UC Science Today

It’s been commonly assumed that electric vehicles are not as useful to daily commuters because of their battery’s limited energy storage capacity. But a new study led by research scientist Samveg Saxena of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory found that electric vehicles can still meet the daily travel needs of drivers even after they’ve lost substantial battery capacity.

"Even well beyond having lost 20 percent of a battery's energy storage capacity, the needs of so many drivers all across the country will still be met. And so as a result, these batteries will last a lot longer than just having lost 20 percent of their energy storage capacity."

Saxena’s team simulated different scenarios based on real data about people’s driving behaviors across the U.S. using a Nissan Leaf, a car with similar energy storage capacity to many other EVs on the market.

"We looked at so many "what would happen if" types of scenarios, to come to the conclusions that we ultimately came to, that EV's will meet the needs of so many more people than is commonly assumed."

For the first time, scientists have expanded the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, or SETI, using new infrared detectors. Director of the Berkeley SETI Research Center Dan Werthimer says that infrared adds to the search that already includes optical and radio signals.

"We think the best strategy is a multi-prong strategy. You want to look at radio, you want to look at infrared, you want to look at visible—as many different searches—because we don’t know what E.T. might be doing. Infrared is kind of cool because it can go right through all of the dust in the galaxy. These are colors that are good for interstellar communication. And we think if E.T’s out there and they’re using laser signals, they’ll probably use an infrared laser."

Werthimer says that the idea of searching for infrared signals dates back several decades, but the technology has not been available until now.

"The infrared SETI is a big step in looking for other civilizations because we’ve never looked at infrared wavelengths. We wanted to do a search for infrared lasers a long time ago, but there weren’t detectors available. They recently became available, so we looked for in the infrared signals."

For the first time, scientists have expanded the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, or SETI, using new infrared detectors. Director of the Berkeley SETI Research Center Dan Werthimer says that infrared adds to the search that already includes optical and radio signals.

"We think the best strategy is a multi-prong strategy. You want to look at radio, you want to look at infrared, you want to look at visible—as many different searches—because we don’t know what E.T. might be doing. Infrared is kind of cool because it can go right through all of the dust in the galaxy. These are colors that are good for interstellar communication. And we think if E.T’s out there and they’re using laser signals, they’ll probably use an infrared laser."

Werthimer says that the idea of searching for infrared signals dates back several decades, but the technology has not been available until now.

"The infrared SETI is a big step in looking for other civilizations because we’ve never looked at infrared wavelengths. We wanted to do a search for infrared lasers a long time ago, but there weren’t detectors available. They recently became available, so we looked for in the infrared signals."

For the first time, scientists have expanded the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, or SETI, using new infrared detectors. Director of the Berkeley SETI Research Center Dan Werthimer says that infrared adds to the search that already includes optical and radio signals.

"We think the best strategy is a multi-prong strategy. You want to look at radio, you want to look at infrared, you want to look at visible—as many different searches—because we don’t know what E.T. might be doing. Infrared is kind of cool because it can go right through all of the dust in the galaxy. These are colors that are good for interstellar communication. And we think if E.T’s out there and they’re using laser signals, they’ll probably use an infrared laser."

Werthimer says that the idea of searching for infrared signals dates back several decades, but the technology has not been available until now.

"The infrared SETI is a big step in looking for other civilizations because we’ve never looked at infrared wavelengths. We wanted to do a search for infrared lasers a long time ago, but there weren’t detectors available. They recently became available, so we looked for in the infrared signals."

For the first time, scientists have expanded the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, or SETI, using new infrared detectors. Director of the Berkeley SETI Research Center Dan Werthimer says that infrared adds to the search that already includes optical and radio signals.

"We think the best strategy is a multi-prong strategy. You want to look at radio, you want to look at infrared, you want to look at visible—as many different searches—because we don’t know what E.T. might be doing. Infrared is kind of cool because it can go right through all of the dust in the galaxy. These are colors that are good for interstellar communication. And we think if E.T’s out there and they’re using laser signals, they’ll probably use an infrared laser."

Werthimer says that the idea of searching for infrared signals dates back several decades, but the technology has not been available until now.

