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The supremacy of silicon might be at risk. For a considerable length of time, researchers and entrepreneurs trusted that carbon nanotubes would upset microchip outline. These minor, molecular-level structures could, in theory, be used to make chips that are six to ten times faster than today's silicon-based things and use less electricity.<br />
<br /> <keyword id="10875" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="IBM">IBM</keyword> researchers have at long last opened the key to making microchips using carbon nanotubes. The advancement could lead us to the absolute most powerful microchips ever made preparing for injectable microchips and powerful computers.<br />
<br /> <keyword id="3368459" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="IBM-Research">IBM Research</keyword> materials scientist <keyword id="3860737" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="george-tulevsk">George Tulevsk</keyword> and his group have worked out how to "urge" the nanotubes into particular structures using similar chemistry used to grow a crystal.<br />
<br />
The chips, which could be utilized to significantly enhance phone and laptop performance, would be the most powerful we've ever observed, and use considerably less electricity than current innovation permits.<br />
<br />
Scientists have already conjectured that nanotube chips can possibly make computers 1,000 times quick than cutting edge version<br />
<br />
Nanotechnology, a sweetheart of 1980s science fiction and has been making a big deal of rebound lately. Tulevski's breakthrough takes place after a year ago when a group built up another approach to pack more carbon nanotube transistors into a smaller space.<br />
<br />
He said, “We’re trying to tackle that problem by borrowing from nature, because nature builds everything that way. We think that’s one of the key missing pieces.”

IBM is growing microchips that could make computers 1,000
times faster

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/harrisonxjacobs/">Harrison Jacobs/Business Insider</a></span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul><li><strong>Hong Kong has one of the worst housing crises in the world, and has been ranked the least affordable city for housing for the last eight years.</strong></li><li><strong>Hong Kong architect James Law has designed a low-cost solution to the problem: stackable, retro-fitted water pipe "tube homes" called "O-Pods" that could be rented cheaply to young people.</strong></li><li><strong>Law sees the design as an "open-source" solution for housing crises around the world.</strong></li><li><strong>The first O-Pod development is being built in Shenzhen, China and due to open in July.</strong></li></ul><p>Hong Kong has one of the worst housing crises in the world, with property prices so high that a <span>single parking spot </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/15/world/asia/hong-kong-parking-spot-record-real-estate.html">sold for $664,000 last year</a> and all but the wealthiest are stuck renting tiny apartments <span>with an ever-proliferating range of colorful names: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/crazy-pictures-of-micro-apartments-around-hong-kong-2018-1">micro-flats, nano apartments, coffin apartments, and cage homes</a>.</span></p><p><span>It's gotten so bad that the city <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-most-expensive-cities-to-live-in-around-the-world-in-2018-2018-1">has been ranked the least affordable city</a> for housing in the world for eight years running, according to the Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey.</span></p><p><span>"We are facing a tangible affordability problem in our cities," architect James Law told Business Insider. "It is almost beyond the reach of most people to afford to live in a proper home in Hong Kong</span></p><p>Law thinks he may have a solution: a retro-fitted concrete water pipe. </p><p>The idea came to him last August when he was overseeing a construction site. He noticed some leftover concrete pipes at the site and found that they were large, strong, safe, and not being used. Law designed and built the prototype for the O-Pod in less than a month.</p><p>The O-Pod wasn't Law's first "crazy project" - he tries to challenge himself with one each year - but it is the first to garner attention across the world. Within months, the O-Pod had been written up in <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/26/world/asia/hong-kong-housing-crisis-ideas.html">the New Y0rk Times</a>, the <a href="http://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2136993/my-night-tube-home-low-cost-housing-concept-hong-kong-cosy-noisy-and">South China Morning Post</a>, <a href="http://www.bbc.com/capital/story/20180301-homes-made-of-concrete-tubes-could-solve-the-housing-crisis">BBC News,</a> and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/hong-kong-housing-water-tubes-james-law-cybertecture-2018-1#it-includes-a-sofa-that-folds-out-into-a-bed-as-well-as-shelves-a-mini-fridge-a-microwave-and-a-bathroom-with-a-shower-3">Business Insider</a>. And he has received inquiries about the design from firms in <a href="https://www.jwtintelligence.com/2018/04/james-law-founder-ceo-james-law-cybertecture/">New Zealand, South Africa and Hawaii</a>.</p><p><span>In April, Law signed a contract with a developer in Shenzhen, China to build the first O-Pod complex.</span></p><p><span>"​The big dream of mine is not necessarily me doing it, but a global community of people who share the same values using this as an open source design to share around the world," Law said. </span></p><p>"If we can work with governments, and even private landowners and manufacturers, we could very cheaply build the O-Pods, and we could rent them out very cheaply to young people who are struggling to afford housing."</p><p>Law recently gave us a tour of the prototype and revealed where he wants to take it from here. Here's what it was like:</p>

A Hong Kong architect thinks 'tube homes' made from concrete pipes can be a solution to the world's housing crisis

