#commercialization in new product development

[frontropharma]

Expert Regulatory and Scientific Writing Services by FrontroPharma

Navigating the complex world of regulatory requirements is made simple with FrontroPharma. Our experts specialize in preparing and reviewing regulatory documentation, including narratives, systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and grant writing. We provide clear and effective articulation of your scientific endeavors, ensuring compliance and facilitating smooth regulatory approvals. Partner with us for seamless and successful regulatory navigation.

[abarcodeisthefirstrobotpornstar]

NOBODY LIKES RESOURCE POOR SOCIETIES THAT DEVELOPED TIME TRAVEL OPERATIONS TRYING TO INFILTRATE THEIR SOCIETIES USING DECEPTION AND DISGUISE.

[edsonjnovaes]

Bryan Johnson que busca imortalidade diz que é improvável que humanos sobrevivam sem IA 1.2

Bryan Johnson, um bilionário da tecnologia de 46 anos que tenta reverter o processo de envelhecimento, acredita que é improvável que a humanidade sobreviva sem a ajuda da inteligência artificial (IA), segundo a Fox News. Época Negócios – 14/10/2023 Algumas de suas rotinas incluem um horário rígido para dormir às 20h30, tomar mais de cem comprimidos diariamente, coletar amostras de fezes e ter um…

[reasonsforhope]

Green energy is in its heyday. 

Renewable energy sources now account for 22% of the nation’s electricity, and solar has skyrocketed eight times over in the last decade. This spring in California, wind, water, and solar power energy sources exceeded expectations, accounting for an average of 61.5 percent of the state's electricity demand across 52 days. 

But green energy has a lithium problem. Lithium batteries control more than 90% of the global grid battery storage market. 

That’s not just cell phones, laptops, electric toothbrushes, and tools. Scooters, e-bikes, hybrids, and electric vehicles all rely on rechargeable lithium batteries to get going. 

Fortunately, this past week, Natron Energy launched its first-ever commercial-scale production of sodium-ion batteries in the U.S. 

“Sodium-ion batteries offer a unique alternative to lithium-ion, with higher power, faster recharge, longer lifecycle and a completely safe and stable chemistry,” said Colin Wessells — Natron Founder and Co-CEO — at the kick-off event in Michigan. 

The new sodium-ion batteries charge and discharge at rates 10 times faster than lithium-ion, with an estimated lifespan of 50,000 cycles.

Wessells said that using sodium as a primary mineral alternative eliminates industry-wide issues of worker negligence, geopolitical disruption, and the “questionable environmental impacts” inextricably linked to lithium mining. 

“The electrification of our economy is dependent on the development and production of new, innovative energy storage solutions,” Wessells said. 

Why are sodium batteries a better alternative to lithium?

The birth and death cycle of lithium is shadowed in environmental destruction. The process of extracting lithium pollutes the water, air, and soil, and when it’s eventually discarded, the flammable batteries are prone to bursting into flames and burning out in landfills. 

There’s also a human cost. Lithium-ion materials like cobalt and nickel are not only harder to source and procure, but their supply chains are also overwhelmingly attributed to hazardous working conditions and child labor law violations. 

Sodium, on the other hand, is estimated to be 1,000 times more abundant in the earth’s crust than lithium. 

“Unlike lithium, sodium can be produced from an abundant material: salt,” engineer Casey Crownhart wrote ​​in the MIT Technology Review. “Because the raw ingredients are cheap and widely available, there’s potential for sodium-ion batteries to be significantly less expensive than their lithium-ion counterparts if more companies start making more of them.”

What will these batteries be used for?

Right now, Natron has its focus set on AI models and data storage centers, which consume hefty amounts of energy. In 2023, the MIT Technology Review reported that one AI model can emit more than 626,00 pounds of carbon dioxide equivalent. 

“We expect our battery solutions will be used to power the explosive growth in data centers used for Artificial Intelligence,” said Wendell Brooks, co-CEO of Natron. 

“With the start of commercial-scale production here in Michigan, we are well-positioned to capitalize on the growing demand for efficient, safe, and reliable battery energy storage.”

The fast-charging energy alternative also has limitless potential on a consumer level, and Natron is eying telecommunications and EV fast-charging once it begins servicing AI data storage centers in June. 

On a larger scale, sodium-ion batteries could radically change the manufacturing and production sectors — from housing energy to lower electricity costs in warehouses, to charging backup stations and powering electric vehicles, trucks, forklifts, and so on. 

“I founded Natron because we saw climate change as the defining problem of our time,” Wessells said. “We believe batteries have a role to play.”

-via GoodGoodGood, May 3, 2024

--

Note: I wanted to make sure this was legit (scientifically and in general), and I'm happy to report that it really is! x, x, x, x

[marketxcel]

The New Product Development Process: Stages and Expert Tips

This blog delves into the stages of this process, from ideation to product launch, emphasizing the significance of meticulous planning, market research, and validation. Additionally, we have expert tips for you to facilitate a smooth journey from concept to market.

[caprigender]

have decided my fanfiction will have a bibliography section where I info dump my inspirations in the end notes section and link all the websites I looked at and the audiobooks I was listening to and y’all can just take it or leave it lmao

[afeelgoodblog]

The Best News of Last Month - August 2024

1.Negative Power Prices Hit Europe as Renewable Energy Floods the Grid

European power markets are experiencing a notable shift as renewable energy sources, particularly wind and solar, become a larger part of the energy mix. On Wednesday, power prices in several European markets, including Germany, dipped below zero due to a surge in green electricity production.

2. Taiwan introduces ban on performances by captive wild animals

Live performances by wild animals held in captivity, including performances by dolphins, tigers, and other non-domesticated mammals, will no longer be permitted in Taiwan under new Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) regulations.

3. FTC bans fake online reviews, inflated social media influence; rule takes effect in October

The FTC voted unanimously to ban marketers from using fake reviews, such as those generated with AI technology, and other misleading advertising practices.

The ban also forbids marketers from exaggerating their own influence by, for example, paying for bots to inflate their follower count.

4. Chinese drones will fly trash out of Everest slopes

Come autumn, Nepal will deploy heavy lifter drones to transport garbage from the 6,812-metre tall Ama Dablam, south of Everest. This will be the first commercial work an unmanned aerial vehicle does in Nepal’s high-altitude zone.

The heavy lifter from China’s biggest drone maker, Da Jiang Innovations (DJI), will take on tasks traditionally handled by Sherpas. Officials believe it will help reduce casualties on Everest.

5. Swiss scientists have found a way to use the whole cocoa fruit to make chocolate and not just taking beans and discarding the rest.

Kim Mishra (L) and Anian Schreiber (R) cooperated on the new chocolate making process

Food scientists in Switzerland have come up with a way to make chocolate using the entire cocoa fruit rather than just the beans - and without using sugar.

The chocolate, developed at Zurich’s prestigious Federal Institute of Technology by scientist Kim Mishra and his team includes the cocoa fruit pulp, the juice, and the husk, or endocarp.

