ScienceDaily Technology Headlines
for Thursday, January 20, 2011
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Scientists generate megawatt-class laser beams for US Navy's next-generation weapon system (January 20, 2011) -- Scientists have achieved a breakthrough with the Office of Naval Research's Free Electron Laser (FEL) program, demonstrating an injector capable of producing the electrons needed to generate megawatt-class laser beams for the US Navy's next-generation weapon system. ... > full story
Scientists view genome as it turns on and off inside cells (January 20, 2011) -- Researchers have developed a new approach to decoding the vast information embedded in an organism's genome, while shedding light on exactly how cells interpret their genetic material to create RNA messages and launch new processes in the cell. ... > full story
Secrets of mysterious metal hotspots uncovered by new single molecule imaging technique (January 20, 2011) -- The secrets behind the mysterious nano-sized electromagnetic "hotspots" that appear on metal surfaces under a light are being revealed with the help of a BEAST. The results hold promise for solar energy and chemical sensing among other technologies. ... > full story
Converting 2-D photo into 3-D face for security applications and forensics (January 20, 2011) -- It is possible to construct a 3-D face from flat 2-D images, according to new research. The discovery could be used for biometrics in security applications or in forensic investigations. ... > full story
Astronomers release the largest color image of the sky ever made (January 19, 2011) -- Astronomers have produced the largest-ever map of the sky. This survey has made it possible to build an image from which a source catalog of unprecedented quality covering a large fraction of the sky has been extracted in five colors (sky cover, depth and precision of luminosity measurements). This catalog, which contains around 470 million objects (galaxies, stars, quasars, etc.), is now being published. ... > full story
Mathematical model for moving bottlenecks in road traffic (January 19, 2011) -- Vehicular traffic flow has been tackled by mathematicians, engineers and physicists alike. Mathematical approaches to study traffic are usually based on the speed, density and flow of vehicles on roadways. Mathematicians now propose a mathematical model of vehicular traffic based on a moving bottleneck caused by a slow-moving vehicle within the flow of cars. ... > full story
Gardening in space with HydroTropi (January 19, 2011) -- Plants are fundamental to life on Earth, converting light and carbon dioxide into food and oxygen. Plant growth may be an important part of human survival in exploring space, as well. Gardening in space has been part of the International Space Station from the beginning -- whether peas grown in the Lada greenhouse or experiments in the Biomass Production System. The space station offers unique opportunities to study plant growth and gravity, something that cannot be done on Earth. ... > full story
Robotic ghost knifefish is 'born' (January 19, 2011) -- Researchers have created a robotic fish that can move from swimming forward and backward to swimming vertically almost instantaneously by using a sophisticated, ribbon-like fin. The robot -- created after observing and creating computer simulations of the black ghost knifefish of the Amazon River Basin -- could pave the way for nimble robots that could perform underwater recovery operations or long-term monitoring of coral reefs. ... > full story
Partner galaxies wildly different in new WISE image (January 19, 2011) -- NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer has captured a new view of two companion galaxies -- a somewhat tranquil spiral beauty and its rambunctious partner blazing with smoky star formation. ... > full story
Killer paper for next-generation food packaging (January 19, 2011) -- Scientists are reporting development and successful lab tests of "killer paper," a material intended for use as a new food packaging material that helps preserve foods by fighting the bacteria that cause spoilage. The paper contains a coating of silver nanoparticles, which are powerful anti-bacterial agents. ... > full story
More asteroids could have made life's ingredients (January 19, 2011) -- A wider range of asteroids were capable of creating the kind of amino acids used by life on Earth, according to new NASA research. ... > full story
Advance could speed use of genetic material RNA in nanotechnology (January 19, 2011) -- Scientists are reporting an advance in overcoming a major barrier to the use of the genetic material RNA in nanotechnology -- the field that involves building machines thousands of times smaller than the width of a human hair and now is dominated by its cousin, DNA. Their findings could speed the use of RNA nanotechnology for treating disease. ... > full story
