Instructions: In this task, you are given a text of many news articles seperated by special token "|||||". Your task is to summarize them.
Input: A 200-square-foot slab of seemingly ordinary concrete sits just outside the Peter Kiewit Institute as snowflakes begin parachuting toward Omaha on a frigid afternoon in late December. 
  
 The snow accumulates on the grass surrounding the slab and initially clings to the concrete, too. But as the minutes pass and the snow begins melting from only its surface, the slab reveals its secret: Like razors, stoves and guitars before it, this concrete has gone electric. 
  
 Its designer, UNL professor of civil engineering Chris Tuan, has added a pinch of steel shavings and a dash of carbon particles to a recipe that has literally been set in concrete for centuries. Though the newest ingredients constitute just 20 percent of Tuan’s otherwise standard concrete mixture, they conduct enough electricity to melt ice and snow in the worst winter storms while remaining safe to the touch. 
  
 Tuan’s research team is demonstrating the concrete’s de-icing performance to the Federal Aviation Administration during a testing phase that runs through March 2016. If the FAA is satisfied with the results, Tuan said the administration will consider scaling up the tests by integrating the technology into the tarmac of a major U.S. airport. 
  
 “To my surprise, they don’t want to use it for the runways,” Tuan said. “What they need is the tarmac around the gated areas cleared, because they have so many carts to unload – luggage service, food service, trash service, fuel service – that all need to get into those areas. 
  
 “They said that if we can heat that kind of tarmac, then there would be (far fewer) weather-related delays. We’re very optimistic.” 
  
 A unique bridge that resides about 15 miles south of Lincoln has given Tuan reason to feel confident. In 2002, Tuan and the Nebraska Department of Roads made the 150-foot Roca Spur Bridge the world’s first to incorporate conductive concrete. Inlaid with 52 conductive slabs that successfully de-iced its surface during a five-year trial run, the bridge exemplifies the sort of targeted site that Tuan envisions for the technology. 
  
 “Bridges always freeze up first, because they’re exposed to the elements on top and bottom,” Tuan said. “It’s not cost-effective to build entire roadways using conductive concrete, but you can use it at certain locations where you always get ice or have potholes.” 
  
 Potholes often originate from the liberal use of salt or de-icing chemicals that can corrode concrete and contaminate groundwater over time, Tuan said, making the conductive concrete an appealing alternative with lower operating and maintenance costs. The power required to thermally de-ice the Roca Spur Bridge during a three-day storm typically costs about $250 – several times less than a truckload of chemicals, he said. 
  
 Tuan said the conductive concrete could also prove feasible for high-traffic intersections, exit ramps, driveways and sidewalks. Yet the technology offers another, very different application that doesn’t even require electric current. 
  
 Catching the next wave 
  
 By replacing the limestone and sand typically used in concrete with a mineral called magnetite, Tuan has shown that the mixture can also shield against electromagnetic waves. The electromagnetic spectrum includes the radiofrequency waves transmitted and received by cell phones, which Tuan said could make the concrete mixture useful to those concerned about becoming targets of industrial espionage. 
  
 Using the magnetite-embedded concrete, Tuan and his colleagues have built a small structure in their laboratory that demonstrates the material’s shielding capabilities. 
  
 “We invite parties that are interested in the technology to go in there and try to use their cell phones,” said Tuan, who has patented his design through NUtech Ventures. “And they always receive a no-service message.” 
  
 While Tuan’s collaborations have him dreaming big about the future of conductive concrete, he’s currently enjoying its benefits much closer to home. 
  
 “I have a patio in my backyard that is made of conductive concrete,” he said with a laugh. “So I’m practicing what I preach.” 
  
 Tuan developed the concrete with the assistance of Lim Nguyen, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering; Bing Chen, professor of electrical and computer engineering; and Sherif Yehia, a professor at the American University of Sharjah who earned his doctorate in civil engineering at UNL. The FAA is currently funding the team’s research, which has also received past support from the Nebraska Department of Roads. ||||| LINCOLN, Neb., Jan. 26 (UPI) -- Researchers at the University of Nebraska are testing a new type of concrete that could make clearing snow-covered streets a bit easier. The concrete is designed to carry an electric current, helping it melt snow without the help of a salt truck or plow. 
  
 The conductive concrete is made by adding carbon particles and steel shavings to a traditional asphalt mix. The additives make up just 20 percent of the mixture. Once hardened, the composite material can carry a current just strong enough to melt snow and ice while remaining safe to the human touch. 
  
 Currently, the concrete occupies a 200-square-foot space outside Nebraska's Peter Kiewit Institute, where scientists are monitoring its performance during the Midwest's winter months. 
  
 "When you use conducting concrete, the entire concrete heats up," lead researcher Chris Tuan, a professor of civil engineering at Nebraska, told National Geographic. "There is no cold area." 
  
 The research is supported by funding from the FAA, which is considering employing the concrete in airport tarmacs. 
  
 "To my surprise, they don't want to use it for the runways," Tuan said in a press release. "What they need is the tarmac around the gated areas cleared, because they have so many carts to unload -- luggage service, food service, trash service, fuel service -- that all need to get into those areas." 
  
 "They said that if we can heat that kind of tarmac, then there would be (far fewer) weather-related delays," Tuan said. "We're very optimistic." 
  
 Though it wouldn't be cost-effective to pave entire roads with the new conductive concrete, the material could be use in strategic locations -- bridges, high-traffic intersections, exit ramps, parking decks, driveways and sidewalks. 
  
 Sending a current through a few hundred slabs or concrete in a bridge costs much less than a truckload of salt and de-icing chemicals. Those chemicals can also prove corrosive, encouraging potholes that cost time and money to fix. 
  
