Telescope #83

Weekly horizon scan…

"The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it." — Robert Swan

SUSTAINABILITY

• Large portions of the Amazon rainforest are threatened by the compounding effects of drought, heat and deforestation, which could push some ecosystems past a tipping point. But the potential for a wider scale collapse remains uncertain. DETAIL

• Gokce Ustunisik at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology and her colleagues isolated Geobacillus bacteria species from a compost pile in Washington state that were known to tolerate high temperatures and pressures. Bacteria may be able to accelerate the mineralisation of carbon dioxide under extreme conditions. Injecting such microbes underground along with captured CO2 could enable more durable storage of the greenhouse gas. DETAIL

• EY study reveals, 65% of energy consumers know how to start making sustainable energy choices but 70% say they will not spend more time or money doing so. DETAIL

• A landslide occurred in a large area in the gold mine area in İliç district of Erzincan.  Millions of cubic meters of soil flowed.  9 workers were trapped under the landslide and rescue efforts are ongoing, but there is no good news yet.  The Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change announced that no pollution has been detected in the region so far. DETAIL

• The value of traded global markets for carbon dioxide (CO2) permits reached a record 881 billion euros ($948.75 billion) in 2023, marking a 2% increase on the previous year, analysts at LSEG said on Monday. DETAIL

• Most large companies are gearing up their ESG data and reporting capabilities, with the vast majority planning to increase investments on sustainability-related software and workforce capabilities over the next few years, yet while most feel confident that they are ahead of the curve in these areas, nearly half report that they are still using spreadsheets to manage their ESG data, according to the results of a new survey released by professional services firm KPMG US. DETAIL

• Microsoft and carbon dioxide removal (CDR) solutions provider Neustark announced today a multi-year offtake agreement, with Neustark providing Microsoft with credits from the removal of biogenic carbon from biogas plants for storage in recycled construction materials. DETAIL

• The world could miss its climate targets due to surging demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Asia, reports the Daily Telegraph, in a article trailed on its frontpage. DETAIL

HEALTH

• The World Health Organization (WHO) recently released the latest cancer incidence data, estimating that global cancer cases may rise by 77% by 2050. Experts explain what the likely causes may be and suggest some mitigation strategies. DETAIL

• A recent preliminary study highlights a promising development in stroke recovery treatment. Researchers found that ischemic stroke patients—those experiencing strokes caused by blood clots—demonstrated improvements in cognitive function in the early recovery phase when administered intravenous injections of a ginkgo biloba extract within the first two weeks following their stroke. This discovery underscores the potential of traditional remedies in modern medical practices and sparks a dialogue on integrating such treatments into stroke recovery protocols. DETAIL

• In a memo sent to all Medicare Advantage insurers this week, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) told health insurance companies that they cannot use artificial intelligence or algorithms to determine a patient’s care or decide whether or not a procedure or individual is covered, Ars Technica reports. DETAIL

DIGITAL / TECHNOLOGY / SCIENCE /AI

• For the past couple of years, US sanctions have had the Chinese semiconductor industry locked in a stranglehold.  While Chinese companies can still manufacture chips for today's uses, they are not allowed to import certain chipmaking technologies, making it almost impossible for them to produce more advanced products.  There is a workaround, however.  A relatively new technology known as chiplets is now offering China a way to circumvent these export bans, build a degree of self-reliance, and keep pace with other countries, particularly the US. DETAIL

• A NASA telescope orbiting our planet has spotted an intriguing super-Earth — a world some 30 to 70 percent bigger than Earth. This rocky planet is in another solar system 137 light-years away, which in the vastness of space is considered relatively close (a light-year is nearly 6 trillion miles). The exoplanet, called TOI-715 b, is about 1.5 times the size of Earth. And, crucially, this world orbits inside the habitable, or "'Goldilocks," zone. DETAIL

• At the World Governments Summit in Dubai, Altman, speaking via video call, said he fears that things could go "horribly wrong" with AI — even without any ill intent involved. He suggested that these consequences, if allowed to play out, could be mundane and "subtle." DETAIL

• Cohere for AI, a nonprofit run by generative AI startup Cohere, has introduced its new AI big language model.  This open-source model, called Aya, is described as "massively multilingual" and can work in 101 different languages.  According to the information shared by Cohere, Aya's capacity is more than twice the number of languages ​​covered by existing open source models. DETAIL

• The world's coral reefs are close to 25 percent larger than we thought. By using satellite images, machine learning and on-ground knowledge from a global network of people living and working on coral reefs, we found an extra 64,000 square kilometers (24,700 square miles) of coral reefs – an area the size of Ireland. DETAIL

ENERGY / TRANSPORTATION

• A number of major Chinese battery and car manufacturers are joining forces to drive forward the commercialisation of solid-state batteries. The initiator of the alliance is the Chinese government. DETAIL

• Shell said it expects global demand for liquefied natural gas to grow beyond 2040, driven by industrial demand in China and economic development in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The British oil-and-gas major said Wednesday it estimates the global demand for the gas to rise by more than 50% by 2040 as the Chinese industrial sector pivots from coal to gas, and South Asian and Southeast Asian countries use more LNG to support their economic growth. DETAIL

• The US battery cell developer announced a new electrolyte called Eternalyte, specially developed for lithium metal batteries. The liquid electrolyte is supposed to significantly improve cycle stability and charging capacity. DETAIL

• US company Joby Aviation has signed a definite agreement with Dubai’s Road and Transport Authority (RTA) to launch a flying taxi service in early 2026. The deal gives Joby the exclusive rights to operate air taxis in Dubai for six years. DETAIL

• The French government on Tuesday cut by 20% a subsidy higher-income car buyers can get for purchasing electric and hybrid vehicles in order to keep from overrunning its budget to boost the number of electric cars on the road. DETAIL

CYBERSECURITY

• Huge U.S. employers such as Walmart, Delta Air Lines, T-Mobile, Chevron and Starbucks, as well as European brands including Nestle and AstraZeneca, have turned to a seven-year-old startup, Aware, to monitor chatter among their rank and file, according to the company. DETAIL

• In a disturbing example of how location data can be abused, a data broker company allegedly tracked user visits to 600 reproductive clinics across the US, and later gave the information to an anti-abortion campaign. The findings come from Senator Ron Wyden (D-Oregon), who’s been investigating the activities of Near Intelligence, a company that trafficked in “market intelligence” for paying clients. DETAIL

HUMAN

• Dries van Agt, who was the Prime Minister of the Netherlands between 1977 and 1982, ended his life with his wife through euthanasia "hand in hand".  Both were 93 years old. DETAIL

• According to Bloomberg's research, as consumption of traditional publications decreases, the public has come to rely on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube to get news.  Especially the younger generation prefers to listen to their peers and influencers. DETAIL