In the past it has been more expensive to produce batteries with silicon anodes instead of graphite. Some smart guys at the University of Eastern Finland have figured out how to do it a bit less expensive, which might allow for more dense lithium ion batteries. Tesla is currently using some silicon in anodes, but not at such a scale that would be allowed by this new process. While the article does not say much about it, it also mentions using silicon and carbon nanotubes, and also barley husk ash which is agricultural waste in future processes.
Researchers from the University of Eastern Finland introduced new technology to Li-ion batteries by replacing graphite used in anodes by silicon. The study analysed the suitability of electrochemically produced nanoporous silicon for Li-ion batteries. It is generally understood that in order for silicon to work in batteries, nanoparticles are required, and this brings its own challenges to the production, price and safety of the material. However, one of the main findings of the study was that particles sized between 10 and 20 micrometres and with the right porosity were in fact the most suitable ones to be used in batteries. The discovery is significant, as micrometre-sized particles are easier and safer to process than nanoparticles. This is also important from the viewpoint of battery material recyclability, among other things. The findings were published in Scientific Reports.
Discussion
Source: [H]ardOCP – Silicon Solves Problems for Next-gen LI Batteries
Monthly Archives: August 2017
Jell-O salad is still breaking the dessert mold
In Acquired Tastes, The A.V. Club explores the food and drinks we can’t live without.
Source: LifeHacker – Jell-O salad is still breaking the dessert mold
It's Already Time for Crazy Rumors About the Joker Origin Movie
A Maleficent sequel is in the works. Daredevil is casting a mysterious new regular for season three. The singer of the next Bond movie’s title theme might be a doozy. Plus, new looks at Kingsman: The Golden Circle and the starship bridges of Star Trek: Discovery, and the cast of iZombie teases the next season.…
Source: Gizmodo – It’s Already Time for Crazy Rumors About the Joker Origin Movie
Large-Scale Dietary Study: Fats Good, Carbs Bad
An anonymous reader quotes CBS:
New research suggests that it’s not the fat in your diet that’s raising your risk of premature death, it’s too many carbohydrates — especially the refined, processed kinds of carbs — that may be the real killer… People with a high fat intake — about 35 percent of their daily diet — had a 23 percent lower risk of early death and 18 percent lower risk of stroke compared to people who ate less fat, said lead author Mahshid Dehghan. She’s an investigator with the Population Health Research Institute at McMaster University in Ontario… At the same time, high-carb diets — containing an average 77 percent carbohydrates — were associated with a 28 percent increased risk of death versus low-carb diets, Dehghan said…
For this study, Dehghan and her colleagues tracked the diet and health of more than 135,000 people, aged 35 to 70, from 18 countries around the world, to gain a global perspective on the health effects of diet. Participants provided detailed information on their social and economic status, lifestyle, medical history and current health. They also completed a questionnaire on their regular diet, which researchers used to calculate their average daily calories from fats, carbohydrates and proteins. The research team then tracked the participants’ health for about seven years on average, with follow-up visits at least every three years.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot – Large-Scale Dietary Study: Fats Good, Carbs Bad
Dell's Inspiron 7000 Gaming laptop comes with a GTX 1060 now
Dell’s Inspiron 15 7000 Gaming has always been a solid, if unexciting, option among entry-level gaming laptops. With its latest refresh, Dell is making things a little more interesting with some improved graphics options, ports and a refreshed design…
Source: Engadget – Dell’s Inspiron 7000 Gaming laptop comes with a GTX 1060 now
Even if Hyperloop fails, public transport will win
One hundred and fifty teams from around the world entered the third SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition. Of those, 25 made it to the company’s weeklong event in Hawthorne, California. And like the prior years’ events under the Southern California sun, a…
Source: Engadget – Even if Hyperloop fails, public transport will win
IBM's Watson is creating US Open tennis highlight videos
When it’s not busy healing America’s broken criminal sentencing system, Watson is creating highlight videos of tennis matches. That’s probably one of the things one could say if IBM’s AI system were human. The tech titan has just launched a suite of…
