AI helps digital humans move more naturally as they speak
People communicate with more than words. A raised hand, a change in posture or a facial expression can help convey meaning and emotion. Now, researchers have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) system that can translate speech into coordinated movements of the body, hands and face, potentially making digital characters and virtual presenters more expressive and lifelike.
Developed by researchers at Tohoku University and the University of Hong Kong, DynaConTalk generates three-dimensional (3D) human movements that correspond to spoken content. Unlike approaches that generate only individual gestures, the system coordinates different parts of the body while maintaining smooth movement over longer speeches. Users can also guide the generated motion by specifying poses or providing reference examples.
Generating realistic full-body movement from speech presents several challenges. Large changes in body posture can overshadow smaller movements, such as finger gestures and facial expressions, making them difficult for AI models to learn. This can result in repetitive gestures or unnatural shaking. Another problem occurs when separately generated movement segments are joined together, sometimes creating noticeable changes in speed or rhythm.
To address these issues, DynaConTalk separates movement into slower and faster components while keeping them synchronized. This is similar to separating sound into low- and high-frequency components. By learning these different types of movement together, the system can capture both broad changes in posture and subtle, brief gestures. It also dynamically adjusts how much it relies on different features of speech, including rhythm, voice characteristics and spoken words, as it generates movement.
The system also uses information from previously generated movements to guide the next segment. This allows it to maintain continuity across longer sequences, reducing abrupt transitions and helping produce more natural movement during extended speeches.
The researchers evaluated DynaConTalk using two publicly available datasets of speech and human movement, BEAT2 and SHOW. They also conducted a study in which 30 participants compared videos generated by three different systems across 15 speech examples. DynaConTalk received the highest average ratings in all four evaluation categories: naturalness, correspondence with spoken content, synchronization and movement diversity. Automated evaluations further showed that its generated movements more closely resembled the distribution of recorded human movements.
The technology could have applications in character animation for video games and films, virtual presenters, online education and remote communication. For example, creators could specify a character's initial pose or provide a reference movement, then let the AI generate the surrounding gestures and expressions. This offers a more flexible way to create animated characters whose movements complement what they are saying.
The team hopes to extend the approach to a wider range of whole-body movements, including walking. However, existing datasets contain relatively limited examples of large-scale movement, while speech alone does not provide enough information to determine how a person should move through space. The researchers plan to explore larger motion datasets and additional guidance about movement paths to address these limitations.
Researchers at Tohoku University and the University of Hong Kong have developed an AI system called DynaConTalk that translates human speech into lifelike, coordinated 3D movements across a digital character's body, hands, and face.
AI helps digital humans (avatars) move more naturally while speaking by translating speech, text, and audio cues into coordinated whole-body, hand, and facial movements.
Key AI techniques and methods:
• Diffusion Models and Wavelet Constraints: Newer frameworks—such as research from Tohoku University—utilize specialized diffusion models (like wavelet-constrained diffusion) to generate long-form, controllable 3D co-speech motions for the entire body, hands, and face instead of isolated gestures.
• Multimodal Speech-to-Motion Mapping: AI analyzes the rhythm, pitch, pauses, and phonemes of spoken audio alongside language semantics. This allows the avatar to naturally time its nods, hand shrugs, weight shifts, and eye contact to match the emotional flow of the conversation.
• Lip-Sync and Facial Alignment: Advanced decoders analyze audio or speech transcripts to map out mouth shapes—prioritizing clear lip-sync milestones first and filling in contextual transitions—so facial expressions align tightly with the spoken words.
• Real-Time LLM Orchestration: Platforms like UneeQ use real-time large language model (LLM) orchestration to coordinate language generation, voice synthesis, and physical movement simultaneously within milliseconds, enabling fluid, interactive live conversations.
• Reference-Based and Pose Guidance: Creators can specify an initial pose or reference movement, letting the AI procedurally generate surrounding gestures, expressions, and posture shifts that complement the dialogue
How DynaConTalk works...Generating realistic full-body motion from audio is difficult because large posture shifts often drown out subtle finger gestures or facial expressions, leading to robotic shaking or repetitive loops. DynaConTalk solves this through a few key innovations:
• Frequency Separation. The system splits motion into slower and faster components—much like separating audio into low and high frequencies. Learning them together allows the AI to capture broad posture changes alongside rapid, subtle hand and facial movements.
• Dynamic Speech Balancing. As the AI generates animation, it continuously adjusts how heavily it relies on different speech cues, including vocal rhythm, voice characteristics, and the actual spoken words.
• Long-Form Continuity. To prevent awkward jumps or speed changes during long speeches, the model uses previously generated motion segments to guide upcoming frames.
• Creator Control. Animators can input a specific starting pose or reference movement, and the AI generates the surrounding gestures and expressions to match.
Key results & applications:
• Human & Automated Testing. Evaluated on the BEAT2 and SHOW motion datasets and tested with 30 human participants, DynaConTalk outperformed competing systems in naturalness, speech synchronization, content relevance, and gesture diversity.
• Practical Uses. The system is designed to streamline character animation for video games, films, virtual presenters, online education, and remote communication.
• Publication & Future Work. Published in ACM Transactions on Graphics in November 2026 and scheduled for presentation at SIGGRAPH Asia 2026, the team next plans to expand the model to handle full-body spatial movements like walking. You can explore technical demos and code details on the official DynaConTalk Project Page
mundophone
DOSSIER
TECH
US facing extreme power transmission crisis, experts warn
The U.S. needs more power. And more ways to move it. Demand for electricity is surging, driven by the electrification of transportation and industry and the rise of data centers.