Risks, consequences of video game addiction identified in new study (January 19, 2011) -- A new study by an international research team has found further evidence that video game "addiction" exists globally and that greater amounts of gaming, lower social competence and greater impulsiveness were risk factors for becoming pathological gamers. The two-year longitudinal study of 3,034 third through eighth grade students in Singapore also found that some serious problems -- including depression, anxiety, social phobias and lower school performance -- seemed to be outcomes of their pathological play. ... > full story
New reactor paves the way for efficiently producing fuel from sunlight (January 19, 2011) -- Using a common metal most famously found in self-cleaning ovens, Sossina Haile hopes to change our energy future. The metal is cerium oxide -- or ceria -- and it is the centerpiece of a promising new technology developed by Haile and her colleagues that concentrates solar energy and uses it to efficiently convert carbon dioxide and water into fuels. ... > full story
Researcher warns of health risks with carbon nanotubes (January 19, 2011) -- Carbon nanotubes, which are extremely small fibers used in many new light and strong materials, may present health risks if inhaled, in the worst case leading to cancer, according to new research. ... > full story
Close-knit pairs of supermassive black holes discovered in merging galaxies (January 19, 2011) -- Astronomers have discovered 16 close-knit pairs of supermassive black holes in merging galaxies. These black-hole pairs, also called binaries, are about a hundred to a thousand times closer together than most that have been observed before, providing astronomers a glimpse into how these behemoths and their host galaxies merge -- a crucial part of understanding the evolution of the universe. ... > full story
When video games get problematic so do smoking, drug use and aggression (January 19, 2011) -- A new study on gaming and health in adolescents found some significant gender differences linked to gaming as well as important health risks associated with problematic gaming. The study is among the first and largest to examine possible health links to gaming and problematic gaming in a community sample of adolescents. ... > full story
Nanotech medicine to rebuild damaged parts of human body (January 19, 2011) -- To rebuild damaged parts of a human body from scratch is a dream that has long fired human imagination, from Mary Shelley's Doctor Frankenstein to modern day surgeons. Now scientists have made a promising contribution to reconstructive surgery, thanks to an original multidisciplinary approach matching cutting-edge medicine to the latest developments in nanotechnology. ... > full story
Cellular traffic: Factors beyond crowding affect how molecules interact within cells, modeling shows (January 19, 2011) -- Using large-scale computer simulations, researchers have identified the most important factors affecting how molecules move through the crowded environment inside living cells. The findings suggest that perturbations caused by hydrodynamic interactions -- similar to what happens when the wake from a large boat affects smaller boats on a lake -- may be the most important factor in this intracellular diffusion. ... > full story
Oxidation mechanisms at gold nanoclusters unraveled (January 19, 2011) -- Researchers believe that the puzzle of catalytic gold is now partially solved. Gold can catalyze an oxidation reaction by first oxidizing itself. New research evidence on gold-oxide phase at room temperature and atmospheric pressure help us to finally understand the oxidation mechanisms of catalytic gold nanoclusters in these conditions. ... > full story
In distant galaxies, new clues to century-old molecule mystery (January 18, 2011) -- In a study that pushes the limits of observations currently possible from Earth, a team of NASA and European scientists recorded the "fingerprints" of mystery molecules in two distant galaxies, Andromeda and the Triangulum. Astronomers can count on one hand the number of galaxies examined so far for such fingerprints, which are thought to belong to large organic molecules. ... > full story
Keeping your digital secrets safe: Researchers develop security application to keep private data private (January 18, 2011) -- Researchers have developed a GPS application, Locacino, based on better security design. It provides users with a higher degree of control over their privacy settings, as well as a glimpse into how people really share information between friends over the Internet. ... > full story
Breakthrough in converting heat waste to electricity: Automotive, chemical, brick and glass industries could benefit from discovery (January 18, 2011) -- Researchers have placed nanocrystals of rock salt into lead telluride, creating a material that can harness electricity from heat-generating items such as vehicle exhaust systems, industrial processes and equipment and sun light more efficiently than scientists have seen in the past. ... > full story