6. Six-year-old boy found in Vietnam forest after five days

A six-year-old boy who was missing for five days has been found deep in a forest in Vietnam. Dang Tien Lam, who lives in the northwestern Yen Bai province, was playing in a stream with his nine siblings on 17 August when he wandered into the hills and got lost, local reports said.

He was found on Wednesday by local farmers who heard a child's cry while they were clearing a cinnamon field close to the forest.

7. Lego plans to make half the plastic in bricks from renewable materials by 2026

Lego plans to make half the plastic in its bricks from renewable or recycled material rather than fossil fuels by 2026, in its latest effort to ensure its toys are more environmentally friendly.

The Danish company last year ditched efforts to make bricks entirely from recycled bottles because of cost and production issues. At the moment, 22% of the material in its colourful bricks is not made from fossil fuels.

----------

That's it for this month :)

This newsletter will always be free. If you liked this post you can support me with a small kofi donation here:

Buy me a coffee ❤️

Also don’t forget to share this post with your friends.

[luvnami]

If you are not aware yet, Homicipher's creator, Yatsunagi, has decided to cease all updates for the game due to various reasons. Before deactivating their socials, they posted this on their Twitter. For fans who were unable to view the notice before the deactivation, I will provide a short summary of the notice (my Japanese isn't very good, so please take this with a grain of salt. This is not a direct translation of the notice itself).

I will not link the original post because the creator did not want the notice to spread.

Originally, there were plans to continue updating the game slowly with various scenes for free, further game development, and create a version for the Switch. However, due to stress, there will be no further development.

The reasons for deactivation and ceasing all updates for Homicipher were deleted because the message had left its original audience. The creator does not wish to create more stress, or for this news to be spread.

Homicipher quickly became more popular than expected. Many players did not understand that the game was simply a product of an individual's hobby, and was not a commercial company's project, leading to an inability for a greater level of development and updates. Fans that originated from the beta version faced disruptions from new fans that pirated the game and were rude in their interactions. This 'original' fanbase faced these changes within a week, and it was overwhelming.

TLDR - Homicipher quickly became popular, creating an immense amount of fans that flooded its fandom. This caused stress to longstanding fans and the creator, due to rude behaviour (including demands for game updates and piracy).

Homicipher was a game created as a hobby and did not have the production level of a corporate company, and would not have been able to be managed or further developed by the creator alone. The creator preferred for the game to gain popularity slowly.

To the fans who have played Homicipher and respected it, the creator is thankful for their support and gratitude. The creator is happy to see fanwork and encourages fans to continue creating such content.

The creator dearly loves Homicipher and the characters that they have created through the game. Without this love, they would not have been able to complete and publish the game.

After working in the character game circle for many years, the creator has deactivated their social media accounts related to game production due to a sense of rejection.

The creator thanks all players and loving fans.

[mrsmandalorian]

please please please

-- pedro pascal x singer! f!reader

a/n: hello loves! happy (belated by an hour but i promise it's worth it!) daddy's day to our daddy, pedrito! this is based on the song please please please by sabriana carpenter!! i was going to change the plot from the music video, but i rewatched it with pedro in mind and couldn't change it. these new pictures from the esquire shoot were some real inspriation for badboy! pedro for the music video. i highly suggest viewing the video before watching and imaging pedro in it for the whole pleasure of the story. i hope you all enjoy it! please please please (😘) leave a like or comment if you did! much love to all -maddie 🫶🏼

main masterlist/ nonsense / espresso / word count: 4.0k

summary: you and pedro are finally offical and it's time to hard launch your romance. what better way than to show off your fine ass man than a music video with you.

warnings: 18+ mdni, reader is able-bodied,established relationship, smut!!!, and fluff!, drinking, switch sex 🥵, p in v, fingering, oral ( f recieving), titty fuck, sexual teasing, pet names (mi amor, princesa, daddy, mommy, baby, baby girl, puppy, angel)

“That’s a wrap, Pedro! Nice work,” the director hollered from the camera to Pedro as he sat in a beach chair on a beautiful beach in Mexico. You watched as you stood with Coco, and he finished with whatever he had to work on. He approached you, embracing you sweetly and playfully talking to Coco. She tells you that she will catch up with you as soon as she walks off to clean up her station for the day. 

“You’re in a Corona commercial, P,” you beam up at Pedro as he meets your gaze. Your comment makes him grin wide as you do the same. His large hands grip your hips as he pulls in closer to his chest. Through the months, your connection has developed into a more substantial relationship than friends with benefits. 

“I am, princess,” he whispers down to you as he lets his lips gently press onto yours for a few seconds until he quickly pulls his body away. He gently squeezes your hip as he winks at you, “Let’s go get ready to hit the road,” he says as his thick fingers entangle among yours as he starts towards his trailer. 

You adored watching him interact with production staff as he is personable and appreciative to each one of them. The staff helps him prepare to leave, and his eyes keep finding yours throughout his conversations. Every glance sends butterflies through your whole body. 

Pedro had extended a special invitation for you to join him for the commercial shoot and spend two extra vacation days at a luxurious rental house he had arranged on the beach. The thought of the upcoming weekend, just the two of you, filled you with thrilling anticipation. It was a rare opportunity to get to know him better, away from the hustle and bustle of your jobs and others' presence. 

He finally finished up, changing his attire into his regular t-shirt and shorts and walking up with a warm smile. “Ready to go, princess?” he asks, giving you a hand to help you up from the couch in his trailer. You nod as you take his hand and follow him outside after saying short farewells. 

“What is the itinerary, honey?” you ask as he holds your door to the rental car. You settle inside the luxury car and glance at him with a questioning look. Watching him 

“I'm Going back to the bungalow to relax for a bit, and then I made a nice reservation for us for dinner,” he says with a broad smile and a wink as he closes the door. Once inside the car, you question him about the attire for dinner and where it is, but he stays silent and gives you no details besides “It’s a surprise, Princesa.” 

You roll your eyes at his refusal but start congratulating him on his shoot and hyping him up. His large hand does find its way over to your thigh as it plays the line of teasing. You watch it from the corner of your eye as you try to hide, biting your lip. 

Once at the rental home, he helps you inside with a big smirk. An extensive package on your shared bed from your stylist made you raise an eyebrow at Pedro, “What’s this all about, P?” 

The smirk on his face and hidden chuckles as he buried his face into your shoulder after he wrapped himself around from behind gave you a feeling that he was up to no good. His gentle grip on your hip gave you goosebumps as they slowly moved toward your chest, causing you to giggle. He unburies his head from your shoulder with a fake straight face, “As I said, it’s a surprise, and I asked your stylist to help me so you won’t have to stress. I am going to step out to go get dressed as well. Holler if you need any help,” he quickly professed as he pressed his lips to your head and gave your breast a gentle teasing squeeze. He runs out of the room with a loud, mischievous laugh. 

You shake your head as you stare down at the large package addressed to you. Once opened, you find a handwritten note from your sweet stylist saying they hope you have a great night without worrying about your outfit. They chose a beautiful outfit that fit your body wonderfully and made you feel confident. You are afraid it might be too much for whatever Pedro had been planning, but you felt better once he walked out in his dress pants and a nice top. 