The White House has declared a national emergency to secure the country’s bulk-power system against foreign threats, but there’s another fundamental problem not being addressed. The U.S. isn’t building enough transmission.
The gap is stark: The continental U.S. has been adding only about 500 miles of new high-voltage transmission lines a year. Studies suggest that through 2050, roughly 5,000 miles a year may be needed.
David Victor, a distinguished professor in the UC San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy and director of the Deep Decarbonization Initiative, studies energy and climate policy. In a new Science Policy Forum, “Fixing the power transmission crisis,” Victor and coauthors examine why that gap is so large – and what it will take to close it. So we asked him:
Why isn’t the U.S. building the power lines it needs? Victor: The short answer is that there is no national strategy. The high-voltage transmission system is essentially the interstate highway system of the electric grid, moving power over long distances and between regions. But decisions about what gets built are dispersed among utilities and regional grid operators, as well as state and federal governments.
As it stands, we have a system with lots of veto points and weak incentives to build the projects that deliver the greatest value across regions. Utilities are generally rewarded for investments inside their own service territories. Once a line crosses utility or state boundaries, more players get involved, approvals become more complicated and fights break out over who pays and who benefits.
Technology can help smooth some of the politics. We can upgrade existing transmission lines to carry more power, and newer high-voltage direct-current technologies make it possible to bury lines over long distances. That creates opportunities to use existing rights-of-way along highways and railroads, where infrastructure is already in place and opposition may be lower. In that sense, technology can make the politics of building transmission easier.
But technology alone won’t create a national strategy. One of the proposals we make is for a Presidential-Congressional Transmission Commission to help develop one – not a single federal master plan for the grid, but a framework for aligning federal and state rules, reducing barriers and creating stronger incentives for high-value projects to actually get built.
America is hurtling toward a power grid crisis...This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections...A crisis is brewing for the U.S. electricity grid – one that could make your electric bill skyrocket and thwart efforts to address climate change.
To understand the problem, think of transmission lines – the poles and wires that transport electricity from power plants to homes and businesses – as an interstate highway system for electrons. Like too many cars on the road, too many electrons traveling across power lines can cause traffic jams.
These sorts of jams haven’t been a problem until just recently, as power-hungry data centers proliferate and demand from electric vehicles, heat pumps, and air conditioning grows.
As a result, Americans’ electricity rates, which already spiked by more than one-third over the past five years, are poised to keep rising.
Read: Home electricity bills are skyrocketing. For data centers, not so much.
What’s more, when rising demand meets inadequate grid capacity, that slows efforts to address climate pollution. When new clean power sources are stymied by too much traffic on power lines, existing fossil fuel power plants are forced to remain in service and burn gas and coal more often. And when data centers are unable to connect to the grid, they often build dirty on-site natural gas power generation instead.
Adding more transmission lines to the grid would ease congestion, but on average, permitting and building a new transmission line in the U.S. takes a decade. Some big multistate transmission lines have taken over three decades to complete. And the Trump administration recently axed Congress’ attempts to accelerate the process.
A bipartisan group of senators just released a bill that would reform permitting for transmission lines and other large projects, speeding up the process for constructing new lines. But time is running short in this session of Congress, and the stakes of inaction are high.
"Failing to pass permitting reforms would have real consequences for all of us,” said Zach Zimmerman, director of research and policy for Grid Strategies, a power sector consulting firm, in an email. “Every year that major transmission projects are delayed means higher system costs and less ability to move power where it is needed during extreme weather. Without reform, we will continue to pay more for the grid.”
The U.S. has struggled to modernize its grid...The demand for electrons on the U.S. power grid remained relatively flat for decades, increasing by a mere 5% between 2005 and 2023.
Now that’s changed: Analysts at the consulting firm ICF forecast that U.S. residential electricity rates could rise another 15% to 40% over the next five years and double by 2050, with power grid traffic jams being a root problem.
U.S. electricity demand from 2000 to 2025 (blue) in terawatt-hours (TWh) and the range of forecasts (green) by various groups. (Image credit: created by Dana Nuccitelli with data from Ember, Princeton REPEAT, American Clean Power, Bank of America Institute, Enverus Intelligence Research, and McKinsey & Company)
In 2024, the Department of Energy concluded that the U.S. would need between a doubling and quadrupling of its transmission capacity by 2050 in order to affordably meet growing power demand and maintain grid reliability.
To create that capacity would require a build-out of roughly 5,000 miles per year of high-capacity regional transmission, plus additional miles of interregional transmission, according to Grid Strategies. But it took the U.S. nine years, from 2017 through 2025, to build the last 5,000 miles of transmission lines, Grid Strategies estimated.
The only recent year that came close to the 5,000-mile target was 2013, when Texas built close to 3,000 miles of transmission lines. That was the result of a 2005 Texas state law that encouraged building transmission lines in areas with high potential for wind power, known as “competitive renewable energy zones.”
U.S. transmission build-out has since stagnated, averaging just 600 new miles per year since 2017.
Congress has failed to speed up transmission line permitting...Like Texas, Congress passed a law in 2005 in an effort to spur more transmission lines, but with far less success.
One challenge transmission projects face is obtaining permits in every state and local jurisdiction along their proposed path. That can be an onerous and time-consuming process with many potential veto points. In contrast, Congress in the 1938 Natural Gas Act gave the entity now known as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission the authority to act as a one-stop shop for interstate natural gas pipeline permits.