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Willy Kurniawan/Reuters</span></p><p class="caption">Garbage carried by the Pacific Ocean -&#xa0;mostly plastic - piles up on the coast  of Jakarta, Indonesia, June 21, 2019.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul class="summary-list"><li>About<span> </span><a href="http://science.sciencemag.org/content/347/6223/768">14 million tons of plastic</a><span> </span>enter the ocean every year. Some scientists estimate that there are 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic debris<span> </span><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/victor-vescovo-five-deeps-ocean-plastic-2019-5">in oceans worldwide</a>.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amount-of-plastic-in-the-atlantic-has-gone-up-in-the-last-60-years-2019-4">Most plastics</a><span> </span>never fully break down. They fragment into smaller pieces called microplastics, which have been found in human poop, on top of the Pyrenees mountains, and in the deepest part of the<span> </span><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/microplastics-ending-up-in-creatures-in-the-deepest-parts-of-the-ocean-2019-3">Mariana Trench</a>.</li><li>Scientists have developed a type of experimental nanotechnology that could harmlessly break down microplastics in water. </li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/?hprecirc-bullet">Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories</a>.</li></ul><p>There are more pieces of plastic in the ocean than stars in the Milky Way galaxy. </p><p>Up to 14 million tons of plastic enters the ocean annually, 40% of which is considered "single-use," which means it goes into the water within the same year that it was produced. </p><p>Most plastics never fully break down; they just fragment into smaller pieces called microplastics (5 millimeters across or smaller). Microplastics have been found in every corner of the globe, from<span> </span><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/victor-vescovo-five-deeps-ocean-plastic-2019-5">the deepest part</a><span> </span>of the Mariana Trench<span> to the top of the French Pyrenees.</span></p><p><span>Addressing this plastic pollution problem, of course, requires limiting plastic production. But innovators are also exploring ways to clean up plastic and microplastic that's already in the ocean. </span></p><p>In a new <a href="https://www.cell.com/matter/fulltext/S2590-2385(19)30056-6">study published in the journal Matter</a>, scientists describe a new type of nanotechnology that could help: tiny magnetic "nano-coils" that create chemical reactions in order to break down microplastics in the ocean. The process converts the plastic into carbon dioxide and water. </p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Hero Images/Getty</span></p><p class="caption">Microplastics have been found on remote beaches around the world.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p><span>Xiaoguang Duan, a co-author of the new study, told Business Insider that although the</span> technique is still in its infancy, the study "provides a possible solution to tackle a global problem." </p><h2>Tiny magnetic coils could erode microplastic</h2><p>Nano-tech refers to anything smaller than <span>one </span>billionth of a meter, or half the width of a human hair.</p><p>In this case, Duan and his team created microscopic nanotubes made of carbon and shaped like bed springs (which is why they're called nano-coils). </p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>J. Kang et al./Matter July 31, 2019</span></p><p class="caption">A nano-coil barely bigger than one billionth of a meter in width.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p><span>The tubes are coated with nitrogen and a magnetic metal called manganese. These two chemical compounds interact with the nano-coils to create highly reactive oxygen molecules, which in turn attack microplastics. The process converts the plastic pieces into harmless salt compounds, Co2, and water. </span></p><p><span>Duan and his team added the nano-coils to water samples contaminated with microplastic pollutants, and observed a 3o% to 50% reduction in microplastics over a period of eight hours. </span>The scientists then easily removed the nano-coils from the water using magnets for later re-use.</p><p><span>Duan said more testing is needed before this technology could be ready to use in wastewater treatment plants or the ocean, but that's their goal in the long-term.</span></p><p>"Our current study is still at a proof-of-concept stage in a lab scale," he said.</p><h2>Microplastics are ubiquitous</h2><p><span>Alarming quantities of microplastic have been found in a number of unexpected places, including scarcely populated islands in the Indian Ocean (where scientists found upwards of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/plastic-in-oceans-414-million-pieces-trash-pacific-islands-2019-5">414 million pieces of trash</a>) and the guts of tiny animals living in the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/microplastics-ending-up-in-creatures-in-the-deepest-parts-of-the-ocean-2019-3">deepest part of the Pacific Ocean</a>, some 36,000 feet down. </span></p><p><span>A </span><a href="https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/10/12/124006;jsessionid=123F0E078E457FC6106D3ACEE956F209.c3.iopscience.cld.iop.org">2015 study</a><span> estimated that there's between 15 and 51 trillion pieces of microplastic in the world's oceans, weighing up to 261,000 tons.</span></p><p><em><strong>Read More: </strong><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/plastic-pollution-microplastics-pervade-surface-deep-ocean-2019-6">More plastic pollution is swirling in the deep ocean than in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. It's even showing up in the intestines of sea creatures.</a></em></p><p><em><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/New-Battle-Of-Midway/d6f07a9a658847ca9fba3fea3f9569a5/1/0">Dan Clark/USFWS via AP</a></span></p><p class="caption">A black footed albatross chick with plastics in its stomach lies dead on Midway Atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands in this photo provided by the US Fish and Wildlife Service.</p></div><p></p></div></div></em></p><p>Microplastics are a problem for marine life:<span> </span><a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/srep03263">A 2013 study</a><span> </span>found that marine animals can accumulate potentially hazardous chemicals from eating those plastics. That can lead them to suffer from tumors and liver problems. </p><p>Much of the fish and shellfish we ingest contain microplastics, and the tiny pollutants have <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/microplastics-found-lurking-human-stool-first-time-180970613/">shown up in our poop</a>,<span> </span><a href="https://ocean.si.edu/conservation/pollution/marine-plastics">according to the Smithsonian Institute</a>. Scientists don't yet know the full consequences microplastics pose to human health.</p><h2>Solving the plastic problem</h2><p><span>Duan's team isn't the only one researching potential solutions to the plastic crisis. </span></p><p><span>Boyan Slat, a 24-year-old entrepreneur, launched </span><a href="https://www.theoceancleanup.com/">The Ocean Cleanup</a> project s<span>ix years ago. His organization</span> aims to clean up the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/great-pacific-garbage-patch-view-study-plastic-2018-3">Great Pacific Garbage Patch</a>, a trash-filled vortex more than twice the size of Texas. The project's 2,000-foot-long plastic-catching tool was re-launched in June after an initial attempt last year proved unsuccessful. </p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>The Ocean Cleanup</span></p><p class="caption">The Ocean Cleanup's system in action off the California coast.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Another option, from the winner of <a href="https://www.googlesciencefair.com/projects/2018/2c3f6207b15f46cb4bb66a56095bd6d901ccfa42e7e51600c766df7856590c4e">Google's 2019 Science Fair</a>, is similar to what Duan's team is proposing. Fionn Ferriera, an 18-year-old from Cork County, Ireland, found that by combining oil with a magnetic compound called magnetite and adding that solution to water, he was able <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/microplastics-water-pollution-solution-from-google-2019-8">to extract about 90% of microplastics in water using magnets</a>.</p><p>"At this stage, I believe all the possible solutions should be considered and encouraged," Duan said.</p><p>But he added that none of these innovations should be seen as an excuse to continue ramping up the production and use of single-use plastics.</p><p>"Prevention is always the best solution," he said.</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/bpa-plastic-containers-bad-health-risks-obesity-heart-disease-diabetes-2019-2">A molecular biologist warns chemicals in plastic can seep into food and lead to major health effects like obesity, heart disease, and diabetes</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

Scientists have created magnetic coils thinner than a human hair that could break down plastic in the ocean

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>Four years after the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation <a href="https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/Research/Research-activity/Current-projects/research-projects/NanoMembrane-Toilet">awarded $710,000</a> for the development of a revolutionary waterless toilet, the technology has \&#xa0;received a second financial boost.</p><p>The Nano Membrane Toilet, as developers at Cranfield University call it, now has an additional grant that is "substantially more" than all prior funding, according to a Cranfield spokesperson, who declined to provide the exact amount. Researchers will use the money to continue developing the lab prototype and begin field trials in Africa.</p><p>Their mission is an important one: Estimates suggest <a href="http://www.one.org/international/issues/water-and-sanitation/">more than 2.4 billion people</a> around the world still live in unsanitary conditions. Without access to clean running water, these at-risk communities face life-threatening sanitation-related diseases.</p><p>The waterless and easy-to-use Nano Membrane is meant to offset this scarcity.&#xa0;</p><p>Alison Parker, a lecturer in International Water and Sanitation at Cranfield Water <keyword id="41551" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="60" keywordseo="science">Science</keyword> Institute, says her team's new design is meant to serve poor urban areas, as those will be easiest to accommodate.</p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>"The toilet will be used in dense urban areas where a number of factors make providing good sanitation very challenging," Parker told Business Insider in March, after receiving the $710,000, "but where it would be possible to facilitate visits from a maintenance technician."<p>Since the toilet requires maintenance every six months, Parker says her team won't move into remote areas until the technology&#xa0;proves itself in cities.</p><h2><span>How the toilet works</span></h2><p><span>After a person has done their business and closed the lid, the rotating toilet bowl turns 270 degrees to deposit the waste in a vat underneath. A scraper tool then wipes off any residual waste from the bowl.</span></p><p>The solid waste stays on the bottom while the liquid rises to the top.</p><p><div></div></p><p>Extremely thin fibers, known as nanofibers, are arranged in bundles inside the chamber. They help move the water vapor that exists as part of the liquid waste into a vertical tube in the rear of the toilet.</p><p>Next, water passes through specially designed bundles that help condense the vapor into actual water, which flows down through the tube and settles in a tank at the front of the toilet.</p><p>As for the solid waste that's left behind, a battery-powered mechanism lifts the remaining matter out of the toilet and into a separate holding chamber. There it's coated in a scent-suppressing wax and left to dry out.</p><p><div></div></p><p>Every week, a local technician visits the community to remove the solid waste and water, and replace the toilet's batteries if needed. Residents can then use the water for tending to their plants, cleaning their homes, cooking, and bathing. The solid waste ends up at a thermo-processing plant to be turned into energy for the community.</p><p>According to Parker, one toilet can accommodate <a href="http://www.trust.org/item/20160107184637-2c2nk/">up to 10 people</a> for no more than $0.05 per day, per user - in line with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation's original criteria for the prize. Field testing will begin later this year, Parker says.</p><p><div></div></p><p>One challenge moving forward, <a href="http://www.fastcoexist.com/3026114/take-a-seat-on-this-gates-funded-future-toilet-that-will-change-how-we-think-about-poop">which other designs have run into</a>, is scalability.</p><p>While many designs work in theory, actually getting the toilets to the countries that need them isn't easy.</p><p>Local communities have to create jobs specifically so that the toilets are safely and effectively maintained, and that training process can take time. Some scientists <a href="http://www.fastcoexist.com/3026114/take-a-seat-on-this-gates-funded-future-toilet-that-will-change-how-we-think-about-poop">have spent years</a> working on their designs, and they still aren't perfect.</p><p>Parker admits the problem of toilet paper is still one the Nano Membrane Toilet has yet to resolve, as users have no choice but to toss the paper into a nearby waste bin.</p><p>In the future, the team hopes to devise a way for that paper to be burnt. It's not the most environmentally friendly disposal method, but if it means adding years onto people's lives, it could be a winning solution.</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/chinese-water-cannon-get-rid-of-smog-2016-1">This monster water cannon in China floods the air to get rid of smog</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="h2dHUyMDE69Z21wHQSYfp1Aja6fMN3Yu" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

