For everything from family to computers…
One day it might be just another one of the hundreds of features that come standard in a smartphone. But for now, a new Kickstarter campaign promises to turn your mobile device into a speed-measuring radar gun using a simple Bluetooth accessory.
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A team of researchers from Stanford University have devised an ingenious means of boosting the efficiency of solar panels by exploiting a fundamental physics phenomenon. Solar panels lose efficiency as they heat up. Just as the top of your head radiates excess body heat as infrared light, the researchers have developed a translucent overlay comprised of patterned silica that does the same for solar panels. The overlay separates the visible spectrum of light (which generates electricity) from its thermal radiation (aka heat), effectively "cooling" the incoming light, radiating the heat away from the panel while allowing more photons to be converted into electricity. The team, led by Stanford professor Shanhui Fan, recently published their findings in the journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
"Solar arrays must face the sun to function, even though that heat is detrimental to efficiency," Fan said in a statement. "Our thermal overlay allows sunlight to pass through, preserving or even enhancing sunlight absorption, but it also cools the cell by radiating the heat out and improving the cell efficiency." According to the team’s tests, the overlay cooled the panels surface by as much as 22 degrees F and boosted energy production by 1 percent (a sizable efficiency jump in the world of solar energy production).
[Image Credit: Getty]
Source: Stanford University
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Generals see laser pods, software-configurable bombs, and “operational cyber†in near future.
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Former Peanut Corporation of America CEO Stewart Parnell’s sentence is by far the harshest U.S. authorities have handed down in such cases. Emails revealed he and others knowingly sold tainted food.
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The software that the EPA says causes Volkswagen cars to cheat official emissions tests exists in only one type of diesel engine, the carmaker says — and it has sold 11 million of them.
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Biker Pat Doody found a kitten in need of help while he was on a cross country trip from California to New Jersey. The poor kitten, nicknamed "Party Cat", was badly burned when he found her. With some care and a trip to the vet, she’s almost fully recovered.
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Buydig via eBay offers the Sony 55" 4K Ultra HD LCD LED Smart Television, model no. XBR-55X800B, for an in-cart price of $899.99 with free shipping. That’s $100 under our August mention (which also included a $100 gift card) and the lowest total upfront price we’ve seen. (It’s a current low by $95.) It features a 3840×2160 native resolution, 120Hz refresh rate, edge-lit LED backlighting, WiFi content streaming (Netflix, Youtube, Hulu Plus, more), USB, and four HDMI inputs.
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