Source: Engadget – IBM’s Watson is creating US Open tennis highlight videos
Zepp's tennis sensor now includes a highlight camera
Unless you’ve got a professional coach on hand, it can be tricky to determine how good your tennis skills really are — simply not slamming the ball into the net doesn’t count, unfortunately. But for those looking to up their game, sport sensor creat…
Source: Engadget – Zepp’s tennis sensor now includes a highlight camera
Here's What Phrases Like "Highly Likely" and "Probably Not" Mean to Different People
Just how likely does “probably” sound to you? Redditor zonination asked users of the polling subreddit /r/samplesize to assign percentage values to a range of common phrases about probability, and graphed the results. The sample size is tiny (just 46 respondents), but the data still looks clustered enough to be…
Source: LifeHacker – Here’s What Phrases Like “Highly Likely” and “Probably Not” Mean to Different People
AMD Allegedly Loses $100 On Every Radeon RX Vega 64 GPU Sold
AMD’s Radeon RX Vega family of graphics is becoming known not only for its gaming performance, but also for how incredibly hard it is for enthusiasts to get their hands on them. The Radeon RX Vega 64 is supposed to have an MSRP of $499, but retailers have been tacking $100 to $200 on top of that price when they do have them in stock. Similar
Source: Hot Hardware – AMD Allegedly Loses 0 On Every Radeon RX Vega 64 GPU Sold
Protect Your Online Privacy With a Lifetime VPN Membership For Just $38
VPNs have been in the news lately, and if you’re ready to start protecting your online privacy, here’s one of the best deals we’ve ever seen.
Source: LifeHacker – Protect Your Online Privacy With a Lifetime VPN Membership For Just
Watch Acer's IFA 2017 showcase in under six minutes
Didn’t get up early enough for the first salvo of new gadgets from IFA 2017? Don’t worry, we’ve got your back. Acer kicked things off with its press event this year, unveiling its latest all-in-one PCs, ever-evolving hybrid laptops and a new push int…
Source: Engadget – Watch Acer’s IFA 2017 showcase in under six minutes
Netflix develops Morse code search option
What happens when Netflix gives its staff two days to hack the platform and create innovative (and often unnecessary) variations on the streaming service?
This. This is what happens.
Hack Day Summer 2017 Teleflix
Uploaded by NetflixOpenSource on 2017-08-28.
Netflix Hack Day
Twice a year, the wonderful team at Netflix is given two days to go nuts and create fun, random builds, taking inspiration from Netflix and its content. So far they’ve debuted a downgraded version of the streaming platform played on an original Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), turned hit show Narcos into a video game, and utilised VR technology into many more builds that, while they’ll never be made public, have no doubt led to some lightbulb moments for the creative teams involved.
DarNES – Netflix Hack Day – Winter 2015
In a world… where devices proliferate… darNES digs back in time to provide Netflix access to the original Nintendo Entertainment System.
Kevin Spacey? More like ‘Kevin Spacebar’, am I right? Aha…ha…haaaa…I’ll get my coat.
Teleflix
The Teleflix build from this summer’s Hack Day is obviously the best one yet, as it uses a Raspberry Pi. By writing code that decodes the dots and dashes from an original 1920s telegraph (provided by AT&T, and lovingly restored by the team using ketchup!) into keystrokes, they’re able to search for their favourite shows via Morse code.
Morse code, for the unaware, is a method for transmitting letters and numbers via a standardised series of beeps, clicks, or flashes. Stuck in a sticky situation? Three dots followed by three dashes and a further three dots gives you ‘SOS’. Sorted. So long as there’s someone there to see or hear it, who also understands Morse Code.
Morse Code
Morse code was a method of transmiting textual information as a series of on-off tones that could be directly understood by a skilled listener. Mooo-Theme: http://soundcloud.com/mooojvm/mooo-theme
So if you’d like to watch, for example, The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, you simply send: – …. . / ..- -. -… .-. . .- -.- .- -… .-.. . / -.- .. — — -.– / … -.-. …. — .. -.. – and you’re set. Easy!
To reach Netflix, the team used a Playstation 4. However, if you want to skip a tech step, you could stream Netflix directly to your Raspberry Pi by following this relatively new tutorial. Nobody at Pi Towers has tried it out yet, but if you have we’d be interested to see how you got on in the comments below.
And if you’d like to play around a little more with the Raspberry Pi and Morse code, you can pick up your own Morse code key, or build one using conductive components such as buttons or bananas, and try it out for yourself.
