Most drivers are familiar with the headache of parking:spending what feels like hours circling the streets looking for a space, wasting time and money in the process. Now, the extent of motorists misery has been revealed, with new figures showing British drivers waste an average of four days a year looking for a place to park.

According to the British Parking Association, drivers spend an average of 5.9 minutes looking for a space, with 44 per centof those polled calling the endeavour a stressful experience. Nearly half of people (some 48 per cent) are frustrated by the lack of spaces in their area, and 59 per centare angry with bad drivers taking up multiple spaces with a single vehicle. Its no surprise, then, that UK Car Park Managements new app CPM is doing so well the app rewards motorists with a tidy 10 commission for reporting illegally-parked vehicles.

But this isnt a sustainable solution to Britains parking problem, which has gained prominence in recent times. Poor parking provision not only causes stress for drivers but leads to congestion on roads, contributes to pollution levels and crucially for councils impacts on revenue. The more time spent circling around looking for parking, the less time drivers are paying for it.

Councils are investing huge sums of money in tackling the issue Leicester, for example, last year unveiled a 2.2m plan to shake up the citys public car parking but the most efficient solutions could prove a great deal more straightforward thanks to big data and smart technology.

Theres already a huge raft of information about global parking availability in existence, thanks largely to London start-up Parkopedia. Since the companys creation in 2007 the company has amassed a trove of data ranging from static information such as car park capacities and opening hours to dynamic data that includes real-time availability and surrounding traffic flow. The company has a team of four PhDs working on developing predictive algorithms that calculate, with up to 95 per centaccuracy, the indication of availability at a car park ahead of arrival another example of machine learning amid our increasingly digital existence.

This kind of technology depends almost exclusively on localised factors, though, which is why sensor-based innovation likely heralds the future of public parking for the immediate future, at least. Here, flush-mounted, anti-slip sensors are installed in bay parking spaces which then detect whether the space has been occupied by a vehicle. Real-time data is sent back to a main system which informs drivers of nearby parking availability via app and electronic signs around the city.

The technology first came to the UK in the City of Westminster in 2014 starting with a pilot scheme of 3,000 spaces which was soon rolled out to the boroughs remaining 7,000 on-street parking spots. Meanwhile, Wales capital, Cardiff, is soon set to unveil Europes first citywide deployment of bay sensor technology following a successful pilot in 2015.

This kind of big data simultaneously provides a solution to the problem its monitoring, says Jim Short, technology sales manager at Smart Parking Limited, the company responsible for the schemes in Westminster and Cardiff. Pollution sensors monitor pollution but dont do anything about it. Parking sensors monitor the parking situation and if the data is shared in the right way contribute to streamlining the issue. Take Westminster, for example. Parking space occupancy normally sits around 60-70 per cent, regardless of the time of day. Contrary to what people might believe, the area has sufficient parking resources, its just that people cant find it. This technology remedies that.

According to Short, sensor-based parking is likely to become the norm in the UK in the next few years. We use apps for everything. We dont ring up to order a pizza anymore, we use an app. Soon enough the notion of driving around in your car looking for a space will be just as outdated and seem just as bizarre as manually ringing a takeaway.

But twiddling with a smartphone app while youre behind the wheel is not conducive to safe driving, which is why some companies are skipping apps altogether and moving straight on to built-in vehicle technology.

Real-time data displayed through a cars on-board navigation system is our preferred method of finding a parking space because it minimises driver distractions, says Parkopedias head of operations Christina Onesirosan Martinez. We currently supply this data to 13 car makers. There are very few cars being manufactured now that dont include this kind of technology its basically standard in new vehicles.

Of course, new vehicles now boast technology far more futuristic than built-in navigation systems, and the role of park assist technology and autonomous driving cant be overlooked in the UKs ongoing parking battle.

Ford recently unveiled a raft of new technologies due to be fitted to its cars by 2018 that aim to make the act of parking itself considerably quicker and easier. According to the car manufacturer, 15 per centof drivers avoid parallel parking altogether while almost half of those surveyed would rather travel further from their destination that attempt to parallel park. Its hoped, then, that Fords system of on-car sensors and wide-angle video feeds will quell some of these fears, reducing congestion in parking areas and, hopefully, doing away with the shoddy parking that reduces availability for everyone else.

But innovators are looking even further ahead. Elon Musk predicts that fully autonomous cars will hit the roads by 2023 and trials are already underway in Milton Keynes to test the technologys viability on British roads.

The impact driverless cars could have on our parking problem is significant. If a car is able to technically look after itself, theres no need for it to sit outside a shopping centre or cinema until its owner is ready to leave. Instead, experts envisage a world where the car will instead take itself to a specially-designated high-efficiency parking garage. Without the need for customer stairs, elevators and alleyways for access to individual cars, the space required for such car parks is drastically reduced. Audi is working on such a concept in Massachusetts and has found these garages require 60 per centless space than traditional car parks, while ParkPlus in Colorado is working on deploying a fully automated parking garage serviced by a robotic valet which can park up to four times as many cars in the same amount of space as a human-led counterpart.

Will we see this kind of innovation in the UK? Its perhaps a bit too early to tell, says Martinez. The technology would work, of course, but theres a cultural factor at play here. Valet parking in the US is widely adopted and people are happy to hand keys over for their car for someone else to park autonomous parking is just an extension of that service. In the UK we dont have that mentality and drivers like to know where they parked their own vehicles. But, she adds, a change to this mind set is quite feasible, noting that long-stay airport parking would be a natural starting point for this kind of tech in the UK.

Ultimately, parking issues arent a new phenomenon in the UK, she adds. The advent of tech innovation means weve just become more aware of it. The good news for motorists is that we take parking seriously here. Unlike other countries, most UK councils have a dedicated parking department, rather than just bunging it in with transport management. Were definitely ahead of the times, here, and things are set to change for the better very soon.

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The technology fixing Britain's parking problem - The Independent

Small cell technology is large endeavor for state Crain's Cleveland Business "This is an incredible opportunity to really position yourself as the first state to be talking about 5G technology on a really broad platform," Grzybicki said. "This isn't San Francisco or Silicon Valley, and it's not Manhattan. It's starting here ...

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Small cell technology is large endeavor for state - Crain's Cleveland Business

Gov. Eric Greitens state spending plan cuts $17.9 million from a fund that invests in startups and $90 million from Missouris colleges and universities. These are perplexing actions from a man who campaigned on a pledge to grow jobs.

Greitens may have pinned his hopes on the right-to-work law that he signed Tuesday, but economic development studies show that one of the most important factors for companies looking to relocate is an educated and trained work force.

Investing in new technology is another option for states without mountains or oceans that want to attract companies offering jobs with a future for younger workers. That was the goal of the Missouri Technology Corp., a public-private partnership that has invested more than $33 million in 97 tech startups since it launched a funding program in 2011. The states return on one of those companies, St. Louis-based LockerDome, was twice its investment of $200,000.

Missourians need good, high-paying jobs, which Greitens pledged to deliver during his State of the State address. His plans include passing the right-to-work law barring mandatory union fees and scaling back government regulations.

But the value of those measures as job creators is still being debated. Missouri is one of 28 states with a right-to-work law. A Pew study from October shows other factors do more to create high-paying jobs. The study says employment is rising faster in fields that require more educational and specialized preparation. Employment and wages have increased most in occupations that require higher social or analytical skills, the study says.

In other words, higher-paying jobs are going to where employers have access to a ready, well-trained workforce. The politically motivated right-to-work law doesnt rank that highly as a factor.

Yet Greitens budget plan slices nearly 80 percent in funding for the Missouri Technology Corp., an arm of the states Department of Economic Development. The corporation co-invests directly in startups by matching venture capital funds from other investors. It used money from last years $18.27 million budget to raise about $142 million in venture capital and create 150 jobs.

Greitens understands the importance of education, having attended Duke University and Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. His toughest task as governor was to trim $146 million from the states $27.6 billion budget to balance a revenue shortfall. He suggested that state colleges and universities may not have to raise tuition to cover the $90 million he cut from their budgets.

