Air quality

Asus has added a new layer of utility to the humble computer monitor by cooking in an ionizer system to purify the air around you as you work. Two Full HD models are available at launch, along with a curved WQHD flavor.

Because many cyclists ride all over town, they encounter a wide range of air quality – more so than could be monitored by stationary sensors. The bar-mounted Air was designed with that in mind, as it measures the air quality while its user pedals.

Scientists have developed what they claim is the smallest particle sensor in the world, designed specifically to detect harmful pollutants and offer a highly localized picture of air quality by being integrated into wearables and mobile devices.

A new solar-powered catalyst made of graphene and titanium dioxide nanoparticles can pluck pollutants out of the air, much more efficiently than others. The catalyst could be coated onto building or street surfaces to improve air quality in cities.

​​We've seen some interesting ways that augmented reality can inform purchasing decisions. A new app called Plant Life Balance takes a similar approach, drawing on scientific research to help users kit out their homes with just the right amount of air and soul-cleansing plants. ​

Ideas like building apartment blocks that double as air-cleaning towers are becoming an increasingly entertain-able proposition. The latest metropolis to green-light such a project is Paris, which will welcome a new wooden structure to be shrouded in thousands of trees and plants.

​The vision of Italian architect Stefano Boeri is starting to take shape around the world. Now the Chinese region of Liuzhou will also play home to some of his handiwork, with construction underway on a so-called Forest City that is hoped to soak up some of the country's infamous air pollution.