A new mobile phone charger that will work with any handset has been approved by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a United Nations body.
Industry body the GSMA says that 51,000 tonnes of redundant chargers are generated each year.
Currently most chargers are product or brand specific, so people tend to change them when they upgrade to a new phone.
However, the new energy-efficient chargers can be kept for much longer.
The GSMA also estimates that they will reduce annual greenhouse gas emissions by 13.6m tonnes.
“This is a significant step in reducing the environmental impact of mobile charging,” said Malcolm Johnson, director of ITU’s Telecommunication Standardisation Bureau.
“Universal chargers are a common-sense solution that I look forward to seeing in other areas.”
The charger has a micro-USB port at the connecting end, using similar technology to digital cameras.
It is not compulsory for manufacturers to adopt the new chargers but the ITU says that some have already signed up to it.
“We are planning to launch the universal charger internationally during the first half of 2010,” Aldo Liguori, spokesperson for Sony Ericsson told the BBC.
“We will roll it out with new products as they launch.”

[ VIA ]

Ecstasy, LSD and cannabis are less dangerous than alcohol and cigarettes, the Government’s chief drug adviser claims today.

Professor David Nutt is calling for a new ‘index of harm’ to warn the public about the relative dangers of various substances.
He says alcohol should rank fifth, behind only cocaine, heroin, barbiturates and methadone, while tobacco should rank ninth, ahead of cannabis, LSD and Ecstasy.

His comments are likely to prove explosive, given the seniority of his position. Professor Nutt has also courted controversy in the past – by suggesting taking ecstasy was no more dangerous than riding a horse.

But, defending his position, Professor Nutt says: ‘I think we have to accept young people like to experiment – with drugs and other potentially harmful activities – and what we should be doing in all of this is to protect them from harm at this stage of their lives.
‘We therefore have to provide more accurate and credible information. If you think that scaring kids will stop them using, you’re probably wrong.’

[ Read more ]

A century old record has been broken after Inspiration, a twin-finned car that looks like a prop from Thunderbirds, achieved an average speed of 139.84mph on two runs over a measured mile, at Edwards Air Force Base, California. That may not sound fast when a car has already broken the sound barrier, but this was a steam car, and the record for this type of machine was set in 1906, at an average of 127.7mph.

The British car, with British born driver Charles Burnet III at the wheel, reached a maximum of 151.085mph, a speed greater than the 145.6mph recorded in 1985 by Steamin’ Demon, a car designed by Jim Crank of California and driven by Richard Barber along the Bonneville Salt Flats. Unfortunately, a door flew open on “Steamin’ Demon”, a fire started and the car was unable to make the return run. The Federation Internationale d’Automobiles (FIA), who officially record any record runs, requires cars to run in both directions over a measured mile to cancel out advantages of tail winds in one direction.

“It was absolutely fantastic,” said Charles Burnett III. “The car really did handle beautifully. What we’ve achieved today is a true testament to British engineering, good teamwork and perseverance.”

A number of minor problems, and the intense heat at Edwards, have held the car back from the record for the last fortnight. But patience finally paid off.

Inspiration is a three tonne construction of carbon composite and aluminium bodywork, space-frame chassis and 300hp twin-stage steam turbines. Painted British Racing Green, the car sounds like a jet fighter and represents the hopes, invention and engineering skills of a team established 10 years ago in Lymington, Hampshire under the patronage of Lord Montagu of Beaulieu.

Design expertise has come from Students at the University of Southampton as well as from Welsh engineer Glynne Bowsher, who previously worked on Thrust SSC, the jet-powered car that broke sound barrier in October 1997, and, at 763mph, holds the world land speed record.

[ Read full article ]