User:Vtaylor/Computers and Society/CIS2 Summer 2018/Midterm - Grand Challenge
- . . SUMMER 2018
To identify the work of each contributor, put your name at the top of your work and make it a Heading 4 (==== name ==== at the beginning of a new line in the "edit source").
As I found work, I have make your name a heading. Now it shows up as a link in the Table of Contents as well.
Contents
Saving Coral Reefs
- Seeking innovations that can scale to protect and restore coral reefs.
Yoin Wai Tse
Coral reefs contains high marine biodiversity and is beneficial for humans too, as it can minimize that damage caused by natural disasters such as hurricanes and storm surges. Protecting them could reduce the chance of loss of species and thus maintaining the food chain.
https://www.thenational.ae/uae/environment/the-deep-impact-on-the-gulf-s-coral-reefs-1.392298
Dubai is one of the most advanced city in Saudi Arabia, their method to maintain the coral reef system is to create an artificial coral reef system. It is said that this project is in progress, and the result shows that it could attract organisms to inhabit there, it also shows that when different boulders and breakwaters are set, it will attract different kinds of species. For a high energy environment like breakwaters, it attracts rare kinds of corals and fish instead of common ones which means that by controlling the artificial coral reefs we can also by chance solve the issue of over-fishing.
There’s a company in Los Angeles is planning to build artificial coral reefs for the environment and also for tourist attraction. It has known that the artificial reefs are working and there are also divers that are attracted to visit underwater installation with sculptures, as the Neptune Burial site in Miami receive good reviews. Their aim is to recover the coral reefs that was gone near the hotel resort, while at the same time, earn from the project through attracting tourist.
https://tech.co/technology-save-coral-reefs-2016-11
This articles explained that there are now three possible ways of technology saving the coral reef. First of all, we can stimulate the growth of coral by using an electrical biorock, this will create natural mineral and coral fragments will then be transplanted. Second, a method and a device called bathymetry to monitor and map the coral reef constantly for any changes. Third, 3D printed coral reefs could be used to mimic the original coral with the same composition and planted in order for an ecosystem to develop.
Jeonghyeon Yu
Dying Coral Reefs Impact Environment and Economy-TIME.
What are the underlying reasons that corals are dying at an unprecedented rate? The answer is it’s because of Climate and Ocean Change. (Jeonghyeon Yu)
https://toolkit.climate.gov/case-studies/protecting-fish-save-coral-reefs
Protecting fish to save coral reefs
What I found was if manage reef fish properly, the corals will respond positively. So, what I am finding is that coral reefs when properly managed can be highly resilient. (Jeonghyeon Yu)
http://www.climatecentral.org/news/value-of-saving-coral-reefs-18129
How we can save coral reefs and why we should. Coral reefs are ecosystem on Earth which plays a big part. According to the article “Reefs cover less than one-tenth of 1 percent of the ocean floor but support more than 800 species of coral and 4,000 species of fish” As we protect and keep it, we can gain more natural environmental benefits.(Jeonghyeon Yu)
Sahiti Chilukuri
A huge problem that coral reefs face that has led to them dying is coral bleaching. Algae and Corals have a symbiotic relationship. The corals provide the algae with shelter and protection while the algae helps produce foods. However because of global warming, when the temperature of the ocean increases, the algae starts to leave the coral and the coral starts to starve in which the outside colorful fleshy part with fade away leaving just the coral skeleton.
Because a major cause of coral bleaching is global warming a few things we can do to reduce this is carpooling more, using public transportation, buying an electric or hybrid car. New advancements with solar panels and renewable energy can help reduce carbon emissions which cause coral bleaching.
http://www.environment.gov.au/minister/frydenberg/media-releases/mr20171207.html
In Australia, there has been a new water mixing technology that is being tested to see if it can reduce coral stress. Coral stress makes the algae leave the coral which will lead the coral to starve which leaves the skeleton part making it look 'bleached'. I think that this new water mixing technology could be really interesting and if it could work it would prevent a lot of coral bleaching.
Another invention that scientists have come up with that could possibly help with coral bleaching is a 'sun shield'. This made up out of a very thin biodegradable film which contains calcium carbonate. This film was designed to sit on the surface of the water above the corals instead of directly on the corals and protect the corals from getting warm, preventing the algae from leaving the coral and starving it.
