-blasted-through-one-huge-3d-printing-tec.aspx

Soon Europe Might Not Need Any New Power Plants

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/08/24/3474972/ubs-europe-solar-batteries-evs/#

Lawmakers, Homeowners Fight Rules Saying Solar is Too Ugly to Install

http://www.nationofchange.org/lawmakers-homeowners-fight-rules-saying-solar-too-ugly-install-1408715620

Stanford scientists develop inexpensive water splitter that runs on ordinary AAA battery

Potential!

http://webmaster.stanford.edu/report_stage/news/2014/august/splitter-clean-fuel-082014.html

Major Court Ruling Clears the Way to Let Renewables Into the Grid

http://www.nationofchange.org/major-court-ruling-clears-way-let-renewables-grid-1408550263

Nicholas Negroponte: A 30-year history of the future

http://www.ted.com/talks/nicholas_negroponte_a_30_year_history_of_the_future

Nanotechnology-based next generation memory nears mass production

http://www.foresight.org/nanodot/?p=6188

A self-organizing thousand-robot swarm

http://www.seas.harvard.edu/news/2014/08/self-organizing-thousand-robot-swarm

Could hemp nanosheets topple graphene for making the ideal supercapacitor?

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-08/acs-chn071614.php

Eco-friendly 'pre-fab' self-assembling nanoparticles could revolutionize nano manufacturing

http://www.kurzweilai.net/eco-friendly-pre-fab-self-assembling-nanoparticles-could-revolutionize-nano-manufacturing?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=b2fe40865d-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-b2fe40865d-281903081

Your Services Are No Longer Required - The Coming "Great Idleness"

Robots and A.I. will likely eliminate most jobs over the next two decades. Marshall Brain wrote about it in 2003, I think, suggesting a universal basic income based on advertising to ensure everyone can survive joblessness:

http://marshallbrain.com/robotic-nation.htm

Here are more ideas:

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/08/12/1321054/-Your-Services-Are-No-Longer-Required-The-Coming-Great-Idleness?detail=email

Siri’s Inventors Are Building a Radical New AI That Does Anything You Ask

http://www.wired.com/2014/08/viv/

Aquion Energy’s battery factory & the future of solar storage

http://gigaom.com/2014/07/20/behind-the-scenes-of-aquion-energys-battery-factory-the-future-of-solar-storage/

IBM Develops a New Chip That Functions Like a Brain

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/08/science/new-computer-chip-is-designed-to-work-like-the-brain.html

Will You Lose Your Job to a Robot?

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/07/upshot/will-you-lose-your-job-to-a-robot-silicon-valley-is-split.html?_r=0

IBM launches functioning brain-inspired chip

http://www.kurzweilai.net/ibm-launches-functioning-brain-inspired-chip?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=7650af8d8d-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-7650af8d8d-281903081

New Technology at MIT Turns Solar Heat into 85% Energy Efficient Steam

http://www.nationofchange.org/new-technology-mit-turns-solar-heat-85-energy-efficient-steam-1407417576

This Chinese company can 3D print 10 houses in a day

http://www.sciencealert.com.au/news/20141604-25394.html

The result looks clunky and plain right now...but imagine where the technology will be in five, ten years. It may become common practice when buying a new home to tear down the old house and build exactly what you want, rather than live with someone else's custom home.

Declining intelligence in old age linked to visual processing

This is probably why playing computer games helps keep your brain young:

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-08/cp-dii073014.php

No-power Wi-Fi connectivity could fuel Internet of Things reality

http://www.washington.edu/news/2014/08/04/no-power-wi-fi-connectivity-could-fuel-internet-of-things-reality/

Suing Obama in Federal Court is Likely to Fail Miserably

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/07/31/1318130/-Turns-out-that-lawsuits-have-rules?detail=email

Elon Musk's Idea for a 14K mph Pneumatic Railroad Completely Open Source

http://www.nationofchange.org/wunderkind-elon-musk-pneumatic-railroad-14000-mile-hour-travel-completely-open-source-1406900207