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Science

Submission + - "Artificial Leaf" Produces Electricity (wired.co.uk)

NervousWreck writes: Daniel Nocera of MIT has developed a new kind of solar cell. [wired.com] The cell, approximately the size of a playing card, sits in a pool of water and breaks the water down into Hydrogen and Oxygen which it stores in fuel cells. Nocera has already signed a contract with the Tata group to manufacture the "leaf."

Comment Re:Interesting. (Score 1) 409

The saying is great advice. The problem is that people think it applies to improvements. In terms of cost vs. benefit there is no reason to go through the hassle of fixing/replacing something if what you fixed is will give you the same crappy benefits for the same obscene cost as before you started. Actually improving something whether in terms of efficiency or features is another story.

Submission + - Mobile Data in Canada for a US Citizen?

macwhizkid writes: I'm traveling to Canada for a week in July with youth group, and need a way to post blog updates on the trip and send back photos. I'll be staying on an island accessible only by boat, so a hard-wired connection is out of the question. I have a Verizon voice + data plan, and I've heard all the horror stories of multi-thousand dollar international data roaming charges. What I'd like to do is get 1-2 GB of data (5 GB would be great) to use on a Canadian provider's network for a reasonable fee (say, less than $100 total) as a wireless hotspot set-up. I have both a CDMA iPhone and a GSM iPad, so I really just need a micro-SIM or a way to register the IMIE. It appears that both Rogers and Bell offer "pay as you go" data plans (Rogers has a particularly attractive iPad option), but there are conflicting reports as to whether a US credit card can be used to buy service. I can't believe I'm the first US citizen to want mobile data in Canada. So, has anyone done this successfully? Is there another option I'm not considering?
Power

Submission + - There Oughta Be a Standard: Laptop Power Supplies (hp.com)

Esther Schindler writes: "Every mobile device you own has its own power supply and its own proprietary plug. There oughta be a better way, says Alfred Poor. Fortunately, he reports, the IEEE is coming to the rescue. "Their Universal Power Adapter for Mobile Devices (UPAMD) Working Group is developing a new standard that will not just address the needs of laptops and tablets, but will be intended to work with just about any electronics device that required between 10 and 240 watts of power," Poor writes. It's about darned time."

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