Greitens suggested they follow Purdue Universitys example, cutting administrative bureaucracy and costly contracts. Purdue, a state university in Indiana, has kept tuition flat the past five years, partly by reducing spending.

A governor in a state with declining revenue needs to think creatively. Its essential that the governor not work at cross ends with the workforce he claims to be fighting for.

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Editorial: Higher education and technology are job creators, so why is the governor cutting their funding? - STLtoday.com

Backhaus is a proven problem-solver and entrepreneur, who spent two decades helping develop technology that changed the healthcare industry. But the Crosslake man's recent technological project hits a little closer to home and is far more personaland unique. It's called Living Window, a way for Alzheimer's patients to enjoy personal videos.

The idea came to Backhaus after realizing that his father-in-law, who has Alzheimer's, wasn't entertained by normal cable TV programming. But when he watched family videos, he was thoroughly engaged. So Backhaus went to work.

Months later, Backhaus had developed a system for Alzheimer's patients to easily turn on the TV to watch videos from a playlist created by their family members. The components include a TV, a mini computer-like Chromebox that attaches to the TV and software that Backhaus developed.

The TV is decorated like a window, with trim around the edges and curtains that match the room's dcor. When the curtains are opened, sensors turn on the TV and start the video playlist, which could draw from YouTube or other related websites. Family members can update the playlist remotely using an online application. The idea is to give Alzheimer's patients the feeling that they're looking through a window at familiar people, places or activities, and to give family members who may live far away the ability to maintain direct and intimate involvement with their loved one.

Backhaus is convinced that Living Window (www.mylivingwindow.com) will be effective when it eventually hits the market later this year, he said. It's still in the development and testing stages.

The one thing that made it easier for Backhaus to develop the product was the availability of reliable high-speed internet service, which is provided through a fiber optic network throughout the Brainerd lakes area, including Crosslake, Crosby, Motley and down to Little Falls, he said.

"The reliability and speed has been exceptional," Backhaus said. "That part of the technology is better than anywhere else I've worked. Throw the Cloud into the equation and the area's capabilities become as good as any data center I've ever used."

Entrepreneurs like Backhaus are thriving in the Brainerd lakes area because of the high-speed internet service available here through a fiber optic network, which is available in few other rural markets throughout Minnesota. Homegrown entrepreneurs are taking advantage of it but the area also is attracting others from outside the market for that same reason, said Sheila Haverkamp, executive director of the Brainerd Lakes Area Economic Development Corporation.

"The area's high-speed internet service plays a critical role in the decision-making process of many entrepreneurs considering markets in which to start a technology-related business," she said. "For the last decade, our fiber optic network has been an important factor in helping startup companies grow and succeed here. And now we're getting noticed from others throughout the state."

Ben Gibbs is another successful entrepreneur who owns online businesses that require high-speed Internet access. The founder and owner of Crosslake Sales, Gibbs moved his family to the Crosslake area from the Twin Cities in 2003. While cellphone coverage was spotty at the time, "we had better internet service here than we did in the Twin Cities," he said.

The internet connection allowed Gibbs to sell his business in the Twin Cities and start up Crosslake Sales in 2006.

"You can live anyplace as long as you can stay in contact with others," Gibbs said. "We needed high-speed internet when we started the business, and we knew Crosslake had it, so it made our decision easy."

Crosslake Sales specializes in liquidating bicycles and bicycle components and accessories. Gibbs buys and sells products from around the world and has more than 50,000 square feet of warehouse space in the Brainerd lakes area for warehousing. He also has two other sporting goods-related companies to complement his online businesses. He has more than 10 full-time employees.

Jim Mayne was in the same boat in 2000 when he moved to Deerwood from the Twin Cities to start Deerwood Technologies after working in information technology for more than 20 years.

Offering technical services requires reliable and fast internet service, Mayne said, which allows him and his five technicians to easily connect with customers.

Like most tech companies, Deerwood Technologies has had to continually modify the types of services it offers to reflect the changing needs of its customers. Currently, the company helps its customers move their business systems to the Cloud, manages computer security services, and provides network and server support.

Mayne said most of his customers are located within 60 miles of Deerwood but others are located throughout the state, some with international offices.

"We don't require the bandwidth of high-speed internet here because we don't host client data or systems on the premises," Mayne said. "What we need is reliability. The infrastructure is a big, big plus here. If we didn't have it, we'd probably be located somewhere else. We are every bit as dependent on the infrastructureyou have to be connected."

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BLAEDC: Entrepreneurs find a technology-friendly home in the Brainerd lakes area - Brainerd Dispatch

The marijuana industry is scorching hot right now, and it's no wonder that investors are seemingly champing at the bit to get their hands on a company, or series of companies, with strong double-digit growth potential.

According to cannabis research firm ArcView, the legal marijuana market could grow by roughly 30% per year through the end of the decade. Investment firm Cowen & Co. shares a somewhat similar sentiment, forecasting growth from $6 billion in legal pot sales in 2016 to $50 billion by 2026. That's good for a compound annual growth rate of better than 23%. You'd struggle as an investor to find an industry that could consistently grow its sales for an average of 23%+plus each year for a decade.

Image source: Getty Images.

One reason why cannabis is exploding is the major shift in consumer sentiment toward the substance. National pollster Gallup found that 60% of respondents in its 2016 survey wanted to see weed legalized nationally. Comparatively, just 25% of respondents shared the same opinion in 1995, the year before California became the first state to pass a compassionate use medical cannabis law.

The aforementioned dollar figures are also an allure for businesses, investors, and governments alike. After raking in $135 million in tax and licensing revenue in 2015 on $996.2 million in legal marijuana sales, Colorado, which was one of the first two states (along with Washington) to legalize recreational pot in 2012, wound up surpassing the $1.1 billion legal-weed sales mark through the first 10 months of 2016.

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Long story short, the state probably earned well in excess of $135 million in additional revenue last year. Furthermore, with the passage of Prop 64 in California, $1 billion in new tax revenue stands to be generated annually once retail sales commence.

The enormity of these legal sales figures would probably attract most investors to the retail side of the equation, including dispensaries or marijuana-infused products, such as drinks or foods. Unfortunately, this can be a tightly regulated and highly competitive space filled with a bounty of smaller-run companies. Investing in the retail aspect of marijuana simply isn't appealing at the moment, especially with a number of inherent disadvantages still in play for the industry.

Image source: GW Pharmaceuticals.

With so few marijuana stocks trading on reputable exchanges (e.g., NYSE or Nasdaq), investors might also be attracted to the largest pot stock of the bunch, GW Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: GWPH). GW Pharmaceuticals has discovered more than five dozen cannabinoids from the cannabis plant, and it's testing these cannabinoids in a variety of ailments.

Arguably the most intriguing product GW Phamaceuticals has in its pipeline is Epidiolex, an experimental drug that yielded positive late-stage results in treating two types of childhood-onset epilepsy. Still, GW Pharmaceuticals appears to be at least three years away from profitability, and thus remains an unattractive option for investors.

On the other hand, marijuana breathalyzer devices could be an area of intrigue years down the road for investors.

The idea behind the marijuana breathalyzer is simple: it provides law enforcement with a way to protect our roads and drivers. Individuals who've consumed too much alcohol may be impaired behind the wheel, which is why police officers have alcohol breathalyzers, along with standard field sobriety tests, to determine the level of driver intoxication if alcohol is suspected.

Image source: Getty Images.

What law enforcement doesn't have at the moment is a device that tells them, with any accuracy, whether a driver is under the influence of marijuana. What makes things even trickier is that tetrahydrocannibinol, or THC, the psychoactive component of cannabis, can stick around in the bloodstream for 30 days, meaning blood tests done at a police station, for instance, could turn up a positive result even if the individual hasn't used marijuana in days or even weeks.

Marijuana breathalyzers would seek to separate and identify THC molecules in a subject's breath so that a law enforcement officer can determine if 1) the individual has used marijuana recently and 2) perhaps some level of intoxication.