Oliver Loveday
https://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/14/opinion/a-world-without-coral-reefs.html
Coral Reefs are suffering primarily due to overfishing, pollution and ocean acidification. Overfishing hurts coral reefs because fish have a direct line to coral reef health and overfishing continues to double in rate. Damage to these coral reefs damage the ecosystem and overfishing and acidification are doubling in acceleration each decade.
This article talks about how Belize is fixing their coral reef issues. They put a stop to off shore oil exploration and drilling. Another method they incorporated was banning tourists from trap fishing and excursions. Last but not least they plan to put a ban on single use plastic or styrofoam items by 2019. Plastic waste can breakdown and cause coral bleaching which can kill the algae and thus damage sea life.
This article refers to a startup named Coral Vita and scientists teaming up to create coral that can survive warmer oceans of the future. Methods they have induced are growing these coral at 50 times the average rate with a better defense against warming and acidification. The entrepreneurs admit that the first key is to stop killing the coral reefs in the first place and urge the population to limit green house gases, pollution and overfishing. However with increased efforts by individuals, they still continue to create coral because action still has to take place.
Jenny Liu
https://www.ft.com/content/3ee62fd6-4361-11e8-803a-295c97e6fd0b Scientists are trying out various forms of technology in an attempt to save coral reefs. Examples include Google's starfish killing robots and sun shields for heat waves. While these don't address the bigger problem of climate change which is killing the reefs, it can help make reefs more resilient.
https://medium.com/wcs-marine-conservation-program/technology-can-help-pick-up-the-pace-to-protect-coral-reefs-4d12608cd4fc Scientists are collecting massive amounts of data on coral reefs. In order to collect and process the data faster, they're using open-source technologies such as GitHub and R. Open-source technology has allowed scientists to build the apps they need for specific purposes, such as reef data collection and protection.
https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/education/tutorial_corals/coral11_protecting.html
The NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, uses satellites and data collection to monitor reefs. The data is sent to scientists for analysis, in hopes of tracking how the reefs are being bleached.
Chi Do
First of all, we need to understand what are coral reefs? Coral reefs are tropical rain-forests, which are place to benthic species and fish. Coral reefs are also divided into many layers and levels of cover such as rain-forest.
Coral reefs also have the potential to conserve biodiversity and natural aquatic resources for capture fisheries and marine aquaculture. In addition, due to the transition between the continent and the sea, the three ecosystems typical of the tropical sea are mangroves, coral reefs and sea grasses that are closely interrelated and interrelated. The important "ecological chains" in the sea and coastal areas, where one of them is affected, will affect the remaining chains.
https://www.livescience.com/40276-coral-reefs.html
Many years ago, with the rapid development of technology, industry, modernization, industrialization of human influence quite a lot to the natural habitat. Environmental issues, as the climate is being transformed significantly and gradually become the issue, the most notable today. Many changes in the environment are causing people to look back: The coral reefs in the world are losing ground. The disappearance of coral reefs has implications for the ecosystem. So why are coral reefs disappearing? And What is the mother of nature wanting to warn people?
https://4ocean.com/pages/coral-reefs?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI2eyEiPO23AIViLfsCh1kagmWEAAYASAAEgLy0_D_BwE
The Great Barrier Reef in Australia has bleached and destroyed up to 67% in 2016. In 2017 is another great year for the Great Barrier Reef when 93% of coral reefs are destroyed or bleached. And within a decade the Great Barrier Reef will disappear completely.
With this situation, many coral reefs around the world are being ejected and are at risk of disappearing like the two major coral reefs above.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-27233810
Ways people can help the Coral Reefs such as: plant a coral; build a virtual coral reef; raise awareness of the importance of corals; visit a reef and dive responsibly; choose a reef-friendly sunscreen; make your lawncare green; leave no trace or contact your representatives.
Disaster Prediction
(Earthquakes & Hurricanes)
- Save lives and reduce economic loss through better mechanisms to predict earthquakes and tropical cyclones.
David Owen
Improved Prediction and Reliable Communication
Is there technologies that can create accurate prediction for earthquakes, tropical cyclones, tornadoes and other disasters and give reliable information in time to save more lives?