Bill Gates is backing a revolutionary waterless toilet - here's how it works

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://www.agoda.com/kg-garden-guest-house/hotel/hong-kong-hk.html?cid=-218">Agoda</a></span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul><li><strong><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/category/hong-kong">Hong Kong</a> is the most expensive city in the world for housing.</strong></li><li><strong>The dire housing situation has spawned tons of increasingly tiny apartments.</strong></li><li><strong>Many bathrooms in tiny apartments have a combination shower-toilet, which is as strange as it sounds.</strong></li></ul><p>I knew Hong Kong apartments were small. I didn't realize they were that small.</p><p>I had booked what I thought was a studio apartment in Mong Kok, a neighborhood on Kowloon island reputed to be the most densely populated place on earth.</p><p>Mong Kok, which literally translates to "busy corner" in Cantonese, <a href="https://theculturetrip.com/asia/hong-kong/articles/this-neighbourhood-is-the-most-densely-populated-place-on-earth/">has a population density of 130,000 per square kilometer</a>, according to the Guinness World Records.</p><p>The apartment was more of a sub-divided room off a sectioned-off hallway. Inside was enough space for a queen size bed, a small nightstand with a TV on it, and another small nightstand with a hot water heater.</p><p>If I was standing next to the bed, there was not enough room for another person to stand next to me, which became particularly difficult to manage as I was traveling with my girlfriend. If the suitcases were open on the floor, there was no room to stand. I ended up working on my laptop from the bathroom if I needed a place to sit.</p><p>And, while all that might be expected of any small room - even in some shoebox apartments I've lived in in New York City - it was the bathroom that drove home the size of the apartment.</p><p>After a long day of traveling, I figured it was time to take a hot shower, but the bathroom was only big enough for a toilet and a small sink.</p><p>Where was the shower?</p><p>That's when it hit me. The shower was right above the toilet. They even shared piping so that it appeared that the same water used for the toilet was used for the shower.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://www.agoda.com/kg-garden-guest-house/hotel/hong-kong-hk.html?cid=-218">Agoda; Harrison Jacobs/Business Insider</a></span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>In order to shower, one had to either sit on or straddle the toilet seat. It was, let's say, an experience.</p><p>But while I only had to deal with such a strange situation for a few days, the reality is that's the bathroom setup is extremely common in the city.</p><p>The city <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-most-expensive-cities-to-live-in-around-the-world-in-2018-2018-1">has been ranked the least affordable city</a> for housing in the world for eight years running, according to the <span>Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey.</span><span></span></p><p><span>Most Hong Kongers (read: not wealthy expats) live in tiny apartments with an ever-proliferating range of colorful names that bely the reality: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/crazy-pictures-of-micro-apartments-around-hong-kong-2018-1">micro-flats, nano apartments, coffin apartments, and cage homes</a>. </span></p><p><span>T</span><span>he room I stayed in was positively large compared to the living situation for the city's poorest residents.</span></p><p><span>According to<a href="http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/community/article/2117810/average-living-space-hong-kongs-poorest-residents-same"> a survey conducted by Kwai Chung Subdivided Flat Residents Alliance </a></span><span>last year, the average living space for the city's poorest residents was about 50 square feet, about half the size of a parking space and equivalent to that of those living in shared dormitories in correctional facilities.</span><span></span></p><p><span>Nano apartments - <a href="http://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/2103640/peek-6-smallest-apartments-hong-kong">apartments with a square footage less than 200</a> - are becoming more popular due to their affordability, according to the South China Morning Post. But affordability is a relative term. Many sell for as much as $500,000.</span></p><p><span>Carrie Poon, a guide who took me on a tour of Sham Shui Po, one of the city's poorest neighborhoods, told me that most young Hong Kongers have all but given up the idea of owning an apartment due to the housing situation and are resigned to renting tiny apartments, as they are the only thing they can afford.</span></p><p><span>"We'll probably be renting forever," she said.</span></p><p><span>The housing situation has even spawned new inventions like the OPod, a <a href="http://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/2103640/peek-6-smallest-apartments-hong-kong">100 square-foot "tube home</a>" designed by Hong Kong architect James Law and made from repurposed concrete water pipes.</span><span></span></p><p><span>The housing situation is the most visible result of the city's widening wealth gap, which hit record highs last year. The richest 10% of Hong Kongers earn 44 times the poorest families,<a href="http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2097715/what-hope-poorest-hong-kong-wealth-gap-hits-record-high"> according a government report</a>.</span></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/heres-why-hong-kong-skyscrapers-have-holes-feng-shui-2017-3">Here's why some Hong Kong skyscrapers have gaping holes</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

One picture shows how absurdly tiny apartments are in Hong Kong - and people are paying a premium for them