Alex’s Netflix-themed Morse code quiz
Just for fun, here are the titles of some of my favourite shows to watch on Netflix, translated into Morse code. Using the key below, why not take a break and challenge your mind to translate them back into English. Reward yourself +10 imaginary House Points for each correct answer.
- -.. — -.-. – — .-. / .– …. —
- …. .- -. -. .. -… .- .-..
- – …. . / — .-
- … . -. … . —..
- .— . … … .. -.-. .- / .— — -. . …
- –. .. .-.. — — .-. . / –. .. .-. .-.. …
- –. .-.. — .–
The post Netflix develops Morse code search option appeared first on Raspberry Pi.
Source: Raspberry Pi – Netflix develops Morse code search option
Diesel's first Android Wear smartwatch will set you back $325
The latest fashion house to launch its own Android Wear device is Diesel in the form of the On Full Guard smartwatch. The On Full Guard, which was first announced a few months back, comes packing Qualcomm’s 2100, IP67 water resistance and an AMOLED d…
Source: Engadget – Diesel’s first Android Wear smartwatch will set you back 5
The Complete Guide to Freeing Up Space on Your Computer
Windows or macOS running out of room and crawling to a halt as a result? Nowhere to store your latest batch of phone photos or iTunes music purchases? Dwindling computer storage space is a problem most of us have to face from time to time, and here’s what you can do to ease the pressure.
Source: Gizmodo – The Complete Guide to Freeing Up Space on Your Computer
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850 PSU for $130 after $30 MIR
The rather excellent Seasonic Prime 850W Titanium and [H] Editor’s Choice Gold award winning PSU is on sale at Newegg today and has a $30 MIR attached to it bringing its price down to $129.99.
Sale Ends in 18 Hours. Thanks to TaintedSquirrel for the heads up!
Source: [H]ardOCP – Seasonic Prime Titanium 850 PSU for 0 after MIR
Don't Be Late to Amazon's One-Day Watch Sale
In my opinion, a classic wristwatch still looks better than any smartwatch, any day. Today only in preparation for back-to-school, pick up the a new timepiece from brands like Casio, Nixon, Timex (including the popular Weekender), and more for men, women, and kids. But time’s a-tickin’ on this deal and these prices…
Source: Gizmodo – Don’t Be Late to Amazon’s One-Day Watch Sale
This is probably the worst US flood storm ever, and I’ll never be the same
Enlarge / Houston, on Monday, basically all across the city. (credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
HOUSTON—Lightning crashed all around as I dashed into the dark night. The parking lot outside my apartment building had become swollen with rains, a torrent about a foot deep rushing toward lower ground God knows where. Amazingly, the garage door rose when I punched the button on the opener. Inside I found what I expected to find—mayhem.
In dismay, I scooped up a box of books that had been on the floor. As I did, one of the sodden bottom flaps gave way, and a heavy book splashed into the water: From Dawn to Decadence, a timeless account of the Western world’s great works by Jacques Barzun. Almost immediately, a current from the rushing water beyond the garage door pulled the tome away, forever. Damn, I loved that book. An indescribably bad night had just gotten that little bit worse.
This little scene played out on Sunday morning, around 4am, after sheets of rain from Hurricane Harvey had drenched southern Houston for the previous 12 hours. A few miles away, amidst the tempest, my wife sat on the front porch of her sister’s new home. It had been built on pilings to keep it safe from flooding. But when 24 inches falls in less than 24 hours, as it did over Clear Creek south of Houston, bad things happen.
Read 33 remaining paragraphs | Comments
Source: Ars Technica – This is probably the worst US flood storm ever, and I’ll never be the same
Score a Powerful Gaming PC For As Little As $680, Today Only From Amazon
If your current rig is on its last legs, or if you just want a relatively affordable way to get into PC gaming, Amazon’s HP Omen Gold Box has some deals for you.
Source: Gizmodo – Score a Powerful Gaming PC For As Little As 0, Today Only From Amazon
ASUS' new ROG Strix gaming laptop is built for FPS players
ASUS’ IFA welcome mat is scattered with laptops, and it’s not just more slender ZenBooks. The company’s gaming arm, ROG, has recast its Strix gaming laptop in two different editions, each dedicated to a different type of game. First up, the SCAR edit…
Source: Engadget – ASUS’ new ROG Strix gaming laptop is built for FPS players