GeoCosmo who use semiconductor physics for earthquake prediction, in an opensource platform/program Geocosmo spc is the commercial evolution of EARTHQUAKE FORECASTING https://www.geocosmospc.com/
QuakeFinder’s mission is to save lives by finding a way to forecast major earthquakes. QuakeFinder operates as a humanitarian research project of aerospace engineering firm Stellar Solutions. The project’s goal is to develop technology and methods for detection and analysis of electromagnetic earthquake precursors to produce earthquake forecasts based on sound scientific theory and practice. https://www.quakefinder.com/about/
At this time QuakerFinder is monitoring emissions in earthquake prone regions including California, Peru, Taiwan and Greece. Data recorded is transmitted to a data center in Palo Alto, CA where is is analyzed..To date analysis has revealed apparent earthquikes for three significant quakes.
http://ptwc.weather.gov/ NOAA's National Weather service Pacific Tsunami Warning Center
Although tsunami alerts can be issued within minutes of an earthquake occurring, the most effective warning for nearby communities is the earthquake itself.
Education is crucial in saving lives so people need to know how to evacuate immediately to higher ground if they feel a large earthquake. If higher ground is not nearby, another option is to evacuate vertically, by going upstairs in well-constructed multi-storey buildings.
Refining the alogrithm for earthquake early warning to better estimate the earthquake size and to reduce false alarms is an active area of research in the earthquake community.
Technological speed is the only reason earthquake warnings became possible. Improvements will cause warnign to arrive faster.
https://www.shakealert.org/ ShakeAlert is an earthquake early warning system for the West Coast of the United States. This system is to identify an earthquake a few seconds after it begins, calculate the likely intensity of ground shaking that will result and deli ver warnings to people and infrastructure in harm's ways. This type warning comes before the S-wave arrives, which brings strong shaking that usually cause the damage.
Since many parts of the world, communication infrastructure and mechanisms are limited and currently rely on word-of-mouth, we need new forms of communication or new approaches that allow the global standardization of accurate and rapid communication.
Technology needs to improve the timeliness and consistency in the communication of a natural disaster once an accurate prediction has been made. Sometime the information given out prior to a natural disaster is confusing, misleading, or ignored. In order to avoid loss of life we need quick, reliable, connsistent and one that can be accessed by everyone.
Nicolle Ayon
- It is interesting to think that once upon a time, people believed that we could not predict the weather. Yet, major technological advances made it possible for us to do so. I believe that with the right technology, we will be able to predict earthquakes ahead of time and with accuracy as well. There are already several companies working on making this happen.
- http://www.meteoquake.org/indexaa.html
- Currently, GeoCosmo is working with NASA and European partners to improve earthquake warning/forecasts. Their mission is to have their system give a lead time of two to three days so people may have enough time to prepare for a disaster. In contrast, the existing system only warns people of an earthquake as it is happening. GeoCosmo is currently working on a campaign to increase funds in order to build mini and mega stations to gather data, analyze it, develop a smartphone app, etc. I believe that the addition of stations will greatly aid their ability to collect data, and this data will fuel their ability to make more accurate predictions.
- https://www.quakefinder.com/
- QuakeFinder’s mission is to save lives by predicting earthquakes. They “[operate] an extensive network of instruments monitoring ultra-low frequency electromagnetic emissions in earthquake-prone regions including California, Peru, Taiwan. and Greece.” The data center in Palo Alto analyzes the data transmitted from those instruments. They hope to keep expanding their sensor network, collect more data, and eventually create an effective forecasting system. Like GeoCosmo, QuakeFinder also needs to increase their data intake in order to better their earthquake prediction. A majortiy of the time, this takes a lot of money so they should focus on increasing their funding so it will not be a barrier to their scientific discoveries.
- http://www.terraseismic.org / https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2015/04/21/big-data-saving-13000-lives-a-year-by-predicting-earthquakes/#be321f55d8da
- Terra Seismic claims that it can detect 90% of major earthquakes 2-5 months before they occur.