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><a href="https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=EHFxW6yx8Uo&amp;mid=38614&amp;murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.beautycounter.com%2Fproduct%2Fcountersun-mineral-sunscreen-lotion-spf-30" target="_blank" rel="noopener"></a><p class="source"><span>Beautycounter Facebook</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul class="summary-list"><li>Mineral sunscreens use physical blockers like zinc oxide and titanium dioxide to scatter and deflect damaging UV rays away from the skin.</li><li>Beautycounter's award-winning <a href="https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=EHFxW6yx8Uo&amp;mid=38614&amp;murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.beautycounter.com%2Fproduct%2Fcountersun-mineral-sunscreen-lotion-spf-30" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Countersun Sunscreen ($39)</a> is my go-to for everyday wear - it's a reef-friendly mineral formula that protects against UVA/UVB rays as well as blue light. It's also relatively affordable, so I can afford to use it often. </li><li>Perhaps the best part of Countersun is that it doesn't leave a white cast on the skin. My only gripe is that it's only SPF 30. Below you'll find my full review.</li></ul><p>After a couple of decades of life on earth as a pale, freckled person prone to the kind of sunburns that elicit condolences from strangers, I've come to accept sunscreen application as the consummate act of goodwill towards myself. </p><p>This idea was strengthened when renown NYC dermatologist and dermatological surgeon Dr. Dendy Engelman told Business Insider that just 10-15 minutes of incidental sun exposure - driving with the top down, walking to the subway, exiting and entering different stores at an outdoor mall - can compound and cause "<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/products-i-use-to-get-clear-skin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">significant sun damage</a> and accelerated aging over time." And while said sun damage affects how rapidly your skin ages - and <em>how</em> it ages (causing <a href="https://www.aad.org/public/skin-hair-nails/anti-aging-skin-care/sun-damage/wrinkles-and-other-signs-of-sun-damaged-skin-can-be-treated" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrinkles</a>, age spots, loose skin, spider veins, and a blotchy complexion) - its most important side effect is the potential of skin cancer.</p><p>Once I realized just how far off I was with my laissez-faire, just-don't-sunburn approach to sunscreen, I set out to find a formula that was good enough to actually inspire consistent, everyday wear  - and that would be affordable enough to be sustainable. </p><p>I ended up trying out <a href="https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=EHFxW6yx8Uo&amp;mid=38614&amp;murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.beautycounter.com%2Fproduct%2Fcountersun-mineral-sunscreen-lotion-spf-30" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Beautycounter's Countersun ($39)</a>. It's a mineral sunscreen, meaning it uses physical blockers like non-nano zinc to deflect harmful rays away from the body - and sidesteps the potentially alarming news released by the FDA recently that the active ingredients in chemical sunscreens are <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2019/05/06/sunscreen-chemicals-absorb-your-bloodstream-fda-study/1123513001/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">being absorbed into your bloodstream</a>. Though mineral blockers tend to get complaints for leaving a white cast on the skin (they sit on top of the skin, rather than being absorbed into it), <a href="https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=EHFxW6yx8Uo&amp;mid=38614&amp;murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.beautycounter.com%2Fproduct%2Fcountersun-mineral-sunscreen-lotion-spf-30" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Countersun</a> has garnered much fanfare for its relatively inconspicuous cast, lightweight feel, and lack of unpleasant residue. It offers broad-spectrum coverage against UVA and UVB rays as well as blue light, and the tube is large enough (6.7 ounces) to justify spending almost $40 for sunscreen. It's also reef-safe, and it was an Allure Best of Beauty winner in 2018.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><a href="https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=EHFxW6yx8Uo&amp;mid=38614&amp;murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.beautycounter.com%2Fproduct%2Fcountersun-mineral-sunscreen-lotion-spf-30" target="_blank" rel="noopener"></a><p class="source"><span>Mara Leighton/Business Insider</span></p><p class="caption">Left: Countersun Sunscreen swab. Right: Countersun after rubbing it into my skin.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><h2>My review of Beautycounter Countersun Sunscreen</h2><p>In person, Countersun impressed me enough to secure itself as my go-to everyday summer sunscreen. It spreads smoothly and leaves a luminescent sheen rather than a grey-white cast. The leftover film is thin and almost entirely unnoticeable - though not as invisible as you'll get with a chemical sunscreen that sinks into your skin. </p><p>It's another plus that Beautycounter is a clean beauty brand that already nixes more than 1,500 questionable or harmful chemicals, known as the brand's <a href="https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=EHFxW6yx8Uo&amp;mid=38614&amp;murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.beautycounter.com%2Fthe-never-list" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Never List</a>, so you don't have to do the work of sussing out which ingredients you do and don't need to be afraid of. They do it for you. Since I <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/products-i-use-to-get-clear-skin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stopped wearing foundation earlier this year</a>, I know I'll be wearing this sunscreen even more than makeup, so what's in it is more important to me than most products I buy. Which means that, while I wish it was even cheaper than $39 for a big tube, it's a price I'm willing to pay every few months for a clean formula that I really love. </p><p>My one gripe is that I wish it was a higher SPF than 30. Typically, I look for something with at least SPF 50, though the American Academy of Dermatology technically <a href="https://www.aad.org/public/spot-skin-cancer/learn-about-skin-cancer/prevent/how-to-select-a-sunscreen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recommends SPF 30 and above</a>, and Beautycounter recommends reapplying after 40 minutes of swimming and at least every two hours otherwise (which is longer than I typically get out of a chemical SPF 30). Still, I could do with fewer applications - though I suspect you can't have much higher SPF without a starker white cast.</p><h2>The bottom line</h2><p>All in all, <a href="https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=EHFxW6yx8Uo&amp;mid=38614&amp;murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.beautycounter.com%2Fproduct%2Fcountersun-mineral-sunscreen-lotion-spf-30" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Countersun</a> is the best mineral sunscreen I've found for everyday use and, per Dr. Engelman, the best thing to look for in a sunscreen, aside from the nitty gritty formula, is whichever one you'll use consistently. This one uses physical blockers rather than chemicals, comes without the suspicious and harmful ingredients I don't want but also don't want to be responsible for screening out (good on you, Beautycounter), and goes on without creating the white cast that mineral sunscreens are known for.</p><p>And, if sunscreen can be flattering, the sheer luminosity is ... pretty flattering. If you're looking for a reef-safe, affordable, broad-spectrum mineral sunscreen option, I highly recommend you check this out sooner rather than later.</p><h3><a href="https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=EHFxW6yx8Uo&amp;mid=38614&amp;murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.beautycounter.com%2Fproduct%2Fcountersun-mineral-sunscreen-lotion-spf-30" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Countersun Mineral Sunscreen, SPF 30, $39</a></h3> <p class="tagline"><p><a href="http://e.businessinsider.com/join/ci/insider-picks">Subscribe to our newsletter.</a><br><br>Find all the best offers at our <a href="https://coupons.businessinsider.com/">Coupons page</a>.<br><br>Disclosure: This post is brought to you by the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/insiderpicks">Insider Picks</a> team. We highlight products and services you might find interesting. If you buy them, we get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners. We frequently receive products free of charge from manufacturers to test. This does not drive our decision as to whether or not a product is featured or recommended. We operate independently from our advertising sales team. We welcome your feedback. Email us at insiderpicks@businessinsider.com.</br></br></br></br></p></p>

This $39 mineral sunscreen protects against UVA, UVB, and blue light, and it doesn't leave a white cast on my skin - it's also reef-safe