“Holy shit, baby,” he exclaimed, exiting the bathroom while his eyes feasted on your whole body until they met yours, “you look ravishing.” As your cheeks heat up, you take in his appearance as well. You try to pinch yourself as you take him because you got so lucky with this man, and the same thoughts go through his head. Pedro walks closer to you and cups your face delicately as he leans in to give you a passionate kiss that takes your nerves away. 

Before you both get carried away with the kiss, you reach to give his bum a teasing squeeze that causes you both to smile through the kiss. He pulls away and gives you a dramatically surprised face before he busts out laughing, pecking your cheek. “Sorry, I couldn't resist. You look very handsome, honey. Now I’m interested in what you have planned for tonight,” you muttered as you tried to pry his plan out of him one last time. 

Pedro chuckles at your words as he fakes, zips his mouth shut, and throws it over his shoulder. This man could not be serious for two seconds sometimes. His actions and unseriousness always keep you smiling and laughing as you should be. 

Once you both finished getting ready, he took your hand, led you to the car, and opened your door. You couldn’t help but already fantasize about what would happen when the two of you would be back here a little later with a big smirk. The car ride to the restaurant was full of laughter and singing to the radio as you tried to calm your nerves. Pedro himself even seemed a bit nervous, which made you anxious. 

The restaurant was lovely, and you had heard great reviews of it. Pedro was very romantic as he helped you out of the car into the restaurant, where he pulled out his car. He was making a significant purpose to be a gentleman tonight and make you feel like royalty (as he should and usually does). It was your first time going to this lovely restaurant with Pedro by yourselves. You secretly snap a cute photo or two of him as he looks too good, not to which he does the same for you. You spend the whole dinner flirting and catching up with Pedro from work to learning new details about one another.

After dessert was served, you both relaxed a little bit more as the wine was soothing your nerves. He gently reached out his hand across the table for yours, which you happily gave him as you sweetly smiled at him. “Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?” he flirts with you and gives you a toothy grin. The wine makes your face light up more than you thought. 

“Just a few,” you joked as his thumb ran over your soft hand, “but keep doing it.”  

“I have something I want to talk about,” he shared as you see him chew at his lip in nervousness. Your eyes met as you nervously sat up straighter and anxiously thought of everything he could say. He gives your hand a light squeeze and a smile. ‘“It’s okay, princess. Nothing to worry about; I can see the thoughts spiraling through your cute head.” 

“Okay,” you mutter as you anxiously sit there, gripping his hand in a beautiful restaurant. “You have about two seconds before the panic attack.” You joke with him as he chuckles under his breath. 

“Well, I have been thinking recently how pleasurable and exciting our time together is always,” he speaks and holds eye contact, “I know we are pretty serious for one another, but.” He pauses, making you hold your breath until he speaks again. “I was wanting to ask you to be my girlfriend officially. Private or however you want it, I want you to be mine officially.” 

The rush of emotions that overcome you at his confession makes your heart swell with love. “Of course, P!” you reply quickly and louder than you thought. The grip on his hand squeezes tight from excitement. 

You started the relationship as a proximity friendship that blossomed into more than friends. Your feelings for one another are always out in the open, but making it official with each other felt more than extraordinary. 

The rest of your night was spent on a romantic walk down the beach, where Pedro had shot his commercial earlier in the day. You were touched because you had mentioned how you wondered how it looked when the sun was setting whenever you were there earlier. Pedro seemed a little more comfortable with a title to your relationship as he held your hand or kissed you more often than usual. You both were pleased as well. The night (and the rest of the weekend)  was complete with superb passionate and freaky sex, along with sweet memories that you will remember forever. 

The last three months have been the best for you and Pedro. You were both more comfortable with one another in every aspect of your relationship. Most of your friends were excited for you, while some were not.  You stood up to the negative ones for your relationship and tried to ignore what they said, but it was hard. Pedro always supported you and did the same for your relationship, but neither of you tried not to give the haters any attention unless they overstepped the line. 

After subtly posting and spending time in public with one another, both of your fanbases understood that you guys had finally made things official. Everyone, for the most part, loved the idea of you guys together. With much communication of boundaries and going more public with your relationship, Pedro knew not to let any of your issues into the light or make each other look bad, even if something happens in their lives. 

You were working on your new album, which you should release soon. It was time to let out a single to get your fans excited about the album. You had written your new single about your newly established relationship with Pedro. It was called “Please, Please, Please,” and you planned to launch your ties in the music video.

“So, it’s like a criminal mafia love story where they locked eyes in prison?” Pedro asks you as you talked over the phone a few days before your music video shoot. And there was no better explanation of the music video than that description. 

It was finally the day of the shoot, and you were more than excited to shoot it because it was quite a spicy video. Early in your career, you did take some action classes while you started your music career to help more in music videos to seem more natural. Now is the time for them to pay off because your fantastic partner in the video was Pedro, one of the most incredible actors in the modern era. 

Pedro and you both got into your first outfits in the shoot, which happened to be in the prison scenes today. You dressed in a sexy tight-fitting outfit, and he wore a darker fit to make him seem more mysterious and bad, mafia energy. You both complimented each other as you got into your positions. The scene only took three shots, and it was only because Pedro would get too flirty or you once forgot your lyrics from staring at him too long and giggling. 

“I think you chose these outfits to distract me, baby girl,” he whispers against your lips after finding each other between changing breaks. His statement was very true because you did get them to design these outfits just for him. His large hands pulled into him as he kissed you gently so as not to mess up your makeup.  

Through the final shots with the car outside the prison and inside, Pedro devised an idea to make his character a protective mafia husband where his wife runs the show, but he still gets in trouble. Little submissive Pedro came out through the day, which you both loved. He was like a lost puppy to you anyway, so it didn’t even act when he would open your door for you to drive or beg for your attention. 

His acting impressed you more with every scene, as you both got caught up in the moment. The final scene you two-shot was an initial one you had thoroughly planned. 

It was set at night with Pedro sitting in only a white shirt and slim trousers as someone held down the brake lights that shadowed your face. You sing as you make your way to him. You sway your hips to tease him and handcuff him, pulling out the duct tape. Placing a piece of tape on his lips, you gave him a quick kiss, which made him let out a verbal moan, which caused you to work the teasing aspect of your acting.

 The scene was probably the most passionate of the evening and only had to be shot twice. You felt that was all because of Pedro’s motivation to take all those teasing, sexy outfits off you all day. The director hollered ‘scene’ and walked over to Pedro as everyone worked around you, closing up shop for the end of the shoot. You smirked as you sat in his lap, wrapping your legs around him. You made sure that no one was paying attention as you kissed from his lips up to his ear. “You did so well today, puppy,” you whispered into his ear as you moved your hips against him, which made him moan lowly. 

You smirk as you gently get off of him, not without running your fingers through his hair and down your chest, which makes him throw back his head in desperation. You teasingly walk behind him and untape and uncuff him. Pedro groans to you and meets your eyes with his dark eyes, begging you to meet him in the dressing room. 

Both of you completed the necessary actions to complete the day. You quickly went to your dressing room, removed your jewelry, and waited for Pedro to change your outfit. 

