Design Science Today
Hydrogen could be a clean, abundant energy source, but it's difficult to store in bulk. In new research, materials scientists at Rice University have made the surprising discovery that tiny carbon capsules called buckyballs are so strong they can hold volumes of hydrogen nearly as dense as those at the center of Jupiter.
The research appears on the March 2008 cover of the American Chemical Society's journal Nano Letters.
"Based on our calculations, it appears that some buckyballs are capable of holding volumes of hydrogen so dense as to be almost metallic," said lead researcher Boris Yakobson, professor of mechanical engineering and materials science at Rice. "It appears they can hold about 8 percent of their weight in hydrogen at room temperature, which is considerably better than the federal target of 6 percent."
The Department of Energy has devoted more than $1 billion to developing technologies for hydrogen-powered automobiles, including technologies to cost-effectively store hydrogen for use in cars. Hydrogen is the lightest element in the universe, and it is very difficult to store in bulk. For hydrogen cars to be competitive with gasoline-powered cars, they need a comparable range and a reasonably compact fuel system. It's estimated that a hydrogen-powered car with a suitable range will require a storage system with densities greater than those found in pure, liquid hydrogen.
Image courtesy of NASA, 2002.
A tribute by Dr. Michael Ben-Eli
September 15, 2007 - If anyone deserves to be remembered as a Master Design Scientist it would surely be Paul MacCready, who passed on August 28, 2007.
Paul spent his career pioneering extreme transportation solutions and the company he founded in 1971, AeroVironment, is a hotbed of breakthrough innovations in unmanned aerial vehicles, electric vehicles and non-polluting, alternative energy systems. In his work, Paul epitomized Bucky’s concept of doing more with less. He made aviation history in 1979, with Gossamer Condor, the first ever craft to sustain a controlled, human-powered flight. The feather light Condor, weighting only 70 pounds with a wing span of 90 feet, challenged conventional thinking about vehicle efficiency demonstrating an effective application of radical “performance per pound.” It was followed by the Gossamer Albatross and the first human-powered flight across the English Channel. Then came the sun-powered Solar Challenger, flying from Paris to an airfield in the UK, and later the remote-controlled, solar-powered Path Finder, which reached fifty thousand feet into the stratosphere.
By Eric Malnic, Special to The Times
August 30, 2007
Paul B. MacCready, the Caltech-trained scientist and inventor who created the Gossamer Condor -- the first successful human-powered airplane -- as well as other innovative aircraft, has died. He was 81.
MacCready died in his sleep at his Pasadena home Tuesday, according to an announcement from AeroVironment Inc., the Monrovia-based company he founded. The statement said he had been recently diagnosed with a serious ailment but the cause of death was not listed.
An accomplished meteorologist, a world-class glider pilot and a respected aeronautical engineer, MacCready headed the team that designed and built the Gossamer Condor and the Gossamer Albatross -- two flimsy, awkward-looking planes powered by a furiously pedaling bicycle racer -- that won him international fame and $300,000 in prize money.
He also built and flew a radio-controlled replica of a prehistoric pterodactyl, the largest creature that ever took to the air.
His successes in these and other imaginative projects led to more than 30 prestigious awards, including the Collier Trophy for achievement in aeronautics and astronautics, and five honorary degrees.
Continue reading at latimes.com
PlaNetwork connects a network of people and projects using information technology and the Internet to create a truly democratic, socially just and ecologically sane future.
Rocky Mountain Institute is an entrepreneurial nonprofit organization that fosters the efficient and restorative use of resources to make the world secure, just, prosperous, and life-sustaining. We do this by inspiring business, civil society, and government to design integrative solutions that create true wealth.
» Click here to visit RMI.org
Click on image above to view the slide-show
In Summer 1992, we sent a questionnaire to a number of close colleagues and associates of Buckminster Fuller: This questionnaire on Comprehensive Anticipatory Design Science (CADS) asked the following questions:
1) How would you define CADS?
2) What is its relevance to today's world?
And 3) What would you consider to be the highest priorities for advancing the concerns of Design Science in the 1990's and beyond?
We received an excellent response covering a wide range of views.
While there are many books on science and many on design, there hasn't been a lot written about "Design Science." We have pulled a few published references, some by close associates of Fuller, which have addressed the concepts central to Fuller's work.
In 1981, Dr. John and Nancy Jack Todd, as a continuation of their work with New Alchemy Institute, founded Ocean Arks International (OAI). OAI is on a mission to foster the revival of international water quality and create an ecological design science and practice that is adaptable to any geographic, social or economic condition in the world. They are convinced that this mission can be accomplished from within the current economic paradigm and result in a reduction of humankind's negative footprint on the earth by ninety percent.
Permaculture principles / see below for larger version
Imagine living in a place that is blended into the natural environment. Your home is not only naturally heated and cooled, but is elegant and affordable. Integrated into the surrounding landscape are natural water systems where food is being grown safe from harmful chemicals, and waste is managed for productivity. A place where the neighbors, young and old, routinely help one another. There is less traffic, less pollution and more open spaces. Leisure time becomes abundant and recreational opportunities are close at hand. Also imagine that as a result of its design, this place saves you money, and most importantly, it saves the Earth its precious resources.
Locate an independent bookseller in your area
Selected Titles in Association with Amazon.com
When you make your purchase through Amazon.com they contribute a percentage of your purchase price to us. We also encourage you to purchase from your neighborhood bookstore!
For a full listing of all the books we carry in-house plus videos, audio tapes, modeling toys and maps, visit our online store.
|
