A new study finds that a 4% reduction in China's carbon emissions by 2030 could save a total of $464.5 billion in healthcare costs, writes Chase Purdy for Quartz. “We have all these policy goals for a transition toward a more sustainable society,” says Associate Prof. Noelle Selin. “Mitigating air pollution, a leading cause of death, is one of them, and avoiding dangerous climate change is another.”
In this video, Reuters reporter Elly Park spotlights a new technique developed by MIT researchers to purify contaminated water. Park explains that the, “highly-selective process can even capture micropollutants, things that can exist in small, but potentially dangerous amounts in water.”
Boston Globe reporter Alex Kingsbury writes that a new study by MIT researchers shows that Indian monsoons have been getting stronger over the past 15 years. Kingsbury explains that the findings, “came as quite a surprise: Since the 1950s, conventional wisdom has been that India was drying up.”
MIT researchers have developed a device that captures pollution emitted from a car’s tailpipe, and turns it into high-quality ink, reports Melissa Lott for Scientific American. “A typical ballpoint pen holds about 0.25 milliliters of ink – meaning that one vehicle can produce almost 3 pens worth of ink per minute,” explains Lott.
Guardian reporter Eliot Stein writes about Media Lab spinoff Graviky Labs, which has developed an exhaust filter that turns diesel exhaust into ink and paint. “If each of the 20,000 black cabs in London had our product,” says founder Anirudh Sarma, “we could clean 30 trillion litres of air a year.”
MIT researchers have estimated that 1,200 people in Europe could die prematurely due to excess emissions from Volkswagen vehicles sold in Germany, reports Steph Yin for The New York Times. Research assistant Guillaume Chossière says that the study demonstrates why manufacturers should make nitrogen oxides emissions “as low as possible by allowing emissions-control devices to work properly.”
MIT researchers have found that pollution from Volkswagen vehicles rigged to pass vehicle emissions standards tests could lead to 1,200 premature deaths in Europe, according to the AFP. The researchers found that the excess pollution “corresponded to about 1.9 billion euros ($2 billion) in health costs and lost labor productivity.”
Boston Herald reporter Jordan Graham writes that MIT researchers have estimated that excess pollution from VW vehicles sold in Germany could lead to 1,200 premature deaths in Europe. Graham writes that the researchers found that the pollution “will likely lead to an increase in respiratory disease.”
MIT researchers have found that excess emissions from Volkswagen vehicles could cause 1,200 premature deaths in Europe, reports Alexander Kaufman for The Huffington Post. “The scientists determined their findings by applying widely accepted epidemiological techniques, gleaned from decades-long studies tracking the effects of exposure to pollution on large populations over time."
TIME reporter Charlotte Alter writes that a new study by MIT researchers shows that excess air pollution from Volkswagen vehicles could shorten the lives of thousands of people in Europe. The researchers estimated that “1,200 lives would be shortened because of the increased air pollution.”
Atlantic reporter Robinson Meyer writes about an MIT study that shows greenhouse gases lingering in the atmosphere will cause sea levels to rise for years. “The ocean remembers, and that’s really the key message,” explains Prof. Susan Solomon. “The sea takes a very, very long time to cool down once you’ve heated it up.”
A new study co-authored by MIT researchers finds that methane lingering in the Earth’s atmosphere could cause sea levels to rise for hundreds of years after emissions have been curbed, reports Chelsea Harvey for The Washington Post. “The study underlines the importance of curbing greenhouse gas emissions as quickly as possible,” Harvey explains.
CSAIL researchers have found that ride-sharing taxis controlled by a citywide computer system could decrease the number of cars on the road in New York City, reports Clive Cookson for the Financial Times. The researchers found that “3,000 four-passenger cars could satisfy 98 per cent of the city’s demand.”
BBC News reporter Soutik Biswas writes that research affiliate Moshe Alamaro will use a jet engine to create updrafts that send emissions to higher altitudes in an effort to make the toxic air in Delhi safer. "This could lead to a successful implementation of a new technology for smog mitigation all over the world," says Alamaro.
Research affiliate Moshe Alamaro hopes to reduce smog in Delhi using a jet engine, according to The Economist. By placing a jet engine next to one of India’s coal-fired power plants, Alamaro hopes to create a “‘virtual chimney’ which would carry the trapped pollution above it, so that it could be dispersed in the wider atmosphere.”