Less than five minutes later, the door opens quickly, and you are met with the brown curls of your lover. “Hello, baby,” he greeted you, quickly pulling you into your chest. He gives you a passionate kiss as his wandering hands work against your outfit and body. “You look so fucking sexy. I think I’ll worship you all night after today,” he practically begged you. 

The moment you are changed from light making out to getting on top of Pedro, you take control of it. You both lay on the nice-sized couch inside your dressing room as you run your hands under his shirt and rock your hips. As you rub yourself against him, you feel his hardening member. He lets out a groan as he holds onto your hips to support you, letting you take control, and he loves it. 

“Fuck, puppy. You were so fucking fine today,” you moan against his lips as you run your hands through his hair. “You deserve many rewards for being a good boy today,” you praise him as you grind against his hard-on. 

The passion and love that you both feel for each other come out whenever you start to get sexual. He gives you many praises and complaints even if you were in control because you smite him. “I believe you need a lot of praise too, miss,” he desperately lets out as his hands roam their way down to your ass which he gives a nice squeeze. 

“Oh really?” you ask as you raise your eyebrow and lick your lips at him. You give a little bit of your control as you let him flip you over. He runs his hands down your thighs and lifts your dress to go over your ass. 

“Were you not wearing underwear the whole day, baby?” He asks with a raised eyebrow as a stern, jealous voice emerges. You let out a giggle and bite your lip, challenging him. 

“And what if I was, puppy?” You teasingly ask as you spread your legs apart in front of his face and gently smack his hands as they try to touch you. You silently think of a plan that makes you grab your props from the little clutch you had earlier. You pull out the handcuffs with an evil laugh, cuffing Pedro’s hands together. “I dare you to try to eat me out with no hands. All that beautiful tongue has to do the work.” 

He took the challenge very, very seriously. His tongue worked vigorously against your slit as you let out sweet moans. You ran your fingers through his curls and spread your legs around his face, resting your legs on his broad shoulders. 

The feeling of his tongue was overwhelming you in pleasure as the sensitivity of your clit was tested by him. The scruff on his face was tickling you in the best way possible. He continues to feast on you like he had been thinking about all day. 

“Stop, puppy,” you whined as you almost could see white, but you weren't ready yet. He immediately pulls away from you as you say something. “ lay back on your back, honey,” you order with a proud smirk. You pull the rest of your outfit off as you sit naked in front of him. His eyes wouldn't move off your beautiful body, almost drooling and pre-cum leaking from his imagination running wild. 

He does as he’s told and lays on his back. “Good, puppy,” you say as you reach down to his pants. You make eye contact and ask for consent non-verbal as you motion to his pants. He groans and says, “God, yes, please.” 

You indulge and pull his pants off as his giant hardened cock hits against his stomach with a whimper. You run your hands up leg and to his upper thigh as he lets out another desperate moan and throws his head back. 

Teasingly, you spit into your hand and play with your breast as you let out a whimper from the pleasure you gave yourself. You hear him trying to calm his breath as he watches you proudly, but frustrated that it’s not him touching your beautiful body. Feeling tortured but so horny to watch you worship yourself. 

After lubing up your breast enough, you run your fingers around his thick cock and moisten it up as well. You work his cock a little to get him more desperate for you. He lets out all kinds of moans and whimpers for you as you do. You glide his cock in between your breast as you hold them together. 

“Fuck, mommy,” he lets out loudly from the contact of your soft breast. You can feel him try to thrust against your delicate skin which makes you smirk harder, but you don’t punish him. He has worked hard enough for this today. You work your tits against his shaft as he turns into putty against them with whimpers of pleasure. 

“Such a good boy,” you whisper and watch him become pleased.  “You can come on my tits, baby,” you allow him as it doesn’t take long for him to thrust along with your motion until he turns into a moaning mess and squirts himself all over your breast and some hitting your face. You let out a fun giggle as he checks on you which you learn up and kiss him. 

The kiss was very steamy as you were ready to feel his hands on your body again. Quickly finding the key to the cuffs, you unlocked your toy from his restraints. His hands hovered above your hips as he frantically locked eyes with you. “May I kiss and touch you, miss?” he asks and you gave him a wicked grin. 

“You’re going to have to beg a little more than that, baby” yous state with a firm voice. 

“Please, please, please, miss, may I have permission to touch and love on your beautiful body?” he pleads with hopeful eyes, to which you give him a big smirk and nod your head yes. 

“Yes you may,” His hands were on you so quick as he gripped your hips. His wandering hands worshipped you as they gently caressed your breast. You let out a sharp moan from the contact especially as his lips met your nipples. “I want you to fuck me, puppy,” you deserpately let out as your pussy was begging for more contact from him. 

He gives you a smirk and nods his head, gripping onto your hips. You position yourself on your knees for him to hit it from the back doggy style. Pedro was quickly ready again to perform to pleasure you. He lines himself up to your slick slit and gently inserts his large cock into you while you both let out a sound of pleasure. “So fucking fit, miss,” he lets out and runs his hands down your ass to where your back arches which cause goosebumps down your back. 

“You fill me up so nicely, puppy,” you compliment him as he starts to thrust into you. The rhythm of your hips grind against one another so swiftly and passionately. The sound of your pleasure sounds the whole room from your bodies to the sounds coming from your mouths. Pedro was loosing control of himself as his thick fingers found their way to stimaute your clit as his thrust became rougher. “Fuck, baby, I’m going to cum soon,” you barely let out between your moans. 

“Youre so fucking sexy,” he grunts out as he takes you in like this as he tries to give you a pleasurable release. He works his magic as you throw your head forward and let him have full control of your body as he continues to fuck you. 

Soon, you both are trying to catch your breath from the intensity of your releases. “That was incredible, baby girl,” he says as he quickly gets up to find something to clean each other off. You agree and shower together, not without giving him plenty of kisses and praises. Between the video shoot and the intensity of the aftermath, once you guys made it back to Pedro’s house that night. You both found yourself passed out earlier than normal and late to rise the next morning. 

The music video came out a few weeks after being edited, giving you and Pedro plenty of time to prepare for your relationship to go public. 

The internet nearly broke once it was released. You were very proud of your work but relieved to have your relationship out in the open. Pedro posted on his Instagram a post about the video with a few behind-the-scenes photos and the caption “ Hard Launch,” which had a two-way meaning. 

Sharing some behind-the-scenes photos from the shoot and relationship to promote the video and your relationship was bittersweet, including a few candid photos of Pedro from your trip to Mexico. You could freely share a good fan edit of Pedro like you had always wished. 

You knew Pedro wouldn’t intentionally embarras or hurt you, but you had to remind him just in case. 

thank you so much for reading! dividers and mood board by myself!

[probablyasocialecologist]

Although the benefits of diverse forest systems are well known, many countries' restoration commitments are focused on establishing monoculture plantations. Given this practice, an international team of scientists has compared carbon stocks in mixed planted forests to carbon stocks in commercial and best-performing monocultures, as well as the average of monocultures.

Their work is published in Frontiers in Forests and Global Change.

