Come from many of those sources. A Service Engineer has come up with an interesting concept. Andrea petrecki has a vision he wants to build a gravity assisted battery to compensate for the fluctuating nature of solar and wind energy if it works itll be able to store millions of times more energy than a conventional household that are e. Vision is a system for storing large amounts of energy so we can increase the sheriff of nubile energy is in the grid. Or right now its about 30 to 35 percent thats the limit because the sun doesnt shine constantly what we need is a more economical and efficient storage system that and this is what his batteries will look like towers 60 to 120 meters high made of hundreds of cement blocks built around the 6 armed crane when theres excess energy in the grid it will Power Electric motors which move the crane arms to lift and stack the 35 ton blocks. Now the battery is charged. When electricity is needed the blocks are let down again generators in the crane arms turn the potential energy of the stat blocks into Electrical Energy which is returned to the grid this leaves the tower discharged. Cement blocks essentially function the way the water in a pumped storage hydroelectric plant but with the advantage according to the inventors that the towers can be built on any terrain and theyre cheaper. Were going to store the energy very cheaply because we use existing Technology Like motors and generators mechanical systems that have been around for a. 100 years. This seemingly simple idea has garnered quite a lot of attention after progress his Team Presented the concept at an Energy StorageDevelopers Conference in the us microsoft founder bill gates mentioned the company to his millions of followers he wrote wind and solar wont reach their potential until we vastly improve Energy Storage there are some exciting Companies Working in this space like bill gross and an energy vault. Tweet from bill gates made is known around the world but that wasnt the only factor but after the official presentation there was a lot of interest on the part of many different investors. Bill gates tweet helped of course. Here in southern switzerland the vision is actually taking shape start up as well financed thanks to a generous investment from japans softbank and tata power indias biggest electricity provider has ordered the tower. The one here is a prototype andrea has yet to prove that the idea really works. Because although the concept sounds simple its quite complicated to put into practice. It is the Intelligence Software that controls the crane autonomously it has to grasp the concrete blocks and reposition them without vibration and without any human involvement. Once completed this small scale prototype will have the chance to prove itself as a future technology for Energy Storage. Making the switch to renewables is a project that will be with us for years to come. But at the moment most headlines are about the new coronavirus in late 2019 a hitherto unknown coronavirus strain appeared in the city of will happen in china it soon spread to other countries again and again virus outbreaks threaten the health of communities and pressure researchers to develop vaccines. Thats the case with many pathogens. Heres a little a. B. C. About. Some 3. 00 to 5000. 00 species of viruses have been classified worldwide scientists believe that millions more have yet to be identified. By researchers are often transmitted by droplet infection their microscopic parasites that are neither really dead nor aligned they are not made of cells dont carry out. And cant replicate outside of a host when viruses enter the body meaning when we become infected they insert their genetic material into the host cells the virus hijacks the cells in order to reproduce. When the host cell done thousands of new viruses are released and the process starts all over again. In contrast if viruses bacteria dont need a has to be p. T. S. And they perform generally beneficial functions in our bodies when we are infected with pathogenic bacteria we can beat them with antibiotics. Well not necessarily the problem is that bacteria are increasingly developing resistance to antibiotics. Bacteria reproduce by Cell Division every so often theres a replication error such random mutations can drive evolution via Natural Selection usually in there of little consequence the mutated bacterial form eventually dies out in some cases however a mutation can result in resistance to antibiotics and when antibiotics are used to bacteria with the meaty and proliferate. The antibiotic kills most of the bacteria but the mutated bacteria are unaffected. The resistant bacteria survive and multiply. The use of antibiotics leads to a population of resistant bacteria. In hospitals antibiotics are prescribed to many patients that increases the chances that a resistant strain of bacteria will emerge and patients sometimes bring antibiotic resistant bacteria with them when theyre hospitalized those super bugs are often washed into the waste water system and then into the environment they end up on crops in domesticated and wild animals and eventually enoughs its a vicious cycle. Antibiotics are also used in large quantities in livestock farming that also promotes the rise of resistant bacteria which end up in the environment. New bacterial strains can spread around the world quickly even within days to combat. The rise of superbugs we need to understand how they spread and we need to develop new drugs to combat them. Antimicrobial substances. Where every bacterial colonies are trying to survive and thrive. And ordinary clump of soil is brimming with bacteria and. They compete with their neighbors for resources and space. Microbes have a secret weapon in their arsenal they produce chemical substances. The competition. Microbial compounds or antibiotics are of great interest to researchers they isolate the microorganisms grow them in the lab and extract the antibiotics they produce. In a screening process. Then samples of the soil and. Are added to the culture. The bacteria grow on the plate except where they encounter an anti microbial agent that theyre vulnerable to known as a zone of inhibition. Thats evidence that the substance is preventing bacterial growth in the zone one day it could be the basis for a new drug. Effects of drugs could come from a place like