Watch the full podcast! https://chinauncensored.tv/programs/p…
There are certain themes that movies in China can’t have, and one of them is time travel. In this clip we discuss China’s ban on time travel, how the CCP got Tesla and Elon Musk to heel, and why the CCP no longer needs Hollywood. Our guest is Chris Fenton, the producer of Bad Counselors, which comes to theaters July 22–27, 2026. https://www.badcounselors.com
Category: sustainability
Battery ‘bath’ restores spent lithium-ion cells to 95% power, cuts recycling costs 56%
The critical minerals that power lithium-ion batteries are in high demand and short supply, especially for the U.S., which must rely on importing resources such as nickel and cobalt to manufacture the technology.
Cornell researchers have now developed a more efficient and cost-effective way to recover almost the full life of these batteries after they are spent. By using an electrochemical solution to regenerate their electrodes, the recycled batteries can regain up to 95% of their original power and last longer when reused, the researchers demonstrated.
The process could also slash current recycling costs by 56% and would be more environmentally friendly than current methods.
How languages recycle parts of words to avoid confusion
Many languages recycle words, giving them different meanings. For example, in English, “run” can mean to move quickly but also to manage something, like “run a company.” In Spanish, “lengua” is both the word for tongue and language, as in “la lengua española.” This type of word reuse is known as colexification.
But there is another type of recycling, and that is partial colexification, where languages reuse only parts of words. A good example is the word “grand,” which is shared in “grandfather” and “grandmother.” Until now, very little was known about the rules, patterns and how widespread this type of recycling is across different languages.
A new study published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour explores how different languages systematically reuse these smaller word parts while balancing efficiency with the need to keep meanings distinct. Barend Beekhuizen at the Department of Language Studies at the University of Toronto Mississauga in Canada has published a News & Views piece on the research in the same journal.
3D photothermal design unlocks 8.5-fold higher solar evaporation for desalination and crop irrigation
The global shortage of freshwater has become a critical challenge. Conventional water treatment relies heavily on fossil fuels and associated infrastructure, which can make it unsuitable for remote and harsh regions. In contrast, solar thermal evaporation is a promising alternative, but its application is limited by material performance and production constraints.
Now, researchers from the Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Shenzhen University have developed a new three-dimensional (3D) photothermal structure that greatly improves solar evaporation efficiency.
The new structure tightly integrates polymer chains with hollow multishelled structures (HoMS), yielding a record evaporation rate of 38.14 kg m-2 h-1 —a figure 8.5 times higher than rates previously reported for two-dimensional membrane systems.
Red Mars to Green — Giving the Planet a Touch of Terraforming
GOLDEN, Colorado – Scientists are engaged in research with an eye toward transforming the cold climes of Mars into a far more humane place for Earthlings in the future.
One notion proposed is dispersion of an aerosol meant to motivate the warming of Mars’s atmosphere. The idea is projected to be a first step toward terraforming the Red Planet.
Emerging recently as a new field of study is “applied astrobiology” – to appraise what would be needed to create sustainable habitats and biospheres beyond Earth.
China hits new milestone in space solar power project
XI’AN — Chinese scientists have taken a major step toward building a space solar power station, a giant power plant in space that could one day send energy back to Earth or to spacecraft.
A research team from Xidian University in Northwest China’s Shaanxi province has made significant progress on the Sun Chasing project, or “Zhuri” in Chinese. The team has developed a ground-based test system for wireless power transmission that can charge multiple moving targets at the same time.
In recent tests, the system achieved a wireless power transmission efficiency of 20.8 percent from direct current to direct current over a distance of 100 meters. It delivered 1,180 watts of power. The team has also built a wireless charging system for drones. In a test, a drone flying at 30 kilometers per hour was able to receive 143 watts of stable power from 30 meters away.
David Brin: What’s Important Isn’t Me. And It Isn’t You. It’s Us!
David Brin warned us. In 1989.
Global warming. Cyberwarfare. The World Wide Web, named in a novel before most people had ever heard of it.
I recorded this conversation with him 14 years ago. Astrophysicist. Hugo and Nebula winner. The mind behind the Uplift novels and Existence.
We dug into the most powerful form of science fiction. Not the prophecy that comes true. The prophecy that prevents itself. Orwell’s 1984 is the classic case. The warning so loud the future course-corrects.
We also went straight at #transparency. His book asks a question that hits harder now than it did then: will technology force us to choose between #privacy and freedom? Fourteen years on, with AI watching everything, that question is no longer hypothetical.
And then there is the line from David that I have never been able to shake.
Space Renaissance International at COPUOS 69, Vienna, 10
(SRI) was represented at the 69th Session of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UN COPUOS) in Vienna, Austria, by Bernard Foing, Dr. Gülin Dede, Werner Grandl, and Enes Beşli. The SRI delegation contributed to the session’s dialogue through two technical presentations: one delivered by Werner Grandl, “The Legacy of Gerard K. O’Neill and the Urgency to Start Experimentation on Simulated Gravity,” and another by Dr. Gülin Dede titled “Sustainability Beyond Earth: The Case for an 18th Sustainable Development Goal.” Throughout the session, the delegation engaged in productive discussions with international stakeholders and explored potential avenues for collaboration in support of SRI’s vision for a sustainable and inclusive space future. The delegation also attended the side event “Delivering Water Diplomacy through Space,” jointly co-organised by the European Space Policy Institute and Slovenia.
SRI further observed the “Space4Industry, UNOOSA/UNIDO Signing Ceremony,” co-organised by UNOOSA and UNIDO, as well as the “Space4Resilience Initiative, From Data to Decision: AI-Driven 3D Digital Twin Technologies for Disaster Infrastructure Resilience and Sustainable Industrial Development,” co-organized by UN-SPIDER and Japan.
SRI supports the utilization of space technologies in addressing global challenges, advancing sustainable industry, and strengthening international cooperation.
Merging Humans and AI: The Rise of Biological Computers
It’s no secret that tech companies are racing to build “artificial general intelligence,” or AI that can match a human brain without needing a lifeline. But our brains already do the same heavy lifting with just a fraction of the resources. Whether it’s energy, water, land, components, or, you know… money… human brains are just way cheaper. Right now, you can either buy a human brain cell-based computer… or rent time on a remote one. Yep, even brainpower’s got a subscription plan these days. So what can these living computers actually do? How do they work? And, most importantly, should we be freaking out a little bit?
Watch how deep sea water is now drinkable • how deep sea water is now drinkable.
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