"Diverse planted forests store more carbon than monocultures—upwards of 70%," said Dr. Emily Warner, a postdoctoral researcher in ecology and biodiversity science at the Department of Biology, University of Oxford, and first author of the study. "We also found the greatest increase in carbon storage relative to monocultures in four-species mixtures."

[...]

Accordingly, the researchers were able to show that diversification of forests enhances carbon storage. Altogether, above-ground carbon stocks in mixed forests were 70% higher than in the average monoculture. The researchers also found that mixed forests had 77% higher carbon stocks than commercial monocultures, made up of species bred to be particularly high yielding.

"As momentum for tree planting grows, our study highlights that mixed species plantations would increase carbon storage alongside other benefits of diversifying planted forests," said Dr. Susan Cook-Patton, a senior forest restoration scientist at The Nature Conservancy and collaborator on the study. The results are particularly relevant to forest managers, showing that there is a productivity incentive for diversifying new planted forests, the researchers pointed out.

[tofu83]

What men bred for.

2. Guards

The alien masters never imagined that there are such versatile and easy-to-tame highly intelligent animals in the universe. Well, compared to the masters, the people on earth are actually inferior in intelligence.

The masters' scientists originally only developed breeds for military use, carefully selecting suitable genes so that the humans bred would be strong, aggressive, but united and obedient male individuals.

However, with military success, public opinion began to demand the development of breeds that could also be used by civilians, so breeds that were smaller, more independent, but still highly obedient to their owners were developed. They were also implanted with nanobots when they were young adults, so that their bodies could better meet the needs of their owners. At the same time, control helmets are also installed. Of course, they absolutely obey their owners, but they still need consciousness control to prevent them from attacking each other.

They are kept by many owners as pets and guards, just like humans kept dogs in the past. They take pride in pleasing and being appreciated by their owners, who can make them very excited and proud just by touching their bodies. If they perform outstandingly, such as helping their master fight off robbers or thieves, or assisting in hunting, completing various daily tasks, etc., their master will upgrade their bodies as a more glorious reward.

Master’s scientists have also discovered that when the physical parts of human males of this breed are covered in tight rubber and artificial leather, they will be extremely excited and even fall into a euphoric state, which is only seen during the mating period of primitive species.

Scientists are still unable to explain the exact reason why male humans have physiological reactions to rubber and leather, but they have been widely used commercially to improve the maneuverability and work performance of human guards.

In addition, a new type of guards that first covers the whole male body in a rubber bodysuit , then strengthens the body with nanotechnology, and finally covers it with armor has been put into production. The consciousness of these guards is extremely pleasurable, and their bodies are controlled like puppets by microcomputers implanted in the back of their necks. They will soon be assigned to law enforcement agencies everywhere to protect, serve, and obey forever.

[frontropharma]

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[adafruit]

🎄💾🗓️ Day 9: Retrocomputing Advent Calendar - The Apple Lisa 🎄💾🗓️

The Apple Lisa, introduced on January 19, 1983, was a pioneering personal computer notable for its graphical user interface (GUI) and mouse input, a big departure from text-based command-line interfaces. Featured a Motorola 68000 CPU running at 5 MHz, 1 MB of RAM (expandable to 2 MB), and a 12-inch monochrome display with a resolution of 720×364 pixels. The system initially included dual 5.25-inch "Twiggy" floppy drives, later replaced by a single 3.5-inch Sony floppy drive in the Lisa 2 model. An optional 5 or 10 MB external ProFile hard drive provided more storage.

The Lisa's price of $9,995 (equivalent to approximately $30,600 in 2023) and performance issues held back its commercial success; sales were estimated at about 10,000 units.

It introduced advanced concepts such as memory protection and a document-oriented workflow, which influenced future Apple products and personal computing.

The Lisa's legacy had a huge impact on Apple computers, specifically the Macintosh line, which adopted and refined many of its features. While the Lisa was not exactly a commercial success, its contributions to the evolution of user-friendly computing interfaces are widely recognized in computing history.

These screen pictures come from Adafruit fan Philip " It still boots up from the Twiggy hard drive and runs. It also has a complete Pascal Development System." …"mine is a Lisa 2 with the 3.5” floppy and the 5 MB hard disk. In addition all of the unsold Lisa machines reached an ignominious end."

What end was that? From the Verge -

In September 1989, according to a news article, Apple buried about 2,700 unsold Lisa computers in Logan, Utah at a very closely guarded garbage dump. The Lisa was released in 1983, and it was Apple’s first stab at a truly modern, graphically driven computer: it had a mouse, windows, icons, menus, and other things we’ve all come to expect from “user-friendly” desktops. It had those features a full year before the release of the Macintosh.

Article, and video…

Check out the Apple Lisa page on Wikipedia

, the Computer History's article -

and the National Museum of American History – Behring center -

Have first computer memories? Post’em up in the comments, or post yours on socialz’ and tag them #firstcomputer #retrocomputing – See you back here tomorrow!

[harmonictechnicality]

model!steve and voice actor!Eddie (part 2)

part 1 here | ao3 link here | the temp is up on this one so like... dni if under 18 pls

Steve spends a lot of his spare time at the gym. Comes with the territory of modeling or whatever. Gotta keep himself strong, without developing bulging muscles. Gotta keep himself toned, without becoming too lean. Somewhat of a balancing act to this media fuckery circus.

Times are changing, yeah maybe. But not for puffy-lipped preps with killer bone structure. Steve still falls under the category of stereotypical Pretty Boy, and he’s chill with that. Fucking owns it.

Most days…

He’s currently cooling down on the treadmill - brisk walk, almost a jog. It’s a good pace for multitasking some adult shit that he needs to get done. Staying hydrated, keeping his photoshoot calendar up-to-date, answering a few emails. Yada yada.

Steve takes a swig of his seaweed (more like arsenic) smoothie. Opens the top email that reads:

The Fallen King - Final Commercial Cut

Right. Steve almost forgot about this particular shoot. Well, tried to repress the thoughts of that mega-douche director who kept referring to Steve’s ass as ‘prime real estate.’ Fucking creep.

He scrolls down to the attached file and slides his headphones back over his ears.

The ad opens with a wide shot of Steve draped over the throne, fog swelling around the bottom of the screen. The music is an eerie cello solo, set to a heavy bassline. 

Just another oversexualized cologne campaign, he thinks. Probably will barely feature the product because they paid big money for Steve’s body. Gotta get their fill of it (ha, they fucking wish Steve would fill them up).

But then the narration rolls into his ears and the room does a somersault. Practically inverts it’s axis at the sound dripping in Steve’s ears:

‘The mighty will fall from grace…’

“Oh shit.” Steve almost wipes out on the treadmill, has to catch his fall on the side bars. His knees are tingling, calves molten and shaky. Already half hard, which is definitely going to be a problem in these flimsy, mesh gym shorts.

‘Forbidden love and public slander…’

But that voice. That tone. That sinful register set in the minor key of Holy Fuck.

‘Will bring them to their knees.’

Alright, that fucking does it. Steve pauses the video before he’s fully tenting-out in a goddamn fitness center. Packs up his shit, chucks the sludge smoothie in the trash, and finds an empty stall. Emphatically locks it.