"The infrared SETI is a big step in looking for other civilizations because we’ve never looked at infrared wavelengths. We wanted to do a search for infrared lasers a long time ago, but there weren’t detectors available. They recently became available, so we looked for in the infrared signals."

For the first time, scientists have expanded the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, or SETI, using new infrared detectors. Director of the Berkeley SETI Research Center Dan Werthimer says that infrared adds to the search that already includes optical and radio signals.

"We think the best strategy is a multi-prong strategy. You want to look at radio, you want to look at infrared, you want to look at visible—as many different searches—because we don’t know what E.T. might be doing. Infrared is kind of cool because it can go right through all of the dust in the galaxy. These are colors that are good for interstellar communication. And we think if E.T’s out there and they’re using laser signals, they’ll probably use an infrared laser."

Werthimer says that the idea of searching for infrared signals dates back several decades, but the technology has not been available until now.

"The infrared SETI is a big step in looking for other civilizations because we’ve never looked at infrared wavelengths. We wanted to do a search for infrared lasers a long time ago, but there weren’t detectors available. They recently became available, so we looked for in the infrared signals."

What can a country that supports lifelong involvement in music tell us about the importance of creative arts? That’s what University of California, San Francisco cognitive neuroscientist Julene Johnson hopes to answer after spending six months as a Fulbright Scholar in Jyväskylä, Finland. Johnson found a strong correlation between community choirs and the well being of older Fins.

"The older Fins who reported the greatest benefit from singing in a choir, also have the highest ratings on the quality of life measure. So although this was just a cross-sectional study, there was a strong relationship between those who told us that they had a high benefit from the choir, and also those who had reported a high quality of life."

Johnson is now conducting a study on seniors singing in community choirs in the U.S.

"Participating in the creative arts might decrease loneliness and improve your mood, but it almost might have some other impacts, such as making somebody physically stronger or also helping them keep their brain and their mind engaged."

What can a country that supports lifelong involvement in music tell us about the importance of creative arts? That’s what University of California, San Francisco cognitive neuroscientist Julene Johnson hopes to answer after spending six months as a Fulbright Scholar in Jyväskylä, Finland. Johnson found a strong correlation between community choirs and the well being of older Fins.

"The older Fins who reported the greatest benefit from singing in a choir, also have the highest ratings on the quality of life measure. So although this was just a cross-sectional study, there was a strong relationship between those who told us that they had a high benefit from the choir, and also those who had reported a high quality of life."

Johnson is now conducting a study on seniors singing in community choirs in the U.S.

"Participating in the creative arts might decrease loneliness and improve your mood, but it almost might have some other impacts, such as making somebody physically stronger or also helping them keep their brain and their mind engaged."

What can a country that supports lifelong involvement in music tell us about the importance of creative arts? That’s what University of California, San Francisco cognitive neuroscientist Julene Johnson hopes to answer after spending six months as a Fulbright Scholar in Jyväskylä, Finland. Johnson found a strong correlation between community choirs and the well being of older Fins.

"The older Fins who reported the greatest benefit from singing in a choir, also have the highest ratings on the quality of life measure. So although this was just a cross-sectional study, there was a strong relationship between those who told us that they had a high benefit from the choir, and also those who had reported a high quality of life."

Johnson is now conducting a study on seniors singing in community choirs in the U.S.

"Participating in the creative arts might decrease loneliness and improve your mood, but it almost might have some other impacts, such as making somebody physically stronger or also helping them keep their brain and their mind engaged."

What can a country that supports lifelong involvement in music tell us about the importance of creative arts? That’s what University of California, San Francisco cognitive neuroscientist Julene Johnson hopes to answer after spending six months as a Fulbright Scholar in Jyväskylä, Finland. Johnson found a strong correlation between community choirs and the well being of older Fins.

"The older Fins who reported the greatest benefit from singing in a choir, also have the highest ratings on the quality of life measure. So although this was just a cross-sectional study, there was a strong relationship between those who told us that they had a high benefit from the choir, and also those who had reported a high quality of life."

Johnson is now conducting a study on seniors singing in community choirs in the U.S.

"Participating in the creative arts might decrease loneliness and improve your mood, but it almost might have some other impacts, such as making somebody physically stronger or also helping them keep their brain and their mind engaged."