Lawmakers tried to establish a similar process for interstate transmission lines in the 2005 Energy Policy Act. That law instructed the Department of Energy to establish “National Interest Electric Transmission Corridors.” These are areas where it would be in the nation's interest to build electrical transmission lines relatively quickly, for example, to relieve traffic jams on the grid. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission would then have the authority to permit transmission lines along these corridors in consultation with states.
But for over 15 years, the Department of Energy was unable to designate any such corridors due to a series of court decisions in favor of states, landowners, and environmental groups, ruling that the bill’s language was insufficiently clear. Congress subsequently tried to clarify its intent in the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
And that effort seemed to succeed. In December 2024, the Department of Energy finally advanced three proposed National Interest Electric Transmission Corridors in the areas identified as having the greatest need for additional transmission capacity.
Energy policy experts warn that the United States is facing an extreme power transmission crisis because the pace of building new high-voltage power lines is falling drastically short of surging electricity demand. In a November 2026 Science Policy Forum paper titled "Fixing the power transmission crisis," researchers from UC San Diego and Carnegie Mellon University highlight that the continental U.S. adds only about 500 miles of new high-voltage lines per year, while roughly 5,000 miles per year are needed through 2050.
Core drivers of the crisis:
• Surging Electricity Demand. After remaining relatively flat for nearly two decades, U.S. power consumption is spiking due to the rapid expansion of AI data centers, industrial electrification, and electric vehicles.
• Jurisdictional Gridlock. Experts note the fundamental obstacle is regulatory rather than technical, as authority is fragmented across federal, state, and private utility entities. When a transmission line crosses state or utility boundaries, disputes over permitting and cost allocation allow individual stakeholders to stall nationally vital projects.
• Supply Chain Bottlenecks. Critical grid hardware faces severe shortages, with roughly 85% of power transformers manufactured outside the U.S. and average wait times stretching to 128 weeks.
Recent grid stress and economic impacts:
• Emergency Grid Orders. In mid-October 2026, the U.S. Department of Energy issued a federal emergency order for PJM Interconnection, the nation's largest regional grid serving over 60 million people across 13 states and Washington, D.C., after unseasonable heat coincided with routine fall plant maintenance. A similar emergency authorization was required in July 2026 during extreme summer heat to allow the curtailment of power to large data centers.
• Rising Consumer Costs. Grid congestion and transmission bottlenecks are projected to drive U.S. residential electricity rates up by 15% to 40% over the next five years, potentially doubling by 2050 if capacity is not expanded.
Expert-recommended solutions:
To overcome the stalemate, the UC San Diego and Carnegie Mellon researchers outline a three-point action plan:
• Deploying Modern Grid Technologies. Upgrading existing lines via advanced reconductoring and burying high-voltage direct current (VSC-HVDC) cables along existing highway and railroad rights-of-way can double or triple capacity while bypassing local siting opposition.
• Exercising Federal Authority. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the Department of Energy can use existing statutory powers to designate national-interest transmission corridors and break state-level permitting impasses.
• Creating a National Framework. Establishing a Presidential-Congressional Transmission Commission and adopting international regulatory best practices can help align state and federal rules on how transmission costs and benefits are shared.
Power transmission crisis in world...Outdated power grids are a major hurdle in the transition to renewable energy, since older systems often can't absorb all the electricity from new, cleaner sources.
This threatens global efforts to curb climate change by reducing fossil fuels and switching to renewable energy such as solar and wind. At U.N. climate talks kicking off this week, co-hosts Turkey and Australia want more ambitious goals to slash fossil fuels, install renewables and upgrade grids.
Grid concerns are gaining urgency this year as nations race to improve their energy security following the Iran war. The U.N. recently launched a new initiative to rally funding for grid upgrades in Africa and Southeast Asia.
"There needs to be a massive, massive, massive scaling up of investments into grids if we are going to get close to meeting our climate, energy and development goals," Selwin Hart, special adviser to the U.N. secretary-general on climate action, said.
Climate talks address grid bottleneck...At the U.N. climate talks, hosted in the Turkish resort city of Antalya, organizers describe modern and reliable electric grids as "the backbone of the clean energy system."
But billions of dollars are needed to upgrade out-of-date grids. These steep costs could hinder further renewable energy installations.
During the U.N. General Assembly in September, the global body launched a Global Grids Accelerator to speed up international funding for electricity infrastructure in Africa and Southeast Asia.
"We're very confident that the long-term trend is an acceleration of the pace of the energy transition, but we need the infrastructure, grids and storage, to really keep pace," Hart said.
Annual investment in electricity generation, such as building new power plants, has risen by almost 70% since 2015, reaching $1 trillion a year, according to the International Energy Agency. Yet the agency noted annual grid spending has risen at less than half that pace.
To meet electricity demand through 2030, the IEA calculates annual grid investment must increase by about 50% from today's $400 billion per year. Any delays will substantially increase global emissions by prolonging reliance on fossil fuels, the IEA warns.
"Power grids have not been readied enough for the scaleup of renewable electricity generation," said Jan Rosenow, a professor of energy and climate policy at Oxford University. "We have been complacent in the past and now the grid has become a real bottleneck."
Old grids slow energy transition...Power grids deliver electricity from power plants to homes through a network of transmission and distribution lines, substations and transformers.
Originally designed around large, centralized power plants, many of today's power grids were built like one-way roads, with producers sending electricity to consumers. These older one-directional grids are being overwhelmed by demand surges and a boom in renewables.
Grids have a maximum capacity of electricity that they can safely store, transport and distribute. If a grid is already at capacity, solar and wind farms can be instructed to limit their electricity output, a process known as curtailment.
