looked like If the world had plummeted from one crisis to another this year. Just as most countries were freed from the shackles of the pandemic, the horrors of war returned to Europe, with millions of people around the world affected by extreme weather, the double pain of energy shortages and inflation. visited. But it wasn’t all bad, thanks to the efforts of scientists and many companies and policy makers. Here’s a rundown of the best news coming in 2022.
Renewables in the US produce more electricity than coal and nuclear
Today, more than one-fifth of all US electricity comes from hydro, wind, and solar. This means that renewables have narrowly overtook coal and nuclear, which account for 20% and 19% respectively of the energy mix. This was only for him in 2020, when overall power generation was down due to the pandemic.but read more Scientific American.
Hydrogenation of the entire first unit
Germany has launched the world’s first hydrogen-powered train. Fourteen locomotives have replaced diesel locomotives on commuter lines near the city of Hamburg, where electrification costs are too high. The hydrogen train is equipped with a fuel cell that generates electricity by combining hydrogen and oxygen, and emits nothing but water vapor. Find out more at Deutsche Welle.
Laboratory-grown meat deemed safe to eat
We may soon be able to serve meat in American restaurants without slaughtering animals. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has determined that the California company’s farmed chicken is safe for consumption, bringing it one step closer to commercialization. It will be offered for tasting at a few top restaurants. Learn more at WIRED.
Scientists have found a way to reduce shark bycatch
A battery-powered device called SharkGuard releases a short electrical pulse every two seconds to prevent sharks and rays from accidentally catching commercial fishing nets and lines. These pulses temporarily overstimulate a marine animal’s electrosensory organ called the lorenzini ampulla. When this happens they choose to swim away unharmed.but read more Guardian.
Countries agree to fund climate and biodiversity
There is now also a financial package for biodiversity, following the historic decision at COP27 in November to financially compensate the countries most affected by the climate crisis. At the United Nations Biodiversity Conference in Montreal in December, countries agreed to allocate $200 billion annually by 2030 to biodiversity conservation. Of this, $30 billion needs to come from the countries of the Global North for conservation efforts in developing countries. For more information, see our Carbon Brief.
Beavers were legally protected in England
The beaver is now a protected species in the UK, 400 years after it was driven to extinction for its fur, meat and glands. Since October, it is illegal to deliberately catch, injure, kill or otherwise disturb the charismatic rodents that dams create marshes.Why the law change?With hundreds of reintroduced beavers living in the UK today, the government now officially recognizes beavers as native wildlife.Read more at Guardian.
Wild mammals return to Europe
Populations of iconic animals such as endangered gray wolves, brown bears, bison and of course beavers are thriving again in Europe thanks to human interventions such as legal protection, land use change and rewilding. Initially, beaver colonies in England re-emerged through illegal releases or escapes from private collections, but more recently the British government has allowed releases in enclosures. . Find out more on the BBC.
A rare pigeon caught on camera
For the first time in 140 years, researchers have sighted and scientifically documented a rare bird, the black-necked turtle dove. The large terrestrial species was only found deep in the forests of Papua New Guinea and was thought to be scientifically lost and possibly extinct. See CNN for more information.
NASA has taken a closer look at a distant galaxy
After decades of planning and a million-mile journey from Earth, the largest space telescope in history, the James Webb Telescope, reached its destination in orbit around the Sun in January. Since then, the $10 billion observatory has captured compelling images of extrasolar planets, star-forming nebulae, and distant galaxies.but read more chemistry.
DART proves it can protect Earth from asteroids
While no asteroids or comets will hit Earth right now, it’s best to be prepared for the worst. In September, NASA and its partners deliberately pushed the DART spacecraft into a small asteroid at 14,000 miles per hour to see if the impact could deflect its orbit. Hooray. But let’s hope we don’t have to actually do this. Learn more at WIRED.
Mankind is one step closer to returning to the moon
On December 11th, after 25 days of flight past the Moon, the Orion spacecraft crashed into the Pacific Ocean. The unmanned test flight is part of NASA’s Artemis program, which will send the first woman and people of color to the moon as early as 2025. Other test flights taking place this year.but read more Scientific American.
