I'm a big fan of Anker's chargers, especially its portable ones, as they tend to be sleek, fast and small enough to shove in my pocket (the last bit is a requirement for me). While the company's products run the gambit price-wise, there's a big sale on one of Anker's more expensive options: the 200W Prime Power Bank. Right now, you can get this power bank and its 100W charging base for just $110, down from $185 — a 41 percent discount.

Anker's 200W portable charger is our choice for best premium power bank thanks to features like charging an iPhone in an average of one hour and 48 minutes. One of the best parts of the power bank is its sleek screen, which shows the power coming in or out and how much battery the accessory is holding. This feature is much more exact than the four dots on my cheaper (but still loved) Anker Nano Power Bank. 

The power bank and charging base both offer one USB port and two USB-C ports so there's plenty of ways to charge your devices. The base also uses magnets to secure its pins to the power bank and charge it upright. Our biggest quip with the power bank was its high price, but with this sale it's definitely worth looking into. 

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

The National Institutes of Health, the crown jewel of biomedical research in the U.S., could face big changes under the new Trump administration, some fueled by pandemic-era criticisms of the agency.

A thimbleful of soil can contain a universe of microorganisms, up to 10 billion by some estimates. Now a group of researchers in Bath, United Kingdom, are building prototype technologies that harvest electrons exhaled by some micro-species.

The idea is to power up low-yield sensors and switches, and perhaps help farmers digitally optimize crop yields to meet increasing demand and more and more stressful growing conditions. There could be other tasks, too, that might make use of a plant-and-forget, low-yield power source—such as monitoring canals for illegal waste dumping.

The research started small, based out of the University of Bath, with field-testing in a Brazilian primary school classroom and a green pond near it—just before the onset of the pandemic.

“We had no idea what the surroundings would be. We just packed the equipment we needed and went,” says Jakub Dziegielowski, a University of Bath, U.K. chemical engineering Ph.D. student. “And the pond was right by the school—it was definitely polluted, very green, with living creatures in it, and definitely not something I’d feel comfortable drinking from. So it got the job done.”

The experiments they did along with kids from the school and Brazilian researchers that summer of 2019 were aimed at running water purifiers. It did so. However, it also wasn’t very efficient, compared to, say, a solar panel.

So work has moved on in the Bath labs: in the next weeks, Dziegielowski will both turn 29 and graduate with his doctorate. And he, along with two other University of Bath advisors and colleagues recently launched a spinoff company—it’s called Bactery—to perfect a prototype for a network of soil microbial fuel cells for use in agriculture.

A microbial fuel cell is a kind of power plant that converts chemical energy stored in organic molecules into electrical energy, using microbes as a catalyst. It’s more often used to refer to liquid-based systems, Dziegielowski says. Organics from wastewater serve as the energy source, and the liquid stream mixes past the electrodes.

A soil microbial fuel cell, however, has one of its electrodes—the anode, which absorbs electrons—in the dirt. The other electrode, the cathode, is exposed to air. Batteries work because ions move through an electrolyte between electrodes to complete a circuit. In this case, the soil itself acts as the electrolyte—as well as source of the catalytic microbes, and as the source of the fuel.

The Bath, U.K.-based startup Bactery has developed a set up fuel cells powered by microbes in the soil—with, in the prototype pictured here, graphite mats as electrodes. University of Bath

Fields full of Watts

In a primary school in the fishing village of Icapuí on Brazil’s semi-arid northeastern coast, the group made use of basic components: graphite felt mats acting as electrodes, and nylon pegs to maintain spacing and alignment between them. (Bactery is now developing new kinds of casing.)

By setting up the cells in a parallel matrix, the Icapuí setup could generate 38 milliwatts per square meter. In work since, the Bath group’s been able to reach 200 milliwatts per square meter.

Electroactive bacteria—also called exoelectrogens or electricigens—take in soluble iron or acids or sugar and exhale electrons. There are dozens of species of microbes that can do this, including bacteria belonging to genera such as Geobacter and Shewanella. There are many others.

But 200 milliwatts per square meter is not a lot of juice: enough to charge a mobile phone, maybe, or keep an LED nightlight going—or, perhaps, serve as a power source for sensors or irrigation switches. “As in so many things, it comes down to the economics,” says Bruce Logan, an environmental engineer at Penn State who wrote a 2007 book, Microbial Fuel Cells.

A decade ago Palo Alto engineers launched the MudWatt, a self-contained kit that could light a small LED. It’s mostly marketed as a school science project. But even now, some 760 million people do not have reliable access to electricity. “In remote areas, soil microbial fuel cells with higher conversion and power management efficiencies would fare better than batteries,” says Sheela Berchmans, a retired chief scientist of the Central Electrochemical Research Institute in Tamil Nadu, India.

Korneel Rabaey, professor in the department of biotechnology at the University of Ghent, in Belgium, says electrochemical micro-power sources—a category that now includes the Bactery battery—is gaining buzz in resource recovery, for uses such as extracting pollutants from wastewater, with electricity as a byproduct. “You can think of many applications that don’t require a lot of power,” he says, “But where sensors are important.”

Three ways health plans can engage, connect with, and delight their pregnant members to nurture goodwill, earn long-term trust, and foster loyal relationships that last.

The post Pregnant and Empowered: Why Trust is the Latest Form of Member Engagement appeared first on MedCity News.

The vast majority of older adults want to age at home. To support that goal, doctors should encourage them to consider their care options — long before they need assistance.

The post Through Early Discussions About Elder Care, Doctors Can Empower Seniors to Age in Place appeared first on MedCity News.

May 12, 2022

Commercial international port terminals owned and operated by Chinese firms provide dual-use capabilities to the People's Liberation Army during peacetime. They enable China to project power into critical regions worldwide by providing military logistics and intelligence networks.

