GE HealthCare Technologies Inc has received a grant of more than $44 million from the Bill & Melinda

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep 27, 2023--

These are just some of the latest examples of tourists behaving badly: A group of German guests toppled

Engineers have invented a way to passively remove snow from solar panels to allow them to keep generating electricity during adverse weather conditions. A team from the University of Toledo in the United States developed a strip coating that causes accumulated snow to slide off solar panels without interfering with their efficiency. Solar panels can generate electricity on cloudy days, however snow cover can completely block their ability to harvest any of the Sun’s energy. This can result in up to 12 per cent loss of electricity generation per year in areas with heavy snowfall. The self-cleaning strips can also be applied to both new and existing solar installations relatively easily. “The strip coatings apply to the lower edge of the panel, resulting in passive snow removal without requiring any energy to operate,” said Hossein Sojoudi, an associate professor in the Department of Mechanical Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering at the University of Toledo. “Our strip coating does not interfere with absorption of sunlight or panel efficiency at any time, does not cause any partial shading or hotspots on the panel, and does not invalidate module warranty and in fact improves the lifetime of the module.” Tests in the US and Japan found that solar panels fitted with the strip achieved more than 5 per cent improved power generation annually. Solar accounted for around 3.4 per cent of electricity generation in the US last year, according to figures from the Energy Information Administration, while more than half of new US electricity-generating capacity in 2023 is forecast to be from solar. Working with industry partners, Dr Sojoudi said he expects thousands of strip coatings to be installed across the US by the end of 2023. “We estimate to reach a production rate of 1 million strip coatings by the end of 2024,” he said. “Our solution is a game-changing technology that can lead to an additional $150 million in additional annual revenue, across states with heavy snowfall... Through the help of our strategic partners, we are delivering on the promise of solar energy all year long.” Read More Battery breakthroughs are about to trigger a transport revolution Hundreds of years after it was discovered, one material is about to change the world World’s first solar-powered hybrid truck tested on public roads Apple explains how the iPhone turned into a camera like none before it UK competition regulator proposes guiding principles to make AI market safe

An elementary school teacher has divided opinion on social media after she was filmed giving a young pupil “birthday spankings”. The clip, which has been shared across TikTok, shows the woman beaming as she brandishes a large, wooden ruler and the boy braces for impact. The child is smiling, too, as he clutches the table, and she swings her makeshift paddle. Thankfully, the teacher stops before making contact, as she repeats a swing for each year of his life. Pranks and peculiar traditions are a quirk of the festivities across the world, with almost every culture having their own special rites and rituals. Bumps, “punches” and other torments have long been a celebrated part of the festivities, as have “spankings”. The North American tradition sees the birthday boy or girl receive the number of hits that corresponds to their age, plus “one to grow on”. @noahglenncarter People are upset with this teacher for giving a student birthday spankings #foryou #teacher #birthday Numerous TikTok commentators pointed out that they’d received the same treatment at the hands of their teachers while in school, though not everyone remembered the custom fondly. Search “birthday spankings” on the platform and you’ll see a number of videos dedicated to people’s realisation that the whole thing is a bit… creepy. @queenkoppes #stitch with @smithfulteaching The 90s were a different time. #teachersoftiktok @mackenzig__ i thought this was a fever dream or smth for the longest time until someone told me they saw it too Still, plenty of TikTokers have also laughed the whole thing off or pointed to similarly bizarre conventions that they’d fallen prey to. “This is a family tradition for me,” one wrote. “We all got and gave each other birthday spankings. It’s just a fun thing.” “My Spanish teacher pulls ears for birthday,” added another, explaining that it was “her culture’s tradition”. However, influencer Noah Glenn Carter pointed out that some traditions simply don’t age well, and plenty of people would file a complaint with the school if this happened to their kid. “So far it doesn't seem like any action has been taken against the teacher, which I think is fine because she probably didn't mean anything by this,” he said in a commentary on the clip. But, he added: “If I was a teacher, the last thing you would see me doing is giving out birthday spankings to students. “Because even if I was just doing it to be funny, people could see it in a very different light.” Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings

Sean Hannity faced criticism for focusing on 'which network is winning' amid Israel-Hamas conflict

President Joe Biden has made a deliberate decision to go quiet as his team gets down to the wire in the debt-limit talks, according to White House officials

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed several bills aimed at bolstering the state’s protections for LGBTQ+ people

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 30, 2023--

Valorant players might have noticed that Split seems to be mission from the Competitive queue. Here's why.

Greavard is a new ghost-type Pokémon featured in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.

A suspect is in custody but police still are looking for the weapon and the motive behind the fatal shooting of a faculty member at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on Monday afternoon.