Newsletter no. September 2014
30
Scouting news for innovation
Five Cities Selected as Winners in Bloomberg Philanthropies 2014 Mayors Challenge Bloomberg Philanthropies has awarded its 2014 Mayors Challenge to Barcelona over the proposals of 20 other European cities shortlisted earlier this year. The Spanish city was selected for its plan to deal with the problems of an ageing population. The award, developed to promote the most creative and transferable solutions to intractable social problems such as public health, unemployment and transportation, carries a €5 million prize for Barcelona to put toward implementing the plan. In addition, four other cities (Athens, Kirklees, Stockholm and Warsaw) were awarded also with €1 million each for their projects.
smart energy
The section presents some news about relevant research studies authored by prestigious firms like the MIT and the Michigan State University. It also focuses on two large projects for building the Europe’s first commercial batterystorage unit and MeyGen, one of the most innovative renewable energy system in the world.
smart city
Let's have a look to some recent developments on famous initiatives like those from Brantford and Chicago. The section also describes the Facebook's plans for creating Internet-connected drones, and the latest advancements on the topic of self-driving cars. Finally it presents a solution to disrupt the waste management industry.
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smart health
The section dedicated to Smart Health describes some new solutions dedicated to physical rehabilitation, the use of 3D printing to improve medical research and the importance of integrating consumer tech to health IT systems to reduce costs and collect and analyze a bigger amount of data about patient behavior.
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Smart energy Technologies and applications for future energy-related processes
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Recycling Old Batteries into Solar Cells The system is proposed by researchers at MIT and aims at recycling materials from discarded car batteries (a potential source of lead pollution) into new, long-lasting solar panels that provide emissionsfree power. The work was supported by Italian energy company Eni. Europe’s First Commercial Battery-Storage Unit Starts in Germany The 5-megawatt unit built by Younicos AG runs on 25,600 Samsung lithium-manganoxid cells and is connected to the grid. The system integrates a growing share of wind and solar power into the network. Solar Energy That Doesn’t Block the View Scientists at the Michigan State University announced the creation of a “transparent luminescent solar concentrator” that could turn windows into solar-power generators. It works by absorbing light in the invisible spectrum and then re-emitting it in the infrared.
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Global Solar Market Continues to Rise and Shine Frost & Sullivan estimates that the market will double in 2020. Ikea Adding Solar Panel Sales to Its Stores in Eight New Countries IKEA’s grand plan to make residential solar power more accessible. The International Energy Efficiency Scorecard The 2nd edition of this study analyzes the world’s 16 largest economies. Tidal Energy Project to Be Constructed in the Pentland Firth The system would have up to 269 turbines submerged on the seabed. EIB Finances the DBSA’s Renewable Energy Project in Northern Cape The facility will collect solar energy using parabolic-trough technology.
Scouting news for innovation
SPECIAL CONTENTS Events
ICRERA 2014 Milwaukee (Wisconsin) | October 19-22, 2014 International conference on renewable energy research and applications RENEXPO South-East Europe Bucharest (Romania) | November 19-21, 2014 7th international trade fair and conference for renewable energy and energy efficiency Reports
Key World Energy Statistics 2014 It contains timely, clearly-presented data on supply, transformation and consumption of all major energy sources World Energy Investment Outlook This special report in the World Energy Outlook series provides a comprehensive update of the energy investment to 2035 infographics
Why Does the Energy Sector Need Water? It explains how water is used throughout energy generation process The Growth of Solar Industry It presents facts&figures about the solar energy sector, the fastest growing segment in the renewable energy market in the USA Videos
The SHOWE-IT Project This video presents the initiative co-funded by the EC, which aims at reducing energy and water consumption in social housing 90 Seconds on Energy Efficiency It explains what is energy efficiency within the telecom network and analyzes the reasoning behind this concept
Newsletter no. 30 І September 2014
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Smart City Networks and systems for the new requirements of urban environments
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How a Finnish Startup Is Trying to Disrupt the Waste Management Industry The company basically installs wireless sensors into garbage containers, which monitor the fill levels in real time. This data is then gathered and analyzed in order to optimize collection schedules. Facebook Lays Out Its Roadmap for Creating InternetConnected Drones Facebook envisions drones the size of a Boeing 747 commercial airliner and wants to keep them flying for months, even years, at a time to provide Internet access to unconnected parts of the world. Urban Farming Co. Takes Aquaponic Farming to Europe's Rooftops The company, which is based in Zurich, is on a mission to bring commercial-grade urban farming to consumers hungry for fresh locally-grown produce, and it’s doing so from the rooftops.