China and India, which have installed impressive amounts of renewables, can't take full advantage of the massive buildout for this reason.
China curtailed 360 terawatt-hours — close to the equivalent of the United Kingdom's annual electricity demand — of wind and solar electricity in the first half of 2026, according to Global Energy Monitor and the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air.
India curtailed 11 terawatt-hours of solar generation — enough electricity to power about 10 million homes — over the course of 15 months spanning 2025 and 2026 because of insufficient transmission and storage capacity, according to the energy think tank Ember.
Curtailing solar and wind generation while fossil fuels continue to supply electricity is a blow to climate efforts, especially since China and India are among the world's largest emitters, said James Abraham, with the New Delhi-based Council on Energy, Environment and Water.
To transition away from fossil fuels, he said, "you need a grid changeover. You need a grid transformation."
mundophone
Thursday, November 12, 2026
TECH
Round smartwatch with Bosch gas sensor and open-source software launches 2027
Next year, the Bangle.js 3 will hit the market as a brand-new smartwatch that combines a round color display with an open-source operating system and a modern design. The manufacturer has now confirmed the key specifications in advance.
The Bangle.js 2 from 2021 is finally getting a successor with a much more modern look. The team behind the open-source smartwatch has published images and extensive details about the Bangle.js 3's specifications ahead of its expected launch in summer 2027, although pricing details have yet to be announced.
The predecessor's small, rectangular display is being replaced by a round display with much thinner bezels, using a 1.2-inch LCD with a resolution of 240 x 240 pixels that can display 64 colors. Combined with a metal bezel, this makes the watch look significantly more modern than the Bangle.js 2. The watch features speakers, microphones, a vibration motor and a heart rate sensor.
The screen measures 1.2 inches across at 240 by 240, putting out 64 colors. It renders into a square frame buffer, so the corners of that buffer simply aren’t visible on the round panel. Williams sized the case to take the same straps as the Bangle.js 2 and to sit at the same height on the wrist. The new case runs slightly thicker and wider than the old one, though
One sensor stands out from the spec list. Bosch’s BME690 is a smart gas sensor that can fingerprint specific smells, detecting gases in the air around the watch, and no mainstream smartwatch offers anything like it.
Williams flags the catch himself, though: sourcing that sensor at a sensible price is still an open question this far out. He’s spent the whole project adding features without letting the price jump, and this is the one line item still fighting him
Nothing on the case is glued. The rear cover unscrews, and inside sit test points placed there so owners can bolt on custom hardware of their own. Williams also plans to release the CAD files for a deeper back, an open invitation for someone to print a case back with room for a much bigger battery.
A four-pin connector hides behind the top strap. It handles charging, SWD programming and debug UART output, plus two analog-capable GPIO pins and a switched 3-volt output. For a watch, that’s an unusual amount of access, and it’s there on purpose. It’s, in effect, a tiny bench supply and debug header riding under the strap
A Nordic nRF54L15 runs the watch, an Arm Cortex-M33 ticking at 128 MHz, with Bluetooth LE handling the phone link. Wi-Fi arrives through a separate ESP32-C2 chip at 2.4 GHz, and that chip can even turn its hand to 2.4 GHz SDR work. Storage is 32 MB of flash memory.
The sensor stack runs long: an accelerometer, a gyroscope and a magnetometer track motion, a barometer and an air temperature sensor watch the weather, and a heart rate sensor covers the wearer. Add a speaker, a microphone and a vibration motor. Then add a torch, an RGB indicator LED, and an infrared transmitter and receiver that can work a TV remote’s job.
While more advanced health sensors, a GPS module and an NFC chip are missing, the watch offers a Bosch gas sensor designed to detect certain smells. An LED flashlight is also said to be on board. The roughly 200 mAh battery is charged wirelessly. One distinctive feature of the Bangle.js 3 is that the watch uses an open-source operating system, allowing the community to expand its functionality.
In keeping with this, the case can be easily opened with a few screws, while four pins on the case provide both power and data connections for diagnostic and programming purposes. With an ARM Cortex M33 (nRF54L15) processor with clock speeds of up to 128 MHz, Bluetooth Low Energy and only 32 MB of memory, the smartwatch is not particularly powerful, but should offer relatively long battery life.
Display
1.2-inch round, 240 x 240, 64 colors
Processor
Nordic nRF54L15, Arm Cortex-M33 at 128 MHz
Wireless
Bluetooth LE, 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi via ESP32-C2
Memory
32 MB flash
Buttons
4 (1 left, 3 right)
Bezel
Metal front bezel
Sensors
Accelerometer, gyro, magnetometer, barometer, air temperature, heart rate
Compatibility work is already underway. Existing Bangle.js 2 apps are being brought across to the round screen, and widgets currently draw inside a square while the port settles. Most apps should just work once they’ve been updated for the round layout.
That’s the deal with this line: the watches run Espruino, open-source software, and the app library owners have built up around the square watch is the library the round one inherits. Keeping that library alive is a design goal here, not an afterthought.
An email signup is open now for anyone who wants an alert the day the watch goes on sale
Battery capacity lands around 200 mAh. That’s much the same as the current watch, and charging is wireless. Rain and hand washing are fine, per Williams. Swimming isn’t advised, and there’s no water resistance rating to quote, because he hasn’t published one.
