Spanish Covid-19 Recovery Investment Scheme Funds 12 Energy Start-Ups
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Power Technology.
These are the two introductory paragraphs.
Several energy companies have announced they will assist and invest in a scheme to develop smaller companies assisting in Spain’s Covid-19 recovery.
The Positive Energy+ investment scheme has taken 396 proposals over 13 days. The promoters of the programme have chosen 12 businesses they believe will have a large impact on the country’s decarbonisation, digitalisation and mobility, while also considering their social impact.
It looks like Spain is going a similar route to Norway, with their fund.
Norway Announces $384.5m Clean Energy Fund To Aid In Covid-19 Recovery
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Power Technology.
These are the first one-and-a-half paragraphs.
Last week, Norway announced plans to fund a “green transition package”, investing $384.5m into sustainable power and infrastructure to help the country’s economy and productivity post-Covid-19.
The fund will be used to support a range of initiatives, including investments in hydrogen power and battery storage technology, building offshore wind infrastructure, and renovations to new and existing buildings, as Norway looks to reach the Paris Climate Agreement target of limiting global temperature rise to less than two degrees by 2050.
Perhaps we should follow Norway’s lead.
Will Bread And Circuses Help Us Through COVID-19?
Bread and circuses is an old phrase that goes back to Roman times.
It looks like TV and on-line cooks and chefs and the supermarkets have given us the first, so do we need more of the second?
At the weekend, I enjoyed watching quality horse-racing on ITV, so wouldn’t it be sensible to get football on free-to-air television as soon as possible.
It might encourage people to stay-in, rather than gather in groups.
Would it cut the spread of COVID-19?
Satellite Images Suggest Wuhan Outbreak Began Last Autumn
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article in The Times.
This is the introductory paragraph.
Big increases in traffic at Wuhan hospitals last autumn suggest that the coronavirus was spreading in the Chinese city weeks earlier than previously admitted, according to a study by Harvard Medical School.
If this is true and the Chinese had given us the truth, how would it have affected the rest of the world’s response to COVID-19?
After Coronavirus, What’s Next? China: More Coal, US: More Oil, EU: More Renewables
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on CleanTechnica.
The title says it all, but read the article to get the detail.
Wabtec Launches BlueFilter Air Filters For Trains
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Railway Gazette.
This is the introductory paragraphs.
Wabtec Corp has launched BlueFilter, a filter designed to be retrofitted to current passenger train HVAC systems to ensure the provision of clean air on board.
The company says it can remove contaminants that are .01 to 1 000 μm size, smaller than current standard filters and including bacteria, dust and viruses.
Does viruses include COVID-19?
This Press Release on Wabtec’s web site gives more details.
BlueFilter’s design removes contaminants that are .01 to 1,000 micrometers in size. That includes allergens, bacteria, various dusts and viruses. By comparison, today’s standard filters typically only remove particles that are between 10 to 1,000 micrometers in size, which only includes contaminants such as pollen, most dusts and some bacteria.
It certainly gets down to the nitty-gritty.
Has The BCG Vaccine Saved The Balkans From The Worst Of The Coronavirus?
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article in The Times.
The article discusses the title and there is certainly circumstantial evidence.
- The former Yugoslavia hasn’t been badly hid by COVID-19.
- The country had endemic tuberculosis.
- The UK dropped BCG vaccinations in the 2000s.
I’ll be interested to see, if this turns out to be a promising lead or just a coincidence.
RMT Threatens Strikes Over ‘Guardian Angels’ Plan
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Rail News.
This is the introductory paragraph.
The RMT has warned of possible industrial action in protest at a government plan for unpaid volunteers to help guide railway passengers and prevent overcrowding at stations.
They don’t seem to be in favour.
This was a statement from the Department of Transport.
These volunteers will play a crucial supporting role in keeping people moving by easing crowding and providing advice to help maintain social distancing, protecting passengers and tackling the spread of the virus.
‘We are clear these volunteers will not be performing any tasks or roles that vital frontline staff are trained to carry out, and they will be deployed at key stations in the short term when the easing of lockdown restrictions could see the increased use of public transport.
It puzzles me, why the RMT didn’t strike during the Olympics, as we had all those charming volunteers, helping visitors with their needs.
Zopa Seems To Have Deconstipated
In early March, I wrote Is The COVID-19 Having An Affect On Lending At Zopa?, where I said this.
I lend money on Zopa and at the moment no-one seems to be borrowing any money.
I put some of my pension in my lending pot into the peer-to-peer lender each month and it’s still there sitting safely in the queue for a borrower.
Perhaps everybody is being cautious because of the COVID-19 alert.
At the time of writing this new post, everything seems to be back to normal. Or at least money, that I put in my lending account yesterday, has now been allocated to borrowers and is awaiting the final checks.
Eight years ago, I wrote Stability in Financial Systems, where I put forward my belief that Zopa is a stable system, that adjusts itself to the conditions it encounters.
Has the peer-to-peer lender just demonstrated, that my thoughts are correct, by sailing untroubled through the COVID-19 crisis, with just a small adjustment on the tiller here and there, just as it survived the Banking Crisis of 2008?
One-Hour Covid Test Approved For Rollout
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article in The Times.
This article is more than the title as it details four testing methods, currently being rolled out.
After reading this article, I would not be surprised to see an affordable COVID-19 testing device being developed and available for non-professional use in the coming months.
Getting it right, will bring the team so much of a financial reward, they’ll make Dyson look like pauper. No wonder organisations like Cambridge University, Imperial College, big pharmaceutical companies and hedge funds are backing development.
As these tests are often about measuring the intricate properties of both human and virus DNA, I wonder how many other collateral benefits will aid diagnosis of diseases like cancer.
The Anonymous Widower 