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Smart Sensors Let You Monitor Your Home Any Way You Want Notion's sensors can be thermostats, burglar alarms-or anything else. Amazon Tests Smart Home Gadgets, Expands Hardware Lab They are testing gadgets such as a one-button device to order supplies. How Sharing Will Define the Future of Urban Life Bandwagon developed a mobile application for sharing taxis. The Modern Shopping Mall Is Topped with an Urban Farm, Not with Cars People will do everything they need to do without leaving the area. The Latest on Self-Driving Cars The problem is not technology, it is legislation and responsibility aspects.
Scouting news for innovation
SPECIAL CONTENTS Events
IIE TTM 2014 San Jose (California) | October 21-22, 2014 The third organized symposium on multiple future technologies Smart City Exhibition 2014 Bologna (Italy) | October 22-24, 2014 A 3 days exhibition characterized by meetings, workshops and much more Reports
Better Growth, Better Climate The interactive report seeks to inform economic decision-makers in both public and private sectors The Fourth Industrial Revolution How the 4th stage of the industrial revolution is upon us due to the far reaching integration of Operational Technology (OT) and IT infographics
Rent a Car vs Drive Your Own Toyota's rental car infographic can help you decide which is the best value so you can make the smart choice How Will Small Cells Combat the Data Tsunami? Small cell underlay adds capacity for outdoor hotspots and indoor Videos
Chicago: a Smart City Story Chicago has opened up 600+ data sets that inform citizens, and help the city identify needs and opportunities Brantford a Smart City! It describes the six components of a smart city providing details along with examples of existing technology, programs and services
Newsletter no. 30 І September 2014
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Smart health Remote monitoring, health-related data collection and presentation models, support to assistive processes
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VirtualRehab Receives 1st Device CE Mark Approval for Motion Capture Physical Rehabilitation Software in Europe Based on Microsoft Kinect and Leap Motion VR technology VirtualRehab is a clinically validated physical rehabilitation system which allows the monitoring of the progress of patients from anywhere in the world. Paralyzed Rats Take 1,000 Computer-Controlled Steps Scientists from the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale of Lausanne have discovered how to control the limbs of a completely paralyzed rat in real time, to help it walk again by electrically stimulating the severed part of the spinal cord. Big Data Is Changing the Way We Get Well Big data is positively affecting work among caregivers in numerous ways, allows them to collect more data about patient behavior and sentiment, speeds up the decision-making process, and optimizes resources around patient-traffic trends.
SPECIAL CONTENTS Events
European Telemedicine Conference Rome (Italy) | October 7-8, 2014 Latest innovations in telemedicine to improve patient care, increase access and lower costs Games for Health Europe Utrecht (Netherlands) | October 27-28, 2014 How serious gaming can contribute to more advanced healthcare services across Europe Reports
The Future of Health Key trends that are shaping the future of patient care and healthcare systems and the emergence of an empowered patient Rise in Telehealth Use Creates Need for IT Policy, Legislation The growing demand for telehealth reflects the important role telemedicine plays infographics
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Mechanized Human Hands Improve Function Lost to Nerve Damage For people who have lost the use of their hands due to nerve trauma. 3D Printing Closer to the Heart For physicians to better understand the complex relationship of the tumor. MobileOptx Uses Device Innovation to Bring Endoscope and iPhone Together To capture and transmit high quality endoscopic stills and video. Woman Gets Life-Changing Bionic Eye Implant A pair of camera-equipped glasses feed her brain visual information. Link Consumer Tech to Health IT More integration between consumers' technology and healthcare IT systems.
Scouting news for innovation
10 Years of CHITS The Infographic shows the history of CHITS, Community Health Information Tracking System, an electronic medical record Are Patients Ready for Telehealth? Telehealth expands access to healthcare services for people living in medically underserved areas, are patient ready? Videos
Samsung Healthcare Solutions: Latest releases from IFA 2014 Berlin Some examples of how Samsung is realizing its vision for the future of healthcare Healthcare Video How ICT solutions enable healthcare providers to increase efficiency and improve outcomes in aging people assistance
Newsletter no. 30 І September 2014