Currently, the breathalyzer market for law enforcement has an estimated value that's north of $500 million. Assuming additional states legalize recreational marijuana, this market value could rise even more.

However, there's a pretty big catch that could make or break this innovative technology.

Image source: Getty Images.

When it comes to deciphering driver impairment with alcohol, there's a pretty clear line in the sand for law enforcement to follow. If a driver blows a 0.08% blood alcohol content or higher, he or she is legally impaired, and possibly subject to arrest. Even a driver that blows below a 0.08% can be charged with driving under the influence. The point here is that there's a point of reference for law enforcement.

When it comes to measuring THC content, there's no point of reference or study that suggests what level of THC in the body is considered dangerous. Making matters more complicated, the only way a "safe" level could likely be determined is through a lot of federally funded testing.

Mind you, the schedule 1 status of marijuana at the federal level makes running clinical studies on pot extremely difficult. In other words, there's this repeating cycle of needing more evidence to set up a series of guidelines that law enforcement can follow, but this evidence is unable to be attained due to the restrictive nature of the federal government's view of marijuana.

If law enforcement agencies don't have a consistent way of determining whether a driver is impaired, then getting marijuana breathalyzer technology offer the ground could be difficult.

It may also be worth mentioning that there are only a small handful of marijuana breathalyzer developers at the moment, and they're penny stocks that trade on the over-the-counter exchanges, which are inherently risky and dangerous investments.

Image source: Getty Images.

Companies that trade on the OTC exchange, which has admittedly done a good job of improving reporting standards in recent years, may have a few shortcomings. For example, listing standards on OTC exchanges still aren't considered as tough as being listed on the NYSE or Nasdaq, meaning getting accurate and up-to-date information may not always be easy.

For that matter, many OTC penny stocks are usually avoided by mutual funds and hedge funds. This can lead to high levels of volatility, which can be unsettling for investors who aren't aware of the risks.

While the risks can't be ignored, marijuana breathalyzer technology has the potential to be a game-changer. And, rest assured, if a legitimate non-OTC company working on this technology appears, we'll be sure to report on it.

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This Technology Could Be a Game-Changer for the Marijuana Industry - Fox Business

DES MOINES, Iowa

The Valley West Hy-Vee store in West Des Moines introduced new technology this week to help its customers choose the quickest checkout lane.

With the new Feloh system, shoppers can look for the green light indicating the line has one person in it, at most.

I hate guessing how long each line is going to take and committing to a certain line, and then regretting not picking the other lane, shopper Nola Morris said.

But customers wont need a birds-eye view anymore to spot the fastest-moving lane.

We have sensors above every register that are detecting how many people, how many carts, how many items are in each line, said Jacob Richards, founder of the Omaha-based company IndaFlow.

The light turns yellow, then orange as the checkout wait grows longer.

If we start seeing light indicators turning yellow or orange, that is our cue to starting calling up help, store director Brian Bieker said. Sometimes, it might be making sure we get a bagger on that check lane.

A small sensor mounted on the ceiling above each register takes all the guesswork out of the equation.

You can definitely tell which lane is open and which lane is not open because before, you couldnt really tell, shopper Liann Mork said.

Its so great. You dont have to think or count how many groceries that the person in front of you has, Morris said.

Feloh uses object recognition technology, similar to the technology used for Googles self-driving car, to track customers and wait times, which managers then use to help schedule cashiers more efficiently.

Creating conveniences for our customers is of the utmost importance, and that includes providing shorter checkout wait times, said Jen Kopriva, district vice president of Hy-Vees north-central region, in a statement. We are excited to debut this technology in the Des Moines market with a goal of moving our customers through checkout faster so they can continue with their day.

The Valley West Hy-Vee is the only store in the metro using Feloh. Hy-Vee locations in Omaha, Nebraska and Council Bluffs are expected to start using the new checkout lights later this month.

WEBVTT You don't need a birds eye view any more to spot the quickest check out lane. NOLA MORRIS 20:21 I HATEGUESSING HOW LONG EACH LINE ISGOING TO TAKE AND COMMITTING TO A CERTAIN LINE AND THEN REGRETTING NOT PICKING THE OTHERLINE. Valley West HyVee can that for you with its new Feloh system. JACOB RICHARDS/INDAF LOW 1:50 WEHAVE SENSORS ABOVE EVERYREGISTER THAT ARE DETECTING HOW MANY PEOPLE, HOW MANY CARTS, HOWMANY ITEMS ARE IN EACH LINE AND THEN WE USE A GREEN, YELLOW AND ORANGE LIGHT TO SHOW CUSTOMERSWHICH LINE IS SHORTEST. Customers should look for the green light... That means there is one person in line at most.19:02 OH RED LIGHT OVER THERE The light turns yellow then orange as the check out waitgrows.BRIAN BIEKER/HYVEE 7:35 IF WE START SEEING LIGHT INDICATORS TURNING YELLOW OR ORANGE THAT OUR CUE TO START CALLING UP HELP. SOMETIMES IT MIGHT BE WEGET A BAGGER ON THAT CHECK LANE.This little sensor mounted on the ceiling, above everyregister, takes all the guess work out of the equationLIANN24:35 YOU CAN DEFINITELY TELL WHICH ONE IS OPEN BECAUBEFORE YOU COULDN'T REALLY TELL NOLA 20:38 ITS SO GREAT YOU DON'T HAVE TO THINK OR COUNT HOWMANY GROCERIES THAT THE PERSONIN FRONT OF YOU HAS. Feloh uses object recognition technology,similar to google's self- driving car, to track customers and wait times. And managers canuse that information to helpschedule cashiers moreefficiently. 18:46 THANK YOU,

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Technology identifying fastest checkout lanes comes to metro - KCCI Des Moines

Barron's

International Game Technology: A Lottery Bet That's Paying Off Barron's The merger between Italian lottery-operator Gtech and gaming specialist International Game Technology, now almost two years old, is proving to be a successful tie-up. International Game Technology IGT 1.3915005641218503% International Game ...

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International Game Technology: A Lottery Bet That's Paying Off - Barron's

A recent study estimated that nine in 10 of the worlds seabirds have pieces of plastic in their guts.

The southern hemisphere, around New Zealand and Australia, is particularly badly affected because of major polluters such as Indonesia and Thailand.

Some albatross and shearwater have been found to have nearly 3,000 pieces of plastic - up to 8 kg - in their stomachs, the equivalent of a human eating 12 pizzas worth of food. It cant be digested, so the birds eventually die through lack of nutrition.

In countries such as Tuvalu, where plastic wastewashes up by the ton onto shores, locals suspect links with fertility problems.

Professor Susan Jobling of Brunel University discovered that most plastics contain hormone-disrupting chemicals. Some 92 per cent of adults in Western countries have plastic and chemicals from plastic production in their systems, and their children have twice as much.

"I hope it will make people really think about how they use plastics and make them wonder, for example, if they really need a plastic drinking straw or a single-use plastic bottle, said Prof Jobling.

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Our seas have become a plastic graveyard - but can technology turn the tide? - Telegraph.co.uk

California University of Pennsylvania says it will boost its emphasis on science and technology, becoming at least the second of Pennsylvania's 14 state-owned universities to announce strategic moves amid a State System of Higher Education review that could portend restructuring those campuses.

Cal U said the announcement is in response to the State System review of its overall organization, operations and funding that was announced last month in Harrisburg. But the school also said the enhanced university emphasis builds on a focus in those fields dating to the 1970s.

The prospect of a State System-wide strategic review gives us an opportunity toproactively define our direction as a university, school president Geraldine Jones said in a statement. Cal U has a strong and distinctive identity that sets it apart from other universities in our region and across Pennsylvania."

"This longstanding special mission in science and technology can guide our way forward as we re-engineer Cal U for a new generation.

She discussed the moves Thursday at the semiannual convocation for Cal U faculty and staff. She discussed benefits of a career-focused approach to arts and sciences, technologies and education and noted demand for an educated workforce equipped with skills in STEM subjects: science, technology, engineering andmath, the university said in a statement.