Expect the watch in summer 2027, if the current plan holds. A pre-order is likely, but only once Williams has mostly final pre-production units in hand and trusts the timescales. Pricing isn’t set yet, and neither is the final sensor list. The one guide he’s offered is that it’ll land a little above the current model’s price.
mundophone
TECH
How can we harness the energy potential of sea water?
The oceans are a massive source of untapped energy potential – just 0.1% of the energy in ocean waves could be capable of supplying the entire world's energy requirements five times over. As part of the European Commission’s objective to reduce carbon energy consumption it has launched a new study into the energy potential of the oceans. Consulting firm Ecorys has been engaged to research the maturity and potential of tidal and wave energy generation.
As the use of carbon becomes unsustainable, human civilisation is exploring different – and more sustainable – sources of energy supply. One of these sources is the ocean, which covers almost 71% of the world’s surface. According to preliminary research the potential of the ocean as a source of energy is huge, with an estimate that harnessing 0.1% of the energy in ocean waves could be capable of supplying the entire world's energy requirements five times over.
To explore the possibility of harnessing the world’s oceans for energy, a number of technologies have in recent years been further developed. These include tidal and marine energy, wave energy, difference of temperature and salinity energy. These different technologies however find themselves at different stages of maturity. Tidal energy generation is much like hydroelectric generation and has reached some maturity, while techniques that exploit waves are in the process of small and larger scale testing. Early stage development technologies include those that leverage the difference of temperature, between deep and shallow water, and of the difference in salinity, between salt and fresh water.
In the 1980s, supercomputers and satellite data revolutionized ocean wave prediction using a third-generation full spectral model that incorporated explicit physical processes for a comprehensive two-dimensional sea-state description (ERS-1; Topex-Poseidon). Operational challenges continue, particularly in accurately representing hypothetical sea-state scenarios. Komen et al., demonstrated that using a credible model for wind input and dissipation, along with an explicit Nrepresentation of nonlinear interactions, achieves a realistic steady-state solution.
Oceanic renewable energy, including 10 EJ from eddy energy and a total potential of 20 yottajoules, was analyzed to establish marine environmental protection guidelines in the IoT era of real-time data collection. Developing a smart ocean requires a new era of energy, with oceanic heat, currents, waves, and tides potentially exceeding global power demands many times over. Renewable energy studies have primarily examined solar, wind, biomass, and geothermal sources, suggesting that the technological hurdles of ocean energy are manageable. Governments promote ocean energy as a renewable resource to achieve climate targets and energy security. Consequently, reviewing the legal framework is crucial to understanding the existing legal context, identifying best practices, and addressing regulatory conflicts (Smith 2022; [7,8]). Ocean energy technologies improve energy security by diversifying sources and reducing fossil fuel dependence, particularly by aiding coastal and remote areas with localized energy production. Ocean energy technologies can stimulate economic growth by creating jobs and fostering innovation in coastal regions, potentially advancing the global ocean energy markets.
The regions in India that have been earmarked for the realization of ocean energy, the type of energy, status, and initiation. The Gulf of Khambhat and Gulf of Kutch in Gujarat are potential sites for tidal energy, although Khambhat announced plans for a 50 MW plant in 2011 that has yet to be realized owing to its high cost. Likewise, the Gulf of Kutch finalized in 2012 that there is an opportunity for tidal power in the country, but large-scale development is missing. In the Sundarbans, West Bengal, there was a proposed 3.75-Megawatt Tidal Project in 2007 that was not continued because of high costs and controversy of disturbing the environment. On the western coast (Maharashtra and Karnataka), wave energy has been explored since 2013 through pilot projects but without commercialization. The Laakshadweep and Andaman and Nicobar Islands are two of the 17 States that can generate wave energy and ocean thermal energy- Exploratory studies have been conducted in these states in 2015 and 2016 respectively. These areas focus on India’s experimental nature in harnessing ocean energy as a renewable energy source and its associated technical and sustainable impacts.
Seas and oceans are brimming with untapped potential for producing energy. Two EPFL research groups are developing nanoscale devices for converting saltwater into electricity.
Rising tides and rolling waves release massive amounts of energy from the seas and oceans every day. Attempts to harness this energy are nothing new: for decades, engineers have been building tidal power plants, marine turbines and wave energy systems in order to use the mechanics of water to produce electricity. But take-up of such technology has been marginal. According to the International Renewable Energy Agency, the installed capacity of marine energy production worldwide is around 500 megawatts. For comparison, the equivalent figure for wind power is 1,100 gigawatts – or 2,200 times higher.
There are also other, less evident ways to produce energy from water: one is the salinity difference between saltwater and freshwater, and another is the evaporation that occurs at the surface of seas and lakes. Such natural phenomena are continuous and can be found everywhere. Researchers have long known how to describe them using physics – but concrete applications are thin on the ground. At EPFL, two research groups, each with its own approach, have taken major steps forward in developing systems for generating renewable marine energy at a nanometric scale.
Sliding ions...Osmotic power, also known as blue energy, is one of the promising options being explored. It can be produced anywhere freshwater comes into contact with saltwater, such as where a river pours into an ocean. In theory, osmotic power has huge potential – over 15,000 TWh per year, or 75% of total global energy use. But in practice, formidable technical constraints mean that only around 600–2,000 TWh per year of power can be harnessed, or between France’s annual electricity demand and that of India. The method for producing osmotic power has been around for decades. It entails separating freshwater and saltwater by a selective membrane and then, as ions naturally pass from the solution with a high salt concentration to that with a lower one, taking advantage of the voltage difference. The problem is that, with existing membranes, engineers must choose between speed and precision: either the ions pass rapidly but in a haphazard way, or they pass slowly but with good selectivity.
