[BAMAKO] Several key African countries have done "very little" to invest in health research since pledging to do so at a world meeting of health and science ministers in Mexico four years ago, say critics.

But others – including Tanzania, Rwanda and Mali – have made significant progress in investing in their health research.

The first section of solar panels has been installed atop the Atlantic City Convention Center. The power system is to be the largest single-roof photovoltaic system in the U.S., with some 13,321 panels capable of generating 2.36 megawatts. The panels will cover 290,000 square feet, or two-thirds of the venue's roof.

Raw milk is illegal in many countries as it can be contaminated with potentially harmful microbes. Contamination can also spoil the milk, making it taste bitter and turn thick and sticky. Now scientists have discovered new species of bacteria that can grow at low temperatures, spoiling raw milk even when it is refrigerated.

Developing countries need a broad-based capacity in physics to achieve sustainable economic growth, says Reza Mansouri in aNature supplement published to coincide with the twenty-fifth anniversary of TWAS, the academy of sciences in the developing world.

As GreenBiz reported on Tuesday, the 2008 CleanTech Open concluded earlier this week, showcasing some of the most exciting new innovations in the world of sustainability. Among the winners walking away with a prize package worth $100,000 in cash and business resources was BottleStone, a Los Altos Hills company that makes ceramic stone countertops out of recycled glass.

For all of its 21st-century advancements, the shipping industry drags a lot of old technology around.

Giant vessels are so sophisticated these days that they require only a handful of crew members. But the ships still burn a thick, dirty sludge called bunker fuel while at sea and slurp diesel to keep the lights and air conditioning running while in port.

The ingredients for a multibillion-dollar global technology race sit on a table here in this Milwaukee suburb. They make the process seem pretty simple: Two strips of specially coated foil and a thin, plastic-like material called a separator are carefully wrapped together in a layered spiral that technicians here call the "jelly roll."

Engineers have constructed a solar array smaller than a dime out f 20 solar cells, each cell tinier than a quarter of this lowercase "o."

A few UK scientists have done a smart thing; they’ve combined the proposals of G8 policymakers for combating climate change with actual data on the status of play in the carbon cycle. The resulting study (pdf) is interesting not only because of this highly useful approach but also because it focuses on atmospheric carbon dioxide and its impact on the environment in the far future.