The long process of redefining our University has just begun, it quoted her as saying. Cal U faculty,staff, alumni and students will be involved in listening sessions and working groups asplans take shape to implement the new focus, she said.

It is time to take our destiny into our own hands.

On Monday, Clarion University said it will rename its Venango College as the College of Health and Human Services, effective July 1, It said the move was intended to reflect "growing demand for the professional programs it offers and to better align the academic programs that exist on all of the university's campuses."

"The name change from Venango College to College of Health and Human Services has been under consideration for months, and is an important step moving forward," said Todd Pfannestiel, interim provost. "It strengthens our credentials within that broad field and further permits us to market more directly to prospective students interested in coming to Clarion to study in those professional disciplines."

The university said the College of Health and Human Services will hold house departments of: communication sciences and disorders; human services, rehabilitation and health and sport sciences; nursing; and justice, law, technology and liberal arts. Classes are offered at Clarion's main and Venango campuses, as well as at the Pittsburgh site and online.

Cal U and Clarion have seen enrollment declines in recent years, as have most of the 14 State System universities.

Bill Schackner: bschackner@post-gazettte.com, 412-263-1977 and on Twitter: @BschacknerPG.

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Facing State System review, Cal U to emphasize science and technology - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Golf Channel

New Ground Technology uses digital graphics on turf Golf Channel Founder of New Ground Technology, Pete Davis talks about the designs you've seen in outfields around Major League Baseball and how you can expect to start seeing them on golf courses. Related TV Shows: Morning Drive. Tags: Morning Drive, · Golf ...

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New Ground Technology uses digital graphics on turf - Golf Channel

How Technology Is Improving Influencer Marketing (And Can Help Improve Your Brand) Forbes If there's one area of digital marketing that's on the uphill swing, it's influencer marketing. Some of the biggest brands in the world regularly leverage top influencers on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube to reach new customers and raise brand ... and more »

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How Technology Is Improving Influencer Marketing (And Can Help Improve Your Brand) - Forbes

Graphics cards arent what they used to beand thats a good thing. Nvidias ferocious GeForce GTX 1080 blows the pants off its predecessor in sheer, overwhelming performance while actually drawing slightly less power, and generating only slightly more heat overall. But heres the thing about traditional video cards: A single sensor on the graphics processor determines how cooling is handled for the entire board.

Thats bad, popular hardware maker EVGA says, because the Pascal GPUs inside the GTX 10-series are so power-efficient that a graphics cards memory and voltage controllers actually generate more heat than the GPU itself. So today, EVGAs rolling out a revolutionary new iCX graphics card cooling solution that relies on not one, but ten different sensors to monitor and intelligently adjust how each and every part of the board dissipates heat.

The fancy new tech is debuting in several of EVGAs GTX 10-series models, which well dive into in more detail later. EVGA sent PCWorld one of its new GTX 1080 Superclocked 2 graphics cardsa cousin to the beastly GTX 1080 FTW that we loved so muchand an updated version of its Precision XOC software (which is also going live today) so we could dig deeper into the iCX cooling technology. Lets go!

The EVGA GTX 1080 Superclocked 2 with iCX cooling technology.

The story behind the story: The inspiration for EVGAs iCX cooling actually comes from a scandal surrounding the GTX 1080 FTW late last year. The Internet rioted when several of the cards died in explosive fashion. Subsequent sleuthing revealed that the hardware lacked cooling on its voltage regulator modules. EVGA acted quickly, offering free thermal pads and pushing out a BIOS update that increased fan speeds to lower on-board temperatures. Even though an internal investigation proved that the EVGA GTX 1080 FTW wasnt failing at a higher rate than previous-gen graphics cards, the tempest provoked EVGA to examine how graphics card cooling works in the Pascal era.

That really opened our eyes to take a deeper look at cooling on cards, and how we can improve the efficiency overall of cooling, EVGA product manager Jacob Freeman said in a phone interview. If you only focus on the GPU temperature, then youre really neglecting all the other components of the card, which would still run really hot. On the flip side, if you focus on those other components, then youre not offering the best noise level possible, because the GPU doesnt really need the fans to spin that fast.

The solution to the problem? Sensors, sensors everywhere.

EVGAs iCX cooling technology still includes a traditional GPU temperature sensor, of course, but it adds nine additional onesa sensor for the rear of the GPU, three for the graphics cards memory modules, and five for the power controllers. You can monitor them yourself, too. The updated version of Precision XOC shows the average temperature for each hardware category in its main interface, or you can see the temperatures for each and every sensor by clicking the newfound Sensor icon, which will cause a secondary window to open.

Those sensors affect how the two fans on the front of the graphics card behave. Unlike most video cards, which run their fans in tandem based on the temperature of the graphics processor alone, the EVGA GTX 1080 Superclocked 2 (like all iCX-equipped EVGA models) dedicates the left fan to cooling the GPU, and the right fan to cooling the memory and PWMs. Each fan changes speed dynamically to react to the temperatures being put out by those individual elements of the GPU. If the memorys heating up rapidly but the GPU itself is staying relatively cool (as was the case when I ran the Furmark torture test on the card for an extended period), the dedicated GPU fan maintains a slowerand thus quieterspeed, while the memory fan ramps up.

Its another lesson learned from the GTX 1080 FTWs overheating fiasco from late last year. The BIOS fix EVGA pushed to compensate for the lack of VRM cooling simply kicked both fans up a notch, and as a result the card wound up running louder, GamersNexus tests revealed. The improvements offered in iCXs asynchronous cooling addresses that design quirk and lets EVGA eat its cake and have it too. Precision XOC allows you to set custom, individualized fan curves for both the left and the right fan if you want to get fancy.

Precision XOCs new Sensor interface lets you see the exact temperature of each sensor on your EVGA iCX graphics card. (Click to enlarge.)

In my tests with the stock fan curve profiles, the iCX-equipped GTX 1080 Superclocked 2 ran noticeably quieter than the older EVGA GTX 1080 FTW, which uses the companys original ACX 3.0 cooling solution. The main GPU temperature topped out at 69 degrees Celsius running a lengthy Furmark test, a full 8 degrees lower than the 1080 FTWthough its important to note that comparing the GTX 1080 Superclocked 2 against a heavily overclocked GTX 1080 FTW is far from an apples-to-apples comparison. Nor am I equipped to test the heat output from the older GTX 1080 FTWs memory and PWMs, which is a major point of iCX. (PCWorlds FLIR thermal imaging camera is in our San Francisco office; I work from New England.)

EVGAs in-house tests showing the granular temperature differences between iCX- and ACX-equipped Superclocked graphics cards.

EVGA has all of the required testing equipment on hand, however. The company says that in its tests, the iCX cooling solution drops the main GPU temps by a few degrees, but other parts of the board see even bigger benefitsup to a 5- or 7-degree temperature decline in some components. Thats huge.

Update:JayzTwoCents tested the iCX-equipped EVGA GTX 1080 FTW 2 with a thermal camera, applying both an overclock and custom fan curves, comparing EVGA's new card against the GTX 1080 FTW with ACX 3.0. It's a great video that's well worth watching, but tl;dr EVGA's iCX technology functions as promised.

The iCX LED indicators on the side of the EVGA GTX 1080 Superclocked 2.

Even niftier, you can see the effects of iCX with your own eyes. The side of iCX-equipped models display separate RGB lights labeled G, P, and M, for the GPU, PWMs, and memory. The color of each indicator depends on how hot each type of hardware is running. A blue light means everythings nice and cool, a green light means youre actively using the graphics card but temperatures are in the safe range, and red means danger, Will Robinson!

Watching how the iCX technology affected the GTX 1080 Superclocked 2 as it hummed along in The Division wasnt it just insightful, it wasfunand I dig how EVGA managed to use RGB lighting for a practical purpose rather than simple aesthetics.

Diving into the new Thermal LED tab in Precision XOCs options lets you fine-tune the temperature ranges for each RGB indicator, as well as alter the color for every stage of each indicator. Click the image above to enlarge it if you want to see the interface up close.

