Lighting the way for safe childbirth The "solar suitcases" designed by We Care Solar are saving lives around the worldMany mothers, babies are dying because their health facilities lack reliable electricityOne of the solar kits also helped during a recent cholera outbreak in the Congo (CNN) -- Solar energy in a suitcase is an invention saving lives around the world in places that lack reliable electricity. Dr. Since 2009, their nonprofit, We Care Solar, has given out nearly 250 free kits to medical facilities in Africa, Asia and South America. "A lot of the clinics don't have any electricity," Stachel said. The "solar suitcase" was designed to help during childbirth, but one recently came in handy when there was a cholera outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. On his first day with the kit, a doctor from the Congo delivered a woman with twins. CNN Hero: Dr. "Every man, woman and child who came to his clinic over the next 30 days were treated day and night," Stachel said. Want to get involved?
California Academy of Sciences: Patrick Blanc: The Vertical Garden Info The Academy presents a talk by Patrick Blanc, world-renowned botanist and inventor of the vertical garden, and creator of Drew School's 'living wall' -- the largest such installation in the U.S. The talk will focus on describing his design approach and philosophy behind his incredible creations -- vertical gardens that now number over 200 throughout the world. © California Academy of Sciences. Connexions - Sharing Knowledge and Building Communities Solar magnetism twists braids of superheated gas A rocket-borne camera has provided some of the sharpest images yet of the Sun's corona, the hot layer of gas that extends more than a million kilometres above the solar surface. The corona is millions of degrees hotter than the layer of gas beneath it, but nobody knows precisely why. "It's counter-intuitive for us here on Earth because as you go up in altitude, the temperature decreases," says Jonathan Cirtain, an astrophysicist at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Nature podcast Geoff Brumfiel hears from researcher Jonathan Cirtain why the Sun’s atmosphere is hotter than its surface. For decades, researchers have suspected that powerful magnetic fields are heating the corona. A closer look The problem is that nobody has been able to see the magnetic fields in close-up until now. A team member started analysing the data on the drive back from the missile range, and immediately saw evidence of braids in the twists of coronal gas.
Gardening Australia - Fact Sheet: A Blanc Canvas Presenter: John Patrick, 23/08/2014 SERIES 25 Episode 23 John continues his series of profiles of leading landscape designers France's Patrick Blanc is the world's foremost designer of vertical gardens. Over the last 30 years he has created more than 250 - and John is visiting the latest. He's meeting up with Patrick at a twin-tower complex at the edge of Sydney's CBD which incorporates decorative panels of ornamental plants both inside and out. Blanc tells John why he's pioneered this type of planting. "For this project, with (French architect) Jean Nouvel, we tried to make a building covered by plants. John is amazed by the number of plants on the vertical frames. "I wanted mostly native species, but to have some of the colours and fragrances it was my job to mix in exotics," says Patrick. John asks Blanc about the construction. The entire system is hydroponic and uses treated grey- and black-water from the tower blocks. John asks Blanc how he ensures some of the plants don't take over.
Khan Academy Ocean Energy Teams Compete for $16 Million Saltire Prize in Scotland People have long dreamed of harnessing the tremendous power of the ocean's waves and tides. Off the jagged and wild coast of Scotland, a competition is now under way to demonstrate a practical means of capturing that vast renewable energy for electricity. Four United Kingdom companies are vying for the Saltire Prize, a £10 million (about $16 million) award offered by the government of Scotland, which boasts that 25 percent of Europe's tidal energy potential is surging off its shores. Learn more about the Saltire Prize in the video story below: The Saltire Prize was announced in 2008, building on the success of the $10 million Ansari X-Prize for commercial space flight. (Related: "Pictures: Immense, Elusive Energy in the Forces of Nature") In this new phase, four companies will deploy test devices in the roiling seas off northern Scotland. (Related: "Photos: Preserving Beauty, Providing Hydropower in Scotland") Scotland Leads in Ocean Energy Sean O'Neill, president of the U.S.
Restoring Beauty | video | @GrrlScientist | Science Beauty the bald eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, after her prosthetic beak had been fixed into place.Image: screenshot. One morning in 2005, an adult female bald eagle was spotted whilst scrounging for food at a landfill in Alaska. Emaciated, she was starving to death in the midst of a bounty of food. A poacher had shot her in the face, shattering the upper mandible of her beak, leaving her with a useless stump. The damage left Beauty with just a small portion of her left upper beak and destroyed almost all of the right side. Trying to eat using this mangled beak was like "eating with one chopstick" according to raptor specialist Jane Fink Cantwell. The eagle was relocated to Birds of Prey Northwest, a nonprofit organisation located near Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. The unanimous expert opinion was the bird should be euthanized. One afternoon, as Ms Cantwell spoke of Beauty's situation during an educational presentation she was giving, they got lucky. Here's the video report: [video link]
Licked by a Wolf Dressed to live - Wildlife Styles (full documentary)