Industrial Automation

We like to think of semiconductor-based devices, such as PCs, games, and appliances as great energy savers and thus good for the environment. But their real environmental impact is considerable, and it's almost unseen: producing the chips consumes huge amounts of electricity. Our society's increasing dependence on "intelligent" devices demands that we make more of them — which get discarded after a short time. How can we change the "throw away" mentality that wastes so much energy?

The preceding article is a "sneak peek" from Industrial Automation, a newsletter from GlobalSpec. To stay up-to-date and informed on industry trends, products, and technologies, subscribe to Industrial Automation today.

A British House of Commons MP, the son of a famous astronomer, is upset because the amount of light pollution in the UK increased by 26% between 1993 and 2000. This detriment to the enjoyment of dark skies shows no sign of abating. He thinks the government should publish guidelines for local authorities to take into consideration when planning applications that include outdoor lighting, and to treat light pollution as seriously as other forms of pollution. Do these proposals have serious merit?

The preceding article is a "sneak peek" from Industrial Automation, a newsletter from GlobalSpec. To stay up-to-date and informed on industry trends, products, and technologies, subscribe to Industrial Automation today.

Google founder Sergei Brin says his company is "unlocking the wisdom held in the enormous number of out of print books" by scanning in the full text of over 10 million volumes. Surely this access to the world's knowledge is for the common good, but not everyone is for it. There are rights holders issues, and traditional book publishers, understandably, fear that Google's efforts and commercial arrangements could spell the end of the book industry as we know it. So is book digitization really a good thing?

The preceding article is a "sneak peek" from Industrial Automation, a newsletter from GlobalSpec. To stay up-to-date and informed on industry trends, products, and technologies, subscribe to Industrial Automation today.

It is not hard to see that before the middle of the 21^st century, the growing shortage of water will become a severe problem for the world's population. The combination of increasing population and decreasing resources, some experts predict, will lead to international warfare. Can technology solve the growing crisis? There is plenty of fresh water on Earth; the problem is, it's not in the right locations. Should we invest in new transport systems, desalination systems, or encourage new levels of conservation?

The preceding article is a "sneak peek" from Industrial Automation, a newsletter from GlobalSpec. To stay up-to-date and informed on industry trends, products, and technologies, subscribe to Industrial Automation today.

Some say that engineers have destroyed our cities by building freeways that divide neighborhoods and exacerbate congestion, erecting ugly steel and glass towers across the landscape, stringing cables and wires in overhead bundles down our streets, and covering every piece of nature with concrete and tarmac. But is it fair to blame engineers for this unsightly urban aesthetic? Weren't they just doing what urban planners asked them to do? To what extent can we blame engineers for the world we live in today?

The preceding article is a "sneak peek" from Industrial Automation, a newsletter from GlobalSpec. To stay up-to-date and informed on industry trends, products, and technologies, subscribe to Industrial Automation today.