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>Five years after&#xa0;the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation <a href="http://www.gatesfoundation.org/What-We-Do/Global-Development/Reinvent-the-Toilet-Challenge">first challenged the world</a> to design a sustainable and inexpensive toilet, researchers from Cranfield University may have a viable contender.<p>It's known as the Nano Membrane Toilet, and it was<a href="https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/Research/Research-activity/Current-projects/research-projects/NanoMembrane-Toilet"> funded by the Gates Foundation</a> in September 2012 for $710,000.</p><p>March 22 is <a href="http://www.unwater.org/worldwaterday/about/en/">World Water Day</a>, an appropriate time to highlight the grim fact that&#xa0;<a href="http://www.one.org/international/issues/water-and-sanitation/">more than 2.4 billion people</a>&#xa0;around the world still live in unsanitary conditions.</p><p>Without access to clean running water, these at-risk communities face life-threatening sanitation-related diseases.</p><p>The Nano Membrane toilet's&#xa0;design is meant to offset this scarcity. It's waterless, easy to use, and provided it receives additional funding for field tests, could very well be part of the&#xa0;future of sanitation.</p><p>Alison Parker, a lecturer in International Water and Sanitation at Cranfield Water <keyword id="41551" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="60" keywordseo="science">Science</keyword> Institute, says her team's new design is meant to serve poor urban areas, as those will be easiest to accommodate.</p><p>"It will be very hard to carry out the scheduled maintenance" in remote areas, Parker tells Tech Insider, mostly because the toilet needs maintenance every six months at a minimum to replace certain parts. "Instead, the toilet will be used in dense urban areas where a number of factors make providing good sanitation very challenging, but where it would be possible to facilitate visits from a maintenance technician."</p><p><span>The toilet's actual design is rather complex.</span></p><p><span>After a person has done their business and closed the lid, the rotating toilet bowl turns 270 degrees to deposit the waste in a vat underneath. A scraper tool then wipes off any residual waste from the bowl.</span></p><p><div></div></p><p class="embed-spacer">The solid waste stays on the bottom while the liquid rises to the top.</p><p class="embed-spacer">Extremely thin fibers, known as nanofibers, are arranged in bundles inside the chamber. They help move the water vapor that exists as part of the liquid waste into a vertical tube in the rear of the toilet.</p><p class="embed-spacer"><div></div></p><p class="embed-spacer">Next, water passes through specially designed beads that help condense the vapor into actual water, which flows down through the tube and settles in a tank at the front of the toilet.</p><p class="embed-spacer">As for the solid waste that's left behind, a battery-powered mechanism lifts the remaining matter out of the toilet and into a separate holding chamber. There it's coated in a scent-suppressing wax and left to dry out.</p><p class="embed-spacer">Every week, a local technician visits the community to remove the solid waste and water, and replace the toilet's batteries if needed. Residents can then use the water for tending to their plants, cleaning their homes, cooking, and bathing. The solid waste ends up at a thermo-processing plant to be turned into energy for the community.</p><p class="embed-spacer">According to Parker, one toilet can accommodate <a href="http://www.trust.org/item/20160107184637-2c2nk/">up to 10 people</a> for no more than $0.05 per day, per user - in line with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation's original criteria for the prize. Field testing will begin later this year, Parker says.</p><p class="embed-spacer"><div></div></p><p class="embed-spacer">One challenge moving forward, <a href="http://www.fastcoexist.com/3026114/take-a-seat-on-this-gates-funded-future-toilet-that-will-change-how-we-think-about-poop">which other designs have run into</a>, is scalability.</p><p class="embed-spacer">While many designs work in theory, actually getting the toilets to the countries that need them isn't easy.</p><p class="embed-spacer">Local communities have to create jobs specifically so that the toilets are safely and effectively maintained, and that training process can take time. Some scientists <a href="http://www.fastcoexist.com/3026114/take-a-seat-on-this-gates-funded-future-toilet-that-will-change-how-we-think-about-poop">have spent years</a> working on their designs, and they still aren't perfect.</p><p class="embed-spacer"><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Parker admits the problem of toilet paper is still one the Nano Membrane Toilet has yet to resolve, as users have no choice but to toss the paper into a nearby waste bin.</span></p><p class="embed-spacer"><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">In the future, the team hopes to devise a way for that paper to be burnt. It's not the most environmentally friendly disposal method, but if it means adding years onto people's lives, it could be a winning solution.</span></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/chinese-water-cannon-get-rid-of-smog-2016-1">This monster water cannon in China floods the air to get rid of smog</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="h2dHUyMDE69Z21wHQSYfp1Aja6fMN3Yu" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

<p class="financial-disclaimer"><i>When you buy through our links, we may earn money from our affiliate partners. <a href="https://www.insider-inc.com/commerce-on-insider-inc/">Learn more.</a></i></p><ul class="summary-list"><li>Versed is a new <keyword id="110679" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="skincare">skincare</keyword> startup making affordable products for everyday use.</li><li>Its <a href="https://go.skimresources.com?id=35871X943606&amp;xs=1&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fversedskin.com%2Fproducts%2Fguards-up-daily-mineral-sunscreen-broad-spectrum-spf-35m-spf-35" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">Guards Up mineral sunscreen</a> ($22) boasts a silky, lightweight texture, and SPF 35.</li><li>It was developed to leave little-to-no white cast behind on all skin tones, though some <keyword id="6354629" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="beauty">beauty</keyword> vloggers with darker skin have reported that it didn't deliver on that promise.</li></ul>Table of Contents<p>I've been writing about skincare products for about a decade now, and over the years I've certainly found a few staples. One category I tend to get the most excited about is <keyword id="74032" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Sunscreen">sunscreen</keyword>, mostly because it's so hard to get right.</p><p>One of my favorite new finds is <a href="https://go.skimresources.com?id=35871X943606&amp;xs=1&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fversedskin.com%2Fproducts%2Fguards-up-daily-mineral-sunscreen-broad-spectrum-spf-35m-spf-35" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored nofollow sponsored">Versed Skincare Guards Up SPF</a>, a relatively affordable mineral sunscreen that blends in to my skin well and doesn't feel sticky on the face. But before I tell you more about why I love it, let's chat a bit about SPF in general.</p><h2>The importance of sunscreen</h2><p>Obviously, sunscreen is an important part of everyone's skincare regimen. Any dermatologist you meet will tell you to wear an SPF of 30 every single day — cloudy or sunny, inside or outdoors. Unfortunately, sunscreen has a reputation for feeling greasy or heavy on your skin, messing with your cosmetics, or leaving behind a weird and unflattering white residue.</p><p>All those unsavory "side effects" translates to people side-stepping this part of their routine. In fact, according to<a href="https://www.realself.com/news/2020-realself-sun-safety-report?fbclid=IwAR0BX8rhLHUKTl3ivh0EeGvJAXhob1qjTzsVAArhAY64zlk4dJ4XzfXX6vA" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> a May 2020 report by RealSelf</a>, 62% of U.S. residents happily slather anti-aging products daily, but only 11% use sunscreen daily. Skipping this seemingly small step inadvertently ups people's risk of developing skin cancer and actually expedites the aging process.</p><p>I'm here to tell you that the times — and formulations — have changed. Forget about everything you know in terms of texture and tinting. Over the last few decades, and especially in recent years, <a href="https://go.skimresources.com?id=35871X943606&amp;xs=1&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fversedskin.com%2Fproducts%2Fguards-up-daily-mineral-sunscreen-broad-spectrum-spf-35m-spf-35" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">sunscreen</a> products have come incredibly far.  </p><h2>My personal review of Versed Skincare Guards Up SPF</h2><h2><a href="https://go.skimresources.com?id=35871X943606&amp;xs=1&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fversedskin.com%2Fproducts%2Fguards-up-daily-mineral-sunscreen-broad-spectrum-spf-35m-spf-35" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored nofollow sponsored"><div type="image" title="Versed Skincare Sunscreen" height="900" width="1200" msid="76949269" hostid="261"></div></a></h2><p>Sunscreen is obviously important to use, but let's face the facts. You're not going to use SPF as often as you should if you're not excited about the way it makes your skin look and feel. <a href="https://go.skimresources.com?id=35871X943606&amp;xs=1&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fversedskin.com%2Fproducts%2Fguards-up-daily-mineral-sunscreen-broad-spectrum-spf-35m-spf-35" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored nofollow sponsored">Versed Skincare Guards Up SPF</a> is one of those rare formulas that feels exceptionally smooth on the skin and actually makes me want to apply sunscreen.</p><h3>Here's why it tops my personal list:</h3><ul><li><strong>Broad-spectrum SPF 35:</strong> The<a href="https://www.aad.org/public/everyday-care/sun-protection/sunscreen-patients/sunscreen-faqs" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> American Academy of Dermatology</a> (AAD) recommends using a broad-spectrum sunscreen with 30 SPF or higher. This product delivers on both fronts.</li><li><strong>A safe formula:</strong> The active ingredient is non-nano zinc oxide, which offers broad-spectrum protection and is one of the safest SPF actives available. It also contains powerful antioxidants, including sea fennel extract and moringa seed extract, to protect your skin from free radical damage. It's free of parabens, sulfates, and silicones.</li><li><strong>An elegant texture:</strong> It has a super lightweight texture that feels silky on your skin. The inclusion of hyaluronic acid, jojoba esters, and aloe leaf also makes it super hydrating. Because it's oil-free, it's great for oily and acne-prone skin types, too.</li><li><strong>Little to no cast:</strong> As mentioned, mineral-based sunscreens are known for leaving a white cast. This product, which is slightly tinted a pinky-orange color to help brighten your complexion, leaves no cast behind on my skin, though this isn't the case for everyone.</li><li><strong>Works with makeup:</strong> When SPF doesn't play nicely with your makeup, it makes you less likely to apply it. Guards Up actually sits beautifully under makeup. It hydrates so that makeup glides on more easily, and because it's free of silicones, it's unlikely to pill when it meets your foundation or BB cream.</li><li><strong>Recyclable materials:</strong> Both the tube and the box it comes in are recyclable, which is a major bonus!</li></ul><h2>How it works for darker skin tones</h2><p>Mineral sunscreens are known for leaving a white or purplish cast behind on darker skin tones because they contain titanium dioxide and/or zinc oxide, two notoriously chalky ingredients. Versed developed its mineral sunscreen formula with <a href="https://versedskin.com/blogs/learn/benefits-of-versed-sunscreen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">all skin tones in mind</a> using the most finely processed zinc oxide possible, but the product hasn't necessarily delivered for everyone. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSJewKOJ8GU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A YouTube video by beauty vlogger Simply Ijé</a> shows how the sunscreen left a cast on her darker complexion, saying that it wasn't as bad as some mineral sunscreens she's reviewed, but that it definitely wasn't perfect. Other vloggers have reported that it works well for medium and tan skin tones.</p><h2>Cons to consider</h2><p><a href="https://go.skimresources.com?id=35871X943606&amp;xs=1&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fversedskin.com%2Fproducts%2Fguards-up-daily-mineral-sunscreen-broad-spectrum-spf-35m-spf-35" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored"><div type="image" title="Versed Skincare Sunscreem" height="2044" width="2725" msid="76949270" hostid="261"></div></a></p><p>While <a href="https://go.skimresources.com?id=35871X943606&amp;xs=1&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fversedskin.com%2Fproducts%2Fguards-up-daily-mineral-sunscreen-broad-spectrum-spf-35m-spf-35" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">Guards Up</a> is a great product, it's important to be aware of a few potential cons.</p><p>Though it's not the most expensive facial sunscreen out there, Guards Up isn't exactly cheap. It'll run you $22 for 1.7 ounces, or roughly $13 per ounce.</p><p>Another downside, as mentioned earlier, is that some people with dark complexions have reported that the product does leave a slight cast, as the minerals that act as physical sun blockers are unfortunately quite chalky, despite how fine they are. </p><p>Lastly, it's important to re-apply SPF every four hours when indoors or not sweating, and every two hours when outside or after sweating or swimming. Liquid formulas, like this product, can be tricky to re-apply if you don't want to mess up your makeup. You might want to also invest in a powder or spray that can be easily re-applied.</p><h2>The bottom line</h2><p>It doesn't matter who you are, where you live, or how much time you spend outside — sunscreen should be as much a part of your daily regimen as drinking water. Finding a product that you're actually excited about is integral in developing and maintaining SPF application routine, and this product might fit the bill for you like it did for me. </p><p>If not, there are many other excellent options out there to consider, as well. Others I personally enjoy (and which come recommended by dermatologists) are <a href="https://go.skimresources.com?id=35871X943606&amp;xs=1&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.laroche-posay.us%2Fsunscreen%2Fanthelios-melt-in-milk-sunscreen-spf-60-883140500322.html322.html" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored nofollow sponsored nofollow sponsored">La Roche Posay Anthelios Melt-In Milk Sunscreen SPF 60</a> ($36), <a href="https://ulta.ztk5.net/c/196318/164999/3037?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ulta.com%2Fsheer-zinc-face-dry-touch-sunscreen-spf-50%3FproductId%3DxlsImpprod15721137" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored nofollow sponsored">Neutrogena Sheer Zinc Face Dry Touch Sunscreen SPF 50</a> ($16) and <a href="https://www.anrdoezrs.net/links/6415797/type/dlg/https://www.dermstore.com/product_UV+Clear+BroadSpectrum+SPF+46_20567.htm" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored nofollow sponsored">EltaMD UV Clear Broad-Spectrum SPF 46</a> ($36).</p>

