Window-O-Power

A conceptual picture of a house with the windows made of the material proposed in the study.

See windows in a whole new light! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Renewable energy – it’s the wave of the future! Solar is popular, but huge rooftop panels don’t grab everything. What about the light streaming through our windows? Could we capture and harness

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Sweat it Out!

Bulb light on

America runs on…sweat? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. A morning run – so invigorating! The feeling of sweat rolling down your back? Yuck! But can sweat be useful? Xueping Zhang and colleagues from the National University of Singapore had a “dry idea!” The team

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Big Brains

Plastic brain model

Big brain…tiny list of Facebook friends? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. We, humans, are VERY smart mammals – if we do say so ourselves! Some say it’s because we have such big brains. But at what cost to society? Manuela González-Suárez at the University

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Flier Friendly

Wind farm on a green mountain terrain

Frequent fliers? More like frequent colliders! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Here you are, a bird in flight, minding your own business. Suddenly – SQUAWK! OH NO! A WIND FARM! Fly back!!! Wind energy might help save the planet, but it’s deadly to birds.

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Skyscraper Sunscreen

Chicago's skyline

Do skyscrapers need. . . sunscreen? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. It’s a concrete jungle out there, and a HOT one! Cooling big city skyscrapers with AC burns LOADS of energy. Could we save money and the environment by slathering buildings with sunscreen? Xiangyu

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A Powerful Leg-Up

I WOULD be out there getting my steps – but I forgot to charge up my Fit-Bit! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Walking gets our blood flowing and burns calories. But can walking power MORE than just our well-being? Enter Wei-Hsin Liao from the

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RoboBee

Look! It’s a bird… it’s a plane… it’s RoboBee! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Drones help us explore areas we can’t get to on foot. But the bulkier the drone, the more difficult and dangerous to fly. So smaller IS better! But microdrones can’t

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P is for Power

Can we power our cell phones with fuel cells that are really wee? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science, saying: Yes! Meaning, not only are the cells tiny, but their power source is, shall we say, free flowing. That’s according to scientists at the University

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Fabric Man

You’ve heard of Ironman, but what about Fabric Man?! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. People can wear robotic devices known as exosuits to assist with everyday movements. For example, soldiers can wear them to carry heavy loads. People with spinal cord injuries can even

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Towering Termites

Are your next building contractors. . . TERMITES? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. These pesky bugs are a nightmare for homeowners. But – surprise! Turns out some termites are quite the little architects! African termites build towering skyscrapers out of dirt and termite spit.

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