Innovation Under Examination

Through a consortium of institutions that includes Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), MIT, and Northeastern University, a new program is “applying engineering principles to improve the delivery of health care for veterans in New England.”

The New England Health Care Engineering Partnership (NEHCEP) will “engage faculty and students in engineering projects with the VA” at WPI. Read the full news release for information on the planned improvements and projects

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Recently in The New York Times “Green Blog” new ‘smart window technology’ was highlighted.

A startup company in Colorado, RavenBrick, claims to have developed a new “smart film that can reduce a building’s energy consumption by 30 to 40 percent” when applied to windows.

Many readers commented on the article questioning the energy claims of the new windows. The U.S. Department of Energy has announced that it will install the windows at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s new Research Facility, “to give the technology its first commercial test run.”

Read the article here

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With the World Cup scheduled to start on June 11, physicsworld.com took up the discussion behind the engineering and creation of the new FIFA World Cup ball, the Adidas Jabulani.

The Adidas Jabulani, official ball of the 2010 FIFA World Cup
The Adidas Jabulani, official ball of the 2010 FIFA World Cup

Many of the players who will be playing in this month’s Cup have denounced the ball for being ‘unpredicatable.” The article speaks with the head engineer “who led the testing of the ball” and a physicist whose tests support the players claims.

In a related story from Yahoo News, the island cabinet of Taiwan has announced that “nine teams competing in the World Cup will be wearing environmentally friendly jerseys made from recycled plastic bottles.” Read more

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