this. Mangroves considered to be one of the most productive habitats on the planet protecting coastal areas from erosion and providing. Microorganisms. There the object of study by young scientists from indonesia. Shes currently working at a research institute. Development of new. Antibiotics is a race against time most antibiotics were derived from substances produced by soil dwelling microorganisms at the helm of the center for Infection Research in germany 70 october yana is studying sediment from mangrove swamps to isolate bacteria that produce antibiotic substances the samples come from a Nature Conservation area in indonesia. The microorganisms in this house have adapted to their tidal environment to thrive in the sediment and brackish water theyve evolved to produce a variety of novel onto microbial compounds could this be a new source for the drugs that are so urgently needed. Something. That we all know the world needs new antibiotics than. A growing number of pathogens are developing resistance to the antibiotics used in medicine today. Thats because so many antibiotics are being overused and misused. But the biologists have been trying to find as many microorganisms as possible that produce antibiotic substances i know work is paid off shes already isolated 28 previously unknown species mostly mix of bacteria. And mix of bacteria produce a large variety of antibiotic substances. Some of them can even produce compounds that are effective against malaria or viruses. And. The mix of bacteria found among grove ecosystems have also attracted the attention of a biologist youre watching brink. He believes that indonesia which is home to about one 5th of the worlds mangrove ecosystems could be a rich source of useful microbes. The research is still in its infancy but center on this project is a promising start then he has done a very interesting work with this looks a bit to realize that this is a special group of bacteria we are. Working on and she has isolated a number of novel specious and characterized them and is now on to states that she can look for bioactive compounds which are produced by us is a unique are by crawling missiles indonesia is having huge and wide biodiversity and especially in the field of microland isms this biodiversity is not investigated. Simply octavian his initial findings showed that the mix of bacteria among grove swamps include many recipe sheets. The bio octave compounds they produce will be screened to see if they have anti Microbial Properties which could help stem the rise of super bugs that have become a Global Health crisis. Yes there are press that. Were very surprised to find that nearly every species we identified was a rare one. Surely we only read about them in books or online but here weve been able to work with them directly but im very proud that indonesia has so much potential. Certainly october yana will soon complete her project at the helm center then she plans to return home to indonesia where shell continue her work on mixer bacteria and the mission to find new antibiotics. Our next report is about a far away planet or planet. Pluto was discovered 90 years ago a sensational find the same year disney named a cut to doug after the 9th planet in the solar system. Recently now also sent a mission past puso which took some spectacular pictures but its futile is dogged by controversy if you in tanzania sent in a question about that. Why is pluto no longer a planet. For 76 years pluto was known as the 9th planet in the solar system far out in space orbited our central star the sun pluto was the tiniest of the planets until 2006. Then the International Astronomical union the i you held as General Assembly in prague and demoted pluto to dwarf planet it was a controversial decision which angered many astronomers the american astronomer Clyde Tombaugh discovered pluto in 930 and it was feigned as the 1st planetary discovery in the u. S. In 2015 many space enthuses hope that nasa is new Horizons Programme might restore pluto status as a planet the spacecraft flew past it and took sensational photos. They revealed a complex and dynamic landscape with 3000 meter High Mountains of frozen water juice of frozen methane and possibly even volcanoes spewing ice and it has an atmosphere and its still not a planet even though it all gets the sun just like the remaining 8 planets know because the new definition of a planet includes a criterion that pluto does not fulfill. The i use as a planet has to quote clear the neighborhood around its orbit that means its sweet sour other material in the vicinity to become the dominant object in its all the tools are in. The earth has done that as have the others. 7 planets in our solar system but pluto failed to make the grade. Why out there in the region of its orbit there are many other minor planets known as the transnet to me and objects some of them quite similar to pluto like the even more massive heiress it was discovered in 2005 and ultimately led to plutos downfall. Clue showdowns to feel the other 2 criteria for planets. That it gets a star and has enough mass to take on a nearly round shape that at least makes it a dwarf planet oh well it remains an absolutely fascinating world the far reaches of the song system. On the internet youll find plenty of calls to be returned to the pantheon of planets. Weve picked out to particularly interesting views in support. Rock legend brian may who has a doctorate in astrophysics is strongly pro puter. This list till object was discovered and named to planets before he was born. And at the time he says planets with thought to be roughly spherical objects that the sun that makes pierce so a classical planet for him end of story. Nasa administrator jim dryden star in a green. The way it should define a planet is based on its intrinsic values not the values the constantly change like orbital dynamics just so when i think about pluto and what weve got dr miller eyes and heres what we know. Pluto has an ocean under its surface. Pluto has. Complex organic compounds on a surface pluto has a multilayer atmosphere and pluto has its own moves im here to tell you as the nasa administrator. I believe pluto is a planet. That is right why are very glad you made some questions arent easy to answer but that shouldnt stop you asking them send us your science question as a video text ovoid smell if we enter