The sensors, fans, and RGB lighting is just part of iCX. EVGAs radical cooling solution also overhauled the design of the cooler itself to keep your graphics card running cool.

The EVGA GTX 1080 Superclocked 2s backplate.

Both the baseplate and the backplate were designed to come into contact with all the crucial components of the card, allowing them to serve as quasi-heatsinks. Raised bumps on the backplate help add to the overall surface area, helping with heat dissipation, while numerous cut-outs help airflow through the body of the GTX 1080 Superclocked 2.

Tiny fin pins on the interior baseplate offer the same advantages as the backplates bumps.

The actual heatsink inside the card, between the graphics processor and the fans, has also been tweaked to optimize airflow. The fins were refined both toprovide more contact surface and achieve better airflow, and they were also perforated with tiny holes to allow air to flow horizontally throughout the card.

I asked Freeman if that reduced surface area harmed the cooling endeavor. He said that the increased airflow more than makes up for it, pointing to the temperature comparisons shown previously as evidence.

The iCX safety fuse.

Finally, iCX adds a unique safety feature inspired once more by the overheating debacle: An integrated safety fuse designed to protect your card in case that 0.01 percent chance of a catastrophic failure actually strikes. Youll still need to send your card back to EVGA for an RMA if the fuse blowsbut itll protect the core components of the graphics card from suffering a fiery death and possibly affecting the other hardware in your system.

One thing decidedly lacking in this write-up: Gaming performance results. I received my review sample from EVGA on Thursday, in the midst of a New England blizzard that was causing my power to flickernot exactly the ideal testing scenario. And as I said, comparing a beastly FTW model against the less-beastly Superclocked version isnt apples-to-apples.

This is the GeForce GTX 1080 youve been waiting for. The EVGA GTX 1080 FTW puts EVGA's personal touch on Nvidias beastly card, and it's a winner, from its high base clock and custom cooling to its extra 8-pin power connection.

But its not a major concern anyway, as Freeman says the iCX cooling technology isnt likely to provide much in the way of raw performance gains. Instead, the goal was to provide a more holistic and granular approach to cooling in order to drive down both temperatures and fan noise across all areas of the hardwarewhich it appears EVGA has succeeded in doing. I loved the ACX 3.0 cooler on the original GTX 1080 FTW (seen at right), and the iCX cooler on the GTX 1080 Superclocked 2 is even better. Freeman also says the enhanced cooling may increase the overall lifespan of iCX graphics cards, though thats borderline impossible to test.

The EVGA GTX 1080 Superclocked 2 looks very similar to the ACX-equipped version on the surface, but the lip on the top says iCX in tiny letters. Its also heavier and feelsdense.

Intrigued? EVGAs launching iCX-equipped models of its GTX 1060, GTX 1070, and GTX 1080 graphics cards Friday, albeit in limited quantity initially. EVGAs existing lineups with ACX 3.0 cooling will remain, but models with the iCX cooling solution will carry a 2 designation after their name, and iCX branding on the front of the box. For example, the GTX 1080 FTW will still pack an ACX 3.0 cooler. If you want the iCX variant, youll need to pick up a GTX 1080 FTW 2.

The extra sensors, swanky RGB indicators, redesigned hardware, and fancy fans dont come for free. Freeman says EVGAs iCX graphics cards will carry a premium of roughly $30 over their ACX-packing counterparts.EVGAs also launching a new step-up program where existing GTX 10-series owners can trade in their ACX 3.0-equipped graphics card for an iCX version for $99.

Thats nothing to sneeze at. Im guessing many people wont be interested in spending that sort of scratch for minimal performance gains, especially since EVGAs stock ACX 3.0 cooler already does such a bang-up job. This new iCX technology feels like a glimpse into the future, but Im not sure how enticing it will be in the present, arriving nearly a year after the GTX 10-series launch.

On the other hand, EVGAs iCX is more comprehensive than any other air-cooling solution youll find on the market today and a stunning response to the overheating fiasco (that wasnt). The iCX technologys cooler, quieter peace of mind may well be worth the upcharge for some folks. Overclocking and aftermarket water-cooling enthusiasts will likelyadore the level of information EVGAs new cooling technology provides.

And those RGB temperature indicators are just plain badass.

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Hands-on: EVGA's sensor-laden iCX technology revolutionizes ... - PCWorld

What happened

Digital-coupons specialist Quotient Technology (NYSE: QUOT) -- the company formerly and better known as "Coupons.com" -- saw its stock spike 21.1% by the closing bell on Friday.

This being earnings season, you might imagine that Quotient's remarkable stock performance Friday had something to do with an earnings report. You'd be right.

Thursday night, you see -- after close of trading for that day, but before trading resumed on Friday morning -- Quotient reported its fiscal fourth-quarter and full-year earnings for 2016. Expected to earn just $0.02 per share for the quarter on $70 million in revenue, Quotient instead turned in $75.4 million in revenue (9% better than in Q4 2015), and earned $0.04 per share on that revenue -- twice what had been expected.

Image source: Getty Images.

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Full-year results were similarly good. Revenues for the year jumped 16% to $275.2 million for fiscal 2016. And while Quotient was fully expected to report a loss for the year, its $0.23-per-share GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) loss was at least 28% less than the $0.32 per share that Quotient lost in fiscal 2015. Meanwhile, Quotient reported positive free cash flow from its business of $15.5 million -- a remarkable improvement from the $4 million cash burn the company experienced in fiscal 2015.

Quotient also provided guidance for fiscal 2017. Management's prediction for earnings came in the form of a highly malleable "adjusted EBITDA" (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) number that we'll dismiss without comment. On the other hand, management also said it expects to book between $307 million and $317 million in sales. That's a more generally accepted metric, and one that suggests a respectable 13.5% pace of growth in the new year.

Valued at $1.2 billion today -- and with $175 million in cash and short-term investments, and not a lick of debt -- Quotient now carries an enterprise value of roughly $1 billion, and therefore an EV/FCF (enterprise value to free cash flow) ratio of about 63.5. The growth rate is respectable, but I have to conclude that despite its turning in a very strong fourth quarter, Quotient's stock is too expensive to invest in at this price point.

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Why Quotient Technology Inc. Stock Surged 21% Higher on Friday - Fox Business

The multiple listing service Michigan just added a new technology for Realtors, which could bring them into a new era when it comes to searching properties and marketing.

This new technology, Remine, will integrate its technology with the MLS systems in Michigan, Realcomp. This will give 13,500 Realtors in the area access to Remines data.

The new system replaces CoreLogic's Realist product and compliments Realcomp, the current system Michigan Realtors use to search for properties and property information, but could also create new breakthroughs in marketing to prospective sellers.

Remine brings public record data and visualization technology to the MLS through heat maps and an easy to use graphical map-based interface, Realcomp IT Director Ken Franklin said. The ease of use and searchability are unlike any other technology we have seen in the residential real estate industry, which is why we were so committed to bringing Remine to Realcomp Realtors.

This is an example of what the system looks like after searching for a property.

Click to Enlarge

(Source: Remine)

Realtors can search a property and see the location on a map, instead of in a list format. Remine also allows for other functions such as seeing the previous sales price, if the owner lives in the property and how long the homeowner owned a home, and therefore how much equity they could have built up.

Realtors can also see the RPI score, or the score that rates how likely the homeowner is to sell their home, Remine explained to HousingWire. The homes are given a score from one to 100, with higher scores indicating higher likelihood of the homeowner wanting to sell their home.

Remine analyses different public information to determine what homeowners are more likely to sell soon, and combines it for Realtors in a simple score. This allows Realtors to produce more targeted marketing.

The software also helps with marketing by allowing Realtors to sink their contact list to the software. It then searches those contacts, showingRealtors where their contacts are, along with the data about their likelihood to sell their home.