The research group led by Aleksandra Radenovic at EPFL’s Laboratory of Nanoscale Biology (LBEN) has found an elegant way to square this circle. In a study appearing in Nature Energy in February 2026, the scientists developed a device made of hafnium oxide nanopores that have been coated with a lipid biofilm – the same lipid molecules as those in our cell membranes. Water molecules are attracted to this biofilm and form a layer only a few molecules thick. This layer serves as a lubricant, enabling ions to slide through the pores quickly while maintaining a high degree of selectivity. As a result, the device containing 1,000 nanopores has a power density of around 15 watts/m², which is two to three times higher than that achieved by existing polymer systems.
These systems already use evaporation to turn saltwater into freshwater. So we can envisage creating a system that generates both drinking water and electrical power.
Tarique Anwar, doctoral assistant at LNET...The next challenge will be to scale up the technology. “We need to move from chips in a lab to large membranes with a high pore density, precise pore-size controls and a reliable coating – all at a reasonable cost,” says Yunfei Teng, a doctoral assistant at LBEN. The team must also demonstrate the device’s long-term stability and resistance to biofouling. However, the underlying concept can be applied universally. Such water-based lubrication could also improve the performance of membranes used for desalination and medical devices.
Evaporation as a continuous energy source...The research group led by Giulia Tagliabue at EPFL’s Laboratory of Nanoscience for Energy Technologies (LNET) is exploring an even more surprising energy source: evaporation. Their method uses the hydrovoltaic effect, which is based on a simple mechanism: when liquid evaporates at the surface of a nanodevice, that creates a continuous flow of liquid in the nanochannels – similar to the transpiration that causes sap to rise in a tree. If an electric charge is applied to the nanochannel walls, the ions start to move and generate an electric current. In an article published in Device in 2024, the LNET team reported an unexpected discovery: contrary to what scientists had previously thought, this process works with saltwater and not just purified water. That paves the way to concrete applications using evaporation at the ocean surface.
The team made another breakthrough in 2026, in a study published in Nature Communications. They developed a silicon nanodevice composed of three layers: one for evaporation, one for ion transport and one for collecting the electrical charge. The device uses sunlight and heat to not just speed evaporation, but also directly control the movement of ions and electrons. “This natural process has always occurred, but we’re the first to harness it,” says Tagliabue. Thanks to the device’s dual approach, it can generate five times more energy than systems employing evaporation alone.
One big advantage of LNET’s technology is that it can run continuously. Unlike the solar radiation needed for solar power, evaporation occurs day and night over a broad range of temperatures. The nanodevice can therefore be employed wherever there’s water, heat and light. For example, it can be used to run self-powered environmental sensors. Tarique Anwar, a doctoral assistant at LNET, also points to potential synergies with desalination systems. “These systems already use evaporation to turn saltwater into freshwater. So we can envisage creating a system that generates both drinking water and electrical power.”
Being able to produce both of these would bring massive benefits to coastal areas with little access to freshwater and electricity. For now, nanofluidic devices can’t compete with major power generators, but their ability to take advantage of continuous, ubiquitous phenomena at a small scale opens up exciting prospects.
The global energy potential of seawater and the oceans is estimated to be between 20,000 and 80,000 TWh/year (terawatt-hours per year)—far exceeding total global electricity consumption—though most of this resource remains in the research and development phase.
According to the Wikipedia entry on "Marine energy" and the IPCC’s Chapter 6 on Ocean Energy, ocean energy is categorized into several primary sources:
• Captures the mechanical motion of surface waves using wave energy converters (WECs).
• While the theoretical potential is massive, global installed capacity remains low (approximately 26.4 MW) due to high maintenance costs and the challenges posed by harsh weather conditions.
• Tidal and Current Energy:
• Utilizes barrages (tidal lagoons/dams) or submerged turbines driven by tidal currents.
• This is one of the most commercially mature marine technologies (Technology Readiness Level, or TRL, 7).
• Salinity Gradient (Osmotic Energy):
• Generated by the difference in salt concentration where freshwater from rivers meets saltwater from the sea, utilizing processes such as Pressure-Retarded Osmosis (PRO).
• The global potential exceeds 1,600 TWh/year, with operational plants in locations such as the Fukuoka Desalination Center in Japan. Technical details can be found on the OES portal under "What is Ocean Energy | Salinity Gradient."
• Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC):
• Converts the temperature difference between warm surface water (~80°F) and cold deep-ocean water (~40°F) into continuous electricity.
• The estimated potential is approximately 90,000 TWh/year.
• Electrochemical Cells and Nanodevices:
• Redox reactions based on sodium and chloride ions (NaCl), or novel nanofluidic devices that combine continuous evaporation, heat, and light to generate small-scale energy for powering sensors.
To deepen your understanding of ocean energy harvesting, you may explore the following advanced topics:
• OTEC Thermodynamics: How closed and open Rankine cycles function using low-boiling-point fluids.
• Semipermeable Membranes: Challenges related to biofouling and durability in Pressure-Retarded Osmosis (PRO) systems.
• Ecological Impact: How tidal turbines and wave energy converters affect marine fauna and coastal sediment dynamics.
We can harness the energy potential of seawater through five primary marine renewable technologies, each capturing a different physical property of the ocean. Because oceans cover over 70% of the Earth's surface, they act as massive reservoirs of kinetic, thermal, and chemical energy.
Mechanical energy (Kinetic and potential)...These technologies capture the physical movement of water caused by wind, gravity, and the Earth's rotation.