- According to Bernard Marr, in his “Big Data: Saving 13,000 Lives a Year by Predicting Earthquakes?”, big data analysis has contributed to the advancement of earthquake prediction, as it combines “using satellite and atmospheric data… [with] statistical analysis” (Marr). Terra Seismic uses an open source software in order to process large amounts of satellite data and then their custom algorithms help in the analysis of the data. While other organization “have monitored these signs… it is big data analytics which is now providing the leap in levels of accuracy” (Marr). This company seems to have the majority of the prediction work done, they now need to implement a way to make this information more available to the masses. The ability to relay the information out is nearly as important as being able to predict the earthquake itself.
Ana Alfaro
When can we fianly predict a natural disaster? For most the answere is never, for the few not soon enough. Traditional ways seem to take too long becuase no two natural disasters are the same. It's not like a sickness where the symtoms are very similar. Even with all the tech we currently have we still can't predict a natural disaster days before it happens. If a company claims they can do it, they aren't sharing the tech with anyone who can really use it.
- https://www.researchgate.net/publication/292188095_Using_video_games_for_volcanic_hazard_education_and_communication
- It's gotten to the point where we have to come up with uncoventional ways of teaching or training future generations on how to deal or predict disasters. Most of the world is connected through the internet and gaming networks (my son has friends in Europ and Asia.) This is a very good way to connect with the younger generation with a limit attention span.
- https://www.quakefinder.com/about/
- There are oranizations that are on the right track and making great discoveries but they are stuck in the Research and Development phase of their projects. I would hate to wonder if it's becuase investors don't see monitary gain in the research or in it's applicaions. As long as there is a dollar to be gained there will be setbacks. At the same time, to predict a disaster, we have to get in the middle of one and a lot of risk is involved. Insurance premiums are rising and not many people are willing to risk their lives. It would be great to finaly get an app that would warn us about an incoming earthquak instead of mindless videos people just post up without embaresment.
- https://www.popsci.com/predict-volcanic-eruption
- Another setback the human race has in protecting itselfe from natural disasters is that everyone has a different theory to one problem. There is no was one single oranization can observe and study every single natural disaster of it's kind... but what if every organization came together to form one super organizatin? It will not happen. Scienties and researchers have different views on causes for natural disasters and their precictions. No one scientist want's to be proven wrong, that would be so shamefull. Our indivuduality is what makes us unique but it will also slow us down. I believe who ever finds the first predictor to be 100% correct will be able to change the minds of the rest.
Jeonghyeon Yu
Big Data. According the online article by Bernard Marr called “Big Data: Saving 13,000 Lives A Year By Predicting Earthquakes?” he states Predictions can become far more precise, and far more accurate models of likely quake activity can be constructed, based on statistical likelihood. It could save many more people’s life by predicting natural disaster such as typhoon, heavy snow, severe drought, and earthquake. In this online article he also states that Earthquakes (and the tsunamis they cause when they occur at sea) are devastating in their cost to human lives and the economy – the 2011 Tōhoku quake off Japan’s east coast killed almost 16,000 people, destroyed over 127,290 buildings and made almost a quarter of a million homeless. Any increases in the accuracy of prediction will save lives, by enabling evacuation and disaster-relief efforts to allocate resources more effectively. We all know this already hundreds of people lose their lives every hurricane season. But I would say that Big Data is bigger than ever and saving humans lives, using to make the impossible possible. I also believe if we improve this technology, we would cut down on the human misery and waste of life caused by natural disasters across the globe. (Jeonghyeon Yu)
https://listverse.com/2015/05/25/10-major-natural-disasters-predicted-in-the-near-future/
Natural disasters have been studying by scientists how we predict them and prevent from them. Many scientists are predicting major natural disasters and are doing research new hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, and other natural disasters to the world occurrences for centuries. According to the online article by Roxanne Lingier and David Moore called, “10 Major Natural Disasters Predicted In The Near Future” reports that Within the 21st century, many have made predictions of major natural disasters occurring in the near and distant future. (Jeonghyeon Yu)
Lifting Farmers Out of Poverty
- Exponentially increasing the income for millions of smallholder farmers living on less than two dollars a day
Saurabhjit Singh
https://foreignpolicy.com/2018/01/08/chinas-war-on-poverty-could-hurt-the-poor-most/
https://hbr.org/2015/08/to-really-help-the-global-poor-create-technology-theyll-pay-for
More than one billion people are employed are given agricultural jobs. People who have agricultural jobs are one of the most marginalized, exploited, and oppressed groups in the world. It is mainly the poor people who are farmers who become poverty. There are people who are trying to lift farmers out of poverty.
