When science meets art: recycled metal and lab-grown gems
The Hindu
For some a natural diamond, created over billions of years, is the ultimate luxury, but an award-winning British designer sees greater worth in jewellery crafted using laboratory-grown gems and metal from recycled cans.
For some a natural diamond, created over billions of years, is the ultimate luxury, but an award-winning British designer sees greater worth in jewellery crafted using laboratory-grown gems and metal from recycled cans.
Anabela Chan said she chose her materials after witnessing what she said were poor working conditions in diamond mines.
"These are some of the most precious and valuable commodities in the world, that just didn't make any sense to me," she said, in her Knightsbridge boutique in central London.
Instead, her designs rely on lab-grown diamonds, recycled aluminium from cans and pearls grown using regenerative farming techniques.
Chan's company does not give sales figures but said it had seen strong demand since the COVID-19 pandemic. She won the "Game Changer" category at the British Luxury Awards in November.
According to Edahn Golan Diamond Research & Data, the lab-grown jewellery market has seen annual growth of 20% in recent years, driving global profits to $15 billion.
As more producers enter the market, selling prices for lab-grown diamonds have fallen, and brands are looking to differentiate themselves.
A nuclear fusion reaction can generate more energy than it consumes, but the technologies to harness it to generate electricity continue to stay out of reach.
BMW has introduced the new M340i xDrive, a high-performance sedan combining strong design, advanced technology, and the capability for thrilling drives.
This week’s Sci-five quiz is on semi-conductor.
The globally-acclaimed Candlelight Concert is now in Chennai. Listen to classical and contemporary music at Museum Theatre, amidst thousands of candles
23andMe is on the brink of bankruptcy. This has raised concerns about what will happen to the troves of genetic data it has in its possession.
Carbon offsets have become big business as more companies make promises to protect the climate but can’t meet the goals on their own.
Discoveries about Uranus, the solar system's enigmatic planet, challenge previous assumptions, highlighting the need for further exploration.
Guide to key terms at COP29: UNFCCC, COP, NDC, global warming, climate change, greenhouse gases, Paris Agreement, net zero.
Climate change increases lightning strikes globally, making lightning rods crucial for protection against deadly strikes.
India's struggle to meet WHO's TB reduction targets by 2025 despite a 17.7% decline in incidence from 2015.
Coimbatore’s policewomen maintain weapons at the Armoury, handle sniffer dogs, drive heavy duty vehicles, and are a part of the police commissioner’s striking force