it on the show well send you a little surprise as a thank you come on just ask. Youll find more science stories on our website and to get in touch on twitter and facebook. Our planet has a problem with garbage we asked you on Facebook Whats the situation like in your country do you separate your garbage do you recycle. Ranch and writes that there are a lot of initiatives on garbage processing in india many municipalities now separate their garbage including the one where he lives. Andrea says that households in rumania usually dont recycle you can take the garbage to recycling bins yourself but theyre usually not close by. But not 0 posts that imperiled why they are flooded with garbage thats not recycled he sees that as one reason for widespread dengue fever. Wreak riots that the university of the South Pacific and lao cholera fiji has been specifically for plastic bottles where they go after that its not clear maybe theyre really used in the factories that produce them. And in a post from nigeria brown says. Garbage isnt recycled there but burnt which is very hazardous for the environment and people who live in the rivers tend to discharge their waste into the water. Thanks for your comments. Clearly the problem of waste is huge and it could get bigger a study by the world bank forecasts that the amount of garbage will increase by 70 percent by the year 2050 that would be an incredible 3400000000 tonnes. Figures like that show that we have to take action rice where we live our next report takes us to the brazilian capital where garbage is the subject of a University Course back to basics. This patch of land near the capital brasilia used to be the biggest landfill site in latin america in 2018 but dump was closed and the 60 meter High Mountain of garbage was covered with. Construction waste is still being dumped there although thats illegal. The National Waste policy aims to eradicate landfills and promote recycling. But there are still 2 and a half 1000 open landfill sites across the country. Lucy often and its worked here as a waste picker for 20 years she supported her 4 children by selling anything of value she found the family lived in a shanty town right next door at 1st she was very much against the closure of the dam she had little faith in the city authorities pledged to provide jobs for some 750 trash because in new recycling facilities but now thats where she works and shes changed her mind. You know up and say well shit i never thought i might one day have a real job me a simple waste picker with no right. No social insurance. And now i work here i even have an office. If only i paid a little better it would be perfect as you know my eyes she and her colleagues now belong to a cooperative that operates one of the recycling facilities what they are depends on how much trash they sought lucy off and on days is a supervisor she makes sure the work is done properly. And that at the bottom of it how many. Half a knife they had if there arent enough people working on the Conveyor Belt a lot of recyclable material gets through then we have to check it to make sure things dont end up in residual waste that dont belong there if i see that happening i put more people on at the end of the belt. The process is set to become more efficient with the help of some students from the university of brasilia until recently that professor paulo says with those surveys gomez was Deputy Director of the municipal Sanitation Authority he helped restructure brazilians Waste Management systems. Everybody is collecting Something Different she sorting out glass bottles shes sorting out plastic bottles further along somebody is pulling out the cardboard im afraid its possible the process could be made more efficient if the positions were switched around thats something we need to test this value. But not all the trash delivered here to be sorted can be recycled much of it has to be disposed of. The aim of the program is to increase the proportion of waste that can be recycled. Everything that can be stored and soldiers returned to the production chain to the recycling at district if it doesnt end up being dumped so were saving the cost of taking it to the landfill extending the lifespan of that site and reducing emissions. Professor paolo das race has organized across this. A plenary seminar at the university. Students from various fields are working on developing sustainable Waste Management solutions. One approach is to make Waste Sorting more efficient another is to focus on technology trucks sensors logistics others aim to raise environmental awareness how can the public be involved more closely in the Waste Recycling process use the program bring students together with representatives of the Family SupportSanitation Authority the recycling cooperative and also commercial enterprises. The university of brasilia is setting up a Postgraduate Program in Waste Management. Among brazil cities the capital has taken the lead in developing a sustainable Waste Management strategy. Sorting out collection have just been expanded across the city to see if a non there is optimistic about her future theyll now be more waste delivered to her cooperative to source and that means she and her colleagues will soon be earning more. Thats it for today on our next program a Research Project in the rockaways studying insect pollinators like bees why are they in danger and how can they be risky and join us for more on tomorrow or today next week see you then by. Led by left hundreds of millions of years into the constant back to the pound guy a supercontinent. The highest concentration of fossils including fibs and reptiles even relatives of toronto saurus rex is located in eastern germany. Allium tama just continue to uncover sensational finds. The. Next dollar a. Lawyer. Car culture. Car a hair. Superman. Superfood stylish doggone colletto. Lifestyle during the last. 60 minutes. Tells my story. Of the people who finance me. Dedication and lives to me. I am not to dumb to tell. Please my secrets. I have money to my citys days for centuries and accompanied my country through its finest hours until the day i mean. Not to down to. Dance a fool and. This journey begins in the dark a long time ago and stretches far into the future. Stone for stone it tells the story of life in what is today the range in central germany millions of years ago