Our modern world is influenced greatly by algorithms. As computing power allowed incredibly complex calculation we have taken advantage of that and used algorithms to find solutions to our desires. Great things are done but we also find ourselves getting into trouble occasionally as we develop these algorithm.
Related: Algorithmic Self-Assembly – Computer Science Revolution – Google’s Answer to Filling Jobs Is an Algorithm – What are Genetic Algorithms? – Google Prediction API
World’s oceans in ‘shocking’ decline
Levels of CO2 being absorbed by the oceans are already far greater than during the great extinction of marine species 55 million years ago (during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum), it concludes.
The overfishing of our oceans has been a problem for over 100 years and a known problem, that we continue to give too little attention to. Adding to that impacts of climate change and the state of ocean life is in trouble. The decision of our population to not deal with the causes of climate change will have very bad consequences. It is a shame we have so little caring about the consequences of our decisions. And even sadder that our “leaders” do such an appalling job of leading – instead they pander to selfish immediate gratification.
Related: Altered Oceans: the Crisis at Sea (2006) – Unless We Take Decisive Action, Climate Change Will Ravage Our Planet – Arctic System on Trajectory to New, Seasonally Ice-Free State (2005)
As usual most of the highest paying undergraduate college degrees in the USA are engineering. Based on data from payscale, all of the top 10 highest paying fields are in engineering. The highest non-engineering fields are applied mathematics and computer science. Petroleum Engineering salaries have exploded over the last few years to $93,000 for a starting median salary, more than $30,000 above the next highest paying degree.
Mid-career median salaries follow the same tendency for engineering degrees, though in this case, 3 of the top 10 salaries (15 years into a career) are for those with non-engineering degrees: applied mathematics, physics and economics.
| Highest Paid Undergrad College Degrees | |||
| Degree | Starting Median Salary | Mid-Career Median Salary | 2009 starting salary |
| Petroleum Engineering | $93,000 | $157,000 | |
| Chemical Engineering | $64,800 | $108,000 | $65,700 |
| Nuclear Engineering | $63,900 | $104,000 | |
| Computer Engineering | $61,200 | $99,500 | $61,700 |
| Electrical Engineering | $60,800 | $104,000 | $60,200 |
| Aerospace Engineering | $59,400 | $108,000 | $59,600 |
| Material Science and Engineering | $59,400 | $93,600 | |
| Industrial Engineering | $58,200 | $97,400 | $57,100 |
| Mechanical Engineering | $58,300 | $97,400 | $58,900 |
| Software Engineering | $56,700 | $91,300 | |
| Applied Mathematics | $56,400 | $101,000 | |
| Computer Science | $56,200 | $97,700 | $56,400 |
Related: PayScale Survey Shows Engineering Degree Results in the Highest Pay (2009) – Engineering Majors Hold 8 of Top 10 Highest Paid Majors (2010) – Engineering Graduates Get Top Salary Offers in 2006 – Shortage of Petroleum Engineers (2006) – 10 Jobs That Provide a Great Return on Investment
More degrees are shown in the following table, but this table doesn’t include all the degree; it just shows a sample of the rest of the degrees.
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Hang Rosling provides great presentations exploring economics and human well being. I agree with his point that we should be thankful for economic and engineering progress that has freed us from menial tasks and allowed us to spend our time in higher value ways.
We need to remember (as he shows) there are many in the world that still do not enjoy these advances. For example, a majority of the world must hand wash their clothes. Engineers should continue to focus on the mass of humanity that needs fairly simple solutions.
He is also right that we need to find solutions to the extremely heavy use of fossil fuels by the rich countries. If the rich countries don’t reduce the pollution there will be great problems. And if the costs of clean energy are not decreased (which they should do) fast enough (which is the question), those that start to be able to afford the rich lifestyle, will add to the dangers we face economically and environmentally of continuing the unsustainable energy footprint the rich countries have been making.
Related: Washing Machine Uses 90% Less Water – Clean Clothes Without Soap – Hans Rosling on Global Population Growth – Automatic Dog Washing Machine
Norbert Müller’s group has received $2.5 million from the U.S. Department of Energy Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) in 2010 to build and develop the wave disk engine, which uses turbo combustion “shock wave” technology to convert either liquid fuel or compressed natural gas or hydrogen into electrical power. With this engine, fuel efficiency for hybrid vehicles could increase 5 times compared to internal combustion engine vehicles on the road today (and 3.5 times less than current hybrid cars), while reducing costs by 30%. The goal of Müller’s team is to produce an engine that would give hybrid vehicles a 500-mile driving range and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by as much as 90%.
In the video he says they hope to have the engines in production vehicles within 3 years. My guess is he is being quite optimistic, but we will see. The new engine would allow 1,000 pounds to be removed from the weight of cars (by removing the need for drive train, radiator…).
Related: $10 Million X Prize for 100 MPG Car – Economic Benefits Brought by Investing in Engineering – 59 MPG Toyota iQ Diesel Available in Europe (2008) – MIT Hosts Student Vehicle Design Summit (2006)
According to Neil deGrasse Tyson the reasons people/societies take on huge expenditures (Great Wall of China, Manhattan project, Apollo space missions, Spanish ocean exploration, TVA, Egyptian pyramids, Cathedrals):
“The urge to discover is not there, I wish it were it is just not.” Many countries have figured out the economic benefits of large investments of science and engineering: China, Singapore, Korea… Europe and the USA are limiting such investments while continuing less useful spending. I think the results will be very obvious 20 years from now. It isn’t that the USA and Europe are not making such investments, they are, but at a much lower rate than probably is wise economically.
