2015 came with all it’s calamities and gave the world more than we expected.

With ebola almost wiping out an entire country, increase in war, famine etc. There were also planes disappearing in the sky and ISIS waging war in the world and terrorizing people.

With all these calamities, science still made some amazing inventions to make things easier for mankind. While we were busy wailing over the calamities and atrocities in the world, scientists were busy creating amazing things to make the world a better place for all of us.

Let’s take a look at some amazing discoveries and inventions that happened in 2015.

1. Shade Balls

In 2015, scientists discovered the easiest way to prevent drought. The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power deployed 96 million shade balls on its largest reservoir in response to the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s surface water treatment rule, which requires large reservoirs to be covered. The LADWP claims that in addition to reducing evaporation, they will also reduce UV radiation by-products and algae growth.

The shade balls used in the Los Angeles project are made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) with carbon black additive to protect the plastic from ultraviolet radiation.

They are about 4 inches (10 cm) in diameter, and partially filled with water to avoid being blown by wind. HDPE plastic is commonly used for food and beverage containers as well as water distribution pipes.

2. Thirsty Concrete

One major problem that is faced by drivers and causes accidents is slippery roads caused by rain. This caused major Tyre companies to come up with all sort of new type inventions to control the situation but to no avail.

The break through came in 2015 when scientists decided to invent the thirsty concrete which can drain more than 5000 litres of water whenever it rains. This means, no matter how torrential the rain, this concrete, when used to construct roads, will drain all the water, making the road dry and helping tyres to grip firmer onto the road so they don’t veer off the road.

The thirsty concrete is an absorbent porous surface called topmix permeable. It was also designed to prevent flush flooding in urban areas.

3. Trauma Foam

In 2015, Doctors created a revolutionary trauma foam that could save lives and return feelings to paralyzed men’s legs.

A research team out of the University of Maryland published their study in ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering, testing their process out on pigs. The foam is sprayed over a wound, where it doubles in size then turns solid, building a wall that prevents more blood from coming out. Then, in what is perhaps one of the more ground-breaking aspects of the technique, the foam interacts with blood cells, making them cluster together and gel up so they also serve as a barrier.

4. NASA Discovered Water On Mars

For years, we were made to believe that there is no life on Mars but in 2015, NASA showed images from their Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) that showed that there is actually water on the planet which could be a sign that there could be life on the planet.

5. NASA Discovered Another Planet Similar To Earth (Earth 2.0)

This year, the world was shocked to know that we are not alone after all and if all you’ve known are the 9 planets, then you need to rethink again. There are many planets out there and it seems day in day out, NASA discovers new ones.

In a rather unexpected experience, NASA discovered a new planet just like earth but a bit larger than earth in the galaxies. That’s amazing, we can finally move to a different world and leave this one for the politicians.

6. Condom That Can Detect STDs

A group of school children invented a condom that changes color when it detects that your partner has an STD.

The condom, called S.T.EYE, won the health category at the TeenTech Awards in London, which is an annual competition that aims to inspire 11- to 16-year-olds to realize “their true potential and the real opportunities available in the contemporary STEM workplace”.

The condom has molecules in the rubber that would glow when it comes into contact with different pathogens. The condom would glow green for chlamydia, yellow for herpes, purple for human papillomavirus (HPV) and blue for syphilis.

7. TESLA’s Giant Solar Battery For Homes

In May this year, electric car company, TESLA announced it’s entry into the energy market, unveiling a suite of low-cost solar batteries for homes, businesses and utilities, “the missing piece”, it said, in the transition to a sustainable energy world.

Wall-mounted with a sleek design, the lithium-ion batteries are designed to capture and store up to 10kWh of energy from wind or solar panel. The reserves can be drawn on when sunlight is low, during power cuts or at peak demand times, when electricity costs are highest.

The smallest “Powerwall” is 1.3m by 68cm, small enough to be hung inside a garage on or an outside wall. Up to eight batteries could be “stacked” in a home.