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Blog Action Day 2009 – Climate Change

October 15th, 2009 :: 3 Comments

Here at Robot Armageddon, we usually inform our viewers about new developments in robotics, science and technology that prove robots will eventually take over the world. Today we are changing topics because it is Blog Action Day 2009. The topic this year is very important – climate change. I wondered for a while how climate change affects the developments on robots, but instead chose to publish a very simple, yet hopefully effective, post. There are 2 topics, both of which have a focus on technology.

First is a picture showing how few solar panels would be needed to power the whole world.

Click the thumbnail to view the full picture in a new window/tab.

Visual proof that solar technology is extremely important

And secondly, Iceland is building a data center hoping to use the cool climate and abundant geo-thermal power reserves to reduce carbon emissions caused by the high power demands of running and cooling large server farms. If it is successful, Iceland could become the ideal spot for companies looking to reduce their carbon footprint while saving a giant pile of money. Proposed and current heavy industry sites are changing the landscape in Iceland, and hopefully more high-tech industry investment could prevent the need for polluting industry.

Are you taking part in Blog Action Day 2009?

::from Gizmodo, Discovery Magazine & Saving Iceland::

In the future, robots on Earth will recharge from space

September 22nd, 2009 :: 2 Comments

After being announced in June, the Japanese government (more specifically a Japanese space agency/non-profit organization USEF - Institute for Unmanned Space Experiment Free Flyer) has confirmed their plans to build a solar-power power plant in space. USEF has named the project Space Solar Power System or SSPS. The project has an estimated cost of $21 billion, but with the scope and time frame of this project being so large, the end cost is sure to be much higher. Luckily, two giants of Japanese industry, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation and IHI Corporation, have agreed to join the project and help fund it.

The plan for the orbiting power plant is to power 300,000 homes in Japan. That doesn’t seem like very many homes for such an incredibly expensive project, but if the project is a success the commercial applications will change the landscape of power generation forever.

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