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Software company introduces game-changing technology for Michigan Realtors - HousingWire

February 10, 2017 The novel mode filter for laser beams in theLG33mode, which was developed at the AEI. Top: mode filter in the laboratory. Bottom: schematic of the mode filter. Credit: Noack/Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics

One year ago, the first direct detection of gravitational waves was announced. Laser experts from the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert Einstein Institute; AEI), from the Leibniz Universitt Hannover, and from the Laser Zentrum Hannover e.V. (LZH) played leading roles in this discovery, because their super-precise laser technology at the heart of the LIGO instruments in the USA enabled the detection of weak gravitational-wave signals. Now, AEI researchers have presented two new technologies capable of further increasing the sensitivity of future gravitational-wave detectors. The Max Planck Society now strengthens the development of laser systems for third-generation gravitational-wave detectors. The AEI, in collaboration with the LZH, receives over the next five years 3.75 million Euro research funding for the development of novel lasers Zentrum Hannover receives over the next five years 3.75 million Euro research funding for the development of novel lasers and stabilization methods.

"We have made two important breakthroughs," says Apl. Prof. Benno Willke, leader of the laser development group at the AEI. "Our work is another step towards using a novel type of laser beam profile in interferometric gravitational-wave detectors. Furthermore, we have shown how to increase the power stability of the high-power lasers used in the detectors. These are important steps towards the future of gravitational-wave astronomy." The results were published in the renowned science journal Optics Letters and were highlighted by the editors.

More homogeneous laser beams

The beams of all laser systems currently used in gravitational-wave detectors have higher intensity at the centre than at the edges. This leads to an undesirable strong influence of mirror surface fluctuations on the measurement precision of gravitational-wave detectors. This so-called thermal noise can be reduced by a more homogeneous laser intensity distribution.

In 2013 a team with AEI involvement showed how more homogeneous high-power laser beams in the so-called LG33 mode can be created. Now, Andreas Noack has studied in his MSc thesis in Benno Willke's team how these laser beams can be fed into future gravitational-wave detectors.

The first step on the way into the detector is a device known as a pre-mode cleaner, which optimizes the beam profile and reduces beam jitter. Willke's team showed that the new LG33 beam is incompatible with the pre-mode cleaners currently in use. The researchers also showed how to solve this problem. They developed a new pre-mode cleaner, which is compatible with the LG33 laser beams.

"The design of the next-generation gravitational wave detectors is not set," says Willke. "Therefore, we are testing different types of lasers to have as many options for new gravitational wave detectors as possible. We now have made a big step ahead with the promising LG33 beams."

Improving laser power stability for new gravitational-wave detectors

All interferometric gravitational-wave detectors like LIGO, Virgo, and GEO600 rely on laser systems that keep their high output power stable over years and that show very little short timescale power fluctuations. Benno Willke's research group plays a world-wide leading role in this research area. They constructed the laser systems for GEO600 and Advanced LIGO, without which the first direct detection of gravitational waves in September 2015 would not have been possible.

Now, Jonas Junker has further refined the existing power stabilization system in his MSc thesis in Willke's team. A part of the laser light is picked off and distributed on multiple photodetectors to precisely determine the total laser power. If it varies, the main laser power is corrected accordingly. In their experiment, the scientists extended the current system by adding, among other things, another photodetector to also control and correct the pointing of the laser beam.

The improved power stabilization scheme has been successfully applied to the 35 Watt laser system of the 10 meter prototype interferometer at the AEI. The prototype is used by researchers in Hannover for demonstrations and tests of technologies for the third generation of detectors and for research on quantum mechanical effects in these instruments. The level of power stability reached is five times higher than that in comparable experiments of other groups. This value agrees very well with results from isolated table-top experiments.

"An experiment in the well isolated environment of an optical laboratory is completely different from a complex large-scale experiment like the 10 meter prototype. We have shown for the first time that it is possible to transfer the excellent stability level from a table-top experiment," says Willke. "We show that these photodiode arrays work as expected, meaning it should also be possible to achieve this high stability with the identical multi-photodetector arrays used in Advanced LIGO."

Explore further: LIGO discovery named Science's 2016 Breakthrough of the Year

More information: Andreas Noack et al. Higher-order LaguerreGauss modes in (non-) planar four-mirror cavities for future gravitational wave detectors, Optics Letters (2017). DOI: 10.1364/OL.42.000751

Journal reference: Optics Letters

Provided by: Max Planck Society

The scientific journal, Science, has chosen as its 2016 Breakthrough of the Year the discovery of tiny ripples in spacetime called gravitational waves a finding that confirmed a century-old prediction by Albert Einstein. ...

Today (November 30), scientists restarted the twin detectors of LIGO, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory, after making several improvements to the system. Over the last year, they have made enhancements ...

Efforts to detect gravitational waveswhich were first predicted by Albert Einstein nearly 100 years agoare advancing with international researchers including UWA researchers boosting the sensitivity of wave detectors.

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The new supercomputer "Minerva" has been put into operation at the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert Einstein Institute, AEI). With 9,504 compute cores, 38 TeraByte memory and a peak performance of 302.4 ...

Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Australian National University have developed new technology that aims to make the Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) even ...

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Astronomy experiments could soon test an idea developed by Albert Einstein almost exactly a century ago, scientists say.

(Phys.org)A pair of physicists with ETH Zurich has developed a way to use an artificial neural network to characterize the wave function of a quantum many-body system. In their paper published in the journal Science, Giuseppe ...

(Phys.org)Researchers have developed a type of rechargeable battery called a flow cell that can be recharged with a water-based solution containing dissolved carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted from fossil fuel power plants. ...

Researchers in Singapore and China have collaborated to develop a self-powered photodetector that can be used in a wide range of applications such as chemical analysis, communications, astronomical investigations and much ...

Researchers from Brown University have shown experimentally how a unique form of magnetism arises in an odd class of materials called Mott insulators. The findings are a step toward a better understanding the quantum states ...

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New laser technology enables more sensitive gravitational-wave detectors - Phys.Org

The chief executive of the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, Oliver Yates, says coal-fired power would be an inappropriate investment to expose taxpayers to. Photograph: Bloomberg/via Getty

The Clean Energy Finance Corporation has said it is very unlikely it would invest in new coal-fired generators and poured cold water on the federal governments push to support clean coal technology.

The CEFCs hostile approach to the sustainability and commercial viability of new coal plants means the government will have to change CEFCs investment rules or directly subsidise new coal plants if it wants to support them.

In recent weeks the deputy prime minister, Barnaby Joyce, has advocated building new coal power stations, including by giving government subsidies.

The resources and Northern Australia minister, Matt Canavan, has flagged using the governments $5bn northern Australia infrastructure fund to provide a subsidy.

Federal ministers have suggested that ultra super critical coal power stations, which more efficiently generate steam to create power, should be considered a clean technology because they generate up to 30% less emissions than older coal plants.

On Friday in Canberra the Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young asked the CEFC at the Senate committee examining the resilience of electricity infrastructure if it would fund new coal-fired power plants.

Oliver Yates, its chief executive, said it was required to operate sustainably and commercially.

To be honest in a market of such volatility, it would be very difficult to find a private operator or commercial investor investing in coal-fired power stations in the Australian market today, he said.

We, like a commercial investor, are very unlikely to find circumstances in which that would be an appropriate investment to expose taxpayers to.

Yates said that if coal power stations could generate electricity creating 50% fewer emissions than electricity currently in the grid without carbon capture and storage such an investment would technically fit into the CEFCs rules.

But he said coal was seriously challenged as a commercial investment because the price of renewables was declining so there was no point building ultra super critical coal stations that were likely to provide electricity at a higher price.

Yates said unless ultra super critical coal plants could be built such that they generated much lower emissions its not really a technology which would be likely to have a long-term path.

He concluded by saying he would not recommend investment in coal power plants, which he described as very risky for taxpayers.

Hanson-Young, the committee chair, told a press conference the CEFCs evidence showed clean coal was a unicorn dream ... that doesnt stack up.

She said it was lunacy to invest in coal and the government should be upfront about what a subsidy to build coal stations would cost.

On Friday the prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, told FiveAA Radio in Adelaide that Australia should have a technology-agnostic and all-of-the-above approach to energy policy.