“Agh, damnit!” Steve's thumb slips over the screen and exits out of the video. It scrolls back to the top of the email - a new message has been added to the chain.

Seriously, what obnoxious fucker does ‘Reply All’ these days?

The new message reads:

Great work, team. (Sorry for being such a vocal slut.)

(… Not that sorry though.) - Eddie Munson

That’s right - the voice artist. Almost didn’t recognize the voice, but the repressed memory of that day comes flying to the surface when Steve sees the name. 

He recalls the guy being objectively cute too. Not in the California ‘sun-kissed skin’ kind of way. More in the Seattle ‘rain forces me to be a pale homebody’ kind of way. His eyes were something else though. They reminded Steve of the sepia tone filters he used in his early modeling portfolio. No way in hell Steve could ever forget knockout eyes like that.

The locker room is empty. Steve reopens the video, raises the volume high enough to mute out the thin hum from the air conditioning unit. Only wants to hear Eddie’s voice. That’s it. 

He’s already touching himself when the first phrase falls out of the headphones. Can’t even help it now that he’s alone. It’s all too good. Works himself up all stuffy and sensitive by the time the new part comes up:

‘Drenched in their guilt. Soaked in their shame.’

Fucking christ.

‘Choking on worthless confessions…’

Nope. Nope. Absolutely not. Choking? Worthless? What is this, a sado hotline? Steve feels the heat spreading on his neck, flushed over in a non-exercise way. There’s a thump in his dick, has to squeeze his fingers around it. Like his body needs a reminder to calm the fuck down.

‘Until all that is left of them is desolate darkness.’

Pretty sure the raspy exhale after every phrase is going to do Steve in, saturate his last ounce of dignity with want. Eddie’s breathing is taking Steve’s breath away, and that’s an outright mindfuck. Earfuck. 

Something is getting fucked, and somehow, Steve still needs more.

While the song sustains, Steve strokes himself to the percussive rhythm. 

‘The Fallen King. The scent of secrets.’

The hiss on the last syllable fades into the music till everything fizzles out, going dead silent.

Well, everything goes silent except for Steve, who is utterly rattled. Can hear his dense breath and it’s way too noisy for a public space. The pulse in his neck is irregular, hitched the fuck up. His smartwatch is buzzing, alerting him that his heart rate is elevated, which duh. His whole body feels like it underwent some sexual awakening in the middle of a fitness center. 

And, sure. That’s a common place for people to realize how gay and desperate they are, but not like this. Not with zero visuals of sweaty bodies. 

Before he starts the video over to… finish the job, a phone call lights up his screen. Because of course it does.

He reads the name and swipes it open. “What’s up, Buckley?”

“I need coffee.” Robin whines, already pouting into the phone speaker no doubt. 

“You always need coffee.”

“Yeah but like… it tastes better when you buy me coffee.”

“Oh, so you want to mooch off of your own client?” Steve teases because he can. They can annoy the shit out of each other and write it off as endearment. “Pretty unprofessional of you, Ms. Manager.”

Robin groans. Makes it a long one too - probably to show off both her annoyance and lung capacity. “Fuck all the way off, you were my friend first. Always friends first.”

“Always friends first.” Steve agrees. She’s right, usually is about most things. Robin has been his manager since his last agency went bankrupt from pouring their funds into promoting Fyre Fest. And everyone knows that turned out to be an entire fuckshow.

Honestly, it’s easier this way - Robin being his manager. They get to hang out more, he has more input on gigs that he’s interested in…

Interested in. Huh. The metaphorical lightbulb flicks on in Steve’s voice-drunk brain. Having his best friend as his manager is also convenient when Steve needs the phone number of a certain co-worker.

“Alright, fine.” Steve has a sly grin on as he talks. “I’ll bring over some coffee.”

“Thank god.”

“If!”

“Ugh.”

He huffs out a laugh. “If you can send me the cast and crew contact sheet from the Fallen King commercial.”

“Ew, why?” Robin asks, sounds totally repulsed. Valid, that shoot was Objectification Station.

But truly, Steve’s not in the mood to make up an excuse. He’s sore and sweaty and half-hard. So he just gets to the damn point. “Look, do you want coffee or not?”

“Okay okay.” That’s one way to speed up the process. Caffeine threats - works every time. “Dropping the file to you now.” 

“You’re the best.” Steve sings.

“I know, I know.” And the line clicks dead.

Okay. This is not a booty call, it’s not.

Steve is just texting a semi-stranger to tell him that his voice is potentially the hottest thing he’s ever heard. Okay, he’ll definitely phrase it better than that, maybe throw a few emojis in there to normalize the tone. Soften it up to sound very un-stalkery.

Yeah. Not a booty call. And if Eddie happens to send an audio message, and Steve happens to jerk off to it… still not a booty call, right?

Pathetic, maybe. But not basic, thank fuck.

He types, then re-types the message out way too many times before settling on this:

Steve: Great work on the commercial voiceover! Got ur number from the call sheet. hope that’s cool.

Steve hits send before realizing he didn’t have the goddamn common sense to introduce himself. He’s not even a rookie at hookups, why is he suddenly so frazzled by this guy?

“This is Steve by the way…” he mumbles into an audio message. Hits send, then quickly makes another:

“The… model guy.”

The model guy? What in the flustered hell is going on with him?

A chime notification goes off maybe two minutes after Steve sends the last message. Which is like… hot. Shameless fast texters are a millennial turn-on, for sure.

It’s a voice text, so Steve takes thirty seconds to calm down whatever involuntary throb just happened in his sweatpants. He sucks in some air and presses play:

“Pretty sure all the kids these days just send a ‘u up’ message to people they wanna dick down at midnight.”

Damn. Eddie’s voice sounds totally different, but just as sexy. Like amateur porn sexy. Is amateur audio porn a thing? It should be.

Steve quickly saves the audio file and types back.

Steve:  Ok pls don’t mention ‘kids’ while I’m trying to flirt with u

Eddie: Waitwaitwait So we're definitely flirting right now? I actually interpreted that correctly?

Steve: Like u said It’s midnight So… *shrug emoji*

And a phone call comes through. Eddie’s contact name flashing in a harsh light, too blinding and too unexpected. Steve’s heart is hammering at his rib cage, suddenly so fucking nervous. He waits until the last ring to answer, buys himself some time cause god knows, he needs it.

Steve takes a breath and swallows. “He-”

“Okay, so you do realize this is the sewer rat voice actor guy from the commercial shoot, right?” Eddie interrupts, sounds out of breath. “And not like… a fellow model or Timothee Chalamet’s cousin or something?”

That earns a hearty laugh and eye-roll from Steve. “He is so not my type.”

“Thought he was everyone’s type.”

“Nah.” Steve rolls onto his belly, very giddy and disarmed by the ease of the exchange. His nerves are set aside, replaced with his usual confidence. “More into sewer rat voice actor guys.”

“That… is some very specific criteria.” Eddie coughs or maybe it's just a dry laugh. He sounds pleased as hell, so laugh seems more likely. “Holy shit, I’m flirting with a model!”

