Bits Blog: Mozilla Names Interim Chief

Many countries have seen extremely hot weather lately, but in most of the inhabited world, it’s never going to get ‘too hot for people to live here,’ especially in relatively dry climates. Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskidsus@theconversation.com.

The new textile was designed to combat the urban heat island effect, reflecting both the sun’s heat and the heat that bounces off of buildings and streets. When a heat wave hits a city, the sidewalks, roads, and buildings end up making the air feel even hotter. Thanks to the urban heat island effect, all that infrastructure absorbs and then reemits the sun’s heat, raising temperatures even more. 

Officials believe micro communities, unlike shelters, offer stability that, when combined with wraparound services, can more effectively put residents on the path to secure housing. In a dreary part of downtown Atlanta, shipping containers have been transformed into an oasis for dozens of previously unsheltered people who now proudly call a former parking lot home.

The Oregon city imposed a 1% tax on its biggest businesses, with the money going to communities most impacted by climate change. But there’s controversy about what that means. Cities all across the U. S. are struggling with a range of concerns, from an unhoused population that soared 12% last year to continued fears of violent crime despite recent declines; an increasing number of drug overdose deaths; and COVID-emptied downtowns that are being reconfigured and rethought.

The GE Vernova CEO talks about why the electrical grid desperately needs a ‘new brain’ on the latest episode of the ‘Rapid Response’ podcast. Can nuclear energy, solar and wind farms, and carbon capture scale fast enough to save the planet? GE Vernova CEO Scott Strazik details how green energy is evolving in 2024.

A new book tells the modern history of the ‘Big Muddy’ as a tragedy wrought by colonial hubris. In an often-excerpted passage from his memoir, Life on the Mississippi, Mark Twain describes how his perceptions of the Mississippi River changed after he spent months piloting a steamboat up and down its muddy length.