LATITUDE
a recent issue of the magazine. Bruce Jones, of the company U.S. Submarines, says financing and fine-tuning of engineering are underway. He envisions a 24-suite hotel, 12 metres below the surface, which tourists will access via small submarines. Other projects on the dream list are a fixed link between Italy and Sicily, and a bubble-like enclosure that would create havens for people living in extremely polluted cities. CHINA CLOSING RESEARCH GAP Following intense catch-up efforts over the last decade, China is now the world’s second most active country in research and development performance, topped only by the United States. China published 17 per cent of the world’s peer-reviewed research engineering articles in 2011, equal to the U.S. As well, the number of science and engineering PhDs awarded annually is second to the U.S., which is followed by Russia, Germany and the United Kingdom.
BY GAIL HELGASON Freelance Contributor
SOLAR SYSTEM HARNESSES SUNFLOWER POWER
GLASS INSERTS PROVIDE NEW SIGHTSEEING EXPERIENCE FROM TOWER BRIDGE Visitors to London’s iconic Tower Bridge can now enjoy a bird’s-eye view of the River Thames from near the top of the historic structure. The 120-year- old bridge was recently fitted with glass inserts on the floors of the twin walk- ways that cross the centre span, says Civil Engineering (Reston, Virginia). With engineering by the Sheffield firm Ekspan, each insert is 11.5 metres long by 1.8 metres wide and made up of six glass panels. Panels consist of four layers of glass, plus an extra top layer than can be replaced in case of surface damage. A carbon-steel framework supports each insert. Designers included space on either side of the inserts. That means people who aren’t comfortable walking on glass 42 metres above the river can continue using the walkway — no queasiness necessary. BUCKET LIST ITEM: STAY IN AN UNDERWATER HOTEL For a future vacation, how about stay- ing in an underwater hotel? More than $215 million has already been raised in the hope of building one, says the Engi- neering News-Record (New York). Located off of a private island in Fiji, the Poseidon Resort is among several dream projects profiled in
We all know sunflowers can inspire wonderful art. They’re also the inspiration for an innovative new system that could revolutionize solar power. European engineers have developed a 10-metre-tall prototype that resembles a large metal flower, equipped with a tracking system that follows the sun. The system uses a series of mirrors to deflect the sun’s rays to converter chips, The Daily Mail (United Kingdom) reports. The aim is to develop an economical photovoltaic system capable of collecting 80 per cent of incoming radiation and converting it to useful energy — for one-half to one-third the cost of comparable solar converters. Not only does the system generate electricity, it also produces large amounts of hot water from its cooling system, which can be pumped through desalinators to transform salt water into drinking water. Designers say that an installation of several generators could provide fresh water for an entire town. Further investigation funded by the Swiss Commission for Technology and Innovation will support work on the new system by researchers at IBM Research Zurich and Airtight Energy of Biasca, Switzerland. IBM has offered to install two systems for free, and communities around the world have been invited to apply.
56 | PEG SPRING 2015
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