DAILY INNOVATION BRIEF by Maryanne Kane, Journalist

 DAILY INNOVATION BRIEF 

By Journalists Edward Kane & Maryanne Kane 

NEW SCIENCE ON FIREFLIES: VERY CHALLENGED & DISAPPEARING

                              

                                                          

• One of the top wonders of nature is the sight of fireflies lighting up the woods at night.  A comprehensive new study finds a growing number of Climate Change and human threats are putting the survival of the species to the test and progressively dimming their lights.  Here are some key facts:
• Comprehensive research by University of Kentucky, Penn State, Bucknell & the US Dept. of Agriculture shows a precarious situation for fireflies in North America
• Their decline is alarming
• The threats to them are numerous:  

1. Climate Change causing heat and severe weather
2. Overly dry and overly wet weather
3. Artificial light from streetlights, signs and buildings
4. Agricultural practices using pesticides & herbicides
5. Urban sprawl costing them their habitats

• The scientists used 24,000 field surveys from citizens groups and advanced, machine learning analytics
• Their recommended solutions:  reduce light pollution, preserve natural habitats, implement wildlife-friendly agricultural practices
• Why so important: loss of the firefly population would cause broad ecological disruptions, including to other species... and the loss of a natural wonder.

"SON OF CONCORDE" SET TO BREAK THE SOUND BARRIER

                                                                    

                                                                            Source:  Boom 

• Boom Supersonic's SST is known as the "Son of Concorde".  It's designed to fly from New York City to London in 3.5 hours or Tokyo to Seattle in 4 hours.  Boom's test jet XB-1 is now cleared to break the sound barrier in a major new test flight.  Here are the facts:
• The FAA just gave Denver-based Boom the go-ahead for their supersonic XB-1 to fly over Mach 1
• The supersonic flight will demonstrate the plane's fuel consumption, speed and flight characteristics
• It will perform 10 to 20 subsonic flights before going supersonic
• Boom's top priorities:

1. Through supersonic flights they hope to verify the jet's innovative technologies
2. Build a full-scale, 100-passenger version to be called Overture
3. Target Overture for flying at Mach 1.7
4. Deliver orders for Overtures from United and American Airlines
5. Go commercial with passenger flights in 2030

• Boom as well as NASA' new SST concept are key components of the effort to bring back super-fast, supersonic flying like the Concorde provided decades ago, but this time with a lot less noise.