This mineral sunscreen from Versed has topped my personal list after years of searching — it hydrates my skin, blends in smoothly, and never feels sticky

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image"><p class="source"><span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:CNTSEM.JPG">Wikipedia</a></span></p><p class="caption">Carbon nanotubes</p></div><p></p></div></div>VACUUM TUBES, semiconductors and the internet have changed how we live; now nanotechnology promises a similar revolution. Nanocoatings that make it impossible for liquid to even touch a treated surface are transforming material science. Carbon nanotubes can help artificial muscles behave like the real thing, while nanoscale drug delivery can target cancer cells with deadly accuracy. Concrete infused with nanofibres can be self-sensing, enabling roads and bridges to be monitored remotely for structural weakness or traffic volumes.</p>
<p>And last month, when Rafael Nadal lost the final of the 2014 Australian Open to Stanislas Wawrinka, his opponent's $240 racquet was strengthened with nano-materials. Mr Nadal, meanwhile, was wearing a watch reinforced with carbon nanotubes-and costing almost $700,000.</p>
<p>It is this breadth of nanotechnology's potential that makes it vital to America's future competitiveness. Congressman Lamar Smith, chairman of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, believes that American dominance in the field has enormous economic potential and the ability to create new jobs: "it's a game-changer that could transform and improve Americans' daily lives in ways we can't foresee," he says.</p>
<p>On any measure-patents, private and government-sector investment, academic activity-America has so far been a leader in nanotechnology research and, to a lesser extent, development. Federal funding has helped. From 2000-2013 Congress appropriated some $18 billion for nanotechnology R&amp;D (although the $1.7 billion budgeted for 2014 is 8% lower than two years ago). Numbers for private-sector investment are harder to come by, but estimates by Lux Research, a firm of analysts, suggest that by 2010, America's private sector was investing at least $3.5 billion a year in nanotechnology-related ventures-far more than its closest global competitors.</p>
<p>So why is the United States Government Accountability Office (GAO), an independent agency that works for Congress and scrutinises how the federal government spends taxpayer dollars, now fretting that America may lose the nanotechnology race? In a new report on nanotechnology manufacturing (or nanomanufacturing) released today and prepared for Congressman Smith's committee, the GAO finds flaws in America's approach to many things nano.</p>
<p>The main concern of the industry experts consulted by the GAO is "the missing middle". Government, universities and start-ups focus their investment on basic research, proofs of concepts and production at laboratory scale. But to win the global nanotechnology race, says the GAO, America must bridge the gap between such activities and being able to produce the technologies at scale. That means everything from prototyping to developing reliable manufacturing processes in a production environment to paying for clinical trials (in the case of health care, a major nano-market). For instance, up to $20m is often needed to bring a new medical treatment into clinical trials, but investment from big pharmaceutical firms is generally not forthcoming until the second phase of such trials. Promising medical nanotechnologies wither and die in that missing middle.</p>
<p>Circumstances are made worse by policy decisions. The GAO's experts chide the government for lacking a "grand strategy" on nanomanufacturing, and for starting to fall behind China and Russia in annual spending on nanotechnology. Russia in particular, is taking advantage of America's missing-middle mortality rate. Rusnano, a multi-billion-dollar government-owned fund, is picking up the intellectual property of failed American nanotechnology firms for cents on the dollar. (The GAO report also comes hot on the heels of a National Science Board study showing that China's global share of overall high-tech manufacturing rose from 8% to 24% from 2003-2012, close to America's 27%.)</p>
<p>The fact that a large chunk of America's high-tech manufacturing capabilities moved offshore long ago doesn't help either, because it has left the country less able to build the facilities or educate the skilled workforce it will need to compete in large-scale nanomanufacturing. The GAO believes that early-stage, intellectual-property-based industries benefit greatly if a "nexus" of research, design, prototyping and manufacturing evolves in close proximity. This may sound heretical in a world of Foxconns, but has proved largely true in industries such as biotechnology.</p>
<p>Congressman Smith, unsurprisingly, believes there's an Act for that-specifically the wordy but acronym-friendly Technology and Research Accelerating National Security and Future Economic Resiliency (TRANSFER) Act of 2013, which he co-sponsored. "The bill", he believes, "will give researchers and universities incentives to partner with entrepreneurs and venture capitalists in order to move new technologies from the laboratory to the marketplace".</p>
<p>Tim Persons, the GAO's chief scientist, believes that if policymakers want to address the missing middle, there are existing "industrial commons" in America that show how this might be done. He cites the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE), based in New York's Hudson Valley, home to many semiconductor firms. Part of the State University of New York, CNSE is an R&amp;D, prototyping and educational public-private partnership focused on nanotechnology, with some 300 partners that range from industrial giants such as IBM to community colleges. Among other things, the $20 billion project enables pre-competitive collaboration among its partners, who are able to use high-tech CNSE equipment (such as nano-fabrication facilities costing hundreds of millions of dollars apiece) that would be too expensive for individual firms to buy.</p>
<p>There are a handful of such nano-commons in America, and some of the GAO's experts would like the federal government to kick-start more. In reality, alas, federal funding for three of the existing centres ends this year, and for a fourth in 2015. Small wonder the GAO worries that America could end up as a small player in what will be a vast but vanishingly small business.</p>