• Wave Energy: Surface waves created by wind carry immense kinetic energy. Devices like oscillating water columns, point absorbers, and attenuators bob or flex with the waves to drive hydraulic pumps or air turbines.
• Tidal Range (Barrages and Lagoons): The gravitational pull of the moon and sun causes predictable daily rises and falls in sea levels. Tidal barrages act like low-head dams, trapping water at high tide and releasing it through underwater turbines as the tide recedes.
• Tidal Stream and Ocean Currents: Underwater turbines, similar to submerged wind turbines, are placed in narrow straits or fast-moving ocean currents (like the Gulf Stream). The flowing seawater spins the rotor blades directly to generate electricity.
Thermal and chemical energy...Beyond physical motion, seawater stores energy in its temperature differences and salt content.
• Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC): OTEC exploits the temperature gradient between warm surface water and cold deep water (requiring a difference of at least 20°C / 36°F). Warm water vaporizes a low-boiling-point fluid (like ammonia) to spin a turbine, while cold water pumped from the depths condenses the vapor back into a liquid.
• Salinity Gradient Power (Osmotic Power): Where freshwater rivers meet salty seawater, a natural chemical pressure builds up due to osmosis. Technologies like Pressure Retarded Osmosis (PRO) and Reverse Electrodialysis (RED) use semi-permeable membranes to capture the energy released as fresh and salt water mix.
Comparison of Marine Energy Technologies
Technology
Energy Source
Key Advantage
Primary Challenge
Wave Energy
Wind-driven surface motion
High energy density globally
Extreme storm survivability
Tidal Energy
Gravitational pull (tides)
100% predictable power generation
Limited to specific coastal geographies
OTEC
Temperature differences
Provides continuous 24/7 baseload power
High capital cost and deep-water piping
Salinity Gradient
Salt concentration differences
Zero visual impact and steady output
Expensive, easily fouled membranes
Emerging and indirect applications:
• Offshore Floating Solar: Calm coastal waters provide vast, unobstructed areas for floating photovoltaic panels, which also stay cooler and operate more efficiently than land-based panels.
• Green Hydrogen Production: Marine energy systems can power offshore electrolyzers that split desalinated seawater into hydrogen and oxygen, creating a storable clean fuel without needing expensive subsea power cables to shore.
If you'd like to explore this topic further, we can look into: The thermodynamic cycle behind Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC)How semi-permeable membranes function in Reverse Electrodialysis (RED)The engineering challenges of biofouling and saltwater corrosion on marine turbines
mundophone
Wednesday, November 11, 2026
DIGITAL LIFE
How can you use your phone less? 7 science-backed strategies to reduce screen time
You pick up your phone to reply to a message, and before you know it, half an hour has passed while you’ve been scrolling through social media. This behavior is becoming increasingly common, turning minor distractions into hours spent in front of a screen. However, science shows that cutting back on smartphone use isn’t just a matter of willpower. Certain changes to your environment, device settings, and daily routine can help you regain control over your time.
While these devices can enhance learning and build community, they can also interfere with everything from sleep to creativity.
Pediatrician Michael Rich, MD ’91, MPH ’97, wants to understand how—and help children and parents manage their online behavior in this ever-changing digital landscape.
The growing human brain is constantly building neural connections while pruning away less-used ones, and digital media use plays an active role in that process, according to Rich. Much of what happens on screen provides “impoverished” stimulation of the developing brain compared to reality, he says. Children need a diverse menu of online and offline experiences, including the chance to let their minds wander. “Boredom is the space in which creativity and imagination happen,” he says.
A good night’s sleep is also key to brain development, and HMS researchers have shown that using blue light-emitting screen devices like smartphones before bedtime can disrupt sleep patterns by suppressing secretion of the hormone melatonin. Many teens who stay up late texting are not only getting less shut-eye, they’re also lacking the deep REM sleep essential for processing and storing information from that day into memory. “So even if they stay awake in algebra class,” Rich says, “they may not remember what happened in class yesterday.”
The center’s Clinic for Interactive Media and Internet Disorders treats young people whose excessive gaming, social media, and other online activities are affecting their health and daily lives at home and school. Rich says these seductive digital pursuits appear to activate the brain’s reward system. “Virtually all games and social media work on what’s called a variable reward system, which is exactly what you get when you go to Mohegan Sun and pull a lever on a slot machine. It balances the hope that you’re going to make it big with a little bit of frustration, and unlike the slot machine, a sense of skill needed to improve.” A young person’s brain lacks a fully developed self-control system to help them with stopping this kind of obsessive behavior.
The experience of growing up today, as youth move seamlessly between online and offline environments, is the focus of an international research project that Rich is leading. The Growing Up Digital (GUD) Study is now underway in Canada, with plans to expand to Australia, Finland, and eventually all six populated continents in partnership with the nonprofit Sesame Workshop. The investigators plan to follow 3,000 to 5,000 youths over 10 years, examining the impact of digital technology on their physical, mental, and social well-being. Because this technology is evolving so rapidly, findings from the Global GUD participatory research will be released in an ongoing way so that health and educational professionals, parents, and youth can implement positive changes in real time.
In the meantime, Rich urges a balanced approach to screen use. “We have to be flexible enough to evolve with the technology but choose how to use it right. Fire was a great discovery to cook our food, but we had to learn it could hurt and kill as well,” he says. “We don’t want to be in a moral panic because kids are staring at smartphones. We need to be asking, what’s happening when they’re staring at their smartphone in terms of their cognitive, social, and emotional development? As with most things, it will probably be a mix of positive and negative.