The estranged DMK M.P. spoke about party's corrupt image & predicted its downfall; criticised ‘freebies'; praised Rahul Gandhi; was ‘very downbeat' about United Progressive Alliance's electoral prospects

While the BJP-led NDA won resoundingly in the 2019 Lok Sabha election, it has lost power in five major State assemblies since December 2018.

Who controls India’s water resources: Centre, States or both? How are inter-State river disputes settled? Who supplies drinking water to Indian citizens?

Sep 8, 2023

Energy economist Severin Borenstein, Professor of the Graduate School at the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, discussed the many significant challenges facing the nation’s electricity power sector in the latest episode of “Environmental Insights: Discussions on Policy and Practice from the Harvard Environmental Economics Program.

May 22, 2024

Joseph Nye posits that an open civil society that allows protest can be a soft power asset.

Jun 12, 2024

Joseph Nye argues that even as the hard power of weapons and armies resurges on the global stage, the cultivation and use of soft power will still hold currency in the twenty-first century.

Mar 26, 2024

India aims to become a leading producer of green hydrogen by the next decade as part of its broader industrial and decarbonization strategies. This brief provides an overview of India's current hydrogen strategy, as well as the challenges - land and water scarcity, infrastructure gaps, and financing gaps - that must be addressed in order for India to achieve its ambitious goals.

Aug 5, 2024

This original primer, conducted as research for The Africa Futures Project, is an initial exploration into the evolving roles and increasing influence of “middle powers” in Africa. It covers a diverse array of existing and aspiring middle powers, presenting key points for each nation under four distinct analytical lenses.

Shay Mitchell Free The Children empowerment PSA

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Tony Bennett talks about what it means to have Keep Memory Alive�s 20th annual Power of Love� gala honor him with a 90th birthday celebration on May 21, 2016

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TV witches have always captivated me. As a child, I would sit cross-legged in front of the screen, completely spellbound by reruns of Samantha Stephens from Bewitched on Nick-at-Nite. I remember watching her effortlessly clean the house with a twitch of her nose, never realizing that there was something deeper going on in these portrayals of witches.

Continue reading Witches on TV: Pop Culture and Power at The Wild Hunt.

The U.S. House of Representatives seems to be moving forward with H.R. 6408, a bill that grants the Treasury Department new powers to revoke nonprofits' tax-exempt status if deemed to support terrorism, raising concerns about potential misuse to target political opponents. Critics warn of risks to civil liberties and charitable organizations.

Continue reading Congress Moves to Expand Executive Power Over Nonprofits at The Wild Hunt.

The 1872 presidential election (Ulysses Grant vs Horace Greeley) represented the last time progressive change was  brought about through a national election. Since then, progressive change has either been forced by mass action (Women’s suffrage, Welfare, Social Security, Unemployment insurance, Civil Rights, Gay rights, &c) or been a small part of a bill the bulk … Continue reading A Brief Note on the Power and Limits of Propaganda

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Highlights: Physical touch releases oxytocin, which promotes feelings of trust, empathy, and optimism Touc

Highlights: Curcumin in turmeric aids weight loss and reduces inflammation It shows promise in managing o

The World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) will collaborate to emphasize the transformative impact of assistive

With an impressive 98% accuracy, medlinkartificial intelligence/medlink (AI) accurately predicts various diseases based on the color of the human tongue.

Researchers have developed a CRISPR-based diagnostic tool that can rapidly and accurately detect gene fusions associated with acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) and chronic myeloid leukemia (CML).

New study demonstrates how classical music like Bach, Beethoven, or Mozart influences brain activity, potentially offering new treatments for individuals

Powered by AI and earth observation data, the collaboration between IWMI and Google.org will use remote sensing technologies to monitor land, seas, and the atmosphere.

The post This new AI-powered platform will help harness water reuse in the MENA region first appeared on International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

On top of its climate benefits, the technology is boosting women’s income and confidence while challenging traditional gender norms, writes IWMI's Tanmoy Bhaduri.

The post Solar pumps are empowering women farmers in India first appeared on International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

Tushaar Shah, a Scientist Emeritus at IWMI, comments on the rapid spread of solar pumps among rural communities in many water-starved regions, including India.

The post Solar-powered farming is quickly depleting the world’s groundwater supply first appeared on International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

Matthew McCartney comments on the stabilizing role of hydropower in building resilience to drought.

The post Hydropower: Can it hold up against climate change? first appeared on International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

Tanusree Paul and Naga Velpuri call for investing in interventions to strengthen women’s capabilities and participation in water governance.

The post Mainstreaming gender in participatory irrigation management: Why does empowerment matter? first appeared on International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

Increasing medlinkeye donations/medlink is shown to be vital for sight-restoring surgeries as a study at the University of Southampton underscores

Today, December 1 marks World AIDS Day, dedicated to raising awareness and showing support for individuals living with medlinkHIV/AIDS/medlink while

The Ministry of Labour and Employment reports that a staggering 93% of India's workforce operates in the informal sector. Many of these workers, including

Defibrillators can now save lives while consuming 1,000 times less power, according to a new study. The findings of the study are published in a paper i Chaos/i, by AIP Publishing (!--ref1--).

Power Mobility: Independence and Joy for Medicare Patients

Can urine be used to produce energy without causing pollution. The team of researchers from Bristol certainly feel this

medlinkAI model/medlink ChatGPT can draft administrative medical notes significantly faster than doctors, while still ensuring quality as revealed

New study investigates how convolutional neural networks (CNNs) can enhance nasal endoscopy accuracy and efficiency. The study focuses on overcoming diagnostic