Tech Disruption

In a modern world, these facts cited by the National Academy of Engineering still seem staggering: 1) Globally, about one of every six people living today does
not have adequate access to water. 2) Lack of clean water is responsible for more deaths in the world than war. With that in mind, it should come as no surprise that one of the Grand Challenges for Engineering is “Provide access to clean water.” With a drought looming through Arizona and neighboring states, we no longer can take what comes out of the faucet for granted.

Arizona’s rapidly growing technology sphere includes industries like semiconductors, electric vehicles, automated vehicles, batteries, quantum computing and more. But just one of these growing industries can claim a nearly 2,000-year history in the state: freshwater science. Beginning about A.D. 100, the Hohokam people, who farmed and lived in central and southern Arizona, developed one of the world’s most advanced most advanced irrigation systems, one that stretched hundreds of miles and supported a thriving civilization. Nearly 2,000 years later, the Hohokam’s engineering marvel makes up the groundwork of Arizona’s modern water delivery system.

Each year, the Arizona Commerce Authority’s Arizona Innovation Challenge (AIC) awards up to $150,000 to the most innovative companies seeking to commercialize new technology that creates sustainable and growing businesses in the state of Arizona. Winning companies leverage their awards to grow their businesses and facilitate the state’s economic development goals. The AIC has been serving Arizona’s startup ecosystem since 2011, resulting in more than 2,000 applications and 110 awarded companies that are striving to become the industry giants of tomorrow.

An ambitious project recently launched at Northern Arizona University will capture the “voice of the people” in determining the value of protecting a range of spring-based ecosystems in the Coconino and Kaibab National Forests. Led by professor Julie Mueller, an economist, the multidisciplinary team includes professor Abe Springer, a hydrogeologist; assistant professor Ryan Fitch, an environmental and developmental economist; graduate student Katelyn LaPine, a geologist and geographic information system specialist; and graduate student Andrew Lewis, an economist and geologist.

In the sprawling Southern Arizona desert an hour’s drive north of Tucson, the sun peeked through the 90-foot canopy of tropical trees as researchers turned the main water valve and released what would amount to 12,000 gallons of water—the first rain in more than two months for the 30-year-old rainforest at Biosphere 2. This project is designed to simulate a full ecosystem drought and recovery, one that researchers hope will help paint a clearer picture of how a hotter, drier future will impact the world’s rainforests.

The University of Arizona Center for Innovation (UACI) has launched its new startup incubator at Biosphere 2 to support renewable energy and sustainable tech startups. UACI at Biosphere 2 was launched with four startups, all of which will go through UACI’s structured 27-point road map that takes them through a continuum of education provided by mentors, advisers and community collaborators. Entrepreneurs will use various physical spaces at Biosphere 2 that allow them to test and demonstrate the tech in specific environments.

Wildfires are becoming more widespread and destructive. The total area they burn in the United States has expanded by an average of almost 200,000 acres each year for the past three decades. Meanwhile, the global incidence of extreme blazes is projected to increase by 50% before the end of the century, according to a recent report from the United Nations.

Severe fatty liver disease is commonly associated with obesity, but according to a review of scientific literature conducted by researchers at the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), an affiliate of City of Hope, there is a growing body of evidence suggesting that even normal weight individuals can
contract this potentially life-threatening condition.