A New Report Warns That America May Lose The Nanotechnology Race

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table click-to-enlarge"><div><div class="image on-image"><a title_source="KillaCycle Racing" title_caption="Eva Håkansson a few hours after making a 270 MPH top speed run" class="zoomin" href="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/541852f06bb3f7513af059ed-960/eva_white_dress_img_1454.jpg"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source"><span><a href="http://killacycleracing.com/news/blog/">KillaCycle Racing</a></span></p><p class="caption">Eva Håkansson a few hours after making a 270 MPH top speed run</p></div><p></p></div></div><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Eva <a href="http://killacycleracing.com/news/blog/" target="_blank">Hakansson and Bill Dube</a>, a husband and wife from Denver, Colorado, have spent the bulk of their free time over the past five years tooling away in their two-car garage. Their labor of love, an electric motorcycle called the KillaJoule, is now an official record holder. </span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">In late August, Hakansson, a 33-year-old PhD candidate at the University of Denver, and Dube, a research scientist at the <span></span><span>National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (</span>NOAA), took their backyard creation to the Bonneville Motorcycle Speed Trials in Utah. </span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">With Hakansson at the helm, the KillaJoule reached an incredible 241.901 mph on Utah's legendary Bonneville Salt Flats. In an instant, Hakansson became the fastest woman on a motorcycle in the world, and the KillaJoule became both the fastest electric motorcycle ever built and fastest motorcycle with a side car. The record setting-run beat the previous electric motorcycle land speed record by a whopping 25 mph. </span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table click-to-enlarge"><div><div class="image on-image"><a title_source="Phil Hawkins" title_caption="The KillaJoule making its record-setting top speed run." class="zoomin" href="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54185e69ecad04c237a6a9fb-960/killajoule-electric-motorcycle-world-record-2014-1.jpg"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source"><span><a href="http://media.killacycleracing.com/2013/06/KillaJoule_2014.jpg">Phil Hawkins</a></span></p><p class="caption">The KillaJoule making its record-setting top speed run.</p></div><p></p></div></div><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">But Hakansson and Dube knew their creation could go even faster. So last week, they returned to the Bonneville and upped the ante even more by hitting a whopping 270.224 mph. "</span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">The computer model showed a possible maximum speed of ~270 mph," <a href="http://killacycleracing.com/news/blog/" target="_blank">Hakansson wrote in her blog</a>. "For the first time ever, practice agreed with theory. We were both pleasantly surprised. It doesn't happen very often, for sure." </span></span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table click-to-enlarge"><div><div class="image on-image"><a title_source="KillaCycle Racing" title_caption="The KillaJoule right after its 270 mph run" class="zoomin" href="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5418623b6bb3f71872f059fe-960/eva_killajoule_270mph_finish_img_1344.jpg"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source"><span><a href="http://media.killacycleracing.com/2014/09/Eva_KillaJoule_270mph_finish_IMG_1344.jpg">KillaCycle Racing</a></span></p><p class="caption">The KillaJoule right after its 270 mph run</p></div><p></p></div></div></span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">The KillaJoule is truly an incredible machine. Power for the record -setting bike comes from a 500 horsepower EVO electric motor with juice stored in a series of lithium nano-phosphate battery cells from A123 Systems. Weighing in at 1540 pounds, including Hakasson, the KillaJoule is constructed with chrom-moly steel tubing wrapped in pre-painted aluminum body panels. Here's a detailed breakdown of Hakansson and Dube's design:</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table click-to-enlarge"><div><div class="image on-image"><a title_source="KillaCycle Racing" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54186468ecad04d254a6a9f8-960/killajoule_x-ray_2014.jpg"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source"><span><a href="http://media.killacycleracing.com/2013/06/KillaJoule_X-ray_2014.jpg">KillaCycle Racing</a></span></p></div><p></p></div></div><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">"The main purpose of the sleek, sexy motorcycle is to show that eco-friendly doesn't mean slow and boring," says Hakansson. She's definitely spot on in her assessment: 240 mph is never boring. </span></span></span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Take a look at the KillaJoule's record-setting 241 mph run:</span></span></p>
<p></p>

