By Dallas Jeffs, Wisdom Pills

Tech Innovations

Glowing Dye Could Drastically Improve Battery Performance

A chemistry team at the University at Buffalo recently tested a luminescent dye that has potential to drastically improve car batteries, a benefit which could help encourage more drivers to move from gas to electric powered vehicles. The chemical, boron-dipyrromethene, is already used by scientists tracking the presence of certain chemicals in cells. (livescience.com)

Google AI Improves its Lip-Reading Accuracy

Google’s DeepMind AI program has created the most accurate lip-reading software currently available. Researchers from Google and Oxford University used thousands of hours of BBC television programming to train the AI neural network to read human lips with an accuracy rate of 46.8 percent. For comparison, human lip-readers have about a 12 percent accuracy rate for the same task. (theverge.com)

Medicine and the Environment

Health Canada Posits Ban on Harmful Pesticide

Health Canada has proposed a ban on a pesticide that is particularly harmful to bees. Imidacloprid is one of the most widely-used pesticides in world, but its use has been reduced in recent years because of its known impact on bee populations. While the pesticide is currently allowed in Canada, this could potentially change. (cbc.ca)

Cannibalistic Bacteria May be Weapon in Fight Against Superbugs

A study has discovered a possible weapon in the fight against antibiotic-resistant superbugs. Scientists at the Imperial College London and the University of Nottingham have found that the cannibalistic bacterial strain Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus can work to eliminate certain other drug-resistant strains. In a recent experiment, the bacteria was injected into Zebrafish and destroyed a potentially lethal bacterial infection. (digitaljournal.com)

Hamburg Coffee Shops Try Out Reusable Cup Program

Most of us know how environmentally detrimental disposable coffee cups are – now, select cafes in Hamburg, Germany, are working toward reducing the strain. Customers at these shops can get their drinks in Refill It! cups, for a deposit of just €1.50. The cups can be refilled at any other participating shop, or returned for reuse, in exchange for a refund of the deposit. (mentalfloss.com)

Read the rest here: http://www.wisdompills.com/2016/11/28/weeks-good-news-around-world-november-2616/