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Mechanical engineering

a machine makes a medal in brazil for olympic winners

Precision engineering creates modern perfection

Environment

Precision engineering makes the modern world go round. Author Simon Winchester explains why that wasn’t always the case.

King County in Washington trying to convert sewage to energy

Environment

Live in a cold state? Here’s an easy way to cut your winter electric bill

Environment

Turn off your air conditioner

Business, Economics and Jobs
The World

Thermal Imaging

The Rise of the Glock: America’s Gun

In the early 1980s, a 50-year-old radiator manufacturer who’d never made a gun before was given the opportunity to make some for the Austrian army. His name was Gaston Glock, and the gun that bears his name has gained a ubiquitous presence both on-screen and in real-life crimes over the past 25 years. Made mostly […]

Living on Earth Updates

We catch up on developments in some recent stories, including a Cool Fix for a Hot Planet idea. A listener suggested turning the refrigerator into an updated icebox by putting in containers full of ice. Other listeners wrote in with concerns about whether the idea would work.

The World

Powerboat Smoke

Some people call powerboats stinkpots, because many two stroke outboard motors burn a mixture of gas and oil that produces a thick and smelly exhaust. But one New Hampshire man says he has a practical answer to this marine pollution: power these boats with propane gas. New Hampshire Public Radio’s Trish Anderton reports.

Germany’s Green Fridge

Host Steve Curwood talks to Benedict Herlin of Greenpeace about Germany’s CFC-free hydrocarbon refrigerator. The Green Freeze fridge is proving popular in Germany, despite concern that early refrigerators run on similar fuels were prone to explosion.

Vermont Rules on Car Air Conditioners