TechnoBuffalo: Hyperloop Transportation Says It Cracked 760 mph Travel With Magnets
Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HTT) had some big news to share on Monday. The firm, one of several working on the ultra-fast rail system, says it found a way to safely travel at the insane speed of 760 miles per hour using a “passive levitation system,” CNBC reports.
The technology is similar to the Maglev train systems used in Asia, but should be cheaper to install and safer to operate. HTT says it plans to use aluminum tracks instead of the more expensive copper coils included in Maglev. The company also claims its system will charge each pod automatically as it decelerates by harnessing the energy caused by braking.
Engadget: The Energy Department Just Started Its Own Podcast
You normally don't think of government agencies embracing podcasts -- even if tight budgets aren't a problem, creativity isn't usually their top priority. The U.S. Department of Energy wants to buck that trend, though. It just started up a podcast, Direct Current, that delves into energy technology, government initiatives and energy history. The first episode touches on the problems surrounding the "soft costs" of solar power, solar technology's milestones and the history of the Energy Department itself.
Vox: Hillary Clinton's Climate and Energy Policies, Explained
Media coverage of the Democratic primary has not shed much light on Hillary Clinton's proposals for climate change and clean energy policy.
But oh, she has proposals. Lots of them! I read the white papers. And I called the campaign to talk through some of the specifics and the broader political thinking that informs them.
Her plans haven't gotten much press -- not as much as, say, her gaffe about coal miners -- but they are exhaustive. In fact, they are quintessentially Clintonesque, rich with wonky detail, conversant with the policy levers available, and careful, always, to stay within the bounds of the politically possible (as she sees it).
Fortune: Here's Another Thing Elon Musk Is Disrupting
Elon Musk’s quest for the mass-produced electric car isn’t only disrupting the traditional auto market -- it’s shaking up the markets for the metals that go into cars too.
The trend is most evident in the market for lithium, which is used in the lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles. Already, growing demand from the auto industry is starting to outrun supply. According to The Wall Street Journal, prices for lithium carbonate, an intermediate product in the refining of lithium, were up 47% from the average price in 2015 in the first quarter of this year. It cited figures from Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, a data provider, showing that prices for lithium rose 28% last year, in which time the Dow Jones Industrial Metals index and the Platinum and Precious Metals index both fell over 40%.
Business Insider: Watch How Much Electric Cars Have Changed Over Time in One GIF
The electric car is finally making a comeback, as Tesla and automotive giants like General Motors roll out the most affordable, reliable models ever seen. By 2030, Argonne National Laboratory expects electric cars will make up over half of the market.
See how electric cars have changed over time in this GIF that Gearheads made, from Anyos Jedlik's model in 1828 to Tesla's Model 3 today.