We need to have energy, electricity that is affordable, that is reliable you know what unreliable energy is like in South Australia and of course we meet our emission reduction obligations, he said, referring to blackouts in the past two days due to a nationwide heatwave.

Asked whether turning the second Pelican Point gas generator on could have averted outages, Turnbull said gas can provide a backup but is very expensive.

He suggested pumped hydro technology could avoid outages by using power from wind or coal power plants created off-peak to pump water uphill to generate hydroelectric power on peak.

Turnbull accused the South Australian government of being lazy for not developing an electricity plan to deal with its high mix of renewable energy and planning for the intermittency of wind power.

He said the other failure in the energy market was the failure to recognise that if you restrict the access to and supply of gas, the price of gas will go up. He blamed policies such as Victorias ban on gas exploration which he said prohibited not only coal seam gas but also conventional onshore gas.

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CEFC warns against risky investment in 'clean coal' technology - The Guardian

February 10, 2017 by Emma Rayner Credit: University of Nottingham

A leading green energy scientist who uses bacteria to turn greenhouse gases into usable chemicals is calling for more investment from industry and government subsidies to scale up this newest of technologies.

Professor Nigel Minton from The University of Nottingham says there is significant potential for the industrial scaling up of the new process which uses 'gas-eating' bacteria to ferment polluting greenhouse gases from landfill and industry into useful products like biofuels and plastics.

A report, commissioned by Professor Minton's BBSRC-funded network of gas fermentation specialists C1net, says the UK should do more to increase the production of this new technology which could capture a large percentage of industrial waste gas from our factories and landfill.

As the burden on global oil and natural gas resources increases to meet demand for energy, plastics and medicines, the University's Synthetic Biology Research Centre has been engineering microorganisms to convert natural and waste gases into valuable chemical and fuel products.

The technology has been rolled out in commercial-scale demonstration plants in China and the US and could make a contribution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and dependency on fossil resources. However, there is currently little industrial development and use of the technology in the UK.

Professor Minton is calling for the biofuel subsidies currently given to biomass processors to be extended to the gas fermentation industry: "Gas fermentation can produce low carbon fuels from a range of waste feedstocks that do not pose the risk of increasing demand for land, like biomass production does. But the new technology is not competing on a level playing field.

"Fuels produced from renewable feedstocks are eligible under the UK's Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation, but low carbon fuels produced from carbon-containing waste gases are currently not eligible to contribute towards the obligation, despite the greenhouse gas emissions reductions they can provide. This is proving a significant barrier to the commercial deployment of the gas fermentation processes. A broader and more encompassing framework is needed to increase the production of low carbon fuels in the UK. This could be achieved by focusing on the ultimate goal of lowering the greenhouse gas emissions of transport fuels, and supporting all low carbon fuels."

The BBSRC C1net report makes several recommendations to government's Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy and the industry sector:

Developers of new processes, both in academia and industry, must credibly assess the economic viability of these processes, ensuring that they understand the conditions in which the processes will be commercially viable. They must also take a proactive approach in communicating the benefits of new products and processes.

Explore further: New app launched to explain benefits of carbon dioxide

More information: The commercial and strategic opportunity offered by gas fermentation in the UK: http://www.c1net.co.uk/documentation/Opportunities%20for%20gas%20fermentation%20in%20the%20UK%20-%20Final%20Report%20-%20July%202016.pdf

A new app to explain how Carbon Dioxide (CO2) can be used to make products, therefore lowering emissions, has been launched at COP22 in Marrakech today (Friday 11 November 2016).

A new article looks at the potential benefits of a Billion Ton Bioeconomy, a vision to enable a sustainable market for producing and converting a billion tons of US biomass to bio-based energy, fuels, and products by 2030.

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Although we spend a lot of our time online nowadaysstreaming music and video, checking email and social media, or obsessively reading the newsfew of us know about the mathematical algorithms that manage how our content ...

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Scientist calls for industrial scale-up of greenhouse gas-eating microbe technology in UK - Phys.Org

Other than its safety pedigree, the $74,400 XC90 T8 Inscription shares little with the automaker's older wagons. It's a visually striking SUV both inside and out, with clean lines, subtle accents and a few hints of chrome on the outside. The interior is reminiscent of a stylish mid-century modern office.

But more than its looks make the T8 worth considering when you're in the market for a luxury SUV. Volvo has been working hard to pack its cars with high-end technology, including semi-autonomous driving. While some automakers have spent the past five years attempting to catch up with the future of driving, Volvo has been quietly developing a top-notch SUV that's not only smart but also stylish.

At the heart of the XC90's technological prowess is the latest version of Pilot Assist (this tech was first introduced on the 2016 XC90). The feature combines the car's adaptive cruise control and lane assist to create a semi-autonomous driving experience similar to Tesla's Autopilot. During my tests on freeways, city streets and the notoriously narrow lanes of the Golden Gate Bridge, it worked as advertised most of the time. What seemed to trip up the system were sharp curves. Anything that required the wheel to turn beyond a few degrees usually required driver assistance.

Meanwhile the adaptive cruise control was spot-on, if a bit overzealous when it came to putting space between the XC90 and the car in front of it (there's that safety pedigree rearing its head). The system was also extremely aggressive about my keeping my hands on the wheel while Pilot Assist was in use, more so than other vehicles I've tested with similar technology. I'm not complaining, though: Until we have fully autonomous vehicles, it's important for drivers to continue to pay attention while using these semi-autonomous features.

With all that in mind, Pilot Assist is great for highway gridlock and cruising on the freeway. It brings the SUV to a complete stop in stop-and-go congestion, and once traffic starts moving again, a quick tap of the accelerator gets the SUV moving.

That focus on safety continues throughout the vehicle, with both low- and high-speed collision avoidance. In addition to knowing when cars are in its path, the XC90 can detect pedestrians, bicyclists and large animals (like moose!) both day and night and will apply the brakes when necessary. Unfortunately, it's tough to test this type of feature without putting people in danger, and I sadly couldn't find any moose or caribou in the San Francisco area up to the challenge.

The rest of the vehicle's tech features were easier to try out. Inside the car, the Sensus infotainment is presented on a 12.3-inch portrait-mode touchscreen display. Volvo is aiming for an easy-to-use and uncluttered experience, and while it does indeed deliver that, there are a few oddities. One confounding thing was the grouping of car features. For example, instead of all the parking buttons being lumped together, they're scattered across two groups with other systems sprinkled in.

While that's a strange design decision, the rest of the Sensus layout gives drivers quick access to apps and features without forcing them to tap on the screen seven times to turn on Parking Assist or launch the in-car weather app. For finer control of the vehicle, Volvo placed deeper level controls in the Settings area.

As for physical buttons, the XC90's interior is a perfect example of the "less is more" school of thought. None of the buttons feel incongruous or extraneous. It's a clean, well-thought-out layout that understands how people interact with their vehicle while driving. It's the first car I've driven in a long time where I was able to master every feature within a few minutes and didn't have to hunt for buttons to make something happen. Everything was where I expected it to be.

It also helps that the interior is beautiful. The leather and wood complement each other, making for a warm, inviting environment. It's not without its extravagances either. The shift knob is a hand-crafted glass crystal. Yes, it's ridiculous, but it glows a bit at night, which is cool.

The over-the-topness doesn't stop there. Volvo added "Thor's hammer'' running lights/blinkers to the front of the car. I'll admit they look remarkable, but they resemble a chisel or pick axe more than a hammer. Still, it's fun to say, "Yeah, my car has Thor's hammer lights."

The XC90 T8 has room for seven, so that boasting might indeed take place on a road trip. But as with most SUVs, that third row can be tight. At six-foot-three, I didn't bother sitting in that back row for fear I'd never be able to squeeze my way out. With those rear seats folded down, five passengers (and their glamping gear) should be comfortable during a long drive.

Which brings us to the actual driving experience. The hybrid has a four-cylinder turbo and supercharged engine up front and electric motor in the back. Together they produce 400 horsepower and 472 pounds of torque. In sport mode, you'll get an impressive jolt off the line, but drivers will likely stick to the default hybrid mode, which has a rating of 54 miles per gallon equivalent.