In China President Xi Jinping made a pledge that he would lift 70 million people from poverty by the year 2020. President Xi Jinping’s pledge “…is an extension of the government’s effort, starting in 2012, to move 100 million rural residents into the cities by 2020.” People shouldn’t be in poverty condition. In India governments are unable to reduce poverty to India’s population of farmers. In the 1960’s the government in Green revolution, which was an attempt they made to increase agricultural productivity. They used yielding seeds and chemicals. These are just 2 examples on what people are trying to do to stop poverty.
Technology can lift people out of poverty. Vehicles that use technology to work will reduce number of possible accidents since there is little road and full of grass and food. Technology can solve social needs that can be in a profitable way. Technology can do labor work such as tractors working on the fields. Lawn mover cuts grass for us.
Marvin Buruca
Small farm owners and families from rural areas face a constant struggle to produce enough crops in order to have an income. There are many factors playing against them such as climate change, land degradation, high price of fertilizers, and in some countries, displacement from their land. Currently, organizations such as Partners Worldwide (https://www.partnersworldwide.org/our-work/the-goal/), the World Bank (http://www.worldbank.org/en/understanding-poverty), The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (http://www.fao.org/farmingsystems/) are addressing this problem.
How do they do it? Partners Worldwide and the World Bank implement the concept of Value Chain. With this system, small farmers can accesses markets beyond their communities and obtain more fair prices for their crops. According to these institutions, all players in the chain benefit. With the extra income, they can satisfy needs such as health care, education and other basic needs( wpf). Also cooperativism help farmers to reduce the cost of supplies and at the same time, they can get training and support to solve common problems related to crops.
https://www.wfp.org/stories/central-america-smallholder-farmers-get-plugged-markets
http://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/agribusiness
https://www.partnersworldwide.org/2017/05/16/agriculture-end-poverty/
Is technology providing support to small farmers to get out of poverty?
Access to mobile phones and other devices connected to the internet, farmers can verify real prices and identify more profitable markets. http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2012/03/06/mobile-technologies-aiding-poor-farmers
Bill Gates from Microsoft explains four ways in which technology helps small farmers in
Africa. Mapping the soil with digital maps, genetic study of plants, and sharing plating techniques through Youtube and other video sharing platforms help farmers to produce more and have better profits. https://www.gatesnotes.com/Development/Innovation
Reducing poverty is certainly a big challenge. Cooperativism, access to markets, and training help farmers to alleviate their extreme poverty condition. But there are other factors such as climate change, abusive government policies, and violence that affect the poor people.Fortunately, NGOs also provide great support to those in need.
Ryan Thompson
This situation is serious and this challenge should not be overlooked for it effects hundreds of thousands. Congress is aware and they helped with Assembly bill No. 1066 passed recently in 2016 states for Agriculture Worker: Farm workers will be receiving overtime pay. 8 hours of work is a long time and for farm workers they deserve the overtime just as much as anyone else. The sweat and labor going into picking crops is brutal. Overtime pay is a step in the right direction for the workers.
The problem that arises is with the farm owners. The largest expense when owning a farm is paying the workers. With the increase in pay farmers need to make the choice of keeping their farmers or purchasing machinery that can eliminate the need for a farmer. I believe the mindset of the farm owners need to change and they should respect their workers.
http://apeelsciences.com/apeel.html
A new technology by Apeelsciences helps plants stay fresh longer.'Apeel keeps moisture inside produce and oxygen out, which dramatically slows the rate that produce spoils. By maintaining moisture and reducing oxidation, Apeel supports the plant's natural abilities to protect against environmental stressors.' with the addition of natural plant chemicals produce will be around longer. This is a huge breakthrough in agriculture/food technology. If this technology becomes a standard among all farms, workers will not be rushed. Increasing the lifespan of produce means more money for farmowners and treating the workers right with their fair cut.
http://www.saiindustrial.com/how-will-the-internet-of-things-impact-the-agricultural-industry/ Thanks to the internet we can communicate more than ever. This is huge for farmers for they can discuss way to improve upon their own farms. Another big thing is those individuals who are being treated wrong with their inhumane pay can link together. When everyone is together voices can be heard and farm workers can protest against the wrong doing. The internet will help them and the technology is there to improve their lives.