“You’re cute." Steve should not be so charmed right now, but the impulsive honesty is really doing it for him. "Dorky, but cute.” 

Eddie mumbles something incoherent, then clears his throat. Speaks quieter this time. “So why’d you text?”

“So why’d you call?”

“Just, uh… needed confirmation that this is real life.”

Steve lets out a ‘hmm,’ thinks of a proper response to that. “If I was there, I could pinch you. Ya know... so you’d know it’s real.” Okay. Maybe not proper, but whatever. It’s late. His brain is half scrambled from hormones and exhaustion, cut him some slack.

“Would do a lot more than pinch you if you were actually here.” And sure, Eddie might have mumbled that, but Steve clearly heard it. He heard exactly what Eddie just suggested.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“Tell me about it.”

“Fuck, we’re doing this?” Eddie whispers.

Steve turns onto his back again, lets his hand wander down. “If you’re into that. Like hearing your voice, Eddie.”

“Like hearing you say my name like that.” And Eddie sounds like he means it. His tone is smoothing over, the same way it did in the narration. “You sound so worked up already.”

Steve moans, chest falling hard enough that the phone slips. Has to reposition it to get all that good vocal seduction back in his ear.

“God, wish I could see what you look like right now.” Eddie exhales, getting that nice rasp that Steve likes so much. It’s sultry and rich. Breathless at just the right moments. “Bet you’re lying down, aren’t you? Phone wedged between your neck and ear cause your hands are too busy to hold it properly. Am I right?”

“Yeah.” Steve pushes past the waistband of his sweatpants, then his boxers.

Eddie hums. Growls. “The things I’d do to you like that. Lying down, looking so eager to please. Saw how good you are at taking direction that day of the shoot. Does that apply in the bedroom too, baby?”

“It… fuck.” Steve strokes himself slowly. Can barely get the words out cause it feels like he's chewing on Eddie's voice. Swallowing every syllable. “Yeah, it does.”

“See - that’s the problem, isn’t it?”

“Problem?”

“That I don’t know what you’re into. How you like it.”

“Pretty open to… trying things.” Steve reassures, eyes closing to soak in every sensation. “Just keep talking.”

And thank all that is holy, Eddie does just that. He keeps talking. “Can’t stop thinking about that pretty neck of yours. How I’d kiss it, suck on it till your skin goes tender and soft under my lips. Till your head rolls back like it did in that video.”

Eddie's words are syrup. Heavy and tempting. “I’d let you rest it on my shoulder while I get my hands all over you. See what sweet spots drive you wild, get you to squirm for me.”

Steve's grip tightens, pumping at a pace that’s close to getting fucked. A pace that makes it easier to pretend that it’s Eddie’s hand wrapped around him, making his vision blurred and spotty - even with his eyes screwed shut.

“Eddie, you’re… oh my god.” Steve whines, knows it must be pretty fucking loud with the speaker smushed against his cheek. “You’re so good at this.”

Eddie shushes him, sounds like he’s snickering a bit. “I’d tease you like that until your thighs start to tremble. Until you beg me to go further. End the torture.”

“Fucking christ…please.” Guess Steve really is that good at taking direction. Or maybe he’s extra easy for guys that turn his brain into liquor. Too busy begging to know which one it might be. “Keep going.”

Eddie’s laugh is dark and rough. “Sounds nice hearing you beg like that. Like sin.”

Feels like sin too. 

Steve’s fingers are slicked nicely with precome. The friction of his palm is making everything warmer, better. And stirring all of those feelings up with Eddie’s voice? Fucking hell, Steve is close. He’s so damn- “Okay, okay. If we don’t stop, I’m gonna-”

“I know.” Eddie purrs, sweetly mean. “Thought that was the point.”

“Cannot believe I'm about to say this, but maybe…” Steve has to dig his hand out from his boxers to complete the sentence. Knocks his head against the wall because his behavior is totally batshit right now. “Maybe I want to see you again first? Is that weird?”

His skin sort of tingles from going this long without finishing. Never solved the blue-balling issue back at the gym either, so Steve’s on the verge of climax insanity right now. Didn’t think he’d discover an edging kink at the ripe age of twenty-five, but eureka. Here it is.

“Not weird.” Eddie’s voice returns back to a calmer one. The one that doesn’t make Steve want to bend over and get fucked so hard that his organs shift around. “I mean, I’m weird, sure. But wanting to complete this in person is not weird. Very un-weird, in fact.”

“You talk a lot.”

“Yeah well… voice actor.” Eddie says, sort of deadpan. “You couldn’t see that, but I just did ‘razzle dazzle’ hands.”

Shit, Steve really likes this guy. He just used the phrase ‘razzle dazzle hands,’ and Steve is still horny for him. Wow.

“Is tomorrow too soon?” Steve manages to say before overthinking it.

“Tomorrow-tomorrow, or like today-tomorrow?” Eddie asks. “Cause it’s past midnight.”

Right. Booty call time moves at an entirely different pace than normal time does. “Today-tomorrow. If you’re free.”

“Free as a dead composer’s anthology of music.” Eddie answers happily.

Steve opens his mouth to respond, then shuts it because what? What does that even mean? Is that a yes or a no? Goddamnit, his head hurts. Too many questions, not enough orgasms.

“Most classical music is royalty-free.” Eddie clears his throat, sounds like he’s tapping on something. “… So yeah. I’m free.”

“Right.” Steve chuckles, hard to believe he’s unapologetically gushing. “Well, I’ll see you tomorrow, Eddie.”

“Great. See you today, Steve.” Eddie is still snorting at his own joke while the call ends.

They haven’t sorted out any of the details yet, but it doesn’t matter. It’s happening. It’s real.

So real, that he wants an actual date with Eddie before steamy phone sex. He wants to make Eddie laugh before making him come. That's like... unheard of for Steve. Uncharted.

Damn.

Today-tomorrow can’t come soon enough.

[reasonsforhope]

"A 1-megawatt sand battery that can store up to 100 megawatt hours of thermal energy will be 10 times larger than a prototype already in use.

The new sand battery will eliminate the need for oil-based energy consumption for the entire town of town of Pornainen, Finland.

Sand gets charged with clean electricity and stored for use within a local grid.

Finland is doing sand batteries big. Polar Night Energy already showed off an early commercialized version of a sand battery in Kankaanpää in 2022, but a new sand battery 10 times that size is about to fully rid the town of Pornainen, Finland of its need for oil-based energy.

In cooperation with the local Finnish district heating company Loviisan Lämpö, Polar Night Energy will develop a 1-megawatt sand battery capable of storing up to 100 megawatt hours of thermal energy.

“With the sand battery,” Mikko Paajanen, CEO of Loviisan Lämpö, said in a statement, “we can significantly reduce energy produced by combustion and completely eliminate the use of oil.”

Polar Night Energy introduced the first commercial sand battery in 2022, with local energy utility Vatajankoski. “Its main purpose is to work as a high-power and high-capacity reservoir for excess wind and solar energy,” Markku Ylönen, Polar Nigh Energy’s co-founder and CTO, said in a statement at the time. “The energy is stored as heat, which can be used to heat homes, or to provide hot steam and high temperature process heat to industries that are often fossil-fuel dependent.” ...