 Tuan hopes to eventually install sensors that would make the concrete and its current automated, allowing an even more hands-off approach to de-icing. But it may be some time before the concrete is put to good use by municipalities. 
  
 While city governments and contractors may be wary of electric concrete, Tuan is a true believer and an early adopter. 
  
 "I have a patio in my backyard that is made of conductive concrete," he said. "So I'm practicing what I preach." ||||| View Images A snow plow cleared a road in Arlington, Virginia, Saturday as a huge storm paralyzed travel in the U.S. Northeast. Specially formulated concrete could help reduce ice and snow delays by heating up, but it faces cost hurdles. 
  
 Photograph by John McDonnell, The Washington Post/Getty Images 
  
 Here’s a sight that will melt the heart of any post-blizzard commuter: Pavement that stays clear even as snow descends. 
  
 A special concrete mix, studded with electricity-conducting ingredients, could help airports and other places run on time during inclement weather — such as the weekend blizzard that paralyzed the U.S. Northeast. 
  
 Watch Conductive Concrete Melt Snow WATCH: A time lapse filmed over a four-hour period shows conductive concrete melting fresh snow from its surface. Video: Chris Tuan and Lim Nguyen, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 
  
 So the Federal Aviation Administration is funding research to make this costly conductive concrete more affordable. 
  
 The new formula being tested at University of Nebraska-Lincoln uses byproducts from the coal and steel industries to reduce costs 60 percent compared to earlier trials, according to professor of civil engineering Chris Tuan. The 200-square-foot patch has embedded steel rods attached to electrodes, he says, that connect to a 120-volt AC power source. The conductivity comes from “coke breeze,” a carbon byproduct of coal mining, and steel shavings that are considered industrial waste. 
  
 "We keep it barely above freezing … somewhere around 40 degrees,” Tuan says, noting it doesn’t take much heat to make the slab impervious to snow. “It doesn’t get hot at all." 
  
 Some heated driveways and roads use a system of underground coils, or radiant heat, but Tuan says they provide uneven warming, with cold spots in-between the tubes. 
  
 "When you use conducting concrete, the entire concrete heats up,” he says. “There is no cold area." He adds that his system is virtually maintenance-free, and takes only about 13 watts of energy per square foot. 
  
 While the concept seems perfect for airport runways, the FAA is more interested in using it for tarmacs. Runways offer plenty of space to run big snowplows. The real bottleneck, Tuan says, occurs at the gates, where luggage and fuel carriers have to compete with smaller snow-clearing vehicles. 
  
 The idea of pavement that conducts power has been around for at least two decades, so why hasn’t it caught on? 
  
 Deborah D. L. Chung, an engineering professor at University at Buffalo - SUNY who has long studied conductive concrete, says cost is “the biggest hurdle” when it comes to adopting new materials. 
  
 “A new concrete formulation needs very, very thorough field testing before contractors would dare to use it, because there are liability issues,” Chung says. “To get a new concrete to be accepted by contractors, it's a long haul." 
  
 Roads and airports aren’t the only places conductive concrete can be useful. Because it can block electromagnetic waves, Chung says it can protect electrical equipment from lightning strikes or other big power surges. Tuan also sees a possibility for cellphone communication blocking in high-security buildings. 
  
 He installed a system in 2003 for the 150-foot Roca Spur highway bridge in Lincoln. The five-year trial went well. He says de-icing the bridge during a three-day storm typically cost $250, many times less than the cost of plowing and chemicals, which can also decrease the life of concrete. But then the state turned the system off. 
  
 “Nobody’s going to monitor the bridge or collect data,” Tuan says, “or turn the power on and off.” 
  
 In the future, he wants to develop sensors and controls that would allow conductive concrete slabs to be automated, turning them on when storms approach and shutting them off when no longer needed. 
  
 Tuan hopes to get the green light this spring for a second phase of the FAA project, which would involve a building prototype system in Atlantic City, N.J. He’s also seeking investment from China, where he installed two demonstration parking ramps in the notoriously icy city of Harbin. 
  
 In the meantime, one of Tuan’s pilot systems is still around more than 10 years after he installed it: It’s the patio in his Nebraska backyard. 
  
 The story is part of a special series that explores energy issues. For more, visit The Great Energy Challenge. |||||
Output:
Get ready for some electrifying concrete news. No, seriously. UPI reports researchers at the University of Nebraska are developing conductive concrete that uses electricity to keep itself free of snow and ice during even the worst winter storms. Sounds like something the East Coast could've used this week. The winter-defeating concrete is made with 80% traditional asphalt and 20% "carbon particles and steel shavings." It carries enough current to heat itself to 40 degrees, according to National Geographic. That's enough to melt snow and ice but not to hurt people, UPI reports. Funding for the concrete comes from the FAA, which hopes to use it in tarmacs. “They said that if we can heat that kind of tarmac, then there would be (far fewer) weather-related delays," civil engineering professor Chris Tuan says in a press release. "We're very optimistic." The idea for conductive concrete has been around for decades, and a test of Tuan's design kept a Nebraska bridge clear during the winter back in the early 2000s, National Geographic reports. So why are we still shoveling our driveways like chumps? One expert says cost and liability concerns are to blame. Tuan has addressed that first concern by using waste from the coal and steel industries in his concrete, reducing the manufacturing cost by 60%. And he notes that once the concrete is installed, it costs less to heat than to use salt or chemicals, according to UPI. And while it's too expensive for use on entire roads, the conductive concrete could be used for busy intersections, driveways, and other "strategic locations." (Yellowstone closed a road because it was melting.)