Feeding the Next Billion
- Ways to ensure that the 10% of the planet that remains undernourished gets access to nutritious food produced in a sustainable way.
Jeonghyeon Yu
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-governmental_organization
https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/13/what-is-non-government-organization.asp
Non-governmental organization (NGO) is Non-governmental organization (NGO) is a purely private organizations, not government agencies or government-related organizations. It could be voluntary non-profit civic organizations organized locally, nationally and internationally. Non-governmental organizations work for the public rather than the interests of individuals or businesses. It works for a variety of purposes including politics, human rights, the environment, health, and the elimination of sexism. Non-governmental organizations work not only within a single country, but also around the world because environmental issues are spread across many countries and can affect the entire globe. As non-profits, NGOs rely on a variety of sources for funding. I want to talk about how they help poor people to escape from hunger. They work hard to reduce poverty because many children suffer from hunger, lots of African children die of starvation. For example, Food Bank, the food charity NGO, has donated 700 tons of chickens to the needy. (Jeonghyeon Yu)
There are lot of NGOs working for people in desperate need and are different types of NGOs out there.
•BINGO: business-friendly international NGO (example: Red Cross) •ENGO: environmental NGO (Greenpeace and World Wildlife Fund) •GONGO: government-organized non-governmental organization (International Union for Conservation of Nature) •INGO: international NGO (Oxfam) •QUANGO: quasi-autonomous NGO (International Organization for Standardization [ISO])
I will be talking about INGO. Especially US and UK-based international non-governmental organizations (INGOs). What they do: The Contribution of an Asset-based Approach. They set up International NGOs and Poverty Reduction Strategies. The object of their work is to provide information of poverty reduction strategy. (Jeonghyeon Yu)
Adam Rubin
http://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/8/3/034015/pdf 36% of world’s calories are used for animal feed, of which 12% make it to humans. This mainly means feeding animals that are later butchered. Crop demands will increase by 60 to 120% by 2050, thanks to greater affluence and diet changes. More animal consumption is expected. Additionally, crops like maize are rerouted to fuel production instead of food. Shifting meat production from cows to chickens would result in 6% global calorie delivery increase, or 357 million people fed. Changing meat production to milk and egg production would give a 14% increase and 815 million more fed.
As the website says, “It has been calculated by the UN that 2 billion hectares of degraded land is restorable. This is almost twice the size of Europe!” Essentially their teams infuse nutrients back into used up soil, eventually allowing for farms and greenery to grow there again. They hope to set an example for governments and NGO’s about how to restore this kind of land. They’re currently focusing on tow horizontal bands of land across Africa, and hope to expand further.
An attempt to plot out how protein will come from until the 2050s. Soy based products will capture 80% of the ‘alternative protein market’ (as in, not livestock) by 2024. After that novel sources like peas and insects will begin climbing, joining with algae and synthetic protein to possible be the majority of protein by 2054.This will require an extra 100 million hectares of farmland, reaching 430 million total.
A more detailed summary can be found here:
http://www.luxresearchinc.com/intelligence-services/consumer-choices-food-health-and-wellness
https://www.wired.com/story/lab-grown-meat/
A company called Just will bring synthetic foie gras, chorizo, and (I believe chicken) nuggets to market, marking the first time synthetic meats will be widely available. These are the options because fatty blood infused meats are still not possible. A major problem is that growing cells requires animal blood – convincing the cells to keep growing needs a realistic environment, and while companies have reduced the amount needed, it’s still a bottleneck. Just claims to no longer need this serum, instead getting nutrients from individual sources and rebuilding it. The real proof will be life cycle analyses – following the energy costs and nutrients of building these products start to finish.
Off-Grid Energy Access
- Energy solutions that can provide clean, high-performance, accessible, sustainable energy to the 1.2 billion people globally who live without electricity.