Sand—a high-density, low-cost material that the construction industry discards [Note: 6/13/24: Turns out that's not true! See note at the bottom for more info.] —is a solid material that can heat to well above the boiling point of water and can store several times the amount of energy of a water tank. While sand doesn’t store electricity, it stores energy in the form of heat. To mine the heat, cool air blows through pipes, heating up as it passes through the unit. It can then be used to convert water into steam or heat water in an air-to-water heat exchanger. The heat can also be converted back to electricity, albeit with electricity losses, through the use of a turbine.

In Pornainen, Paajanen believes that—just by switching to a sand battery—the town can achieve a nearly 70 percent reduction in emissions from the district heating network and keep about 160 tons of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere annually. In addition to eliminating the usage of oil, they expect to decrease woodchip combustion by about 60 percent.

The sand battery will arrive ready for use, about 42 feet tall and 49 feet wide. The new project’s thermal storage medium is largely comprised of soapstone, a byproduct of Tulikivi’s production of heat-retaining fireplaces. It should take about 13 months to get the new project online, but once it’s up and running, the Pornainen battery will provide thermal energy storage capacity capable of meeting almost one month of summer heat demand and one week of winter heat demand without recharging.

“We want to enable the growth of renewable energy,” Paajanen said. “The sand battery is designed to participate in all Fingrid’s reserve and balancing power markets. It helps to keep the electricity grid balanced as the share of wind and solar energy in the grid increases.”"

-via Popular Mechanics, March 13, 2024

--

Note: I've been keeping an eye on sand batteries for a while, and this is really exciting to see. We need alternatives to lithium batteries ASAP, due to the grave human rights abuses and environmental damage caused by lithium mining, and sand batteries look like a really good solution for grid-scale energy storage.

--

Note 6/13/24: Unfortunately, turns out there are substantial issues with sand batteries as well, due to sand scarcity. More details from a lovely asker here, sources on sand scarcity being a thing at the links: x, x, x, x, x

[glass--beach]

what do you think sixth wave emo will sound like?

gonna be honest i feel like even the definition of fifth wave emo is a little flimsy. it includes a mix of artists that are just continuing emo revival (4th wave) without rly changing it as well as artists who are so far removed from emo that putting them under the umbrella is a little reductive. but emo is just such a polarizing genre that if there is 1% emo in a band's sound they immediately become for emo fans only.

just real quick for any followers who don't know the waves (this is off the top of my head so might not be perfect):

1st wave (late 80s): Washington DC emotive hardcore, not very far removed from post-hardcore at all, just more focused on emotions whereas post hardcore tended (at the time) to be more political. ie rites of spring, moss icon

2nd wave (90s - early 00s): the start of "midwest emo" - develops the sound further through the influence of post-rock among other things, tends to use less distortion & gentler singing. some bands became minor successes through the post-nirvana alternative rock gold rush but many were not appreciated til way after they were active. american football, capn jazz, sunny day real estate, the promise ring, mineral, etc etc etc

3rd wave (00s): what the average person knows emo to be. often known as mall emo. crosses over with pop punk frequently. this wave saw the greatest commercial success due to strong pop songwriting and slick production. spoke to a general malaise among teenagers post 9/11. my chemical romance, AFI, the used, brand new, also includes the whole "scenecore" wave towards the end of the 00s

4th wave (late 00s - mid 10s): the "emo revival". largely a reaction against the commercialization of the genre that occurred in the 3rd wave, and a revival of a more 2nd wave sound. bands in this wave tended to put out one album on a tiny label before fizzling out, and largely found success online. they also all REALLY hated 3rd wave. the world is a beautiful place and i am no longer afraid to die, snowing, the hotelier, algernon cadwallader, modern baseball (honestly i could list 4th wave bands forever it's the wave i'm most familiar with lol)

5th wave (late 10s - 20s): online, postmodern/post-postmodern, lots of influence from genres far removed from the first four waves of emo (jazz, hyperpop, folk, noise), bedroom production, digital sounds, synthesizers, odd instrument choices, autotune, pitch shifted vocals. two of the biggest influences here are Heccra and The Brave Little Abacus (i will go to my deathbed insisting TBLA is NOT an emo band though lmao). the thing is, there are bands lumped into this wave like Home is Where or awakebutstillinbed who generally have a much more 4th wave kinda sound & very few of the traits associated with 5th wave. or Origami Angel & Mom Jeans who remind me more of later 4th wave "weed emo" bands like Jank (fuck that band tho). AND THEN there's also bands here who sound more 3rd wave, like Jhariah. i'd say the bands most emblematic of a uniquely 5th wave sound (aside from the aforementioned TBLA and Heccra) are MEEEEEEEEEEEEE (glass beach), stomach book, lobsterfight, your arms are my cocoon, nouns, weatherday.

tbh the only real common thread with 5th wave is that all of these bands are friends lmao. there are very few bands I listed there that I do not know personally, some are very close friends, and the rest are like, one degree of separation from me. i believe Bea from Home is Where was the one to codify it but critics really latched onto the term because it's every critics dream to be the first to write about a new genre right as it emerges. 5th wave's variety is largely indicative of the breakup of monoculture that's been going on since the dawn of the internet, with this sort of postmodern genre collage aesthetic that has been facilitated by the increased ease of access to ALL styles of music for everyone in the world & micro-categorization of genre on sites like rym for example. i think it's going to take putting this all into historical context to really know what comes next. any new development in emo will inevitably fit under 5th wave's very broad umbrella, and as a result MANY bands in the genre reject the term. hell, the dividing lines between all of the existing waves are extremely arbitrary and there are countless exceptions to this generally accepted categorization going all the way back to the start of emo.

at this point it is genuinely impossible for there to be a 6th wave. i'm sure we'll see some new developments, some albums that shake things up, but it will take literally redefining the genre for there to be a Next Era of Emo.

if i can try to be a little deleuzian on main i predict we will see bands push the genre forward by using the components of the more uniquely 5th wave sound while not overtly referring to fifth wave (or ANY wave) at all. it'll probably take a different setting too, possibly less bedroomy, more live, maybe a more longform classical kind of approach rather than pop structure. small ensemble orchestra + autotuned screaming? tapping guitar over endlessly looping 190BPM 909 beats? otherwise by-the-numbers midwest emo bands with vocaloid singers? rapid oscillation between all of the waves, Naked City style? emo vocals with no instrumental accompaniment whatsoever? screamo jazz? 5th Wave: The Musical? Rites Of Spring meets The Rite Of Spring? fags in skinny jeans burning american flags while Courtesy of The Red White and Blue plays on a boombox? a band that's actually a tech startup that's actually a huge ponzi scheme? Talking Heads reunites but Jerry Harrison only plays in FACGCE now? drum stems from The Black Parade echoing through an abandoned parking garage? another 9/11? Emo bands that don't play music at all and just make out with each other on stage? who fucking knows. all i know is whatever comes next, online music nerds will be crying out "this isn't emo"

sorry for the essay LMAO