You can run it in pure electric mode, but during my tests I was only able to eek out 11 miles before depleting the battery. So it's fine for short jaunts around town but not much else.

I found that while behind the wheel, the XC90 T8 is an incredible cruiser -- perfect for long drives. It has a smooth ride without sacrificing cornering on the freeway. I started to forget how large the SUV actually was while on the highway, but once I hit twisty back roads, its heft immediately became apparent. While it has a sporty mode, it's tough to slap that moniker on a vehicle that weighs over 5,000 pounds. That's not a slight as much as a reminder of how physics works.

In fact, the only real issue I had while driving the car was with the brakes. They took a few days to master, because as you come to a stop the car will slowly decelerate and then suddenly stop quickly. I adjusted my braking style so that I start a bit sooner than usual; after that I didn't have any more jarring episodes. Again, as a matter of safety, having a heavy car that can brake quickly is wonderful, so it's tough to fault it for keeping me safer; I just wish it could ease into that stop.

But overall, the XC90 T8 hybrid is a feature-rich SUV that combines style, technology and safety into a package that you would have never expected from the Swedish automaker a few decades ago. The company has evolved beyond the boxy wagon to something that should be on the radar of all car buyers.

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Volvo melds technology and luxury in the XC90 T8 hybrid - Engadget

LONDON, Feb. 9, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

"Increasing demand for smart devices and technological advancements in wireless connectivity expected to drive the growth of the mobility technologies market during the forecast period" The Top 10 Mobility Technologies Market - Global Forecast to 2022, the market is expected to grow at a significant rate between 2016 and 2022. This report covers the major mobility technologies such as cellular IoT, wireless gigabit, mobile augmented reality, wireless charging for consumer electronics, Bluetooth, automotive vehicle-to-everything, mobile biometric, land mobile radio, automated guided vehicle, and wearable technology, along with their market trends between 2016 and 2022.

"Rising consumer preferences for sophisticated gadgets and growing demand for connected living fueling the growth of the wearable technology market" The emergence of wearable technology has transformed the outlook of computing on-the-go. The application areas for the wearable technology range from consumer durables and healthcare to enterprise, industrial, and so on. With the development in the technology, it is expected to have application in new verticals and increased applications in the existing verticals such as medical surgery. The key factors contributing to the growth of the wearable technology market include consumer preference for sophisticated gadgets, increasing growth prospects for next-generation displays in wearable devices, growing popularity of the Internet of Things (IoT) and connected devices, increase in demand for wearable fitness and medical devices, and development of key enabling technologies.

"Consumer preferences for wireless connectivity expected to boost the growth of the wireless charging market during the forecast period" The wireless charging technology is used for the transmission of electrical current between two objects without any physical connection. The growing demand for wireless charging technology in consumer electronics can be attributed to its features that provide ease and convenience to the end users. Wireless charging has eliminated the use of cables for charging devices and has provided a convenient way to charge electronic devices wirelessly. The growth of the wireless charging market for consumer electronics is driven by factors such as its user friendliness, growing demand for smartphones, and its ability to charge multiple devices at the same time. The major restraints for the market growth include the lack of standards and interference of other electronic devices. The increasing efficiency of wireless charging devices and applications in new verticals are the key opportunities for the wireless charging market for consumer electronics.

"Growing demand for smartphones and wireless connectivity driving the growth of the Bluetooth market" The adoption of Bluetooth is growing significantly with the advent of the Internet of Things (IoT), machine-to-machine communication, pervasive computing, and fog computing, wherein a large number of devices are required to communicate with each other. The proliferation of the network of wireless sensors, increasing adoption of emerging technologies, and mainstreaming of several smart consumer devices have led to the increase in adoption of the IoT. The consumer electronics, healthcare, and building automation industries have been revolutionized by the introduction of the IoT in the market. Various other IoT applications are also evolving such as connected cars and wearable electronics. These applications would further provide opportunities for the industry players with the help of a large and complex wireless connectivity ecosystem. The rising R&D investments and government funding in IoT-related technologies are expected to drive the growth of the Bluetooth market, especially in the U.S., China, Japan, Germany, South Korea, and the U.K.

The major players in the market for Top 10 mobility technologies include Qualcomm Inc. (U.S.), Sierra Wireless (Canada), Apple Inc. (U.S.), Samsung Electronics Corporation Ltd. (South Korea), Nuance Communication, Inc. (U.S.), Intel Corporation (U.S.), Texas Instruments (U.S.), Atmel Corporation (U.S.),, STMicroelectronics N.V. (Switzerland), Autotalks Limited (Israel), Harris Corporation (U.S.), Motorola Solutions, Inc. (U.S.), Daifuku Co., Ltd. (Japan), and Dematic GmbH & Co., KG. (Germany).

Research Coverage: This research report categorizes the Top 10 mobility technologies market on the basis of vertical, industry, application, type, geography, and others. The report also discusses the major drivers, restraints, challenges, and opportunities pertaining to all the 10 market; along with their value chain analysis and the market ranking analysis of the major players in the market.

Reasons to Buy the Report: The report would help the leaders/new entrants in this market in the following ways: 1. This report segments the Top 10 mobility technologies market comprehensively and provides the closest market size estimation for all subsegments across different regions. 2. The report would help stakeholders understand the pulse of the market and provide them with the information on key drivers, restraints, challenges, and opportunities for market growth. 3. This report would help stakeholders understand their competitors better and gain more insights to improve their position in the business. The report also includes competitor ecosystem, new product launches and developments, partnerships, and mergers and acquisitions.

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Top 10 Mobility Technologies Market by Technology & Geography - Global Forecast to 2022 - Yahoo Finance

Scott Tilley 7:58 a.m. ET Feb. 9, 2017

A recent trip home from Montreal to Melbourne took me nearly 30 hours. It should have taken me 8. The cascade of mechanical problems, poor customer service, and overall incompetence left me tired and frustrated. I lost time. I lost sleep. But at least I eventually made it home safe and sound.

The whole experience made me realize how susceptible our air travel system is to a single point of failure. Just one thing going wrong causes a terrible domino effect. Unfortunately, I can only see the situation getting worse as traffic levels increase.

Air travel is just one form of transportation that makes up our national infrastructure. Consider cargo traffic, which has increased significantly in the last few years. Cargo ships have become gargantuan platforms that carry huge loads across the oceans. Ports around the world are constantly being re-dredged to accommodate these floating behemoths. One of the biggest cargo ships in the world, the CSCL Globe, is more than four football fields long. It can carry 19,000 twenty-foot containers. Think how many 18-wheel transport trucks that means on the highways.

How do we know whats inside each of these cargo containers? What technology do we use to ensure that weapons are not smuggled into the country? Once the containers are unloaded from the ship, what rail and road routes do they take before they reach their final destination?

The volume of trucks and cars on our roads is also growing. In many parts of the world, the rising middle class is resulting in a surge of highway traffic. In 2010, there was a traffic jam outside of Beijing, China that lasted for almost two weeks. Nearly 20 lanes of traffic stretched for more than 60 miles.

And you thought your commute was bad.

The amount of time people waste in their car, stuck in traffic during their daily commutes, continues to increase. In some big cities, spending more than four hours a day each way has become the norm. Not only is this terribly stressful on the driver (and passengers), its a colossal loss of productivity. Our national GDP suffers from gridlock. Its also a mounting security risk.

Tonight at 8:00pm in the Henegar Center, Dr. Cliff Bragdon will be speaking about transportation security as part of the Center for Technology & Societys Tech Talk series. Tickets are just $10 and can be ordered online at http://www.henegar.org or by calling the box office at 321-723-8698. I hope you come to hear about some of the many challenges facing our national transportation system and some of the possible solutions to avoiding intermodal gridlock in the future.

Scott Tilley is a professor at the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne. Contact him at Technology Today@srtilley.com.

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A growing concern: Technology and transportation - Florida Today