Johnathan Bounleuth
Nuclear fusion: the end of our energy problem?
According to the online article by Francesca Church called, "Nuclear fusion: the end of our energy problem?" reports that the overseer of one of the world's most advanced nuclear fusion projects, Professor Thomas Klinger, and along with 400 scientists from around the world have dedicated a little over one million hours to create the "Wendelstein 7-X", which is a small scale nuclear fusion reactor (Church). The purpose of gathering energy from fusion is to harness clean, efficient, long-lasting energy. The main issue with nuclear fusion, replicating the same reaction here on Earth as on the Sun in a bigger scale. I think the scientists or engineers must reconsider the shape of the reactors to withstand the intense energy of the fusion. They find a way to have the fusion create more produce more energy that it consumes.
In this online article called, "Fusion plower plants could provide energy for homes in just 20 years" by John von Radowitz, he states that in just a little over 20 years fusion power will be able to provide clean limitless energy to homes. His source comes from scientists claiming that they're moving closely moving fusion technology towards commercial consumption. "Thirty-five nations are contributing to the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (Iter) being built at Saint-Paul-les-Durance in southern France." (Radowitz). The head of Itor's operations Dr. Bernard Bigot states that, "When we prove that fusion is a viable energy source, it will eventually replace burning fossil fuels, which are non-renewable and non-sustainable." (Radowitz). I suggest that they somehow focus on providing energy for key buildings first such as emergency service buildings, or traffic, then turn their heads towards providing energy for homes. They should come up with a way to have fusion energy be more mobile, such as having it power ships or aircrafts.
https://futurism.com/calculations-fusion-energy-reality/
Science Alert's online article called, "New Calculations May Finally Make Fusion Energy a Reality" they state that the main issue with harnessing fusion reactions is how would you be able to have it produce more energy than it expends. A group of physicists found that an odd-looking spherical design would achieve their could, because apparently it is able to produce a higher amount of energy rather than reactor designs such as tokamaks or stellerators. (ScienceAlert). The article claims that the main difference between the sphere shape versus the other two is that it is able to generate heat with temperatures "200 times hotter than the center of the Sun." (ScienceAlert). They might be able to produce a reaction without having any radioactive waste left over. I think they are heading in the right direction with choosing a reactor design that allows a higher heat threshold because in order to have a reaction as similar as the Sun, you must replicate it. They can overachieve by heating up 200 times more than the core which is fascinating. I think they must prioritize zero radioactive waste when it comes to having a clean energy source.
Jeonghyeon Yu
https://gispub.epa.gov/air/trendsreport/2017/#introduction
According to the web EPA which talks about Our Nation’s Air. “The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is committed to protecting public health by improving air quality and reducing air pollution. The U.S. leads the world in having clean air and a strong economy due to implementation of the Clean Air Act and technological advancements from American innovators. Cleaner air provides important public health benefits.” We tend to easily neglect air pollution, Includes Gases and Particles or be uneducated about the importance of air. However, there are companies in the world that are working to solve these problems. (Jeonghyeon Yu)
They offer online course for studying renewable energy. I believe we can improve solutions environmental problems, issues by studying about alternative energy. This is the one of ways has in solving the Challenges. (Jeonghyeon Yu)
There are many communities working on global problems to save the word. This is one of them I found. They discovered new fundamental climate science and research into Impacts happening 100 years ahead of schedule on the earth. (Jeonghyeon Yu)
Megan Brooks
https://www.bimblesolar.com/beginnersguide
To start your off-grid energy project, you will first need to decide on what system voltage is best for you. Second, you will need to find out how many solar panels you require, and if you need a backup generator. You will also need to obtain a charge controller, batteries of your choice, and an inverter.
https://www.homepower.com/articles/solar-electricity/design-installation/so-you-want-go-grid
Going off-grid is possible and practical in many cases. Although it's romanticized as being "peaceful" and "free", you will take on maintenance roles and be responsible for your utilities.This article discusses reasons for going off-grid: such as environmental concerns, independence, political/social values, and cost
BBOXX is a next generation utility company that provides solar power to the developing world, and aims to provide energy to 20 million people by 2020. The aim of the company is to provide energy to the more than a billion people on the planet who are without power.