One of the more intriguing strategies is to remove color from your screen.
1- Turn your phone screen black and white...Apps use vibrant images, animations, and visual elements to make the user experience more engaging. By switching to grayscale, your phone may lose some of that appeal.
A study from the University of Amsterdam, published in 2024 in the journal *Mobile Media & Communication*, tracked 84 participants over the course of two weeks.
The results showed that using a smartphone in black and white reduced daily screen time by an average of approximately 20 minutes.
Participants also reported a greater sense of control over their own usage. However, the number of times they unlocked their devices did not decrease significantly.
The study is available in the University of Amsterdam’s scientific repository.
2- Disable non-essential notifications...Every alert can interrupt what you are doing and trigger an urge to check your device.
A practical step is to keep notifications enabled only for essential apps—such as those for important messages, appointments, or security services. However, science reveals an unexpected detail.
An experiment involving 205 participants, published in the journal *Media Psychology*, found that disabling notifications for a week did not significantly reduce screen time or the frequency with which people checked their phones.
The researchers did note, however, that participants perceived their own behavior as being more intentional. Therefore, silencing alerts may help manage interruptions, but it does not necessarily eliminate the habit of checking your smartphone.
3-Set time limits for apps...Tools available on both Android and iPhone allow you to track how much time you spend in each app and set daily limits. The first step is to identify which platforms consume the most of your time.
Next, it is worth setting realistic goals. For instance, if you use a particular social media platform for two hours a day, you could start by gradually reducing that time.
An experiment published in the journal *Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking* compared strategies for limiting usage against changes to a phone’s visual settings.
The research showed that digital interventions can help modify habits, though their effectiveness varies depending on the specific strategy and the individual’s behavior.
4-Keep your phone away from your bed...Sleeping with your smartphone within reach makes it easier to give in to the temptation to check messages before going to sleep or immediately upon waking up.
One alternative is to leave the device on another piece of furniture or outside the bedroom, whenever possible.
Researchers at the University of Kentucky investigated an intervention that combined several changes, including moving the phone away from the bed, removing social media icons from the home screen, and enabling grayscale mode.
Participants reported improvements in sleep quality, productivity, and face-to-face interactions.
Because these changes were implemented together and the results were based on participant self-reports, it is not possible to attribute the benefits solely to the distance between the phone and the bed. The study was published in the *American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education*.
5-Make accessing social media more difficult...The easier it is to open an app, the greater the tendency to use it automatically. One strategy is to remove social media icons from your home screen, disable automatic login, or use these platforms only at specific, designated times.
These small barriers are known as "behavioral frictions." The idea is to interrupt the automatic gesture of opening an app and create a moment to decide whether it is truly worth using.
The goal is not to abandon technology, but to transform an impulsive action into a conscious choice.
6-Replace screen time with enjoyable activities...Reducing mobile phone use can be more difficult when there is no engaging alternative to fill the time.
Going for a walk, reading, cooking, exercising, or meeting up with friends are all ways to replace some of your digital consumption.
The importance of this shift is highlighted in a study published in February 2025 in the journal *BMC Medicine*.
The researchers conducted a randomized clinical trial to investigate the effects of reducing screen time on mental health.
The results indicated improvements in indicators of psychological well-being among participants who reduced their smartphone use.
This does not mean that any use of a mobile phone is harmful, but it does suggest that cutting back on excessive use can be beneficial for some people.
7-Start with small changes and track the results...Trying to give up your phone completely overnight may be unrealistic, especially for those who rely on it for work, study, or communication.
One alternative is to begin with short periods without the device—for example, during meals or in the first few minutes after waking up. It is also worth keeping an eye on your weekly screen-time reports to identify any changes.
The most important thing is to set goals that are sustainable.
There is no universal number of hours that defines when smartphone use becomes harmful. One must also consider the context, the activities being performed, and the impact on sleep, work, and personal relationships.
The key takeaway from this research is that reducing mobile phone use does not necessarily mean using less technology, but rather using it more mindfully.
Scientific research and public health organizations—such as the American Academy of Pediatrics and Harvard Medical School—recommend a combination of age-based limits, behavioral boundaries, and environmental modifications to manage and reduce screen time effectively.
Recommended limits by age:
• Under 2 years: Zero screen time (except for live video-chatting with family).
• Ages 2 to 5: Maximum of 1 hour per day of high-quality, co-viewed programing.
• Ages 5 to 17: Maximum of 2 hours per day of recreational screen time (excluding schoolwork).
• Adults: General public health guidance points to keeping recreational use around 2 hours or being mindful of heavy use (exceeding 7 hours daily), which correlates with physical and mental strain.
Science-backed strategies to reduce screen time:
• Establish Screen-Free Zones: Keep phones, tablets, and TVs out of bedrooms to protect sleep quality, as blue light and evening stimulation suppress melatonin production.
• Set Tech-Free Curfews: Turn off or put away all screens at least 1 to 2 hours before bedtime.
• Enforce Mealtime Rules: Make dining areas completely device-free for both children and adults to encourage face-to-face communication.
• Turn Off Non-Essential Notifications: Disable alerts from social media and non-critical apps to prevent continuous cognitive interruptions and "doomscrolling".
• Use Behavioral Friction: Hide social media apps off the main home screen, set screen-time tracking timers, or turn device displays to greyscale to make phone use less rewarding and engaging.
• Encourage Alternative Activities: Replace idle scrolling with physical exercise, outdoor time, hobbies, or unstructured boredom, which science links to higher creativity and better emotional well-being