A Colorado Couple Built The World's Fastest Electric Motorcycle In Their Garage

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation</span></p><p class="caption">Bill Gates holds up a beaker of human feces at the Reinvented Toilet Expo in Beijing on November 6, 2018.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul class="summary-list"><li><strong>Bad sanitation <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/bathroom-hand-washing-after-using-the-toilet-2018-8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">kills 525,000 children under five</a> every year and contributes to malnutrition and the spread of disease.</strong></li><li><strong>Bill Gates thinks it's not practical for the entire world to adopt flush toilets, so he's spending $400 million to fund research into toilets that don't require a sewer system. </strong></li><li><strong>After seven years of investment, some of the first products are available.</strong></li></ul><p>Bill Gates isn't afraid of potty talk.</p><p>On Tuesday, he got onstage in front of business leaders, investors, and government officials from around the world <a href="https://twitter.com/AFP/status/1059816423294287872" target="_blank" rel="noopener">and unveiled</a> what he politely referred to as a "little exhibit." It was a glass jar filled with human feces.</p><p>"It's good to be reminded, in there could be over 200 trillion rotavirus particles, 20 billion Shigella bacteria, and 100,000 parasitic worm eggs," Gates told the crowd, which had gathered in Beijing, China for an event called the Reinvented Toilet Expo.</p><p>The jar of poo was used to make a point: Around the world, in places without proper sanitation or sewage systems, there's much more than a jar's worth of unsanitary human waste sitting around. </p><p>"That's what kids, when they're out playing, they are being exposed to all the time," Gates said, noting the link between bad sanitation and disease, death, and malnutrition.</p><p>To address that problem, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation started its <a href="https://docs.gatesfoundation.org/Documents/Fact_Sheet_Reinvent_the_Toilet_Challenge.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reinvent the Toilet Challenge</a> in 2011. The initiative funded $200 million in grants for universities around the world to develop a next-generation toilet.  The goal: develop a waste-processing system that doesn't need to be hooked up a typical sanitation and sewer grid.</p><p>The new systems that have been created with those grants turn what we put into the toilet into fertilizer, energy, or recycled water, some of which is good enough to drink.</p><p>The Gates Foundation now intends to invest an additional $200 million into research that can yield additional ways to deal with human waste at the source. </p><h2>The problem with the toilets we have now</h2><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>©Gates Archive/Sam Phelps</span></p><p class="caption">Malickane Gueye stands with his children in front of a newly constructed toilet at his home in Dakar, Senegal on September 25, 2018.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>In 2015, the <a href="http://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/sanitation" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Health Organization estimated</a> that just 39% of the world's people were using a "safely-managed" lavatory, whether it be a toilet or a decently clean latrine. </p><p>Living without a good toilet can be unsafe. People who come in contact with fecal matter face a risk of deadly infections and chronic health problems, since h<span>uman feces carry pathogens like E. coli, Streptococcus, hepatitis A and E, and more</span><span>. Those can cause pneumonia and diarrhea - the <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/handwashing/why-handwashing.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">top two killers of kids</a> around the world.</span></p><p>Plus, if people don't have a place to go at home, they have to travel alone into woods or a field to relieve themselves, which can be risky for women and children living in conflict zones.</p><p><span>"When you think about things that are basic, right up there with health and enough to eat, I think having a reasonable toilet certainly belongs on that list," Gates said.</span></p><p><em><strong>Read More</strong>: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/bathroom-hand-washing-after-using-the-toilet-2018-8" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Do you really have to wash your hands every time you use the bathroom? The definitive answer, according to science</a></em></p><p>He estimates that illness from poor sanitation costs the world <a href="https://www.gatesnotes.com/Development/Reinvent-the-Toilet-Expo-speech" target="_blank" rel="noopener">over $223 billion per year</a> in lost wages and extra healthcare.</p><p>With <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gates-foundation-ceo-sue-desmond-hellman-let-women-end-poverty-in-africa-2018-9" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stratospheric rates of population growth in cities across Africa and Asia</a>, the problem is only set to get worse. </p><p>"Unless we do something, the cycle of disease will actually be accelerated," Gates said. </p><p>Gates doesn't think it's practical to expect the entire world to connect their homes to yet-to-be-built sewer systems and wastewater treatment plants. That's why he has been on a quest to do for toilets what he argues Microsoft did for computing: get the business off a centralized, "mainframe" system.</p><p>Gates started by asking engineers at universities around the world a simple but yet-unanswered question: "could you leapfrog the long-accepted 'gold standard' of sanitation?" </p><p>"A decade ago, I didn't think I would be able to tell you so much about poop," Gates said.</p><h2>The first generation of sewer-free toilets is here, but they aren't cheap yet</h2><p>After seven years and $200 million of investment, the first batch of products from the "Reinvent the Toilet Challenge" is being tested in locations around India, Africa, and China. </p><p>One of the first new toilets is the solar-powered Eco-san system, pictured below. Based on technology <a href="http://hoffmann.caltech.edu/research/contribution.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">developed at Cal Tech,</a> the Eco-san extracts clean water from human waste and reuses it for future flushing.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>©Gates Archive/Shawn Koh</span></p><p class="caption">An Eco-san Toilet at Yixing Huankeyuan Elementary School in Yixing City, Jiangsu Province, China.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Other models are also in the works from companies and universities around the world. </p><p>The <a href="http://wusfnews.wusf.usf.edu/post/newgenerator-bringing-clean-water-and-energy-south-africa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">University of South Florida's NewGenerator</a> treatment system also runs on solar energy and can be hooked up to any existing toilet. It uses a nano-membrane filter (kind of like a coffee filter) with feces-digesting anaerobic bacteria inside to filter clean water out of the waste.</p><p>Another toilet from <a href="https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/case-studies/research-case-studies/nano-membrane-toilet" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cranfield University in the UK</a> comes equipped with a little trap door odor barrier and scraper so that it requires no water for flushing. Clean water is filtered out of waste via a large, orange screw in the tank, and solid waste is burned inside the toilet's combustor, which converts the waste into ash and energy. (Thankfully, this all happens out of sight of the people who are using the toilet.)</p><p>"Heat from the burning is used to help dry the next batch of solids," as <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqcknE_Ic_g%20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gates explained in a video</a>. He added, "it's a very clever toilet." </p><p>Yet another model, from Swiss engineering firm Helbling, is called the HTClean Toilet and it functions like a pressure cooker for poo. The immense pressure and heat helps the waste separate into water and solids that aren't toxic.</p><p><a href="https://pratt.duke.edu/about/news/coimbatore-sanitation" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Duke University</a> has also started testing its Gates-funded toilet this year at a textile mill in Coimbatore, India. The system, shown below, separates solid and liquid waste and makes it possible to safely re-use the water for flushing. </p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>©Gates Archive/Ryan Lobo</span></p><p class="caption">Prateek K, a technical field consultant engineer, stands next to the Duke system, which dries out fecal matter and separates parasitic worms from feces, allowing for water to be recycled or discharged.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>None of these sewer-free toilets are yet at a price that's feasible for individual homes. For now, the new toilets are going to be used at schools, apartment complexes, and community bathroom areas, Gates said.</p><p>But his eventual goal is for off-grid toilets to be used in homes around the world. He <span>told the crowd in Beijing that he's ready to spend an additional $200 million developing the technology for those next-generation toilets. But Gates </span>hopes that someday, the private sector will start developing sewer-free home toilets, and compete to provide those toilets to the 4.5 billion people around the world who don't have them now. </p><p><span>"We estimate that by 2030, the opportunity here is over $6 billion a year," he said. </span></p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>©Gates Archive/Samantha Reinders</span></p><p class="caption">Children at the Gugulethu Primary School in KwaMashu, outside of Durban, South Africa, on September 19, 2018. The school is a recipient of a new Eco-san toilet system, care of the Reinvent the Toilet Challenge.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><h2>Gates is also investing in self-powered sewage systems </h2><p>Gates is also obsessed with something called an Omni Processor, which is essentially a much smaller version of a waste treatment plant. </p><p>The small plants, one of which is already on the ground in Dakar, Senegal, can serve between 5,000 and 100,000 customers and are completely self-powered. They take in toilet waste, kill pathogens in the sewage, and convert it into "products with commercial value - like clean water, electricity, and fertilizer," Gates said. It's a lot like what astronauts do on the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-you-go-to-bathroom-space-nasa-astronaut-2018-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">International Space Station</a> - turning their pee into clean, drinkable H2O.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>©Gates Archive/Sam Phelps</span></p><p class="caption">Technician Idrissa Coulibaly walks to the Janicki Omni Processor in Dakar, Senegal on September 25, 2018.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Gates is so enthused about the Omni Processor's clean, recycled water that he once drank it himself.</p><p>"It tasted great," he told the Beijing crowd. "I'd be glad to do it again any time." </p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>©Gates Archive/Sam Phelps</span></p><p class="caption">Waste collector Assane Cissé (left) and Mariama Seck vacuum human waste from a reservoir inside a courtyard at a home in the neighborhood of Gúediaye, Dakar, Senegal on September 25, 2018. Waste collectors remove human waste from a reservoir underneath the home with a tube and vacuum system. The waste is then transported to the Omni Processor in Dakar for treatment.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Gates never thought that he'd turn from a computer whiz into a toilet geek.</p><p>"I definitely didn't think that my wife would have to tell me that in some cases I'm talking too much about toilets and how this <keyword id="41551" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="science">science</keyword> of combusting the feces works," he said.</p><p>But he's committed to the task, since better toilets could help save millions of lives and open up an entirely new market. </p><p>"A whole new product category is being introduced here," Gates said. </p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/waterless-toilet-future-backed-bill-gates-foundation-2017-5">Bill Gates is backing the waterless toilet of the future - here's how it works</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

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