New synthetic compound created with HIV-fighting promise (January 18, 2011) -- Using chemical compounds found in a Japanese plant as a lead and the clever application of ultraviolet light, a research team has created a unique library of dozens of synthetic compounds to test for biomedical potential. Already, one of the compounds has shown great promise in inhibiting replication of HIV particles and fighting inflammation. ... > full story
Scientists develop 3-D model of the ionosphere F-region (January 18, 2011) -- The first global simulation study of equatorial spread F (ESF) bubble evolution using a comprehensive 3-D ionosphere model, SAMI3, has been demonstrated. The model self-consistently solves for the neutral wind driven dynamo electric field and the gravity driven electric field associated with plasma bubbles. ... > full story
Pulsating star that hosts a giant planet discovered (January 18, 2011) -- Researchers in Spain have discovered, for the first time, a delta Scuti pulsating star that hosts a hot giant transiting planet. WASP-33 (also known as HD15082) is hotter, more massive than the Sun (1.5 Msun) and is located at a distance of 378 light years away, in the constellation of Andromeda. It has the peculiarity of being a star that pulsates radially, like a balloon that inflates and deflates continuously, and non-radially, like the tides in Earth's oceans caused by the presence of the moon, which deforms the bodies of water between the poles and the equator. ... > full story
Magnetically controlled pill could boost body's absorption of drugs (January 18, 2011) -- Many drugs can only be absorbed in very specific parts of the intestine. Scientists have now developed a new system that can safely hold a magnetic gelatin capsule in place anywhere in the gastrointestinal tract of a rat. In humans, the system could improve drug delivery and pharmacological research. ... > full story
Radiometer finds sources of fire (January 18, 2011) -- Forest fires usually spread out of control very quickly. Fires that produce a lot of smoke are particularly challenging for the emergency services, because the source of the fire is then especially hard to find. A new radiometric sensor can pinpoint the heart of the flames, even when visibility is limited. ... > full story
New molecular imaging technologies for detecting cellular processes (January 18, 2011) -- Researchers in Spain have designed and developed a biomedical scanner that detects cellular processes at the molecular level and indicates malfunctioning of an organ before said malfunction can produce an anatomical change. ... > full story
Off-the-shelf electronics turn up gain on spectroscopy (January 18, 2011) -- A new twist on spectroscopy allows for an unprecedented level of such filtering, one that could transform everything from the search for extraterrestrial intelligence to super-sensitive spy gear to scan hotel rooms for hidden microphones or cameras. ... > full story
Physicists observe exotic state in an unconventional superconductor (January 17, 2011) -- A new fractional vortex state observed in an unconventional superconductor may offer the first glimpse of an exotic state of matter predicted theoretically for more than 30 years. Physicists observed a new fractional vortex state in strontium ruthenium oxide. Such states may provide the basis for a novel form of quantum computing in which quantum information is encoded in the topological properties of a physical system. ... > full story
Silicon microdevices show promise for detecting metastatic breast cancer cells (January 17, 2011) -- Research by engineers and cancer biologists indicates that using specific silicon microdevices might provide a new way to screen breast cancer cells' ability to metastasize. ... > full story
Chandra images torrent of star formation (January 17, 2011) -- A new Chandra X-ray Observatory image of Messier 82, or M82, shows the result of star formation on overdrive. At a distance of only 12 million light years, M82 provides a unique cosmic laboratory for studying conditions similar to those that existed billions of years ago when stars were forming at a furious rate in most galaxies. ... > full story
CT helps identify bullet trajectories (January 17, 2011) -- Multidetector computed tomography provides an efficient, effective way to analyze wounds from bullets and explosive devices, according to a new study. ... > full story
New technique to see neurons of the deep brain for months at a time (January 17, 2011) -- Researchers have developed a new technique that allows them to monitor the tiny branches of neurons in a live brain for months at a time. Neuroscientists will now be able to monitor the microscopic changes that occur over the course of progressive brain disease. ... > full story
The 'Spaser' heats up laser technology (January 17, 2011) -- While lasers have revolutionized medicine and telecommunications, their size limits their use in many industries. The "Spaser" is now being tested in prototype as a practical tool by research teams around the world and may overcome these limitations. ... > full story