Alzheimer’s disease now partially treatable
In a clinical trial involving approximately 1,800 people with early Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia, an antibody drug slowed the rate of cognitive decline by 27% in patients treated for 18 months. This follows decades of frustrations against other drugs designed to slow or stop Alzheimer’s disease. Not without, 7% of those who received it had to discontinue due to side effects. See NPR for details.
Doctors performed the first heart transplant from a pig to a human
In January, David Bennett became the first person to successfully receive a pig heart transplant, but the 57-year-old Maryland handyman died two months later. But even weeks are a long time for so-called xenotransplantation, and researchers are keen on more human trials. For more information, see Discover.
Spinal implants helped paralyzed people walk again
Some people with severe spinal cord injuries have been able to take their first steps within hours of having a neurostimulator implanted in their spine by a neurosurgeon. , one patient was able to ride a bike and swim by controlling the device using a touchscreen tablet. See CNN for details.
Hair follicles grew for the first time in the lab
A Japanese research team has succeeded in creating hair follicles by modifying mouse embryonic skin cells. Follicles grew for up to 1 month and reached up to 3 mm in length. Their technology could be a treatment for hair loss or an alternative to animal testing. Researchers are now working to repeat the experiment using human cells.but read more new scientist.
Abortion rights are advancing outside the United States
While Americans lost their constitutional right to abortion, other countries aggressively changed their laws. In February, Colombia became the eighth country in Latin America and the Caribbean to decriminalize early pregnancy abortion.Finland and Malta are also in the process of easing the toughest abortion laws in the European Union.For more information Times of Malta.
More and more countries are banning conversion therapy
Legislation banning practices designed to forcibly change sexual orientation or gender identity, known as conversion therapy, is gaining momentum around the world. France and New Zealand banned these harmful practices earlier in the year, and in October, Mexico’s Senate passed a bill criminalizing the practice of conversion therapy (this bill is currently awaiting approval by the House of Representatives). .For more information gay times.
AI tools have changed the way we create
Many AI tools have broken new ground in supporting human creativity. The DALL-E 2 can transform text input into vivid images, while language models like ChatGPT can answer complex questions and write relatively coherent essays and computer code. But ChatGPT is far from perfect. Inaccurate answers are often returned. Additionally, you can only generate answers using your feed and trained data, which runs until 2021. Therefore, the system cannot search the Internet for new information because its knowledge base is already outdated. See the slate for details.
Patagonia founder donates billions to save the environment
In September, 83-year-old Yvon Chouinard, the founder of American clothing brand Patagonia, announced that it had sold ownership of the $3 billion company to a series of trusts and nonprofits. All of the company’s profits in dollars will be used to help fight climate change.but read more new york times.
Shorter workweeks finally take root
In June, 70 UK companies launched their largest ever four-day workweek trial, with some 3,300 employees cutting hours without cutting salaries. Six months later, the company had better employee satisfaction and productivity remained the same or improved. A total of 100 UK companies have now agreed to make the four-day week permanent.but read more Guardian.
Young adults in Europe received cultural gifts on their birthdays
To revive a creative industry that has suffered years of funding cuts and a pandemic, Germany will give 18-year-olds in November (an estimated 750,000 by 2023) the equivalent of €200 ($213). Announced that they will provide vouchers. Spend on a visit to the theater, a museum, or a movie. Spain offers her 400 euros, but young people in France and Italy benefit from such a culture her pass from 2021 and 2016 respectively.but read more time.
Popularity of women’s sports soars
For too long, women’s sports didn’t get as much attention as men’s, but in 2022, they’re gaining ground. A world record 91,000 spectators watched her Madrid match between Barcelona and Real in the UEFA Women’s Champions League in March. We’re also seeing more viewership, money, and prize money across different sports in the United States. But there is still a long way to go before women’s and men’s sports are on par. See Forbes for details.
