- Is there anything cooler than new technology developments? We’ve rounded up some pretty spectacular ones for you this month, including some new tech on solar panels, batteries, drones and more. Enjoy nerding out!
This clear window film could replace AC units someday.
New research opens pathway to lighter rechargeable batteries.
Old solar panels give life to new solar panels.
New record efficiency set for low-cost perovskite solar panels.
These drones could make cold-weather wind turbines more efficient.
Can iron store energy efficiently?

- The November NOAA Global Climate Report is out and, though the chill of winter has set in, the November 2022 average global surface temperature was the 9th warmest since recording started in 1880. Although the November global temperature was high, the contiguous U.S. was below average, while Hong Kong experienced their warmest autumn on record. The Arctic Sea ice extent was the 8th smallest extent on record; and the Antarctic Sea ice extent was the 5th lowest on record. These lower-than-average ice extents prove once again that our planet is changing rapidly.
- Did you know that January 3rd is National Chocolate Covered Cherry Day? In honor, our Google search of the month was, “Chocolate and GIS”. We found this article by Tunrayo Alabi of the International Institute of Tropical agriculture in Nigeria, titled A Milti-Criteria GIS Site Selection for Sustainable Cocoa Development in West Africa: A Case Study of Nigeria. In this article we learn that at least 16 million people depend on cocoa for their annual income, but only $100/person/year is earned from farming the crop. It identifies the need to optimize the cocoa farming system, minimize the environmental impacts of farming, and improve the socio-economic dynamics. This study uses GIS and Multi-Criteria Land Evaluation techniques to identify areas with the potential for intensified cocoa farming while maximizing household impact and avoiding deforestation. If you’re curious about the process for growing, harvesting and processing cocoa, check out this Youtube video!
- Last month we checked out the online GIS resources of Massachusetts’s third largest city, Springfield. This month we look at GIS resources for Michigan’s third largest city, Warren. The Macomb County GIS Website (Warren is a part of Macomb County) is easy to navigate but lacks much substance when it comes to webmaps and data downloads.
Warren, MI (Macomb County) GIS Website
Warren, MI (Macomb County) GIS Contacts
Warren, MI (Macomb County) GIS Maps (sorry these are all the same link as this appears to be the only page with online maps or GIS data)
Warren, MI (Macomb County) GIS Collections
Warren, MI (Macomb County) GIS Direct Downloads
Brock Adam McCarty
Map Wizard
(720) 470-7988
brock@apollomapping.com
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