Improved measurements of sun to advance understanding of climate change (January 17, 2011) -- Scientists have taken a major step toward accurately determining the amount of energy that the sun provides to Earth, and how variations in that energy may contribute to climate change. ... > full story
Interactive window shopping: Just wave your hands (January 17, 2011) -- Researchers want to make shopping trips a special experience in future by enabling passers-by to operate window displays with hand and facial gestures. Four cameras record the 3-D positions of people's hands, face and eyes and transform them into commands for selecting and purchase goods -- even after the shop has closed. ... > full story
Researchers can predict your video game aptitude by imaging your brain (January 16, 2011) -- Researchers report that they can predict "with unprecedented accuracy" how well you will do on a complex task such as a strategic video game simply by analyzing activity in a specific region of your brain. ... > full story
Quantum quirk contained: Discovery moves quantum networks closer to reality (January 16, 2011) -- Researchers are working on a way to make quantum networks a reality. They have demonstrated, for the first time, that a crystal can store information encoded into entangled quantum states of photons. ... > full story
Self-assembling structures open door to new class of materials (January 15, 2011) -- Researchers have demonstrated bio-inspired structures that self-assemble from simple building blocks: spheres. The helical "supermolecules" are made of tiny colloid balls instead of atoms or molecules. Similar methods could be used to make new materials with the functionality of complex colloidal molecules. ... > full story
Improving plants: New software quantifies leaf venation networks, enables plant biology advances (January 15, 2011) -- Plant biologists are facing pressure to breed plants that can respond to changing environments. One method of monitoring the response of plants to different environments is by studying their vein network patterns. To help address the challenge of how to quickly examine a large quantity of leaves, researchers have developed a user-assisted software tool that extracts macroscopic vein structures directly from leaf images. ... > full story
Living cells used to create 'biotic' video games (January 14, 2011) -- The digital revolution has triggered a wild proliferation of video games, but what of the revolution in biotechnology? Does it have the potential to spawn its own brood of games? A physicist has begun developing "biotic games" involving paramecia and other living organisms. He hopes the games will lead to advances in education and crowd-sourcing of laboratory research while helping to raise the level of public discourse on bio-related issues. ... > full story
Best way to measure dark energy just got better (January 14, 2011) -- Dark energy is a mysterious force that pervades all space, acting as a "push" to accelerate the universe's expansion. Despite being 70 percent of the universe, dark energy was only discovered in 1998 by two teams observing Type Ia supernovae. A Type 1a supernova is a cataclysmic explosion of a white dwarf star. The best way of measuring dark energy just got better, thanks to a new study of Type Ia supernovae. ... > full story
New technique could pinpoint 'Galaxy X': Satellite galaxies located based on the ripples they create in the hydrogen gas (January 14, 2011) -- Many galaxies have smaller satellites, but astronomers can't see them all because many are composed of dark matter. Astronomers have developed a way to find dark satellite galaxies by analyzing the ripples in the hydrogen gas distribution in spiral galaxies. The technique allowed Sukanya Chakrabarti to predict the existence of a satellite of the Milky Way, which is obscured from view because it sits on the opposite side of the galaxy from Earth. ... > full story
Fastest movie in the world recorded: Method to film nanostructures developed (January 14, 2011) -- Processes at a molecular level are minuscule and often extremely fast, and therefore difficult to capture in action. Scientists have taken a good step towards producing a "molecular movie". They can record two pictures at such a short time interval that it will soon be possible to observe molecules and nanostructures in real time. ... > full story
Trapped sunlight cleans water (January 14, 2011) -- High energy costs are one drawback of making clean water from waste effluents. Now a new system that combines two different technologies proposes to break down contaminants using the cheapest possible energy source, sunlight. ... > full story
Driving simulators help older adults improve their road skills (January 14, 2011) -- Older drivers could benefit from training programs that put them behind the wheel -- in a driving simulator, with an observer who helps them develop their skills, according to a new article. ... > full story
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