Ilan Granot
Current State
Internet and electricity are connected together, with no electricity there’s no internet. And, without the ability to communicate problems of electricity-power reach to the rest of the world, using the internet, the problem will persist or degrade at a slow rate.
Communities around the world that are not connected to electricity anywhere in their vicinity are both disconnected from the reality most of humanity is experiencing, and at the same time are neglected by the world because of not raising enough awareness.
As the United Nations Development Programme notes that,” About 1.2 billion people worldwide lack access to electricity, and 2.8 billion rely on solid fuels, such as wood, charcoal and coal, which cause noxious indoor air pollution, for cooking.” (p. 128), and “Electrification in rural communities in Guatemala and South Africa has helped increase employment among marginalized groups” (p. 12), (source: UNDP report, http://hdr.undp.org/sites/default/files/2016_human_development_report.pdf)
Of course we can find direct correlation between countries that have low rate of electricity reach and low rate of internet reach to their populations, the links below demonstrate these statistics. Internet users by country, http://www.internetlivestats.com/internet-users-by-country/2014/, and the percentage of population that has electricity https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/world/world-without-power/?noredirect=on
Solution
A possible solution would be connecting the population to both electricity and the internet at the same time even if the connection will begin at the community level in place like the community center, church, etc. This will connect the local community to the world’s knowledge, while at the same time raise worldwide awareness to the situation in remote communities throughout the world by the participation of these people as additional internet users.
Kenya a developing country that is known to be a country that is struggling with many deficiencies is less known to be a leading country in terms of its use of renewable energy sources. This link discusses its use of geothermal power and shows interesting stats comparing it to an advanced country like Germany, https://www.purposeplus.com/world/insights/kenya-and-renewable-energy/
Another example would be a case study by General Electric shows how they achieved minimized costs of establishing a new power station while meeting demand using advanced technologies in providing 75,000 Egyptian households in Upper Egypt, https://www.ge.com/power/case-studies/upper-egypt-electricity-company
On the other hand, an example of a place that is currently under suffrage because of an ongoing, long civil war is Syria. Where part of that suffrage is from power failures. I found a website that provides real-time stats about the deficiencies that the Syrian population is suffering from as a result of the civil war, and also provides electricity usage stats as part of the real-time updated information. Thus, we can see that connecting between the internet and electricity consumption can raise awareness to the problem of the lack of population connectivity to electricity. https://data2.unhcr.org/en/dataviz/15
Barish Arslan
"A comprehensive study by the Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) shows that the U.S. can generate most of its electricity from renewable energy by 2050". https://www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/smart-energy-solutions/increase-renewables/renewable-energy-80-percent-us-electricity.html#.W2Nzw9VKhQI. We have the tools to power almost all of America with clean, renewable energy in just a few decades. But politics is bringing progress to a standstill. We can dream up all these great solutions, "but we need the right policies to make it happen". (ucsusa.com). We can begin also applying these solutions to the many countries that have extremely low electricity rates, such as Burundi with 7.6%, Chad with 8.8%, or South Sudan with 8.9% of their populations having access to electricity https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/EG.ELC.ACCS.ZS
Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Stanford University Mark Z. Jacobson "confidently state[s] that there is no technical or economic barrier to transitioning the entire world to 100 percent clean". His research with UC Berkeley and Aalborg University in Denmark propose "three different methods of providing consistent power among all energy sectors – transportation; heating and cooling; industry; and agriculture, forestry and fishing – in 20 world regions encompassing 139 countries". Jacobson's team disproves the common belief that sustainable energy solutions lack consistency because their sources, such as wind, solar, or geothermal, lack consistency by nature. The team's research clearly shows their ability to not be hindered by this belief. https://news.stanford.edu/2018/02/08/avoiding-blackouts-100-renewable-energy/
Some of the main problems with the energy solutions in rural Alaska are " geographic barriers, and the high cost of fuel... Some rural Alaska households spend as much as 47 percent of their income on energy, an amount five times greater than that spent by the state’s urban households" https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1249184. Alaska plans to reach 50 percent renewable energy by 2025, and that goal is supported heavily by research like this paper. It details solutions for every level of sustainable energy, from management and staff training to infrastructure and policies.
