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01 / 05
“Super Gut” Made from Superworm’s Microbiome Devours Problem Plastics

Phys.org | Energy Production

“Super Gut” Made from Superworm’s Microbiome Devours Problem Plastics

“The team began by feeding three sets of worms three different diets of common plastics – high-density polyethylene, which is notoriously difficult to break down, polypropylene, and polystyrene for 30 days. (A lucky control group was served oatmeal.)

The scientists then extracted the microbiomes from the plastic-munching worms’ guts and incubated them in flasks filled with synthetic nutrients and the three plastics, letting them develop into an artificial gut over six weeks.

What they found was that the lab-grown guts, compared to the control group of worms, had developed far more plastic-degrading bacteria, and each showed superior efficiency with the specific material it had been fed on.”

From Phys.org.

S&P Global | Energy & Natural Resources

US DOE Finalizes Rules to Speed Transmission Permitting

“Under the program, the DOE will coordinate efforts across eight other agencies to prepare a single environmental review document for transmission developers seeking federal approvals. The program also establishes a two-year timeline for the permitting process.

‘The CITAP program gives transmission developers a new option for a more efficient review process, a major step to provide increased confidence for the sector to invest in new transmission lines,’ the DOE said in a fact sheet.

A second final rule creates a categorical exclusion — the simplest form of review under the National Environmental Policy Act — for transmission projects that use existing rights of way, such as reconductoring projects, as well as solar and energy storage projects on already disturbed lands.”

From S&P Global.

New Scientist | Energy Production

Nuclear Fusion Experiment Overcomes Two Key Hurdles

“A nuclear fusion reaction has overcome two key barriers to operating in a ‘sweet spot’ needed for optimal power production: boosting the plasma density and keeping that denser plasma contained. The milestone is yet another stepping stone towards fusion power, although a commercial reactor is still probably years away.”

From New Scientist.