Related: Neil Degrasse Tyson: Scientifically Literate See a Different World – Vaccines Can’t Provide Miraculous Results if We Don’t Take Them – Nanotechnology Investment as Strategic National Economic Policy – Economic Strength Through Technology Leadership
California has approved a molten salt solar reactor project. The plan is for a 150-megawatt solar power tower project. From the press release: the “Solar Energy Project has the ability to collect and store enough thermal energy each morning to operate at full power all afternoon and for up to 8 hours after sunset. The game-changing technology featuring inherent energy storage affords utilities with a generator that performs with the reliability and dispatchability of a conventional power generator without harmful emissions that are associated with burning coal, natural gas and oil.”
molten salt solar system diagram
The heliostats focus concentrated sunlight on a receiver which sits on top of the tower. Within the receiver, the concentrated sunlight heats molten salt to over 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. The heated molten salt then flows into a thermal storage tank where it is stored, maintaining 98% thermal efficiency, and eventually pumped to a steam generator. The steam drives a standard turbine to generate electricity. This process, also known as the “Rankine cycle” is similar to a standard coal-fired power plant, except it is fueled by clean and free solar energy.
This is another green energy project that has a great deal of potential. There is a great need for such new energy sources and hopefully quite a few of these projects will let us enjoy a greener and more sustainable way to meet our future energy needs.
For those interested in the business aspects of this energy project: United Technologies provided SolarReserve with an exclusive worldwide license to develop projects using the proprietary molten salt power tower technology, which has been in development for nearly three decades.
Related: Solar Thermal in Desert, to Beat Coal by 2020 – Wind Power Capacity Up 170% Worldwide from 2005-2009 – Cost Efficient Solar Dish by Students – Solar Tower Power Generation
Nearly 1 million children in the United States are potentially misdiagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder simply because they are the youngest – and most immature – in their kindergarten class, according to new research by , Todd Elder, a Michigan State University economist.
These children are significantly more likely than their older classmates to be prescribed behavior-modifying stimulants such as Ritalin, said Todd Elder, whose study will appear in a forthcoming issue of the Journal of Health Economics (closed science, unfortunately). Michigan State should stop funding closed journals with free content – other schools have decided to put science first, before supporting a few outdated business models of select journals.
Such inappropriate treatment is particularly worrisome because of the unknown impacts of long-term stimulant use on children’s health, Elder said. It also wastes an estimated $320 million-$500 million a year on unnecessary medication – some $80 million-$90 million of it paid by Medicaid, he said.
ADHD is the most commonly diagnosed behavioral disorder for kids in the United States, with at least 4.5 million diagnoses among children under age 18, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The youngest kindergartners were 60 percent more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD than the oldest children in the same grade. Similarly, when that group of classmates reached the fifth and eighth grades, the youngest were more than twice as likely to be prescribed stimulants.
Overall, the study found that about 20 percent – or 900,000 – of the 4.5 million children currently identified as having ADHD likely have been misdiagnosed.
Related: Lifestyle Drugs and Risk – Long Term ADHD Drug Benefits Questioned – Merck and Elsevier Publish Phony Peer-Review Journal
Portugal Gives Itself a Clean-Energy Makeover
Chart showing global installed wind energy capacity by Curious Cat Science and Engineering Blog, Creative Commons Attribution. Data from World Wind Energy Association, for installed Megawatts of global wind power capacity._________________________
Globally 38,025 MW of capacity were added in 2009, bringing the total to 159,213 MW, a 31% increase. The graph shows the top 10 producers (with the exceptions of Denmark and Portugal) and includes Japan (which is 13th).
Wind power is now generating 2% of global electricity demand, according to the World Wind Energy Association. The countries with the highest shares of wind energy generated electricity: Denmark 20%, Portugal 15%, Spain 14%, Germany 9%. Wind power employed 550,000 people in 2009 and is expected to employ 1,000,000 by 2012.
From 2005 to 2009 the global installed wind power capacity increased 170% from 59,033 megawatts to 159,213 megawatts. The percent of global capacity of the 9 countries in the graph has stayed remarkably consistent: from 81% in 2005 growing slowly to 83% in 2009.
Over the 4 year period the capacity in the USA increased 284% and in China increased 1,954%. China grew 113% in 2009, the 4th year in a row it more than doubled capacity. In 2007, Europe had for 61% of installed capacity and the USA 18%. At the end of 2009 Europe had 48% of installed capacity, Asia 25% and North America 24%.
Related: Wind Power Provided Over 1% of Global Electricity in 2007 – USA Wind Power Installed Capacity 1981 to 2005 – Wind Power has the Potential to Produce 20% of Electricity by 2030
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Fixers Collective
Posted on November 9, 2010 Comments (2)
Very cool. I like everything about this idea. I like the reuse (very environmentally friendly). I like the humanity and psychology of connecting with others. I like the tinkering/learning/fixing attitude and behavior. I like the very well done use of the internet to help fund such efforts. I like the exploration of the products and object we use. I like the rejection of a disposable attitude (just throw it away). I like the appropriate technology attitude. I made a donation, you can too (see what projects I am funding).
Related: Fund Teacher’s Science Projects – Science Toys You Can Make With Your Kids – charity related posts
Categories: Funding, Students
Tags: appropriate technology, charity, commentary, cool, Economics, engineers, Funding, green, New York City, Products, psychology, Students