Save the bees (and time and money) by creating a bee lawn

Flowering "bee lawns" that attract pollinators are a compromise between fastidious turf management and the more casual yard approach. They add biodiversity to the landscape and need less maintenance. That makes them cost-effective, too.

* This article was originally published here

Amazon patent application explores activating Alexa without wake word first

What is a wake word? By now, many are aware of voice assistance and can easily figure out that this is the word that activates your Alexa-enabling device. Well, now Amazon is suggesting something beyond that, to accommodate easy activation even if you don't say the word first.

* This article was originally published here

PixelGreen: A hybrid, green media wall for existing high-rise buildings

Researchers at Deakin University and the University of Hong Kong have recently designed a hybrid green architectural wall system for high-rise buildings that integrates a vertical micro-farm and a media screen. They presented this wall, called PixelGreen, in a paper published on Research Gate. PIXEL GREEN is designed for integration into the wall surfaces of existing buildings, turning them into analogue media screens.

* This article was originally published here

Electrified methane reformer produces far less carbon dioxide

A team of researchers from several institutions in Denmark, along with colleagues from Sintex and Haldor Topsoe, has developed an electrified methane reformer that produces far less CO2 than conventional steam-methane reformers. In their paper published in the journal Science, the group describes their new technology and how well it works. Kevin Van Geem, Vladimir Galvita and Guy Marin with the Laboratory for Chemical Technology and Center for Sustainable Chemistry in Ghent have published a Perspective piece on the work done by the team in the same journal issue.

* This article was originally published here